This Incomplete One: Words Occasioned by the Death of a Young Person

These premature deaths supremely test our faith. This Incomplete One, edited by Michael D. Bush, features sixteen extraordinary sermons from preachers wrestling with the deaths of children and young adults. The preachers here include classic theologians -- Jonathan Edwards, Friedrich Schleiermacher, and Karl Barth -- and select modern preachers. Two especially noteworthy features are a thoughtful foreword by Nicholas Wolterstorff, author of Lament for a Son, and the first English translation of the profound sermon preached by Karl Barth at the memorial service for his own son, Matthias. In the midst of immense grief and suffering, This Incomplete One speaks forth words of quiet hope and comfort. Even if we cannot rejoice ourselves, we still hear an entirely different voice rejoice. . . . This voice speaks about the completion of even this incomplete one, about his completion as God's servant brought about through death. It speaks about peace and joy and life to the fullest. -- Karl Barth In this book: M. Craig Barnes Karl Barth David L. Bartlett Ronald P. Byars John Claypool William Sloane Coffin Jr. Stephen T. Davis J. Howard Edington Jonathan Edwards Laura Mendenhall Jeffrey J. Newlin Jack Roeda Fleming Rutledge Friedrich Schleiermacher Philip Turner James Van Tholen