If you meet George Herbert on the road, kill him - by Justin Lewis-Anthony (Paperback)

About the Book

At a time of uncertainty for the Church, this robust challenge to an outmoded style of ministry offers realistic encouragement for the future.

Book Synopsis

Priestly ministry in the Church of England needs a radical rethink...

George Herbert died in 1633. His legacy continues. His poems are read and sung, and his parish ministry remains the model for the Church of England's understanding of how and where and why its priests should minister. But there is a problem. The memory of Herbert celebrated by the Church is an inaccurate one, and, in its inaccuracy, is unfair on Herbert himself and his successors in the ordained ministry.

This is a book of the long view. It sets out to assess realistically the context of Herbert's life and to explore the difficulties of parish life today. By examining the status and role of parish clergy since Herbert's time and today, it draws on the work of historians, social anthropologists, psychologists and theologians, and presents their ideas in a readable and passionate style. It argues that the future strength of parochial ministry will be found in a recovery of historic, renewed understandings of priestly ministry, and concludes by outlining more sustainable patterns of practice for the future.

In a climate of uncertainty for the future of the church, it will be an encouragement for priest and people, and welcomed by both.

Review Quotes

"...a well-informed account of Herbert in context...good to be reintroduced to the giants...full of good material...enjoys an attractive, opinionated style...has a gift for sharp anecdotes...presents a helpful range of authorities..." Church Times, September 2009

"Justin Lewis-Anthony plumbs a plethora of sources...and deploys anecdotal evidence to pleasing effect." www.portsmouthcathedral.org.uk/documents/Sep09Newsletter.pdf
Catholic Herald

"What kept me reading was the skilful way in which the author used the writings of such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Michael Ramsey, Vincent Donovan and others to make his case." Baptist Times, September 2009

About the Author

Justin Lewis-Anthony is Rector of St Stephen's Church, Canterbury, and Associate Lecturer in the European Cultures and Languages Section of the University of Kent at Canterbury. Formerly Precentor of Christ Church, Oxford, he has lectured, and led retreats, on film, popular culture and theology, and pastoralia in Canterbury, Oxford, Salisbury, London, Exeter, Chelmsford, St Albans, St Deiniol's Library, and North America.