Bryce

The Second Semester

Chapter 19 - This and That

            After departing from David Simpson, and spending some time in study, Bryce joined Damon on a trip to El Rincon Latino, the Mexican restaurant owned by Mike Sandoval’s family.  Lent was approaching, and so, in the spirit of carnival, it was time to get in as much celebration, gustatory and otherwise, as possible prior to Ash Wednesday.  Bryce had called ahead, as Saturdays could often be crowded.  Isobel Sandoval was, therefore, expecting them as the two men walked in.

            “Hello, boys.  Glad to see you here again.  We always appreciate your patronage, and even more your company.”

            “Good evening, Mrs. Sandoval.  We always enjoy being here.  No other place quite comes up to the standards of El Rincon Latino,” Bryce returned the compliment.

            “Buenos tardes, Señora Sandoval,” Damon responded to her greeting.  “Bryce says he’s getting especially large portions this evening.  Does that apply to me as well?”

            Isobel laughed.  “I think we can stretch to two dinners of large portions without plunging the restaurant into bankruptcy.”

            She sat the two, and handed them their menus.  “Miguel will be along momentarily,” she informed them.

            Sure enough, before they had even time to peruse the menus, Mike was at their table with his set greeting.  “Buenos tardes, señores.  Me se llama Miguel.  I suspect by now you have all this memorized as well as I have, so have you bozos decided what you want to drink?”

            “Bozos!  Is that any way to speak of your bread and butter?” Damon feigned insult.

            “Well, if you like, I can say it all in Spanish.  Then only you will know I’m calling you names,” Mike grinned.

            Bryce grinned back.  “I’ll bet you do that all the time.  And Kyle, too.”

            “Well, let’s just say that, for especially difficult customers, if we’re pretty certain they speak no Spanish, we let off a little steam when we do our act,” Mike admitted.  “Some days I feel sorry for Henry over there.  Except for the lines he’s memorized, he doesn’t have any Spanish, so this safety valve is not open to him.  I’ve seen him pretty near to murder when he’s in the kitchen, away from the customers, on occasion.”

            “Oh, a waiter’s life is not a happy one,” Bryce sang, to the tune of “A policeman’s lot is not a happy one” from The Pirates of Penzance.

            “What brought that on?” Mike laughed.

            “Pure inspiration.  What’s the Spanish for ‘waiter’?” Bryce asked.

            “Camarero under most circumstances.  There are some other terms, some of which you won’t find in a dictionary,” Mike joked.

            At that point Kyle, Mike’s brother, passed close by and mumbled something in Spanish.  Mike glanced towards his mother at the reception desk, sighed, and said, “Mom says I’m spending too much time talking and not enough working, so what’ll it be for drinks?”

            Bryce and Damon gave him their orders, and turned to studying the menus.  Bryce put in a double order for beef quesadillas.  He figured that, as long as he was giving up meat for Lent, he ought to stoke up beforehand, so his body doesn’t forget what it’s all about.  He recognized that as specious reasoning, but did not change his order.

            The two young men spent the meal enjoying the food and discussing their common lives.  Damon was quite pleased with the new living arrangements.

            “You know, when I first got here, I thought having a room all to myself was heaven.  I had never had my own room before.”

            “Except when your brother Tyson was out catting around,” Bryce commented.

            “Oh, not even then.  There were only two bedrooms in the apartment.  Mom and my two youngest sisters got one, but Tyson and I shared with the oldest sister, Vanessa, and her two kids.”

            “Oh.  Wasn’t that kind of awkward at times?” Bryce asked.

            “No.  Not ‘at times.’  All the time.  And I won’t go into what Tyson did with Vanessa, except to say it was kind of like what he tried to do to me.  I always wondered about her first kid,” Damon remarked.

            “Oh, gee!  TMI!  But, I really ought to put that in my Psychology paper.  I think it could be relevant,” Bryce decided.

            “You did say I would be anonymous in that paper of yours, right?” Damon insisted.

            “Oh, right.  Not that anyone who knows us couldn’t draw some conclusions of his own,” Bryce reminded him.

            “Yeah, but I don’t want to be called in for questioning by some public welfare flunkey,” Damon said.

            “You’re pretty down on the welfare people.  I thought they were supposed to be helping people like your family,” Bryce observed.

            “Yeah, that would be nice.  My experience is they are mostly concerned with throwing their weight around, and letting us know how superior they are to us poor folks,” Damon replied.

            “I am constantly learning from you, Caro mio,” Bryce asserted.

            As they left El Rincon Latino, Bryce said to Isobel Sandoval, “I think you have more than repaid me for last Sunday’s extra person.  I am absolutely stuffed.  That was excellent.”

            “Thanks, Bryce.  We always like to know that our customers are pleased with what we offer,” she replied.

