Overview

Long-listed for the National Book Award A New Yorker Best Book of the Year (So Far) and a Los Angeles Times Must-Read ""As gripping as any novel."" --Kevin Canfield, Minnesota Star Tribune From the Pulitzer Prize winner Eliza Griswold, Circle of Hope is an intimate portrait of a church, its radical mission, and its riveting crisis. ""The revolution I wanted to be part of was in the church."" Americans have been leaving their churches. Some drift away. Some stay home. And some have been searching for--and finding--more authentic ways to find and follow Jesus. This is the story of one such ""radical outpost of Jesus followers"" dedicated to service, the Sermon on the Mount, and working toward justice for all in this life, not just salvation for some in the next. Part of a little-known yet influential movement at the edge of American evangelicalism, Philadelphia's Circle of Hope grew for forty years, planted four congregations, and then found itself in crisis. The story that follows is an American allegory full of questions with urgent relevance for so many of us, not just the faithful: How do we commit to one another and our better selves in a fracturing world? Where does power live? Can it be shared? How do we make ""the least of these"" welcome? Building on years of deep reporting, the Pulitzer Prize winner Eliza Griswold has crafted an intimate, immersive, tenderhearted portrait of a community, as well as a riveting chronicle of its transformation, bearing witness to the ways a deeply committed membership and their team of devoted pastors are striving toward change that might help their church survive. Through generational rifts, an increasingly politicized religious landscape, a pandemic that prevented gathering to worship, and a rise in foundation-shaking activism, Circle of Hope tells a propulsive, layered story of what we do to stay true to our beliefs. It is a soaring, searing examination of what it means for us to love, to grow, and to disagree.

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Reviews

"""Riveting . . . A fascinating inquest into the death of a church that doubles as a compassionate case study on the insufficiency of good intentions."" --Publishers Weekly (starred review) ""Eliza Griswold is a dazzling reporter: ever observant, wise, sympathetic, and honest. And in this spellbinding book, she not only immerses herself in a radical religious community but also reveals its fracturing in real time, raising questions about the nature of faith and justice and what binds us as Americans."" --David Grann, author of The Wager ""Circle of Hope is an act of courage, vulnerability, and creativity--all things that make Eliza Griswold's seasoned voice once again strike with strength."" --Dant� Stewart, author of Shoutin' in the Fire ""That rarest of books: an examination of the sacred and spiritual realm captured with humor, humanity, and style."" --Susan Orlean, author of On Animals ""Set against the backdrop of race, sexuality, and belief, Circle of Hope is a deeply captivating and sometimes troubling dive into a world of faith and frustrations often hidden by the political, antagonistic, and triumphalist projections of American Evangelicalism."" --Anthea Butler, author of White Evangelical Racism ""Lyrical, probing, and deeply reported, this is an extraordinary account of the fraught interplay of faith, community, and values. Eliza Griswold has produced a multigenerational group portrait that is compassionate yet unblinking and will resonate with anyone who aspires to chart a righteous path through this messy, mixed-up world."" --Patrick Radden Keefe, author of Empire of Pain ""Circle of Hope is a rare and astonishing trek into the fractured soul of America, as told through the deeply reported and beautifully rendered story of one church's crucible."" --Andrea Elliott, author of Invisible Child ""This is a lucid, tough, sad, heartening, and ultimately very wise book. It will be a beacon and warning to anyone caught up in this country's social turbulence."" --Christian Wiman, author of Zero at the Bone ""A story of both truth and grace, Circle of Hope traces in devastating detail how justice and kindness give way to the pursuit of power. The result is a searing reflection on the state of American religion, and on the challenges of holding together against the forces pulling us apart."" --Kristin Kobes Du Mez, author of Jesus and John Wayne ""I devoured this book. It made me examine the cost of centering my own self-regard, the need to see oneself as a 'good person.' Eliza Griswold is a master of immersive journalism. I cannot recommend Circle of Hope enough."" --Nadia Bolz-Weber, author of Accidental Saints ""With patience, intelligence, and compassion, Eliza Griswold traces the history of a Christian community and its leadership as they struggle to remain faithful to a radical vision through times of immense stress. A sharply contemporary book, painfully honest, stubbornly hopeful."" --Rowan Williams, author of Passions of the Soul ""With the deftness and empathy that only Eliza Griswold can provide, Circle of Hope offers a portrait of real people trying to live out an authentic faith in a rapidly secularizing world. It should inspire us to continue to live up to our highest ideals, regardless of all the setbacks that come as a result."" --Ryan P. Burge, coauthor of The Great Dechurching ""Eliza Griswold's intimate portrait of one congregation introduces characters who are real enough to unveil something of the mystery of how a group of broken people who don't live up to their ideals can, despite themselves, become good news."" --Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, author of Revolution of Values"

Author Information

Eliza Griswold is the author of six books of poetry and nonfiction, all published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Her book Amity and Prosperity: One Family and the Fracturing of America was awarded the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction. She writes for The New Yorker, is the Ferris Professor and Director of the Program in Journalism at Princeton University, and lives in New Jersey with her husband and son.

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