Charles C. Finn Knihy

Gentle Warrior John Yungblut--likely challenging and possibly disturbing--presents a radical revisioning of the Christian myth which will fit into the preconceptions neither of creedal Christians holding to a literal, exclusive faith nor of critics of Christianity who have left it behind with a "good riddance!" Make no mistake, his pacifist leanings notwithstanding, John Yungblut was a warrior. He loved Christianity too much not to fight for its life. He passionately believed that, uninformed by evolutionary and depth psychological revelations of the past century and a half, traditional Christianity is not only increasingly antiquated and irrelevant but actually an obstruction to the emergence of a spirituality of the Earth. If you know yourself to be drawn both to the interior life of a contemplative and to the outward manifestation of this life in action on behalf of peace and social justice, and if you have yet to meet the mind and spirit of John Yungblut, you have awaiting you a magnificent discovery.

Full Heart Letters and Poems to a Girlchildby Charles C. Finn

The poems in Contemplatively Sweet incline more towards being than becoming.They are slow-down, pondering poems, coaxing the reader to mull and muse andsavor. While arranged in the order they were written, there is no "story line" with either beginning or end. The reader is invited to stop and linger whereverher or his heart is drawn. Webster's definition of "contemplate" is "to gaze attentively, to look at intently, to study carefully, to meditate or muse, sometimes specifically in a mystical or religious way." Contrary to the judgment of our extroverted culture that such apparent non-activity is non-productive, irrelevant, escapist or worse, this collection of poetry holds the exact opposite. Contemplation is not only good for the soul but eminently practical, adding depth, as it does, to the quality of our work and to the caring of our relationships. It is also, for one cultivating the interior life, inexpressibly sweet. Plentiful in the pages of Contemplatively Sweet are references to and quotes from other contemplative kin. One of the great joys on the spirit journey is continuously discovering new riches, and then sharing the wealth.

These poems may have special appeal to those who recognize themselves to be on a spirit journey. These "blue plums" are to be taken slowly, and not necessarily chronologically. One may choose a more intuitive or spontaneous approach and glance through the Table of Contents and be lured by an inviting title. In either case, for those curious as to what a spirit journey encompasses, the answer is reflected within this beautiful collection of intraspective poetry.