Theopoetics: Spiritual Poetry for Contemplative Theology and Daily Living

Theopoetics is a collection of poetry filled with reflective inspiration from the heart and mind of a person filled with pathos over the plight of humanity. Each poem reflects his personal wrestling with theology and reality as he is determined to bring God into the world with a synthesis of pathos intellect experience and words. The aesthetic of poetry provides the author with an expressive outlet to imagine life within a genre where limitations give way to possibilities in a world where the concretization of society prevails. Theopoetics is an effort to communicate spirituality combined with theology into words; words that ignite the soul with hope and challenge. Each poem contains numerous theological insights born from years of teaching students both in the classroom and abroad. These efforts at educating have been in active pursuit of bringing tikkun olam that is repairing the world to oppressed persons and various communities of need. The author is committed to the idea that theology must be practical with ready application for participating in salvation as both personal and historical. As a practitioner of nonviolence his calls for peace resonate throughout the book. Theopoetics is for persons seeking a spiritually challenging devotional experience. These poems by Phillip Garner are coming from his deep held convictions his Christian faith and personal experience. They are inspiring and encouraging and a reflection on his encounter with challenging social political and economic reality. They show consistent faith struggling in a world of sin yet they bring hope in a dark world. His poems speak of a lifes journey seeking justice and equality for the poor and the oppressed. They are powerful poems of truth that will help us be better more compassionate people. --Shay Cullen Founder and President PREDA Foundation I tend to be transfixed by that which transforms. My experience with Theopoetics a book that stands apart from Garners other works proves it to be not only a primer toward a fuller understanding of scripture as do all his books but also a devotional guide. In a word its deep. --David Moore St. Stephens University Phillip Michael Garner is an avid reader and competent interpreter of a vast array of theological efforts. Mike was raised in a small town in a citrus valley in California. At thirteen he worked alongside Spanish speaking immigrants. His earliest religious experiences were in a small Pentecostal church. He was educated at Azusa Pacific University. His international experiences among the poorest people in the world provide the backdrop for the pathos in his writing.