"Sean McMullen - A Greater Vision" - читать интересную книгу автора (McMullen Sean)

"So have we been before God?" Bartolome asked. "I was dead, and now I live. My teeth have
stopped hurting, too. A miracle, what else but a miracle?"
"A miracle. We have been saved. Brought back over the edge of the world, brought back to life,
brought back to Spain. Give thanks to God and His Holy Mother, rejoice!"
"But why us? We are just sinners. I killed a man, I was under sentence of death, then the King
pardoned me to sail with Admiral. Then we fell over the edge of the world and died. Did God pardon us
to come back to Spain?"
"We were surely brought back for a purpose," suggested his neighbour.
A strong subliminal suggestion suddenly broke through into Bartolome's consciousness.
"God pardoned us our sins to witness the edge of the world!" he concluded. "A kind God would not
let honest seamen die in vain, sailing into waters from where there can be no return. We were sent back
to give a warning to all Christians. The world is bounded, the edge lies far out in the Atlantic."
The men on the beach were naked but in good health, and in years to come it would be found that
none of them could be infected with any disease. Those who avoided accidents would die well into their
nineties, or even older. Soon blankets, cassocks and cloaks were being handed out, any clothing that
could be found in a hurry. Their rescuers were beginning to suspect that something strange and wonderful
had happened.
Columbo was led through to a horse, wrapped in blankets and walking unsteadily. His eyes were wild
and staring, those of a man whose great vision has been replaced by something greater.
"God raised us up, brought us back to life," he shouted to the onlookers like a prophet newly arrived
from the wilderness.
"Mother Church will make us saints," said Bartolome.
"Saints are made by good works," admonished his neighbour. "Come, we must begin the work that we
were returned to do."
He helped Bartolome to his feet, and together they walked up the beach as peasants dropped to their
knees before them, imploring them to accept their own clothing. Anything that they wore now would
become a holy relic.
"God brought us back from the edge of the world as a warning to sailors," cried Bartolome. "Beware
sailing too far west."
"Christ be praised, Holy Mother of God, save us all," the crowd shouted back.
Published by Alexandria Digital Literature. ( http://www.alexlit.com/ )

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