Ali Hillman (MDiv ‘21) had the opportunity to introduce Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Marilynne Robinson during Andover Newton’s Simpson-Hewett Lecture in Congregational History. Ali reflects on Dr. Robinson’s works in light of her understanding of sacred Call and the practice of ministry.

I firmly believe that the best books have a sort of frequency for the soul; one that challenges us to tune-in to the rhythms of the world. Marilynne Robinson’s stunning novel, Gilead, is such a book. Personally, it is a work that has carried me through countless phases of this beautifully chaotic life. In it, I have found hymns to humanity and a grace on creased and well-loved pages; one that surpasses my understanding but that resides in some quiet place behind my collarbone which informs me that John Ames’s parting words, “I will pray. And then I will sleep.” Are a stunning way to lead a good life. 

My own worn copy of Gilead rarely leaves my immediate proximity – it has known many miles and moons of my life. And every time I pick it up and open to a page haphazardly, I feel the dust shake from where it has settled in my sleeping faith, and I am reminded to be where my feet are – to honor the remarkable beings behind, beside, and before me. There are certain things in all of our lives — great works or particular memories, that serve as a sort of compass for how we are to be in the world. They change our posture toward life. And when we stumble or lose sight of the dazzling pilgrimage of life — they bring us home to ourselves again. Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead is such a work. 

For Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School, hosting Marilynne Robinson’s Simpson-Hewitt lecture was not only a historic event, given that Dr. Robinson is one of the foremost living authors of this generation, it was also a stunning example of Andover Newton Seminary’s commitment to the intersection of past, present, and future. Marilynne Robinson’s lecture was a reminder that so much power resides in how we hold our history. As someone seeking to live into the call to ordained ministry, lectures like Dr. Robinson’s are not only transformational in terms of the caliber of the speaker, but also in the quiet and unassuming theological instruction that comes with such experiences. In finding the ordinary dazzling and encouraging others to do the same, Marilynne Robinson helps to highlight the tapestry of the divine all around us. In diligently owning and honoring the history of humanity in dialogue with the divine, in all its complexities, beauties, and fallibilities, Marilynne Robinson provides a framework for ministry that anchors us in our history while keeping faith afloat. 

Watch a recording of the Simpson-Hewett lecture: