The Catholic Book Club discussion

2. How did you find Father Fermoyle? Do you know or have you known priests like him?

I see Stephen Fermoyle as fulfilling Jesus' command to be "wise as serpents, gentle as doves." I take this as a combination of true holiness, with an understanding of the weakness of men and the ways of the world. In this regard, Fermoyle is not that unusual, at least as far as I can tell. I wouldn't say we have an overwhelming abundance of Father Fermoyles, but I think a reasonably large percentage of the priests I've known shared similar characteristics of piety, determination, diligence, intelligence and savvy, though perhaps not to the same degree. Bishop Cozzens (current auxiliary bishop of Mpls-St. Paul) , for example, is a very impressive young bishop.

How can one not like him?! He is plagued by pride and intellectualism toward the beginning but has the common touch. There are touching scenes that prompt his growth, e.g. being upset with Jemmy's incompetent serving but overcoming that and being so encouraging he winds up with a vocation. Lovely!
I was sad when the Cardinal pulled him out of parish work into diocesan administration, and later working at the Vatican; that seemed like a waste of his pastoral gifts with people.