The Journey (25 page)

“The Renaissance Period.”

“Yep.” I smiled. “And because of the flood of all this new knowledge, the Greek texts were translated to many other languages—French, German, English, Italian, and eventually all the others. The Bible suddenly became a daily part of life. Such had never happened before—widespread availability of ancient knowledge. This part makes the history geek in me all tingly.” I chuckled. “Okay. So, all this brand-new knowledge gave a rise to a brand-new era of freedom and thought. Medieval European society
changed
as a direct result of now being able to open and read the Bible without a fight.”

“Because prior to that… Biblical texts were kept and held by the church.”

“By the Papacy, yes. At that time, Medieval Europe was set up as an ascending pyramid of vassals and lords—peasants at the bottom, of course.”

“With the Pope at the pinnacle.”

“Yeah, with the Pope sitting on top. This era of feudalism was slowly done away with through knowledge and the
Age
of
Reason
. And… these more democratic ideals eventually brought about the French Revolution in 1789. That’s why I came to Paris to retrieve
your
book.”

“What you are speaking of is the revolutionary thinking of these new Protestants who would stand against the Pope.”

“Against the autocratic power of the Papacy, yes. The invention of the modern printing press back in the 1400s… that changed this whole ballgame. Now… every single person in the world had access to the Bible—the
little
book
—not just the church. People could read it for themselves instead of having to take someone else’s word for it.”

“Like priests.”

“Like anybody. But, yeah… like priests. I mean, with the only copies of the Bible chained to the pulpit… the Papacy could deem what was truth and no one else knew enough to stand up and say…
That’s not what it says in the Bible
… because they’d never been allowed to—or been
able
to—read it for themselves.”

“So why did this honey-sweet book turn bitter in their bellies?”

“Yeah, well… the best laid plans of mice and men, huh?”

Father Robert smiled and took another sip of wine.

“The euphoric reception of the scriptures by the masses of Northern Europe was the beginning of the Protestant period, yeah… but that euphoria would soon turn to bitterness. Groups began to form who wished to take advantage of this
newfound
liberty
and rebelled against their overlords.”

“Thus the Inquisitions began.”

“Yeah…” I visibly shivered. “The inquisitors were told to lay an axe to the root of these evil Protestant teachings before they spread any further.”

“All who remained obstinate were burned, beheaded…”

“Killed in every horrible way imaginable.”

“Yes… that was bitter indeed.”

“Yeah…”

We both fell silent for a moment… then I yawned.

“You need to get your rest now.”

“No. No. It’s okay. I’m fine,” I said through another yawn.

Father Robert smiled softly. “Don’t push yourself on my account. You’ve had a proper bath, your belly filled, your wound tended to, and now a soft bed awaits you. Get some rest now. I’ll see you in the morning. Okay?”

“Sounds good.” I yawned again. “Hey… Thanks again… for everything.”

“It has been my honor.”

He picked up the tray laden with our dirty dishes. I jumped up and opened the door for him.

“Sleep well, Witness.”

“Same to you, Father.”

“I truly enjoyed our dinner conversation this evening.”

I smiled. “Yeah, me too.”

“Very well, then. On the morrow?”

“Yep. Bright and early. I’ll be right here.”

I waited until I could no longer hear his soft footsteps… then I yawned, stretched, and crawled into bed with a smile upon my face.

“Mmm… Cozy.” I popped the bones in my neck and snuggled under the covers. “What a super sweet guy—Father Robert. And a super awesome cook as well. Dinner was yummy beyond belief. I am blessed.”

Chapter

9

I was towel-drying my hair when I opened the door to my room, and found Father Robert setting the breakfast table.

“Good morning. Another bath so soon?”

“Thought I’d take advantage of it while I could.”

“How did you sleep?”

“Wonderfully. As long as I remained on my right side, it was as good a sleep as I’ve ever had.”

“I’m happy to hear that. Sit down and eat while it’s still warm. I’ll see to your shoulder before you dress.”

“What? No more awkward glances and uncomfortable shuffling about because I’m only in a towel? Ahh… I guess the honeymoon’s over.”

“I wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable. Initially shocked, perhaps, but that was all.”

“Shocked that someone came out of the bath not fully dressed?”

He rolled his eyes, smiling where he thought I couldn’t see.

“I was only teasing, Father. Still, it serves you right—showing up to a lady’s room unannounced.”

“So you would prefer I did not feed you?”

“Bite your tongue, Priest. As long as you come bearing food, I don’t care what state of dress—or undress—I happen to be in. As long as it doesn’t bother
you
, I’m good.”

He chuckled. “I have a feeling that even if it
did
bother me, you would still be good.”

