Author: Stephen Boumann

The Rev. Dr. Stephen Bouman is the former Director of the ELCA’s Domestic Mission Unit and was the Bishop of the Metropolitan New York Synod of the ELCA. He was in New York City on September 11, 2001 and begins this book by remembering where all of his family members were on that day and, how as Bishop, he called the ELCA churches in Manhattan as the day unfolded. Rev. Bouman writes of the many memorials he participated in during the days and weeks following 9/11 and also recounts the acts of kindness that began in the city that day. As part of the response to 9/11, he organized Lutheran Disaster Response New York.

The church’s response to tragedies is the underlying theme of the book. We are called to be a public church, and we often encounter fear and anger in public spaces. How can people of faith bring comfort to these spaces? How can we encourage one another in these difficult conversations? The author’s examples of tense conversations serve as guidance for people of faith entering places of crisis. Careful prayerful listening is the basis for a faithful response. Lamentations come before healing, the author states. We need to give voice to the pain and walk alongside the suffering. Finding hope comes in sharing one another’s stories.