Frederick Buechner

I struggled early in preaching to convey abstract theological concepts in common, everyday speech. I often turned to the book, Wishful Thinking, to help in this endeavor.  Its author, Frederick Buechner (1926-2022) wrote novels and short stories with Christian themes.  Buechner (pronounced Beek-ner) was asked in an interview, “Do you envision a particular audience when you write?” He answered, “I always hope to reach people who don’t want to touch religion with a ten-foot pole.” This would explain his wide appeal in religious and secular circles alike. I admire his quick wit, generous sense of humor and storytelling ability.  His first novel, A Long Day’s Death, published in 1950 when he was twenty-three, received critical acclaim and became a monetary success. He followed it two years later with a second novel that received less favorable reviews and was regarded as a commercial failure.  He experienced writer’s block and felt the need to address the spiritual emptiness in his life. He began attending Madison Avenue Presbyterian church in New York and was inspired by the preaching of George Buttrick. His decision to enter seminary came as a surprise to those who knew him.  Even George Buttrick, whose sermons had an enormous impact on him, observed, “It would be a shame to lose a good novelist for a mediocre preacher.”  After seminary, Frederick resumed writing and established a religion department at Phillips Exeter Academy. I’m intrigued by what he wrote about his nine years at Exeter, “My job was to defend the Christian faith against its cultural despisers.” After Exeter, he turned to writing full time and turned-out thirty novels.
He wrote a memoir in his mid-seventies titled The Eyes of the Heart: A Memoir of the Lost and Found. One entry was a prayer written on behalf of his brother dying of cancer: