of Bishop. He tries to protect Tarwater and Bishop from baptism and the old man's corrupting influence, but ultimately fails. Bishop: An intellectually disabled child who is the son of Rayber and the cousin of Tarwater. Tarwater was raised with the belief that it is his destiny to baptize Bishop, whereas Rayber struggles to prevent this from happening. Mason Tarwater: The great-uncle of Tarwater and Bishop and the uncle of Rayber. A fanatically religious self-ordained prophet, he raised Tarwater to follow in his footsteps. His death at the beginning of the novel spurs Tarwater's quest of denial and redemptions. The "friend": A voice in Tarwater's head representing rational, secular thinking, which he has been trained throughout his childhood to ignore. In her letters, O'Connor confirmed that this "friend" is Satan himself. Major themes Flannery O'Connor was a devout Catholic, and The Violent Bear It Away reflects her religious beliefs. It is filled with religious imagery and themes, ranging from the power of passion to the dominance of destiny. The most obvious of the novel's themes is the idea that destiny and religion will dominate over the secular. O'Connor illustrates this well, demonstrating the power of Tarwater's destiny as it dominates every obstacle in its way; the drowning of Bishop is transformed to a baptism, Tarwater's rape turns to revelation, and the secular Rayber fails in every way. The importance of passion is also linked with the power of religion. Tarwater is filled with passion; Rayber suppresses his. Thus, Tarwater succeeds and is redeemed, and Rayber is ultimately destroyed. This is shown when Bishop is killed; when he realizes that he has no love for his son, Rayber collapses. The idea that everything that destroys also creates is evident as well. Nearly every symbol and character in the book pulls Tarwater away from his destiny but also pushes him back. Rayber nearly succeeds in secularizing Tarwater, but he ultimately brings the boy back to Powderhead. The drowning of Bishop, the ultimate secular act, nearly destroys Tarwater's destiny, but the simultaneous baptism redeems it. Fire both destroys Powderhead and burns Tarwater's eyes clean. Water both drowns and baptizes. Everything that destroys, redeems. James Cantrell feels that O'Connor's Irish heritage is central to the novel, serving as the foundation of her exploration of the conflicts between Christ and secularism in America. He says, for example, the surname "Tarwater" is completely understood only by