"Stephen Cottrell writes about Christ as if he were here now. As if redemption were possible for all of us, as if the void that threatens to engulf us all could be filled by a personal relationship with Christ in the present. He is a compelling writer." Russell Brand.
Dear England is Archbishop Stephen's latest book, described as "A letter to the country, from the Archbishop of York, on why the Christian narrative still makes sense today."
Inspired by a conversation with a barista who asked him why he became a priest, this is the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell's extended answer to that question – as well as the letter he'd like to write to a divided country that no longer sees the relevance or value of the Christian narrative. Archbishop Stephen is a much-admired voice within the Church, but in this book he writes for a more general audience and those who might call themselves spiritual seekers – as well as anyone who is concerned about the life and unity of the UK. A short, beautiful book, it is both contemplative and deeply practical, drawing on the Archbishop’s desire to "commend the Christian faith to those who don’t believe and who don’t go to church."
"Why am I writing this letter that thinks it’s a book? It is because I believe in God and I want to change the world. But I don’t believe in God in quite the same way as I believe the sky is blue and the sun rises in the east. It is much more like I believe that love is real and that Chopin’s nocturnes make me cry. Some things are achingly real, but harder to demonstrate, though dig beneath the surface and we all deal in the common currency of love. And I want to change the world – heart by heart. I cry out for the indignities and privations of the world. I long to see change and I thirst for justice. But I begin with the heart, believing that if my heart can change, then the world can change too." Stephen Cottrell.
Publishing on Thursday 4 March 2021 by Hodder and Stoughton (£12.99 hardback)
To find out more or to purchase the book visit Hachette.co.uk