Contents ( 44)
- DAUGHTER OF GOD
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- CONTENTS
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- EPILOGUE
- AUTHOR’S NOTE
The American sat stunned.
“Understand,” the Assessor said, “that the men in charge of the church at the time were very adept and pragmatic. They realized that survival for the church meant converting the greatest number of people to a single orthodoxy to reduce the endless disturbances and thus help Constantine govern more efficiently. That is why they stripped down and simplified the requirements to be a Christian: recite the creed, be baptized, and faithfully follow the edicts of the hierarchy. Internal self-knowledge and examination were discouraged, outlawed because they could raise questions. The Gnostic way was a tough one, requiring great spiritual effort on behalf of the believer.
“For the church to prevail, it also needed to reach an accommodation with the pagan Romans. This is why the day set aside for worshipping Sol, the sun god became our Sunday. And why the birth date of the Roman god Mithra—December 25—became the birth date of our Savior. There are scores and scores of such incorporation of pagan practices.”
A pained expression showed on the American’s face.
“I realize this is painful to you, my son, but you must be strong.”
The American nodded.
“But let me get back to Sophia. Clearly, quick, decisive action was called for,” Braun continued, “but the emissaries had no time to send a messenger to Constantine or Sylvester, so they made a historic decision.”
Braun paused to take a sip of his tea.
“The oldest volume in L’ Archivo Segreto Vaticano is a thick ledger filled with the fine handwriting of a scribe of Constantine’s court, recording the interviews with the villagers. They were questioned about Sophia and her life and their remarks recorded and compared to the testimony of those who had preceded them. The interview with Sophia was saved for last, and when they had finished, they reviewed the transcripts of the interviews and found them in agreement I have a copy of the interviews for you to read… translated into English from the original Latin.”
The American nodded.
“And then what happened?”
“Roman troops killed them all.”
“All of them! All of the villagers?”
Braun nodded solemnly. “All of them. The scribe, one hundred fifty villagers, and Sophia.
“They were buried,” Braun continued, his voice wavering. “And a week later, when the shrouded bodies were inspected in the cave that served as a mass tomb, one of the shrouds was empty. It contained the image of a fifteen-year-old girl.” Braun slowly got up from his chair and walked to the American’s side. He put his hand on the younger man’s shoulder and looked down at him. “We are the guardians of this secret Messiah,” Braun told him. “We must find the Sophia Passion and make sure the world never learns the secret of Sophia—or the possibility that she and our Lord Jesus Christ may be two of many Messiahs that God has sent to teach and to test us. Revealing this secret would tear our institutions apart and in the end open the door for the enemies of the faith. For, once people begin to question even one part, they will question every part. If they believe they have been deceived before, the trust can never be recovered. It would create only misery and death.”