Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
Joseph Shannon
Born to an Irish Catholic, blue collar family in the shadow of Detroit (Redford Township) and a product of a parochial Catholic School system, child of the 60s/70s Counter-Culture and Jesus Movements, one time pastor of an Evangelical Charismatic Church (Shalom Ministry), married, divorced, annulled … three kids, two grandsons, and as of 1991, a Dearborn Public School educator; currently (2018) at Fordson High School, a unique school in that it has a 90% Muslim student population. Oh, and by the way, after a thirty-five year hiatus, Joe has returned to the Catholic Church.
About the Book
Sometime around the year 2003, I got hit with the proverbial perfect storm that rocked my world; the disintegration of my 20 year marriage coupled with intense doubts concerning the spiritual path I’d set out on shortly after high school. To try and make sense of it all and avoid a total meltdown, I purchased a pack of legal pads and spent many evenings over the last ten years reflecting on where I’d been, where I’m at, and where I may be headed. At times my journey reminded me of Bilbo and Frodo’s adventures in Tolkien’s beloved The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings tales; hence the title of my book-There and Back Again: A Child of the Sixties Returns to the Catholic Church. The narrative covers 5 periods of my life, beginning with growing up in Redford Township (in the shadow of Detroit, Michigan), and concludes with my present status, a high school history teacher in Dearborn, Michigan.
Book Reviews
Such an interesting journey. I share so many memories of the 50s and 60s with the author. His “Flashback” Part One, drew me into the chapters that followed. It was interesting to read about the constant changing culture in our communities decade-to-decade. From start to finish “There and Back Again” held me captive. Great story.
This autobiography is written with rawness, honesty and transparency. This book delivers the real story about one man’s journey though life. The author has a lot of questions about God, life, relationships, and love. He has some answers, but not all of them. Through it all, he has always been true to himself and his roots. He highlights many intimate details surrounding his life, and shares his victorys as well as his failures. So real. I love this book.