The Baker's Wife (40 page)

5. How do Audrey and Jack represent a human understanding of mercy and justice? Can the two coexist? How might God's mercy and justice be different from our human versions?

6. Jack responds to crisis by trying to seize more control over it. Geoff responds by submitting to the crisis and trusting God. Describe the strengths and drawbacks of each approach. How is Ed's reaction a combination of these?

7. How do the characters in the bakery show support for each other? What advantage does this give them over Jack as the hostage situation progresses?

8. Julie had the capacity for empathy at some point in her life— she showed long-suffering kindness to Diane, the Halls, Coach, Leslie, and others. How was this good quality stripped away from her and replaced with such a strong desire to inflict pain on her family? Was there any way she could have averted the disaster? Why wasn't her rescue by Audrey, Diane, and Miralee enough?

9. Compare the Bofingers' marriage to the Mansfields' marriage. How are Ed and Miralee directly impacted by their parents' values?

10. What did Diane learn from Audrey about redemption and forgiveness?

11. Have you ever failed to express compassion to someone who seemed to need it? What stopped you? Would you do it differently next time? On the flip side, have you ever had a memorable experience supporting someone emotionally? What difference did your empathy make?

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