Paolo and Anina murmured, “Amen.”
“I’m confused.” The priest swung his feet onto the desk and leaned back in his chair. “You completed your instruction. We posted the banns of marriage in the church bulletin. I’ve got your wedding date in the calendar. As you may know, I have a line of young lovers around the block waiting to get married and go through instruction. Anina called and said there was a problem. How can I help?”
“It’s been a stressful time,” Anina began.
“As sacraments go, weddings are the worst when it comes to stress. I’ve officiated, I don’t know, about a hundred of them, and they are generally tense situations. Two families—one side wears tuxedos and holds a gas can, the other wears a frilly gown and holds a match.”
“I used to believe weddings were magical,” Anina said quietly.
“They can be, or they serve as a low point in the couple’s relationship and the only way is up. I’m speaking of the stress, va bene? It does dissipate eventually. So, have you pinpointed the source of your anxiety?”
Neither Paolo nor Anina answered the priest.
“What is going on with you two?”
“Anina is angry with me. I did something wrong.”
“Unforgivable,” she corrected Paolo.
“No such thing.” Don Vincenzo swung his legs off the desk and leaned toward the couple. “We’re taught that, you know. You own the sin; you unburden it with the grace of God and seek true forgiveness for yourself from the person you hurt. The short version: Forgive. Forget. Repeat.”
“We have not gotten through step one. She refuses to forgive me.”
“Is this true, Anina?”
“I’m hurt, and I’m furious.”
“I could tell by the way you white-knuckled the arm of the chair when Paolo tried to take your hand.”
“Paolo was unfaithful.”
“One kiss! One kiss in a bar.” Paolo threw his hands in the air. “I don’t even know her name.”
“You’re a weak individual,” Anina countered.
“I’m trying to do better. The only person I can change is myself.”
“I wish you’d hurry,” Anina sniped.
Don Vincenzo raised his voice firmly, interrupting the argument. “Is this an ongoing situation? With the young lady with no name?”
“No, Don Vincenzo, it is not. But that doesn’t matter to Anina. She wants to crucify me for one mistake.”
“Are you truly sorry, Paolo?” the priest asked.
“You know I am. I went to confession. You absolved me of the sin last Saturday. I have begged her forgiveness repeatedly. How many times and in how many ways can I say it? Yes, I’m sorry. And I’m ashamed. The entire family knows about it, hers and mine, and I’m getting it from all sides.”
“Paolo, I absolve you of all sin, evidently for the second time. Anina, I encourage you to forgive Paolo.”
Anina was stunned. “Don’t you want to know the specifics?”
“Don’t need them.”
“But you need to understand him—his father, the men in his family. The Ulianas. They have trouble being faithful.”
“One uncle! One uncle has a mistress in Foggia.” Paolo threw his hands in the air again.
“I would appreciate it if you would be upset on my behalf, Don Vincenzo, and defend me,” Anina insisted.
“What good would that do?”
Anina gasped. “I would feel supported.”
“I support you. But my job is also to support love. Your love for each other.”
“I’ve asked for forgiveness. I’ve not returned to the bar. I’ve not looked for the woman. I don’t care about her. I love Anina.”
“Ask him why it happened.” Anina kept her eyes on the priest.
“I think he knows. He’s trying to change.”
“I have changed!” Paolo turned to Anina. “You just want me to suffer. You want to control me. You have to be right.”
“I am entitled to my hurt feelings.”
“Entitlement is for kings. We got rid of the king of Italy seventy-five years ago. Besides, we’re all royal in God’s eyes. What do you think God wants in this situation? Paolo? You go first,” the priest said.
“He wants me to be better.”
“Pretty good answer. Anina?”
“He wants me to do what’s right.”
“What if I told you He also wants you to be better?”
“I would be confused,” Anina admitted. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“That doesn’t help your case. Righteousness may make you stand taller, but you’ll be standing alone. I believe Paolo is truly sorry for having hurt you.”
“I didn’t sleep with her,” Paolo whined.
The priest took a deep breath. “Paolo, go get a drink of water. And please, stay in the foyer until I come to get you.”
Paolo did as he was told.
Don Vincenzo got up from his desk and sat beside Anina in Paolo’s chair. “Men will never understand that saying stupid things like ‘I didn’t sleep with her’ does not help the situation. In fact, that is not the point at all, is it?”
“It’s not. It’s the betrayal.”
“Anina, I don’t care if you marry Paolo Uliana.”
“You don’t?”
“Who is he to me? Another parishioner I have to love. I have to look past his faults and forgive him when he comes to me in confession. My investment in all this is the salvation of his eternal soul. And yours. So tell me about Paolo. Why did you agree to marry him?”
“He can be loving and compassionate.”
“But I can see he’s difficult.”
“I’m so glad! Sometimes I think I’m crazy. My friends only see the good.”
“Why are you still with him?”
“I love him.”
“Do you? What if I told you that most couples that show up here aren’t able to be honest with each other? They bat around the truth like a cat with a tinfoil ball, sometimes for years. The truth is what makes the difference between them and you and Paolo. He came straight home and told you what he had done.”
“What difference does it make that he told me about it instead of catching him?”
“A lot. He knew he did wrong. Paolo examined his conscience. He begged forgiveness and promises to change. That’s about the best you can expect from another human being in any situation. Ever.”
“How about he doesn’t do stupid things in the first place?”