A Trustworthy Prophet or a Sharp-Eyed Satirist?

Rev. Dr. Carolyn Scanlan-Holmes • March 4, 2024

And so it goes.

I remember reading Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five in high school, but that is about all I remember. So, with the encouragement of the Creative Team, I have been revisiting the work of Kurt Vonnegut. Some of it, I get. Some is still over my head. If I had not studied about WW II or had a chance to visit some of the battle sites throughout Europe, Vonnegut's work (particularly Slaughterhouse-Five) might have been completely over my head. But having had the experience and learning more, I can see now what he was preaching. He knew first-hand the atrocities of war, and he knew the challenge of getting into the minds and hearts of those in power. Like so many prophets before him, Vonnegut knew the pain of war and the power of unity. His work is his prophetic word of warning with a side a satirical optimism. In this service, we looked at the role of our modern prophets and lessons from the prophets of old. --Carolyn

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