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One of the greatest rewards of teaching is to see the impact you have had on the lives of your students. Hannaford was privileged to experience this firsthand when, after attending a reunion for the school he once worked for, some of his former students asked him to teach the world what he had taught them in class. The medium chosen was Facebook, and the author's subsequent posts in honoring that request comprise this thought-provoking book.
Forty years ago the author had a religious experience that forever changed his life. His worldview has helped fuel a passion to see young people embrace their right to think for themselves, not accept the beliefs of others blindly, and potentially become the messiahs that he feels our world desperately needs. Hannaford sees these saviors as differing from the typical Judeo-Christian interpretation. Instead, he defines a messiah in part as "simply someone who is honest and asks awkward questions." He believes that some of the principal forces arrayed against these new thinkers will be the existing beliefs, dogmas, and traditions of the world's religions which have contributed so heavily to wars and social strife throughout history.
Hannaford writes with all of the rhetorical acumen one would expect from a veteran educator, blended with the more laid-back style of a blogger who anticipates and responds to feedback from his readers. The result is a book that while predominantly didactic in nature still comes across as more of a personal conversation with his audience.