Suffer the Children
Novellas, Short Stories, and a Parable
- Fiction
- Publisher: Resource Publications (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2021
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Publisher's Description
The stories in Suffer the Children dramatize a generation's mingled faith and doubt. "Suffer the Children," the title novella, follows the divergent faith journeys of three baby boomers raised in the same Presbyterian church through pivotal moments in their lives until they converge at a funeral. In "Simple Gifts," a childless and recently fatherless man questions the nature of charity on a church mission to Kenya. Two unlikely friends, one Christian and one Jewish, pursue an interfaith discussion in "The Disputation" in the context of graduate school, which poses its own challenges to their identity. "The Last Miracle: Incident at Nain" recounts a New Testament story from a fresh perspective. In "The Rapture," a pastor questions whether the non-attending spouse of one of his members can be saved--or whether, since he seems so happy, he needs to be saved. A college campus is the setting of "The Recommendation," the story of a student and a perplexing professor who seems to hold, or rather withhold, the answers to life's big questions. "The Passenger" follows the experience of a spiritual seeker led by an enigmatic dream to consider a new life in the church.
Endorsements (2)
“Suffer the Children is a beautifully written collection of short fiction—the stories are gentle, deeply thoughtful, and impressively learned. ‘The Letter of Recommendation’ story has all these virtues, plus suspense and a delightful wit. McCutcheon’s characters are real people engaged in real thought—something rare and memorable.”
“In these beautifully written stories, Robert McCutcheon examines the life of faith from a variety of perspectives: missionary work in Kenya, men who find fellowship in a locker room, a favorite professor’s suicide. His characters seem conventional, but the conclusions they reach are not. People of faith will find much to ponder in this thoughtful and probing collection.”
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