Rage and Hope: 75 prayers for a better world [9780281086238]

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Commemorating 75 years of Christian Aid, this is a prayer book like no other. Full of defiance and determination, it is an invitation to join Christian Aid and followers of Jesus around the world in a united chorus of Rage and Hope.

Bringing together voices from different contexts and cultures around the world, this is a collection of prayers of lament for the injustices of the world, and prayers of hope for the world we want to see.

Featuring contributions from Rowan Williams, Amanda Khozi Mukwashi, Rhidian Brook, Robert Beckford, John Bell, Rachel Treweek, Walter Brueggemann and many more, Rage and Hope offers defiant, inspiring Christian prayers for a better world.

The world is broken, full of injustice and inequality, but despite everything, we hope. Rage and Hope is a prayer book to enable us as the people of God cry out in lament.

With prayers for the poor, the sick, broken and the oppressed, you will find words for raging at the darkness and struggles in the world. And with prayers for healing and renewal, you will find words to kindle hope as we look towards a kingdom in which all things will be made new.

PREACH REVIEW:

‘Father of mercy, may we let rip?’ This line, excerpted from this book’s rich collection of writing, encapsulates, for me, the soul of Rage and Hope: the book is both modern and traditional, respectful yet passionate. It constantly signals the spiritual value of lament – and in a way, the utility of grief, and reminds us that the world’s suffering is ours too.

The book has 75 chapters – one for each year of Christian Aid’s life – each written by different people. There is a mix of well- and lesser-known voices and writers, and some beautiful poetry and prose. Biblically rooted and globally focussed, the contributions are organised into four sections: Remember, Resist, Resolve and Reimagine.

Rage and Hope was written during the Covid-19 pandemic, but noticeably before the B.1.617.1 variant claimed 295,525 Indian lives. Many writers lament Covid’s impact. Other themes include the environment, the complexity of addressing suffering (how people trying to help can cause further problems), guilt, and racism. I was familiar with some of the places and issues addressed by this book, but it educated me about many more; for example, the plight of the former Burakumin community of Japan.

As many of the book’s contributors reference or update psalms, phrases and ideas are repeated (for example: ‘How long must we wait Lord?’). I also found that some writers spoke to me more deeply than others, inevitably. While references to ‘the poor’ (a phrase I find problematic) and references to God as male, irritated and distracted me, that will not be so for other readers. I found sections covering violence against women, and the experiences of trauma survivors, tough to read but worthwhile.

Anyone yearning for a better world, or interested in justice/injustice, the experiences of people living in the global south, Christian Aid’s work, and how to incorporate the complicated modern world into one’s prayer life, will get much from this book. I read it as an extended Lenten prayer practice, reading one or two chapters each morning. Though the book contains no formal study questions, small groups might enjoy discussing and praying the content together.

Review by Charissa King for Preach magazine, Issue 29. Charissa is a magazine editor who attends Forest Hill Methodist Church, south-east London.