As they landed, Jarahmael motioned for Cerebriel to sit next to him in the seat that used to be Sammuael's.
Once seated, Jarahmael looked and acknowledged the other loyal Archangels, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Ariel, and Raziel. At first, they smiled back at Jarahmael but as soon as they realized that Jarahmael intended for Cerebriel to remain seated among them, they began to shoot scowling looks at Jarahmael.
Jarahmael did not care what they thought. He relied upon Cerebriel more than he relied on any of the other Archangels except for Michael. But even Michael seemed to have changed for the worse over the course of the war. This new attitude of maintaining the position of leader of the Heavenly Host could corrupt Michael as much as it had corrupted Luciferael and the others. Looking around, Jarahmael saw how easily it would be for Gabriel and the others to become worshipers of Michael just as Sammuael and the others had become worshipers of Luciferael.
The sun was beginning to rise in the Seventh Heaven and Jarahmael and the others began to focus on the arrival of the Almighty. They all had longed for the routine of the morning ceremony while the rebellion raged on. They all realized the ceremony gave them strength and purpose. And above all, the presence of the Almighty revived their spirits. Jarahmael knew that their love for the Almighty had never waned throughout the war and Jarahmael especially hoped that His presence would help them all heal from the past week's events.
The Assembly of Angels watched Michael lead the procession down through the skylight in the ceiling of the Throne Room, in the front position that Luciferael had always occupied. He was followed by the Seraphim, the Thrones and then the Almighty.
This day, the Almighty's presence was stronger and it filled the room with a greater energy. Perhaps it was the greater level of energy the Angels in attendance were providing to the Almighty through their presence. Jarahmael thought that this was surprising, considering that at least one third of all the Angels were no longer present in the Heavens. Maybe without the conflicting loyalties of the rebel Angels, everything would flow better.
All the Angels throughout the Throne Room stood waiting for the Almighty to take His position on the Throne itself. Michael landed and as he turned to face the Throne, Jarahmael noticed that his gaze hesitated for a second when he saw Cerebriel up among the Archangels. Then, the Seraphim, Thrones and the Almighty were not far behind and soon the Almighty was seated in His customary position on the Throne.
The Almighty then addressed the Assembly of the Orders of the Angels. “You have done well, my loyal Angels,” He said as His gaze went across the room, each Angel feeling that He was addressing them personally. “I am proud of each and every one of you, and thankful for all your loyalty and devotion that you have shown for Me over the past days of trials and tribulations.”
The collected Angels responded, all singing their praises to the Almighty, ecstatic that He had returned and that they were again in His presence.
“I want to explain what has occurred over the past week to you, as you have all struggled and sacrificed for your love of Me and one another.
“Luciferael became jealous of My attention to the new race of Beings, the Humans. He was jealous that I had given Adam and Lillith and Eve 'free will.' This power allows them to be creators in their own right and the ability to choose what they want to do with the gift of existence that I gave to them. Unfortunately, Luciferael became jealous and afraid that I had given them a gift that he as the First Born had not been given. He also believed that I had not given the same 'free will' to you, My Angels, and that I loved Humans more than I loved you, My glorious Beings of Light.
“But he did not realize that you, the Beings of Light have always had 'free will' from the time you were created. Luciferael, in fact, choose to follow his own thoughts and desires rather than follow Me. Over a period of time, Luciferael and his other Auxilium decided that they should rule the Heavens and the Earth, and that I was no longer necessary.
“I love all of you unconditionally and want you to be happy in your existence. I still love Luciferael and his rebel Angels; My love is, and remains, unconditional. However, so does My belief in the concept of 'free will.' None of you can develop as true co-creators of the Universe without 'free will.'
“So My love for Luciferael and his followers continues as before except I allowed them the choice of deciding what they want to do with their 'free will.'
“Luciferael can rule anyone who follows him as a leader or worships him. Luciferael and his Auxilium do not want to follow Me. My love for them has even gone so far as to give them their own realm. The realm they intended to give all of you. A realm that was designed by him, a place where he was planning to send all of you, My loyal Angels, once he had conquered you.
“His kingdom will not be of the Heavens or the surface of the Earth by his own choice. He shall be Lord and Master of the inner circles of the Earth. There he can bask in the light of the fires that he chose for all of you, and he will no longer be part of the Heaven I have reserved for My loyal Angels.
“Luciferael and his rebel Angels wanted to be disruptive and divide the loyalties of the Angels. Looking out among you, I see how all of you have chosen, and I appreciate your love and devotion even when I was absent.
