Ch. 12: Breakfast and The Book

"Now that we have the rest of the day to talk," Leilani said as she was fixing some food for Ishmael, "did you ever wonder if Doubting Thomas has been accused of things he should not have been by preachers who read the Bible wrongly?"

"What are you talking about, Leilani?" Ishmael said with a strange look on his face that seemed to indicate he couldn't believe they were having this conversation so shortly after breaking one of the Commandments. Even his somewhat seared conscience was touched by his actions on occasion.

"Well, Reverend More was talking about the need to go to church every Sabbath..."

"That's something I wondered about when you mentioned it. Just why do you go to church with such apparent regularity?"

"Don't interrupt, Ishmael, it is not polite! Besides, we can discuss that later. Now, as I was saying, Reverend More says that Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus appeared to them because he was intentionally avoiding their company. Well, while you were asleep, I looked at the 20th chapter of Saint John where the story is and I don't think Thomas tried to stay away from their meeting."

"So?"

"Well, he just was not there when Jesus appeared, but it sounds as though he arrived late, not trying to avoid the meeting, as Reverend More indicated in his sermon."

With half a mouth full of food, Ishmael then said, "So, what's your point?"

"My point," Leilani said with just a touch of irritation towards Pappy, "is that the preacher should be more careful with what he says, don't you think?"

"Why? People only pay attention to him on occasion or if they are feeling bad, in hopes of getting some sort of comfort from the message. Usually, from what I've observed for the time I had to go when I was younger, preachers are only trying to make you feel bad and control your behavior and many times don't practice what they preach!! Frankly, I'd just as soon sleep with a sober pagan than a drunk 'Christian.'"

"You mean, like I am?!"

"No, no, that's not what I mean. In fact, when I met my friend Queequeg, I thought that very thing when I got to know him better after the initial shock of his outward appearance. Your outward appearance is obviously not shocking to me!" He smiled to appease her apparent pique, but not to much avail.

"You don't really have the respect for this Book that I have, and you claim to be a 'Christian' because you were raised in a certain fashion in a certain land."

"So?"

"Well, don't you think that if you claim to be something you ought to act like it? If you claimed to be a sailor but never went to sea, who would believe you?"

"I see your point, Leilani, but I think you're too excited about the whole subject. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were one of the missionaries here in Hawaii who were trying to 'convert the savages.' And, frankly, I don't see that there's all that pressing a need. Glory, it sounds to me that you need to be talking to Saint Bob about these things."

"Who is Saint Bob?"

"The Rachel's carpenter who is clearly a 'Christian' as you would define one, I think."

"You may bring him to supper with you tonight. I think I would like to speak with him. While you are staying in Honolulu, you may stay with me...at the same rate you would stay in the tavern down the road, but with better, shall we say, 'company.'"

"What if Bob won't come, given your particular lifestyle?"

"Tell him Reverend More's 'Rahab' would like to talk with him about the Bible and describe my cooking. I think he will be persuaded."