The Last Day

fellow cardinals, I give to you the divine interpretation that was revealed to me in the catacombs.

“As you have realized for yourself now, Jeza is not as she claims. Rather, verse by verse, see her for what she really is:

“Verses one through six: Jeza, the harlot of the beast-dressed in her purple and scarlet-trimmed robe, holding herself above all the world religions, consorting with presidents and rulers of nations, intoxicating the masses with her blasphemous claims and preachings-she herself drunk with power and vanity and world attention.

“Verses seven through eleven: the seven mountains are the seven hills of Rome. The seven kings are sovereign popes of the Roman Catholic Church. The five who have fallen are Popes Nicholas I through V. The ‘one who is’ is our Holy Father, Nicholas VI. And the ‘seventh’ is a pope yet to come. A pontiff who will reign but for a short while. And the ‘eighth’ is the Beast, one who would be pope, an antipope, and one who will ‘go to destruction.’ ”

As di Concerci was acutely aware, his surprising revelations were creating a slow undercurrent of incredulity, amazement and excitement in the hall. He moved on.

“Verses twelve through fourteen: these are the things yet to come. A prediction of the straggle between the forces of good and evil. For a short while, the Evil One will seduce powerful people in support of a wicked cause. These deceived will rise up in Armageddon-an armed struggle against the forces of good. But through the power of the Almighty and the Lamb of God, the apostates will ultimately be suppressed.

“And finally, verses fifteen and sixteen: those peoples over whom the harlot reigns will finally see her for the Evil One she is. They will rise up against her and destroy her. At last, the world will be returned to peace, and to the fulfillment of the apocalyptic prophecy in which Christ will reign on earth for a thousand years in a glorious new millennium.”

The entire table was dumbstruck, astounded at the significance of the prefect's revelations. Cardinal di Concerci had but one more correlation to drive home.

“The world has come to accept the name this woman goes by, Jeza, as a derivative of Christ's biblical name, a feminine form of the holy name Jesus. I tell you that while the name Jeza is truly of biblical origin, the world has grossly misinterpreted its source. For you see, the name of this false prophetess is not written J-E-Z-A, as is most commonly seen. It is, in fact, J-E-Z-E. A shortened, disguised form for her true and revealed identity-the name of the most reviled harlot, temptress and deceiver of the Old Testament, Jezebel!

“Jezebel! The infamous idolatress of the First and Second Book of Kings. The beautiful pagan girl who, for a short, disastrous time, also led the faithful astray in the worship of a false idol, the god Baal. Jezebel, the charlatan who, like her modem namesake, reduced the world to turmoil. Until at last, her evil was recognized and she was destroyed in just anger by her own people in accordance with prophecy.

“This new Jezebel, who now comes before us and brazenly demands that we end the sacred institutions of our Church and our religion, this Jeza woman is no prophetess. She is no New Messiah. No messenger of God. As was revealed to me in my holy vision, this Jeza is the realization of all the most dreaded and despised prophecies of the Book of the Apocalypse. Not the Daughter of God, but the Daughter of Satan. The incarnation of all evil.

“The Antichrist!”

The impact on the assembly was profound as these now suddenly apparent connections fell squarely into place.

“And lastly,” di Concerci announced in triumph, “I will tie together all of this for you with the final quotation marked by the blood of Joan in the Book of Revelation, chapter two, verses twenty through twenty-three. This prophecies clearly show the new Jezebel has been sent from the devil to tempt the modem world astray:

“ ‘But I have against thee that thou sufferest the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach, and to seduce my servants, to commit fornication, and to eat of things sacrificed to idols. And I gave her time that she might repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality. Behold, I will cast her upon a bed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. And her children I will strike with death, and all the churches shall know….’ ”

The prefect closed the Bible and gazed solemnly into the pallid faces of his colleagues. “God has visited upon us our most formidable test of faith in two thousand years. My fellow cardinals, the Judgment is at hand. The long- feared Antichrist, this Jezebel, is finally come. And we dare not falter in our responsibility to expose this evil. For if we fail, we will reap the consequences of the Apocalypse, too horrible to contemplate.”

