In Good Time, Rev. Harold Good compelling memoir, is an important contribution to the post-Brexit debate about the future of Ireland.
For some years, in exploring my paternal and maternal roots I have been gathering photographs, letters and stories to pass on to my own children. And having had an unusually privileged life in terms of opportunities for travel and a very fulfilling and rewarding vocation, I began to ‘scribble’ some additional notes relating to some aspects of my more public life. In doing so I had neither intention nor inclination to place any of this in the public domain.
However, in many conversations and often after publicly sharing something of my personal story as well as my thoughts people would ask, “When are you going to write the book?” To which I would respond by saying that I would write something for my family and it would be for others to advise as to whether there might be an interest beyond that. And in time they did. One in particular was my faithful coffee companion, the veteran author and journalist Brian Rowan, to whom I am indebted for his encouragement and, when necessary, being a very kindly critical friend.
Hence the title In Good Time, with its not so subtle hint of a double meaning.
Being very conscious of personal challenges in the finding of time and in my struggle with self-discipline when it comes to ‘desk work’, I knew that if I was to produce anything of worth, I would need the assistance of someone with journalistic skill as well as time and patience. As well as the determination of an unapologetic task master! How fortunate I was when following a conversation with Martin O’Brien he was prepared to accept this challenge. From his lifelong interest and understanding of our politically challenged and troubled life in Northern Ireland, together with his well-respected skills as a newspaper editor and radio producer, I have been most fortunate in his willingness as well as his availability.
In anticipating questions such as why would people beyond my family be interested in my story and why was I prepared to expend so much time and effort in putting pen to paper, I have given some thought as to how I might respond.
As in anything we do there is inevitably an unconscious as well as conscious motivation. I leave it to others to conjecture as to what unconscious agenda may have motivated my efforts. If it is thought that I was driven by an egotistical desire for recognition, forgive me.
But as I have pondered upon what I have considered to be a very privileged life, with hugely privileged opportunity to observe and reflect upon what I have learned about so many aspects of personal and political life in many other places as well as in my homeland, I have welcomed the opportunity to share them. Not least reflections on the oft misunderstood and all too often misrepresented relationship between faith and the life we are all called to live in a messy and tragically dysfunctional world of political mayhem.
So in the sharing of stories of pastoral and political (with a small “p”) challenges I dare to hope that there are lessons for all of us, whatever be our place in community and society.
For people with political responsibility there is the challenge of what can be achieved, albeit often behind closed doors, when those in leadership are prepared to take risks and, most importantly, venture to see what can be achieved in and through the building of a trusting relationship in a context of inclusive, respectful and often uncomfortable dialogue.
For all people of faith, especially to those in places of influence and responsibility there is the challenge to be the people we are called to be and claim to be but all too often fail to be.
As I hope will be clear to readers of all faith persuasions and none, I have unapologetically sought to set my story in the context of my vocation as a minister of Word and Sacrament. And as Methodist ministers are often known, I am privileged to be one of ‘Mr Wesley’s preachers’. Not in the spirit of spiritual or ecclesiastical superiority but simply to define who I am and what motivates me in what I seek to say and do, however inadequately. Particularly in the rapport between personal faith and the realities of the world around us. While I am very conscious of the tensions and stresses of ministry felt by others, I can only say that for me, with few exceptions, every day was a joy and a privilege.
And I dare to hope that in the reading of my story some young person may be excited enough to consider ministry in whatever tradition or caring profession as a serious option for their future, as was I when I was inspired by the stories of Lax of Poplar and Wilfred Grenfell and others.
When asked to address pupils at my old school on their prize day I concluded by saying, “do travel and see as much of the world as and when you have the opportunity. But do not rule out this place when considering where your future lies. For in your travels you will come to realise what a good place this really is and you are the generation who can make it even better for everyone”.
For all of us who live on the island of Ireland, North or South, or in any part of the world which has been bedevilled and deeply traumatised by a history of communal violence, I have dared to suggest how in addressing unresolved issues of the past we may yet find hope and healing.
About In Good Time by Rev. Harold Good:
‘Rev. Harold Good’s story is one of faith, reconciliation, charity, and hope, and the story of his life is inspirational.’ – Senator George Mitchell
‘If you want to know the price of peace and the pathway out of conflict to peace then Harold Good’s memoir is as sure and true a guide as there is.’ – Mary McAleese
Rev. Harold Good, ’Derry-born Methodist minister, retired Church leader and one of the oldest surviving actors in the Irish peace process, lifts the curtain on his remarkable life in this enthralling memoir. From Ian Paisley’s turbulent arrival in the early fifties to the burning of Bombay Street and internment; from searching for bomb victims with his bare hands on the Shankill to verifying the destruction of IRA weapons with Fr Alec Reid, Good has seen it all. Helped by recently excavated phone texts, he reveals his role as a back channel between the DUP and Sinn Féin, when he facilitated secret meetings in his home between Martin McGuinness and Jeffrey Donaldson that helped create the historic partnership government co-led by Paisley and McGuinness.
Good couldn’t have imagined that one day he would help change the course of Irish history, play a hitherto undocumented role in weapons disposal by FARC and ETA in Colombia and the Basque Country, and be asked by Queen Elizabeth II over lunch in Buckingham Palace for advice about her visit to Ireland.
This compelling page-turner is an important contribution to the post-Brexit debate about the future of Ireland.
Order your copy of In Good Time by Rev. Harold Good online here.
