Through a random and mysterious Lenten quirk, Flannery O’Connor’s work came to mind when I thought about writers whose work I’d choose to read during my forty-two-day journey from Ash Wednesday to Easter. Lent is both a time of struggling lament and hopeful anticipation for me. Like O’Connor, I have no ironclad answer for “knowing” about my faith. She writes: “When I ask myself how I know I believe, I have no satisfactory answer at all, no assurance at all, no feeling at all. I can only say with Peter, Lord I believe, help my unbelief.”
I’m in good company!
Flannery O’Connor wrote prolifically during her Lupus-shortened life (1925-1964). She is the author of two novels, many short stories, essays, book reviews, and collections of letters. She was a devout Catholic, lover of birds, and saw both the grotesque and majestic in humankind.
O’Connor called herself a Christian Realist, a label she embraced in spite of disliking labels in general. Christian Realism affirmed her belief as a Christian in Creation, the Fall, and Redemption, and the laws of science. Her convictions about both were, for her, incontrovertible.
She was also convinced that most of her readers would not share her Christian beliefs. As a result, the strong threads of her Catholic upbringing and Christian convictions coupled with a reader’s disbelief in them created a tension for her as a writer. The polarization that often exists between secular and spiritual thinking and writing concerned her but didn’t deter her from expressing her spiritual convictions to an audience who, according to her, were “the kind of people who think God is dead.”
O’Connor’s characters and the orchestrations they bring into their own and other’s lives ring true, albeit in exaggerated ways, to my own questions and doubts about the confluence of the secular and spiritual worlds. Wise Blood, published in 1952, is a novel whose main character, a man named Hazel Motes, is a returning World War II veteran, who resolves to rid himself of a lifelong crisis of faith by forming a new church. As he describes it, “I preach the Church Without Christ. I’m member and preacher to that church where the blind don’t see and the lame don’t walk and what’s dead stays that way. Ask me about that church and I’ll tell you it’s the church that the blood of Jesus don’t foul with redemption.”
Wise Blood, her first and one of only two novels, is populated with characters who wrestle knowingly with questions about the material and spiritual worlds, and by so doing epitomize the author’s beliefs in the tension created when the spiritual and material worlds meet.
Though I wasn’t raised in the South nor is Catholicism in my background, I can identify with the tension created when the secular and spiritual worlds vie for my soul’s attention. If tenets of faith are judgment, the fall, and redemption, Wise Blood lays them out before the reader in a dark, grotesquely comic narrative.
The publisher, Signet, promoted the novel as “a searching novel of sin and redemption.” The small-town characters struggle with matters of life and death that involve illicit sex, thievery, child abuse, self-mutilation, and murder. The very human misfits and normal characters in this story are not unlike us, only caricature likenesses—they act where we may only have wayward thoughts or be tempted. In the midst of the searching exists the miracle and mystery of God’s Grace. After a life of denying The Great Mystery’s call, Hazel Motes finds redemption in the end.
Lent is a time of reflection, and I don’t always like what I see in that mirror. The reflection contains shadows of the deplored grotesque as well as elements of goodness and a desire for redemption.
There’s more than just a little bit of Flannery O’Connor’s characters in me. Perhaps as Lent progresses into Easter my redemption will unfold in new ways. And, though for different reasons, I, like Hazel Motes, will say, “I’m going to do some things I never have done before.”
by 
“You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you odd.” Flannery O’Conner
What a great quote! Terminal uniqueness is another great saying in Alcoholic Anonymous. A common affliction of alcoholics. We think we’re especially unique in all our flaws but the program gently teaches us everyone’s in the same boat, not just alcoholics.
Thank you for sharing Wise Blood and its spicey author who despite the physical pain she was in, managed to write a lot. That’s really inspiring as I recover from hip replacement surgery while facing the second replacement surgery some time this year so that I will be able to walk again without walkers and canes.
I’m in awe of how much you read. A habit I regretfully used to have.
Did you enjoy the book? I didn’t get a sense one way or the other.
Irish writers seem to share a deep sense of sorrow and joy.
Jo Anne,
Thank you for reading and refreshing my memory about AA’s teaching or reminder that we are all in the same boat. I keep trying, much to my chagrin, to sink mine, so your reminder gives me courage and hope to keep paddling! May you heal quickly and be strong for the next surgery–after which you will once again sing ‘n dance with fingers and voice to your audience’s delight!
Roger
A friend wrote, “It’s been a cold and rainy day here and I sat down in the family room to watch an old movie. I tuned in a bit late so wasn’t aware of what I was watching. I must admit the array of pathetic southern figures, none of whom were attractive, did [nonetheless] pique my curiosity. After awhile I clicked the remote to see the info on the film and began to read the description. The name Flannery O’Connor popped up along with the title of the movie–Wise Blood–and how ironic and serendipitous. The thunder and hail occurring outside the French doors of our family room seemed to be in tune with the movie and the fact that I had just read your blog post yesterday. Perhaps there was electricity in the air! The story surprised me as well. Though she died so very young due to Lupus, she left a gift indeed to each of us. There is grace among the odd ones!”
My friend,
Yes there is electricity in the air, and in her inimitable way Flannery O’Connor captures truths about the spiritual and material worlds that are both thunder claps and sublime relief. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Roger
While I have heard of Flannery O’Connor, I have never read any of her work. I confess that I had thought she was he, based on how the name sounded to me. Your piece is enticing me to read Wise Blood to see how she converges the comically grotesque with the sublimely redemptive. That seems like a miraculous mystical feat, one that surely harkens back to the lenten journey to Easter. Hazel Motes’ church reminds me of the Catholic Church I suffered through and rejected as soon as I was confirmed in it. Your sharing these intriguing insights is a gift, inviting us to see ourselves within these caricatures, as you do with such bold honesty. Thank you for this call to reflect upon our flawed humanity in search of redemption, so fitting for this holy season of lent.
Colette,
I hope you find something intriguing in O’Connor’s words. She has a way of drawing the reader in, although for some readers her works are an acquired taste. This has been my second go-round with Wise Blood, a much richer time with her characters and narrative than when I read the story in ’79. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Roger
A friend wrote, “Your reflections are interesting. I had to give this one several tries and still couldn’t finish it! I have none of these feelings or attachments. I’m thankful that I had minimal religious indoctrination [early in my life]. A little Bible study here, some vespers there. To this day, if I find myself in a “traditional” church setting [I hear myself] saying “no” to most of what I hear. Don’t believe (never did) that I’m a sinner. I don’t own a Bible…can’t quote anything, chapter or verse. When I found Unity at age 42 it immediately spoke to me. We are all children of God…divine creations. Loved in spite of ourselves…grace!
Thank you for your candor! My college buddy and I agree that had we been born and raised outside the Judeo-Christian tradition we most likely would not have embraced Christianity. Your comment that “We are all children of God…divine creations. Loved in spite of ourselves…grace!” is at the core of what I believe, and all else–doctrine etc. is peripheral.
Roger
Thanks Roger for this post. I have not read Flannery O’Connor, but her name keeps popping up recently. I feel I’m cheating if I go to the movie and not the book, but I am faced with too many “must read” books on my shelf that aren’t getting read! If all I can do at this point is watch the movie, who knows, that may segue into the book. As my Program says, “progress not perfection”. I look forward to tasting the uniqueness of Flannery’s characters and story.
Ned,
Thank you for reading and commenting. I appreciate your sentiment about “must read” books and add that there are also stacks of those to be read for the pure pleasure of doing so–how to decide. Watch the movie, Huston is a master even if this one is not one of his best. Enjoy!
Roger