            The next morning, after spending a very comfortable night in their new queen size bed, Damon and Bryce discussed St. Boniface.

            “I had pretty much decided against going with you this Sunday, after your announcement last week about no sex.  But then you said it was Father Miller who told you to straighten out, so I guess I don’t have a real beef with your Church, Bryce,” Damon informed him.

            “It’s my faith, and my obligation.  If you don’t want to come, now or some other time, just tell me.  I’ll swing by after Mass to pick you up for lunch,” Bryce offered.

            “Let’s give it another try.  But if that fat buffoon gets up and starts insulting me again, I may do more than just walk out,” Damon threatened.

            “Thanks.  I appreciate it.  You know I can’t stand Father Payne either,” Bryce concurred.

            But, of course, it was Father Payne who had the Mass.  They could not be so fortunate as to have a Father Fenwick two Sundays in a row.  However, when it was time for the sermon, it was not the pastor, but Deacon O’Malley who spoke.  Not very charitably, in his own mind Bryce evaluated the two deacons as preachers.  Deacon Jeffries gave dull, poorly delivered, and short sermons, whereas Deacon O’Malley gave dull, poorly delivered, and long sermons, which was decidedly not an improvement.

            After receiving Our Lord in communion, Bryce knelt and prayed.  Lord, I have not been very good lately.  Thank you for coming to me anyway.  You know I’m still uneasy about the sex during Lent thing.  I know I’ve made the right decision, as I’m sure you’ve sent Damon to be a part of my life, so help me overcome my doubts.  And, I kind of think I’m being catty and super critical of the deacons, and sometimes of others, too.  Help me to work on that during Lent.  Also, I didn’t do a very good job of explaining my approach to St. Paul to David.  Don’t let him be led astray by my failings.  Give me another chance.  Oh, Lord, I need so many other chances!  Thank you for providing them over and over.  Help those who are struggling to believe.  Help those who have been hurt by your Church.  Help me.

            At Mass and at the Olive Garden, Kyle Sandoval was again accompanied by his girlfriend Kathy.  She seemed to feel more comfortable around all of them than before.  Evidently, her mother had decided to accept the inevitable, and was being helpful now, rather than weepy and critical.

            “I prayed to Our Lady of Guadalupe, as Kyle suggested, and to St. Margaret,” she reported.  “It seems to have helped.”

            Quietly, Damon asked Bryce, “What’s this Our Lady and St. Margaret business.  This is something else you need to explain to me.”

            “Okay,” Bryce answered, equally quietly so as not to embarrass Damon, “Back in 1531 the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, appeared to a recently converted Mexican peasant named Juan Diego at a place near Mexico City.  In fact, I think it’s inside the city today, but was in the countryside then.  She’s considered the patroness of the Americas under the title Our Lady of Guadalupe, and also patroness of children in the womb, as she seems to be pregnant in the image she left with St. Juan Diego.  Naturally, people of Mexican descent, like the Sandovals, would feel a stronger connection than some others.  Then, St. Margaret was an early Christian martyr whose real history is pretty skimpy, but she has been regarded as patroness of pregnant women and childbirth since early in the Middle Ages.  That’s why Kathy asked the help of these two in dealing with her parents.”

            Damon looked unconvinced, but accepted the explanation.  “I’ll say this, you people seem to have every situation covered.”

            Later that afternoon, Bryce informed the two young car watchers that Damon’s birthday was coming up soon.  To his surprise, they both proclaimed that theirs was, too.  He had never really thought about when their birthdays might be.  DeShawn said he would be nine on 28 March, but Malcolm claimed clear superiority as the older, having been born on March 14, two whole weeks before his friend.  Bryce made a note of the dates, so he would remember to provide an appropriate birthday gift.

            Working at the soup kitchen that afternoon was not as rewarding as usual.  It seemed the patrons were testy and critical of everything.  At one point, Bryce found himself thinking, What’s the matter with these people?  They’re getting a free meal.  They should be grateful, not critical.  Maybe we should just quit providing the meal, and see how they like it.  Then, a very small, very black, very wrinkled woman patted his hand and said, “Don’t look so down, Deary.  You’ll feel better when the weather improves.”  Of course!  It was February.  It’s cold and dreary outside.  Sometimes there are days without a decent glimpse of the sun.  No wonder everyone is so grumpy.  I guess these folks have as much a right as I do to feel crotchety.  Later, considering that event, Bryce decided that God sure chose some unexpected mouthpieces to deliver his message.  Then, upon further consideration, he decided it should not be all that unexpected.  Look at the Old Testament prophets.  Look at the Apostles.  None of them were what the world would consider an appropriate person to be instructing others in God’s word.

