[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
'Praise the Lord,
Praise the Lord from the high places,
praise him in the Halls of Light.
Praise him, all his angels,
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
praise him, all you hosts of heaven.
Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars.
Praise him, you in the sky realms
and you waters above the skies.
Let them all praise the name of the Lord,
for he spoke forthrightly and they were created.
He established them in place for ever and ever;
he uttered a decree that will never pass away.
Praise the Lord from the earth,
you dragons, and all sea deeps,
lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
stormy winds that do his bidding,
you great mountains and all fair hills,
fruit trees and cedars,
wild beasts and all cattle,
creeping things and flying birds,
kings of the earth and all nations,
you chieftains and all rulers on earth,
young men and maidens,
old men and children.
Let them all praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
his splendour is above the earth and the heavens.
He has raised up for his people a king,
the praise of all his saints. . . '
Dafyd paused, and, turning the pages, read again:
'But the father said to his servants, "Hurry! Bring forth the best robe and put it on him; and put a ring on
his finger, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf, and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. . . "
Here he stopped and closed the book reverently. Gazing at me, he finished the text: ' "For this my son
was dead and now is alive again; he was lost and now is found." So, they began to celebrate.'
He raised the holy book to his lips and kissed it, saying, 'May God bless the reading of his word.'
'May God bless the hearing of his word among us,' the monks answered.
'I am happy tonight because my friend, long absent from me, has returned.' He turned and placed a hand
on my shoulder. 'My son, my soul, has returned. Great is my rejoicing, great the blessing in my heart.' He
lifted an admonishing hand to those before him. 'Tonight, before you close your eyes to sleep, I would
have you contemplate the mystery of human love as a reflection of divine love.'
He blessed them then and sent them to their rest. The brothers trooped out of the hall and each
wandered off by himself to find a lonely place to pray, as was their custom. Bishop Dafyd and I remained
in the hall; chairs had been placed before the hearth for us, for the night had turned chill. Hot mulled wine
in wooden cups was brought as we settled before the fire.
'Well, Myrddin, what has brought you?' Dafyd asked, when we had sipped from our drinks.
'Need it be anything more than a wish to see my friend?'
'No, it need not with ordinary men. But you, Myrddin Emrys, are far from ordinary. Your life is not
your own, you know; you serve the kingdom and its needs are yours.'
He looked at me over his cup, eyes shining like a mischievous child's in the firelight. 'Do you wonder that
I say this to you? I will tell you something else: you will never rest until this realm is united and at peace.'
'That is a hard prophecy,' I told him, for I foresaw the troubled years stretching out ahead of me.
He smiled. 'Well, perhaps the Lord Jesu will bring his peace to this land with all speed.' He drank again
and waited for me to speak.
I took a last draught and set the cup on the hearth. 'You ask what has brought me. Two matters, both
urgent. For the first, I simply wanted to see you. It is true that I serve the Island of the Mighty and my life
is not my own Jesu knows I wear that duty like a harness but as soon as I had a moment to myself
I came straight here.'
'I did not say that for you to chide yourself. It was on my heart, that is all.'
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
'No doubt it was a word I needed to hear,' I assured him. 'But it brings me to the second reason for my
visit: the High King.'
'Yes, the High King. Is he a worthy man?'
'He is; and the more I know of him, the more I feel that he is sent of God.'
'As you were.' Dafyd leaned back in his chair. The firelight playing over his features made him appear
insubstantial, as if he were made of some finer, yet more ephemeral material; a momentary being. I
realized he would not long remain in the world of men.
I must have been staring at him, for he said, The Champion, oh yes. Why do you look at me so?
Hafgan always maintained as much.'
The memory came in a rush: Hafgan standing beside this trembling boy, and calling to the Learned
Brotherhood to bear witness, saying,Before you stands the one whose coming we have long awaited,
the Champion who will lead the war host against the Darkness. . .
'Ah, Hafgan,' Dafyd was saying. 'His name has not passed my lips in many years. That man possessed a
soul, Myrddin; a very great soul indeed. The discussions we had! Jesu bless him. What a reunion it will
be!'
The good bishop made it sound as if he were merely going on a day's journey to visit his friend. Perhaps
that was how he saw it. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]