Jesús Matacuras had been preparing himself to die. He had been sentenced to death by lethal injection for the killing of six priests.
Communion
He refused to embrace the insanity defense. Instead, he insisted that his crimes were committed in self-defense and he, not the priests, was doing the work of God by doing justice and punishing the sinners. His sexual abuse claims were ignored by the court under the “expired limitation” article and his lucidity in defending his premeditated actions was seen as a clear sign of evil, rather than a justified reaction of an innocent victim.
When Matacuras was asked what he wanted for his last meal, he only asked for the communion that had been denied to him since he first denounced the abuses. His conviction only made it worse and he longed for nothing more.
“Just the Body of Christ. That’s the least you can do for me,” he stated.
“You were excommunicated. We have explicit instruction to deny that petition. Sorry,” answered the director. He had had the time to hear Jesus’s stories and found him candid and lucid enough not to have fabricated an identity while waiting to be executed.
“I’ll make sure there is a priest there, though, to perform your last rites,” he granted.
“You do that. I’ll have my communion one way or another.”
The Director did not read those words as a threat, so he consciously decided not to mention anything to father Lucas, the only priest willing to attend the event in that capacity. Father Lucas was a saint in all the extent of the word. He was the kind of priest Jesus believed in and thought all were like. Meeting a priest like Lucas would have made all the difference in Jesus’s life.
All his devotion and service as an altar boy was shattered by the lust and complicity of a whole system that was more interested in saving face than in keeping the basic commandments and doing justice.
The priest waited until the inmate had been injected the lethal solution. He did not show any sign of agony of struggle. He was immaculately calmed. Father Lucas approached the body and started to perform the ritual when the dead man murmured, “you represent Christ on earth, right?”
The saint approached the dead man and confirmed to his ear, “Yes, my son. You can go in peace. All your sins are forgiven.”
“Amen,” the dead man said and jerking forward grabbed the neck of the priest with his teeth. Flesh and blood mixed with the sinner who had finally had his communion.
Thanks for stopping by
This was also my entry to @mariannewest and @latino.romano’s 5 Minute Freewrite: Friday Prompt: last meal. You can see the details here.
Make sure you visit the Freewrite House!!!
