Ministry without Madness by Gordon Oliver
(SPCK 2012, £9.99)
A Fulcrum Review by Helen Hancock
Before I was asked to review this book I had actually already pre-ordered my own copy, looking forward to what I expected would be an honest, helpful and humorous look at ministry from Gordon Oliver. My enthusiasm was two-fold. I had heard the author speak very movingly about the challenges and joys of ordained ministry during my training at SEITE. His remarkable and very winning mixture of almost naïve wonder and passion for ministry mixed with great experience as a parish priest and trainer had made a great impression on me and my peers. But I had also been struck by the marketing hype about the book which promised it would be an exploration of the covenant between priest and people. So, I came to the book with high expectations and good will and these were not disappointed. I also came to it hoping it would solve the problem of writing my last essay during my IME training. It did this as well and gave me some helpful pointers in my search for incumbency and the inevitable transition which that would involve.
Much of the book is about stories. There are numerous stories of clergy who Oliver has met in his life and whose stories helpfully illustrate the point which he is making. Sometimes, just when I was not entirely sure of where Oliver was going (and that isn’t intended in anyway to be a reflection on Oliver’s writing style) or I needed a ‘for instance’ there was a vignette of parish life to expand the point, making his writing accessible and very human. These, combined with the complimentary use of questions for reflection and discussion at the end of the chapter and useful sub-chapter conclusions make for a well- integrated read.
The ‘madness’ of the title is perhaps a more inflammatory term than its reality in the book which looks at the topsy-turvy nature of the Kingdom of God (which Oliver pithily defines as ‘life lived on God’s terms’) and the ‘foolishness’ which that requires. He writes movingly of the ‘gospel of vulnerability’ from which we are called to live, especially in the face of prevailing ‘power scripts’. There is the unmistakable outline of the ‘impostor syndrome’ through much of the book, although Oliver never names it this.
What I particularly like about this book is the many happy and concise turns of phrase which seem to trip from Oliver’s keyboard. It makes me want to digest his ideas, remember them (and use them in a sermon sometime!). Concepts of ‘faith imagination’ and our calling to be ‘publicly and locally, holy and human’, a model of leadership based on friendship and the importance of ideas having a ‘delivery value’ all deserve re-visiting probably more than once.
As a relative newcomer to all this I found the book an inspiration and a helpful take on the kaleidoscope of ministry. For those with more experience, the book might help to re-awaken perhaps jaded vocations. For those who are in the thick of it, not quite sure whether they are swimming or sinking, waving or drowning, it may help them to realise that they are not alone and hopefully encourage them to share the lonely burdens which they are carrying.
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Revd Helen Hancock is Curate of St Andrew and St Mark, Surbiton
