“Something I want to get off my mind,” I said.  “I don’t think I ever told you how proud I am of you.”

“Yes, almost as proud as we were surprised,” Jason said.

“It’s not about pride,” he said.  “Pride goeth before the fall. But I appreciate you saying it.  I just didn’t want you to be disappointed in me.”

“Do you go by Father Colby or Father Dismas?” Jason asked.

“Did someone tell you to ask me that, or do you know about St. Dismas?” Colby asked.

“Dismas was the thief who was crucified with Christ,” Jason said.

Colby laughed.  “I thought you were going to crucify me and Braden when you found out what we’d been up to.”

“If I scared the hell out of you, I intended to.  But that was all made good.”

“Well I confessed it anyway, and you might be happy to know, I officially credited you in the confessional for putting me on the straight and narrow.”

“Has my cause for sainthood been started yet?” Jason joked.

Braden and Will came in from the barn. Nolan was right behind them and they all gathered around.

“The truck….these are your only clothes....you never told us about the poverty in your parish,” I said.

“It’s Appalachia,” Colby said.

“We never made the connection,” Jason said. “We just knew you were in Virginia.”

“Deep in Virginia,” he said.

“You’ve lost weight. You don’t look healthy,” I said.

“We must all make do with what God provides us.”

“No. That’s not good enough. Why didn’t you tell us? Isn’t there a charity of some kind? There must be government programs.”

“There are more charities than you can shake a stick at. They come and go. Many of them go with the money they collect; scams. By the way, it’s not smart to question God’s plan,” he threw in at Jason. “As for government programs….you always said everything the government touches turns to shit. The government programs come and go like the seasons. Another bill is passed to eradicate poverty, there’s a lot of hoopla, and before the ink is dry the social do-gooders are off to save another section of society and the program barely gets off the ground before it simply collapses. The bureaucrats keep their jobs, doing nothing and none of the money ever gets to the people who need it. It’s happened so often that the people don’t even bother to hope anymore. The one thing government programs do quite well is to provide good jobs for government employees.”

“What about the Church….I mean with a capital C? Isn’t there any help from the diocese?  What happened to alms for the poor? Surely your bishop is aware of the situation.”

“I’m still wrestling with that,” he said. “We have been relieved from the obligation of any assessments by the diocese but our alms for the poor come from the poor. Honestly, I don’t have the time or energy to worry about the root causes; I must be focused on the day to day problems of my parishioners.”

Jordan had come in on the last part, taking a chair that he turned around to rest his arms across the back. I was still impressed how the muscles in his arms stood out.

“I know you took the vow of poverty but that wreck on wheels out there is ridiculous,” he said.

“It’s all the parish can afford,” Colby said. “They can hardly keep food on their tables. Fortunately one of the men is a mechanic so he keeps the wreck running.” He laughed. “He promised it would get me up here but he wouldn’t promise it would get me back.”

Jordan stayed and listened intently for a bit then left the room.  When he came back he handed Colby a check.

“If you don’t think my money is tarnished….”

Colby took the check. “Hungry parishioners won’t give a damn,” he said. “I thank you.”

Levi, who also made money the same way as Jordan came in looking for Jordan and sat in on the conversation. When he realized the gist of it he put in his two cents worth.

“I feel like a total hypocrite saying this but God did give me this body and the talent so I’d be more’n happy to donate every third out-call.”

“And ask nothing from me in return?” Colby asked.

“Not unless you can guarantee me a ticket through the Pearly Gates.”

“I’m afraid I’m not the gate keeper,” Colby said.

“Hell, the pitiful two bucks you get for every in or out call ain’t gonna feed very many people,” Jordan chided him.

“Make that two hundred, Father,” Levi said. “An hour,” he added.

“I’m not in a position to judge, only forgive,” Colby said.

“Well, since you don’t think our money is tainted, I see no reason why we can’t all be part of God’s plan,” Will said.  “Give me an address, I’ll see that you get a check every month.”

One by one the others came in and, curious about the confab taking place in the kitchen they sat and stood around to see what was going on, and each one pitched in in some way.

“I want to place one condition on all of this,” Jason said. “What we send you doesn’t go in the collection plate where it has to be accounted for. You, personally, use it wherever you see fit.”

“It will go mostly for food, clothes, coal….the bare necessities of life. And I might try to save a little back to help with repairs on some of the houses, and the church and rectory.”

“That’s my stock in trade,” Nolan said. “What kind of repairs you needing?”

“Well, for starters, the roof.  It would free up several pans and kettles sitting around to catch the water when it rains,” he said jokingly. Then more seriously, “But the first priority would have to be the Brown family. They’re living with five kids in a two room house that’s simply leaned over.”

“I didn’t sign on for this,” Jason grumbled.

“I’m the one who signed on for it.”

“You requested this parish?”

“I’m bound by a vow of obedience and I signed on for wherever the bishop sends me.”

“This will not stand. And I’m angry with you for not telling us.”

“Can I ask you something, Colby? It’s a touchy subject, considering you’re a priest.”

“I am a priest; I hear confessions.  I’ve listened to more touchy than you can imagine.”

“Does anyone use condoms? Seems that might be a small step in stemming the tide of poverty.”

“You have to do the math,” he said.  “What’s a condom cost, a buck? Sex three or four times a week….that’s three or four dollars that will buy oatmeal, grits, rice, flour to feed a family for a week. They can’t think ahead to prevention, their focus is on each day as it comes, each meal for chrissakes. It’s a daily battle for survival for these folks. And I’m sure as hell not going to suggest to these men that they give up sex.”

“If condoms were provided, would they use them?”

“I really don’t know.”

