"Beginning in the 1 1th century and throughout the Middle Ages, the city of Santiago de Compostela," "St. Jacques de Compostela in Spain, was the site of a great pilgrimage, which has continued to this day." "Every year, more than 500,000 pilgrims set out on foot." "They hailed from all over Europe." "They came to worship at the tomb of the Apostle James." "At the end of the 16th century, when religious wars upset the pilgrimages, the bishop of Santiago hid the apostle's remains for safekeeping." "They were only rediscovered, by chance, in the late 19th century." "The papacy hesitated for a time before declaring the remains authentic." "In the seventh century A.D., legend has it a star led shepherds to the place where St. James' body lay." "Hence, the name Compostela, campus stellae, "field of the star."" "In Western languages, the Milky Way is also known as "The Way of St. James."" "THE milky WAY" "None of those bastards will stop." "Skip it." "Come on." "l'm bushed." "And I'm starving." "You got some bread left." "You know I don't." "Alms, please." "Do you have any money?" "No, sir." "Then you shall have none." "And you?" "Yes, I've got a little." "Then you shall have a great deal more." "Are you on a pilgrimage?" "Yes, sir." "To Spain?" "Santiago de Compostela?" "How did you know?" "Go, and take to you a whore and have children of the whore." "Thou shalt name the first "Ye Are Not My People."" "And the second "No More Mercy."" "You understand any of that?" "look." "Where'd he come from?" "From under his cape, probably." "How'd he know where we're headed?" "lt's the banknote that counts." "I should've shown him my cash." "But why me and not you?" "It must've been your beard." "It inspires confidence." "Maybe." "It reminds me of what my mother once said." "You're filthy." "Go play with your brothers." "Don't shave, my son." "You're much better with a beard." "Your mother knew a thing or two." "Sell me a cigarette?" "I'm out." "Take one." "That banknote's for both of us." "I'll pay you back." "What are you doing here?" "What happened?" "You got blood on your hands." "And here, look." "Here too." "What's your name?" "You all alone?" "Where are your parents?" "Cat got your tongue?" "Some red wine will do you good." "Peter, let's go." "You should get on home." "Shall we take you into the village?" "It's not our problem." "Don't bother." "They won't stop." "Get in." "What are you waiting for?" "Going far?" "To Spain, sir." "You're in luck. I'm going to the border." "Mind if we drive all night?" "No." "On the contrary." "like a bed fit for a queen." "This is great." "Christ Almighty, Christ Almighty..." "Want some?" "Thanks, but no, thanks." "You from around here?" "The next town." "I can give you a lift home." "Thanks, but I like a good walk at night." "As I was saying, there's nothing miraculous about Christ's miracles." "They're quite commonplace." "You think so?" "Science can explain everything nowadays." "Miracles are natural phenomena." "Science is more than ever in harmony with scripture." "The whole world is Catholic now." "How's that, Catholic?" "Yes, the whole world." "What about the Muslims?" "Why, Muslims are Catholic." "And the Jews?" "Even more so." "What do you want?" "Got anything to eat?" "Any leftovers?" "We can pay." "Wait here." "let them in. lt's cold out." "l didn't want to disturb you." "What an idea!" "You can come in." "Thank you, sir." "Sit down there." "You won't make me believe, Father, that the body of Christ can be contained in a piece of bread." "Watch what you say." "The body of Christ is not "contained."" "In the Communion, the Host becomes the body of Christ." "There is transubstantiation, which is entirely different." "I admit, I don't understand." "It's beyond me." "The Host is the body of Christ." "That's all." "Don't go believing it's a mere symbol of the body of Our lord." "The Albigensians believed that, and the Calvinists, and many others." "But it's a grave error." "Well, I say Christ is contained in the Host" "like the hare in this pâté." "What was that?" "It's a hare, and at the same time, a pâté." "You haven't understood a thing." "You talk like those 16th century heretics, called, in fact, the Pateliers." "You must believe in Christ's words in their literal sense." "Sorry, but I just can't imagine it." "Exactly." "Credo