Theology and Geometry in New Orleans

Ignatius J. Reilly (left) and Father Hollywood (right) in the French Quarter

I met my friend Ignatius yesterday on Canal Street, where we looking down upon the...

"other people waiting under the clock at the D.H. Holmes department store, studying the crowd of people for signs of bad taste in dress. Several of the outfits, Ignatius noticed, were new enough and expensive enough to be properly considered offenses against taste and decency. Possession of anything new or expensive only reflected a person's lack of theology and geometry; it could even cast doubts upon one's soul.

"Ignatius himself was dressed comfortably and sensibly. The hunting cap prevented head colds. The voluminous tweed trousers were durable and permitted unusually free locomotion. Their pleats and nooks contained pockets of warm, stale air that soothed Ignatius. The plaid flannel shirt made a jacket unnecessary while the muffler guarded exposed Reilly skin between earflap and collar. The outfit was acceptable by any theological and geometrical standards, however abstruse, and suggested a rich inner life." (John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces, page 1).

Of course, Ignatius was most impressed with my understated and sensible tropical shirt, pragmatic cargo shorts, Boethian sandals, and head- and eye-wear designed to protect one's delicate skin from the ravages of the sun - all of which reflect a proper theology and geometry.