Becoming Friends of Time

With his usual insight and wisdom Swinton has written a timely book on time and disability. Swinton's work is profoundly human and humane because it is so determinatively christological. Becoming Friends of Time is a gift for all of us who struggle to survive in a world of speed.

~Stanley Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Professor Emeritus of Divinity and Law, Duke Divinity School

How Swinton brings together God, time, and disability transforms the understanding not only of disability but also of church, society and ordinary life. This is a profound and moving book, both pastoral and prophetic. It takes further the insights of Jean Vanier, and above all invites us into the truth that time is for God, God is love, time is for love.

~David F. Ford, Emeritus Regius Professor of Divinity, Selwyn College, University of Cambridge

John Swinton reckons with how people who deal with medicine (meaning most of us) reckon with time. Swinton writes as a scholar, a nurse, a father, a husband, and a Christian. Previous books on 'Time' and 'Faith' have been unhelpfully detached from people who actually navigate an earth recognizable by humans who still read books. Becoming Friends of Time is written for people who use their own incarnate bodies to care for others while also thinking critically about how our bodies are being used and evaluated as machines.

~Amy Laura Hall, Associate Professor of Christian Ethics, Duke Divinity School

With characteristic wisdom and grace, Swinton’s book invites us to reimagine time through rediscovering the gospel and the life of Christian discipleship in all its fullness in relation to the human experience of disability. His writing is elegant and embodies the gentle, time-full cadence it speaks about, offering a host of compelling insights along the way.

~Thomas E. Reynolds, Associate Professor of Theology, Emmanuel College, University of Toronto

[Swinton's] theological and experiential reflections offer real ways to reimagine discipleship alongside those within life’s range of varying differing abilities. Swinton acts as an important and necessary conversation partner for academics and pastors who rely heavily on 'normal' cognitive and neurological development, freeing those with rigid conceptions of practical theology to active, contextual care.

~Adam Tobey, Reading Religion

This wonderfully thought-provoking book by John Swinton takes its cue from such profoundly disabled people to argue that many of the challenges they face would be overcome if time were on their side.

~Penny Seabrook, Church Times

Creative, thoughtful, and convicting.

~Bruce M. Hartung, Concordia Journal

"Swinton’s book encourages all of us to be attentive, subversive, and faithful in our engagement with time."

~Debbie Creamer, Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology

Theologically rich and pastorally astute.

~Aaron Klink, Religious Studies Review

There is much to appreciate and enjoy in reading this rich book, particularly in the way the author goes back and forth between stories of disability experience, biblical narrative, and theological reflection.

~Hans Reinders, Studies in Christian Ethics

Swinton invites the reader into dialogue with the openness of a pastor, the sensitivity of a nurse, and the diligence of one who has personally witnessed the crises of disability. His writing style reflects his theological approach--practical and accessible.

~Nathan Garcia, KronoScope

In Becoming Friends of Time, John Swinton offers a profound reflection on how our understanding of time shapes our engagement with disability.

~Kevin Hargaden, Journal of Disability & Religion

…its invitation to 'timefullness' has profound meaning for everyone, able-minded or otherwise. Page by page, the reader is challenged to evaluate and hone his or her relationship with God, time and others, particularly those with intellectual disabilities. 'In God’s time, we do not compare ourselves to the strongest, the fittest, the fastest, the cleverest or the most competitive among us. The only comparison we make is with a God who walks at three miles an hour, a God who waits for us if we cannot keep up and sits with us if we cannot walk. A God who has time for us' (p. 82). This is a message that can only bless and enrich our lives, personally and professionally. Dr. Swinton is to be commended for offering it to us in this profoundly moving book!

~Katherine M. Piderman, Journal of Health Care Chaplaincy

In this excellent book, John Swinton offers a fresh and compelling perspective on theological discussion of disability by reflecting on its intimate relationship with the concept of time.

~Alexander D. Garton, Modern Believing

…Swinton’s Becoming Friends of Time offers an incredibly profound and refreshing take on not just disability but theology, powerfully reorienting us to a God whose redeeming time graciously offers the gifts of discipleship and vocation to all.

~Erin Raffety, Theology Today