Hair Rising, Heir Raising, Erasing
Father Odell
The character of Father Odell looks after his parish like a shepherd after his flock. Ready listener of their ailments and tribulations, he offers to them the comfort of an educated comprehension, wraps their shoulders by his understanding and instead of letting them face their worst nightmare alone, he leads them to forgiving solutions to their dilemmas.
Father Odell, far from throwing the first stone to someone confessing to him their misdeeds, offers them the protection of his forgiving help and secrecy. He would also stand to protect them from public judgement depending on their deeds in order to fulfil what he believes, that only god is allowed to judge someone fairly and adequately. He aims for his sheep to have a lifetime where they could redeem themselves before facing god.
Theo Odell believes that humanity can earn their colours in the end, yet he will stand against mass mob judging, stoning and murders. ‘You shall not kill’: is the rule in his heart. When you do so you become a murderer in the eyes of the eternal father and there is nothing worst. Father Odell will protect his flock from becoming ‘all judging’ murderers.
His character brings back forgiveness into religion rather than the gun blazing extremism which we face today in all shapes or forms. Asked for your own religion, you face a bullet in your head by your reply, depending where you stand at that moment in time. We are facing religious and ethnic cleansing on a massive scale. Some believe they have a right to kill you for your differing faith. Some are inhuman enough to do so for a religious political tyranny which they want to expand worldwide at all cost, humanity’s one.
Theo is the accomplice that will carry you through a phase of history and make sure you are left alive. I based him upon one of my own ancestors, Julie Postel, known as Ste Marie-Madeleine Postel from her canonisation. A teacher in the small village of Barfleur, she helped priests, hide and cross to Great Britain, where they would not be beheaded for their religion, during the French revolution years.
Theo’s name was born from the singer of ‘Another Love’, which I listened to a lot during the time when I wrote ‘Hair raising, Heir Rising, Erasing.’. For me it meant the greater love, the pure one, the humanistic one which embraced everybody in its scope.
This character will come back in my stories of Wilton Town.
In one protective quote:
The priest intervened at the bitterness of the comments,-Abraham, maybe it would be best for your sons to step away now before you confess everything to everyone. Have you said your farewells to them?’