Biblical Symbols in Baseball in A Prayer for Owen Meany

A synopsis from the back of the book: In the summer of 1953, two 11-year-old boys--best friends--are playing in a Little League baseball game in New Hampshire. One of the boys hits a foul ball that kills his best friend's mother. Owen Meany believes he didn't hit the ball by accident. He believes he is God's instrument. What happens to Owen after 1953 is extraordinary and terrifying.

Note: This blog post was written after the conclusion of the first chapter of "A Prayer for Owen Meany". Therefore, only knowledge from the first chapter is included.

On the fateful day when Owen Meany struck John Wheelwright's mother on the head with a baseball, the circumstances surrounding her death may not have been entirely an accident, but the will of God. The author, John Irving, uses foreshadowing in the descriptions of the events that occurred on that fateful day to foreshadow Owen being an instrument of God as discussed in the synopsis. In his portrayal of the specifics of the baseball game that ultimately led to the death of Tabitha Wheelwright, John Irving includes the number three multiple times. Owen is the the third batter to hit in the last inning. He also hit the ball on his third swing and directly along the base line of the baseball field. The inclusion specifically of the number three creates a direct parallel to the Bible, as the number three is also of great significance in that text. For instance, the Holy Trinity, the three days it took Jesus to rise, and the three people present to witness the transformation of Jesus. The author’s use of the number three relates directly to the bible, creating a sense of foreshadowing, implying that the events that occurred on the day of John’s mother’s death might not be as accidental as one might imagine, but rather might be the will of God. These similarities would also cement the belief in Owen's mind that he was the hand of God, as Owen was very religious. As stated by John Wheelwright: “I was forced to accept that my best friend’s religious faith was more certain (if not more dogmatic) than anything I heard in either the Congregationalist or the Episcopal Church” (Irving 31). Owen Meany was a person of great faith and a great Biblical scholar, having already read the Bible cover the cover. Thus, he might have noticed the similarities between the words of the Bible and what happened the day of the tragedy and concluded that what happened that day was no accident.

Works Cited

• The Bible Study Site. "Meaning of Numbers in the Bible." Meaning of the Number 3 in the Bible. biblestudy.org, n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2014.
• Libri GmbH. "A Prayer for Owen Meany a Novel." A Prayer for Owen Meany a Novel. Anne Arundel County Public Library, n.d. Web. 07 Aug. 2014.