A man goes to confession to tell of his sins. But he doesn’t want forgiveness.......

CONTINUED.......

A man goes to confession to tell of his sins. But he doesn’t want forgiveness. He knows of the rumors about the priest, here in the skid-row mission house. The old priest has many sins as well, sins he has never confessed, but the rumors are all around him, wherever he goes.

The man tells the priest of the times he was raped in a prison cell, and the horror he felt and the shame. And the hatred he has for those who did that. Stories familiar to the priest. Many of the derelicts have similar stories, or worse; real or imagined. The priest has heard them all, and nothing surprises him anymore.

But it bothers him a bit, just a little; knowing he has done those same horrors; inflicted them on children; the children of his parish, years ago. It’s something you never forget. The man knows that too. He comes to the priest every week, tells him of the horrors, and wants the priest to hear how it feels. Wants him to feel the agony and guilt and shame; the filth of the crimes, and maybe some remorse. But the priest is long past those feelings.

So the man continues, telling him more and more; the consequence of crimes. How it caused him to hurt, and to hurt the others, the ones who did that to him. And always the priest forgives him, tells him it’s over and done with. But the crimes keep getting worse. The man tells of killing those who hurt him. Still the priest is unmoved.

The man tells him of hunting down his parents, killing them for what they’d done; for sending him to the prison. Every week the stories continue. The priest is immune to it by now. And the man has to change his sins, make them bad enough to hurt the tired old priest.

“Father” he says “I’m afraid.” “Of what, my son, I am here for you.” “I’m afraid you’ll tell the police.” “I cannot” says the priest “I am bound...I cannot reveal what I’m told.” “Will you swear to that?” he asks. “There is no need” he says “I cannot repeat what I hear in this room. That is the law of God.”

“Father” he says “I killed that little girl, Bambi Malloy. I killed her and cut her to shreds.”

And the priest has nothing to say. “Did you hear me father?” “Yes.” “Will you forgive me?”

But the priest has nothing to say. “Father...will you forgive me?” “I...are you sorry...for what you have done?” “No father...are you?”

Last update : 15-03-2008 20:53

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