Outspoken cleric in Burren for book launch

AN internationally-known reverend returns to North Clare later this month to hold the Irish launch of his new book, which was partially written in the area.

A regular contributor to The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Washington Post, oprah.com and The Huffington Post, Reverend Ed Bacon will be in Clare on August 31 to launch of his critically-acclaimed new book 8 Habits of Love: Open Your Heart, Open Your Mind.
A progressive spokesperson on issues of faith and justice for all regardless of race, gender, faith or sexual orientation, Reverend Bacon has been featured as a guest panellist on The Oprah Winfrey Show’s Living Your Best Life series.

In January 2009, the Los Angeles-based cleric’s statement to a call-in viewer that “being gay is a gift from God” received national attention. As a result, Reverend Bacon was invited to return to the show and soon became a regular on Oprah’s Soul Series on Oprah and Friends Radio.
The Georgia-born priest defied public pressure in December 2012 by sanctioning the use of Pasadena’s All Saints Episcopal Church, where he has been a rector since 1995, as the host venue for the 12th annual Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) convention – the first such Muslim gathering to be held in a Christian church.

With more than 4,000 congregants, Reverend Bacon’s Episcopal Church is now considered one of the USA’s most socially progressive religious institutions.
Reverend Bacon’s new book describes a path toward uniting what he describes “a fractious, divided US nation”. The cover of 8 Habits of Love simply gives the author’s name, with no mention of his day job as a nationally respected religious leader. This omission was deliberate, according to Reverend Bacon.

Speaking about the premise of his new book, he said, “I was raised in a culture of fear. My father, a Baptist minister in Georgia, preached hell and damnation. A version of God that I heard preached about from my father’s pulpit was one who was wrathful, punitive and condemning. Even today, to be an American means that we are blessed in many ways but there are businesses that make money by making people afraid.”

The book has received praise from across the world and from celebrities including US actress Amy Brenneman, Pulitzer Prize nominee Regina Brett and South African social rights activist Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Earlier drafts of the book were written by Reverend Bacon in North Clare, where he says he was “very much influenced by the Celtic spirituality of the Burren Region” and the life and writings of the late poet John O’Donohue from Fanore.

The Irish launch of 8 Habits of Love will take place at Quinn’s Craftshop in Ballyvaughan.