God is Not a Rulebook

The story of an aging Catholic priest and the characters that inhabit his family and his parish. Catholic dogma and discipline no longer are firmly rooted in Father Fintan Foley, whose emphasis is on helping people navigate the trials of this life. The Foley family is buffeted by most of the social and economic currents of modern times. Fintan's sister, Mary Anne, a psychologist, describes her experience of three marriages as "serial monogamy" with no cheating; Fintan's father, Jeremiah, a history professor at Temple University, is highly critical of the church; Isabel Hightower, a former nun and director of education at the parish, is a lesbian who marries her partner.

Father Fintan Foley , his family, and his parish struggle in the winds of modernism. Priests have all the flaws and doubts that bother other humans, and Catholic priests struggle in doctrinal discipline that metaphorically resembles a noose. Father Fintan Foley outgrew the noose and did not understand his Catholic faith to be a rulebook., nor did he see his vocation as being a judge and enforcer. Seventy-one years old, he was a pastor, a vocation he saw as helping people through the trials of this life, sharing their hopes, joys, and sorrows, and comforting the afflicted. He cheered the election of Pope Francis I and believed the new pontiff would lead the church and the world toward mercy instead of absolutism. The new pope had emphasized serving the poor, seemed to have a tolerant view of homosexuality, and was looking for ways to advance the role of women in the ministry of the church, but without ordaining them as priests. The book takes Fintan Foley, his family, and his parishioners through the political, social, and cultural changes and conflicts of almost a century. The characters are affected by the Great Depression, World War II, the anti-communist witch-hunting of the 1950s, the civil rights struggle and liberating enthusiasms of the 1960s and1970s, and the sharp ideological divisions of the country in recent years. The book shows the contrasts between the old Latin church, the effect of reforms initiated by the Vatican Council of the 1960, and hopes fr the leadership of Francis I. The Foley family's life in the United States began when Liam Foley immigrated from Ireland to escape the Royal Irish Constabulary, which was hunting him for his role in the 1916 rebellion against British rule His son Jeremiah, a decorated U.S. Army veteran of World War II, became a history professor at Temple University. He became a best-selling author of a book that criticized the church for it historic political affiliation with monarchs, emperors, and other rulers who oppressed their people. He could never quite understand his son's attachment to the church, which Fintan saw as having the global reach and organization to advance social and economic justice. Fintan's sister, Mary Anne, a psychotherapist, had three marriages she described as serial monogamy, cheating not allowed. Another important character in the book is Isabel Hightower, a former nun and leader of education and other activities at the parish. She was a feminist, a lesbian, and physical fitness practitioner who married her partner.

Eighty-one years old, Ray Gill had a long career in journalism and government service, but retirement never meant abandoning a consuming interest in history, politics, philosophy, and the evolving human experience. A graduate of Temple University, Philadelphia, his career included writing for two metropolitan daily newspapers, the Baltimore Evening Sun and the Baltimore News American, both of which went to the grave of big evening newspapers in the age of television news. Ray then worked 12 years in congressional staff positions, including assignments to the House Budget Committee and the Joint Economics Committee, and eight years as a press officer for a government agency. Ray has written three collections of political essays and a study of the life and works of n Irish poet.