Kavanaugh, James J(oseph) 1934-

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KAVANAUGH, James J(oseph) 1934-

(Father Stephen Nash)

PERSONAL: Born September 17, 1934, in Kalamazoo, MI; son of Frank P. (a salesman) and Hazel Ann (Wendell) Kavanaugh. Education: Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH, B.A., 1954; Catholic University of America, M.A., 1963, Ph.D., 1966; U.S. International University, Ph.D., 1973. Hobbies and other interests: Tennis, golf, and the theater.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, Steven J. Nash Publishing, P.O. Box 2115, Highland Park, IL 60035.

CAREER: Ordained Roman Catholic priest, 1956, resigned priesthood, 1967; licensed clinical psychologist in state of California, 1971. Flint Intercollegiate Newman Club, Flint, MI, chaplain, 1958-64; Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, nursing school instructor, 1961-63, instructor in theology, 1964; Trinity College, Washington, DC, instructor in theology, 1964-66; Human Resources Institute, La Jolla, CA, marriage counselor and educational director, 1966-72; U.S. International University, San Diego, CA, professor of graduate psychology, 1970-72; Los Gatos, CA, private practice in clinical psychology, 1974-76. University of Toronto, visiting professor of religious studies; seminar instructor, 1970—. Gives poetry readings and lectures; conducts workshops; guest on television and radio programs; stage and television actor.

WRITINGS:

poetry

There Are Men Too Gentle to Live among Wolves (also see below), drawings by Hollis Williford, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1970, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

Will You Be My Friend? (also see below), drawings by Merike Tumma, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1971, 2nd edition, 1990.

Faces in the City, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1972

Today I Wondered about Love, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1972, revised edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

The Poetry of James Kavanaugh, Steven J. Nash, 1974.

Sunshine Days and Foggy Nights, woodcuts by Kay Cole, Dutton (New York, NY), 1975, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

America, Dutton (New York, NY), 1976.

Winter Has Lasted Too Long, Dutton (New York, NY), 1977, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

Walk Easy on the Earth, illustrations by Edgar Blakeney, Dutton (New York, NY), 1979, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

Maybe If I Loved You More, Dutton, 1982, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

Will You Still Love Me?, photographs by Michael Steinberg, Harper (New York, NY), 1985.

Mystic Fire: The Love Poems of James Kavanaugh (also see below), Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1991.

Quiet Water: The Inspirational Poems of James Kavanaugh (also see below), Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1991.

Tears and Laughter of a Man's Soul (also see below), Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1991.

recordings

There Are Men Too Gentle (cassette recording; contains selections from the book, There Are Men Too Gentle to Live among Wolves), original score by Elmer Bernstein, Karo, 1972.

Of Love, Life and Laughter (cassette recording; includes selections from Mystic Fire, Quiet Water, Tears and Laughter of a Man's Soul, and Will You Be My Friend?), Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1991.

Search: A Guide for Those Who Dare (cassette recording; also see below; readings based on the book, Search: A Guide for Those Who Dare to Ask of Life Everything Good and Beautiful), Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1991.

Also performer in audio and video cassettes of lectures, poetry, and inspirational messages.

other

There's Two of You; Tempest in a Teen-Pot, Newman (Westminster, MD), 1964.

Man in Search of God, Paulist Press (New York, NY), 1967.

A Modern Priest Looks at His Outdated Church, Trident (New York, NY), 1967.

The Struggle of the Unbeliever, Trident (New York, NY), 1968.

The Birth of God, Trident (New York, NY), 1969.

The Crooked Angel (for children), Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1970, 2nd edition, 1990.

(With Everett L. Shostrom) Between Man and Woman: The Dynamics of Intersexual Relationships, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1971.

Celebrate the Sun: A Love Story, Steven J. Nash (Los Angeles, CA), 1973, 2nd edition, 1990.

(With Darrell Fetty) Street Music (musical review), first performed in Los Angeles at Theatre 40, 1974.

A Coward for Them All (novel; also see below), Bantam (New York, NY), 1979.

A Village Called Harmony: A Fable, Dutton (New York, NY), 1980, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

Laughing down Lonely Canyons, illustrations by Heather Preston, Harper (San Francisco, CA), 1984, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

The Celibates (novel), Harper (New York, NY), 1985.

Search: A Guide for Those Who Dare to Ask of Life Everything Good and Beautiful, Harper (New York, NY), 1985, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1990.

From Loneliness to Love, Harper (New York, NY), 1986, 2nd edition, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL, 1990.

God Lives: From Religious Fear to Spiritual Freedom, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1993.

A Lifetime Isn't Long Enough to Love You, Steven J. Nash (Highland Park, IL), 1996.

Also author of screenplays "A Coward for Them All," based on his novel of the same title, 1980, and "The Metamorphosis of Mort Meekin." Author of lyrics for Burt Bacharach album Futures, 1979. Contributor to psychology journals and popular magazines, including Look, Playboy, Psychology Today, and Ladies' Home Journal; contributor to Saturday Evening Post, under the pseudonym Father Stephen Nash, 1966.

SIDELIGHTS: James J. Kavanaugh's A Modern Priest Looks at His Outdated Church became a controversial 1967 best-seller. It began as an article published in the Saturday Evening Post under the pseudonym Father Stephen Nash. A critique of Catholicism as it existed during the 1960s, the book "argues that [Catholic] ideals have been frozen into law, abstractions have been given primacy over persons, arbitrary traditions (such as compulsory clerical celibacy) have trampled the uniqueness of the individual, and produced misery and guilt on a systematic basis," wrote John Leo in the New York Times Book Review.

A Time reviewer predicted that "many Catholics who hope and pray for renewal may have cause to suspect that Kavanaugh's angry and oversimplified criticism can only hurt rather than help the forces of change within the church." Christian Century reviewer C. M. Smith defended Kavanaugh, however, saying, "Fr. Kavanaugh does not write with sweet reasonableness, but then neither did Luther. And, like Luther, he insists he is interested not in destroying the church but in saving it." Kavanaugh left the priesthood shortly after completing the book.

After A Modern Priest Looks at His Outdated Church, Kavanaugh continued to write, producing poetry, novels, and inspirational works including Search: AGuide for Those Who Dare to Ask of Life Everything Good and Beautiful. While many of his books could be described as "self-help" literature, Kavanaugh's views on that genre are strong. In an article in the newsletter of the James Kavanaugh Institute, Kavanaugh said, "I burn all self-help books or tapes in which hyped heroes tell me how easy it is to put one's life together…. I heed those who are still wading through pain, who must struggle at times just to hang on. I don't believe in quick fixes and I'm outraged when anyone promises one."

In 1993, Kavanaugh published God Lives: From Religious Fear to Religious Freedom. This book reflects Kavanaugh's spiritual journey, from his youthful understanding of God as the Divine Being presented by the Roman Catholic Church, to his current understanding of God as a Divine Being who lives within each human being. According to Library Journal reviewer Caroline Craft, God Lives "is celebrative and constructive." Craft appreciated Kavanaugh's account of his search for a personal relationship with God. National Catholic Reporter writer William Graham commented upon the tone of "anger" that permeates God Lives. Graham also considered the book to be "boring." But Booklist contributor Mary Deeley remarked that Kavanaugh writes "with conviction and friendly openness."

In 1996 Kavanaugh published another poetry collection, A Lifetime Isn't Long Enough to Love You. A Celestine View Web site contributor wrote that, time and again, Kavanaugh shows that he is strongly capable of conveying what it means for two human souls to truly love one another.