Insanity and Love in TVBIA, Day II

Building off the last post, I would like to talk about insanity.  In the reading for Day II of this novel, O'Connor gives us an insight into Rayber/the schoolteacher.  Rayber formulates something of a binary opposition of insanity vs. rationality, and of course, the old uncle represents the insane side of this divide for Rayber.  

The rational schoolteacher constantly has to fight against falling into madness, which would make him no different than the old uncle.  What I am interested in his looking at how Rayber characterizes this madness.  The narrator often speaks of this madness in connection to Bishop, whom Rayber usually ignores, but at times "he would experience a love for the child so outrageous that he would be left shocked and depressed for days, and trembling for his sanity" (pg. 401).  It is a love that "terrified him," that is "completely irrational and abnormal" and would "overcome him....dragging him backwards to what he knew to be madness" (pg. 401).

It is so jarring to see love described in such a way.  Insanity and madness are not usually lumped together with love, which is usually seen as a very natural, universal emotion.  Just a few pages down, O'Connor has the little girl at the tent revival stating that "Jesus is love" (pg. 412), and I'm sure this cannot be a coincidence.

Rayber is talking about passion, but it seems as though to him, anything other than logic or rationality leads to madness, so he must suppress his passions and view love as something horrifying.  Is this why he attempts to drown Bishop, out of the incapacity to accept and understand his emotions and passions?  I am very interested to see what becomes of this as we get to the third part of the novel.  Any thoughts?