by Ken Hansen
He cut quickly through the crowd, pushing others aside as he made his way toward the base of the stairs. He watched the woman reach into the pocket of her robes and fumble with a small device with two wires leading toward the fetus within her body. Yohanan screamed, “Stop!” He knocked over two security men as he approached the barrier.
Decima now shook free of her surprised security helpers, ran up the stairs several steps, pulled off the burka and yelled, “Death to tyrants! Long live democracy!” She seemed to be pushing something on the device, but nothing happened. She stopped, jerking her head down looking at her right hand emerging from her pocket, her forehead furrowing, eyes narrowing and lips moving without a sound. Yohanan leapt over the barrier and bounded up the steps, yelling “Decima, don’t! Stop!” The look on Decima’s face changed to one of surprise as several bullets penetrated her chest. She fell backward down the stairs, the bomb and its wires at her midsection now visible to all. She rolled to Yohanan’s feet. He lowered himself over her and tried to cover her from further harm. When he looked into her eyes, he saw a look of total disbelief. “I was so close. You were right,” she gurgled. “Traitor!”
“Decima,” he whispered, but her eyes had gone stone cold, her face frozen. Yohanan looked up at the security guards surrounding him just in time to see the blur of a rap rifle butt rapidly approaching his forehead. Everything went black.
Chapter 61
Tomadus finally caught up with Isa in Corinth. Corinth was a city of ten thousand lying on the edge of the isthmus leading to the Peloponnesian Peninsula in the Grecian Province of the Sunni Muslim Empire. When Tomadus arrived, he discovered that most of the Ten had left at Isa’s direction to spread his message to various parts of the Three Empires. Tomadus found only Adin and Maryam staying with Isa, all as guests of a long-time friend of the Way. Since the disciples had left, Isa had apparently spent most of his time meditating alone in the garden behind the home. Following Maryam’s strict orders, Tomadus patiently waited several hours for Isa to emerge from his meditation. When Isa walked into the room, Tomadus jumped up and greeted him with a kiss on each cheek. Isa smiled and returned the gesture.
Tomadus said, “It is only when I am with you that I feel myself. I missed you these past couple of weeks.”
“I always feel your absence,” Isa replied. “Have you found your answers?”
“Not really, but I don’t know. At least when I am with you I feel less terrified of my dreams.”
“You refer to this other world you have mentioned?”
Tomadus nodded. “It can be terrifying to live in two worlds at once.”
“Tomadus, be pleased you can see only two. Do you believe you have a soul?”
“A what?”
“A soul—the spiritual part of you that has the potential to transcend the limits of our corporal bodies.”
Tomadus shook his head and smiled. “Where does this soul exist? I have never heard of a physic-tech who has found this organ in the body.”
“Do not mock the things you do not understand. The soul is your spiritual essence. You cannot touch it or see it, and no surgeon can remove it.”
“Then how do I know it exists?”
“Because it is God’s greatest gift to you.”
“That’s a bit circular. Remember, I do not believe in a god. I don’t even think my alter ego believed in a god in that other world.”
Isa cocked his head. “Yet you believe in your visions, and you believe in this other world.”
“But I see them with my own eyes.”
“Yet nobody else can see them, so how can they possibly be real?”
“I just know they are.”
Nodding, Isa flashed a warm smile. “Just as I know you have a soul.”
Tomadus blushed. “What does this soul have to do with my dreams?”
“Everything.”
“But how?”
“When you understand that,” Isa said, “you will understand everything.”
Tomadus sighed deeply. “If only I didn’t feel so alone.”
Isa said, “You are never alone, Tomadus, and you are not alone in this gift.”
A spray of euphoria seemed to wash over Tomadus’s body. “Where?” he asked quickly, “Where can I find another like me?”
Isa smiled. “You are unique, as are all of my Father’s children, but if you need comfort, recall my words from that day on the edge of the Pontus Euxinus, at Constanta.”
