Committed in a Holy Place

As we reach back into the section of our spiritual wardrobe where sackcloth and ashes are providently stored, this blogger would like to impart a friendly word, spoken in Christian mercy, to those who fancy that occupying a place somewhat loftier than their fellow mortals, not yet deceased, equips them with an alchemical power to make a virtue of vice, or vice versa.

From The Reign of King Edward III, plausibly attributed to one William Shakespare:

The greater man, the greater is the thing,
Be it good or bad, that he shall undertake:
An unreputed mote, flying in the Sun,
Presents a greater substance than it is:
The freshest summer’s day doth soonest taint
The loathed carrion that it seems to kiss:
Deep are the blows made with a mighty Axe:
That sin doth ten times aggravate it self,
That is committed in a holy place:
An evil deed, done by authority,
Is sin and subornation: Deck an Ape
In tissue, and the beauty of the robe
Adds but the greater scorn unto the beast.

For illustrations of what the Bard was harping upon, a glance at the most recent headlines will suffice.

And then, dear reader, may I suggest that each of us, in humble supplication, turn to the Lord?

Lenten blessings to one and all!