Father James Character Analysis

The preacher at John’s church, the Temple of the Fire Baptized, and Elisha’s uncle. Gabriel is the “head deacon” at the church, but it is Father James who preaches on Sundays and leads revivals. Father James is highly respected by his congregation, and he takes his “duty” as the leader of their “flock” very seriously. He believes the “way of holiness” and “the Word” is a “hard way,” and he claims celibacy until marriage is what is “demanded” by the “the way of the cross.” Father James calls out Elisha and Ella Mae after church one Sunday, and in front of the entire congregation, he accuses the young friends of “walking disorderly.” Elisha and Ella Mae had been innocently spending time together, but according to Father James, they “were in danger of “straying from the truth” by “plucking” the “unripe fig” from the tree “too early.” Father James’s public warning to Ella Mae and Elisha helps the establish the connection between sex and sin in the novel.