The Alphabet of Grace
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| Author | Frederick Buechner |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Anthology |
| Publisher | Seabury Press, NY |
Publication date | 1970 |
| Preceded by | The Hungering Dark |
| Followed by | Wishful Thinking: a theological ABC |
The Alphabet of Grace is a collection of addresses on Christianity and faith by Frederick Buechner. It was first conceived as a trilogy of sermons, delivered at the Harvard Memorial Church in the winter of 1969. It was subsequently published by Seabury Press, NY, in 1970.
In his second autobiographical work, Now and Then, Buechner recounts his receipt of an invitation to deliver the 1969 William Belden Noble Lectures at Harvard Memorial Church by the chaplain, Charles Price.[1][2] The author writes that it was Price’s prompt, that he should speak on 'religion and letters', that became the catalyst for the series: 'I found myself thinking of letters literally instead', he writes, 'of letters as the alphabet itself, the A's, B's, C's, and D's out of which all literature, all words, are ultimately composed'. He continues:
[F]rom there I wandered somehow from the notion of the events of our lives – even, and perhaps especially, the most everyday events – as the alphabet through which God, of his grace, spells out his words, his meaning, to us.[3]
The Alphabet of Grace was Buechner's seventh published work, and was released to the public shortly after his fifth novel, The Entrance to Porlock (1970).