“I had allowed Luciferael himself to develop the two sets of tests that I put in place for loyalty of the Humans and loyalty of the Angels. The test for the Humans was their ability to remain loyal to Me by not eating fruit from one of the Trees in the Garden of Eden. The test for the Angels was designed by Luciferael too, when he forced each and every one of you to choose whether to follow him or to follow Me. So for any of you who may someday feel sorry for Luciferael and his fate, remember, it was a fate of his own choosing when he decided he did not want to follow Me, or to be in My presence.
“I will allow him and his kind to offer their way of life to the Humans as the race develops on the Earth. He shall be the other side of My Universe, his Evil to My Good. I will not interfere with his workings unless I am asked to, by whoever needs My help. And I will ask all of you to help those individuals when they so ask. For Luciferael and his colleagues have shown another side of love, selfish love for themselves and not for others, but love still the same, a self-reflection of their own love twisted by envy and jealousy.
“As before the rebellion, this entire Universe is for all of you to enjoy, build, create, and further develop yourselves. I can see by your efforts of the past few days that you are well worth My love and creation. I ask you to help Me with Adam and his offspring. In the future, they will expand My energy throughout the Universe and multiply through time. But also know that Luciferael will continue his war against us by using them as targets for his schemes. To counteract his efforts, I will ask you to help save as many Human souls from following Luciferael's version of love and thwart his evilness and desire to destroy all of them.
“And now to reorganize the Heavens, Michael come forward.” Michael moved closer to the Throne and the Almighty raised him up so all the other Angels could see him standing there.
“Michael, you will be in charge of the Heavenly Host, and you will fill the position held by Luciferael. In My absence you will be in charge of the Heavens and the Earth and all the Orders of Angels shall report to you.”
Michael acknowledged the honor bestowed upon him by bowing before the Assembly.
The Almighty then continued, “Jarahmael and Cerebriel come forward.” They both moved forward in unison, and the Almighty raised the two of them up to stand beside Michael. “Each of you has sacrificed and performed miracles in saving the Heavens from Luciferael's clutches. I want to thank you two especially for your efforts during the rebellion. I am aware that without your efforts victory by the loyal Angels would have been more difficult, if not impossible.
“Jarahmael, I am further asking you to be the guardian of mankind on Earth. Please look out for them. Cerebriel, I want you to assist Jarahmael. The two of you know the Earth better than any other Bein
gs in the Universe except for Myself. I want you to keep mankind as safe as possible. Assist them wherever you can. But you are not to teach them anything harmful to themselves, nor to override their choices made of their own free will. Is that understood?”
Both Angels nodded their heads in acquiescence and stepped back to their places.
The Almighty then continued with the morning ceremony, this time spending a few moments directly with each and every Angel in attendance, reinforcing His love for each of them and their bond with Him.
As the morning ceremony concluded, Jarahmael turned to Cerebriel and said, “The Almighty is back in Heaven, now we can get on with our own existence.”
“You must be looking forward to seeing your Human woman again,” Cerebriel responded, grateful for Jarahmael’s graciousness and special accommodation for him among the Archangels.
“Yes, I have been away from her for too long, my friend. But the defeat of Luciferael has made it all worthwhile. Now I can spend all of time with her, showing her all of the Almighty’s creation, and enjoying one another. She has been a wonderful gift from the Almighty, despite all the effort that she has taken!”
“Yes, Jarahmael, and well deserved,” Cerebriel said as he smiled at his friend.
“Well, I am off to find her. She will be waiting patiently for me in my palace, and I hope excited to see me again!” Jarahmael said with an enthusiasm he had not had since he was created.
Cerebriel watched the Archangel as he flew off, passing through the doors of the Throne Room headed towards his palace. Little did Jarahmael know that it would not be as simple as he hoped.
THE END of BOOK II
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John J. Higgins is an attorney and former statewide prosecutor who has had a multi-faceted career and life. He has worked on farms, performed firearm repairs, and refinished and sold antiques, all before he finished high school. In between pursuing his college studies, he supervised industrial finishing operations and assisted in developing a powder coating system. After college, he worked fulltime and attended law school at night. He also filmed rock stars and celebrities for public service announcements and produced and emceed a play that performed before audiences that totaled over 170,000. In his career as an attorney, he researched and wrote policy papers for governmental committees, drafted legislation, and revised statutes. In his role as a statewide prosecutor he was involved in some of the highest profile cases in his state, from prosecuting multiple and complex crime rings to homicides, including those committed by a serial killer. Among other things he does in his private life, he can scuba dive and pilot an airplane. An avid student of history and spiritual development, he lives in New Jersey in an old Victorian train station he converted into his residence.
He can be reached at his website: john-j-higgins.com
www.ringoffirebooks.com
In Rebellion (Archangel Jarahmael and the War to Conquer Heaven, Book II) Page 28
