God ... for a Monday Morning

Brian Burch is a teacher, writer and poet and author of Still Under the
Thumb.

Perhaps I have been spoiled by the writings of Tom Harpur, Lois Wilson, and Desmond Tutu. I expect religious writing to be challenging and hopeful, not merely gently comforting. William Hockin’s book God ... for a Monday Morning is a collection of biblically-based reflections that are pleasant to read but lack any theological on pastoral depth.

Hockin deals with very serious issues — like grieving over the death of a loved one and the stresses of living a compassionate life — in a superficial manner. We are given impressions that God is like an over-indulgent grandparent who will make all things good but very little is offered in the way of helping readers come to an understanding of how daily suffering and strivings can be dealt with by those who are not on good terms with their “grandparent” god. Good religious writing does not assume an unquestioning faith on the part of readers; Hockin obviously does.

Hockin’s one real strength is his ability to make people feel good about themselves. While I expect more of a challenge to my faith and intellect in religious writings than is apparent in God ... for a Monday Morning, I do admit that Hockin’s book evokes a feeling of tranquility and acceptance of one’s life.

Perhaps the difficulty is one of media, not necessarily of content. The reflections in this collection would work well as sermons, and perhaps the voice of a dynamic speaker is necessary for the ideas of Williarn Hockin to have full impact. Perhaps a sermon that consists of one of Hockin’s essays, however, would merely hide the hollowness of ideas in his work.