The Spiritual Life with Fr. James Martin, S.J.

Gregory Maguire’s spiritual journey–From a Catholic orphanage to ‘Wicked’-fame

49 min·March 10, 2026
0:00--:--

About this Episode

Long before he wrote “Wicked” Gregory Maguire has been weaving careful attention into his artistic pursuits and his prayer. He joins host James Martin, S.J. on “The Spiritual Life” podcast to talk about his spiritual journey, from a Catholic orphanage and formative education with religious sisters who helped him draw his first picture of God, to his current practice of seeing Jesus’ face on the margins. 

Timecodes

  • 0:00 Introducing Gregory Maguire, author of “Wicked”

  • 5:04 The tragic circumstances surrounding Gregory’s birth

  • 11:42 Gregory’s first image of God

  • 17: 45 Discerning the shape of his own ministry

  • 25:42 The art of paying attention + studying people’s faces

  • 35:55 Are there Christ-figures in “Wicked”?

  • 40:40 The experience of being gay and marginalized

  • 42:50 Audience Question: What advice would you give to a young, gay, Catholic striving to live authentically?

Do you have a spiritual question for Fr. Jim? You can write to us at: thespirituallife@americamedia.org

Become a subscriber today at Americamagazine.org/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Teachers

Topics

From this Show

The Spiritual Life with Fr. James Martin, S.J.

America Media

Take Selah With You

Get the Selah app for personalized recommendations, background playback, and a library built around the teachers you trust.

Get the App