Fire and Sword (11 page)

Many members of the Sanhedrin stood with their backs to the apostles in disgust. Some of the younger members called for their immediate stoning. Most looked around in confusion. Caiaphas ordered Peter and the others out of the room for their own protection, so the Sanhedrin might deliberate the matter further. For several minutes the assembly argued back and forth as to what must be done with these men.

“They must die like their leader!” shouted one.

“Stone them,” said another in a matter-of-fact tone.

“The people believe in them!” cautioned another.

The room suddenly became quiet when Gamaliel, a respected leader among the Jews stood to speak. He didn’t often enter into discussion, but when he did, it was usually to say something quite profound. His robes, grey beard, and wizened eyes made him a towering figure in Judah. The younger hotheaded members deferred to his wisdom, even when they didn’t necessarily agree with him. He took his place at the center of the room. The bearded faces stared back at him from the seats that encircled him.

“My friends, I have listened to your words, and I have been following the events in the streets of Jerusalem,” he began. “I am trying to reconcile, as are all of you, what we must do in this case.”

He looked to the younger members. “But I caution against the death penalty for now.”

A few smirked to themselves at this declaration.

“I know some of you would see these men dead and let that be the end of the matter,” Gamaliel continued. “But hear me out. Some of you are too young to remember a scoundrel by the name of Theudas. He too raised a following—some 400 men—and for a time he caused us trouble. But in the end he was killed. There was also Judas of Galilee. He too led a revolt, and he too was killed. This was around the time of the census.”

Gamaliel looked to the high priest. “If something is not of God it will be doomed to failure! We cannot deny the miracles that have been happening. Here is my advice: leave these men alone!”

Some grumbling could be heard.

“No! Listen! If these men are not of God, they will die like all the others.”

He turned to the young men.

“But if they are from God, then to oppose them would be to oppose God Himself! That is something no man can do!”

Gamaliel sat down, and the Sanhedrin remained quiet for a few moments. The high priest huddled with his advisors and then, bowing to Gamaliel, rose to speak.

“Gamaliel speaks wisdom as always,” Caiaphas began. “We dare not oppose God if these men are truly sent from Him. But we cannot let them go away unpunished. I suggest that we have them flogged and sent away with the strictest orders to stop speaking in this name!”

The Sanhedrin, albeit reluctantly in some cases, agreed to Caiaphas’ assessment and ordered the men to be flogged. The members bowed lightly to Caiaphas and Gamaliel as they left the room. Peter and the men with him, meanwhile, were joyful that they should be worthy to suffer for the Lord! Merlos and Darlon remained vigilant as they escorted the men to their place of punishment.

Kara liked what he saw. The wrath of the Sanhedrin had almost reached the point of blood. Just a bit more tension should do it. He congratulated Rugio on his angels’ agitation of the Sanhedrin.

“My angels are ever ready to serve Lucifer,” Rugio said.

Next to him stood Nathan and Prian, two of his favorites. They nodded in agreement.

“What they really crave is blood, not politics.”

“They’ll get their blood,” said Kara. “But with humans, politics precedes blood; I think that we are very near to drawing first blood on these fools.”

“How so, lord?” asked Berenius.

“Because Peter will never stop at the threat of mere men,” said Kara. “This is Lucifer’s gamble. The obstinate nature of these Christ worshipers will bring their own judgment down upon them.”

He smiled.

“Let Peter continue in the Temple, and I assure you he will pay for it with something more than Temple coin!”

Crispin had finished teaching another session at the Academy of the Host. He watched as the student-angels departed. Since the Great War had begun, the notion of moral freedom—that is—the right and possibility to choose one’s own path had become increasingly important. In fact it was the great topic of discussion among both teaching angels and their students. Humans and angels alike had demonstrated to their shame the folly of using one’s freedom for impure passions.

As he walked toward his office deep in the heart of the Academy, he anticipated the meeting he was about to have with Serus and Gabriel. They were to be briefed by Crispin on a human who would become central to the Lord’s plans: Saul of Tarsus. He greeted several other teachers along the way who were talking excitedly of the latest outrage on earth: the Sanhedrin had brought charges against a man filled with the Holy Spirit, named Stephen.

“Yes, yes, I know all about that,” said Crispin, waving off the discussion. “I can assure you that the Most High has already anticipated His next move.”

Crispin didn’t intend to be short with his colleagues, but his meeting with Serus and Gabriel would in fact cover much of what the angels in Heaven had been speculating about for some time: the outbreak of persecution against God’s chosen and the raising up of a new leader among them to continue the work of the Kingdom. When Crispin arrived at the door to his room in the vast Academy complex, Serus and Gabriel were already there waiting. He greeted them as they entered his bookish world.

“Sit, please,” he said to the two angels. “And welcome to angelic academia!”

They smiled.

“So it is from here that the great teacher Crispin plans his assault upon the minds of eager angels,” said Gabriel, as if giving Serus a tour. “You are seated in the presence of wisdom’s fountain.”

Crispin cast a doubtful eye.

“I thought I taught you better than that, Gabriel,” he admonished in good humor. “Wisdom comes from the Lord alone. If there is any fountain attached to this room it springs from Him and not from me!”

They laughed and agreed.

“But now to more serious matters,” Crispin continued. “I understand, Gabriel, that you wanted me to give Serus information on his next assignment?”

“Yes, Crispin,” said Gabriel. “Serus is assigned to a man who the Lord has great plans for.”

“Indeed,” said Crispin, looking at a scroll that was open on his rather chaotic desk. “Saul of Tarsus. Rather an unlikely individual. Brilliant to be sure. But quite opposed to the followers of Christ. He speaks out against them more and more.”

Gabriel nodded. “And soon he will do more than simply speak,” he said. “He has become emboldened by the arrest of Stephen and is even now contemplating a more aggressive move against the other believers.”

“Where is he now?” asked Serus, who was growing curious about the man to whom he would be assigned. “And why should I minister to a hater of the Most High’s own people?”

“First,” said Crispin, assuming his professorial role, “angels do not ask why they serve—they simply serve. Second, if the Lord Most High deems this man worth serving, then that should be good enough for you or any other angel.”

“Of course,” said Serus. “I only meant that it seemed rather odd. That is all. But to reiterate my question—where is this Saul right now?”

“Why, at Stephen’s trial,” said Crispin. “I receive updates all the time since this man became a special study of mine.” He smiled at Serus. “You see? You wonder why you are assigned to such a man? I never wondered why I was commanded to study the man—I simply obeyed. But now, having looked the man’s life over, I am prepared to tell you something of him. You will need to know his story in order to help him finish it.”

Gabriel looked at Crispin.

“We haven’t much time,” he said. “The trial will be ending at any moment.”

“I’ll hurry this along,” said Crispin. “Then together we shall see this Saul in person!”

Chronicles of the Host