Norman Rush - Mortals

“But, rra, continuing as to Jesus, and what has come of his life, and even admitting how greatly he was mistaken in some of his hopes … Rra, this I know will not be pleasing to you, but you must hear it, because you shall hear it from others … And I am not happy to say these things, you understand.

“But let us say he believed untruths. Some untruths. And from these untruths some people, misled, built up some tales that have come to us, from time past.

“From time past we have a tale that there was a man sent by God.

“And this tale says that this man said, as to the poor, that they are beautiful in God’s eyes.

“And from this, if you wish, you can think, Ai! … then as God is loving them, it is perhaps best if we can love them too, if all could do so …”

“Hold it! Wait.” This was Morel, agitated. “Wait, yes, but we are talking about a myth, a myth … tlhamane …”

“Oh surely so, rra. A tale told by fairies. Ditlhamane, many myths, we are talking about.”

“Well just so we keep that in mind.”

“Ehe, righto! And this man says you must not be ashamed if you are sick or you are too shy, because God is a friend to you above the rich.

“And you the rich, for shame, you cannot pass through the eye of a needle so easily as can the poor.

“So we can see that God is saying the rich must feel shame, which is what we would wish in this country today. With us, the rich have no shame. They can just sweep out the poor, brush them away, if they please to.

“And this man from God says we must not fall into fighting and we must love our neighbors.

“And so forth, rra, and so forth. This man says to be merciful, and says you are most blessed if you seek after justice.

“You can see how I am differing, rra.”

“Yes, go on.”

“And so this same man, you can find him at table with the poor …”

“Wait wait wait. Okay, just to be accurate, it’s not specifically the poor he seeks out to have meals with. No, it was with tax collectors, who were in fact agents of the Roman state, whose hospitality he accepted. There is no evidence in scripture that he ever sought out the poor to eat with! He fixed them up with loaves and fishes, miracle meals, when they came out to hear him and dinnertime came. A small point. I don’t mean to interrupt. I want you to object. We are going to get a lot of objection.”

“So but let me go on, rra. Right, he was eating with sinners at the table. Right. So the people can say this man is pushing no one to the side if they will only listen to his message. And you have said this man was making an experiment in mass psychology, and that it failed. But how can you say it failed, rra, with so many Christians abounding? The experiment produced the kindly ditlhamane, did it not?

“And in these ditlhamane, which, okay, say we know them to be untrue, we have been told Jesus is going forth and healing without charge, healing the sick like a nyanga. But he asks nothing for this service.

“Go to the dingaka in Broadhurst and Bontleng and see if you must pay them. It is the way it is. You yourself, if I may dare to say this, you do not give your injections without charge …”

Morel was aggrieved. “Ah but I do. I do. So much of my practice here is charitable, my brother. In fact you know this.”

“For the most part, is what I am saying. Look, man, I am your friend. I am not criticizing. It is the way it must be done. If you go to hospital, in many cases you must take your own food. And you as a doctor must replenish when your stocks of medication are low, and you must pay out sums for that. Gosiame.

“And so in the ditlhamane, this man Jesus says that he knows the heart of God and God wishes the Batswana to live in peace and be kind to enemies, which if I may say, our great Botswana Defence Force, they are very Christian when it comes to the Boers pushing over into our country and killing and killing. But I am just joking about it. They are turning the other cheek. Nah, I am joking.

“Nah, I think I am saying that in these tales you see this man Jesus never to be surcharging for any act of his — although it is true you can take him to dinner at times!

“So … this man says there is a God who is watching you and wants you to be kind, be pleasant all round, stay from the courts and judges, give with your left hand and right to the beggars and if someone asks can you lend me something you should agree. In fact, you must forget that you have made such a loan. You must give him your coat, in fact.

“And when you marry, remain with your wife.

“So, right. So these stories are saying to behave in these ways and if you fail you are going to burn up in hell.

“And so we see this man … but I forgot about the children. He says to bless them. Which is very good for Batswana to be told. Because we are working these children all day, making them fetch like dogs and sending them off to watch cattle, whatever we wish.

“Ehe, and I forgot as well about adultery. This is also good advice for the Batswana, else these sex games in the schools will go on and on with more young girls falling pregnant as they do now every year in every school. It is true here in the capital and it is worse in Mahalapye. So there is not just one tribe to blame. And the fathers of these babies, who are they? Teachers, often enough, or men who just come creeping …

“So if we could do one tenth of what Jesus is saying, Botswana would be a very much better country. And …”

“Okay I think your point is made, Keregang. And I would like to answer it, if I may.” Morel was being curt.

“I must finish, rra. Because I know these are thoughts that many are having amongst those who are here tonight and who love you, as I do, as you know.

“And yes, he says, Jesus, if you give to charity, do so privately not making a show, which, I point out, is how you do it, so you must be a Christian of some kind. No, I am fooling. But at these fêtes and benefit doings it is very different, with great displays as to who is most generous. But I was fooling, rra. You are no Christian.

“So. And don’t lay up gold. Take the log from your eye. Beware false prophets. So that is the man, ecce homo, as they put it. That is the man in the tale.

“And so the story comes to its end … And what is its end?

“Domkrag hates him and puts him on a cross to die in pain. Rome is Domkrag.

“So Domkrag kills this man who is the friend of the poor people.

“Sha!”

Ray knew what Kerekang was doing. Sha was a strong expression, meaning shame, and it was accompanied by a sharp wagging of the right hand.

“Sha! But … But he rises from the cross, this man, and is not dead, he is seen rising up, walking about, you can see his wounds, you can put your hand in his right side to test if this is the man. So he rises to be with God … and what does he leave the Batswana?

“I can tell you that many of them will say this man is still hereabout, like a mist, or the wind. And he has left his words of what you must do and it is this … it is this, rra …

“That you must try to please God by good action and kindness. In the church they will help you to be like God’s son.

“So, and now are some people arriving who say all this is mere lies, and very mistaken.

“But I am saying to you, wait, sir. Sir, wait.

“Because if you will admit they are making a hell in Botswana for the poor, the ones without cattle or with cattle but no borehole, if you wish to admit this, why shall you cast off these stories that can help us to gather up these poor, these selahtliwa, these outcasts, and make them an army against this hell? Hell is amongst us tonight, nearby to this house, in Old Naledi and Bontleng, and in the bush we can walk into hell, straight into it, like that. Where I stay is hell, in Bontleng. I want to extinguish this hell, my friend. I shall do it. I tell you so tonight.