Meet the Cast: Father Jared Röhrbach
We Are Not Saints Series
Hello, it’s Jay Carson again interviewing the cast of characters from H. Les Brown’s upcoming series, We Are Not Saints. Our guest today is one of the most interesting — and probably the most controversial — character in this series: Father Jared Röhrbach. Father Röhrbach is a classmate and best friend of Father Paul Fortis, whom we interviewed just a short while ago.
Jay Father Röhrbach, you were a lot more than just best friends with Father Paul. Could you tell us something about that?
Jared I think Paul told you we met in high school and hit if off right away. We essentially grew up together. We were over at each other’s houses all the time. His parents and mine were practically co-parenting us both.
Jay You and Paul were a couple early on, right? How did that happen?
Jared We bonded almost right away. We had so much in common. We were both gay boys growing up in a straight world. Our parents loved having us over for dinner and sleepover — only I’m not sure there was much sleeping involved.
Jay And both sets of parents knew about your relationship? How did they feel about it?
Jared I’m certain that they all knew, but nobody ever said anything. My parents are first generation from Europe, and people there are a lot more accepting about sex in general than people here. And I think Paul’s parents were just so happy that I yanked him out of his shell, that I don’t think they much cared. Paul was a bit of a geek when I first met him.
Jay You mentioned your parents. I understand there was a lot of controversy around them. You didn’t get along well with your stepmother?
Jared Nope. Hannah Schümer was a bitch to me growing up. When I was little, she was our housekeeper. My parents brought her back from Austria with them when I was born. She was my mother’s cousin or something. I’m not sure.
Jay She wound up being more than a housekeeper, didn’t she?
Jared She sure did. My mother died when I was young — five years old. Hannah just stepped right in and took over her place, and Pop let her. She was brutal to me, no compassion at all. I was just a little kid who lost my mother, and I don’t think she really cared. She was always screaming at me for the least little thing and beat me severely when I did anything wrong. I think she enjoyed hearing me cry, so, after a while, I just stopped crying. She still beat me, but I didn’t give her the satisfaction of reacting to her.
Jay She wasn’t supportive of you becoming a priest, either was she?
Jared Not at all. For whatever reason, she hated the Catholic Church. She did everything she could to try to stop me, but Pop thought it was great.
Jay You’re the principal character in the first novel in this series, The Priest. In the book, we learned that your father married Hannah a short while before your ordination. How did that affect you?
Jared My father, Kurt, was a clever and wonderful man, an entrepreneur, and a self-made billionaire. You’d never know it to meet him. I idolized him growing up, but I could never understand why he let Hannah treat me the way she did. To be fair, he was absent a lot of the time. His business was international, so he traveled all over the world. I’m not sure that he was aware of how bad things got when he wasn’t home. He was always very good to me, and I sincerely loved him…
Jay But…
Jared …but I found it almost impossible to forgive him for marrying that woman. I don’t know what he was thinking, adding insult to injury by making her my stepmother.
Jay As a priest, have you been able to forgive them since?
Jared I don’t know…after all that happened…I know I should, but…maybe in time I can.
Jay Let’s talk about your ministry. Your first parish assignment as a newly-ordained priest wasn’t an easy one, was it?
Jared [Laughs] That’s an understatement. It was at Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in Tres Robles. I found out later that Bishop Mickleson thought I was the only one tough enough to survive that shit-show. I guess Hannah’s beatings did me some good, after all. My endurance paid off.
Jay The people there really loved you, and you had quite the little underground support group. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
Jared That little group of conspirators made possible everything I accomplished there. One lady in particular — Eliza Roberts — the church secretary held everything together…including me. She’s the one person I miss most since leaving there.
Jay While you were there, you got into a sexual relationship with Tony Keating. How did that fit into your life as a priest?
Jared That’s a bit of a tough one. Remember “doublethink” from Orwell’s 1984? It’s when you hold two contradictory thoughts at the same time, accepting both of them as true. I really believed that my relationship with Tony made me a more loving, understanding man, and therefore, a better priest.
Jay But what about Paul?
Jared Paul’s an amazing guy — don’t get me wrong — and as solid as they come. I love him to death. But scratch the surface, and underneath is still the geek. I wanted someone in my life that was in sync with my wilder side. That’s certainly Tony. He gave something to me that Paul just couldn’t.
Jay “Doublethink” again?
Jared I guess.
Jay There’s still so much I want to talk to you about: your other family members, your goals and plans in life, your rivalry with Paul, and what it’s like being a trust fund baby. On that note, your father gave you quite the trust fund, didn’t he?
Jared [Laughs] Yes, it’s all in the book.
Jay Thanks for coming by and sharing a little of your story with us. I hope we’ll get a chance to talk again.
Meanwhile, please remember to follow us here at hlesbrown.medium.com so you won’t miss any of our upcoming interviews. There are plenty more fascinating cast members who can’t wait for you to meet them. Next time, we’ll be speaking with Jeff Hensen, the fourth principal character in the We Are Not Saints series, and the focus of the book, The Deacon. Watch for it!
NOW Email Father Jared: Jared.Rohrbach@WeAreNotSaints.net