“And you’d be right about that.”

He smiled. “Sit. Eat.”

“You joining me?”

“As soon as I see to your shoulder.”

“Oh… Do you think it would be possible for me to use your phone today?” I motioned toward mine lying silent next to the bed. “My cell’s dead and I don’t have any way to charge it. I need to call the bank—check on the status of my account.”

“That won’t be a problem.” He picked up my phone and looked at the power port. “After we eat we will go down to my office. I may just have a charger that will work for this as well.”

“That would be awesome. Thanks.”

“Come. Sit. Let me have a look at those stitches.”

I winced when he began gently cleaning the wound.

“I’m sorry this hurts you. If it makes you feel better… it doesn’t look nearly as angry as it did last night.”

“Thanks to you,” I said, before sucking in another breath.

“Why don’t you set your mind to something else, Jem? How about you pick up where we left the conversation last night.”

“Okay. Let me think…”

“The Inquisition.”

“Ahh, yes. The bitter Inquisition. Next it talks about the two witnesses who prophesied for one thousand two hundred and three score days.”

“Which would be twelve hundred and sixty years.”

“Correct. Being as man doesn’t live that long,
and
the fact that these witnesses would be speaking on behalf of the true church—”

“The two witnesses are the old and new testaments. The two parts of the
little
book
.”

“Don’t make me fall in love with you, Priest.”

“As if you haven’t already.”

“Pffts… I’m definitely gonna miss you when I’m gone,
that’s
for sure. Now, even further proof that it’s speaking of the Bible here and not humans… it says that the witnesses have the power to shut heaven, keep it from raining, turn water to blood, and send plagues upon the Earth as often as it wills.”

“The awesome power of the holy word.”

“Precisely… sharper than any two-edged sword. But then it goes on to say that these witnesses will be killed—after said twelve hundred and sixty years.”

“Who will kill them?”

“The beast of the bottomless pit… the
Dragon
. Then it goes on to say that the witnesses will lie dead in the street and their bodies will be humiliated for three and a half
more
years.”

“Why was that?”

“Because the nations of people refused to let the witnesses be buried. After three and a half years, God entered them and the witnesses came back to life.”

“So tell me what you think
that
means.”

“Well, if you count backwards twelve hundred and sixty years from the French Revolution, you end up in the year 533. Being Catholic and all, what does that year mean to
you
?”

“The decree of Justinian.”

“Gold star for Father Robert.”

He lightly tugged on a lock of my hair. “And being as I’m French
and
Catholic, both of those events are well known to me.”

I smiled. “Yeah, that’s why I’m here—in Paris. Anyway, in 533 Pope John the first is decreed as head over
all
churches. Then twelve hundred and sixty years later… the French Revolution.”

“I believe I can fill that bit in more readily than you, my dear. The laws banning religious exercise were passed in 1793. This was immediately followed by
anti
religious exercises throughout the city. The people held a
Festival
of
Reason
right here within this place you now sleep.”

“…Notre Dame.”

“Yes. The cathedral was stripped of all its religious artifacts and a pagan Greek Temple was designed out of cardboard and set up right in the nave.”

“Like a theatre.”

“Exactly like a theatre. An actress of that time played the
Goddess
of
Reason
and the crowd sang Ça Ira while she was enthroned.”

“The emblematic song of the French Revolution.”

“That’s right. The Constitutional Bishop of Paris was ordered to publicly abjure the Catholic faith. He immediately obeyed and cast the insignia of his office aside and declared there should be no other worship in France than that of Liberty and Equality.”

“Tragic.”

“Yes, it was.” Father Robert sighed.

I waited in silence until he finally decided to go on, a heaviness now weighing down his voice.

“And as you can well imagine, the populace went wild then—dancing and howling in the sanctuary, men running around with no pants, women with no tops… indulging in
everything
imaginable.”

“So sad… An all-out orgy, right here in Notre Dame.”

“Sad. Yes, but only the beginning. The whole city turned into a madhouse. That’s when the Paris Convention outlawed the Bible and any expression of Christianity under penalty of death.”

“That all took place in 1793, and then in 1797—three and a half years later—the revolutionary laws were abolished.”

“Yes. Napoleon wrote that
our religious revolution was a failure
. He said…
Society cannot exist without religion
.”

“And there you have it, Father Robert. The twelve hundred and sixty years of
real
Christianity being persecuted, starting with Pope John being declared
head
over
everything
—side note here… absolute power corrupts absolutely, just sayin’—and ending with the French Revolution. And then the Bible lying dead in the streets for three and a half years. Then the seventh trumpet sounded.”