Tomadus searched his memory. That was the day the First Consul had first seen Isa speak. “Are you referring to your commandment to feed the hungry and visit the prisoners?”
“Do as my Father asks and you will have your solace.”
Tomadus stared at Isa a long time, saying nothing. He would get no more on this subject from Isa today. Finally, he said, “I have news about Yohanan.”
“How so?”
“He was imprisoned by the Juteslams for staging a peaceful protest in your name with some of his followers. I convinced King Skjöldr that it was wiser to release him and his followers as long as they left New Jutland.”
“Yohanan has come a long way spiritually.”
“He is on a mission of peace. He said to tell you that he follows the rising of the sun to Jerusalem.”
Isa nodded gently. “Now there is a soul that has been touched. You could learn much from him.”
“I let him know by podgram that we are here, in Corinth. He wonders if we could help him in Jerusalem. Shall we travel to Jerusalem and help prevent this terrible act? Surely you can do something. If you have a miracle left in you, it would truly be worthwhile there.”
Isa shook his head slowly. “Their hearts are set, Tomadus. I am sorry, but I do not believe they can be turned through persuasion alone. Do not ask me to interfere with their free will to save your peace movement, which must stand or fall of its own accord. You still seek answers among the powers of the Earth. I seek only to save men’s souls. Yohanan has understood this and now seeks the same. He must walk this path alone.”
Tomadus grew hot, his face reddening. He gritted his teeth, closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “How,” he began, “how can you turn away from our efforts against such injustice? You preach peace, and that is what we seek. It shall all blow away in an instant. How can you say you care about this world and then just ignore an evil you know you can prevent?”
Isa touched his shoulders. “Tomadus, you concern yourself with the problems of the day that lie at your feet, yet you cannot see through the mist of the coming storm. My Father in Heaven has a plan, and I must follow it. I am sorry, but sometimes the purposes of events are not readily perceptible to the human mind. You must trust that our Father loves us all as his children and desires only what is best for us.”
Tomadus shrugged off Isa’s hand. With his mouth open, he stared back at Isa, and then bit his lip. I have misjudged him. He’s all talk and no action. His nostrils flared and his lips trembled, barely holding back the single word that kept trying to escape: HYPOCRITE. He noticed he was clenching and unclenching his hands and shaking his head. He could say nothing, so he turned on his heel and left the room.
Tomadus walked quickly through the living area into the corner bedroom and froze as he saw Adin kneeling by the bed with his back to him.
Adin was speaking aloud in his deep, yet almost childish voice, “Please don’t let them fight, dear Lord. They need each other.” Adin lowered his head into his hands and began to cry.
Tomadus stood silently at the entry. The simple truths this simple man could see when others might think his mind only weak. What would it be like to have such a simple and clear faith?
Adin looked up again toward the ceiling and continued, “I love them both, dear Lord. I know you do too. Please help Tomadus, dear God. He loves you even if he don’t know it. Don’t let him go away mad. Please, dear God, in Isa’s name, I beg you. Amen.”
Tomadus backed out of the room quietly and began walking back in. “
Oh, there you are, Adin.”
Adin flashed a big smile. “Hi, Tomadus! Are you OK?”
“I’m fine. Come, let us sit down and talk.” The two took seats at the large oak desk near the window. “You have great faith in God, don’t you Adin?”
“Faith?”
“Yes, you believe in God and love Him,” Tomadus said.
“Of course. I love God with all of my heart. I love Isa with all my heart. So do you.”
“How do you know that?”
“I can see it on your face. You love him and you believe in him. So I guess you have faith in him.”
“I guess you are right, to a degree,” Tomadus said. “I believe he loves those who need his love the most.
“Yes, that is why God helps those who can’t help themselves.”
“You mean the sick and crippled that Isa heals?”
“Tomadus, Isa doesn’t do that.”
