Slideshow image

When I read Take This Bread about 15 years ago, it forever changed how I engage my faith. Sara Miles is a  journalist and anti-oppression activist who was raised an atheist. Her story tells of her encounter with the Eucharist one Sunday morning and how the tangible symbols of our faith drew her into an unexpected meeting with Jesus.

As someone who was raised in the Church and sometimes finds it tiring, I relished the opportunity to see the faith for the first time through Miles' eyes. Her engagement with the Episcopal (Anglican) tradition helped me to better understand how our tangible symbols of worship can draw the whole of a person into relationship with God. Miles' quest for a more just world and concern for community engagement found a home in her local church, where she founded a food bank and harvest redistribution program, 

What I loved most about Miles' story, though, is that meeting Jesus did not require her to leave her former identity behind. Instead, her engagement with the Church brought out the best in herself even as she remained a creative, gritty activist. Her advocacy alongside the poor and oppressed as a journalist takes on new focus as she learns to see the people she serves through the eyes of Jesus. As my first engagement with a queer person of faith, her story empowered me to live into my own vocation without trying to fit myself into any box except the shape God made me to be.

The story is a light read and very well written. You won't be disappointed!

What We Do
St. John's Church Library