What is faith? For some, it is a strong belief in God or the doctrines of their religion even in the absence of proof. A study of religions demonstrates that there are many similarities between most major religions, and they teach us some of the same things. We learn about love and compassion, doing no harm, forgiveness, honesty, taking care of others, honoring your family, as well as other concepts that stress the goodness in each of us. At the end of the day, the common tenant of all of this may be the golden rule: Treat others as you would want to be treated.
Literature over the centuries has included many books that teach these messages. Oftentimes that message is subtle, embedded in stories about individuals dealing with the stresses of life and learning to coexist with others in this great big world. Here are some fiction and non-fiction books that may help guide you through day-to-day life.
1. ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE by Elizabeth Strout
In this collection of interconnected short stories, we meet a cast of characters dealing with the joys of love and the anguish of loss. We read how they face a whole range of human emotions and struggle to better understand themselves. In one story, we meet two sisters who take entirely different life paths — one marries for money and the other seeks to find herself in the pages of a book. In another, we meet a janitor who has his faith tested by a man he tries to help. And there’s Lucy Barton, from Strout’s earlier bestseller, “My Name is Lucy Barton”, who returns home to visit her siblings after 17 years. What a story that will be.
2. THE WISDOM OF SALLY RED SHOES by Ruth Hogan
Some say that it is our relationships that make life worth living. Masha, who was unable to let go of a tragedy 12 years ago, has kept to herself with her faithful dog for company. Only venturing out to swim laps in the town’s pool, she has no other life. When she meets a mysterious bag lady, Sally Red Shoes, Masha forms an unlikely friendship and discovers a whole new world of possibilities. Then her past comes roaring back. Will it prevent her from finding a new life?
3. THE LEMON TREE by Sandy Tolan
As we watch the news and bear witness to the horrors of the Israel-Hamas War, this story can provide historical context. Beginning after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, it also shows us that those on opposite sides of a conflict can find common ground.
Dalia, an Israeli, and Bahsir, a Palestinian, had both lived in the same house in Ramla, Israel with their families, one during and the other after the 1948 war. Bahsir’s family fled the home during the war and Dalia’s family moved into the vacated house. The story follows their families’ histories and their eventual reunion 19 years later. They develop a rare friendship on the front steps of the house and discover that even in the bleakest of times, there can be hope for change. Dalia turns the house into a center for Arab-Jewish dialogue and, at Bashir’s request, a daycare center for Arab children.
4. THE MUSEUM OF ORDINARY PEOPLE by Mike Gayle
For anyone who has ever had to downsize their home or deal with closing up the house of a departed loved one, this book may speak to you. Going through all the possessions that someone has acquired over a lifetime is a daunting task. For Jess in this story, she finds it to be the hardest thing she has ever done. She has not even dealt with the sudden death of her mother and now she must get her childhood home ready to sell. Sorting through a lifetime of memories is hard enough and then she comes to a full stop when she finds something she cannot part with: books! To some, these are just old and outdated and need to be thrown out. To Jess, they represent some of the treasures her mother wanted her to have. A friend suggests she take them to a strange place called the Museum of Ordinary People, a warehouse for a house clearance company. The new owner wants to close it down, but Jess wants to restore the museum and offers to help him do that. As she gets to know him over the next few weeks, they uncover many stories about the history of the objects in their care, along with some long-buried secrets that strike closer to home.
This touching novel about memories and loss helps us deal with the things we leave behind as we create a future for ourselves.
5. WHOLEHEARTED FAITH by Rachel Held Evans and Jeff Chu
Rachel Held Evans was working on this collection of essays when she tragically passed away. Her close friend and author, Jeff Chu assembled her writings along with her other unpublished works and put together this beautiful collection of essays. These essays deal with stories of our faith, ourselves, and our world. They examine our relationship with our church, and questions about belonging and becoming our better selves. In her journey, Rachel shares her story as a straight, white Southern, evangelical Baptist woman who becomes inclusive, welcoming, liberal, and Episcopalian. “She had a particular desire to boost those of us who had typically found ourselves on the outskirts of the church, whether it was because of racism, homophobia, misogyny, ableism, transphobia, or some other unjust bias against an aspect of our identity,” Chu writes in the introduction.
6. HAVE A LITTLE FAITH by Mitch Albom
Mitch Albom was raised in a Jewish family but writes from a variety of faith perspectives. His childhood rabbi, Albert L. Lewis, asked him to write and deliver his eulogy when his time came. To do this, Albom met with the rabbi for a series of interviews to get to know him better as a man as well as a rabbi. The book includes insights gained through these conversations.
Included in this book are excerpts from Albom’s conversations with an African American Protestant minister he wrote about in another book. Albom was interested in this man, Pastor Henry Covington, and the faith that led him from being a drug addict, dealer, and ex-convict, to being a minister to others with similar challenges.
Alternating between interviews, excerpts from sermons, and conversations with both men, Albom writes about the difference that faith can make in our world. In fact, the rabbi’s request for him to give his eulogy proved to be a gift by drawing him back into his own faith, and “back to God a little bit.”
Diane Parfitt is a retired pediatric nurse and former assistant professor of nursing education. She owns City Center Gallery & Books in downtown Fayetteville, She can be reached at citycentergallerybooks@gmail.com.
