Up from Methodism

A vivid portrait of a Southern upbringing unfolds through the eyes of a narrator whose lineage reads like a who's‑who of early American clergy. From a great‑great‑uncle who helped shape Methodist expansion to a grandfather who traded sermons for Civil War battlefields, the family’s stories weave together pioneer spirit, frontier hardships, and a relentless devotion to Sunday rituals. The narrator’s childhood home sits between rival cemeteries, a literal fence marking the theological divide that colors every family gathering.

Against this backdrop, the memoir explores the clash of Methodist optimism and Baptist austerity, the weight of inherited expectations, and the small rebellions that hint at a more personal faith journey. Humor and humility surface as the protagonist tests his father’s piety with a broom‑stick prank, while the larger tapestry of faith, community, and identity begins to take shape. Listeners will be drawn into a richly detailed, gently comic chronicle of a boy’s search for meaning amid a legacy of holy ambition.