The Hermit: The Priest Who Saved a Soul, a Marriage, and a Family

Christine Hanus takes a look at a new book by Kevin Wells, published by Ignatius Press. 

The Hermit: The Priest Who Saved a Soul, a Marriage, and a Family 

By Kevin Wells 

Publisher: Ignatius Press 

As I began reading The Hermit: The Priest Who Saved a Soul, a Marriage, and a Family, I quickly realized this story would be no run-of-the-mill Hallmark movie script. In the first half of the book, the author, Kevin Wells, takes you down, down, down into the undiluted pain of his family who has already suffered much and addresses topics such as addiction, spiritual warfare, and marital upheaval. Thankfully, just when I couldn’t bear it anymore, (about halfway through the book), the story line takes the reader up, up, up into light, liberation, and love.  

The Hermit provoked deep thought, reflection, and even agitation in me as I was reading it. It is a book that brings up thoughts and feelings that I will continue thinking about over the coming months. 

More autobiographical than expected 

In the prologue, Kevin Wells admits that, though he set out to write about a priest, he focused more on his own life than he had expected to. This makes perfect sense, but I believe it makes the book title a bit misleading. Don’t expect to hear too much about Father Martin Flum, whom I find fascinating, until toward the end of the book. What did come through loud and clear in reference to the priesthood throughout the book is that the church desperately needs priests who can minister to the people of God in powerful ways through their own radical self-donation to Christ.  

I was reminded again of the way God wants to work through our priests, and my efforts to pray for priests and to sacrifice for them is vital. Like Ur and Aaron, in Exodus 18, as they stood on either side of Moses in order to keep his hands raised so that the Israelites would continue to be successful in the battle with the Amalekites, we need to stand on either side of these priests and enable them to do what they have been instructed and empowered to do in the battle for souls.  

The author’s voice and style 

As far as writing style goes, the author’s unique voice comes through in the telling of this story, which I appreciated. Again, it is no cookie-cutter tale. I give Mr. Wells credit for effectively juggling multiple themes which unfolded over a period of time—his wife’s fluctuating mental and spiritual state, his own struggles both interior and exterior, the helps they received directly and indirectly from God, and Father Flum as a man and as a priest.   

I must admit though, that while the author’s use of analogy and metaphor added depth and interest to his story (sometimes I would sit back and just meditate on the aptness or creativity of a particular analogy) there were occasions when I felt distracted by the frequency of these particular literary devices. 

Typically, discussion about COVID-19, which enters near the end of the story like a cloaked villain from stage left, leaves me feeling disgusted and disinterested, but this account of the way COVID-19 was experienced was refreshing. People have differing, strong opinions about how this event in our recent world history was handled, but I found Mr. Wells’ perspective provided valuable food for thought and an eternal perspective that is the only remedy for fear. 

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Copyright 2024 Christine Hanus
Images: (top) detail from cover