Reading the young priest's thoughts, the elderly priest volunteered, "I
know what you must be thinking, but I assure you, my relationship with my
housekeeper is purely professional."
About a week later the housekeeper came to the elderly priest and said,
"Father, ever since the young Father came to dinner, I've been unable to
find the beautiful silver gravy ladle. You don't suppose he took it do
you?"
The priest said, "Well, I doubt it, but I'll write him a letter just to be
sure." So he sat down and wrote: "Dear Father, I'm not saying that you
'did' take a gravy ladle from my house, and I'm not saying you 'did not'
take a gravy ladle. But the fact remains that one has been missing ever
since you were here for dinner."
Several days later the elderly priest received a letter from the young
priest which read: "Dear Father, I'm not saying that you'do' sleep with
your housekeeper, and I'm not saying that you 'do not' sleep with your
housekeeper. But the fact remains that if you were sleeping in your own
bed, you would have found the gravy ladle by now."