A Novel Idea

I have a couple of projects to work on this week, so I won’t be blogging.  (Besides that, my house is in bad need of cleaning – I guess I’d better make that one of the projects!)

Instead, I invite you to help me with my novel (everyone’s writing a novel, right?!).

I’ve always wanted to write a novel, since I was a little 7-year-old aspiring writer submitting stories to the Kids’ Korner of the local newspaper. It turns out I’m a lot better at writing essays, though, so the novel has never materialized.

Still, I have actually started one! The title is The Demise of a Diocese. The plot is influenced by conspiracy stories like AA-1025, mentioned in the comments the other day; and alleged real-life events like those reported by the likes of Bella Dodd; and even my own modest real-life experiences (see this post and this one). Here's the concept:

We won't know friend from foe
till the end!

Basically, there is a plot by the enemies of the Church to begin dismantling dioceses in the US. There are so many parishes closing…to begin closing entire dioceses would weaken the faith even more. So the insider enemies decide that for starters, they should attempt to take down a small, rural diocese (the Diocese of Baker, heh heh).  It all starts with a bishop (not an actual enemy of the Church, but a pawn of Satan nonetheless – and Satan has many pawns in my novel!) throwing the diocese into debt with a huge retreat center project that requires a “capital campaign”. My thought is that if a diocese is really in bad financial shape, it could be “closed”, or basically subsumed under the nearest archdiocese. All the parishes would become “mission” parishes, and Mass would be said less and less frequently, especially in the outlying rural areas. That would lead to further deterioration of Catholic faith and identity.

In my novel, the plan to destroy a diocese is succeeding. Think about it: few would care if the dismantling of dioceses in this country began with Baker…er…a small rural diocese named... uh… Cook, yeah, the Diocese of Cook! People here there would just go to the Methodist Church down the road instead.

The Archbishop - one
of the good guys...
unless there is a surprising
plot twist!

But...there's a glitch for the enemy when the Most Reverend Alexander Sample is appointed Archbishop of Portland. Well, of course, we fictionalize that and make it Archbishop Example in the Archdiocese of Harborland. Archbishop Example is a shining…um…example of what a good archbishop should be. Since the small rural diocese is absorbed by the Archdiocese, Archbishop Example starts visiting the parishes in the defunct diocese, and he begins efforts at renewal. He's one of the good guys, we are pretty sure.

But the wheels are turning to undermine the Diocese of Baker Cook anyway. Several of the neighboring bishops and archbishops who are wolves in shepherds’ clothing all conspire to put a stop to Archbishop Example's inroads.

And then... we’ll cap it all off with a zombie apocalypse ending! Ha ha! Well, I don’t know about that, actually…

So here’s your job, dear readers: become writers. Feel free to put your thoughts, character suggestions, and plot twists in the comments section, or just email them to me if you want. (drjayboyd@msn.com)

Suggestions:

Describe a character (like liberal Mrs. Smith, for instance, who loves liturgical abuse)

Is there a secret message
inside that balloon?!

Describe a situation that illustrates the conspiratorial nature of the liberal progressive modernist agenda (the closer to the truth, the better!)

Describe fictional or non-fictional ways the conspiracy can proceed (like false priests who dedicate their lives to destroying the Church that they don’t even believe in; or bishops who conspire to appoint communist homosexual clerics to positions of power; or bishops who transfer orthodox priests to the far corners of a diocese in order to undermine the EF Mass).

You get the idea. Have some fun! Outlandish and humorous contributions are welcome!

 I’ll see you next week with a report on the progress of our novel!