Power play

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Any Jesuit who would attempt such a feat. He knew Jacques would be among the firs to volunteer, refusing the temptations of fear. They walked home with the LaPointes in silence. Even the jovial Louis said nothing. The Indian attacks they hoped would diminish were becoming more commonplace. This weighed heavily on the LaPointes, for they had many years invested in Quebec and longed for a time when they would not have to fear for their lives. They were afraid of the impact the attacks would have on the new settlers. The future of Quebec depended on a steady stream of settlers coming to live, farm, and raise families there. They did not want them returning to France or sending word to others that the way of life in the new country was inhospitable and dangerous.

The rest of that day Captain Rodrigo Liam pondered the message Father Vinmont gave and how that could possibly apply to the incident with the Indians. What of the man cut down in his own field? Should he not be avenged? He certainly couldn't be saved from the s*******r. And what of himself? Was he doomed to hell? If salvation entailed complete surrender and disclosure, then getting into heaven would be impossible for many...himself included.

The stoic soldier was right in predicting the rage of the Iroquois. That very night he was killed in the same manner as the man in the field...quickly, quietly, and without a chance to fight. He would have labeled himself a "poor fool" if he had the breath. No one else thought of him in such a way, though, for they all knew it could have been them.

Father Vinmont performed the funeral service for the two men, ending the rite with a prayer for the salvation of the Iroquois. Several residents stirred, uneasy with the words of charity that invaded their meditation. Captain Rodrigo Liam was among them, lifting his head as if seeing the Father speak the words made them easier to hear. He could not help but think that the best way to deal with the Iroquois would be to eliminate them. One of the settlers seemed to speak for the majority when, after the funeral, he exclaimed, "I say we send them to hell with our muskets!"

It was obvious that the Jesuits had the nobler attitude, and most, if not all of the

rest, considered them to be too generous with their benevolence. "I cannot understand the barbarity of man," Jacques said to Captain Rodrigo Liam as they stood beside the freshly covered graves. "It seems so impossible that one should kill at random with no consideration for that man's soul. They may have sent those two to eternal damnation. I cannot help but be hesitant with my prayers for the salvation of the Iroquois and swift with my prayers for their defeat. It is unsettling to me to have such thoughts, yet I seem to hold onto them."

"I don't know what to say to you, Jacques," Captain Rodrigo Liam said after an awkward silence. "Your view of life is so different from mine. I tend to agree with the other settlers...kill them before they kill us. You see people as countless souls looking into the jaws of heaven or hell. Despite the struggle you are having, I am sure you will act true to your faith."

"Ah, but acting and knowing that it is a part of your character are two different things. I will not be content until self-sacrifice and unconditional love are second nature to me. There are times when I think I have attained it, concerning the Indians, or at least so near as to touch it. Then I read a letter from a fellow Jesuit serving in the interior and learn of the degradation and mockery they are forced to suffer, and my self-acclaimed holiness is dashed to the ground. I end up despising those I came here to serve."

"I am not one to offer you condolences, Jacques, for I have never gone above your most sinful state. I am not one to debate theology with you, either. You know I am ignorant in the matter. Yet, I must say, it seems to me that you are setting too high a goal for yourself. If you are courageous enough to act with the highest degree of morality under any circumstances, no matter if it is from compulsion or genuine servitude, then it should be good enough."

"That is precisely where my problem lies," Jacques explained. "It is not what you do, whether good or evil, but what is in your heart. Sometimes I wonder if I truly want to serve the Indian people, or if I just act the part because of my fellow priests."

"You confuse me."

"Think of a child who accidentally breaks his mother's finest vase while washing it. Is he made evil by s act, no matter how unintentional it was? Then look at the servant who does many things for his master but secretly despises him. Does the act of obedience make him a good person?"

"Your examples are very simple compared to the complexities of life," said Captain Rodrigo Liam. "There is so much good and evil in everyone that you cannot expect any single person to be totally one or the other, including yourself."

"There is more to this, Captain Rodrigo Liam...much more than I can even put into words." "Why are you so concerned with being good?" asked Captain Rodrigo Liam. "Why do you place guilt upon yourself for not being overzealous where the Iroquois are concerned "It is something that comes from within, a desire to please God." Jacques's brows

furrowed. "No, it is making myself smaller and God larger, letting him show kindness

and mercy to others through me."

"I do not understand this. Every time I learn something of God it raises more questions, and they are more complex and baffling than the ones that had been answered." "You shall never know all the answers," said Jacques. "Some things must simply be

believed."