Priest

We feel early retirement

will be the most suitable thing for you.

Stay on at St. Mary's for a few months.

Stay 'til January.

It's time to move on,

old son.

It's time to move on.

l was planning

to replace him in the new year,

but in the light of the wind of it,

I decided to give him the push now.

There's a young priest

called Greg Pilkington.

Down south at the moment. Wants to come

up here, do his bit for the inner city.

- What's he like ?

- He's a wee bit more orthodox than you.

Mind you, Colonel Gaddafi'd be

a wee bit more orthodox than you.

Yes ?

Oh !

Put him through.

Hello. Yes.

Fine.

Yes, I've got that.

Uh-huh.

- Oh, come in, Father.

Hello.

Hello.

Hello, Father.

- Why did you do it ?

- Because he sacked me.

- Well, we've all got to go eventually.

- It was the way he did it.

I gave it my life. ln return,

I got a cup of tea, a biscuit...

and "It's time to move on, old son."

Oh, he looked up

from what he was writin'.

"It's time to move on,

old son."

Hi. Sorry I wasn't here

to meet you.

- Matthew Thomas.

- Greg Pilkington.

- Uh, Maria Kerrigan.

- Hello.

Hello.

- So, uh, tea ?

- Well, that would be nice.

Right.

Sitting Bull.

Nobility,

even in defeat.

So, uh,

she's our housekeeper ?

Yeah.

It's an article of faith-- isn't it--

somewhere between transubstantiation...

and papal infallibility:

Housekeepers must be ugly.

- Sorry.

Nice word:

scapegoat.

It dates back

to an old Jewish custom.

They used to invest all the sins

of the tribe into a goat.

Then kick it up the backside

so it escaped into the hills

taking all the sins with it.

And we've got

a scapegoat today.

It's that mythical beast

called society.

Drug addiction;

alcoholism;

gambling; prostitution;

violence.

They're not

our sins anymore.

They're not the fault

of the individual anymore.

They're society's fault.

- Well, I'm sorry,

I don't understand that.

What did you think ?

lnteresting.

You didn't like it.

I found it offensive.

You expect less of the people

because they live in a poor parish.

I find that offensive.

Patronizing.

Really ?

- Yes.

- Thanks.

- You didn't buy any drinks.

Matthew.

The creation of

mankind only started on the sixth day.

It hasn't stopped yet.

We're taller than we were

a thousand years ago.

We're fitter, faster.

We live longer.

We're better educated.

More informed.

So, creation...

is an ongoing process.

And if you interfere

with it,

aren't you spitting

in the face of God ?

If you exploit

your work force,

- don't you spit in the face of God ?

- You do.

If you kill and maim,

throw people out of their homes,

turn your back on the elderly,

if you shut down schools

and hospitals,

force people out

on the dole--

ln fact,

if you do anything...

to prevent one single human being

reaching their full potential,

aren't you interfering

in creation...

- and spitting in the face of God ?

- Yes.

That's what I believe.

That's my truth.

That's what made me

become a priest,

and makes me remain a priest.

The peace of the Lord

be with you always.

And also with you.

Let us offer each other

the sign of peace.

- Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you, son.

Peace be with you.

Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you.

Peace be with you, Father.

- Peace be with you, Maggie.

- Peace be with you, Father.

- Peace be with you.

- Peace be with you, Father.

I know what you're thinkin':

Any minute now, he'll take

his pants off.

Peace be with you.

It wasn't a sermon.

It was a party political broadcast

on behalf of the Labour Party.

- There's social sin

and there's personal sin.

- It's just sickening !

- I think we should put

more emphasis on the social.

- There's just sin.

Matthew, you can't change the

rules just because they don't

suit you; There's just sin.

Are you judging me ?

For God's sake,

get rid of her.

I was in South America

for four years.

ln the village

I was in,

you had to have a woman,

otherwise you were ignored.

So I got one,

fast.

Where is she now ?

She's still there.

- She served her purpose ?

- Well, that's what

you wanna hear, isn't it ?

So, yeah...

I dumped her.

You're very certain of yourself,

aren't you, Greg ?

- Well, I'm not.

- Yes !

- A few months in this parish,

you'll be a lot less certain.

- A few years--

- No, I've looked around

at other priests--

A few years and you'll be

utterly confused. A few years--

Those middle-aged trendy lefties

jumping up with excitement

every time a factory closed...

- or a war breaks out !

- A few years more and you might

learn a little bit of humility.

Spiritually empty, fastening

onto other people's misery,

fighting other people's fights !

Anything to fill the emptiness inside !

To hell with that !

We're priests. We're not bloody

social workers. We're priests !

Sacraments;

reconciliation;

moral guidance;

that's our job.

Moral guidance.

For God's sake, Matthew.

Moral guidance from a man

with a bit on the side.

If you're gonna judge,

you should know all the facts.

- We love each other.

He's asked me to marry him.

That means him leavin' the priesthood,

so I've said "No."

Oh, not because I'm a martyr

to the faith.

Because one day he might regret

it, and I don't want to see that

look in his eyes if he does.

Anything else

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