quia absurdum." "A religion without mystery is no religion at all." "In conclusion, a heresy that denies a mystery can attract the ignorant and the shallow, but can never blot out the truth." "Father, a question." "Once you swallow, what becomes of the Christ?" "What are you doing here?" "Do you have your papers?" ""Smith."" ""Jones."" "That's enough out of you two." "Scram!" "Goodbye, gentlemen." "Poor guys." "They didn't even have any bread." "Be charitable, sergeant." "You can't enforce the law and be charitable too." "How strange..." "What is?" "I suddenly feel the Pateliers were right." "It's like a revelation." "I feel that the body of Christ is contained in the Host like the hare in this pasty." "I'm sure of it." "But you just said the opposite." "l did?" "Yes, you did." "So, Father, another outing?" "You promised to be good." "We'll have to lock you up again." "Sorry, I needed to get some air." "No, don't!" "I feel fine now." "You know me." "Yes, only too well." "If you insist." "He looks so normal." "He's a real priest?" "Sure, he is." "Until last year he was." "You contradicted him, right?" "Maybe." "l knew it." "Touch my hand." "Cold hands, warm heart." "Warm heart..." "How old are you?" "Fifty-nine." "Can you still do it?" "At my age." "The first thing I do in Santiago" "Hear that?" "Sounds like voices." "Think so?" "Don't you hear?" "It has already begun." "What's he saying?" "Don't know." "Who are you?" "Where are you from?" "Whoever you are, welcome." "Come with me." "But not a word of what you will see." "Who was that guy?" "Don't know." "A shepherd who talks like a priest." "I'm turning in." "Good night." "Brethren, good tidings from Rome, thanks to the proconsul Volventius." "The Emperor Gratian has restored Priscillian to the bishopric of Ávila." "Thus, we were right." "The heretic is not I, but he who sits on the throne of Peter and has taken the title of pope." "Our doctrine is the right one, and soon we shall proclaim it in the light of day, to the whole world." "let us give thanks unto the lord." "Our soul is of divine essence." "like the angels, it was created by God and subject to the domination of the stars." "In punishment for sin, it was united to a body." "This body is the work of the devil." "The devil exists since the beginning of all things, like God." "Matter as unworthy and unclean as our bodies could not have been created by God." "The body is the prison of the soul." "The soul, in order to free itself, must slowly be separated from it." "The body must be humiliated, scorned, forever submitted to the pleasures of the flesh." "In this way, the purified soul may return after death to its celestial abode." "Swear never to betray this secret." "We swear it." "It is not I who hath reaped thee, nor ground thee." "It is not I who hath kneaded thee nor placed thee in the kiln." "I am innocent of all thy sufferings." "And I pray that they who inflicted them on thee may know the same torment." "It's really coming down." "You scared?" "I hate storms." "That won't protect you." "How do you know?" "You believe in God?" "As if you didn't know." "Watch this." "Where you going?" "Hey!" "Hear me up there?" "If you really exist, go ahead." "ldiot. I hope you get it." "One, two, three." "You see?" "So what?" "It didn't hit me." "Idiot." "Think God's at your disposal?" "Mr." "Richard, I wanted to say earlier" "What?" "In that case, everyone should believe in God?" "True, atheists have always existed, but they're lunatics." "Or they claim to be atheists, but aren't." "How so?" "Because no sensible man can believe God doesn't exist." "Why not?" "The proof's in the Bible." "Psalms 131 :" ""lt is the impious fool who says in his heart there is no God."" "That's very convincing." "Yes, very convincing." "There is no God." "All religion is predicated on a false premise, Thérèse, the need for God the Creator." "But this creator has never existed." "is there a religion that doesn't bear the emblem of pretense and imbecility?" "But if one religion especially deserves our contempt and loathing, it is the barbarous law of Christianity under which you and I were born." "You trust in an avenging God." "Don't be fooled, Thérèse." "This God you've invented is a mere fancy to be found only in the minds of madmen." "He is a phantom contrived by the wickedness