“No?” Tomadus asked, eyebrows raised. A revelation?
“No. The Father heals them for him because he loves Isa and Isa asks him nicely for his help.”
Tomadus’s head went back and then nodded. “I wish I could believe that, but I cannot.”
“Last week, Simeon and Anders were making fun of you because you don’t believe in God. I told them to shut up. I said ‘Look at how he believes in Isa. It is easy for you two to believe, because you have always believed in God, but Tomadus believes in Isa even though he cannot seem to find God.’”
The two men were startled by a male voice at the door. “The kingdom of God belongs to such as this. Tomadus, you should take notes and learn from this spiritual man, for whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.”
Tomadus looked up and saw Isa standing by Maryam in the doorway, each smiling broadly.
“Adin,” Isa went on, “I have a task for you. Can you come with me?” Adin nodded, and the two men walked out.
Maryam stayed and closed the door behind her. “I understand you have had a little spat with Isa, Tomadus.”
“I don’t know about that. I’d say I was disappointed he refused to help Yohanan in his quest for peace.”
“You are a good friend to Yohanan, but you must remember that Yohanan is but one of the Father’s instruments of peace and justice in this world. Yohanan does not always know the right way, as you have experienced. You seem to want to follow him, but your destiny lies with Isa, for he is the Light of the World.”
“I’m sorry, but you sound like a very confident mother,” said Tomadus, “or perhaps a very effective propagandist. The Light of the World?”
“Yes, an angel of the Lord told me this before he was born.” She smiled gently. “Some of the Ten know of this. However, at Isa’s request, we do not discuss it publicly. Isa wants the focus of his work to be on his words and actions today, not on the miracle of his birth, which he knows the skeptics would endlessly try to contest.”
Tomadus leaned forward, his hands clasped. “Can you tell me about it?”
“Yes, I must.” Maryam took the seat previously occupied by Adin and looked down at her hands, apparently gathering herself. After a few seconds, she looked back up at Tomadus. “I came from a very poor family and left to become a servant in the house of Yusef in Nazareth when I turned 14. Yusef was a very nice Muslim man with two Muslim wives. I worked hard for a couple of years to keep him and his wives and their sons and daughters happy. As a Jew, while in their household I had to be careful to ensure I did not violate any Muslim traditions or beliefs.”
“Was that difficult?” Tomadus asked.
“Not really, but you might have thought so. While Yusef was always kind to me, his wives shared neither his views nor his manner. I have never known why, though I have a few guesses. I was told I was quite pretty then, so they may have worried about his intentions toward me. But he never once approached me with any improper words or actions. In a strange way, I think Yusef might have had a soft spot for me just because I was a Jew. His family had converted to Islam several generations before he had been born, and I think he still respected that ancient ancestry.”
“Yusef’s family was originally Jewish?”
Maryam nodded. “Now, despite some difficulties with his wives, I found I was generally well respected in the household, and I enjoyed my work there. I was able to send a few talents to my parents on occasion, and I was usually happy. Then a very surprising thing happened. I was asleep in my quarters and was awakened by the sounds of the gentle twinkling of tiny bells throughout my room. The room contained no such bells. The scent of subtle incense touched my nostrils. I had no burner in my room. Then an angel suddenly appeared out of nowhere.”
Tomadus raised his eyebrows. “An angel?”
“Yes, an angel,” she said. “He was there, yet not there. Do you know what I mean? I could have put my hand straight through his body, yet I could see him plainly, and he glowed with an aura I cannot describe. As I cowered beneath my sheets, he cried ‘Do not be afraid, Maryam, for you have found favor with God,’ so I came out of my cover and sat up on my bed. He said, ‘Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Isa. He is the Light of the World and will shine above forever.’ Now, of course, I was astonished and I said, ‘But how can this be, since I have had no relations with any man.’ The angel said in reply, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.’”
