Synopses & Reviews
A magnet for controversy, the media, and followers, the Rev. William Sloane Coffin Jr. was the premier voice of northern religious liberalism for more than a quarter-century, and a worthy heir to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. From his pulpits at Yale University and, later, New York Cityand#8217;s Riverside Church, Coffin focused national attention on civil rights, the anti-Vietnam War movement, disarmament, and gay rights. This revealing biographyand#151;based on unparalleled access to family papers and candid interviews with Coffin, his colleagues, family, friends, lovers, and wivesand#151;tells for the first time the remarkable story of Coffinand#8217;s life.
An army and CIA veteran before assuming the post of Yale University chaplain at the youthful age of 33, Coffin gained notoriety as a leader of a dangerous civil rights Freedom Ride in 1961, as a defendant in the and#147;Boston Fiveand#8221; trial of draft resisters in 1969, and as the preeminent voice of liberal religious dissent into the 1980s. This book encompasses Coffinand#8217;s turbulent private life as well as his flamboyant, joyful public career, while dramatically illuminating the larger social movements that consumed his days and defined his times.
Synopsis
The first biography of one of modern America’s most controversial and influential religious figures.
“Goldstein has achieved the difficult task of depicting fairly a life storm-tossed by religious and political controversy.”—Richard Lingeman, New York Times Book Review
“Expertly researched and finely crafted, [this biography] conveys not just the trajectory of [Coffin’s] life but also a feeling for the era in which [he] lived. . . . Superb.”—Harvey Cox, Christian Century
“Comprehensive and compelling.”—Dan Wakefield, Nation
“[An] excellent biography.”—John F. Stacks, Chicago Tribune
“Compelling and eloquent. . . . Goldstein captures the enigmatic nature of the great preacher and activist.”—Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Warren Goldstein earned his B.A. and Ph.D. in American Studies from Yale. He is associate professor of history and chair of the department of history at the University of Hartford. His essays and reviews have appeared in Lingua Franca, the Gettysburg Review, the New York Times Book Review, Washington Post, The Nation, and many other publications, and his books include the prize-winning Playing for Keeps: A History of Early Baseball.