Brian Macdonald

Michael's Myth Brian Macdonald

Michael James is a gay man living in denial. He believes he has found the perfect expression of spirituality while taking care of the practical demands of everyday existence. However, his life as a Catholic priest in the twenty-first century fails to nourish his personal need for love and the free expression of that love. Michael's story is one of lost opportunity, spiritual emptiness, but ultimate discovery. The story begins with Michael as a university student. He is active in the university's Chaplaincy Center and has a personal connection to the chaplain, Father Mathew Brown. Under Father Brown's influence, Michael decides to enroll in the seminary. Six years later, Michael has his own parish in a university town similar to the one in which he was an undergraduate. His bishop forces him into an active role in the local university chaplaincy group, with the idea of promoting the Catholic Church, something Michael finds distasteful in an organization that welcomes all students. From this point until his final act of defiance, Michael's life as a Catholic priest deforms his spirit, leaving him empty and unloved.