When the chaotic and violent world tempts me to despair, Pascale’s Wager: Homelands of Heaven is a light in the darkness that revives my spirit.
Anthony Bartlett, Girardian theologian and hope-timist extraordinaire, is the author of this eloquent, riveting story of rebellion against conformity, compassion in the face of cruelty and hope in the midst of despair. In a future world that has been brought to the brink of destruction by global warming, life is sustained in a technologically-engineered frozen wasteland by a system of rigid order. Religion is a control mechanism, and dissent is forbidden and deadly. In this stifling atmosphere, Poll, an inquisitive troublemaker, and Cal, a perspicacious seeker, dare to pierce through the façade of the cultural myth that holds their tenuous society together. Pulling back the veil of lies incurs the wrath of the powers that be, but also tests the courage, resolve, and creativity of our two heroes in astonishing ways. Inspired by one-another, Poll and Cal are each thrust onto separate but parallel journeys of survival and self-discovery in which a kernel of faith is nourished and grows in accordance with their unique personalities. Amidst their perilous circumstances, each of our heroes push the limits of their potential, defying odds, encountering love in surprising places and people, and changing their worlds permanently and inexorably.
Readers will be caught up in the fascinating worlds that Bartlett has created, compelled by the fast-paced action of the plot and intrigued by the dynamic characters, all of which in themselves make for an extraordinary novel. But for seekers, doubters, and anyone looking for a reason to believe in the power of love, the layers of theological and anthropological depth and rich symbolism permeating the story combine to further enhance the reading of Pascale’s Wager, making it a poignant, joyful and inspiring experience.
Without mentioning Jesus or referencing Christian doctrine, Bartlett proclaims the good news in a thoroughly human story. While it is saturated with Gospel and theological undertones, the identity of God is so vague that I believe this story could appeal as much to my atheist father as to my more conservative Christian friends. While some readers will see the hand of the divine at work in the survival and development of the heroes, others may attribute their growth to the indomitable human spirit. None, however, will be able to miss the profound love that catalyzes the changes that forever alter the worlds Pascale and Palmiro (Cal and Poll) touch.
Within the story of Cal and Poll’s journeys, a clear contrast is depicted between religion and faith. From the beginning, religion is portrayed as a wall of deception meant to pacify the masses and prevent anarchy. Yet what makes religion stifling lies not merely in the surface trappings – laws, stories, promises of heaven and warnings of hell – but in the underlying attitude of certainty that leaves little room for questioning or searching… or empathy for those who would dare to do so. This unspoken contract among the citizens of the Homeland makes the people a silent mob against dissenters. Even when it appears that the protagonists have escaped the trappings of “religion,” they find that this attitude of intolerance against those who would dare question the status quo is pervasive, even in drastically different communities.
Faith, by contrast, shines through the barriers of religious certainty as the courage to question and doubt. This courage is sustained by a love that gives the heroes the confidence they need to believe in their own potential and the potential of their worlds.
For me, one of the most important messages of Pascale’s Wager is that faith is not about blindly clinging to identity, whether in the form of religion or ideology, but rather about making space for questions and compassion. It is only in the willingness to seek beyond the comforts of certainty that one can experience and exude empathy that creates healing ripples as it touches one life after another.
Cal and Poll dare to reach beyond the confines of their world and challenge us to do the same. The artificial and superficial worlds that they begin to change through their quest for truth resemble our own in many ways, and the dangers that they face in the midst of hostile environmental elements and societies almost devoid of compassion are eerily similar to what we face today, with global warming encroaching upon us and the divide between the rich and the poor growing ever wider. In the abysmal bleakness of this world, the power of redemption lies in radical compassion. Pascale’s Wager teaches this lesson in a profoundly moving story that challenges the reader to pick up where Pascale leaves off. It is the Christian message stripped of dogma down to the core of good news. It is the gospel… in other words.