"We do not have to be our history."

Jim Martin tells in his blog, A Place for the God-Hungry, of a recent book he's been reading on the life of Flannery O'Connor.

In the book, [Brad] Gooch tells the story of O’Connor’s friendship with Betty Hester. For nine years, they corresponded by letter. In these letters they discussed matters of theology, philosophy, and the content of the various books they were reading.

At one point in their friendship, Hester revealed to O’Connor the details of what she called her “history of horror.” She had a very painful childhood. Her father abandoned the family when she was very young. When she was thirteen years old, she witnessed the suicide of her mother. Neighbors, believing that her mother was playing a joke, refused to call the police. Later, she joined the army, only to then be dishonorably discharged for her sexual behavior.

O’Connor’s response to Hester is classic:

“Where you are wrong is in saying that you are a history of horror. The meaning of the Redemption is precisely that we do not have to be our history.” (p. 282)

All I can say is, "Amen."

Just another reason I love Southern writers like O'Connor, Harper Lee, and Carson McCullers. They weren't afraid to give great spiritual insight, even with all the bumps, bruises, and scabs of everyday living. And, they weren't afraid of living lives they felt honorable before the Lord even though others may have thought otherwise.