“If other ages felt less, they saw more, even though they saw with the blind, prophetical, unsentimental eye of acceptance, which is to say, of faith. In the absence of this faith now, we govern by tenderness. It is a tenderness which, long cut off from the person of Christ, is wrapped in theory. When tenderness is detached from the source of tenderness, its logical outcome is terror. It ends in forced-labor camps and in the fumes of the gas chamber.”
― Flannery O’Connor, Mystery and Manners: Occasional Prose
She was only 39 when she dies. It is stunning to contemplate her writings if she had been granted a normal life span. However, such measurements, when applied to Art, are surely missing the point.
Thank you for sharing her wit and keen insight.
I like her meme; “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you odd.”
Secularists have called Catholics odd since the very beginning.
Odd indeed are the actions of secularists who justify atrocities in the name of freedom.
Video Clip of “Saints vs. Scoundrels: Flannery O’Connor vs. Ayn Rand”
https://www.facebook.com/ewtnonline/videos/10153322746417582/
Late to respond to this, but for the record: Albany, NY area school district of 1969/70, English class text book contained a few short stories by Flannery O’Connor, including THE ARTIFICIAL NI&&ER. Not so sure that would fly today. Don’t know for certain, just a hunch.
Willa Cather was the showcased author during 1969/70 English course, of course. My cradle Catholic wife never heard of her until I successfully responded to a Trebek Jeopardy answer, and later pointed out the unusual number of times Willa Cather was the correct response over a stretch of shows. I then had to reveal to my wife that it was probably not due to Ms Cather’s writing ability.
I like that saying, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you odd.”
It captures the “oddness” of her strange and wonderful stories, as well as her steadfast Catholic faith. But is it an actual quote of her own words?
Can anyone cite a reference to a story or letter of hers where she said this?
That is a great quote. We are a Church of oddballs. You can’t accuse Catholics of being cookie cutter boring. We are at our best when we stand out for all the wrong (and right) reasons.