“You have sensed God’s will?” the monk asked, his voice eager. He must have seen all that had happened, even the kissing of Saint Benedict’s forehead.
“Aye, Father.” But he could not look the monk in the eye.
“Well? Speak it to me, son.”
“Father, I . . . I must . . . I must leave Harwood Abbey.”
His words seemed to chill the monk like a December gale.
“Leave, but why?” Father Andrew’s question sounded similar to the tone of a young child.
Xan stared at the monk’s leather shoes. “My heart leads me to Lincoln, to be with my uncle,” he said. “I may still take the vows of a monk—one day perhaps. Who knows?”
The priest’s eyes betrayed a shadow of disappointment.
“Please don’t be angry,” Xan said. “You’ve opened the whole world to me. But God has set this path before me—I don’t know why. I can’t see where the road leads, but don’t I need to follow it? And if God means for me to be a monk, won’t my path lead me back here one day?”
Father Andrew clasped his hands together and took a deep breath. He stood tall and straightened his back. When he spoke, his voice was sure again—that of a teacher.
“Xan, do you know why we monks wear this tonsure on our heads?”
He nodded. “To show you are committed to God; that you are all the same in His eyes.”
“Well said. But there is more. In ancient days, the tonsure was the symbol of a slave. The Greeks and Romans shaved the heads of their slaves to mark their state in life. That is also why monks shave our heads in this fashion. We are God’s servants, willing to do all He commands.”
The ring of hair around his shaved scalp was distinctive—a sure way to identify a slave.
“My head is tonsured, Xan, but so is my heart. And so is yours. We are God’s servants, and if God is sending you away from this place, then you must go. With my blessing. For how could I douse this flame when you have the Fire of Eden burning so brightly within you?”
The monks and children of Harwood Abbey gathered on the wide lawn in front of the church to pay Xan their final farewells. Joseph, the messenger from Lincoln, had arrived earlier that morning.
All Xan’s friends—Joshua, David, Morris, and all the others—patted his shoulders and slapped him on the back as they said their goodbyes. Even John hobbled up to Xan as he reached the horse that would bear him to Lincoln.
“You know,” John said, “when you came here, I didn’t like you. And I’m not so sure I like you now, either. But—well, just come back some day, okay?” His voice held no pride or scorn.
Xan laughed and gave him a brief embrace. “And you be nice to Joshua while I’m gone.”
Just then, Joseph reached down and pulled Xan onto the mount behind him.
“Peace to this abbey,” Joseph said, pulling on the reins. The horse stirred below them.
As they rode along the path, the grounds of Harwood Abbey passed, perhaps for the last time: the singing fountain filled with fish, where he and Lucy had spent time in deep conversation; the wide meadow lawn, where he and the other boys had played games, and sometimes fought; the golden granges that stretched out under the morning sun, where servants worked the harvest not far from where the Shadow had trod; the stone buildings of the monastery complex—the library, chapter house, dormitory, scriptorium, church, and convent.
These were the places that had changed his life forever.
No longer would he sit in the convent garden with Sister Regina and Lucy. No longer would Joshua joke with him after Brother Leo had doused the evening lamps. No more would Father Andrew teach him in the library—learning not just facts about the world but also how to be a person of integrity and faith.
Would his heart always feel this empty for all this loss?
He gazed at Father Andrew, who looked back with a knowing expression, as if the monk could read exactly what Xan thought and felt at that moment. Sister Regina stood next to the priest, pools of sorrow welling up in her kind eyes.
“Farewell,” Xan said, waving as Joseph spurred on his horse.
“Lord bless you, Xan,” Sister Regina said, putting on a smile. “I love you.”
But Father Andrew simply made the Sign of the Cross and raised a hand of blessing as the horse started down the lane.
“Xan!” a thin voice called out to him suddenly. “Never forget me!”
It was Joshua, running across the granges on a straight course to intercept the abbey road where Joseph’s horse must pass in a moment.
“Goodbye, Xan!” Joshua cried, tears streaming down his face. “Don’t forget!”
“I won’t forget you,” Xan said, holding back his own tears. The horse trotted past the boy, who was still waving vigorously.
Soon the others on the lawn turned away; all except for a solitary figure gazing eastward.
And this vision of Father Andrew—which Xan would vividly recall ’til the end of his days—was his last sight before the horse rounded a curve and set off on the journey to Lincoln.
Epilogue
He sat behind Joseph as the orange beams of an autumn sunset shone upon Lincoln Castle—glorious and majestic on the hill, as though no quaking earth or blowing storm could defeat it.
The ruins of Lincoln Cathedral would soon be in sight. His heart grieved for the once-magnificent church, whose ruins were coming closer with every clip-clop of the horse’s hooves.
But then, as they drew near to the ruined cathedral, a lone high wall appeared—as if untouched by the devastation around it. From that single wall, perhaps other stones would one day be set.
What had Father Andrew said as they’d left Lincoln so many months earlier? “See, son, God teaches us a lesson even among these ruins. When all else in life has crumbled, look for the solid stone and build anew upon that sure foundation.”
