Father Elijah by Michael D. O'Brien

Father Elijah is a book I read back in the 90's and, for some reason, had a hankering to read again. I'm glad I did. It's an apocalyptic thriller, but very different from what you might expect given that description. There are no car chases or explosions, and the pacing is far more measured than is typical in contemporary fiction. It is apocalyptic in the authentic Biblical sense, an icon of the final battle between good and evil.

O'Brien's religious understanding is orthodox and profound. Since Christ has already won the battle for us in his Life, Death and Resurrection, the apocalypse is not really about defeating evil but saving souls. Thus the Father Elijah of the book's title is not sent by the Pope to destroy the Antichrist but rather to attempt to save the soul of the man who might be the Antichrist (the President of Europe), since as long as a man is alive his salvation is always possible. On the other hand, the forces of evil would like nothing better than to corrupt Father Elijah and claim him as a casualty; the drama of the book is then Father Elijah's journey into the heart of darkness on a quest to save the President while maintaining his own faith in the face of temptation and horror.

The measure of this book is that reading it is itself a spiritual experience and an education in the true nature of the war we are fighting.