Caleb and Samuel sat down in the upstairs library after the Sunday Gathering, their wives having driven home together. Samuel noted that Caleb came alone, a good sign. If he’d brought another Servant, it would mean he was forming a review committee. That fact that he was alone at least meant he wasn’t that far into the process. Yet. It still did not bode well that he wanted to meet in the Gathering House rather than at a coffee shop or something.
“I just wanted to chat about a couple of things,” as always the words themselves implied a casual conversation. His tone didn’t. But Samuel knew Caleb’s moods. He decided years earlier that Caleb was constitutionally incapable of relaxing. He tried to control his tone and emotions, to keep the “chat” as informal as possible.
“Okay, what’s on your mind?”
“You’re spending a lot of time with Matt Edwards.”
How did Caleb know that?
“Well, we take lunch together once a week. Our employers aren’t too far apart. So we meet and just chat about stuff. Nothing serious.”
“You are not counseling him about anything specific?”
“No. I think he’s feeling a little…I don’t know like he can’t figure out how to do more.”
He needed to play his cards carefully here. Caleb seemed focused on Matt. He had to make sure that he didn’t give away what he and Matt talked about. They’d both be in front of review committees.
“I see. Has he said anything about Gloria Lighthorse or asked about Ricky Halbert?”
“No. Why?”
Caleb explained that they were still having trouble over “that mess.” Ricky’s family, including an Apostle, was trying to limit the investigation. It created a division among the Apostles. Apostle Halbert might have to resign, an unthinkable problem at this stage of world events.
“Matt Edwards has a connection with Gloria Lighthorse…” Caleb went on.
“Before she got in trouble, she was Matt and Laura’s babysitter.”
“We know that,” Caleb snapped, “we think there is an improper relationship between her and Matt. I wanted to see if you have any hint of that. She seems to have some problems, it may have influenced her behavior with Ricky.”
Samuel seethed on the inside. They were going after Matt on trumped-up charges. Why on Earth would they do that? An accusation like this could ruin the man’s life!
“I can’t imagine Matt doing anything like that. He’s devoted to Laura, I’m sure of that. He’s just not sure if he measures up as a Disciple.”
“He needs to show up for Gatherings and Disciple-making more. That will fix his problem.”
“I’ll do that,” was what Samuel said to Caleb. What he thought was “I’ll show him how to inflate his next monthly Disciple-making report. If he reports more time, they may find somebody else to bother. Maybe they’ll leave me alone, too.”
“How are you doing,” Caleb probed.
“I’m doing fine.”
“I’ve been a little worried about you lately. You aren’t zealous anymore. Some exciting events are coming up. We aren’t supposed to know, but Luke can’t keep quiet. Even he doesn’t know the details, but some big stuff is coming.”
“I understand. I’ve just been in a slump lately, I’ll pull out of it somehow.”
Caleb ended by encouraging him to stay on top of the developments, they were coming fast.
As he drove home, Samuel pondered the situation. He still had no idea what the Apostles planned for the next few months. Whatever they planned, it was clear they would tolerate no dissent. They would allow nothing less than complete loyalty, and absolute obedience to their commands.
**
Matt shifted around in his seat uneasily. He took a long look through the restaurant window before turning back to face Samuel.
“How does he know we’re having lunches together?”
Samuel shrugged. He pointed out that as a real estate agent, Caleb spent a lot of time driving around. Probably he’d spotted them. Jumping to conclusions about wrongdoing fit his style.
“He’s obsessed with everybody else’s business and problems. Sophia is even worse.”
“Ah-ha.” Matt lit up suddenly. “Sophia, Judith, and Laura went shopping after Disciple-making Saturday. Laura told me they’re real concerned with what I’m doing. She said they think that I’m dragging her down and hurting her spiritually.”
“What did you say to her?”
“I said work was keeping me busy and I was finding it hard to get to Gatherings and out in Disciple-making. I told her she could go to Gathering without me. She said it was too much work to take the kids alone. I think the Servants, well Caleb mainly, are trying to use her to get to me.”
Samuel agreed. New Jerusalem was prying into every report from the Gatherings. Any drop in the number of Disciple-makers or the time they put in would reflect badly on Caleb. They had issued new instructions about accounting reports, they were going to watch those like hawks too.
“Maybe we should stop meeting, it would give them one less thing to gripe about.”
Samuel shook his head. Caleb, knowing he’d brought the matter up, would immediately decide they were doing something wrong and trying to cover it up. If they kept right on having lunch together, he could tell Caleb he was trying to encourage Matt.
“Give it a couple weeks, he’ll find some other stupid thing to worry over. He likes the drama of new problems, fixing them isn’t as much fun.”
**
He came home that evening to find Judith in front of the TV. He recognized the DVD at once. For years, one of the features of the summer Grand Gatherings had been full dress plays reenacting well-known Bible incidents. A few years earlier, the Foundation started producing film versions on DVD. Judith was watching the first one, “The Joy of the Resurrection.”
Samuel had never liked the films, now with his newfound thinking, he liked them less. The acting and production values looked like something put together by creative but poorly equipped and trained high school students. The scripts lacked any degree of sophistication. They were obvious public relations pieces. Ostensibly, the Apostles planned them as part of a campaign to make The Word appear technologically savvy. In fact, they made it look behind the times.
On top of everything else, they tried to use Eastern Washington as a stand-in for the Holy Land, and Paradise looked suspiciously like Mt. Rainier National Park.
Judith sat in her favorite chair, leaning forward. If she heard him enter the room, she didn’t look up, but watched the TV, transfixed, her hands covering her mouth and nose. He knew the movie well, she watched it so many times she must have had every second memorized.
It depicted Lazarus’ resurrection with remarkable emotion, women wailing at his death, and weeping with joy when he returned to life. It also depicted the death of Eutychus, a young Greek who went to sleep in a window while listening to Paul preach. When he fell out the window and died, Paul brought him back to life. It presented the death and resurrection of Jesus dramatically. All these events showed the power of The Lord to bring the dead to life.
The film ended with several scenes of celebrations in Paradise as families reunited with loved ones in the Resurrection. At that point, Judith always cried, no doubt picturing herself and Charlene together again. The film was sentimental, obviously intended to pull on the emotional heartstrings of vulnerable people. Samuel had never heard of any Outsider impressed by the film, it did inspire many Disciples to look forward to Paradise and redouble their efforts to please The Lord.
Samuel went to the kitchen to find a snack. Shortly Judith joined him. Red showed in her eyes, and she’d smeared her makeup. She walked up and put her arms around his neck, pulling him close. He held her for a moment, smelling her hair. For a moment, old feelings stirred, emotions from their early days together.
Then the moment vanished, she pulled away from him and said, “I can hardly wait to get through this year. So much is happening. Clearly The Lord is guiding The Word through these last days.”
“Yes, events are happening quickly.”
Caught up in her own world, she didn’t notice the lack of enthusiasm in his voice. It angered him. The leaders of his religion were deliberately misleading his wife and God knew how many others, with false promises. No doubt, The Word’s numbers of conversions and donations would go up. What would happen to the people a year from now?
Armageddon’s Slaves © Jeffrey Thomas All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. All events and characters are products
of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead is purely
coincidental
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