of men whose only purpose is to deceive or set them against one another." "If this lord really did exist, considering how his works have failed, would he deserve anything but contempt and indignities?" "I think that if a God existed, there would be less evil on earth." "Your ear is still bleeding." "It's no crime to depict the bizarre inclinations that nature inspires in us." "No, Thérèse, there is no God." "Nature is sufficient unto itself." "This godlike phantom is nothing more than a revolting platitude which deserves neither faith nor thought." "A pathetic extravagance which the mind and the heart reject." "It should have returned to the darkness from which it came." "If your God exists, how I hate him." "Yes, God exists!" "God exists!" "Only someone with loose morals denies God." "He does so only to satisfy his passions, for who can deny the obvious?" "There's one thing I can't figure out." "How could Christ be both man and God?" "Yes, it's difficult, Martha." "But say the devil takes the shape of a wolf." "He's a wolf, yet he's still the devil." "It's the same with Christ." "But, Mr. Richard" "Go clean the checkroom." "See what time it is?" "If Jesus was God, how could he be born and die?" "A fundamental question." "How could he be born and die?" "The number of heresies that exist on the subject!" "Some have said Christ was only God." "That his human form was an illusion." "Then he didn't eat." "No, he only pretended to, they say." "He didn't suffer, he never died." "Marcian and the Monophysites argued that." "And Nestorius too, no?" "Nestorius too." "They even said Christ witnessed his own crucifixion." "Simon having taken his appearance." "Other heretics claimed just the opposite, that Christ was not God, simply a man." "Get rid of this pear, it's overripe." "But he could laugh, couldn't he?" "He could cough?" "He's always depicted as very dignified and solemn, walking slowly, holding his hands up like this." "He must've walked like anybody else." "We're late." "What's the hour?" "Almost the sixth hour." "I'm hungry." "Master." "What is it?" "The guests have all arrived." "Your mother and brothers await you." "Here are my mother and brothers." "Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." "If he was a man, he was a man like you and me, no?" "At first, I didn't dare believe it." "later I felt very happy." "look how marvelous he is." "Your attention!" "There was a rich man who had a steward" "who, he was told, was squandering his property." "He sent for him:" ""What is this I hear of you?" "Produce your accounts, you are no longer my steward."" "And the steward thought:" ""What shall I do now that I am dismissed?" "Dig?" "I lack the strength." "Beg?" "I am too proud." "I know what I must do so that others will take me into their homes."" "And?" "Just a moment." "He summoned his master's debtors one by one." "To the first he said, "What do you owe my master?"" ""One hundred jars of olive oil."" "The steward said, "Take your bill and write down 50."" "And to another, "What do you owe?"" ""One hundred measures of wheat."" "The steward said, "Take your bill and write down 80."" "And the master praised this dishonest steward for his astuteness, for with their own kind, the children of this world are more astute than the children of the light." "Come here." "The wine has run out." "Woman, what concern is it of ours?" "My hour has not yet come." "Do whatever he tells you." "Fill these jars with water and serve them." "They will have wine." "He was a man like any other, no doubt about it." "After the Council of Nicaea in 325, many Christians fought, even died, to know if Christ was like the Father or consubstantial." "This way, please." "May I ask what you were talking about?" "Oh, nothing." "Just this and that." "What exactly?" "We were discussing the double nature of Christ." "You studied at the seminary?" "No, but the subject interests me." "We were also wondering how it was that, despite all the healers and visionaries like Simon Magus," "Christ was the only one who succeeded." "Because he was the only one who was God." "Of course, Mrs. Garnier." "Oysters to start with?" "Why not?" "Excuse me, please." "Who allowed you in here?" "We're just looking for some" "We wanted to know if" "Out with you." "Clear off!" "And make it snappy." "let's