Safe Harbor’s pastor publishes internationally acclaimed book

 

 

Special to The Clinton Courier

Rev. Dr. Shelli Poe,  pastor of Safe Harbor Family Church (United Church of Christ) in Clinton, has had her second monograph, The Constructive Promise of Schleiermacher’s Theology, released by Bloomsbury Academic. The book argues that the work of a turn-of-the-nineteenth century German theologian, Friedrich Schleiermacher, can be used to address contemporary Christian doctrine. Poe weaves Schleiermacher’s theology together with current scholarship in feminism, womanism, ecotheology, and queer theology. While Schleiermacher is widely known as the founder of modern theology, Poe is one of the first to use his work as a springboard to refine contemporary doctrine.

 

The book has earned international acclaim from prominent theologians in the United Kingdom as well as the United States. Janet Soskice and Lisa Isherwood, professors in the UK, have written that “Poe does a wonderful service in bringing his thought to bear on issues which are points of pain in our time” (Soskice), and that her work is “a challenging and enlivening book which is worth your time and will spark your thinking in new ways” (Isherwood). Linn Marie Tonstad, associate professor at Yale Divinity School, remarks that Poe’s book delivers “a joyous (and much-needed) engagement with a theologian of joy.”

 

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Poe’s book exemplifies the kind of reflection that she brings with her to the pulpit at Safe Harbor Family Church each Sunday. Safe Harbor is an inclusive, grace-filled community whose members and friends come from all walks of life to grow in relationship with God, one another, and creation. As a community, they are committed to justice and advocacy for the hurt, the hungry, and the excluded. Safe Harbor trusts in God, follows Jesus’s teachings, and embodies the Spirit in joyful celebration.

 

For more information about Safe Harbor Family Church and Rev. Dr. Poe’s publications, visit www.safeharborfamilychurch.org.