Bonjour dear readers,
There was a barrier in the right lane, but I went past it. Sometimes there’s roadwork or other things that close the road to cars, but bikes can still get through. This time though, about half a mile down the road…
There’d been a very strong wind the day before which had, evidently, left its mark. It wasn’t a big deal for me; just had to backtrack a bit and pick a different road. A good reminder that our control over the natural world is not nearly as complete as we tend to think.
Excerpts from my notes on Traité d’athéologie
If man is by nature mortal, then the inability to accept death is a defect — but if, on the other hand, man was created to live forever, then the revolt against death is a sign of good health. “He has put eternity into man’s heart” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). The Christian who appeals to the fact that Christianity offers eternal life while atheism offers nothing is not suggesting that we should just believe whatever we want to be true. The evangelist is convinced that the offer of eternal life will find an echo in the heart of the person who was created to live forever. The claim is judged to be true by the listener not because it is pleasant, but because it corresponds to his deepest nature. And why not? If I believe that 2+2=4 because it seems to me like it must be, why not believe that I am by nature eternal because it seems to me like it must be? Just as the eagle knows it was made to fly, man knows he was made for something that transcends animal existence, something that does not end with the physical death of the body.
“The silence of God permits the chatter of his ministers.”
The general rule is that counterfeits are imitations of something real. Counterfeit bills are not proof that genuine ones do not exist — quite the contrary. Without the genuine, the counterfeit would never have been produced. Same for gods. Same for prophets.
But why does God not intervene to settle the debate? Why not speak in an unmistakable way to prove himself?
God has done so in the heart of every human being, but we resist this revelation.
God has done so in his creation, but man remains stubborn.
God has done so in his Word, which carries within itself the power to convince of its own truth — but as long as the listener remains in the rebellion of his heart, he is convinced by nothing.
God has done so in the incarnation of his Son. We killed him not because the revelation was obscure, but because the divine light was intolerable for the sons of darkness.
But true faith is born not when one blindly trusts a human messenger, but when the Spirit opens the eyes of the heart so that the truthfulness of the message resonates in the believer’s innermost being. It is the moment when the child recognizes his Father, the creature its Creator.
It’s been a long time since I wrote any fiction, but as I was trying to imagine what sort of events might lie behind the enigmatic text of Genesis 6.1-4, I had the idea for “The Priestess of Malakh.”
It was the bleating of sheep that woke her. She opened her eyes to find herself wrapped in blankets on the floor of a large tent. How gloriously warm she felt. And how hungry! After a few minutes, a grey-haired woman ducked through the opening in the tent.
“So you’re awake then. Quite some nap you took there.”
The woman handed her a bowl, and Tovah gratefully drank. Immediately she pulled a face.
“Not used to goat’s milk I see,” the woman laughed. “Never mind, it’s good for you. Drink all that up now and I’ll get you some bread.”
Tovah was too desperate for nourishment to object. In a moment the bowl was empty, and the woman was back with a small brown loaf. She was followed a minute later by a man with a grey beard and a weathered face.
“Look who’s awake,” he said with a light laugh. “Go ahead and eat, we’ll get your story later. In the meantime, I’m Mahalel and this is my wife Milcah, and we’re honored to have you as our guest. My grandson Enoch found you while he was pasturing the flock. In a right state you were, and I had my doubts about your pulling through. But here you are and with an appetite to boot.”
He smiled at her in a grandfatherly way, and Tovah, hardly able to bear the kindness of these strangers, burst into tears.
“Hush child,” said Mahalel gently placing his hand on her shoulder. “It’ll be all right there.”
Catching her breath, Tovah spoke in a small voice, “May you be blessed by all the Gods, my lord. You have surely saved my life, and I will be your slave forever if you will take me in.”
“Are you all alone then?”
“I have no one. No family. No people.”
Mahalel looked at her thoughtfully a moment. “You’d better not get up today. Get your strength back, and tomorrow if you’re able, Milcah will tell you what you can do.”
~
The next morning Tovah sought out Milcah and found her with her hands in a kneading bowl.
“Come here, Tovah, you can knead this dough, and I’ll see to the fire. After that I’ll show you how to milk the goats.” Looking at her, she frowned and added, “And we’d better see about repairing that robe of yours too. I can see by your hands that you’ve not worked much, but you’ll soon get used to it here.”
It was indeed long weary days, aching muscles, and blistered fingers, but each evening she received her food gratefully and lay down contentedly. Mahalel, Milcah, and their children worked as hard as any of the slaves, shepherding their sheep and goats, and roaming from place to place in search of pasture. Tovah’s heart was still heavy with all that she had lost, but day by day she began to feel at home among the B’ney-Seth (as they called themselves), and slowly she started to think there may be a kind of happiness for her yet.
~
She still dreamed frequently of Malakh. Sometimes he comforted her and brought her son back alive. Other times he was angry and punished her cruelly. The bright blue head and the huge yellow eyes hovered over her and his hiss was all around her. Tovah jerked awake, and there he was, exactly as she had seen him in her dream.
“What do you want?” she gasped. In waking reality his presence brought no comfort.
His voice filled her head, “I’m here for what’s mine. You belong to me, little priestess.”
“You abandoned us. You let our son die.”
“Silence! I am your God, I do not answer to you.” The serpent rippled into human form and he spoke out loud, “You can never escape me.”
Tovah opened her mouth to cry out, but he smothered her with his hand and whispered viciously, “None of that, now. I wouldn’t want to have to kill your new family.”
Tovah sobbed in her throat, eyes wide in fear.
~
From then on, he was there every time she closed her eyes. No rest did she get at night, anxiety clung to her by day, and under constant strain, Tovah began to unravel. Milcah reproached her more than once for inattention to her work, but Mahalel regarded her with thoughtful concern.
