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Father Flynn
Sister James is a young nun at St. Nicholas School. A person with “sunshine in her heart,” she wants to be the kind of teacher students feel comfortable talking to about their problems. However, her generous disposition also contains a certain amount of innocence and naivety, which Sister Aloysius criticizes, encouraging Sister James to be more authoritative and discerning. Sister James tries to follow these instructions, but she finds it exhausting to be constantly suspicious, since doing so makes her feel less of a connection with God. Still, she agrees to be on the lookout for anything that seems amiss at St. Nicholas School, which is why she tells Sister Aloysius when her student Donald Muller comes to class with alcohol on his breath after spending time alone with Father Flynn. Having noticed Donald’s strange behavior, James informs Aloysius what happened and is horrified when the older woman immediately draws the conclusion that Flynn is sexually abusing Donald. “I’m not telling you that!” Sister James says. “I’m not even certain what you mean.” Despite her naivety, though, it’s clear to Aloysius that Sister James knows exactly what she means, and though James admits that she misses the “peace of mind” she had before becoming such a suspicious person, she goes along with Aloysius’s idea to confront Father Flynn. At the same time, though, she remains hesitant about accusing Flynn, which is why he’s eventually able to convince her that he’s innocent. And yet, she’s forced to face her own uncertainty when Sister Aloysius tells her that she's proven to herself that Flynn has a history as a sexual abuser (though, importantly, Aloysius doesn't have definitive evidence). This troubles James, as does the fact that Aloysius had to lie to Flynn in order to get what she believes is the truth. However, Aloysius assures James that sometimes it’s necessary to commit a small sin in order to do a greater good.
Sister James Quotes in Doubt: A Parable
The Doubt: A Parable quotes below are all either spoken by Sister James or refer to Sister James. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Scene 2 Quotes
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Usually more children are sent down to me.
SISTER JAMES: I try to take care of things myself.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: That can be an error. You are answerable to me, I to the monsignor, he to the bishop, and so on up to the Holy Father. There’s a chain of discipline. Make use of it.
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I’m sorry I allowed even cartridge pens into the school. The students really should only be learning script with true fountain pens. Always the easy way out these days. What does that teach? Every easy choice today will have its consequence tomorrow. Mark my words.
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SISTER ALOYSIUS: […] Do you think that Socrates was satisfied? Good teachers are never content. We have some three hundred and seventy-two students in this school. It is a society which requires constant educational, spiritual and human vigilance. I cannot afford an excessively innocent instructor in my eighth grade class. It’s self-indulgent. Innocence is a form of laziness. Innocent teachers are easily duped. You must be canny, Sister James.
[…]
The heart is warm, but your wits must be cold. Liars should be frightened to lie to you. They should be uncomfortable in your presence.
[…]
SISTER JAMES: But I want my students to feel they can talk to me.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: They’re children. They can talk to each other. It’s more important they have a fierce moral guardian. You stand at the door, Sister. You are the gate-keeper. If you are vigilant, they will not need to be.
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Look at you. You’d trade anything for a warm look. I’m telling you here and now, I want to see the starch in your character cultivated. If you are looking for reassurance, you can be fooled. If you forget yourself and study others, you will not be fooled.
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Scene 4 Quotes
SISTER JAMES: I’ve been trying to become more cold in my thinking as you suggested . . . I feel as if I’ve lost my way a little. Sister Aloysius. I had the most terrible dream last night. I want to be guided by you and responsible to the children, but I want my peace of mind. I must tell you I have been longing for the return of my peace of mind.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: You may not have it. It is not your place to be complacent. That’s for the children. That’s what we give them.
SISTER JAMES: I think I’m starting to understand you a little. But it’s so unsettling to look at things and people with suspicion. It feels as if I’m less close God.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: When you take a step to address wrongdoing, you are taking a step away from God, but in His service. Dealing with such matters is hard and thankless work.
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SISTER ALOYSIUS: Eight years ago at St. Boniface we had a priest who had to be stopped. But I had Monsignor Scully then . . . whom I could rely on. Here, there’s no man I can go to, and men run everything. We are going to have to stop him ourselves.
SISTER JAMES: Can’t you just...report your suspicions?
SISTER ALOYSIUS: To Monsignor Benedict? The man’s guileless! He would just ask Father Flynn!
SISTER JAMES: Well, would that be such a bad idea?
SISTER ALOYSIUS: And he would believe whatever Father Flynn told him. He would think the matter settled.
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Scene 5 Quotes
FLYNN: […] I think a message of the Second Ecumenical Council was that the Church needs to take on a more familiar face. Reflect the local community. We should sing a song from the radio now and then. Take the kids out for ice cream.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Ice Cream.
FLYNN: Maybe take the boys on a camping trip. We should be friendlier. The children and the parents should see us as members of their family rather than emissaries from Rome. I think the pageant should be charming, like a community theatre doing a show.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: But we are not members of their family. We’re different.
FLYNN: Why? Because of our vows?
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Precisely.
FLYNN: I don’t think we’re so different.
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FLYNN: Well. I feel a little uncomfortable.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Why?
FLYNN: Why do you think? Something about your tone.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: I would prefer a discussion of fact rather than tone.
