Holy Disunity: How What Separates Us Can Save Us

"Disunity is so often seen as an evil: the breakdown of relationship, of community, of cohesion. But disunity doesn't have to mean destruction... Our hunger can turn us into enemies, seeking to deprive one another so that we ourselves might have enough. But our hunger also reminds us that we need more than ourselves; we are not sufficient alone. And even when our disunity puts us utterly and irrevocably at odds, when it demands that we be separate, that gulf between us offers space for each of us to grow -- perhaps even toward each other." (p. 190-191)

In her first book (which is hot off the presses!) Layton Williams pushes against calls for unity, compromise, and conciliation in a way that may at first seem at odds with her work as an ordained Presbyterian minister. Williams looks at how states that we try to avoid like Doubt, Tension, Protest, Hunger, Limitations, and Failure can also be gifts, both for ourselves as individuals and in our relationships and communities. Weaving together her personal experiences growing into her call as a queer, female minister from a conservative family in the South; vibrant re-readings of familiar stories from the Bible; and observations on the larger church and society, she makes a strong argument for embracing the uncomfortable, messy, hard, and unavoidable conflicts and using them to grow in both our convictions, faith, and understanding of others. Williams has an engaging and open writing style that makes this a real joy to read: if you are struggling with the divisive state of the world today and a Christian perspective is something that speaks to you, I'd strongly suggest picking this one up.

While theologically I don't agree with much of what Layton Williams claims, I'm not giving her book a higher rating than three stars because it is unevenly written, not because of my disagreement. While there were chapters that I found very engaging, others were pedantic and difficult to get through and made me not want to finish the book.