"Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination."
The voice of the Priest thundered over the microphone and echoed through the
small church.
“The lord states this clearly through Leviticus. The wrath of God will
fall upon the Sodomites and they will be destroyed. The sin of sodomy is not
tolerated by God or the church. ….”
The voice was quieter now after the initial bellow but full of belligerence.
Tommy squirmed. He didn’t know what all the words the priest was saying
meant, but it sounded like God sure didn’t like those sodomites. Maybe
they were terrorists. He knew all about terrorists. It was on the news all the
time; they were bad guys. Maybe sodomites were bad guys too.
His daddy would know. He knew everything. He’d ask him when Grandma Leonie
took him home. He shuffled impatiently in his seat again, his attention wandering
to the statues and stained glass windows. Church was boring.
Leonie listened to the sermon in disbelief. How did the priest know? She’d
told only Monica her secret. Surely her best friend wouldn’t have betrayed
her trust, revealed the family scandal to the priest. All anyone knew was that
the boy she was bringing to church was her grandson.
Tommy shuffled and swung his sneaker clad feet, almost hitting the pew in front
of him. Leonie laid a hand against his leg to still him.
The Priest continued his sermon.
“Remember this, the word of God has been given to us through the gospels
and it is clear that His wrath will descend on those who revel in shameful lusts...”
Leonie averted her eyes from the pulpit. She was sure the Priest was staring
straight at her; could see into her soul.
She remembered the day Peter had come to her, telling her things she didn’t
want to hear. She tried to deny what he was saying: he didn’t mean it,
couldn’t possibly know such things, he was too young to make a decision
like that.
“It’s not a decision, mum,” he’d told her. “I
didn’t wake up one morning and decide this. It’s what I am.”
But she wouldn’t listen, kept telling him he was wrong and should speak
to the priest. Finally he had left and they were estranged for a long time.
Then one day he had come back with Mark, his partner. She’d felt betrayed.
But…he was her son and she loved him. Their years apart had been the worst
of her life. So, she nodded and accepted the situation - or pretended to. But
she ignored Mark and fussed over Peter. When Tommy had joined the family she’d
been angry. How could these two men possibly think they could raise a child?
That had been four years ago. The child was now five and Leonie had felt it
her duty to start bringing him to church. Funnily enough it had been Mark who
agreed it might be good for Tommy. Peter had wanted nothing to do with the church.
Leonie frowned and wondered again how the priest had found out.
Tommy’s eyes moved to the statue of Baby Jesus. The Priest’s voice
continued but he wasn’t really listening anymore. Bet his daddy Mark would
know about sodomites too. Funny the way both daddy Peter and daddy Mark knew
so much. Must be ‘cause they were grown up and all grown ups knew things.
The kids at school asked him if he got confused ‘cause he had two daddies
- most of them had a mummy and a daddy. He’d never thought about it till
the other kids had said he was different. His best friend, Jody, said it didn’t
matter, that parents were there to take care of their little kids and love them
and give them things and make sure they went to bed early - stuff like that.
Tommy’s daddies did all that so they were regular parents like everyone
else’s. And they had picked Tommy, he hadn’t been automatic like
the other kids, so that sort of made them special Jody had said. Tommy knew
Jody was right; that’s why Jody was his best friend.
“Man was not meant to lay down with man. It is unnatural! The sanctity
of the family must be maintained..."
Tommy looked up at the Priest. What was he saying? His daddies lay down together.
They had a real big bed and there was plenty of room there for him too, when
he had a nightmare and was frightened, or first thing in the morning when he
woke up and he could run in their room and jump into bed and snuggle in. Tommy
felt a bit frightened now. He pulled on Grandma Leonie’s arm.
“Grandma, what does the priest man mean?” he whispered as quietly
as he could.
Leonie looked at Tommy. She took in the scar still painfully obvious on his
lip where surgery had corrected the harelip and cleft palate that had made him
the unwanted child Peter found in that faraway country. Such a happy child,
clever like Peter had been when he was little. She pictured the three of them
together. Her son and his partner laughing and playing with the little boy,
looking at him with love. Mark had looked at her son with love too and Peter
had returned his look. Leonie’s world fractured for a split second, then
came back together again in a blinding flash of light that startled her.
“It’s alright Tommy,” she whispered back, taking hold of his
hand. “The priest man is just a little confused about how God’s
love may work in mysterious ways. Let’s go home now and we can bake cookies
to take to your daddies. Think they would like that?”
Tommy grinned up at her and nodded, forgetting the priest’s words.
Leonie threw a last look at the pulpit before walking hand-in-hand with her
grandson from the church, head held high.