The Book of Love (14 page)

Matilda’s experience with the
Volto Santo
today had rattled the Master, which was no easy task. While he knew that this child was special, he had not been prepared for her to have an authentic and waking vi
sionary experience so young. And he was certain it was authentic. There was a light in her eyes when she repeated the story, first to Isobel and then to him. There was a grace there, a certainty. This was not a fancy created by a silly girl in search of attention. This was a mystical experience of a child selected by God for a special destiny. He had learned to recognize the difference in his long years as a teacher and mentor.

As such, the Master determined that Matilda must be brought immediately into the presence of the Libro Rosso.

The tiny chapel possessed a simple stone altar, original to the hallowed structure that contained it. Despite the fact that this was a consecrated chapel, there were no crucifixes or crosses depicted anywhere in the structure. Perched upon the rich velvet altar cloth was a wooden ark, a magnificent casket with carvings of scenes from the life of our Lord and Lady that had been guided by the hand of Saint Luke. The container was nearly as sacred as the contents and was known to the Order as the Ark of the New Covenant. The border of the ark was trimmed with a pattern of diamond shapes, the symbol of sacred union, while the
X
symbol of Gnostic enlightenment was carved deeply into each of the corners and highlighted with gilded paint. The Master led Isobel and Matilda to the ark and indicated that they should kneel before it. They complied and remained on their knees while he recited a prayer of thanks to the Lord for the gift of this sacred testament. He approached the altar and struggled momentarily with the heavy lid of the ark before removing it and placing it on the ground. He reached into the ark and lifted the elaborate volume that waited within.

Matilda raised her head as the Master removed the Libro Rosso. It was an enormous volume, bound in the deepest red leather, which was visible on the heavy spine. The front cover of the book was overlaid in gold and set with five large jewels that formed an
X
shape, rather than a cross. The Master brought the book to his lips and kissed the central jewel, a ruby that glowed in the candlelight.

“The Word of the Lord. For those with ears to hear.”

He held the book out to Isobel, who kissed it accordingly and repeated, “The Word of the Lord” before holding it down to a very solemn and wide-eyed Matilda. She imitated Isobel’s actions perfectly.

They followed the Master as he carried the Libro Rosso and placed it on a table in front of the altar. He smiled at Matilda. “You may touch it, child.”

Hesitantly, her little fingers reached out to run lightly along the gilded cover. She jumped as if burned, letting out a little squeal, which caused the Master and Isobel to exchange glances. But when she returned her fingertips to the book a second time, she did not jump.

“Behold, the Libro Rosso. This is the most sacred book of our people, for, among other things, it contains the words written by the savior of the world. Within these pages, Matilda, is the complete gospel as written by Jesus Christ, the good news known to us as the Book of Love. This is the holy copy that was made by the apostle Philip in the presence of the original and given to Nicodemus to be preserved in the
Volto Santo
. It contains within it the seal of Maria Magdalena to indicate her approval of the copy. You will have seen this pattern before. It is used on the most secret documents of the order and worn by our highest initiates.”

The Master opened the book with great care and turned a weathered but heavy page with gentle fingers. On the bottom of the second page was a Greek signature:

Magdalen.

Beneath the signature was an emblem that Matilda had indeed seen before. It was the pattern on Isobel’s copper ring, the disk-shaped one that got caught in Matilda’s hair sometimes when Issy was braiding it. It was a pattern of nine circles dancing around a central sphere. It was an image of heaven, worn by the Order as a reminder that they were never separate from God. On earth as it is in heaven. Matilda had not known that this symbol was the seal of Maria Magdalena. It was one of the secrets of the Order.

“You too shall have a ring with this, the Magdalena’s seal, when you come of age into the mysteries,” Isobel whispered to her. Matilda squirmed with the excitement of it, stopping as the Master continued.

“As you grow, you will be instructed directly from the teachings in the Book of Love. You will also be instructed in the prophecies of Sarah-Tamar. You will memorize them and you will learn to interpret them. Some of these are specific to your birth and you must understand them fully.

“Finally, you will study the histories that are contained within the Libro Rosso. These are the hidden Acts of the Apostles, the stories of disciples who sacrificed everything for the true teachings of the Way of Love. We do this in emulation of the book written by one of our founders, the most blessed Saint Luke. It is in honoring the memory and sacrifice of our martyrs that we honor God while praying for a time when these teachings will be welcomed in peace by all people and there will be no more martyrs.

