Father of Lies by Brian Evenson
Eldon Fochs, the provost, might be a sexual offender. His therapist is unsure, and his church is adamant about maintaining its good name. In Father of Lies, Brian Evenson tells a tale of power, paranoia, the perils of mindless obedience, and the lengths to which institutions will go to defend themselves against potential victims who are innocent people.
Father of Lies by Brian Evenson
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This is a masterfully written, compelling tale that centres on the worst kind of sexual predator—a paedophile who works for the church. He is more effective than the majority of these monsters thanks to his position and the trust that comes with it. It also makes it more difficult for his victims to recover from the harm he does.
The writing of Evenson is succinct, offering us a clear, unvarnished look at this guy and his practices. Of course, he is only betraying one man, and there are as many “reasons” for the kind of behaviour he engages in as there are perpetrators, but many of the “typical” behaviours are displayed here. On the one hand, he appears to be “out of control,” hearing voices, and seeing (and listening to) various personas inside of himself, but on the other hand, we can see him deftly controlling his victims; there is unmistakable premeditation in his actions.
It is very despicable and, in light of recent news developments, highly topical for the church to try to hide the problem as it comes more and more to light. The man’s superiors initially believe his claims that he is guiltless of any misconduct. They are rightfully startled and angered that he has fooled them as it becomes more and more obvious that he has been lying to them, but they did not conduct a thorough investigation into the claims when they first surfaced.
This book is not cheerful, but then again, neither are the lives of people who have been the victims of predators like the one so clearly depicted here. However, it is a book that every adult who cares about protecting children and how they are treated should read. Brian Evenson has done a fantastic service by creating this book, which has a message that far too many people ignore. Sadly, statistics demonstrate that they are mistaken.
