Into a Reluctant Sunrise

Lingle (Credulous), editor of the Missional Wisdom Foundation, mixes poetry, art, and theology to reflect on life and faith after a stillbirth in this gorgeous memoir. After her fourth child dies in the womb, Lingle navigates a long process of aching, angry grief. A Christian, she finds that the comforts of her faith are suddenly meaningless, even offensive, in the face of tragedy. She reevaluates familiar stories like Noah’s ark and questions the goodness and existence of God: “This is a crisis of grammar. Not: Why, God? But: Why God?” Gradually, her faith and identity re-form as she patches together new meaning from ancient sources, particularly the sacraments, and by drawing on the beauty of nature. The book itself becomes part of this patchwork as Lingle creates a space for grieving readers to explore and reconnect to their own spiritual beliefs. As she moves forward, she affirms a faith of doubt and joy mixed with tragedy, and celebrates the ongoing role of her lost daughter in her life: “If I choose to live in denial of the Divine, I will have to deny the divine within myself and within all my children and my daughter will truly die.” Lingle’s intimate, heartfelt story is a soothing balm for the loneliness and disorientation of loss. [em](Aug.) [/em]