The Wonderland BookSavers are continuing with their mission to spread the joy of reading through the distribution of used texts to new readers. In this capacity, we were called upon to find a home for approximately 1,500 books from the personal library of the (deceased) prominent Episcopal minister, Rev. H. Boone Porter.
We began our project in the catacomb-like basement of the parish rectory. With flashlights and extension cords for our computers, we created an initial bibliography of the books we discovered.
Each box was like a surprise Christmas gift. We discovered Bibles from the 1800’s, ancient prayer books in miniature (designed for portability) and texts in Latin, Greek and Hebrew.
After our initial assessment of the books we began looking for a recipient. After much research we contacted the Theological Book Network in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We were thrilled to finally locate an organization that could organize and distribute our large volume of theological texts.
The following is a letter the Theological Book Network received from South Sudan from a previous (not ours) book donation. We are so grateful that the human spirit will continue to rise even after decades of desperation.
The RECONCILE Peace Institute is so thankful for your (Theological Book Network) partnership!
Your affirming e-mails, phone conversations, and library resources are an absolute blessing! The Theological Book Network’s generous commitment to provide 1,500 books will help improve the vital ministries of trauma recovery and conflict transformation which we offer in South Sudan. Thank you. Without question, life in a nation scarred by decades of
civil war, lack of development, extensive trauma, and profound community wounds is quite difficult, but the Lord has called our organization to this service. God is using people of faith from around the globe and in the Church in South Sudan to accompany the world’s newest nation in her journey towards hope, healing and reconciliation. Thank you for
investing your resoures into God’s vision for South Sudan.
As I write this letter, the South Sudanese pastors, teachers, bishops, NGO peace workers, and community leaders pictured above are traveling into places of unrest and conflict to make a difference. They all studied and trained at the RECONCILE Peace Institute. Your partnership reminds them, Christians of all nations support their efforts to rebuild their
communities. Thank you. I am sincerely honored to call you partners and friends.
Yours in Christ,
Rev. Shelvis Smith-Mather, M.Div., Th.M
Principal of the RECONCILE Peace Institute
RECONCILE International (Yei, South Sudan)
Theological Network builds “libraries” from donated books and ships them around the world. Rev. Bonne Porter’s books will be traveling to Anglican Seminaries throughout Africa.
This is particularly appropriate as Rev. Boone Porter is best know for his efforts to find common ground in the various denominations representing the Christian faith. His scholarly work led him to rewrite the 1979 edition of the Book of Common Prayer.
As noted in the New York Times on July 1, 1999:
“The vision of Reverend Dr. Cannon H. Boone Porter’s 44 years of ordained ministry aimed to revitalize the Episcopalian Church through education, liturgical reform and inclusion of its marginalized members. His work of raising up new membership, enriching Christian worship and creating a central place for women, Afro-and Native Americans and rural communities in the Church was often opposed but succeeded in redefining the Episcopal Church’s relationships within itself and with the world.”
We found that Boone’s personal library contains approximately 1,500 Christian texts, ranging from prayer books, books on Christian doctrine, books on the importance of architecture and discussions of faith-based questions such as personal responsibility and the ethics and ethos of free will.
As we handle these books we imagine the human beings who have come before us, hundreds of years of readers who have gained insight and inspiration from these very same pages.
“If God’s love is for anybody anywhere, it’s for everybody everywhere.” — Edward Lawlor, Nazarene General Superintendent
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Filed under: Art, Community Service, History, Humanities, Literature, World Awareness | Tagged: community service, donating books, homeschool, homeschooling, inspiration, religion, Rev. H. Boone Porter, South Sudan, Theological Book Network, Wonderland BookSavers | Leave a comment »
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