The cardinal felt slightly guilty
He swore an oath of poverty
and yet the poorest of people
had to pay their last dimes
to the church
Then again
it was all for the Glory of God
Impossible God’s house would be
a shabby dwelling
A sanctuary for the spiritual
needs a certain grandeur
As he himself also took a small
slice of the ecclesiastical cake
for his services as a devout shepherd
Although,
he swore the oath of poverty
and therefore he had to do penance
The cardinal flagellated himself
until warm blood was dripping
down his back
‘Thank you, Lord, for thy forgiveness’
As he sat at his copious dinner
the cardinal felt warm and contented
I wonder if all those
modern scrupulous overlords
wield the same guidelines
to get absolution