Beyond the Possible: 50 Years of Creating Radical Change at a Community Called Glide

The story of Glide Memorial Church’s transformation from a dwindling Methodist congregation in San Francisco to a thriving, justice-oriented community unfolds in alternating narratives by pastor and civil rights activist Williams (No Hiding Place: Empowerment and Recovery for Our Troubled Communities), and poet and founding president Mirikitani (Out of the Dust). Both authors recount formative childhood experiences that shaped their sense of identity and calling, and describe frankly their own relationship’s development over decades (from acquaintances to colleagues to spouses) in the context of their passion for Glide’s work. Humor, courage, and conviction radiate through these stories, which jump back and forth through the years, detailing Williams’s arrival and chilly reception at Glide and his determination to engage the Tenderloin neighborhood and welcome the marginalized (homeless, hungry, mentally ill, drug-addicted, prostitutes, LGBT folks) into church with a message of unconditional love and acceptance. Notable moments in Glide’s history interweave with non-chronologically ordered reflections on Trayvon Martin, the Black Panthers, Maya Angelou, the crack epidemic, racism, homophobia, and nonviolence. The authors’ persistent self-examination and honest recounting provide a generous, faithful window into Glide’s consequential ministry. (Feb.)