A Good Man is Hard to Find is the title of a short story by the renowned “southern gothic” fiction writer of a generation ago, Flannery O’Connor. O’Connor was a devout Catholic, and her stories were tinged with religious symbolism that some would find macabre and nearly all would find barely translucent. To put it another way, her writings take some getting used to and also require some help at deciphering her meaning. But, her writings are typically ranked among the very best 20th century literature.
In this short story, the “Misfit” is an escaped criminal who ultimately murders the entire family of the protagonist, a grandmother. In the last lines of the story, she too is felled by the assassin’s bullet, and he exclaims:
“She would of been a good woman,” The Misfit said, “if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life.”
According to the prevailing interpretation of this bizarre story, this was O’Connor’s way of saying that in the moment of darkest despair, there is God. In death, God’s grace was most present. In a perverse way, the Misfit murderer was an instrument of God’s grace.
This short story occurred to me this morning as I processed the Tucson Memorial Service that I watched last evening, and especially the speech of President Obama. He spoke to the soul of America last night, with words of comfort and consolation but also soaring with hope. Last night, he was America’s preacher, and his words were a stirring sermon in the very best sense. He consoled the nation’s grief but also dared to speak to our anger with words of forgiveness and encouragement to heal and not to wound.
“At a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized … it’s important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we’re talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds,” Obama said. He later added, “If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate — as it should — let’s make sure it’s worthy of those we have lost.”
Joe Scarborough, a former Republican Congressman who hosts “Morning Joe” on MSNBC, this morning called it a transformative moment in American political discourse.
And this brings me back to O’Connor and the Misfit. Will good come from the tragedy of Tucson? Will new life and hope arise from death and destruction? Will a deranged shooter ultimately be the occasion for transformation?
There is a secondary application of this title also. As I watched the President speak, I couldn’t help but think that America doesn’t appreciate how fortunate we are to have this grace-filled man of eloquence as our leader.
A good man is hard to find.
As a resident of this great state , it has been a tough week. The President did well and it is time for healing. With many friends in Tucson it has been tough there. Prayers for all……
Good post, Obie. Thanks. I also like these words from the speech:
“The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better in our private lives – to be better friends and neighbors, co-workers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their deaths help usher in more civility in our public discourse, let’s remember that it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy, but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation, in a way that would make them proud.”
Nicely done, Obie: as usual. President Obama is indeed a “grace-filled man of eloquence,” as you say. I have often felt stirred by his ability to touch those deeper places in our collective and individual broken souls with his “preaching.” Thanks be to God.
It sickens me to see and hear people remark that the speech he made was only an attempt to politicize the moment…Obama gives speeches, and they’re good speeches. It’s his gift, and he should use it if that’s how he connects with people. I don’t question his sincerity in this matter, just as I don’t question Bush’s sincerity when he spoke to the nation after 9/11. Why can’t or shouldn’t the president speak to the nation after a tragedy? Some people I just won’t understand, I suppose.
We are still dealing with a good deal of racism in this country. I just heard the other day that there are churches who consider all blacks the descendents of a condemned son or descendent of Ham son of Noah. I don’t know where this came from but I expect that it came from some white extremist who was trying to justify slavery. I expect the thought has been around for a long time. I wish all white people would trace their genealogy back to the poor European peasants who came over to keep from starving to death. I wish they would find their native American ancestors that the French traders intermarried with. I wish they would find their slave owning ancestors who had children that were mulatto by the white father.
Yes , I have some biases too but mostly against gangs who kill or vandalize property. I have taught enough black , Hispanic and Hmong children to know that at that level there is hope for world peace.