Once again, I am leading a book study. This time the book is Jim Sano's novel "Self Portrait", the 3rd 4th book in the Fr. Tom series. It is a mini-book study over 4 evenings - Feb. 13th, Feb. 20th, March 5th, and March 19th - covering 8 chapters during each meeting.
To help us with our discussions, I came up with questions for us to reflect on and prepare to share during the meeting. The questions are:
- Which character struck you the most in the chapter? Why?
- Which character reminds you of yourself or someone you know? How?
- Do you empathize or sympathize with any of the characters in the chapter? Which one? Why?
- Were there any teachings or references to the Catholic faith that you picked up in the chapter? If yes, what is it and what were your thoughts?
- What do you find most compelling about the chapter? Why?
Below are my thoughts on chapters 17, 18, 19.
Which character struck you the most in the chapters? Why?
In Chapter 17, although Angelo did not officially make an appearance in the chapter, Detective Brooks mentioned that Angelo located Peter Buck, who he believes is "running a major fencing operation for the black market and New England crime families" (p. 102). And then, in Chapter 18, Fr. Tom and Angelo were already talking with Peter Buck when Detective Brooks, Billy, and Sean arrived on scene.
Which character reminds you of yourself or someone you know? How?
In Chapter 19, Sean revealed to Billy and Mary that he is seeing a woman named Jennifer. When questioned by Mary why he has not brought Jennifer around to meeting them, Sean explained that he thought that happens when two people are serious or engaged. However, he has already met her family. Sean told Billy that he would do anything for him and Mary. They meant the world to him.
Do you empathize or sympathize with any of the characters in the chapters? Which one? Why?
Henri DuBois' reaction when they recovered the missing painting (in Chapter 18) was genuine. All he ever wanted was for them to recover the painting. He did not care about the mystery, only to recover the Rembandt masterpiece. He is the curator of the museum after all.
Were there any teachings or references to the Catholic faith that you picked up in the chapter? If yes, what is it and what were your thoughts?
In Chapter 17, page 101, in this midst of recovering from a gunshot wound, Billy offered prayers for Mary to be healed of her ailment, asking God to "don't let her suffer from this condition." This is redemptive suffering, to unite our suffering with the suffering of Christ on the Cross and intercede for another. In Chapter 19, page. 114-115, Billy, Fr. Tom, and Angelo talk about the nature of good and whether compromising honesty to achieve an end that is good is itself a good. Fr. Tom said that he should have been honest with Tobey in the first place and admitted that he acted on instinct. However, Fr. Tom admits that not all things are so black-and-white sometimes. He recommends prayerful discernment to help determine the right course of action depending on the particular situation.
What do you find most compelling about the chapters? Why?
In Chapter 17, Detective Brooks brought both Reggie Hope and Dougie Jones in for additional questioning based on the additional information that they gathered from Tobey's interrogation. However, both Reggie and Dougie vehemently deny having anything to do with the stolen painting. In Chapter 18, it was Kenny Green who showed up at the Gardner Museum with information on the stolen Rembrandt and to collect the reward money. The question remains, how did Kenny Green know where the painting was hidden? An even better question, was he involved in the heist with Dougie and Reggie?
Previous chapter(s):
Chapters 13, 14, 15, 16 https://dcnphuc2019.blogspot.com/2024/02/lenten-book-study-self-portrait_28.html
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