"Flying Nun: Decameron Minus 99" by Uncle Mike (fr582@cleveland.Freenet.Edu). Legend has it that in the days of yore - possibly back when television sitcoms were black and white - there existed a weekly series called "The Flying Nun." I know not who was in the show nor the content thereof; and so I cannot tell whether this story is a parody of that show, and so I shall respond to this as a tale of inspiration in its own right.

This story tells of a poor farmer in a land called Italy who was possessed by a demon that revealed itself to the world through an appendage between the farmer's legs. One day a flying nun appeared from the sky, and on that and successive occasions the farmer persuaded the nun to help him draw the demon out of his body. The nun pursued her holy task with great vigor and through noble stratagems did indeed draw the bilious fluid of the demon out of the man; but alas on each occasion the demon had returned by the time of the nun's next visit, and the process of exorcism needed to be repeated many times. Fortunately, the nun enjoyed her holy chore and kept laboring at it with the patience of Jezebel.

This is an excellent story. It reminds me that back when I was in Catholic elementary school we had to give our pastor a "Spiritual Bouquet" for his golden anniversary. He thanked our class, as he read it out loud: "....21 masses, 17 rosaries, 50 Our Fathers, 70 Hail Marys, 400 ejaculations...." And then he laughed. To us, an ejaculation was a short prayer, such as "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, pray for us." To our pastor the word had a more interesting meaning, which I suppose he heard about in the confessional. I don't think he thought the fifteen boys in our class were up to the task of 400 ejaculations prior to graduation. In retrospect, I don't think the nun who taught the class had any idea what the pastor was laughing about.