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Oscar Wilde's inspired paean to the lifestyle and message of Christ in his prison-authored "De Profundis" (1897) - identifying with Christ's all-encompassing love, himself (and thereby, as implied, from the standpoint of his identity as a gay man) - sat well with no one.
Wilde's admirers were dismayed by the seriously spiritual nature of the work, attributing it to the degradation of prison soul, and church leaders had even less interest in his unconventional, radically humanitarian appreciation of Christ.
But the industry was a fuller exposition of themes Wilde presented in earlier works, particularly "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (1890), where he drew a sharp superiority between the hedonistic pursuit of pleasure for its own sake and true happiness. In "De Profundis," he wrote about "the note of destiny that like a purple thread runs through the texture of 'Dorian Gray.'"
Embracing such a angle on life, including his own gay life, Wilde remained a happy reason until his untimely death, contrary to the popular view that, after prison, he was penniless, depressed and news to ignominy in Paris. His close lifelong friend, Robbie Ross, insisted it was definitely otherwise, and it was Ross who saw to the publication of "De Profundis" following Wilde's death.
Source: Falls Church News Press