An Unordinary Man: A Life of Father John LaFarge, S.J.

Biographical/autobiographical writing is a favorite of mine. A few of the works under review here can be read in a single sitting, but others demand time and concentration. All but one are easily accessible to the nonexpert.

John LaFarge, who died in 1963, was one of the best known Jesuits of the American preconciliar church. A pioneer in interracial relations, deeply interested in the liturgical arts (as befitting the son of a well-known artist), active with Luigi Ligutti in the Catholic Rural Life Conference, LaFarge was a long-time editor at America and a contributor to the pages of this journal. His name has resurfaced most recently because of his involvement, during the waning days of Pius XI's papacy, in a never-published encyclical on the topic of racism which he co-wrote with two other Jesuits. That never-published encyclical shows another facet of the Vatican's attitude toward the Jews on the eve of World War II.

Hecht came to this biography as a result of his research on LaFarge's nephew, Oliver LaFarge, who was a Pulitzer prize-winning novelist (1929) and keen student of Native Americans. Hecht's wide knowledge of the LaFarge family is put to good advantage in telling this story, which ranges from LaFarge's childhood through his education for the priesthood and subsequent entrance into the Jesuits, his long pastoral years with the rural population of Maryland (separate white and black parishes), to his work as a journalist and his wider involvement on the world stage.

Anyone who wishes to see starkly the preconciliar church as lived by one of its livelier minds would benefit from this biography. LaFarge knew the contemporary world but the limitations of his world view are also clear: his defense of Franco was unwavering; his loathing of birth control patent; his involvement with interracial matters a bit patronizing. That latter topic is so important that one might consult David Southern's John LaFarge and the Limits of Catholic Inter-racialism - 1911-63 (Louisiana State University Press, 1996) for a more ample discussion than Hecht is able to provide.

This biography is a very "good read," although the author seems overly apologetic for the shortcomings of this generous and saintly priest. It is distressing, however, that the outrageous price of this book will give pause to interested readers and perhaps even make some libraries think twice before purchasing it.

Lawrence S. Cunningham teaches theology at the University of Notre Dame.