give it a try." "Excuse us, ladies, gents." "This is John, I'm Peter." "Would you have anything to--?" "Pass me what's left of the chicken." "Traveling far?" "To Spain, ma'am." "On foot?" "Sometimes on foot, sometimes walking." "Some wine?" "I won't say no." "It bucks you up." "To your health, ladies and gents." "Dear friends, it's my pleasure to introduce, as every year, the little show we've prepared and for which I ask your kind indulgence." "Due to circumstances you all know, it's been a difficult year." "We keep hearing these are violent times." "But God has looked after us and our classes have been conducted undisturbed." "In a few moments, the older girls will present a witty little comedy written especially for us by Mr. Pontier, our young pharmacist." "But before that you will hear our eighth- and ninth-graders recite from the works of our greatest poets:" "Racine, Iamartine, and Henri de Régnier." "But first, to demonstrate how much the young souls entrusted to us consider religion a living reality, here, from our youngest, is a little prologue." "Come up." "If anyone holds it is permitted to a Christian to have several wives and that having several wives is not forbidden by divine law..." "He is anathema." "If anyone holds that the sacrifice of the Mass is blasphemy against the sacrifice of Christ who died on the cross..." "He is anathema." "If anyone holds that God's commandments are impossible to keep, even for he who is justified and in a state of grace..." "He is anathema." "He is anathema." "Take aim." "Fire!" "What was that?" "There a shooting range nearby?" "That was me. I was imagining they were executing a pope." "What's that?" "You'll see lots of things, but a pope being executed, never." "If anyone holds that God loathes the newborn babe and that he punishes him for the sin of Adam..." "He is anathema." "He is anathema." "Many Christians wonder why God allows innocent animals to suffer." "They also wonder why God did not make man herbivorous like the sheep and the giraffe." "little Sylvie, our honor student, will give you the answer." "If anyone holds that the meats God gives man are unclean and, unless it is from a desire for self-mortification, he abstains from eating them..." "He is anathema." "He is anathema." "Where was that said?" "At the Council of Nicaea" "At the Council of Braga in 567, Canon 13." "I say and I maintain that purgatory isn't cited once in the scriptures." "That the false sacraments of confirmation and extreme unction were not instituted by Christ." "Anathema!" "In any case, you will die, for you are a relapsed heretic." "But you have one chance of escaping hell." "You need only say, "l recant," and your soul shall be saved." "I can't." "I wish I could, but I can't." "I can't." "Take him away." "Father?" "Yes, my son?" "Something troubles me." "I'm listening." "I wonder if burning heretics is not acting against the will of the Holy Spirit." "It is the justice of men that punishes them." "The secular arm." "Heretics are punished because of the acts of sedition they commit against public order." "Then those whose brothers have been burned will burn others, and so on." "Each one believing in turn he possesses the truth." "Why these millions of deaths, then?" "Do you realize what you are saying?" "I don't know." "Yet you persist?" "I submit, Father." "What is it?" "I had to sit. I can't walk." "My toes are reduced to a pulp." "look." "I'll take care of this." "Don't bother." "They won't last." "It's better than nothing." "I hope the bastard breaks his neck." "Think he's still alive?" "Not a chance." "We'd better call the police." "No, don't do that." "They keep you for hours on end." "You'd better go." "Were you there?" "We didn't see you." "You understand any of this?" "Are you hurt?" "l got in when you wished his death." "I always come at the last moment." "What do we do?" "Move on." "I already told you to go." "Who are you?" "A worker." "A worker who is never idle." "There are millions of us down there." "Where?" ""There, where tears are of no avail, where repentance serves no purpose."" ""Where prayers go unheeded and good resolutions rejected."" ""Where there is no time for penitence."" ""For beyond the last limits of life, there is no time to do penance."" "But I believe we shall be saved one day." "On Judgment