Ruth Group discussion

By the end of chapter 23 Bluey has a decision to make. How is his like or unlike Tom's and what do you think of it?

Tom chooses to not say anything about the baby for Isabel. One could argue he does it out of selfless love. Bluey is coerced into his choice by his mother and the desire for the reward money. however, I wasn't really mad at Bluey for doing it. The "person responsible" shouldn't have sent that rattle to Hannah. I was mad at that person. (I read ahead...)

I think Tom did want to get caught. That is why he put notes in Hanna's mailbox. I think when Bluey turned Tom in Tom was relieved. He also had a "scape goat" for confessing.

Tom was definitely having problems leaving things as they were. I think this book does a very good job of describing how broken the world is from the war on to the decisions surrounding Lucy. Would it have been better if they had just reported everything when they first found Lucy?

Now in Chapter 26 Isabel has her own choice when she is asked if the man in the boat was already dead when the boat came ashore on the island. Why does she respond the way she does and what do you think about it?

I agree with your assessment Don, that the book does do a very good job of describing how broken the world is and how your reactions or actions can affect so many other people. I did also originally post that I thought Tom and Isabel should not have kept Lucy; but, one of the quotes from page 145 I really related to is the following, "Life, thought Septimus, when his daughters had returned to the cottage the day the mysterious letter arrived: you could never trust the bastard. What it gives with one hand, it takes away with the other." This too, seems to be a recurring theme of the book. How we are constantly choosing between our sense of "right/what God's choice is" and "wrong/what the Devil's choice is". So, it's really hard for me to say now that Tom and Isabel did the "wrong" thing. Or, that Bluey/his Mother's influence was "wrong". I am reminded of this quote: ”You never truly know someone until you've walked a mile in their shoes." AMEN!!

I think this is what leads us to humility before God and others!