Acts of God

by James Beauseigneur

  Clark was momentarily struck dumb by Christopher's bold claim but recovered quickly. "Yeah, if we're not all dead!" he said. There was not much else he could say.

  The sudden look of fury which swept over Christopher's face made Clark and everyone else in the tent wish he had said nothing. As Christopher clenched his teeth, apparently holding back a torrent of anger like a dam about to break, the tent quickly emptied without another word being said.

  7:17 p.m. — The Mount of Olives, overlooking Jerusalem

  When the bloodbath in Jerusalem and the surrounding areas ended, nearly half the Jewish population had been killed; hardly a girl or woman had not been raped at least once. Those who had not been killed were held captive, with half taken from the city to execution facilities and half temporarily held in the Kidron Valley below General Kerpelmann's headquarters on the Mount of Olives. On the hill between Kerpelmann and the captives, the construction of guillotines brought in for the occasion went on at a feverish pace. General Kerpelmann had vowed before the fight that the Kidron Valley would flow with the blood of the Jews, and flow it would. Other forms of execution were quicker and neater, but beheading had become quite popular with the troops and General Kerpelmann was always conscious about maintaining troop morale.

  At gunpoint, Asaph ben Judah, the mayor of the Jerusalem, beaten and with his arms tied behind his back, was marched by two blue-bereted soldiers up the hill to where General Kerpelmann waited, relishing the moment. Soon the two stood face to face. Heaving a sigh of disgust, Kerpelmann looked over his captive, paying particular attention to the stub that had been his right hand. Kerpelmann had given some thought before their meeting to what he might say, but realized now that whatever he said would be a waste of his breath. He did not want to communicate with the Jew, he wanted to humiliate him, to crush him. He would no more have anything to say to ben Judah than one would have to say to an irritating insect before smashing it.

  Finally, when Kerpelmann was satisfied with his examination of his enemy, he set his footing, and with all the strength his anger and disgust could marshal, he hit ben Judah on the right side of the face with his baton, knocking him to the ground. Kerpelmann laughed and shared a smile of accomplishment with the two U.N. soldiers who had escorted ben Judah to him.

  Bleeding and dazed, with his arms still tied behind him, ben Judah struggled to get to his feet. Having accomplished the task, he stood and faced Kerpelmann again. For a long moment the two men looked each other in the eye. And then, without speaking, ben Judah turned his head and offered the latter-day Nazi his other cheek also.

  "Get him out of my sight!" Kerpelmann said to the soldiers.

  7:45 p.m. — Petra

  Inside Petra, word of the destruction of the Temple and the fall of Jerusalem reached Chaim Levin, who immediately called for the people to assemble for prayer. Addressing the gathering, he read from the Psalms:

  O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble. They have given the dead bodies of your servants as food to the birds of the air, the flesh of your saints to the beasts of the earth. They have poured out blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury the dead. We are objects of reproach to our neighbors, of scorn and derision to those around us. How long, O LORD? Will you be angry forever? How long will your jealousy burn like fire?

  Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the kingdoms that do not call on your name; for they have devoured Jacob and destroyed his homeland. Do not hold against us the sins of the fathers; may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need. Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name's sake. Why should the nations say, "Where is their God?" Before our eyes, make known among the nations that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.

  May the groans of the prisoners come before you; by the strength of your arm preserve those condemned to die. Pay back into the laps of our neighbors seven times the reproach they have hurled at you, O Lord. Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will praise you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise.

  . . . O LORD God Almighty, how long will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people? You have fed them with the bread of tears; you have made them drink tears by the bowlful... Return to us, O God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see!. . . Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand, the son of man you have raised up for yourself..

  7:55 p.m. — The Mount of Olives

  General Kerpelmann looked down at the row of guillotines and the captive people of Jerusalem who would shortly feel the blades upon their necks. To his right and left on the hillside his soldiers stood by in raucous anticipation of the bloodletting. The exhilaration and glory of the moment was almost more than Kerpelmann could bear.

  Unseen by Kerpelmann, about a hundred yards behind him and farther up on the hillside, a man clothed in a white robe stood on the Mount of Olives looking down on the scene.

  Suddenly, Kerpelmann felt his knees buckle beneath him as his entire range of vision began to shake violently. One after another the guillotines toppled, many of them falling on those who had been assembling them. U.N. soldiers and Jewish captives alike were thrown from their feet. Kerpelmann's headquarters tent collapsed and a small crack began to form in the earth at Kerpelmann's feet. He attempted to right himself on one side of the split or the other, but the quake was so strong this proved impossible and the crack continued to grow. Watching as it did and yet unable to compensate for the shaking, Kerpelmann called out for help.

  As two aides tried unsuccessfully to reach him, the split became wide enough that he could see that its depth reached to the base of the mountain. In another moment, unable to stand or crawl away, the chasm swallowed him and he fell headlong, landing on a large rock at the bottom.