            The French class had arrived at an interesting point.  Dr. Anjot lectured on Monday on a contemporary of Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870), best known for his novels, Les Trois Mousquetaires (The Three Musketeers 1844) and Le Comte de Monte-Cristo (1845-46) being perhaps the best known, although he also wrote other novels, plays, and non-fiction.  Dumas, like Charles Dickens a little earlier, published his novels in installments, which explains the double date 1845-46.  Bryce, like most of the class, had read The Three Musketeers in an English translation as a child, and was looking forward to reading it in the original.  Dr. Anjot commented on one occasion, “If someone asks you whether you have read a particular work, and you have not read it in the original language, you should answer, ‘No, but I’ve read a translation,’ because a translation is an interpretation, not the original.”  The most interesting bit of trivia Bryce carried away from the lecture on the background to Dumas was that he was a mulatto, his grandmother having been a Haitian slave.  On one occasion when someone insulted his mixed-race background, he responded, “My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and my great-grandfather was a monkey.  You see, Sir, my family starts where yours ends.”  Dumas took literary license for effect, as it was his grandmother, not his grandfather, who was black.  The images of Dumas shown the class by Professor Anjot clearly indicated his African ancestry.  This might be of interest to Damon.  Finding successful individuals of African ancestry was encouraging.  The fact that Dumas was of mixed race did not detract from that, as approximately a third of all Americans known variously as African-American, black, or Negro were of mixed race, sometimes with considerable admixture.  And then, especially in Senegal and some other fringe areas of North Africa, some of the original slaves might well have been of mixed race themselves.  Bryce had concluded some time ago that the only pure race was the human race (pace Erik von Daniken and other writers of science fiction).

            That evening, David Simpson stopped by.  He was still bothered by the writings of St. Paul, and, after considering it, did not find Bryce’s interpretation of the situation fully satisfactory.  He began by admiring the new arrangement of the rooms Bryce and Damon were now sharing, but soon stated his objections.  “You say you Catholics base yourself on the Church, not on the Bible alone.  The Church is supposed to interpret the Bible.  But then you dismiss the interpretation your Church gives to these passages about homosexuality.”

            Bryce replied, “You’re absolutely right.  After our talk on Saturday, I thought about it some more, and realized that my explanation left a lot to be desired.  I can fill in some of the steps I skipped over on Saturday, which I believe make my position more creditable, but I have to admit at the outset that there are no absolute answers, David.”

            David considered that.  “Well, give me some of the missing steps, and let me think about it.”

            “Okay.  Unlike the more fundamentalist kind of Christianity that you described in your mother’s church, the Catholic Church makes a distinction between doctrine and discipline.  Not everything is equally important.  Doctrine means basic truths, part of the revelation given humanity by Jesus about the nature of God, the nature of humanity, and the proper relationship between the two.  Doctrine is found in the obvious meaning of the accounts in the Bible, in the doctrinal decisions of general councils, and in the ex cathedra proclamations of popes.  If there is any question about the meaning of a statement in the Bible, then it is not doctrine until so defined by one of the other authorities I mentioned.  For example, in the Bible the angel addresses the Virgin Mary as “full of grace.”  Many Christians believed over the centuries that this means she was never touched by sin, but the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception was not formally defined until 1854.  Even such a stalwart theologian as St. Thomas Aquinas denied this doctrine, but in his day it had not been formally defined, and so was still open for discussion.

            “Now, all the statements by Catholic authorities on homosexuality, homosexual relations, and the interpretation of those bothersome passages in St. Paul are in the category of discipline, that is, they are attempts to apply basic principles of moral human relations to a specific case.  There have been no doctrinal statements on any of these points.  The Church’s teaching on homosexuality is kind of in the same category as the idea of the Immaculate Conception before 1854.  It is still open for discussion, no matter what some bishop or Vatican agency says.”

            “What about St. Paul, though?  Don’t you people believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God?” David asked.

            “Yes and no.  Yes, we believe that the Bible contains basic truths about God that are definite and unchanging, and in that respect, it is inspired by God.  But no, we do not believe that God dictated the text and some human, like St. Paul, was just a secretary writing down God’s words.  For one thing, there are contradictions in the Bible, and God does not contradict himself.  The human authors expressed the inspiration they had from God in terms their contemporary readers would be familiar with.  They probably also expanded it with what they thought appropriate comments and explanations. That’s why it needs to be interpreted so it can be  decided how it applies to us today.  That’s what the Church does,” Bryce explained.

            David replied, “Well, I guess I understand your position better, but that still leaves a lot of unanswered questions.”

            “I know it does.  In a way, that’s part of the human condition.  There will always be unanswered questions.  The way I see it, God does not present us with absolutely clear, iron clad answers to every issue.  If he did, there would be no choice about whether to accept the answer or not.  Everything would be black or white,” Bryce stated.

            “That’s pretty much the way my mother’s church sees everything,” David said.