Day, God will have mercy on us." "You, with the sore feet." "look." "He won't be needing them now." "Be careful." "In Bayonne, you'll attract attention with those new shoes." "I'll fix that." "Don't move." "My daughter, I beg of you, don't take this any further." "Renounce." "No, Mother." "Don't insist." "I wish to suffer like Our Savior suffered." "look." "The count, our benefactor, is here himself to dissuade you." "Isn't that so?" "Are you in pain?" "No, I feel nothing." "Now the other hand." "Jesus doesn't ask this of you." "It's closed." "What did you want to do in there?" "Who, us?" "Yes, you." "We wanted to visit the chapel." "Do you know why it's closed?" "This convent has been corrupted by the Jansenist sect which has not yet been wiped out." "They commit frightful sacrileges in there daily." "They're convulsionaries, fanatics." "Stay out of there." "How do you feel, daughter?" "Good. I feel fine." "Now go, all of you." "is there anything you wish?" "I wish to be alone." "Your lordship, a word with you." "To whom have I the honor?" "I am Father Billuard, of the Company of Jesus." "I thought Jesuits only come out at night, like rats." "You dare say that to me!" "I speak as I will." "I'm in a hurry." "What do you want?" "I know where you come from." "I know what goes on in this holy place, that you still deny the true doctrine of grace." "In the fallen state of nature, inner grace is irresistible." "Would you dare repeat that in a more secluded spot?" "I am at your disposal." "This way." "Gentlemen, will you come act as our seconds?" "What for?" "A duel." "We know nothing about it." "No matter." "Judge according to your conscience." "Come." "Do you dare repeat what you said?" "Yes, sir." "In the fallen state of nature, inner grace is irresistible." "Grace does not always attain the aim for which God grants it." "Wait." "Do you deny that the righteous man has sufficient grace for the accomplishment of good?" "Yes, I deny it." "The will is dominated by delectation." "To be worthy or not worthy in the fallen state of nature, man need not have free will exempt from necessity." "To be worthy or not worthy in the fallen state of nature, man must be delivered of all necessity, absolute and even relative." "It is a semi-Pelagian error to hold that Jesus Christ died for all men." "You outrage divine goodness." "Christ died that all men might be saved." "Antecedent will is mere wishful thinking." "I have no power over my thoughts and will." "My free will is but a delusion." "Free will." "What's it mean?" "What it means is between a good deed and a bad one, you can choose." "Okay, but God knows it all, no?" "So if I choose a bad deed, he knew it long before." "Sure, he's always known it." "How can I be free if my actions are fixed before I do them?" "That's free will." "God's grace allows you to choose to do good." "But he already knows I'll choose to do evil." "Why'd he decide I'd choose evil?" "God's ways are impenetrable." "Hey, look." "They'd better not ask for passports." "A French id card should do." "Ia Concha de San Sebastián." "Know what it means?" ""The shell of San Sebastián," right?" "Give me the Riviera any day." "Ever been there?" "No, but it's probably better." "All these places are for people with cash." "Come on, or we'll never make it to this damned Santiago." "Which way are you going?" "Straight ahead." "Would you do us a favor?" "It depends, what?" "There's an inn three leagues on." "Take the donkey and wait for us there." "For how long?" "Until tonight." "We've business in that village." "Here." "We're in a hurry." "lt's gold." "Of course." "What if you don't come?" "Never fear." "We'll come." "Won't we?" "Certainly." "But if we don't, keep everything." "Till tonight." "You died piously, surrounded by our affection." "You took the sacraments." "We considered you as one of the blessed." "Alas!" "After your death, we found this manuscript filled with your secret errors." "Many believed you spoke the truth." "Blood was spilled because of you." "May God, whose grace is infinite, have mercy on your soul." "Take him away." "Hear me, all of you." "This is dogma, the sole truth." "There is only one God, in three persons:" "The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost." "The Father is neither created nor engendered." "The Son is not