Ogun Holder knew full well the Bible story of Jonah and the whale. His intellectual understanding of the tale led him to believe that running from God was futile. But because he had never run from God before, he thought he d try it anyway. Spoiler Alert: It didn't work.
Holder's journey begins with a pious but questioning childhood filled with mandatory church attendance and boisterous congregants. His road leads to a teenage rebellion, and then to a collegiate crisis of faith. He seems to hit a dead end in his 30s as a responsible grown-up until he paves a new path to Divine self. It's a path he's still walking.
Readers will relate to the honesty and humor in the mash-up of emotions, ideas and experiences Holder shares about parenting, spirituality, relationships and theology. When taken to heart, these rants might, in fact, lead you to your own revelations.
Ogun Holder is the executive director of Unity For All, a nonprofit ministry with a mission of global transformation through spiritual education, empowerment and engagement. He lives in the Washington, D.C., area with his wife and daughter. Rants To Revelations is his first book.
I heard someone on NPR today reflecting on the cultural evolution of vampires. From nightmarish horror-story staple to attractive adolescent angst, vampires have found a stronghold in the human ethos. From "Lost Boys" to "Twilight" vampire movies were a fairly constant presence in my life. I'm sure I've read almost everything by Anne Rice, the gold standard of vampire literature. So I felt compelled to include at least one chapter to the undead. Being the nontraditional minister that I am, I don't condemn but reflect on our fascination with these soulless creatures. I see them as a representation of our shadow selves and our desires to be more than human. They reflect, I think, a lack of satisfaction with ourselves. I also write, "We think we want to be glamorous and ageless, but is it because we have not seen our own beauty at every stage of life? Superhuman strength? How about the strength of character it takes to be the voice for radical change or equality or the disenfranchised? Want passion? Try the heart-opening devotion and surrender of co-creating with a life partner."
Book Excerpt
Rants to Revelations
Although not strictly immortal, do vampires provide an escape from our mortality? How often might we wish for more hours in a day as we fall into bed exhausted? How many things do we regret not doing as we endure the mundane busyness of life? I miss my youthful vigor as I approach 40 and admit that pulling all-nighters is out of the question, and the college diet days are long over regardless of my appetite. As I pluck the gray hairs from my goatee and lament over not being carded at the brewpubs, I sometimes fantasize about not having aged past 24. And I’ll admit it—nothing makes me feel older than a cute college coed calling me “sir.”
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