            “And I don’t like that way of expressing things,” Damon added from the sidelines.

            Bryce and David both chuckled.

            “Okay, Caro mio, how about ‘everything would be take it or leave it,’ accept it or you’re damned?” Bryce attempted.  “I know that’s the way most fundamentalists see things, David.  And I have to admit that not all Catholics understand the theology of their own Church.  I know some who think anything that comes out of Rome is absolutely beyond question.  They might be called fundamentalist Catholics.  To me, fundamentalism means not thinking, just accepting some authority, whether it’s the Bible, or the Vatican, or the Koran, or the computer, or ....”

            “Wait a minute,” David interrupted.  “The computer?”

            “Haven’t you ever questioned a bill, or some notice from an office on campus, or something like that, and the only answer you get is ‘the computer says this is correct’?  It’s the same mentality.  I’ve seen it applied to textbooks as well.  I know of a case back in high school where a student disagreed with something in the history textbook.  He brought in lots of sources supporting his position, but the instructor replied, ‘if it’s in the textbook, it’s true as far as this class is concerned,’” Bryce defended his position.

            “Well, yeah.  In fact, I had a personal experience along those lines.  I just put it down to ignorance and stubbornness,” David conceded.

            “That’s a good definition of fundamentalism,” Bryce stated.

            “So, where does faith come in?” David asked.

            “I see it being really important at several points along the way,” Bryce said.  “First of all, and crucial to all the rest, is the question of whether a Christian, or even a theist explanation of reality is preferable to a purely materialistic, atheistic one.  In my opinion, there simply is not any iron clad proof one way or the other.  This is where one has to make what Søren Kierkegaard called ‘the leap of faith.’  Then, once that matter is settled in your mind, you have to decide

which of the competing theistic systems to accept.  Only a fool tries to accept them all, as they obviously contradict each other on essential points.  Here I call on reason and what we call common sense, that is, normal human experience.  Some religions are just silly, like Scientology or New Age stuff, or Christian Science, something someone made up in his spare time.  Others are self-contradictory, and I think most fundamentalist religions fall into this category.  There remain several options.  I have explained my choice.  You can say it’s because I was raised Catholic, and I’m sure that has influenced me, if only in that I understand the Catholic position better.  I still think in its basic doctrines Catholicism corresponds to both reason and common sense better than any of the alternatives.  One final point.  Accepting a god, accepting the Christian God, and accepting the Catholic Faith all are leaps of faith, but all give me hope – hope for meaning in life, hope for salvation, hope for understanding –  and the alternatives do not.  But the final choice is yours.”

            “There are a lot of things I’d need to consider and investigate before I could agree with you, Bryce, but, like I said before, now I understand better where you’re coming from.  I don’t want to be constantly taking up your time with my questions.  Is there something I can read to give me a better understanding of your position?” David asked.

            “First of all, David, I don’t mind at all taking some time to discuss things with you.  I know it took me a while last week, and that might happen again if I’m caught up in something at the time, but that does not mean I consider it a chore, or that I regret the time.  Answering your questions forces me to rethink my own position as well, and that’s always good.  Now, as to something to read – let’s see.  Well, I did run across something not too long ago.  It’s written for Catholics, so there might be questions you’d have that I wouldn’t, but I think it gives a pretty good feel for the Catholic mentality.  It’s called Letters to a Young Catholic by George Weigel.  It came out about ten years ago.  You can order it on line from someplace like Amazon.com or Alibris.com, or there’s a copy in the library.”

            “Thanks,” David said as he wrote down the title and author.  “I’ll check it out.”

            “I will tell you up front you won’t like the section on sexuality, and especially the part on homosexuality.  It’s in the letter on the Sistine Chapel in Rome – chapter 8.  Weigel repeats the party line pretty much on this topic, but as far as the general Catholic mentality, I found it very much on the mark,” Bryce informed his friend.

            “I’ll bear that in mind.  Maybe I’ll skip chapter 8,” David said.

            “No, don’t do that.  You need to know the ugly along with the beautiful,” Bryce laughed.

            After a few more comments of a general nature, David took his leave.  Damon spoke up.  “Maybe I should read that book, too, so I’m not blindsided by things like Lent.  Is it expensive?”

            “No, not really.  You can get used copies on line.  But you don’t need to do that.  I’ve got a copy right here,” Bryce said, leaning over and selecting a paperback volume from his bookshelf.  He tossed the book to Damon, who scanned the table of contents.

            “Not bad.  Fourteen letters, and only about 250 pages.  Even I can handle that.”

            “Stop that.  I don’t like it when you do the ‘even I’ bit.  No matter what was true about your educational background, there’s nothing wrong with your intelligence,” Bryce angrily demanded.

            “Yes, mother,” Damon indulged him.