The author has lived through momentous times. Born in 1930, his life covers a span from the Great Depression to the Age of Terror. Born into the Wrong World tells the story of a country boy from the segregated South who grew up among farmers and mill workers and spent his life trying to make sense of life and its mysteries, wondering why there is so much suffering and injustice and why so few share the conviction that something radical needs to be done about it.
All is here – his life experiences, his inner struggles, suffering, early sexual trauma, his career as pastor who almost got thrown out over the race issue and as professor of theology, his marriage, episodes of depression, and devastating divorce, his theological development and mature thought, his ambivalence about the church, his social and political views – everything.

The author says, “I wanted to end the story with an account of my funeral, but I was not willing to meet the publisher’s deadline.

Kenneth Cauthen