The Seventh Messenger
Page 24
windows where she stood and looked down the road. From this
vantage point, she could see the rooftops of Bethlehem and Jerusalem. The colonists who worked at the House of David Park
still lived in those houses.
In the distance the train whistle from the miniature train
sounded. Naomi walked over to the windows and stood next to
Mary Purnell.
“Twenty-five years have passed since the trial,” Naomi
said. “Yet, the train is still running. The park and both the colonies have gone on. I wonder what Benjamin would think about
that.”
Mary looked at the girl and smiled sadly. “Benjamin Franklin Purnell was as charming and cunning as the serpent that convinced Eve to bite that apple in the Garden of Eden. His motives were selfish, but he preached the word of God, and people
listened to him. He made them believe in a world where peace
and love were the most important things. As I look back on it
now, I think the faith and goodness Benjamin inspired in others
may have been far greater than his own sins.”
Mary Purnell and Naomi, the sunshine child, the last living
offspring of Benjamin Franklin Purnell, stood side-by-side and
gazed out the window towards the House of David. Although
they couldn"t see it, they both thought of the wooden likeness of
Benjamin across the road from the park. It pointed tourists towards the entrance of the amusement park that had become one
of his greatest accomplishments. As if he were standing in the
room with them, Mary could hear the words that Benjamin
would have preached to them about his life and the House of
David.
“Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the
workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the
grass, and wither like green herb.”
EPILOGUE
In 2003, the House of David celebrated its centennial and the members of that colony joined together with the members of the City of David. Although over a hundred years have passed since the House of David was established by Benjamin and Mary Purnell, the remaining colonists continue to follow the lifestyle and precepts of Benjamin Purnell.
For more information and historical facts about the House of David, visit the website: www.israelitehouseofdavid.org.
OTHER ANAPHORA LITERARY PRESS TITLES
British Literature Pennsylvania Literary Journal Summer 2010 Edited by: Anna Faktorovich 1-4563-0432-1; paperback; 208 pp.
Evidence and Judgment A Novel By: Lynn Clarke, J.D. 1-456-50116-X; paperback; 244 pp.
Adventures in Long Island and Abroad Short Stories By: Bruce D. Johnson 1-456-54918-9; paperback; 348 pp.
www.anaphoraliterary.wordpress.com Submissions Welcome: pennsylvaniajournal@gmail.com Director: Anna Faktorovich