Half Truth

Untitled Part 3

CHAPTER 4

Bery was anxiously waiting for John in the shanty. In the past half an hour, he had looked at his watch at least ten times. A sense of fear and anxiety had gripped him. He was praying and hoping that everything had gone well. Why was John taking so much of time? By now he should have been back.

Suddenly the door opened and John entered with his bruised face and with a black and blue eye. Bery's heart skipped a beat. Immediately, John pronounced that Peter's men had been hiding near his flat. One of those guys, who were keeping an eye at the pub, was also there. Perhaps he recognized him and before he could flee, these guys clamored him to the floor. They had hit him so hard, that he become unconscious. When he recovered, he found the papers, he had taken from the locker were missing.

Bery thought, it was really silly of him to have sent John to this job. He was thinking in his anxiety to make quick buck, he forgot to ask John to go in disguise or to arrange some other person to collect the papers. John face was known to the guys who were guarding the entry to pub. No friend's name had been given to the building supervisor. Any person could have collected the papers, as long as, he carried the request letter from Bery to the supervisor. Damage had been done. Bery thought, since he had made no money the deal got automatically cancelled and he would not pay John anything. He was sorry for himself as well as for John.

John also agreed that the deal was off and he was also sorry for Bery and for himself.

Bery thought, at least he has been saved from committing a crime. God has saved him from cheating others. He has been honest in dealing with his clients and now intends to stay that way. He bade good bye to John, wished him good luck and offered to remain friends with him.

As soon as Bery left, John opened the envelope and started counting the notes, once again as a self assurance, that in three days time, he was able to make twenty thousand bucks. This amount of cash he had never seen or dealt with in his entire life, right from his childhood.

He decided he would pay the rent and spend the money wisely. First of all, the coming Sunday, he would go to the church to attend the mass and say his thanks to God. It was only two days away. For this occasion he purchased a suit and a matching shirt and tie.

He eagerly waited for the Sunday. He got up early, took shower, wore the good clothes he had purchased and went to attend the mass ceremony in the first church, he came across. As luck would have it, this was the same very church where he used to come as a child in the company of his mother. It was a Lutheran church. However John was least concerned whether the assembly in the church was catholic, protestant or of any other Christian group or cult. All he knew, it was nearest to his place of dwelling. He did not know whether the clergy was Father, Brother, Bishop or Pastor. All he knew that he had to attend the prayers and give thanks to God for giving him twenty thousand bucks, just in three days. He was amongst the early ones to arrive. He heard the priest asking the congregation to refer to chapter 6 in the Book Mathew. The priest then explained the right procedure of saying prayers and then added that he was only repeating what Lord Jesus Christ had told his disciples. The right procedure was to simply say:

"Our Father in heaven, --------------- Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us ----------your heavenly Father will---forgive you----."

As soon as the words 'Father will forgive you' fell on John's ears, his mind failed to record anything beyond that. Though he was sitting in first row of pew, but words were falling deaf on his ears and were making no sense whatsoever. As if the very magical words that 'Father will forgive you' stopped his power of listening and understanding. He became aware of the surroundings only when the mass was over and the church boy came with bag to collect the tithe. He put his hand in the pocket and took out some coins and mechanically dropped them in the tithe bag. Soon people were leaving the church. Mostly were talking in whispers or in sign language cautioning others to wait outside for making the Sunday evening programs or for exchanging pleasantries.

John waited for others to move out and approached the priest who had conducted the mass. The Pastor, the priest realized that John was a new face to his church and was trying to attract his attention. The Pastor came nearer and said, "God bless you, my son, you want to say something."

John hesitated for a moment, "No and yes. In my childhood, I have visited church with my mother but for me those were merely Sunday outings and nothing else. Today I have come on my own to say prayers, I am not sure why? I could hardly concentrate and grasp anything worth mentioning, since I got stuck with the very thought that I was praying for forgiveness of my sins. I kept wondering what is a sin?" and then added, "Sir."

"Oh! My son, today you have come to God's place. God waits for His children. You are the blessed one and chosen one. God has certain plans for you. Is your mother also around, because I know almost everyone by name, who visits this church?" Pastor enquired in a very clear and soft tone.

"My mother died about ten years back and she did not die in this town. I wonder whether she ever met you. However I am anxious to know what is called sin. Is it an act or a thought? Sir," again asked John. Impatience in his voice was quite apparent.

"My son, you ask me a question, the answer of which is with you and with everyone in whose mind such a query has crept in. In the Old Testament Lord our God gave the Ten Commandments and then Moses conveyed the covenant made by Lord with people of Israel as conveyed to us in the Holy Bible, for people to observe the Commandments. But unfortunately, this did not stop the human beings from committing sins. To save the humanity, Lord Jesus Christ, the son of God, came Himself and died on the cross and took upon Him our sins to save us. He came as our savior. He delivered us from our sins by redeeming us with his precious blood. New Testament will reveal everything, if you would take the burden of reading the Holy Bible or visit my church regularly as I would be taking up these very things in my subsequent mass prayers. I would be too glad to give you my copy of the Holy Bible, before you leave the church today," the reply came.

"What about sins? Are they opposite to good things?" again enquired John, thinking that his question would remain unanswered and he would only get a copy of Holy Bible with instructions to read some chapter or the other.

"Every human being has been blessed with brain, power to discern and conscience to gauge him whether his act or thought can be classified as a sin or as you call it a good act or a good thought. As a thumb rule, sins normally torment your conscience and soul," replied Pastor, while handing John a copy of the Holy Bible.

John took the copy. He was thinking that I have double crossed Bery and have committed sin. But at the same time I have saved Bery from the act of cheating Peter. Thus I have done a good deed. Does this good act nullify my sinful act?

Since I have restored Peter's shares, I think it is a good act. But at the same time I have taken money for restoring the shares. Is it, with this changed scenario, this good act gets converted to a sin? How can taking money for rendering any service amount to sin? After all we need money to live. God has given us this body and we need money to feed it to remain healthy, fit and fine. If we don't do so, maybe we are committing a sin. Then taking money in return for a good deed can't fall in the category of sin, by any stretch of imagination. After all only a while ago I have prayed to God 'To give us this day our daily bread'. May be that is how God feeds us. Thus I have committed no sin.

However unable to make out whether be had committed sin or not, he went home, kept the copy of Holy Bible, near his pillow and dozed off.