The Devil in Pew Number Seven, by Rebecca Nichols Alonzo, is a memoir about growing up as the young daughter
of a small town minister. In the tiny little congregation, a man (who always
occupied pew number seven) decided that he hated her father and wanted him out. Not just out of the church, but out of town. And he would stop at nothing to see it happen: "Dead or alive, crawling or walking." The family lived for years under constant attacks, threats, and fear from this
man, their neighbor.
Rebecca’s father modeled forgiveness and praying for
his enemies throughout the entire ordeal which included bombings of their home
and surrounding property, threatening phone calls, and eventually a shooting
which took the life of Rebecca’s mother. In the wake of her mother’s death, the
widowed preacher spiraled downhill and soon died, leaving Rebecca and her younger
brother as orphans.
The author’s descriptions of the fear she
experienced and lived with as a very young girl built throughout the story, but
the ending was the most unexpected event of all: forgiveness. She offered
forgiveness to the man who had terrorized her family and caused the deaths of
her parents. After he was released from prison, she allowed him into her life
(she was, by then, an adult) and the two made amends. The “Devil” even
arranged, while incarcerated, to pay for her and her younger brother’s college
education.
I highly recommend this book to any who have
experienced injustice. Because you simply cannot read this book and feel all
the empathy and sympathy for this family and not be completely affected by the
reconciliation that occurs. I was blown away by this woman’s story and by her
depth of faith, love, and compassion.
