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My name is Gordon Atkinson,
and I'm the pastor of
Covenant Baptist Church in San Antonio. I started
Real Live Preacher as an anonymous blog back in December of 2002. My
only goal was to write honestly and well.
Outside Covenant Baptist Church in 2004
I try to stay focused on
those two simple goals, though I dropped the anonymity in 2004. I've written
hundreds of essays since I began, but without a doubt,
"The Preacher's
Story" is the one thing that continues to get the biggest reaction. I'm
a little embarrassed by that because I wrote it quickly, and I think
it's a bit rough. I spun it
out in four evenings back when I first started and before I was taking
my writing as seriously as I do now.
But that's the one that
people like. That and the
raccoon stories, another
collection I wrote with
almost no effort. Go figure.
So who is Real Live
Preacher? We'll I am rlp, in a way. That is to say, I've tried to write
honestly about myself. Still, when you choose what to reveal about
yourself, you necessarily choose what not to reveal, so Real Live
Preacher will never be more than a caricature of me.
Sometimes I think Real
Live Preacher is who I would be if I was more courageous. Sometimes I
think he is the person I am slowly becoming. Who knows?
In October of 2004,
Eerdmans published a collection of my essays in a book called,
appropriately, "RealLivePreacher.com." Having a book published
was wonderful, a lot of work, and no big deal. Somehow it was all of
those. Still, there it is, a record of my first 18 months writing in
this forum.
More
about the book
I'm honored to write
regularly for The Christian Century
(Look for the rlp icon on their website). Recently I had an essay
published in The Wittenburg Door,
which was a thrill for me since I've been a fan of that magazine since
the early 80s.
If you're new to this
site, drop into the
essay archives and
poke around a bit. I hope you
enjoy yourself here.
peace,
Inside the worship room at Covenant.
Yes, that is a fireplace. Yes, that is a set of bongos.
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