Fr. John O’Brien: Editing Novels, Receptivity, & the Shallows

Recorded way back in November of 2020, this episode features Fr John O’Brien SJ calling in from Canada. Father John, son of the Catholic novelist Michael O'Brien, is the Vocations Director for the Jesuits of the “Canada Provence,” and has been a longtime spiritual advisor of the Mary Foundation. Before he became a priest, he worked with the Mary Foundation and notably helped Bud Macfarlane edit his novels. Bud also joins us for the podcast.

The three of us discuss Father John’s origin story, from editing novels with Bud during the early days of the Mary Foundation all the up to his own vocational journey into the Jesuits, highlighting Christian obedience and receptivity. We also dive at length into the effects of technology on our lives, springboarding from a book called “the Shallows” by Nicholas Carr. We discuss how television, cell phones, and social media influence our enjoyment of life & culture, our brain & concentration, our silence and prayer, as well as our relationships & connection to reality. We finish off by discussing a few strategies to deal with some of these negative effects.

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