How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
It was different in ways he [Father Arguedas] never could have imagined, as if the voice were something that could be seen. Certainly it could be felt, even where he stood in the very back of the room. It trembled inside the folds of his cassock, brushed against the skin of his cheeks. Never had he thought, never once, that such a woman existed, one who stood so close to God that God's own voice poured from her. How far she must have gone inside herself to call up that voice. It was as if the voice came from the center part of the earth and by the sheer effort and diligence of her will she had pulled it up through the dirt and rock and through the floorboards of the house, up into her feet, where it pulled through her, reaching, lifting, warmed by her, and then out of the white lily of her throat and straight to God in heaven. It was a miracle and he wept for the gift of bearing witness. (2.114)
Some people think the only miracle in an opera is that, eventually, it finally ends. But Father Arguedas sees how remarkable and unlikely it is to have a voice like Roxane's, and how much effort it takes to make art with it, and he thinks it transcends everyday life the same way a supernatural occurrence would. It's one of the many moments when something human is described as transcendent in Bel Canto. It may sound spooky, but that's just how these folks experience admiration.
Quote #5
"No last rites," General Alfredo said. "He isn't dying."
"I was only asking for the oil," the priest said respectfully. "I wasn't asking about the last rites." (3.45-46)
Spirituality makes Father Arguedas do some pretty gutsy things. Like stand up to terrorists. But maybe this makes sense. If you believe in something that transcends the everyday world, maybe you're not afraid of what other people fear.
Quote #6
Father Arguedas knelt beside him and began the prayer of last rites. Perhaps it was grander when one had the vestments and robes, when there was oil to work with, the beauty of candles, but a simple prayer felt in some ways closer to God. (3.47)
Complexity's not the only way to experience the transcendent, whether you're talking opera or a prayer. Where feeling the big feelings is concerned, simplicity can do just as good a job in this novel.