Bill Cleary's New Book

I recently had an interesting assignment to photograph William Cleary of Burlington, Vermont for the cover of his forthcoming book. Bill is a writer, thinker and musician whose life journey makes very interesting reading and conversation. He was most comfortable at the piano during our session, playing and chatting amiably.

William Cleary’s latest book is Prayers To an Evolutionary God (SkyLight Paths, 2006). Still at work in his 80’s, William Cleary is now finishing his first novel, coming next year, The Jesuit’s Escape. In 1964 Facing God was his very first effort (Doubleday Image) written in Korea where he was a Jesuit college professor. Other books followed, among them Prayers To She Who Is, How the Wild Things Pray,and Praying Your Story -- as well as a full-length musical of the Confucian classic fable, Chun Hyang Song, later revived for the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Five albums of church music followed with occasional articles for religious publications like Commonweal, National Catholic Reporter and America.
Bill is married to Roddy O’Neil Cleary, a Unitarian minister, and is the father of two musician sons, Tom and Neil. He lives in Vermont.
Of his latest book, theologian Elizabeth Johnson said: "These prayers invite us to pay attention to the largest thing imaginable: the creativity at the heart of our cosmos."