Tomadus shook his head. The story from the other world had become familiar to him. He knew Isa had found a way to copy Jesus for a very good purpose, but now Maryam was also in on it? It was too much.
Leaning her chin on her hands, Maryam sighed. “I thought I would be disgraced among my family and my household for carrying a child when I had not yet wed. Two days later, Yusef came to me and asked me if I was with child. I sheepishly told him the story I told you, worrying that I would be dismissed from his house at once. Instead, he broke down crying and told me that he too had been visited by an Angel of the Lord just the night before. The Angel had told him that he was a charitable man and must now show his duty to Allah by supporting this child of his servant, Maryam, who no man had touched. The Angel had told him that this child would be a great savior of the Jewish and Muslim people. Yusef then asked me to marry him and become his third wife to legitimize the child in the eyes of the people.”
“Wait, Isa is not a Jew, but a Muslim?”
“In Judaism, a child is Jewish if the mother is Jewish. In Islam the reverse is true. So it depends on whom you ask. But does it matter? Yusef was a wonderful husband and father. He permitted me to teach Isa our Tanakh and Jewish traditions. Of course, he also taught him the Great Book and traditions of the Muslims. You once asked Isa whether he was a Jew or a Muslim and he did not answer your question directly.”
“He rarely answers my questions directly,” Tomadus chided.
“Well, in this case he would not answer your question because, in a sense, he is both and neither.”
Tomadus squinted his eyes and scratched his beard. “So he was born in Nazareth?”
“No, in Bethlehem, but that is another whole story.”
Tomadus smirked. Of course it is. It was incredible how much of the tale they had copied from the other world. They must know of it. Or was something else going on here. What if they didn’t know? What if this world was just a variation on the other world? He looked up shaking his head at Maryam. When she squinted her eyes at him, he realized his body language and stopped. “Of course,” he said, “because that is the city of David’s birth.”
Maryam smiled as she tilted her head. “I see you understand the significance. Now Isa grew to become a young and pious man, as Yusef and I knew he would. If it had not been for Yusef’s other wives, life in those years would have been magnificent. But the two wives always resented me and never could quite treat me as an equal and certainly never treated Isa as an equal to their own sons. It did not matter to me because Yusef protected us from t
heir intolerance and refused to allow them to use the sharp tongues they wished to lash at us. But then Yusef died suddenly at the age of 55. His eldest son, Jamal, from his first wife, inherited most of his estate. Dominated by a mother who hated us, Jamal ignored his duties under the Great Book and forced us to leave the property. We instantly became penniless and homeless.
“We returned to my birthplace in the Jewish sector of Nazareth, and Isa began to work at the carpentry trade to help us make ends meet. He began to attend synagogue and the people there were often amazed at his insights. But he also grew friendly with several local Muslims as well, and often discussed their beliefs with them, though he was shunned by some of the local imams. Then one day he was on the road to Capernaum to deliver some cabinets to a customer and saw a Muslim man lying naked and beaten on the side of the road. He, uh…,well, you have heard him tell the parable of the Jewish man who was robbed and beaten and left on the side of the road, have you not?”
“I think so,” Tomadus replied.
“After several prominent Jews, including a rabbi, ignored the poor Jew, a Muslim came by and cared for him, taking him to a hospital and paying his bills. It was one of the stories Isa told about loving your neighbors and changing your perceptions so that ‘neighbors’ could include people more commonly treated as ‘others.’
Tomadus nodded.
“Well,” Maryam said, “he was like the Muslim man in the story, only in reverse, for he had previously been viewed by the Muslims as a Jew. The Muslim man who had been left on the side of the road never forgot Isa’s act of kindness and mercy—nor did the man’s family and friends. When Isa began his mission, this group soon began to follow him.”
The door knocked and Maryam raised her voice, “Yes, come in please.”
The host’s servant came in with a piece of paper, and said, “I am very sorry to disturb you, but we have just received this podgram for Tomadus. It is from Jerusalem.”