Of course, Jesus Christ was that solid stone, yet could there not be another meaning also?
“Stephen!” The call echoed from the broken steps of the cathedral.
Uncle William—his face as familiar as Father’s—dashed toward the horse, as though he’d been waiting forever at that very spot until his nephew would return.
Xan dismounted and, also running, welcomed that warm embrace.
Just then a hawk—gliding free in the clear sky above—cried out in a jubilant voice. Xan looked up and smiled.
“Please, Uncle—call me Xan.”
Author’s Historical Note
Although the characters and events in The Fire of Eden are fictional, the novel takes place in a historical place and time. The story is set in medieval England in September of A.D. 1185, during the final years of the reign of King Henry II (1153—1189). Xan, the main character, is a peasant boy who has been orphaned and is being raised by the monks of Harwood Abbey, a fictional monastery in Yorkshire. His best friend, Lucy, has recently returned from her travels with her father throughout England. In the novel, Xan and Lucy find themselves together again away from the abbey grounds, this time at a smaller fictional Yorkshire monastery: Grenton Priory.
In The Fire of Eden, I sought to balance the seriousness of the first two books in the series with the playful and quirky cast of characters at Grenton Priory. I also wanted to explore another side of two key characters: Brother Andrew and John. We sometimes forget that our holiest mentors, such as Brother Andrew, are mere humans, with personality flaws, dysfunctional families, and quirky hang-ups, like the rest of us. Too often we also forget that even the rudest and worst bullies among us, like John, have hurt feelings and insecurities that have shaped the negative ways in which they respond to the world. In short, we all deserve compassion and understanding.
Life at a Benedictine Monastery
Xan starts and ends The Fire of Eden at his adopted home, Harwood Abbey—a monastery run by Benedictine monks and the nuns who live at the nearby nunnery (convent). Sometimes called “black monks” due to their simple black robes, monks organized their lives according to
the Rule of Saint Benedict, spending most of their time praying, working, and copying manuscripts. During the Middle Ages, Benedictine monks and nuns (and the Church itself) played a major role in preserving written works of the ancient Greeks and Romans, along with the Sacred Scriptures (the Bible).
A major decision confronts Xan throughout the series: should he become a monk? To do so, he would need to become a novice and train to take the permanent religious vows of the Benedictine order. A man might become a novice as an adult, but often novices were teenagers. In The Fire of Eden, Lucy also is considering whether she should enter the nunnery at Harwood Abbey and become a nun. A teenage girl such as Lucy could become a novice nun before eventually taking her permanent religious vows as a Benedictine nun.
Abbeys and Priories
In The Fire of Eden, Xan travels from one Benedictine monastery (Harwood Abbey), to a smaller Benedictine monastery (Grenton Priory). What was the difference between the two monasteries? As seen in the novel, both an abbey and a priory functioned essentially the same way in the Middle Ages, with monks in both places living under the Rule of Saint Benedict.
An abbey was led by an abbot, often with the help of a prior and minor monastic officials known as obedientiaries. In The Fire of Eden, the abbot at Harwood Abbey is in ill health. The prior of Harwood Abbey, Father Clement, has taken on greater leadership responsibilities throughout the novel due to the poor health of its abbot. He is aided by monks such as Brother Andrew and Brother Leo, who are both obedientiaries. Abbots were usually elected by the monks of the abbey—a process that takes place near the end of the novel.
A monastery might be a priory if it was a daughter house of an abbey. In other words, the abbey came first and then planted the priory as a smaller extension of itself. In that case, the mother house (the abbey) was governed by the abbot, while the daughter house was governed by a prior. Some daughter houses of abbeys eventually attained independence.
Bishops, Prince-Bishops, and the Sacrament of Holy Orders
In The Fire of Eden, Brother Andrew is ordained to the priesthood (making him Father Andrew) through the Sacrament of Holy Orders. The ordination of priests often took place during special days set aside for prayer and fasting known as “ember” days, which occurred four times throughout the liturgical year. One of those times was in mid-September, which is why Brother Andrew is ordained on an Ember Saturday in September.
In the Catholic Church during the Middle Ages (and today), the Sacrament of Holy Orders was administered by a bishop. In The Fire of Eden, Brother Andrew is ordained by the “Prince-Bishop” of Durham. The King of England sometimes gave political authority to a bishop. The area became a sort of mini-kingdom ruled by a church leader who was loyal to the king; the bishop could levy taxes and defend the land from the king’s enemies.
Peasant Children and Feudalism
In The Fire of Eden, Xan and his friends recognize the lowly place they hold in medieval society as peasant children. They live in a time when England and most of European society is set up as a feudal system, also called “the manorial system.” In that system, peasant “serfs,” such as Xan and his family, live and work on the land of a manor, but they are at the bottom of the English social ladder. Unlike children from wealthy families, serf children are illiterate and uneducated.
