Suggestion: The Shaming of the Strong, by Sarah Williams
The Shaming of the Strong: The Challenge of an Unborn Life by Sarah Williams (Regent College Publishing, 2007).
This extraordinary story begins with the happy news of a new member of the Williams family. Sarah's two young daughters are excited, as is her own mother, Jennifer Rees Larcombe. But the happiness is shortlived, as the scan at the hospital reveals that the baby has a condition which will mean severe skeletal deformity. Birth will be fatal. Sarah and husband Paul decide to go to full term and not abort, which shocks the staff at the hospital. So their personal anguish is exacerbated by the fight to maintain the baby's own dignity as a human being. Naming her is important - and they decide on Cerian, which is Welsh for 'loved one'. The book allows us to experience the emotions of Sarah and her family on the difficult journey towards Cerian's birthday, which will also be her deathday. The title, based on 1 Corinthians 1:27 "God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong," throws out a challenge to a society that's poised to pass laws which threaten the very existence of its weaker members. This book is one of the most powerful testimonies to God's grace we have ever published. Its impact will be personal and political - Sarah has already had an impromptu session with the World Health Organization who were eager to hear her perspective. It's not often they encounter a mother who has both this kind of experience and the ability to articulate so many of the issues it raises.