The prefect turned to personally appeal to his deeply affected pontiff.

“Nicholas. On behalf of our Lord Jesus Christ, on behalf of the Church, on behalf of two thousand years of custodial papacy in the protection of the Sacred Covenant of Christ, I beseech you to initiate an immediate order for the formal defense of the faith. I ask for the issuance of a decree ex cathedra, declaring and condemning Jeza as the true, revealed and confirmed Antichrist.”

The hall held absolutely quiet. Di Concerci remained standing, his arms folded, awaiting his answer.

There was a slight tremor to Nicholas's hands, which were clasped in front of him in a prayerful posture. His unseeing eyes were in rapid motion, his brow creased, his lips tightly compressed. At last his eyes ceased their incessant flitting, he blinked several times and took a large breath. Speaking softly and slowly, as if to himself, he replied, “Without exception, this is the most difficult, spiritually disturbing consideration ever borne by a successor of Peter. For months this matter has lain heavily on my soul, and as I pray daily for the great weight to lessen, it only grows more burdensome.

“I have listened carefully to all you've revealed to us this morning, Cardinal, and I must admit that I find it quite compelling. I have little doubt the rest of our Congregation would agree with me.”

There was an immediate murmur of concurrence from the religious advisors around the table.

“However,” the pope continued, “this matter is of the utmost gravity, and I must tell you that I do not see clearly enough to render an ex cathedra ruling immediately.”

“Holiness,” di Concerci interjected with some alarm, “only when you speak ex cathedra do you invoke the absolute and unquestioned infallibility that the faithful will demand in such a serious matter. You must feel the conviction to speak with certainty here or our holy mission cannot succeed. And we simply have no time to delay or I fear all will be lost!”

The pontiff stopped his cardinal with an uplifted hand. “I understand your concerns, Prefect. Nevertheless, before I pronounce an edict ex cathedra, a most solemn decision that could well unleash a premature Armageddon, I will retire to my chambers in prayer and meditation. As you have done, Antonio, I, too, will ask God for an unmistakable sign. And by six o'clock tomorrow morning, I will return to this hall and render my decision to the Congregation.”

With great restraint, di Concerci bowed to his pope's judgment. Nicholas rose heavily to his feet and the assembly immediately stood in respect, holding until the pope left the room. After Nicholas had departed, the remaining Curia members followed, offering their congratulations to Cardinal di Concerci as they filed past, their spirits significantly uplifted by the prefect's amazing presentation.

Silvio Santorini remained to accompany di Concerci for the short walk back to their offices.

“Would you allow me to inspect the Bible of Saint Joan, Antonio?” Santorini requested, and di Concerci accommodatingly located in the ancient text the precise chapter and verse.

Santorini received the book reverentially and examined the holy relic with engrossed curiosity. “In all my years with the Church,” he observed, “I have never been so privileged as to experience a personal revelation. You are greatly honored,” he said, bringing the yellowed pages close to his eyes to behold the sainted brown stains that highlighted the passages. “You must have been frightened and deeply moved. What a boon to your faith!”

Di Concerci said nothing, continuing to gather and neatly store his papers in his attache case.

Obtaining no answer, Santorini asked again, “How did the experience affect you, Antonio?” He looked over at the prefect questioningly.

Impositioned by the stare of his friend's eyes, di Concerci finally ceased his housekeeping and met the gaze. “I tell you this in the utmost confidence, Silvio,” and Santorini nodded his assent, “I felt the need to add a certain drama to my announcement today.”

Santorini's astonishment was evident.

“Do not worry,” di Concerci reassured him, “the bloodstains you see are genuine. And I did indeed meditate in the catacombs and was truly bestowed with the revelation. I merely offered the thunder and lightning as simple embellishments to help augment the message.”