  Looking up, he realized he could not move: he had broken his back.

  The force of the quake caused the wall of the city to collapse, rolling huge stones down upon the soldiers in the Kidron Valley who had assembled there for the executions. Those who survived were forced to flee the valley to the east and west, leaving only a few squads of soldiers to guard the captives.

  General Rudolph Kerpelmann could no longer feel his body as it shook with the mountain around him. The fracture into which he had fallen was now more than ten feet wide and it continued to expand. Despite his situation Kerpelmann felt himself begin to grow tired. Unaware of the massive internal bleeding which drained him of his strength, he was at a loss to understand his sudden fatigue. Unable to fight it, his eyes slowly closed, but opened again when he heard voices coming toward him. Rescue had come; he was sure of it. But it was not rescue; those approaching were escaping Jews. The gulf dividing the mountain had swollen to fourteen feet, entirely cleaving the mountain from east to west, and as the mountain continued to heave, the split continued to grow. Suddenly the wall of dirt next to Kerpelmann collapsed, covering his body with earth and rocks. Only his face remained exposed and it was so concealed that those approaching did not see him.

  At first only a few passed, then scores ran past him, fleeing through the canyon which had formed. Buried only a bit prematurely, his mission thwarted, Kerpelmann looked up at those passing by.

  He did not call for help: they would not have helped him anyway, nor did he want their help. He desperately tried to hold on to consciousness, and though it sickened him to watch the Jews escaping, there was something he hoped to see before he died. Finally, his patience paid off as he saw Asaph ben Judah running through the valley toward him. On his face, a huge bloody welt had formed where Kerpelmann had hit him. Kerpelmann smiled to himself, spit up some blood, and died.

  4:55 a.m., Monday, September 21, 4 N.A. (2026 A.D.) — Petra

  Inside Petra, prayers for deliverance and rescue continued throughout the night. Now, forty-five minutes before dawn, Chaim Levin
ended his prayers and called for Sam Newberg and Benjamin Cohen. "It's time," he told them, though they knew it as well as he. The whole of Petra seemed to know, for they rose as one and followed Levin and Cohen and Newberg as they started up the steep winding path toward the top of Gebal Haroun where, according to tradition, Aaron the brother of Moses is buried. It was a long hard climb on this warmer than usual September morning, but no one thought twice about going.

  "L 'Shanah tovah" Levin told his companions.

  "Z,'Shanah tovah"Newberg and Cohen answered.

  Robert Milner woke early and breathed deeply of the air of victory's dawn. This was the day of the end and the beginning. By nightfall, Christopher and those who followed him would utterly destroy the final remnant of the cult of Yahweh, and at last the earth would be free. Never again would shadows of conscience or whispers of guilt enter into his mind. Never again would his feelings, his desires, his thoughts, or his actions be measured by any standard but his own. Soon the world would forget there ever was a Yahweh. It was the work, the dream, the quest of his lifetime, and today it would all come to pass.

  As those who followed Levin, Cohen, and Newberg reached the summit of Gebal Haroun many saw for the first time the incredible size of the force which Christopher had led against them. Their camp formed a ring around Petra four miles wide. To the east and northwest the procession of those coming against them still seemed to stretch on forever.

  And there was one other thing— birds, tens of millions of them — in the skies and amongst the mountains around them for as far as the eye could see.

  Finally, with all assembled, Chaim Levin began to read from the prophet Isaiah. He did not read to the people but faced away from them, looking toward the east.

  Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you! As when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemies and cause the nations to quake before you! For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him . . . Oh, look upon us, we pray, for we are all your people. Your sacred cities have become a desert; even Zion is a desert, Jerusalem a desolation. Our holy and glorious temple, where our fathers praised you, has been burned with fire, and all that we treasured lies in ruins....

  At that moment in the camp below someone spotted the assembly on the mountain. "Jump!" someone yelled in jest, and it quickly became a chant that filled the camp. "Jump! Jump! Jump!" they urged. Robert Milner laughed.

  Turning back to the people, Chaim Levin opened and read from the psalms.

  Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.... The LORD is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off. They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off. They swarmed around me like bees, but they died out as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the LORD I cut them off. I was pushed back and about to fall, but the LORD helped me. The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.... I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done. The LORD has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death .... This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD .... Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

  Then quoting the words of Jesus from the New Testament, Levin added,

  For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'

  Then without urging but as if on cue, the people shouted, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

  At that moment the light of the sun which had just begun to rise suddenly changed from golden to sullen gray. The moon, still high but lacking the sun's light to reflect, disappeared from the sky altogether. The day, which had started normally, now seemed to be turned back to late twilight. In the encampment, fear that this might mark the beginning of some new plague swept through the camp with screams and moans of terror which woke any who were not already awake. Their screams were muted however, when from the northwest, in the direction of Jerusalem, there came a roar so loud that the entire earth shook and even the sky seemed to tremble.

