My New Favorite Author
Gloria Gaither, in her infinite wisdom, introduced the Family Fest audience to yet another incredible author and speaker this last weekend– Ian Morgan Crone. I say ‘Gloria’ instead of ‘Bill and Gloria’ because even though Bill LOVED Ian and was thrilled at how wonderfully he was received, by his own admission he tends to err a little on the side of safety when he puts together programs for large quantities of folks… And Gloria is more like, “BRING IT ON!” (She’s probably still getting crank emails from having William P. Young, the author of “The Shack” speak at FF a few years ago. And if you’re one of the ones who think that book is heresy? Keep it to yourself– it was life-changing for Russ, and I absolutely loved it. Hello? It’s called METAPHOR, people! Now get off my lawn.)
Not that Ian Crone is controversial or anything– he’s not. But he’s a little off the beaten path for the Homecoming crowd, as he is an Episcopal priest and completely unfamiliar with Southern gospel music– he’s more of a liturgical choral music/15th century monastic chant kind of guy. Anyway, a lot of the people I am crazy about are crazy about Ian Cron, though this was the first time I was able to hear him and meet him. I am now firmly among the smitten. Russ, the girls and I had a wonderful talk-filled lunch with him the day before he spoke at Family Fest. He is not easy to describe because he is marvelously complex, a contradictory conundrum with a heart for God, an agile intellect and a wicked sense of humor. His latest book is “Jesus, My Father, the CIA and Me,” which I devoured in two sittings and highly recommend. Here is just a little taste of his personality– this is from an event called “An Evening of Stories” that was held at the Country Music Hall of Fame last year, where he shared the stage with two more of my very favorite friends, Rev. Becca Stevens and Amy Grant. I missed that event, but was able to find this little snippet on youtube– it ends rather abruptly, which hopefully will encourage you to run out and buy his book so you can finish the chapter!
Enjoy… (And let me know in the comments what YOU have been reading and loving lately!)
