Bless me Ultima Chapter 22

As Antonio sleeps, Lupito, Narciso, and Florence appear in Antonio’s dreams. They say that Antonio prayed the Act of Final Contrition for them “in his innocence” even though they were outcasts. When Antonio asks why he must see so much violence, a voice tells him that creation lies in violence. Antonio watches a priest defile an altar with pigeon’s blood and Cico defile the river with the golden carp’s blood. He has a vision of Tenorio murdering Ultima by killing her “night-spirit.” Antonio cries out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me!” Narciso, Florence, and Lupito tell Antonio that they live only in his dreams. When Antonio awakes, Ultima suggests that he go to his uncles in El Puerto. Antonio has seen too much death. His uncles can teach him about growing life. Before he leaves, Ultima advises him to be ready to make life’s changes part of his strength.

Gabriel explains that he does not mind sending Antonio to María’s brothers because he will still be with men who can guide him into manhood. He admits that the vaquero’s way of life is fading, so he is ready to end the long conflict with María. Antonio replies that he wants to be both a Luna and a Márez. Gabriel explains that every man takes his past and makes something new with it. As Antonio muses out loud that it is possible to make a new religion, he asks his father if the priest who led the Lunas to El Puerto was actually their father in more than the metaphorical sense. Gabriel confirms his suspicions.

When Antonio asks why there is evil in the world, Gabriel replies that people call things they do not understand “evil.” He explains that understanding comes only with life experience. He says that acquiring knowledge is not as easy as swallowing the host at Communion. He believes that Ultima’s magic comes from the understanding she has gained from her years of working with the sick and the frightened.

During the summer with his Luna uncles, Antonio’s nightmares cease to disturb his sleep. Although Antonio does not know what his future holds, he is glad to learn the Luna way of life. When Tenorio’s sick daughter dies at the end of the summer, he vows to everyone who will listen that he will kill Ultima. Pedro resolves to stand by Ultima this time. He tells Antonio that they must drive to Guadalupe directly after supper, so he sends Antonio to Prudencio’s house to pack for the journey home.

During the walk to Prudencio’s home, Tenorio tries to trample Antonio with his horse. Antonio throws himself down the embankment to hide in the bushes by the river. Tenorio shouts that the owl is Ultima’s spirit, so he plans to kill Ultima by killing the owl. Antonio runs ten miles to Guadalupe to warn Ultima. When he reaches his parents’ house, Pedro’s car screeches to a halt in front of the house. Gabriel runs to the door and asks what has happened. Pedro asks if they have seen Antonio.

Meanwhile, Antonio spies Tenorio near a juniper tree. When Antonio shouts a warning, Tenorio aims a rifle at him. Ultima calls her owl, and it attacks Tenorio. Tenorio shoots it during the struggle and aims his gun at Antonio again. Before he can kill Antonio, Pedro shoots Tenorio dead. Antonio takes the dying owl to Ultima’s bedside. Ultima explains that her teacher told her to do good works but not to interfere with destiny. Her death and Tenorio’s death are simply the restoration of the original harmony. She tells Antonio that he must burn all of her possessions at sunrise. Tonight, he must bury the owl next to a forked juniper tree. Before she dies, Ultima blesses Antonio “in the name of all that is good and strong and beautiful.” He goes and buries the owl.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 21
Antonio and Cico decide the time is right to take Florence to see the golden carp. Antonio confesses his doubts about the God of the Catholic Church. Cico explains that there are many gods, and that Antonio’s god is jealous. Antonio will have to choose between the carp and the God of the Church. They find their friends waving excitedly at them next to the shores of the Blue Lake in the section where swimming is forbidden. Horse shouts that Florence hasn’t emerged from the water. Just as Cico prepares to dive for Florence, Florence’s body floats to the surface. Antonio prays the Act of Contrition over Florence’s body but despairs that it is useless because Florence never believed. When the lifeguards finally arrive, Horse and the others lie and say they tried to persuade Florence not to swim in the forbidden area. Sickened, Antonio runs along the river.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 20

Antonio continues to attend confession and Communion, but the answers still do not come. The boys from town begin to have gang fights with the boys from Los Jaros. Antonio, who lives between the town and Los Jaros, is caught in the middle. On the last day of school, Antonio calls to Vitamin Kid to race him across the bridge. However, the Vitamin Kid is walking with a girl named Ida, and he expresses no interest in racing.

There is a rumor that Tenorio’s sick daughter is near death. Téllez, a rancher from Agua Negra, comes to Ultima to ask help in lifting a curse on his home. Pots and pans fly across the room in his home. Stones rain from the sky. A priest has blessed their house, but the blessing has not been effective. Antonio wonders how an almighty God has again failed to dispel evil. Ultima states that many years ago, Téllez’s grandfather hanged three Comanches for raiding his flocks. The curse has awakened the ghosts to force them to do wrong. Gabriel accepts responsibility for interfering with destiny if Ultima helps his friends.

