There was
a married couple who came to an elder to ask for advice.
“Father,”
the woman said, “I’m expecting a baby but we have four kids already. I’m afraid
we won’t make ends meet if we have another baby. Bless us to have an abortion.”
“I see
that you’re having hard times,” the elder replied. “Well, okay, I bless you to
kill your child. But I think you should slay your oldest daughter who is 15:
she has lived enough already and seen lots of things, whilst the unborn baby
that you’re carrying has never seen the sunlight, and it would be unjust if you
deny him that opportunity.”
The woman
was terrified. She buried her face in her hands and burst into tears.
Translated
by The Catalog of Good Deeds
CONVERSATION