“Tovah, my daughter, come here.”
She stood before him with her eyes down.
“You have heard that tomorrow is our sacrifice to El-Elyon?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Tonight you will hear the tale of El-Elyon, for we always tell it on the eve of the sacrifice. And tomorrow, if you wish, you may be sanctified.”
“Sanctified?”
“I see that you suffer, daughter. Something from past days lies heavy upon you. You need healing beyond the art of men, but El-Elyon will save you if you cry out to him.”
Tovah recoiled, “Oh no, my master! I don’t want that at all.”
Mahalel peered into her face and nodded, then, placing his hand on her shoulder, “As you wish. But tonight you will hear his tale.”
~
The fire rose high in the midst of the family as Mahalel rose to speak, “In the beginning, El-Elyon created the heavens and the earth.
“He made the sun and the moon, the stars, the hills and the trees, the fish, the birds, and the beasts of the field. Last of all he made the man and the woman. El-Elyon put our parents in a garden and commanded them to keep it for him. To them was given the fruit from every tree of the garden, except for the one in the center, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This only was forbidden them. There they were, happy in the presence of El-Elyon. But one day a serpent came into the garden and tempted them, and they ate of the fruit that had been forbidden them.”
At the word ‘serpent’, Tovah started and her heart beat faster.
“In wrath, El-Elyon cast our parents out from the garden and subjected them and all their children to a life of toil and pain. As for the serpent, El-Elyon cursed it and declared that one day its head would be crushed by the son of the woman, though his blood also would be shed. Our first parents had many sons and daughters, and these also had sons and daughters, and the land is now full of many people. But most of these have turned away from El-Elyon and forgotten him. They bow before statues of gold and silver and stone and offer sacrifices to evil spirits. In this house however, we serve El-Elyon and look for the fulfilling of his promise.”
“Please,” said Tovah when the story was finished. “What does El-Elyon look like? You have no images of him here.”
“El-Elyon cannot be seen. He is God, and it is forbidden to make images of him.”
“He is a God then, like Malakh?”
“No daughter, he is the God and there is no one like him. We did betray him in the garden, but he has never abandoned us.”
~
Tovah did not sleep that night. She sat and turned over memories and wrestled in her soul. Early in the morning, she left the tent and found Mahalel alone, standing by the altar he had made, a lamb held in his arms.
“Just one animal for the sacrifice, my lord? A lamb?”
“One lamb,” he replied smiling. “And now Tovah, do you choose to be one of the B’ney-Seth and to belong to El-Elyon?”
“Yes, my lord. I would be sanctified for El-Elyon.”
~
The morning was grey, the grass damp with dew as the family gathered around the altar. Tovah stood in the center with Mahalel and the lamb. He prayed, his eyes lifted to heaven, and then he spoke to Tovah.
“Do you choose to serve El-Elyon, and him only, all the days of your life?”
Tovah nodded, trembling.
“You must also renounce the ways of the B’ney-Caïn: idolatry, murder, theft, and sexual immorality.”
Tovah’s cheeks flushed slightly and she nodded again.
“Place your hand on the lamb’s head.” Mahalel sliced firmly with the knife and the red blood poured from the lamb’s throat at their feet. He dipped his finger and annointed Tovah’s forehead and hands with the blood. Then she joined the others while he lit the fire and placed the whole body of the lamb on the altar.
“We’re not going to eat it?” Tovah whispered to Milcah.
“We do not eat flesh. The sacrificial animal is only for El-Elyon.”
After that, they sang songs and danced, holding hands in a ring around the altar. Then there was the feast, and they broke their bread together with warm conversation and bright laughter. Everyone smiled at Tovah, and she felt herself wrapped in a kind of happiness she had never known before.
~
The sky was full of stars and Tovah stood alone by the altar, gazing at the ashes of the lamb. A chill wind made her pull her robe close and, looking up, she quailed at the sight of the blue serpent on the other side of the altar.
“What have you done?” he spat. “Didn’t I tell you you could never be free?”
Tovah shook her head desperately. Clenching her eyes shut and grasping the stones of the altar, she pleaded in a whisper, “El-Elyon, save me! If I am yours, have pity on me and save me!”
The head of Malakh rose up over the altar, and Tovah cowered behind it. Suddenly the ground at her face shone with a clear white light. She peeked up to see the back of a shining figure standing on the altar. Malakh hissed in anger and – could it be – fear? There was a terrific crash like bronze cymbals, and Tovah hid her face again. Silence followed, and she became aware that the light was fading. She looked up and saw the shining figure rising up out of sight into the star-filled sky. There was no sign of Malakh, and Tovah knew she would never be troubled by him again. Still peering upward, she remembered how Mahalel had said that El-Elyon had created the stars. Was it one of them that he had sent to leave off its course through the heavens to come down to her rescue?
Still weak, but filled with indescribable peace, Tovah knelt down and bowed before the altar. In tearful whispers she poured out her heart to El-Elyon, her gratitude for his salvation, her sorrow for her past life, her happiness with the B’ney-Seth, her resolution to devote herself to El-Elyon all her remaining days. Finally, she felt that there was nothing left to say, she had laid all her burdens down, and her heart was light. And only then did she notice how very tired her body was. Slipping silently into the tent, she lay down in her place and instantly fell asleep, her face an image of perfect peace and contentment.
~ ~ ~
At this moment the launch is scheduled for today at 6:24p EDT. Too bad that’s half-past midnight here…
~
It is the glory of God to conceal things,
but the glory of kings is to search things out.Proverbs 25:2
Aucun post
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.