Maybe I misunderstand your goals, but this sounds like a job
for wx.Config()
Oh, I didn't know that, looks good (and has more power than my solution);
BTW there's also Python standard 'ConfigParser' module, but that is
limited to INI style config files.
As always: there are a lot of solutions around, you must only find them - and decide which one to use. 
see also: ActiveState Community - Boosting coder and team productivity with ready-to-use open source languages and tools.
Best regards,
Henning Hraban Ramm
Südkurier Medienhaus / MediaPro
Support/Admin/Development Dept.