Libertas

Vinnie and Louie were walking down the street on their rounds to collect protection money for don Corleone, when they saw Jesse.

“Man, I hate that guy. Since he’s been around, nobody shows us no respect no more,” said Vinnie.

“They never respected us,” said Louie.

“I know that! But to our faces, they did. They were scared of us.”

“They still are, so what’s the problem?” said Louie

“I don’t think they’re as scared of us. Like before. I don’t know, but it feels like there’s only so far as we can push. Like if we push too hard, they’ll push back. It’s been different since he got here.”

________________

Father Vincent and Father Louis were walking down the street when Father Vincent saw Jesse. He pointed Jesse out to Father Louis and said, “You know Father, that young man is causing problems in our parish.”

“Really? How so?”

“Well, he’s questioning some of our rules and traditions.”

“Oh, so he’s the one. Someone asked me which was better, helping a sick neighbor or giving the tithe.”

“A stupid question. What did you say?

“I told her to do both, but she said she didn’t have enough money to do both. She bought her neighbor some chicken soup and medicine. I scolded her for trying to justify her sin and that next time she should put the Church first. But we’ve always had to deal with that. They always grumble and complain.”

“And how did she take that?” asked Father Vincent?

“What?”

“The women, how did she take your answer?”

Oh, well … Yes, I see your point. Something wasn’t right. It was hard to tell. There was anger and sadness, but for a moment I almost felt the sadness was for me, besides the anger… It was strange. I don’t know. They’re looking at me in a strange way now.”

“Yes, and it began when he arrived.”

_______________

“Hey, Vinnie! Guess what I heard?”

“What?”

“You’ll never guess!”

“What?”

“I was listening to ‘em. I can’t believe it.”

“WHAT?!”

“They don’t like that guy Jesse either.”

“Who?”

“Jesse, they don’t like him.”

“Who doesn’t?”

‘I over heard ‘em talking about him.”

“Who?”

“Jesse, they were talking about him.”

“Damn it! I know that. Who doesn’t like him?

“Why you get so mad all the time?”

“Louie, tell me who doesn’t like Jesse.”

“Guess!”

“I don’t know.”

“Guess!”

“I don’t know! My mother! Who?”

“Why would your mother….”

“WHO?!”

“Father Vince and Father Lou”

______________

“Father Vincent, guess who came to visit today?”

“Our nephews.”

“How did you know?”

“I saw them walking out the door. What did they want?

“They had a request from don Corleone.”

“Request? What kind of request? One we can refuse or…”

“Doesn’t matter, I think you’ll want to here it.”

__________________

At the parish luncheon Vinnie and Louie showed up. Father Vincent and Father Louis seemed to ignore them, but all four were moving closer around Jesse. People were listening to Jesse and occasionally asking him questions.

“So is it wrong, to give in to them?”

“You are free people, but you must choose your battles. It’s your choice how you respond. But don’t judge others if their choices are different than yours. One man who has nothing to loose cannot judge how a man with a family responds. We don’t condemn a man for handing over his wallet when he’s being mugged, neither do we condemn him for fighting back.”

When Vinnie and Louie moved in closer, the people looked down and stopped talking.

Father Vincent said, “We must always stand up to evil, no matter what. We must never give in.”

“Yes,” said, Jesse, “but how? And what of those who are weak and defenseless? Do we condemn them for trying to survive?”

Vinnie and Louie moved in closer.

Father Louis, asked, “So, there are no absolutes? Sometimes it’s fine to give in to evil and other times it’s wrong? Whatever you feel like? What good is any moral or religious education if that’s the way you think?”

“Yes, tell us,” said Father Vincent. “You know there is a problem with certain businesses having to pay for ‘protection’ money. Are you saying to just accept it. Never fight back? Aren’t they cowards for paying for their protection?”

Jesse and the people could see Vinnie and Louie reaching for whatever weapons were in their pockets. Jesse knew it was a trap. Don Corleone was the biggest contributor to the church. Father Vincent and Father Louis never spoke out against don Corleone before.

Louie blurted out, “We’re keeping them safe! They owe don Corleone for his protection.”

Jesse said, “then give to don Corleone what belongs to don Corleone and to God what belongs to God,” and walked away.

_________

“That showed him,” said Louie.

“Shut up you idiot.”

“Why? He said, to give to don Corleone what belongs to him. So we won.”

“What exactly do they have that belongs to don Corleone?”

“But he said to give to don Corleone,” said Louis.

“Yes, you idiot, give to don Corleone what belongs to don Corleone. But does don Corleone own them? Does don Corleone own their lives, their property, their income? What if they figure out that they owe don Corleone nothing because he doesn’t own them? There’s nothing that they have that is his!”

_________

“So, will don Corleone be happy with us? asked Father Louis.

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not? Didn’t Jesse play in to our hands.”

“Not really. He said what was morally correct without sanctioning submission to don Corleone.”

“How’s that? He said to give to don Corleone. The people will have lost faith in him now.”

“That’s what I had hoped, but he also said to give to don Corleone what belongs to him. What is it that they have that don Corleone owns? Nothing. Don’t you see? Don Corleone has no claim on anyone. He doesn’t own them, he doesn’t own their lives, their property, their income. Only slaves would think that they owe some type of loyalty, obedience or money to him….However, …. If we could still convince the people that they do… if we could convince them that that is what Jesse really meant, or just repeat what he said over and over again, but not let them think about it, maybe we can save today’s fiasco and ourselves.”

Recommended:

The Law by Frédéric Bastiat

The Discourse Of Voluntary Servitude by Etienne de La Boetie

Taxation is Robbery by Frank Chodorov

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