“Saying that the Papacy persecuted
real
Christianity for twelve hundred and sixty years is heresy, child.”

“Only if you’re Catholic. I’m not. Neither am I a child.”

He just stared at me for a few seconds. I could almost
see
the wheels twirling in his mind, but no words came out of his mouth.

“Umm… Anything you wanna add, Father?”

“Enough talk. Let’s have breakfast.”

I half smiled at him when he sat down across from me.

Father Robert only rolled his eyes.

*****

After we had eaten, the priest sighed and leaned back in his chair.

“I am not unlearned in the scriptures, Jem. You must know that.”

“I do.”

“Then you know I know precisely where you are in deciphering the prophesy of Revelation.”

“Yeah? And where would
that
be?”

“The dragon, the woman in labor, the mark of the beast.”

I smiled. “Things that all scholars and learned Christians have read about, I’m sure.”

“Yes… And
your
take on the meaning is?”

“Very well. I’ll go first then. The prophesy talks here about a woman crying out from the pains of childbirth… and a red dragon with seven heads and ten horns—each head having a golden crown upon it—stood before the woman to devour her child the instant it was born. Oh, and again it mentions the twelve hundred and sixty years.”

“Go on. Tell me. Who was this woman and who was the dragon?”

“Quit smirking like you already know and I’ll tell you.”

Father Robert chuckled.

“It says in this part…” I pointed at the text. “…that there was a war in heaven—Michael and his Angels against the
Dragon
and his Angels—Michael winning, of course.”

“Of course.”

I half smiled, rolled my eyes, and kept reading. “…The great red Dragon was cast out—that old serpent called the Devil and Satan—he and his Angels were cast down to Earth.”

“Well, finding out the answer to who exactly the Dragon was doesn’t take much of a leap. It gives you his name right there.”

“Yes it does, smarty pants.”

He chuckled again.

“But as you well know, this prophesy speaks in
symbols
. The woman is not a
real
woman, the Dragon is not a
real
dragon, and the child was definitely not a
real
child. Same as with the seven heads, crowns, and ten horns.”

“Now it’s getting interesting.”

“Yes, it is. I believe the woman represents the true church, and the child she was giving birth to was Christianity.”

“And the dragon was Satan.”

“Yes… But what do the heads, horns, and crowns represent?”

He leaned forward then but didn’t answer me.

“Very well, I’ll tell you. The Devil was super ticked-off after just losing the heavenly war and being banished, right? So since he couldn’t actually hurt God, he went after the thing God loved and protected. Kind of like…
Fine. If I can’t hurt You, I’ll destroy all that You love.
Now, let’s not forget the twelve hundred and sixty years mentioned here—we’ve already established when that was. You with me?”

“Go on.”

“Okay then… The Dragon’s fighting mad. He persecutes the woman. She gives birth and flees into the mountains for twelve hundred and sixty years. The Dragon tries
everything
, but he can’t get to her, can’t destroy her. So he does the same thing again—
If I can’t hurt you I’ll hurt what you love
—and instead of going after the woman he goes after her seed, her child. If you replace this whole scenario with the actual things that the symbols represent, it’d go something like this… Satan stood before the Church, determined to gobble up Christianity. But God saved the Church and hid it away in the wilderness for twelve hundred and sixty years, during which time, Satan turned on Christianity and decided to destroy
it
instead.”

“The same twelve hundred and sixty years we just talked about.”

“Yes. Starting when Pope John the first was declared head over all the churches, all the way until the French Revolution when the unbelievers tried to kill Christianity.”

“What of the heads, horns, and crowns?”

“I was sort of saving that for last.”

“Why?”

“Because… I really like you.”

He lifted a single brow. “Just spill it already. Tell me what you think they represent.”

“Fine… The seven crowned heads represent the seven forms of government the Romans had from the beginning to the end—Kings, Republic, Decimvir, Tribunes, Dictators, Emperors, and Dukes (which were eventually superseded by the Papacy, but we ain’t there yet). The ten horns represent the ten kingdoms which constituted the Roman Empire.”

“So you’re saying that the great red dragon—Satan—was Pagan Rome?”

“I’m saying that the bloodthirsty Roman Empire was the creature which the Dragon controlled, yes. It fits too perfectly to be anything else—the timeline, the particular events, everything. Now, hear me out, Father. The prophesy goes on to say that a beast rose out of the sea having seven heads and ten crowned horns. It says the beast looked like a leopard but had the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion
and
that the Dragon—Satan—gave the beast
his
power,
his
seat, and great authority. This composite beast represents Babylonian, Persian, and Greek Empires—leopard, bear, and lion—the ones that came before him.”