I bawled when I got to the end of this book. I had fallen in love with with the tiny, squeaky-voiced Owen Meany who SPEAKS IN A CAPITAL LETTERS, and it was heart-breaking to feel like you couldn't do anything to help or the change the way it was going to end.
What is it like to know the day that you would die? Is it how Christ felt like when he told his disciples, "They will kill me, and after three days I will rise"? What is it like to have the burden of having to suffer and die so that you could redeem the world, and no one, not even your closest friends, have any idea? I have never thought of it this way. No wonder Jesus cried in the Garden of Gethsemene.
Owen Meany is a Christ figure. Unlike Dostoevsky's The Idiot, Owen is not just the ideal Christian -- loving, submissive, and kind. Suprisingly, almost blasphemously, Owen is described to have the authority of Christ. The nativity scene in this novel brings new meaning to the last line of the Christmas carol Silent Night: "Jesus, Lord at thy birth". I don't think I can sing this line the same way again.
In many ways, this novel is an UNSPEAKABLE OUTRAGE, as Owen would put it, because it is blasphemous, seething with anger and a sense of impending doom. All of this is embodied in `Hester the Molester'. Yet, when Christ was born on earth, isn't that exactly how it is? An UNSPEAKABLE OUTRAGE?
Go read the book. At points it gets tedious, but it is worth it in the end. This book comes in number one spot with The Cider House Rules for me. The plot is less interesting, but Owen Meany, as a character, is riveting.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
A Prayer for Owen Meany
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5 comments:
Owen Meany may be my favorite novel. It is an absolutely astouning book. I can't even think of that last two sentences without tears welling up in my eyes. And your outrage thesis is quite intriguing. I'd never thought of that before.
I plan to read it again someday soon. But I have to prepare myself for the heartache.
What a glorious book.
I'm glad you got to this book and I'm glad it affected you so. I started this book while on retreat in a monastery, so the peace, quiet, and religious surroundings really added an impact to the charge I received reading it. I, too, like your outrage thesis. I like that this book borders on blasphemy. I like that Owen calmly accepted his fate, and kept on living his life on his terms (fully human?) despite what others in the town/his family did or said. This is a glorious book; I am amazed I had not heard more about it over the years. Not sure if I wasn't paying attention, or if previous readers weren't talking. After I finished reading it, I couldn't stop talking about it. It's a perspective-altering book, to be sure. Thanks for your thoughtful remarks.
Thanks for your comments Jim and ToBeRev. It is neat to know that other people share your sentiment about a book. Though I don't think of it as an "outrage thesis" though!
ToBeRev - You know, lots of Christian authors reference A Prayer for Owen Meany. For example, Owen Meany figures in Eugene Peterson's Subversive Spirituality, Philip Yancey's A Jesus I Never Knew and Reaching for an Invisible God, etc. I was quite surprised. See all the references here.
If I were to write a book, I would certainly refer to Owen Meany. It had a deep influence on my faith. The image of Owen with the "Penguins" at the end (in the airport after "the shot") is etched in my mind forever. It pops into my consciousness at unexpected moments.
Like right now :-)
And as I said before, those two last sentences: world rockers.
Those two last sentences: heartbreakers too!
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