“Okay, tell me this; if a woman or a man asked you if it’s okay to use birth control, what would you tell them?  Better yet, if a man came into the confessional and confessed that he was using condoms, what would you say to him?”

“I would say it’s better to feed the children he has than to create another child.”

“And your conscience would be clear on that?”

“I believe the bishops and cardinals who define and hold us to God’s word are sometimes confused about what God is saying. There is no reference to condoms or any other kind of birth control anywhere in scripture. The only reference even remotely related to birth control is God’s command to ‘multiply and fill the earth.’  God knows they’ve done that, so that commandment has been fulfilled.  The scripture I hang my hat on is feeding the hungry. Condoms could be a tool in the fight against hunger and poverty.”

“Well put.”

“Should we or should we not have had this conversation when Jacob was still here?” someone joked.

“Jacob is providing for his family.”

“Because he’s able. There’s probably more than one root cause but one has to be lack of education.”

“Kids don’t learn when they’re hungry,” Colby said. “Offer them a book and a bowl of oatmeal or beans, see which they shove aside.”

“But once he’s fed, he still has the book.”

“What few there are,” Colby said.

“Speaking militarily, you often need a three or four pronged attack to defeat the enemy. I mean, you’re probably not going to have much effect if you keep shooting at a guy who is well entrenched in a concrete bunker. You might need to toss a grenade and shake things up a bit.”  

“I was never in the military….your point is?”

“You attack it from all sides. The immediate need is food. Then clothes.  Heat and shelter.  Then books and school supplies.”

“And throw some condoms in the mix.”

“Shelter is going to need a lot of attention. I mean, that one family’s house is caving in around them.”

Nolan looked around the room. “Collectively, we have the talent. I can get the materials wholesale. All we need is to arrange a time.”

“I smell a plan.”

“Alright, but this can’t be like a fuckin’ government program where we jump in and make a big splash then swim away. We have to be in it asshole-deep for the long haul; long enough to make a real impact.”

“When did we ever get by with doing anything half assed,” he said, looking at Jason and me.

“Excuse me but I can’t help noticing that the conversation has shifted form the abstract to the present tense,” Colby said.

“There’s a plan brewing, Father.”

The plan slowly came to fruition. Right there in the kitchen there was over $10,000 in cash and promises for Colby to take back with him.

The next day, Friday, Colby drove his old pickup into town where it was loaded down with food and new clothes and filled up with gas. Jason and I bought up all the condoms in two drug stores. The kid at the checkout at one store was wide-eyed.

“Holy shit! Can I come to this party?” he joked.

At the other store there was a middle aged man at the checkout.

“Don’t ask,” I told him as we were checking out.

We took the younger boys to pick out school supplies and then to a book store to pick out books. They were a huge help in knowing what kids would read. Colby was overwhelmed.  It was interesting the way all the rest saw it simply as something that needed to be done. Colby was nearly overwhelmed at the outpouring of generosity. When we were back home I took Jason aside.

“Do we really think that truck Colby’s driving is going to make it back to Virginia without breaking down?”

“Only on a Hail Mary,” Jason said.

“I don’t think the entire rosary will keep that thing running,” I said. “What do you say we give Holy Mary a little help?”

“A new truck?”

“Or a good used one,” I said.

“Do you think he’ll accept it?”

“He won’t have any choice.  He’s a priest who has to have the best interest of his parishioners at heart,” I said.

“Well, let’s make another trip into town.”

We took Colby with us, saying there was something we’d forgotten. He got the picture when we pulled into a car dealership.

“You don’t have to do this,” he said quietly.

“Yeah, I was told we did,” Jason said.

“Who told you?”

“An angel of God came to me in a dream; threatened me,” Jason said.

“You wouldn’t know an angel if you saw one,” Colby scoffed.

“I knew this one; he swatted me with his wings,” Jason said as he was getting out of the car. A salesman came out to greet us.

“We need a truck,” I said. “Late model, low mileage, low maintenance.”

“Got a couple I can show you,” he said and led us off.

He showed us three. One was a GMC Sonoma and two were Ford Rangers.  They were both too small.

“We need something bigger.”

“I’ve got one that’s really late model; a Dodge Ram, just a year old. One owner. Less than fifteen thousand miles. Oversized bed, dual cab. It’s loaded.”

“Let’s have a look,” I said.

We looked it over inside and out.

“Looks like this is everything you’d need, and then some,” Jason said. Then to the salesman, “Why do you have it instead of the original owner?”

“Says he likes the new truck smell and he’s got the money to indulge himself,” was the reply.

“It’s too much,” Colby said, shaking his head.  “I can’t let you do this.”

“We didn’t ask your permission, Father, and we don’t need your approval,” I said sternly. “Now, do you want to take it for a drive before I buy it?”

“If you’re determined, there’s really no need. It’s got everything I need and more,” he replied.

“We’ll take it,” I told the salesman.

“Great. Let’s go inside and do the paperwork.”

The salesman was a little taken aback when I told him I didn’t need financing. So was Colby. When he asked who it would be titled to, Colby was quick to point out that he had taken the vow of poverty so it would have to be titled to the diocese.

“No,” Jason said quickly and emphatically, looking at me.  “Put it in your name, and loan it to him.”

“What would your bishop say to that?” I asked.

“I don’t know. Not much he could say, I guess.”

I bought the truck and rode back in it with Colby behind the wheel.

“I don’t know how I can ever thank you,” he said in his humble manner.

“You’ll put it to good use; that’s thanks enough.”

“You’ve all done so much. I wasn’t expecting this.”

“Really!” I said.  “You honestly thought this bunch wouldn’t come through?”

“I know, I should’ve known better,” he said.