Tea Time Teasers

Raul’s Redemption by Schuyler Esen 

“Two brothers, Raul and Jamil, were promised an inheritance by their father. However, Raul realized that he would have to split half of the inheritance with his brother, Jamil, so he thought of a way to cut him out of the will. Raul went to his father and told him that the other brother had lost his soul to the devil and was performing horrific perversions that would offend God.

When the father asked what these perversions were, Raul said his brother was homosexual. Curious, the father went to his son, Jamil, and asked him if he was homosexual. His son said, 'Yes, father, and I would like to introduce you to my partner, Jared.’ Together, Jamil and his partner Jared communed with their father in celebration.

Outraged, Raul demanded to know why their father had celebrated with his brother behind his back, and why he had accepted him. The father looked at his son and said, ‘You were right in saying that one of my sons had lost his soul to the devil, and was performing horrific perversions that would offend God.’ He paused, ‘However, in my old age I have found that the one who points the finger, always has three fingers pointing back at them. So, I looked into the quality of the life you have been living, Raul.’

Raul hung his head in shame. He knew what he had done. He knew that there was no way to redeem himself in the eyes of himself, his father, or in the eyes of God. No matter how hard he tried, Raul could not escape himself. The thought was just too much to bear, so Raul defiantly questioned his father, ‘And just what did you find?’

‘You already know.’ The father said.

Shocked, Raul collected himself and asked, ‘Does this mean I lose my inheritance?’

Visibly disappointed, his father answered, ‘No, son. Your inheritance is your birthright.’

Raul was overcome with grief. He wanted his father to reject him, cast him out, and give him a reason to be hateful and bitter for the rest of his life. He wanted his father to hate him as much as he hated himself. He wanted to hate his brother and keep him from his inheritance.

Eventually, Raul was so overcome with guilt and shame that he lost his mind. He was unable to escape the wickedness of what he had done. He felt unworthy of his father’s name, love, and inheritance, and given to insanity, he took his own life.

It was in this way, that Raul redeemed himself. Obviously, his father and brother grieved over the loss of Raul, but the Raul they knew had been lost long before his physical death. It was Jared who suggested they use Raul’s inheritance for a non-profit organization. They established Raul’s Redemption, a merciful euthanization clinic for other people like Raul where the live and dead bodies were donated to science. The clinic’s profits took care of the families who had their relatives enlisted. The information obtained benefited hundreds of thousands of people worldwide and prevented countless diseases. Before being gently put to sleep, the patients would confess their long list of sins to a priest, who would record the confession and then contact the authorities. Justice was served for the benefit of all involved, and the victims and victims’ families received appropriate compensation and support. All over, this program helped put to rest countless cold cases while simultaneously, radically advancing science and medicine.”

SE