Gabriel and Antonio accompany Ultima to Agua Negra. Antonio realizes that María teaches him that every man is tied to the earth in his need for nourishment and security, but Ultima and Gabriel teach him that the land serves a more spiritual function: immortality comes from freedom, and freedom is nourished by the land, air, and sea.

When they arrive, Ultima instructs Antonio and Gabriel to build a platform in the yard and to cover it with juniper branches. Ultima asks Gabriel to place three bundles on the platform and set it all on fire. Gabriel informs Antonio that his father once told him that the Comanche burned their dead on platforms like this. When the platform is burned completely, Ultima declares that the curse is lifted. Téllez mentions that a month earlier he challenged Tenorio for speaking badly of Ultima. Soon thereafter, the evil things began to occur in his home.

That night, Antonio dreams that his brothers call for him to give them rest from their restless sea-blood. Antonio replies that he cannot help them. He baits his hook with their livers and begins to fish in the river. They continue to cry out, so he unbaits his hook and throws their livers into the River of the Carp. Finally, they rest.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 19
On Easter Sunday, Antonio takes his first Communion and waits for God to answer the questions that haunt him. However, only silence rings inside his head.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 18
Antonio begs Florence to go through with confession and Communion to save himself an eternity in hell. Samuel suggests that the golden carp might be a better god for Florence. They decide to take Florence to see him during the summer. María buys Antonio a new suit for his first confession and Communion. Antonio’s friends decide to make him pretend to be a priest so he can hear their confessions. The children gather around, eager to listen. Horse confesses that he made a hole to see into the girls’ bathroom at school. Antonio assigns a penance and remembers the golden carp’s prophecy. Bones confesses an even more titillating sin, witnessing two high school students having sex, and Antonio gives him the same penance as Horse. When the children try to force Florence to play along, Florence states that he has no sins because God has sinned against him. The children shrink in horror and suggest beating, stoning, or killing him for his blasphemy. Antonio shouts that he absolves Florence of all his sins. The children fall on Antonio in anger and begin to beat him. They stop only when the priest calls them into the church for confession. Florence tells Antonio that he should have given him a penance, adding that Antonio could never be their priest.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 17

Antonio and his friends begin taking catechism lessons with Father Byrnes. That spring, fierce dust storms incite rumors of the atomic bomb. Antonio eagerly looks forward to receiving the knowledge of God. Gabriel laughs when Antonio reports that some people think the atomic bomb has caused the fierce dust storms. He replies that the wind is the voice of the llano. By blowing dust in their faces, it is telling the people that they have sucked the land dry with overgrazing.

Although he doesn’t believe in God, Florence attends the catechism lessons because he wants to be with his friends. Florence’s mother died when he was three, and his father slowly killed himself with drink. Now his sisters are prostitutes at Rosie’s house. He asks Antonio why God would do such things to him. Antonio cannot answer because these are the very questions that haunt Antonio himself. When Antonio and Florence are late to catechism lessons, Father Byrnes punishes Florence but not Antonio. Florence stands patiently in the aisle, holding his arms out to his side, while Bones quietly vandalizes a pew near the oblivious Father Byrnes. Father Byrnes tells a frightening story to explain how long eternity is. He tells the children to imagine that they must move a huge pile of sand across the ocean by allowing a little bird to move one grain of sand at a time. When the bird has finished moving the pile of sand, the first day of eternity has passed.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 16
Antonio hopes that his first Communion will bring him an understanding of why Tenorio’s evil goes unpunished. Tenorio confronts Antonio on his way home from school one day. He shouts that another of his daughters is dying and vows to kill Ultima, but he hurries away without harming Antonio. When Antonio reports Tenorio’s threats, Ultima assures him that Tenorio won’t ambush her as easily as he did Narciso.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 15

Antonio is sick with pneumonia for several days. Narciso’s death is declared an accident by the coroner. When Andrew enters Antonio’s sickroom, he seems uncomfortable. After he leaves, Ultima assures Antonio that he didn’t reveal Andrew’s secret in his delirium.

María likes to hear Antonio read prayers in both English and Spanish. Unlike many of their people, she wants her children to know both languages. León and Eugene come to visit for Christmas. They bought a car in Las Vegas but have totaled it during the drive to Guadalupe. The tension between Gabriel and his sons grows. When León and Eugene leave for Sante Fe, Andrew goes with them.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 14

Antonio returns to school in the fall. Samuel is pleased that Antonio saw the golden carp. He warns Antonio that their classmates will not understand his family’s defense of Ultima. When Antonio arrives at the schoolyard, Ernie tries to pick a fight by saying Antonio has a witch in his house. He also shouts that Andrew visits Rosie’s house regularly. Antonio ignores the charge against Andrew, but he stands up for Ultima. He and Ernie get into a fight, everybody is fighting in a pile. The teachers separate the boys, but no one is punished. No one teases Antonio about Ultima afterward.

