1
Words spoken:
“But let us not forget
that it was a woman’s transgression that brought all of these events to pass,
and that from now until the end of days Woman is marked with the taint of that
original sin. Were it not for the
frailties of women, we would all be dwelling even now in paradise. Were it not for the frailties of women, we
would be sitting even now at the Lord’s right hand, as the most exalted of
creatures. As matters now stand,
however, our condition does not differ from that of any other beast, in that we
must toil, and suffer, and persevere to the utmost of our abilities.
“It is
true that God gave Woman to mankind, so that she might be a helpmeet to
him. I would not dispute this fact. Our sisters in Christ are to be treasured,
and to be certain, man took part in his own downfall. No demon placed a sword to Adam’s throat, and
commanded him to eat of the forbidden fruit.
No, Adam did so in his innocence, and surely in so doing he also
transgressed. But the blame upon Eve is
not a thing to be forgotten, neither is the stain of that sin so easily
tempered by repentance and prayer. As I
stand here before you, women, know that I am a man of God and your brother in
Christ; and know also that I pray for each of you, and that it is my sincerest
hope that you hold to the ways of the Lord, so that you might keep holiness
before you.
“It has
come unto my ears that there has been sinning in our midst. Yea, even unto the steps of this very Church,
the citadel of our faith and our refuge from the persecutions of the land we
left behind. It has come unto my ears
that one of our number has sinned, and has caused others among our number to
likewise fall into error. It has come
unto my ears that some of you – even now, in your thoughts – profane the holy
institution of marriage, and have sought to satisfy lusts and covetous
emotions.
“I will
not speak the names of these transgressors, though they are surely known to you
all. I will not speak of the guilt they
bear, and of how far they have fallen from God’s grace. I will speak only of their dire need to
repent, before the hour grows too late.
For our God is a just God, and while He is forgiving, He is also
just. Mark these words well, you women,
for as one of you falls away from righteousness, so much closer to Hell do your
steps take you. Cleave not unto the ways
of the savages that inhabit the forest hereabouts. Cleave not unto the sin of Eve, who failed to
heed the Lord’s commandment.
“God
knows your doings, and God will find you out.
Think not that anything is done in secrecy, for even in the darkest
place, the Lord is there.
2
EXT.-BACK TOWARDS THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ATLANTIC…
Words overheard.
He was a poor man, and
he was not meant to hear that speech.
They would have closed the doors against him were it in their power to
do so. As it was, they could only glower
at him as he wandered in among all the other invited guests. They knew his reputation.
He had been seen in
the company of the speaker’s wife. There
was that one time, when they had seen him enter her carriage. There was that other time, when he was seen
in her company at the theater. There
were many other instances. There were
many other occasions. The gentlemen
gathered there were employed in businesses and burdened with responsibilities
that took them up and down the length of London, and it was not possible that
the interludes between this lowly man and the speaker’s wife could have avoided
the attentive gazes of them all.
It was a commonly
acknowledged scandal. More scandalous
still was the fact that her husband was either not made aware of it, or else he
chose not to notice. There was much
speculation as to the husband’s awareness of the situation or lack thereof, and
the wives of all those gathered gentlemen took to discussing the scandal at
every occasion, much to the discomfort of more genteel sorts of folk.
Words spoken:
“Quite ridiculous, I think, these strivings after a
God that no one has ever seen. We have
our philosophers to thank for dispelling that particular myth, though its
death-throes have been prolonged over-much.
Man has no need of God, and is to be accounted in this age the master of
his own destiny. God? What is God?
Nothing more than a fairy tale, and what is more, a fairy tale that no
longer amuses.”
Words overheard.
The peasant crept
closer to the center of the room, so as to hear the debate better. He could still taste her, and the smell of
her perfume had crept all over his tattered clothes. He was a handsome man, this one, and might
dare things above his station. He was a man
to be careful of, a man driven to do desperate things, and moreover a man whose
movements none could predict. They all
kept their eyes upon him as he shouldered through the crowd, knowing his open
secret.
Words spoken:
“But in the consideration of this unfortunate
individual let us not forget that it was Man’s transgression that brought all
of these events to pass, and that from now until the end of days, women are to
be held blameless, for it is the generations of men – men who have come before,
men long dead and since enshrined in words – who are pulling the strings. They drag an angry God behind them. They set up idols to Him in the shadows of
Ararat.
“I know this because I was there. I know this because I have seen it all
myself. I might have been the man
wearing her perfume. I might have also
been his nemesis.”
Words overheard.
And
then forgotten.
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