ANUARUL ACADEMIC 2003-2004 - Facultatea de Teologie "Andrei ...

ut what kind of light? Probably similar to the light caused by the fall of Lucifer” 70 .The light is void of its positive content; it disturbs the inmates’ sleep.Contrasting the light, but still having the same purpose, the colour black wasused: the prisoners had to wear glasses with black lenses, which Fr. Steinhardt callsthe “sign of the devil” 71 . Then, a piece of black cloth covered their eyes when theywere taken to their cells 72 . Besides the contrast between light and darkness used inthe investigations to create strain, the investigators used scene gestures to createconfusion. Describing the way an investigation tried to put pressure on him, Fr.Steinhardt says: “It follows a whole comedy: curtains (made of dark colour) aredrawn to create tension. Strenuous break; the committee goes out and enters. Thereare a lot of false exits like in a play: the committee stops on the threshold about togo out, but suddenly decides to go back” 73 .For Fr. Iustin, the process of investigation is also seen as an instrument ofpressure. The inmates are kept for a long time to wait; they are forbidden tocommunicate and menaced with fierce dogs: “After four months of investigation,they finished this entire group. We could not communicate with each other, we didnot know anything about the others, neither what the others said, nor what theinvestigators wanted from us. The dogs were ready; one mistake and they wouldhave jumped on you” 74 .Generally, external elements were made in such a way as to create innertension. For instance, the people arrested together with Fr. Iustin were taken in by alot of guards with guns and mastiffs 75 .The same war like attitude displayed is related by Fr.Oancea. He remembershow the guards treated them when they were moved from the prison to the MilitaryTribunal for investigations. Although all of them were very weak and sick withvarious diseases, the guards were armed as in a real military confrontation: “Wewere uploaded in the van in order to be downloaded in a couple of minutes at theMilitary tribunal. There was an army all around us, with guns, with machine guns,70 N. Steinhardt, op. cit., p. 85.71 Ibidem, p. 37.72 A. A. Gheorghe, op. cit., p. 77.73 N. Steinhardt, op. cit., p. 54.74 A. A. Gheorghe, op. cit., p. 68.75 Ibidem, p. 69.166