A Village, Old Families:
Ceremony

COMMISSAR:
“I am the man who guards our minds
from fear, from suicidal fugue,
by fighting off those dark ideas
whose form can make a person doubt
the value of the life they lead.
I am an intellectual man,
protecting thought from accident,
a fighter of the mind.”

CONGREGATION:
“So everyone can spend their time
concerned about the things that count
like children, trade, and family,
the practical of life.”