created, but engendered." "The Holy Ghost is neither created nor engendered, but originates in the Father and the Son." "The Son and the Holy Ghost exist for all eternity, like the Father." "Whosoever strays from this dogma shall be declared a heretic." "God is one!" "listen, all of you!" "Don't let them fool you." "One God cannot be divided into three." "Father, Son and Holy Ghost, these are only names we give him." "It is the Father who was made flesh, the Father who died on the cross." "The Son and the Holy Ghost are coeternal with the Father by an immanent and necessary operation of the Father." "The Father is the only God!" "The Holy Ghost is merely an archangel." "Seize them!" "let's see." "Did you hit it?" "What was it?" "Don't know." "Something long, with no claws." "Funny, I heard this wood's full of sleepwalkers, but I haven't seen any." "They only come out on a night of a full moon." "What's this?" "let's see." "Don't know what it is?" "looks like something the blind make." "Hardly. lt's a rosary." "The papists use it to pray to the Virgin Mary." "Really?" "Get ready." "Give me a light." "What time is it?" "Quarter to 7." "Time flies." "It all seems like yesterday." "We've inherited the fruit of their labors." "The day of trial is near." "We can no longer await a miracle." "Hear that?" "look." "What is it?" "See her?" "Yes, but..." "She's moving." "It was she. I'm sure of it." "Take it easy." "We're tired." "It was a hallucination." "What about this?" "How are you, guys?" "Fine." "What will you have?" "Don't know." "Some chorizo." "Same for me." "And a wineskin of red." "Did you manage to sell the tractor?" "You kidding?" "They still use donkeys here." "And so they should." "You sound like my grandfather." "I know what I'm talking about." "Want to taste some?" "Yes, I'd like to." "I'm sure you'll like it." "Delicious." "Make it yourself?" "Sure." "Want some more?" "No, thank you." "Evening, all." "How's it going, innkeeper?" "Hello, gentlemen." "Fine, thanks." "Someone reported some suspicious characters in here." "You have your papers?" "let's see." "Get out of town in the morning." "Evening, Father." "Chilly night." "Yes, I came in to warm up a bit." "Some ham and a glass of wine?" "That's tempting." "It's good. I recommend it." "I hear you're a sergeant now." "For a young man like you, a fine promotion." "It's more trouble than it's worth." "I worked hard for it." "A fine career." "And you're expecting another child." "We're not rich, we can't afford not to." "We'd given up on you." "We saw the donkey." "We'll put him in the stable." "He must be hungry." "We'll take care of it." "Good hunting?" "No." "We tired ourselves for nothing." "Hard to believe." "Have your hunting permits?" "Of course." "let me see them." "They're in order." "Right, we'll be going." "Thanks for the wine." "lt was nothing." "Good night, Father." "Good night, all." "Want to eat something?" "No, just a room." "Fine." "Evening, Father." "Something the matter?" "You're crying?" "Can I help you?" "You should tell him." "listen, Father" "Be quiet." "See this rosary?" "Of course." "The Blessed Mary just gave it to me." "When?" "A half-hour ago." "I saw her." "She appeared to me." "To me, who had scorned and insulted her." "Faith doesn't come to us through reason, but through the heart." "Of course." "Here, keep it." "A miracle is always stirring, but it's nothing to get worked up about." "The Virgin has appeared thousands of times, all over the world." "She's performed countless miracles." "Would you like to hear of one?" "Yes." "Come, gentlemen, if you're interested." "You too." "Gather round, everyone." "Come." "Now listen closely." "It happened long ago not far from here, in a Carmelite convent." "There was a young sister, very good and sensible, who looked after expenses." "The sister steward, so to speak." "She was very organized, very responsible and deeply devoted to the Blessed Virgin." "Now listen closely." "Unfortunately, one day she was seduced by a young man." "Some say it was the devil who tempted her, but we can't say for sure." "In any case, she fell madly in love with him and decided to flee the convent." "Are you all with me?" "Just before her flight, one night, the poor Carmelite, in tears, threw herself down before the altar of the Virgin, begging forgiveness