Saddened to hear of the recent passing of Frederick Buechner, whose writings have routinely inspired us here at Mbird, appearing in numerous articles over the years. A handful of the these are below, but it’s probably appropriate to begin with what Buechner wrote on the resurrection of Jesus:
The essential message [of Easter] is that nothing, no horror can happen that can permanently, irrevocably quench the presence of holiness that is always there “underneath the everlasting arms.” No matter what dreadful things take place, that remains the heart of reality. There is that wonderful thing from the British saint, Julian of Norwich: “All shall be well, and all manner of things will be well.” That somehow remains true no matter what. That’s, I think, the message of Easter. Yes, this hideous death of a good man abandoned, as it would seem, by God. Yet the best has come out of it, which is this nourishing current of hope and new life that still flows in spite of everything. There must be a God. How else could it happen? Why else would it happen?
Martin Luther said once, “If I were God, I’d kick the world to pieces.” But Martin Luther wasn’t God. God is God, and God has never kicked the world to pieces. He keeps reentering the world, keeps offering himself to the world — by grace, keeps somehow blessing the world, making possible a kind of life which we all, in our deepest being, hunger for.
“A Broth of False and True”: Frederick Buechner’s Godric
Frederick Buechner on the Confusion of Faces
Frederick Buechner on the Annunciation
The Crucial Eccentricity of the Christian Faith (According to Frederick Buechner)
Christmas Itself Is by Grace: Frederick Buechner Riffs on the Incarnation
COMMENTS
3 responses to “In Memoriam”
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RIP. Buechner was an instrumental voice in my early growth as a Christian 40 years ago. Just this spring, my wife and I started rereading him together. Such odd timing, and now he has passed. Thank you, Frederick.
Thanks for referring to his body of work, I look forward to learning more.
One quibble: shouldn’t it be “In Memoriam,” as opposed to memorandum? Or is there an intentional pun here I’m missing?
Double bonus points, Pierre! You are correct. It was an autocorrect error…