RIP Frank McCourt

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I read Angela’s Ashes and Tis and I really enjoyed them, may he rest in peace…
 
I’m sorry…is this a CATHOLIC forum??? A jolly good fellow? This man was disgusting!! He was BLASPHEMOUS and IMPURE. I’ll pray for his soul, I wouldn’t want him to lose it but I would NOT want to go to my Maker knowing I had written that sort of evil filth, that poked basphemous fun at the Church the way he did.
 
Surely we must pray for the soul of Frank McCourt, and I know nothing of his life outside of what he wrote in his books (his latter life may have been a shining example of penitent, humble obedience for all I know), but it irks me that someone who lead a decidedly un-Catholic existence and was proud enough of that to put it into three books, is still branded a “Catholic” author.

Another blow to Catholic credibility.
 
Wow. I never read any of his later books (well, I read the first chapter of 'Tis, and put it down), but Angela’s Ashes was excellent. And to be honest, I don’t see any blasphemy in that one; regardless of what he did later in his life, Angela’s Ashes was a Catholic book.

May he rest in peace.
 
Honestly some people need to get a live and a grip.

Mc Court’s books were memoirs, there were how he remembered and experienced life. He always said his books were not to be taken as historical accounts, they are accounts of the events of his life as he remembered therm. Any Catholic can and should admit that in the day and age e grew up in Ireland, the Church was…not as it should have been. Look at the investigations going on now of Irish Catholic boarding schools and abuse.

No, it discredits Catholicism much more when we can honestly address some of these issues, and the scandal it’s cause for the Church and for individuals like Frank Mc Court. If you’d read any of his books you would know he spoke very well of the good holy priests he did have contact with. You can’t discount the ones that were awful to him and his family and how that must have impacted his faith. Not excusing bad behavior, just sayin.

And since when is it OK to speak ill of the dead? de mortuis nil nisi bonum dicendum est.

May he RIP:signofcross:
 
Lujack said:
Wow. I never read any of his later books (well, I read the first chapter of 'Tis, and put it down), but Angela’s Ashes was excellent. And to be honest, I don’t see any blasphemy in that one; regardless of what he did later in his life, Angela’s Ashes was a Catholic book.

May he rest in peace.
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Perhaps “blasphemy” is not the correct word, but I recall (having read Angela’s Ashes over 10 years ago :rolleyes:) that there was (at the least) masturbation, teenage sex, and adultery all performed by the “Catholic” characters.

Like Frank McCourt, all Catholics are sinners… I just wonder at his desire to expose his sinful past as a “Catholic” memoir. Poorly catechized Catholics may see this as a tacit thumbs up for similar activities.

I’m not denying his gift as a storyteller, I just don’t like the association between our beautiful Faith and the ugly sins committed in the book (and presumably his life).

Thank you, Lord, for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
 
Angela’s Ashes contains accounts of sin and reconciliation in real life and brought the expectation of perfection out of Catholicism for me. It was real-life proof that there are good people who struggle to maintain a Catholic life and keep going even though it seems (name removed by moderator)ossible. Because of its discussion of sin and the imperfections of people in the faith, not in spite of it, Angela’s Ashes was a major part of my return to the faith. A saint he was not, but I have the deepest respect for Frank McCourt and I say God bless him.
 
Downyduck said:
Perhaps “blasphemy” is not the correct word, but I recall (having read Angela’s Ashes over 10 years ago :rolleyes:) that there was (at the least) masturbation, teenage sex, and adultery all performed by the “Catholic” characters.

Like Frank McCourt, all Catholics are sinners… I just wonder at his desire to expose his sinful past as a “Catholic” memoir. Poorly catechized Catholics may see this as a tacit thumbs up for similar activities.
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Actually, I think that without mentioning those sins, all of the real Catholicness would have gone out of it. See, that’s what made the connection between the high school juniors in my English class reading the book, and this old man writing about Ireland in the 1930’s. All the boys in that class knew the feeling of dragging yourself into the confessional to confess giving into temptation, and I know I’d wished at times for a deaf old priest to hear it.

Besides, he’s writing about his life. What was he supposed to do, pretend that his mother and * never did anything?
I’m not denying his gift as a storyteller, I just don’t like the association between our beautiful Faith and the ugly sins committed in the book (and presumably his life).
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Why? I think the ever-present nature of confession in the book only highlights the beauty of the faith! The very fact that he was going to confession regularly makes it a pretty Catholic book in my opinion.
Thank you, Lord, for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
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I agree with you, but part of the beauty of the sacrament is how it fulfills the worldly and ugly sins that you didn’t want Frank McCourt to discuss.*
 
Lujack said:
All the boys in that class knew the feeling of dragging yourself into the confessional to confess giving into temptation, and I know I’d wished at times for a deaf old priest to hear it.
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:rotfl: And the disappointment upon finding a young priest in the confessional with an ear “big as a seashell,” and the confusion upon accidentally being introduced to new sins in the confessional!:rotfl: This is one of my favorite parts of the book.

