May 22: Entertaining God

Welcome to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Today is May 22nd, and our story is Entertaining God. James Powers wanted to write stories that even God would like. I think it's possible to write something that is worthy of God's attention, he explained. Not as a soul seeking salvation, but just as entertainment for God.

That quest resulted in one of the mid-20th century's most acclaimed bodies of fiction. Flannery O'Connor described Powers as one of the country's finest story writers, and his first novel, Morte Durban, beat out books by John Updike and Catherine Ann Porter to win the 1963 National Book Award. A self-taught writer, Powers was born into a devout Catholic family in 1917 and was educated by Franciscans in high school, but he never graduated from college. Instead, the Illinois native worked odd jobs while honing his craft.

During World War II, the pacifist powers spent 20 months in jail for refusing to fight. Professionally, the time was well spent. He met other artists and had ample time to write. Personally, it was challenging. In a May 22, 1944 letter, he wrote, There is a justice, hardly poetic, in the way I find myself tied up in destiny with millions of people, when what I want most is to be separated from them.

Echoes of that sentiment run throughout Powers' work, which focused largely on Catholic priests struggling with their vocations. Neither saints nor devils, Powers' priests grapple equally with the demands of holiness and the trivialities of parish life. Those trivialities leave some spiritually bankrupt, others humbled.

After publishing his first short story collection in 1947, Powers wrote two novels and another 19 short stories. He also taught writing at St. John's Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota. His 42-year marriage to writer Betty Weil ended with her 1988 death. Losing her tested Powers' faith, but didn't break it. I figure you have to make a bet, he said. You can't go through this life and just be a spectator without ever laying it on the line. I'm betting on God to win, not to show.

Powers died in 1999. Powers Example encourages us to take risks, to fully invest ourselves in what we love, and to trust in God's providence. Reflect on a way to integrate your faith and creativity in meaningful work this week. Thank you for listening to the American Catholic Daily Reader Podcast. Join us tomorrow, May 23rd, for another story of faith and courage in America.