  Robert Milner shook his head in disbelief as he stood his ground. He found it beyond comprehension that so many were so quickly frightened. They were fools — the result of being born into the old age. He wondered if a thousand years would be enough for some to be completely purged of their old superstitions and fears.

  From high above the scene of panic in the camp, looking down from the summit of the Sier mountain range, Chaim Levin, the High Priest of Israel, raised up his hands toward the darkened sky and cried, "Behold the salvation of our Lord and Messiah. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

  High overhead in the east, in the infinite distance of the universe, there appeared a rip in space, a tear in the fabric of heaven, as though a rift between dimensions had been opened.

  The fracture was more than illusion for as it widened, tearing open the sky as if it were a paper panorama, the stars themselves rolled back and seemed to fall away.

  From within or behind the tear there appeared a distant light which cast upon the earth a cruciform image which removed all doubt of the meaning of the event. The panic which gripped the people of the camp now became outright frenzy. In seconds the light grew so intense that the sun itself, had it been visible, would have appeared as just another star in the cosmos.

  Then from the midst of the light above the clouds there appeared a human form seemingly dressed in the light that surrounded him and sitting upon a large white beast that appeared most closely to resemble a horse. And at that moment there erupted the sound of trumpets, and behind the first figure there appeared a countless entourage similarly attired and mounted.

  Robert Milner steadied himself and held firm. He knew this moment would come and he, for one, refused to be frightened.

  Then there came to those in the camp and those along the way who had not yet reached Petra, a shout which reached through the panic in their souls and gave them hope. "STAND FAST!!" Christopher said in the universal language and speaking directly to the minds of all who followed him, as he had done in his address from the Temple in Jerusalem. "Stand fast!" he repeated. "Stand fast and see the destruction of our enemy!"

  From Petra to near Jerusalem where the final contingent of Christopher's forces had spent the night, a spontaneous cheer went up that filled the camp and stretched the entire length of the procession. Christopher's words so filled Robert Milner with excitement and expectation that he found it hard to breathe.

  Borne up by the spirit beings who had delivered him safely to the ground when he leapt from the pinnacle of the Temple three and a half years earlier, Christopher rose from the earth to meet his challenger in the air. As he did, the other figure descended, coming near enough to the ground that those closest could see that he was dressed in a white robe that appeared to have been dipped in blood. Milner savored every moment of this final confrontation. He would remember this time forever.

  Still a hundred yards away, Christopher began to address his foe. As before, he spoke in the universal language so that all who followed him could hear and understand. "Jesus," he called, "follow me."

  The other did not answer.

  "There is no need for us to oppose one another. My fight is with the Father. Join me."

  Those who followed Christopher struggled to understand the scene which unfolded before them. Was it truly possible that the meeting they watched could result in an alliance between Jesus and Christophe
r against Yahweh?

  But why not?

  Were they not, after all, the same, this Jesus and Christopher? Whatever resulted from this meeting, there was a sense of hope in just the fact that Christopher did not appear frightened by the man.

  "Join me! Join us!" Christopher shouted.

  Jesus still did not answer.

  "Pity," Christopher said finally. "Still, it was worth a try." Suspended above his anxious audience, Christopher turned and waved his right arm above the mass of people, "Well," he said, looking back at Jesus, "what do you think of my little gathering? Quite a turnout, wouldn't you say?" Christopher laughed a forced laugh. "And they're all here to see you. Gathered here to oppose you, that is. To take what is rightfully theirs: their freedom, their inheritance, their destiny!"

  Christopher's followers began to feel foolish for doubting him; obviously he was standing up for them, defending them to this representative of Yahweh. And was this not, after all, what they had come here to accomplish?

  A deafening cheer of excitement and approval rose from those on the ground. Robert Milner was exuberant. The foretaste of victory was sweet upon his lips. "Curse him," Christopher told his followers. "Scream your curses so the whole universe will hear!"

  Christopher understood exactly what they were thinking and feeling. "Over sixty million," he said as he turned back to face Jesus, "here of their own accord. All have willingly followed me. Those you died for. Those you intended for your bride. All, by their own free choice, have become my whores and sluts!!"

  The millions who watched fell into sudden stunned silence. What had he said? His 'whores and sluts?' Though they tried to deny it, the meaning came to them all, including Milner, like a house collapsing. In that brief moment there swept over the entire scene an atmosphere which was at once macabre and hopelessly pathetic. They had not been brought to this place for a battle between Humankind and Yahweh. They were not here to bring down the walls of Petra. They were trophies, paraded out by Christopher and put on display. This was not about winning liberation. This was about spite. Suddenly all of Christopher's lies became transparent, revealing not only the ugliness of the lies, but also of the liar. And suddenly Milner realized his fate. The sudden change was so abrupt Milner could not believe it was really happening, and for the moment he was dumbstruck.