The Healer's Visit

In a small town in a Catholic country somewhere in Europe, an unusual young man appears. He has no clothes. He is cold and hungry. He can barely speak. An old alcoholic and a priest from the local parish take pity on him and help the stranger by giving him some clothes and food. The young man meets a lonely girl who has suffered a tragedy and is under the care of some old nuns. The four become good friends.

It soon becomes evident that the stranger has a healing power. When a bishop from the priest’s diocese learns about the healer, he wants to see him right away. The bishop has just been diagnosed with an incurable disease.

The most influential people in the Church, government, and business compete to take advantage of the healer. He gets in danger and his friends try to help him. Some tragic things happen against the backdrop of a literal witch hunt that erupts in the country. Meanwhile, the healer shows other supernatural abilities and it is him who saves his friends. Before departure, he reveals his true nature.

Ostensibly, this novel is a comedy. It is full of witty dialogues and funny events and largely consists of satire and black humor. But under the surface, it is a serious book, touching upon the profound themes of human nature and its corruption, death and life, religion and faith, love and friendship, power and authority. Despite some larger-than-life elements, it is a realistic novel. By exaggerating the reality, it makes it easier to see the strangeness of things that otherwise go unnoticed and are taken for granted.