On the day that Antonio’s class is scheduled to give a Christmas play at school, a fierce blizzard covers the ground with snow. Antonio and his rambunctious friends are the only students in their class who show up to school. Their teacher, Miss Violet, decides to have them perform the play in front of the rest of the school anyway. The boys practice all morning, but some of them are not happy at playing the girls’ parts. The play becomes a hilarious farce.

Walking home, Antonio sees Tenorio, the saloon-keeper, and Narciso, the town drunk, fighting in the street. Another of Tenorio’s daughters is sick. Before stumbling away, Tenorio vows to kill Ultima. Narciso rushes off to find Andrew, one of Antonio’s older brothers. Antonio follows Narciso to Rosie’s house. To Antonio’s horror, Narciso knocks on the door and asks for Andrew. Antonio wonders if the fact that Narciso is looking for Andrew at the brothel means that Andrew has already lost his innocence. When Andrew refuses to take Narciso seriously and warn his parents of Tenorio’s threat, Narciso trudges into the blizzard to do it himself. Antonio stays out of sight and follows him.

Antonio hears a pistol shot ring out. He finds Tenorio and Narciso fighting under a juniper tree. When Antonio screams, Tenorio aims at him, but his pistol refuses to fire. After Tenorio flees, Antonio hears Narciso’s last confession. He stumbles home to report what he has seen. Antonio falls into a deep fever and dreams that he begs God and the Virgin to forgive Andrew and Narciso. The Virgin replies that she will not forgive Narciso if Antonio does not ask her to forgive Tenorio as well. Antonio cries out for Tenorio to be punished, but God declares that he cannot be a god who is all-giving while taking vengeance on Tenorio at the same time. Antonio cries for God to forgive his own sins.

In his dream, Antonio sees the blood of Lupito and Narciso mix in the river. A mob gathers, calling for Ultima’s blood. Antonio’s brothers beg him to bless and forgive them. However, they turn into the Trementina sisters when Antonio approaches them. They cut Antonio’s hair and mix it with a toad’s entrails and a bat’s blood. Afterward, they drink it, and Antonio dies despite his mother’s prayers and Ultima’s magic. Antonio is sentenced to purgatory because he died without taking the Eucharist. Lead by the sisters, a mob kills Ultima, Antonio’s family, and Antonio’s friends. Afterward, the mob catches and eats carp. A great hole opens in the ground, and water rises out of it, but the sinners take no heed. The sun turns red, and the sinners’ skin falls off. When there is no one left alive in Guadalupe, the farmers from El Puerto come to gather the ashes of Antonio and his family. They bury the remains in the holy ground of their fields. The skies clear, and the golden carp swallows everything, good and evil. He ascends to the heavens to become a new sun, shining over a new world.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 13
Gabriel accompanies his family to El Puerto and stays to take part in the Lunas’ harvest for the first time. Antonio has thoughts about the conflicting belief systems of the Catholic Church and the golden carp. He wishes there were a god that always forgave and never punished. Antonio asks Pedro why he and Antonio’s other uncles did not come to warn Ultima like Narciso did. Pedro admits that he was a coward, but he vows to stand by Ultima from now on. Antonio’s uncle, Mateo, reports that the surviving Trementina sisters have woven a cottonwood coffin for their dead sister because a witch cannot be buried in a pine, cedar, or piñon coffin. He describes the frightful ceremony for a Black Mass funeral. Antonio has a dream in which Mateo’s description of the ceremony is enacted, but when he looks inside the coffin, he finds Ultima. He awakes just in time to see the El Puerto priest refuse to give the dead woman the funeral mass and, therefore, burial in hallowed ground. The whole town witnesses their public shame. Tenorio will never again be able to sway the townspeople to join his vendetta for revenge.

Bless me Ultima Chapter 12

Antonio notices three clay dolls on Ultima’s shelf. One seems to be bent over in pain. Ultima prohibits him to touch the dolls and warns him to stay away from Tenorio. She gives him an amulet containing dried herbs to protect him from danger. One evening, Narciso bursts into the Márez home to report that one of Tenorio’s daughters has died. Tenorio told everyone that he found Ultima’s little pouch of herbs under his daughter’s bed. Narciso warns Ultima that Tenorio is coming with a drunken  mob hungry for a witch’s death. At that moment, Tenorio arrives. With Antonio at his side, Gabriel demands that they identify themselves and state their business.

To guard against witches, one man has thrust through his lips needles that have been blessed by a priest. Narciso declares that they can pin the needles over Gabriel’s door in the sign of a cross. If Ultima is a witch, she cannot walk through the door. The mob agrees to the test. Ultima’s owl suddenly takes out one of Tenorio’s eyes. When everyone looks up, Ultima has passed through the door. The mob disperses, but Tenorio vows to kill Ultima. Antonio notices that the needles are no longer pinned above the door. He never finds out if they simply fell or if someone had broken the cross.