“This is your first lesson, Matilda. Understanding of the three segments of the Libro Rosso: first among these is the text of the Book of Love, which is the one true word; second are the collected prophecies of Sarah-Tamar, which are sacred to the future; and the third are Acts of the Apostles, which have been accumulated by our people since the earliest days of Christianity. For tonight, this is all that you need to know.”

Matilda was thriving under the tutelage of the Master. But as much as she loved the lessons, her favorite thing of all was the wondrous laby
rinth that was laid out in stone in the expansive garden of the Order. She had squealed with absolute delight when she saw it for the first time. Although she had seen drawings of the labyrinth and a small version was carved on her doll, Ariadne, to see one built into the ground of such enormous size—as many as twenty adults could walk its pathways at one time—was quite an amazing thing!

The Master had walked her through it the very first time, holding her hand as he guided her along the winding pathways that led to the center.

“There is only one way in, Matilda. Although the pathways make many turns, if you stay true to your path, you will never get lost. This is the first lesson of the labyrinth. Walk with purpose toward the center, for you know that God awaits you there. And even when the winding paths feel as if they are taking you far away from the center, you must always have faith that the path will take you back again. This is like life. It is this faith that will bring you to your destination of finding God every time and without fail.

“Most of what I will teach you about the labyrinth is really very simple. For the truth is always simple, Matilda.”

He walked with her in silence for a few moments before continuing the lesson.

“Now, child, sometimes the Lord speaks to our slumbering souls in different ways. In dreams, for example. That is one way. I know that you sometimes have dreams that you do not yet understand. This is God’s way of speaking to us, because our minds are open when we sleep and we can allow his messages to come through to us without interference. Another way that God speaks to us is through numbers. Numbers are a language unto themselves, with deep layers of meaning that most humans do not allow themselves to grasp. But the construction of this labyrinth is based on very specific numbers. There are eleven cycles that lead to the center, and eleven cycles that lead out of it. In the sacred language of numbers that came out of the Holy Land in the time of the wise King Solomon, eleven represented the path of initiation. When you add those cycles together, they become twenty-two. Twenty-two is
the master number, the number of the completion of the initiation. This labyrinth that we are walking was created by Solomon himself, in partnership with his beloved, the Queen of Sheba. I know there is much for you to grasp and I do not expect you to hold it all in your mind or your heart at this time. Just allow yourself to listen as your feet follow the path of the labyrinth.”

Matilda was listening and trying to understand, but there was a rhythm in her feet as she walked this sacred path that she could not deny. She was restraining herself and attempting to walk very solemnly, and yet she wanted nothing more than to dance and run through this magical maze where no one ever got lost and everyone found God at the center. There was joy in the labyrinth, and a type of freedom. Even at the tender age of six, Matilda was very much aware that the labyrinth was a special spiritual place. It filled her with light and love and the joy of learning in such a rarified environment. Eventually, she could no longer contain herself and she finished the circuit at a run. Upon reaching the center, she danced under the golden sunlight of her beloved Tuscany.

This, the first verse of the most sacred song of love, was inspired by the divine coming together of the great King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. For as they were locked in the sacred union of beloveds in the light of trust and consciousness, they discovered that their greatest loves, through each other, were for God and for the World that God loves so.

These words are praise for the Lord from the beloveds, as they have found God in the bridal chamber. Through the sacred union of their love, they have come to a full understanding of the blessings of life that God has granted us to express in our bodies of flesh.

When we are united with our beloved, we are living that love expressed and God is truly present in the bridal chamber.

The song begins with a kiss, for this is the most sacred form of expression between the beloveds. In our holiest tradition that comes from Solomon and Sheba, the word is
nashakh,
and it means more than simply to kiss; it means to breathe in harmony in a way that combines the spirits of two into one, to share the same breath, to blend the life forces in a single coming together.

It is with the harmonious breath of the kiss that we are fertilized to become
anthropos,
which is to say fully realized humans. Through the kiss we are born again. We give birth to each other, through the sharing of the love that is within us, blending God with the self.

Through the sanctity of the kiss, two souls come together to merge as one. It is the prelude to the sacred union of beloveds.

For those with ears to hear, let them hear it.

T
HE SONG OF
S
OLOMON AND
S
HEBA
,
FROM THE
B
OOK OF
L
OVE, AS PRESERVED IN THE
L
IBRO
R
OSSO

Lucca
1052

“S
HE IS PERFECT.
Everything you said she was. I have absolute faith that she will lead us into a new era of the Way. There is no doubt that she is The Expected One. My uncle will agree when he hears all that has transpired. The time returns, Isobel. Just as we always knew it must in our lifetime.”