Douglas, Lloyd C.
Stories
3
Chapters
44
Words
295.9 K
Comments
0
Reading
1 d, 0 h
When I completed The Big Fisherman, a year ago, I announced that I would never attempt another novel, a statement that won for me the first applause I had ever heard from my more ruthless critics. I was very tired. The long story had occupied my mind for five years. I was seventy-one, badly crippled with arthritis, sick-abed much of the time; and when, on the last page, Simon Peter died, I half envied him. For a few weeks I rejoiced in my freedom. I had been out of one novel and into another for…- 69.7 K • Completed
- Peter had risen early and was calmly waiting. His mind was at rest. The only question that had troubled him had been answered in the night. An Angel had visited him in a dream. On the Day of Pentecost the stirring demonstration of the Holy Spirit's power had led him to believe that the establishment of the Master's Kingdom throughout the world was imminent. It was not easy to conceive of such an event, but neither was Pentecost easy to accept as an actual experience. All things were possible with God…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Peter had not been too uncomfortable here. For one thing, the cell was dry, a welcome change from the perpetual dampness of the Catacombs. Perhaps when winter came—it was August now—the prison would be damp too; but Peter did not expect to be here when winter came, so there was no need to worry about that. The cot was narrow, but there were two folded blankets on it, kindly provided by Glaucus, the jailor. There was also a bare wooden chair. Throughout the daytime hours a little strip of sunshine…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Had any doubt lingered in Fara's mind about the unwisdom of making Arabia her permanent home, it would have been dispelled on the evening of her return. The fact that she wasn't wanted there had been ruthlessly demonstrated by the Queen and Prince Deran, and when she retired that night to lie wide-awake for hours beside the happily sleeping Ione, she was firmly resolved to leave at the earliest possible moment. It was not the shocking conduct of Rennah and her detestable son that had wounded her most…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- For a while the authorities in Jerusalem were so stunned by the fearless activities of the new movement that they took no action at all. Within a week after Pentecost the number of determined men who saw the promise of peace in a divinely sponsored Kingdom that would overwhelm all tyrannies had risen to five thousand. Many of the converts were sincere believers in the miraculous power of the inspired Galilean. Many more, who had neither heard nor seen him, were ready to cast their lot with any party…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Never had there been a fairer morning in Jerusalem than on this Day of Pentecost. Since dawn, every road leading into the city had been filling with merry-makers on foot from the provinces, and within an hour the highways were crowded. Frequently the country people scampered to the hedges, good-naturedly conceding the right of way to impressive caravans from distant lands, unannoyed by the haughty stares of the urbane strangers. Once within the gaily decorated gates, the festive throng jostled…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Not until they were halfway up the tortuous trail that ascended sharply from the Valley of Aisne did Darik give signs of recognizing his own country by jerking impatiently at the bridle-reins, noisily blowing his nose and picking up his tired feet with fresh interest. Last night Voldi had put in early at the tavern in Engedi and had been on the road before dawn. Within an hour the sun was hot and its reflection on the white salt of the seashore was blinding, but there was no shade to rest in and Darik…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- For more than a dozen centuries the fifth of Sivan, fiftieth day after the Passover, had been celebrated as the harvest festival. It was the gayest occasion of the Jewish year. Many an oldster, with the ancient traditions as his hobby, would tell you that Pentecost was originally intended to commemorate the giving of the law to Moses on Mount Sinai; but little if anything was made of that now. This carefree day was singularly detached from historic events. Whereas the Passover enjoined a period when…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Hard on the heels of the shocking news that Jesus had been crucified bounded the incredible story that he was alive again. The provinces couldn't believe their ears. In areas where he had spoken and healed the sick all work was suspended. Nothing else was talked about; nothing else mattered. Nor was this excitement contained within the confines of Jewry. The mysterious Galilean had for so long been a popular topic of conversation that his fame had filtered into all the surrounding countries. His…
- 202.1 K • Completed
- Notwithstanding his weariness, Mencius was unable to sleep. Obsequious old Levi had waited up to conduct the Proconsul to what he asserted was the most comfortable bed in the house; the tavern was quiet, nobody astir; there was no vehicular traffic on the cobbled street. But Mencius lay wide awake, still listening to the bull-whip cutting into the bleeding shoulders of the defenceless Galilean. It was not because he was unused to the sight and sound of cruel floggings. Roman discipline was harsh and…
- 202.1 K • Completed
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