LP (Little Paul): a thirty-year-old Roman Catholic priest

Uncle Paolo: LP’s beloved uncle and father figure

Aunt Ida: LP’s aunt, Paolo’s wife

Louise: LP’s disturbed cousin, Paolo and Ida’s adopted daughter

Paulie: Louise’s illegitimate son

The Indian: Louise’s lover, a vagrant

Vinny (Pa): LP’s estranged father, Paolo’s brother

Rosaria (Ma): LP’s mother, Vinny’s wife

Uncle Tony: LP’s uncle, Paolo and Vinny’s brother

Aunt Stella: Tony’s kept wife

Nana: Paolo, Vinny, and Tony’s mother; LP’s grandmother

Giuseppe: LP’s brother

Maria, Annette, Regina: LP’s sisters

The Bishop: The Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Western New York, LP’s superior

Jimmy: Regina’s husband, LP’s brother-in-law

Angelo: The Bossman

Fred: Annette’s secret lover

Slim: The loyal farmhand

Father O’Mallory: A Roman Catholic priest, LP’s mentor and friend

Shirley: Maria’s friend and roommate

Uncle Sammy: LP’s uncle, owner of Ontario Market

Aunt Loretta: Sammy’s wife

Uncle August: LP’s uncle, Sammy’s brother, a college professor

Uncle Alfred: LP’s uncle, a drunk and a leech

Helena: A beautiful young woman in her mid-twenties, LP’s love interest

Josephine: Helena’s mother

Annie Mae: A Negress and midwife

Donovan Green: An estate attorney

Lou & Butch: Agway workers

Joe & Frank: Mechanics at Marrone’s Garage

Mrs. Mortimer, Old Farmer Cochran, & Mrs. Polinski: Churchgoers