12-07-2013, 03:42 PM
So the preacher decided to preach? That was unsurprising. Passion for one's beliefs was an admirable trait, but to Jon it seemed Jensen ran the risk of letting minutiae blind himself to the grander picture, like the farmer unwilling to set foot inside the hen house for fear of stepping on an egg, letting the snakes who'd crept inside wreak their havoc.
And unfortunately for Mr. James, if he kept too strongly to his unwavering image of dedicating himself to this un-achievable notion of purity, aloof in his self-righteous humility, the snakes would strangle him before he could do anything about it. Perhaps Jon as well, and events were unfolding at too rapid a pace for Jon to allow himself be drawn into some self-reflective battle.
"Mr. James, in terms of legal matters I will represent you and, as you are my client, defer to your wishes as to how you wish to be represented in terms of the law, provided it does not provide you a substandard defense."
He paused. Jon was hardly a theologian, but of course as the Mescaleros were largely Catholic, he'd enough of religious instruction as a youth to craft at least a reasonable counterargument. Jensen had such a gift at his disposal, it would truly sadden Jon for the man to squander it.
"Tell me something, Mr. James. Do you believe that a man's life is judged merely by his sins, or by his capacity to do good? And which is the greater of the two? If we are inherently sinful creatures, is it not what we do with the gifts we are given for our fellow man that matters at the end of the day?"
Jon studied Jensen. This would be difficult to explain to the man since he had such a greater understanding of the Bible -- but perhaps he was not opening his eyes to the right lessons. "You mentioned the martyrs of early Christianity. We remember those whose deaths achieved something. But there are countless who aren't remembered in history. For fear of wavering off your path of piety, you risk the fear of being cut down before you have the chance to do whatever you have been called for, and I suspect you don't even truly know what that is yet. That doesn't make you a martyr, it just makes you dead. A useless dead person who was arrogant in his humility. Your line of thought would have Moses snuffed out as a babe, surely you can see that."
He took a breath. Would Jensen understand? Or would he continue to risk putting the both of them in danger over some notion it was pleasing to his maker to do so, rather than do what he was really called for? "You mentioned Jesus. Do not forget he was sought out by the pharisees for arrest long before it was his time to go to the cross. You have been blessed with a gift, but if you let yourself die a pointless death before you can use it you are no better than the man who buried his Talent in the basement for fear he'd lose it. Would that not, in fact, draw the greater disappointment in your Father's eyes? There are evil, evil things in the world that would snuff out your gift, and mine. Sometimes we must face a choice between feeling right and doing right. So will you unburden yourself from fear of sin, or will you let your talent go to waste?"
Edited by Jon Little Bird, Dec 7 2013, 03:49 PM.
And unfortunately for Mr. James, if he kept too strongly to his unwavering image of dedicating himself to this un-achievable notion of purity, aloof in his self-righteous humility, the snakes would strangle him before he could do anything about it. Perhaps Jon as well, and events were unfolding at too rapid a pace for Jon to allow himself be drawn into some self-reflective battle.
"Mr. James, in terms of legal matters I will represent you and, as you are my client, defer to your wishes as to how you wish to be represented in terms of the law, provided it does not provide you a substandard defense."
He paused. Jon was hardly a theologian, but of course as the Mescaleros were largely Catholic, he'd enough of religious instruction as a youth to craft at least a reasonable counterargument. Jensen had such a gift at his disposal, it would truly sadden Jon for the man to squander it.
"Tell me something, Mr. James. Do you believe that a man's life is judged merely by his sins, or by his capacity to do good? And which is the greater of the two? If we are inherently sinful creatures, is it not what we do with the gifts we are given for our fellow man that matters at the end of the day?"
Jon studied Jensen. This would be difficult to explain to the man since he had such a greater understanding of the Bible -- but perhaps he was not opening his eyes to the right lessons. "You mentioned the martyrs of early Christianity. We remember those whose deaths achieved something. But there are countless who aren't remembered in history. For fear of wavering off your path of piety, you risk the fear of being cut down before you have the chance to do whatever you have been called for, and I suspect you don't even truly know what that is yet. That doesn't make you a martyr, it just makes you dead. A useless dead person who was arrogant in his humility. Your line of thought would have Moses snuffed out as a babe, surely you can see that."
He took a breath. Would Jensen understand? Or would he continue to risk putting the both of them in danger over some notion it was pleasing to his maker to do so, rather than do what he was really called for? "You mentioned Jesus. Do not forget he was sought out by the pharisees for arrest long before it was his time to go to the cross. You have been blessed with a gift, but if you let yourself die a pointless death before you can use it you are no better than the man who buried his Talent in the basement for fear he'd lose it. Would that not, in fact, draw the greater disappointment in your Father's eyes? There are evil, evil things in the world that would snuff out your gift, and mine. Sometimes we must face a choice between feeling right and doing right. So will you unburden yourself from fear of sin, or will you let your talent go to waste?"
Edited by Jon Little Bird, Dec 7 2013, 03:49 PM.