''Keeping Faith'' (1999) is the sixth novel by the bestselling American author
Jodi Picoult
Jodi Lynn Picoult () is an American writer. Picoult has published 28 novels, accompanying short stories, and has also written several issues of Wonder Woman. Approximately 40 million copies of her books are in print worldwide, translated into 34 ...
. The book is about a custody battle involving a seven-year-old girl, Faith White, who may be seeing God.
Plot summary
When Mariah White catches her husband, Colin White, having an affair with another woman for the second time in their marriage, he files for divorce and gives her full custody of their child, Faith. After the divorce, Mariah becomes deeply depressed, while Faith develops an imaginary friend called her "Guard". Not long after, Faith begins to quote passages from the Bible, which she has never read. It's at this point that her mother takes her to see a therapist, fearing for her sanity. The therapist finds that Faith may in fact be seeing God.
News of Faith's visions (or images of God) reach Ian Fletcher, a "Teleatheist", who is travelling around the United States to debunk "miracles" that feature God. Ian shows up at the Whites' house, where he has a confrontation with Millie Epstein, Faith's grandmother. This exchange later leads to Millie having a heart attack and upon arriving at the hospital being pronounced dead. About an hour later Faith kisses her grandmother goodbye, and raises her back to life. This further increases the attention that Faith receives from the public, with complete strangers and media representatives surrounding the house, making it impossible for Faith and her mother to continue on with their lives as normal.
Faith performs a few other miracles, including healing a baby with
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
and showing what appear to be
stigmata
Stigmata ( grc, στίγματα, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus Christ: the hands, wrists, and feet.
Stigm ...
. Colin, hearing of the commotion surrounding his daughter, sues Mariah for custody of Faith. Mariah and Faith flee to Kansas City, where they are confronted by Ian, who is visiting his autistic brother, Michael. Mariah and Faith end up staying with Ian, who promises Mariah that he will not betray them and that he will provide them with accommodation. After a confrontation with Faith trying to "heal" Michael, Ian becomes enraged. However, Mariah and Ian appear to have fallen in love. After hearing from Millie that Colin is suing her, Mariah takes Faith back home. Meanwhile, Faith is admitted to the hospital again and her mother is prevented from seeing her by the court. At this point, Faith's symptoms begin to worsen, eventually leaving her near death. Upon being reunited with her mother her health increases drastically, and in the end, Mariah is awarded custody. The holes that appeared in Faith's hands disappear, and her "Guard" vanishes. Mariah and Ian begin a romantic relationship, and they and Faith eventually live together as a family. At the end of the novel, it remains unclear whether the "Guard" is really gone forever, or is still with Faith.
Main characters
*Faith White: Protagonist; the little girl who begins to see and speak to God, otherwise referred to as her "Guard".
*Mariah White: Faith's mother.
*Ian Fletcher: The "teleatheist" who arrives at the home of the Whites' in an effort to disprove Faith's claims of seeing and speaking to God; begins a relationship with Mariah.
*Millie Epstein: Mariah's mother, she died of a heart attack, but after being kissed by Faith came back to life.
*Colin White: Faith's father, sues Mariah (his ex-wife) for custody of Faith.
Connections
Ian Fletcher is featured in the 2008 novel by Jodi Picoult, ''
Change of Heart''. Faith and Mariah also make a brief appearance. The novel reveals that Ian and Mariah married and had twin boys together. Faith seems to no longer have a connection to her "Guard".
See also
Visions of Jesus and Mary
Since the Crucifixion of Jesus on Calvary, a number of people have claimed to have had visions of Jesus Christ and personal conversations with him. Some people make similar claims regarding his mother, Mary, who is often known as the Virgin Mary. ...
Perceptions of religious imagery in natural phenomena
People have been found to perceive images with spiritual or religious themes or import, sometimes called iconoplasms or simulacra, in the shapes of natural phenomena. The images perceived, whether iconic or aniconic, may be the faces of religious ...
Religious delusion
A religious delusion is defined as a delusion, or fixed belief not amenable to change in light of conflicting evidence, involving religious themes or subject matter., cited in: Religious faith, meanwhile, is defined as a belief in God or a religi ...
s
External links
A conversation with Jodi Picoult about ''Keeping Faith''
{{Jodi Picoult
1999 American novels
Novels by Jodi Picoult
Novels set in New Hampshire
Novels set in Kansas