Kenan Heise

The Sin of Obedience Kenan Heise

The Sin of Obedience is one of the few works of fiction or non-fiction that looks profoundly and with deep personal reflection into the training of a Catholic priest. The novel, rich and accurate in detail, is the story of a young prodigy torn with between the rigid religious traditions and convictions of his mother and the more-humanity-oriented respect for freedom of his father. Building on his own experiences, including being the subject of sexual abuse by a seminary teacher, the author unfolds a picture of religious life in which the cornerstones of celibacy and a vow of obedience have forced seminarians and priests to make difficult and often impossible decisions in their own personal lives. This well-crafted story enables the reader to go along with a young boy, seminarian and priest on his idealistic pursuit and mission and the consequences he has to face as a result.