At the top of the system is King Henry II, who was lord over all English lands, followed by the major landowners (the land barons) and lesser landlords and knights who ran manors on behalf of the land barons. As Xan learns, a serf boy like himself cannot make any major life decisions—such as becoming a monk, marrying, or even leaving the manor—without the permission of his landlord. To finally be free of this oversight, a serf had to pay “head money” to the landlord to buy his freedom. Xan is fortunate to have an uncle who has offered to pay for his freedom—to stay at Harwood Abbey or become an apprentice in his uncle’s business.
Still, Xan and the other medieval children he encounters throughout the story are not so different from children today. Their parents love and care for them, they enjoy toys and games, they are taught to help around the home, and they like making friends.
There are some major differences, though. Medieval children did have to grow up sooner than children today. Once they reached puberty—ages 12 to 14—they were considered adults, often getting married and having children while in their teens. Boys from wealthy families might be sent away to be trained as knights, and the girls would receive training to prepare them to be proper ladies.
Due to the societal norms at the time, men had a more prominent role in society than women did. Even a girl whose parents were wealthy did not have many choices about her own life. Her father could choose her husband, and then her husband’s decisions would rule their household. A girl’s options were quite limited, whether she was rich or poor. She might marry and have a family—or she might join a religious order and dedicate her life to God’s service. In The Fire of Eden, Lucy must decide whether she should become a novice nun or whether she would like to marry.
Glossary
abbey Another term for monastery, where monks and priests live in community
abbot The superior of an abbey
Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist that has been consecrated by the priest at Mass. It is kept in the tabernacle for adoration and to be taken to people who are sick.
bride of Christ Term used for the church in general but also for women who take religious vows, who, rather than marry a person, take vows of commitment and love to God
chain mail A type of armor made of metal links
chapter house A building attached to a monastery or a cathedral in which meetings are held and business addressed
coneys Rabbits, more specifically European species
Crusades A series of medieval military campaigns between Christians and Muslims for control of sites in the Holy Land
Ember Saturday Ember days or ember weeks are periods at the beginning of each season set aside by the Church for prayer and fasting. It has been common practice to ordain Catholic priests during ember days, particularly on Ember Saturday.
granges Another term for farmlands
guild In medieval times, an association of workers such as craftsmen but also referring to any group that formed to share information, organize for action, or exercise greater power together than would be possible individually
infirmary A place where sick or injured people receive treatment and care
land baron A nobleman who was given a title and land in exchange for pledging allegiance to the king
nones The midafternoon prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, the public prayer of the Church to praise God and sanctify the day. Nones are prayed at approximately 3 p.m.
novice A monk in training who has not yet taken final vows. The purpose of the novitiate period is to determine if the novice is truly called to the religious life.
penance An action we perform to show we are turning away from sin so that we can live as God wants us to live
prince-bishop A bishop of the church who is loyal to the king and to whom the king has given governmental responsibilities and powers
prior The person in charge of the abbey after the abbot
priory A small monastery or convent, often established as an extension of a larger abbey
refectory The dining room of a monastery
Sacrament of Holy Orders The sacrament through which the mission given by Jesus to his Apostles continues in the Church. The sacrament has three degrees: deacon, priest, and bishop. Through the laying on of hands in the Sacrament of Holy Orders, men receive a permanent sacramental mark that calls them to minister to the Church.
Saint Benedict The founder of the Benedictine Order (A.D. 480–547)
scapular In the medieval monastic life, the scapular was a piece of outer clothing, an apron-like length of cloth suspended from the shoulders over the front and back and down to the knees.
scriptorium A room, often in a monastery, whe
re Scripture and other important books were copied by hand
sext The midday prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, the public prayer of the Church to praise God and sanctify the day. It is prayed at approximately noon.
The Rule The book written by Benedict in 516 of the rules and concepts for how a monastic community should live. The Rule addressed spiritual and practical matters and helped shape how religious orders were organized and operated.
Thomas Becket The archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his death in 1170. He refused to sign documents of King Henry II that gave more power to the king over the church. Becket was murdered by four of the king’s knights. Becket was made a saint in the Catholic Church in 1173.
vespers The evening prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, the public prayer of the Church to praise God and sanctify the day. It is prayed at sunset.
Acknowledgments
As with the first two books, I am humbled by the incredible support of my family and friends, and all those who have made the Harwood Mysteries a dream come true. If only there were space to list all of those who have inspired me and contributed to the final product.
I am grateful to God and to my parents, wife, children, and grandchildren for their lasting love. I am especially thankful for the feedback of my wife, Alisa, and son, A.J., while writing The Fire of Eden. A.J. provided a major contribution in rewriting the original resolution of the book’s climax. As he put it at the time, “Dad, you can’t end the book this way.” So indeed I didn’t, and from his input came the much-improved “twist ending” to the mystery.
I also owe many thanks to the writers and professionals who inspired me, reviewed my work, provided encouragement and writing advice, and even gave tips on how to hone the book’s historical context. I particularly acknowledge Dr. Jennifer Paxton at the Catholic University of America, Ramona Tucker, and my fellow authors at the Catholic Writers Guild.
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