and praying ardently." "She placed at her feet the key to the convent safe." "Then she fled." "listen closely." "She lived a long time, excuse me, with the man who seduced her." "For many years." "They had children, boys and girls, but deep down, she was very unhappy." "One morning, unable to bear it anymore, she decided to return to her convent." "She was ready to accept any punishment." "She arrived discreetly, it was morning, and as she passed the chapel she glanced in at the statue of the Virgin." "listen closely!" "The key to the safe was still there." "So she went in, fearful and trembling, but the nuns didn't seem surprised to see her." "Not at all." "It was as if she'd never left." "She did her chores as before and no one ever said anything to her." "Do you know why?" "Because, during her absence, the Virgin had taken her shape and fulfilled all her duties." "A wonderful miracle." "A marvelous story." "You know, Father, that's really beautiful." "There are even better miracles than that." "We'd be up all night." "There is no mystery deeper and sweeter than that of the Virgin Mary." "It's late. I must be off." "Good night." "Good night, Father." "Come with me." "Shall we?" "What are you doing?" "You don't light a candle to hide it in a closet, but to put on a stand to light all the house." "Your room's across the hall." "There are two beds." "Why not?" "lf you don't like it, you can leave." "In here." "Gentlemen." "A word of advice:" "If anyone knocks at your door, don't open." "Why not?" "lf there's a knock, don't open, that's all." "Open to no one." "Not even me." "Good night." "Good evening, miss." "Don't let me disturb you." "Go on." "Thank you." "You're very beautiful." "That's very kind, thank you." "You look puzzled." "What's your name?" "Rodolphe." "Have you come far?" "Quite far." "We walked a great deal." "Get some rest." "You'll find it peaceful here." "You'll like it here." "Who is it?" "lt's me." "let me in, please." "No." "Just for a second." "No way." "leave me alone." "listen, the father is back." "He's come back." "He wants a word with you." "let him in." "Good evening, child. lt's me again." "Sorry to bother you at this late hour." "Talking about the Blessed Virgin earlier, I forgot some important details." "let me in." "I won't be long." "No, Father." "You can talk through the door. I won't open." "Why not?" "Because." "As you like." "A chair, please." "You can't imagine the richness of all the mysteries concerning the Blessed Virgin." "Just think, the Immaculate Conception, to start with." "She was conceived without submission to original sin." "Then the birth of Christ brought about by the Holy Ghost." "And Mary's precious virginity." "lmagine-- are you with me?" "Yes, Father." "Don't worry." "We hear your every word." "Then listen closely." "Imagine that she remained a virgin before, during and after the birth of our Savior." "Naturally, some heretics deny this." "like Photinus and Cleobulus." "But we must believe the dogma." "Christ was born of his mother without breaking her virginity." "Do you understand that?" "Yes." "like thoughts spring from the brain without breaking the cranium." "Or a sunbeam through a window without breaking it." "Very good." "Finally, imagine her Assumption." "She rose to heaven in flesh and blood, borne by the angels, and once there, pleaded on behalf of sinners." "How admirable!" "The dogma of the Assumption is perhaps the most beautiful of all." "A glass of water, please." "Well, if you want to please the Virgin Mary, remember that nothing is more repugnant to God then the sin of impurity." "Do you know why Jesus didn't answer Herod when he questioned him, not even looking up at him?" "Herod was a lustful fornicator and Jesus refused to look at him." "Very good, child." "Avoid lustfulness as you would the plague." "Remember those odious sects, the Adamites, the Nicolaites, who shared their wives and indulged in debauchery." "They were all condemned." "It is written:" ""The house of the immoral woman leads to the chambers of death."" "Yes, children." "let me in now." "Don't insist." "You're not coming in." "Very well." "Father?" "What if we decide to marry?" "Marry?" "That would change things somewhat." "But hear the words of the Apostle Paul:" ""lt is not good for a man to take a wife."" "You