Leaving The Reason Torn: Re-thinking Cross and Resurrection through R. S. Thomas

For many people today, the events of Good Friday and Easter Sunday raise more questions than solutions. Likewise, people are often unmoved or confused by 'atonement theories' seeking to explain the purpose of Christ's death. In this thoughtful and heartfelt book, Alison Goodlad turns from abstract argument to poetic imagination for illumination, finding fresh inspiration in the poems of R. S. Thomas. With a Foreword by Lord Harries of Pentregarth, the former Bishop of Oxford, Leaving the Reason Torn offers a compelling exploration of the foundational mysteries of the Christian faith, made real again through the searching words of one of Britain's (specifically Wales') greatest poets. The author brings poetry and theology into synthesis, showing how the depths of the biblical witness can be rediscovered through human questioning and experience. Alison Goodlad is a new voice in the overlapping areas of poetry and religious exploration, but one whose work has already been commended by Archbishop Rowan Williams and by biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann, among others. She lives in Exeter.