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"Stories I Wrote For The Devil" St. Mary’s Offered THIS To Your Daughters?
- Logan Foster
- Mar 19
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 21
"Stories I Wrote For The Devil" St. Mary’s Offered THIS To Your Daughters?
Date: 03/19/25
Author: Logan Foster
St. Mary’s College hosted an event titled "An Evening with Ananda Lima," on March 18th, where the author presented her controversial work "Craft Stories I Wrote For The Devil." The one-hour session, held from 6 to 7 p.m., formed part of the college’s Traveling Writers Series, yet it has sparked debate over its ideological alignment and content among students and community members.
Ananda Lima, a Brazilian-American writer, delivered readings from her book, which features speculative and metaphorical narratives involving ghosts, the devil, and personal explorations of identity and politics. During the talk, Lima encouraged attendees to "draw a ghost saying hello and see what they [the ghost] say back," offering an eerie perspective that reflects her literary inspirations.
However, a large portion of those in attendance were shocked by Lima's presentation. Audience members included St. Joseph County GOP Chair Jackie Horvath and members of the College Republicans of America (St. Mary’s chapter). Afterwards, College Republicans President Macy Gannell and Vice President Elysia Morales voiced concerns to Redress South Bend's Sarah Foster about the appropriateness of hosting such an event on a Catholic campus known to adhere to conservative Catholic traditions.
“we very much were worried about the political messaging of this alongside the anti-Catholic messages that are in the book. I mean, it's in the title itself. It's a very anti-Catholic, anti-conservative ideological book, and it very much defies the conservative Catholic traditions of this college.” Gannell pointed out, criticizing the ideological underpinnings of Lima’s work. Morales echoed this sentiment, stating, "Anybody, regardless of political ideology, should be concerned about this messaging being promoted at a Catholic institution."
Both Gannell and Morales raised questions about the college’s policy on ideological diversity among guest speakers. According to both, St. Mary’s administration rarely allows conservative voices to speak on campus, yet appears to consistently welcome more liberal perspectives.
"St. Mary’s promised a well-rounded education," Morales said in an interview after the event. "I have consistently been approached in liberal ideologies here but I see no conservative speakers on campus and no conservative voices and you can't have a well-rounded education if you're not introduced to ideas that are not of your own."
Stories Drawn From the Devil's Perspective
Lima’s book excerpts read during the evening created a stir with provocative content. One particular narrative in Lima's book recalls the a relationship with the devil, introducing the Devil as a character she met at a Halloween party and later maintained a metaphorical "partnership" with. Lima read aloud from her story, "You probably couldn’t tell by looking at her now, but once back in her twenties, the writer had slept with the devil. They kept their friendship throughout her life, and she wrote stories for him."
Such accounts led many attendees to view the stories as provocations rather than literary explorations. Particularly concerning to some students were the passages in which Lima discussed the devil’s humanity and deep relationships with the characters, potentially romanticizing the devil and the dark side of the spiritual world.
When asked if politics influenced her book or her writings, Lima answered: “did I want to be thinking about what they're saying on Fox News about immigrants? No, I did not. I did not want to be thinking about it. But these things are very present in my life. ” Lima said. “And so as I was writing, I had a lot of reactions, thoughts, so they very, very naturally came part of the book.”
The Bigger Picture
For conservatives on campus, the event was not merely about one author or Lima specifically, but a broader reflection of perceived one-sidedness. This event underscored larger conversations around promoting ideological diversity in academia amid an increasingly polarized national climate.