understand?" "What's more, some theologians, like St. Thomas, for one," "have maintained that even in wedlock, carnal union is a venial sin." "I'm a virgin, Father," "so maybe I'm without sin." "Don't say that." "Alas, child, no one is without sin." "Not even the Virgin?" "The Virgin, of course." "She was incapable of sinning." "But did you know that Origen, St. Basil and St. John Chrysostom maintained that she had faults?" "Which ones?" "Some vanity, perhaps, the desire to be held in esteem." "They also said that at the Annunciation, she doubted the words of the angel." "And, finally, at the foot of the cross, her faith had weakened slightly." "I'll let you get some sleep." "Good night, miss." "My son, do you hear me?" "Open up. I must speak to you." "No need. I heard it all." "let him in." "Just five minutes." "I said no, you're not coming in." "At least let your friend out." "He doesn't want to come out." "Go away." "Ah, yes, the saber." "Thanks." "My hatred of science and my loathing of technology will one day lead me to this absurd belief in God." "Halt!" "So we meet again." "Up already?" "leaving so early?" "What's the rush?" "You have five minutes to spare?" "What are you hiding?" "Well, a ham." "The ham from the inn." "We had a taste, remember?" "You're right, it's the same one." "How'd you get it?" "You bought it?" "Yes, in fact." "From the innkeeper." "You really bought it?" "Yes, pretty cheap too." "That's right." "Why didn't you say so?" "On your way." "Would you like a bit?" "We even got some wine." "No, thanks, really." "How about you?" "No, thanks." "Some other time." "Bon voyage." "Come here." "Come here." "What's that princess want?" "let's go see." "You two are in a real hurry." "Where are you going?" "To Santiago." "For a pilgrimage?" "To make some money." "We hear it's packed." "Don't bother." "There's nobody there." "What?" "Nobody." "The four squares around the cathedral used to be crammed with thousands of pilgrims." "Now they're empty." "Not a soul." "Same with the hotels." "All empty." "How come?" "Seems they discovered it's not St. James' body in the reliquary." "It was a headless body." "Some guy named Priscillian." "They cut his head off way back." "A fishy sort of a guy, they say." "What do we do now?" "There's no rush anymore." "Wanna have some fun in the grass?" "Sure, why not?" "Got any money?" "We even have gold." "let me see." "Here." "It's gorgeous." "Go easy." "You can look later." "So we going?" "Come on." "Wait. I got something to tell you." "let's hear it." "Well?" "I want you to make me a baby." "What for?" "I'll name it "Ye Are Not My People."" ""Ye Are Not My People."" "And what if we had one?" "I'd name it "No More Mercy."" ""No More Mercy"?" "let's go." "Come on." "He's there." "I hear him." "He's coming." "lord, where are you?" "Stop." "listen to me." "I hear him." "He's not far." "lord, are you there?" "Don't forget what I just told you." "No, lord." "God preserves you." "You can't die." "Get thee behind me, Satan." "For you are not on the side of God, but of men." "lord, we're here." "What do you want of me?" "Have mercy on us, son of David." "Do you believe I can do this?" "Yes, lord." "According to your faith be it done to you." "I can see people." "As if they were trees walking." "A miracle, lord." "I can see the grass, the trees!" "A miracle." "lord, I can see you." "Beware." "No one must know of this." "That you healed us?" "I sometimes wonder why you won't allow us to tell of your miracles." "At Capernaum, you performed so many in public." "You multiplied loaves and fish before thousands of people." "Don't think I have come to bring peace on earth." "I have not come to bring peace, but the sword." "lord, a bird just flew over." "I heard its wings beating." "I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother." "Verily I say unto you, a man's foe shall be those of his own household." "Son of David, show me the color white, the color black." "He who loves father and mother more than me is not worthy of me." "He who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." "Everything concerning the Catholic religion and its heresies, notably as regards to dogma, is rigorously exact." "All texts and quotations are either from scripture or works of theology and ecclesiastic history, both ancient and modern."