FLYNN: Well. If I had judged my conversation with Donald Muller to be of concern to you, Sister, I would have sat you down and talked to you about it. But I did not judge it to be of concern to you.
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SISTER ALOYSIUS: No. If the boy drank altar wine, he cannot continue as an altar boy.
FLYNN: Of course you’re right. I’m just not the disciplinarian you are, Sister. And he is the only Negro in the school. That did affect my thinking on the matter. It will be commented on that he’s no longer serving at Mass. It’s a public thing. A certain ignorant element in the parish will be confirmed in their beliefs.
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Scene 7 Quotes
FLYNN: There are people who go after your humanity, Sister James, who tell you the light in your heart is a weakness. That your soft feelings betray you. I don’t believe that. It’s an old tactic of cruel people to kill kindness in the name of virtue. Don’t believe it. There’s nothing wrong with love.
SISTER JAMES: Of course not, but...
FLYNN: Have you forgotten that was the message of the Savior to us all. Love. Not suspicion, disapproval and judgment. Love of people.
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Scene 9 Quotes
SISTER JAMES: I wish I could be like you.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Why?
SISTER JAMES: Because I can’t sleep at night anymore. Everything seems uncertain to me.
SISTER ALOYSIUS: Maybe we’re not supposed to sleep so well.
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Sister James Character Timeline in Doubt: A Parable
The timeline below shows where the character Sister James appears in Doubt: A Parable. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Scene 2
...doubt. As she writes at her desk with a fountain pen, a younger nun named Sister James approaches her office and asks, “I wondered if I might know what you did about...
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Turning her attention to Sister James ’s teaching style, Sister Aloysius asks if she’s “in control” of her class. She also...
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Sister Aloysius asks Sister James about a student named Donald Muller. When Sister James says that he’s doing fine, Aloysius...
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Sister Aloysius tells Sister James to sit down, saying she has plenty of time before she needs to fetch her...
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Eventually, Sister Aloysius suggests that Sister James isn’t “working hard enough” because she isn’t strict enough with her students. Sister James begins...
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Sister James worries that behaving so strictly will only scare the children, saying that she wants her...
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...who conduct the “specialty” classes (like Music and Art, for instance), Sister Aloysius asks what Sister James thinks about Father Flynn, who teaches both Physical Education and Religion. Sister James calls him...
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“I’m a little concerned,” Sister James says after Sister Aloysius pauses for a long time. Leaning forward, Aloysius asks, “About what?”...
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Scene 4
Sister James finds Sister Aloysius in the garden, where the older woman is bent over a rosebush....
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...for fear that she might run into him. “The monsignor is very good, isn’t he?” Sister James asks, and though Aloysius agrees with her, she also points out that Monsignor Benedict is...
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Moving on, Sister Aloysius asks Sister James how Donald Muller is doing, wondering if anyone has hit him yet. When James says...
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Sister James wonders if she shouldn’t have told Sister Aloysius about Father Flynn’s “special interest” in Donald...
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Going on, Sister James says that she yearns for “the return of [her] peace of mind,” but Sister Aloysius...
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Sister James insists that she’s not “certain” that anything inappropriate is happening between Father Flynn and Donald...
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Sister James reveals that Donald had alcohol on his breath after spending time with Father Flynn in...
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“Well then tell the bishop,” Sister James suggests when she grasps that Sister Aloysius can’t tell Monsignor Benedict about her suspicions. However,...
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After a long conversation, Sister Aloysius finally convinces Sister James to help her confront Father Flynn. “If I could, Sister James, I would certainly choose...
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Scene 5
...meeting with Father Flynn on the pretense of discussing the Christmas pageant. When he and Sister James arrive, she offers them tea. Father Flynn accepts and requests sugar. “Yes!” Aloysius says, searching...
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...this year. He proposes the song “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” and Sister James eagerly cuts in, saying, “Or ‘Frosty the Snowman.’” Flynn likes this idea, too, but Aloysius...
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...one else found out, I would let him stay on,” he says. This immediately relieves Sister James , who rejoices in the idea that Father Flynn was only trying to “protect” Donald....
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...to the monsignor,” he says. Once he’s gone, Sister Aloysius says she doesn’t believe him. Sister James , for her part, has chosen to take what Flynn said at face value, so...
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Scene 7
Not long after Father Flynn’s sermon about gossip, he encounters Sister James in the garden. He asks why she seems so “subdued,” and she admits that she...
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Father Flynn tells Sister James that he feels like his “reputation has been damaged.” He then insists that he hasn’t...
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...he believes, is her attempt to keep the parish in “the Dark Ages.” Turning to Sister James , he says, “There are people who go after your humanity, Sister James, who tell...
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Father Flynn reminds Sister James that Jesus Christ spread a message about love, “not suspicion, disapproval and judgment.” He then...
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Scene 9
One sunny day, Sister James and Sister Aloysius see one another in the garden. Sister James has just gotten back...
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“I wish I could be like you,” Sister James says, and when Sister Aloysius asks why, she says, “Because I can’t sleep at night...
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“So you did prove it!” Sister James says, but Sister Aloysius tells her that she was lying when she claimed to have...
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