Angela’s Ashes does certainly contain discussions of teenage sex. It also contains the deep spiritual hurt that the sin produced, and the profound kindness of the priest who listened to a sixteen year old confess it. It contains lots of stories of people who were doing the best they could to keep a kid on the right path, like the librarian who took the Chinese book away or the magazine vendor who sent the boys around to rip the article about birth control out of all the magazines (which the boys then sold, just as a boy would do). It also contains the reaction of a then-teenaged Frank. There is no way I would have believed this book for a minute if it contained any less discussion of sin than it did. The redemption contained in the story, and the sacrament of confession in general, would be perfectly useless if people didn’t sin.
 
Angela’s Ashes is in my top 5 favorite books. 'Tis, not so much, and I haven’t yet read Teacher Man. They did not strike me as blasphemous or anti-Catholic, just as accounts of his life as an Irish Catholic man. Not a good Catholic, but a Catholic nonetheless.

My father’s side is fully Irish, and I really enjoyed the humor of his books. It felt familiar to me, like it is part of my heritage.

Prayers for him and his family.
 
To Lujack (quote tool is not working):

Well, I really have nothing against Frank McCourt, per se, nor Angela’s Ashes for that matter. I guess I just get irritated in general when folks like McCourt or say, the Kennedys, become these icons of modern Catholicism. But… I suppose reading about virtuous Catholics wouldn’t be quite as entertaining! 😛

And I sincerely DO hope he is at peace, now.

God Bless!
 
Guadalupe_Mamma said:
I’m sorry…is this a CATHOLIC forum??? A jolly good fellow? This man was disgusting!! He was BLASPHEMOUS and IMPURE. I’ll pray for his soul, I wouldn’t want him to lose it but I would NOT want to go to my Maker knowing I had written that sort of evil filth, that poked basphemous fun at the Church the way he did.
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He was writing about his life, he lived in horrid poverty b/c his father couldn’t keep a job b/c of his drinking…Impure?..Are we all pure?..Nobody here makes mistakes?He wasn’t poking fun, I think he was trying to write about his horrible childhood in a literary way…like, I’m tired of crying, so I’ll laugh about it"…Not everyone has a good experience with their religion that they grew up with…To say this man is disgusting is terribly judgemental…
 
I was logging out and saw this.

God Bless you, Frank McCourt!

Such a hard start to his life.
Angela’s Ashes really affected me. It made me realize I am so very blessed.

'Meet you in Heaven, Frank McCourt-this I pray.

Eternal Rest Grant unto him, O Lord.
May Your Perpetual Light Shine Upon Him.
May He Rest In Peace, Frank McCourt.

+Dominus Vobiscum,
-Dawn
 
“Angela’s Ashes really affected me. It made me realize I am so very blessed.”

This was my reaction to the film. When the video was over, I looked around the living room and experienced a profound sense of wealth and prosperity. The absolute destitution of the family in the film is shocking - and there are millions who live in similar, or worse, circumstances today. We merely prefer not to see them.
 
Paganus said:
“Angela’s Ashes really affected me. It made me realize I am so very blessed.”

This was my reaction to the film. When the video was over, I looked around the living room and experienced a profound sense of wealth and prosperity. The absolute destitution of the family in the film is shocking - and there are millions who live in similar, or worse, circumstances today. We merely prefer not to see them.
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I read the book. I didn’t know there’s a movie. Now, I gotta see it.
+Peace Be With You.
-Dawn
 
Based on a chapter he contributed to a book edited by Caroline Kennedy on what Catholicism means to various ex- and cafeteria Catholics (mostly), I would describe Frank McCourt as not religious. In fact he seemed to have a lot of antipathy for the Catholic Church, for whatever reasons.

I’m not trying to be malicious, just factual. He and his family will be in my prayers. Requiescat in pace.
 
Yes, rest in peace. I never read any of his books. Nor, had I ever heard a catholic say anything positive about them. But, be that as it may. We can all afford a prayer for his soul can’t we.
 
tomarin said:
Based on a chapter he contributed to a book edited by Caroline Kennedy on what Catholicism means to various ex- and cafeteria Catholics (mostly), I would describe Frank McCourt as not religious. In fact he seemed to have a lot of antipathy for the Catholic Church, for whatever reasons.

I’m not trying to be malicious, just factual. He and his family will be in my prayers. Requiescat in pace.
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I think he’s not religious, I think he resents everything he grew up with b/c he grew up in a miserable childhood…I’m relatively young , not even Irish so I don’t know what the church was like back than and what it’s like in Ireland…but from some people I talk to over 55, it seems the church is much “nicer” nowadays…I’m not at all an authority on the church, it’s just my opinion…Anyway, Angela’s Ashes was an interesting read…
 
tomarin said:
Based on a chapter he contributed to a book edited by Caroline Kennedy on what Catholicism means to various ex- and cafeteria Catholics (mostly), I would describe Frank McCourt as not religious. In fact he seemed to have a lot of antipathy for the Catholic Church, for whatever reasons.

I’m not trying to be malicious, just factual. He and his family will be in my prayers. Requiescat in pace.
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My impression as well.
 
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