PEOPLE IN PRINT
July 1, 1986
Polishing the Pulpit Preaching by Fred B. Craddock, Abingdon, $16.95 Preaching: The Art of Connecting God and People by F. Dean Lueking, Word, $12.95 Reviewed by Gregory P. Elder, assistant priest, St. Peter's Episcopal Church, Del Mar, California An Anglican bishop is said to have dismissed one of his subordinates by saying, "That man deserves to be preached to death by wild curates." More than one congregation has imagined itself so condemned. But as any experienced pastor will affirm, it requires hard work to produce an interesting and challenging sermon. To help practiced and aspiring preachers, Fred B. Craddock and F. Dean Lueking have both written books titled Preaching, offering doctrinal wisdom and practical advice to proclaimers of the Word. Craddock, presently professor of preaching and New Testament at Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, writes, "Preaching is understood as making present and appropriate to the hearers the revelation of God." He explained in a phone conversation, "There is a glut of words in today's world that has made people anxious for real communication. Real communication comes out of silence." Craddock believes effective preaching demonstrates honest speaking. The book offers concrete suggestions on content and delivery. According to Craddock, preparation begins in a life of study-not in digging up something to say on Sunday morning. He clearly outlines the intellectual steps to analyze a biblical text. He also advises preachers to read, at least twenty minutes a day, novels, poetry, and short stories. "The short story is the first cousin of the sermon," he says. While it may not have an immediate impact on next Sunday's sermon, such reading has a way of expanding the preacher's world, benefiting ...
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