1 Topic by Dirk B. (edited by Dirk B. 2019-07-22 16:56:08)

Topic: Very difficult scene - LOTE

My current WIP is a supernatural thriller that revolves around the Catholic Church, and I'm writing it as a Catholic-friendly story. They are my primary target audience. I include some necessary violence (it's about the Apocalypse), very little cursing, and no sex to get the widest possible Catholic audience. A reasonable minimum age for reading this story is probably about fourteen, the same age as the central character.

All that being said, I do include a struggling gay priest, Father Romano, who's trying to live by the rules. For those not aware of it, Catholicism considers homosexual acts to be mortal sins that can lead to hell. Their view is that gays and lesbians are to be treated with the same respect due anyone else, provided they refrain from homosexual acts and relationships. In other words, hate the sin, love the sinner. Based on the Catholic forum I follow, I suspect many Catholics aren't even aware of that the Church draws a distinction.

I have an important scene between Romano and his former lover of ten years. The Church became aware of his relationship and he was forced to choose either the Church or the relationship. He ultimately chose the Church for a number of reasons, including for the sake of his own soul. Book one actually opens with a prayer by Romano asking God to strengthen his resolve, although I don't reveal until later what he was actually praying about.

Eventually, the distraught former lover shows up and tries to convince Romano to resume their relationship. The conversation goes badly and Romano tells him to leave and never come back. The lover then commits suicide, and Romano blames himself. He'll confess all this to a fellow priest and they'll discuss the impact that the suicide will have on the lover's family.

I'm concerned about the impact this scene could have on young closeted homosexuals. Even non-Catholics struggle with this when coming of age. I can only imagine how much harder it is for Catholic teenagers. Along comes my book and tells them that, as Catholics, they have to live a lonely existence (gay men aren't even allowed in seminary schools anymore due to the abuse scandals), and, if they can't handle that existence, one option is suicide.

Aside from discussing the impact of the suicide on the family, is there anything more that I can add that addresses this topic realistically (unfortunately, the suicides do happen) without leading anyone to think that suicide is a reasonable option?

Regrettably, in an unrelated but important scene, a Satanic being reminds a cardinal that the Church teaches that committing suicide out of fear of unbearable suffering does not preclude the victim from heaven.

Thoughts?

Thanks
Dirk

Quote Post 1

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Everyone struggles.
Neither side realizes what's at stake for the other side.
The conversations themselves would not push the lover to suicide, but they lay the path.  Something else, something of (apparently) pure chance gives that final push.  Or perhaps we see him draw a false conclusion--after the fact--from something that Romano said, perhaps inspired by something else.  If that something else has a back-link to the satanic cardinal, so much the better.
Does Romano want to believe the cardinal?  Will he be caught between what he'd like to believe and what he really believes?

Quote Post 2

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Thanks, njc. I realized today that it doesn't have to be a suicide. The distraught former lover could simply run out of the orphanage and into the street without thinking, where he is hit by a bus. And to really mess with Romano's head, the dying man could refuse to receive the last rites, pretty much guaranteeing, from Romano's perspective, that he died in a state of mortal sin.

Quote Post 3

4 Reply by njc (edited by njc 2019-07-17 00:19:36)

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Even more tragic:. He's not refusing the last rites but trying to say something, maybe about forgiving Romano.  The reader understands, but those around don't   Romano won't know either, but he can blame those who withheld the sacrament, on the grounds that his former lover might not have been in his right mind and lacked the moral agency to refuse.

But yeah, your idea is terrific.

Quote Post 4

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Why not have an acolyte of the bad guy cause the death? If the bad guy is haunting the place where Romano lives (as seen in an earlier chapter) it would know something of this situation. Have a bad guy toady then cause the death of the lover and make it look like a suicide or such. Just a thought.

Quote Post 5

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

The scene is up. Talk about damaging one of your main characters. The other, Inspector Campagna, is already a mess because her baby boy was kidnapped many years ago from the hospital where she gave birth. I can't wait to introduce her to Connor, who looks surprisingly like she envisioned her son would. However, Connor's parents were killed in a car accident when Connor was seven, so it couldn't be him, right?

Quote Post 6

7 Reply by Dirk B. (edited by Dirk B. 2019-07-22 17:01:13)

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Given how Romano's former lover dies (Romano's fault, the lover refuses last rights, he's going to hell) and the devastating impact it has on Romano, I'm debating whether Romano should start hearing the dead man's voice. I could do it as ghostly whispers that pass him quickly at every turn and send chills down his spine. Additionally, he could think he keeps seeing his lover in crowds. Basically he's haunted or suffering from mental illness. It would allow me to keep this particular subplot going throughout the book.

Thoughts?

Quote Post 7

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Guilt can crack a mind so it would be reasonable for Romano to start hearing things. This is my first time reading this thread, the only other thing I would mention is at the start you wrote " Their view is that gays and lesbians are to be treated with the same respect due anyone else, provided they refrain from homosexual acts and relationships" and just wanted to mention that (at least in an official sense, every human does things different) many Catholics will treat a gay man or woman with the same respect regardless of whether they engage in homosexual acts.

Quote Post 8

Re: Very difficult scene - LOTE

Thanks, Will. You're right r.e. respect from Catholics is, for the most part, the same as from most people, although the hard-core Catholics in the forum I frequent would definitely steer clear of them.

Quote Post 9