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Propelled into Wonder
Poems of a Priest
Illustrated by Sarah White
Foreword by Simon Ponsonby
Imprint: Resource Publications
Propelled into Wonder is the captivating debut poetry collection from British poet-priest Matthew White. The poems that inhabit this book are the produce of a life permeated by a myriad of hopes and heartache and demand to be felt as well as read. Featuring reflections on faith, doubt, love, beauty, leadership and loss, these poems are sure to inspire, provoke, amuse and disturb. Complete with beautiful hand-drawn illustrations, Propelled into Wonder is an invitation to pay attention, to undress the soul, and to exhale. In these pages, Matthew White offers psalms for today that have been forged in the excoriating furnace of surrender. This book is offered as raw testimony to the unrelenting advances of grace and that great redeeming light which waltzes our shadows into splendor.
Matthew White is a poet, theologian, singer-songwriter and musician who serves as an ordained Anglican priest in the Church of England. Together with his talented wife Sarah, they attempt to parent three lively and delightful children and one very silly dog.
“When faith lies flattened by moralism and power-grabbing, when we've lost our shock over the Holy, we need a few poet–priests to step to the fore and give us their fiery, wonderstruck lines. Thank God, that's exactly what's happening here in these pages.”
—Winn Collier, author of Love Big, Be Well and A Burning in My Bones and director of the Eugene Peterson Center for Christian Imagination
“This poet–priest serves well both earth and heaven, joining them to celebrate the voice of the God who speaks into our own earth–language the echoes of heaven as they arrive to his attentive, listening ear.”
—Luci Shaw, author of numerous poetry collections including Reversing Entropy
“Absolutely beautiful. Poems from the heart. I love them!”
—Anton Lesser, actor known for his roles in Game of Thrones, Wolf Hall, The Crown, Endeavour, and Star Wars: Andor
“This collection has a homiletic core, and I am struck by the humility, humanity, honesty and humor of these poems. Matthew White’s work continues the beautiful tradition of the Metaphyscial poets and is especially reminiscent of John Donne and even more so, George Herbert.”
—Paul Mariani, poet, author and winner of the John Ciardi Award for Lifetime Achievement in Poetry as well as the Flannery O’Connor Lifetime Achievement Award from Loyola University, Chicago
“These poems will reach straight into your body and squeeze your heart tight. Thought-provoking and achingly emotive, Matthew has an honesty and witty grit, no doubt honed at the frontline of all that is life, which cuts through many layers to land soul–deep.”
—Donna Ashworth, Sunday Times bestselling author and poet
“A deeply raw and moving collection of poems, this is not for readers who want to ignore the twists, turns and depths of humanity, but rather embrace every crevice. Rather than wallowing in the difficulties and mourning that are all part of the human condition, Matt’s stirring faith and redirection towards Jesus offers readers hope and solace within the pain. A beautiful and reflective read for deep thinkers and feelers.”
—Lauren Windle, author of Notes on Love: Being Single and Dating in a Marriage Obsessed Church, and Notes on Feminism: Being a Woman in a Church Led by Men
“With words as pastoral as they are poetic, gentle as they are stirring, Matthew has, like a true psalmist, written a collection that leaves no stone of the human story unturned. As you move through these pages, you’ll find yourself walking the terrain of grief and wonder, beauty and connection, guided by a man who has paid for his words.”
—Joshua Luke Smith, poet, rapper, producer and founder of The Psalmists