own son, chosen by God from the beginning to redeem the world, not the Jews only, but all men, Gentiles and Jews alike.  Thou hast asked me to look into thy hands and feet, but what testimony may be a few ancient scars to me that heard our Lord Jesus Christ speak out of the clouds?  Thou wast not in the cenoby when I told my story, hoping thereby to get a dozen apostles to accompany me to Spain, a wide and difficult country I’m told, a dozen would not be too many; but thou wast not there to hear what befell me on the road to Damascus, whither I was going to persecute the saints; and again a great pity for Paul took possession of Jesus as he listened to the story.  Were I to persuade him that there was no miracle, his mind would snap, Jesus said to himself, and he figured Paul wandering demented through the hills.

And when Paul came to the end of his story he seemed to have forgotten the man walking by his side.  He is rapt, Jesus said to himself, in the Jesus of his imagination.  And when they had walked for another hour Jesus said:  seest the ridge of hills over yonder?  There we shall find the village, two hours’ march from Caesarea.  The sea rises up in front of thee and a long meandering road will lead thee into Caesarea.  At yonder ridge of hills we part.  And whither goest thou?  Paul asked.  Returnest thou to the Brook Kerith?  I know not whither I go, but a great seeming is in my heart that it will not be to the Brook Kerith nor to Jerusalem.  To Jerusalem?  Paul repeated.  What persuasion or what desire would bring thee to that accursed city of men more stubborn than all others?  I left the Brook Kerith, Paul, after listening to Hazael for a long while; he sought to dissuade me against Jerusalem, but I resisted his counsel, saying that now I knew thee to be preaching the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth from the dead, thereby leading the people astray, I must return to Jerusalem to tell the priest that he whom they believed to be raised from the dead still lived in the flesh.  However mad thou beest, the priests will welcome thy story and for it may glorify thee or belike put thee on the cross again.  But this is sure that emissaries will be sent to Italy and Spain, who will turn the people’s mind from the truth; and the testimony of the twelve that saw Jesus and of the five hundred that saw him afterwards will be as naught; and the Jews will scoff at me, saying:  he whom thou declarest was raised from the dead lives; and the Gentiles will scoff and say:  we will listen to thee, Paul, another day; and the world will fall back into idolatry, led back into it by the delusions of a madman.  The word of God is a weak thing, Paul, Jesus answered, if it cannot withstand and overcome the delusions of a madman, and God himself a derision, for he will have sent his son to die on the cross in vain.  Of the value of the testimony of the twelve I am the better judge.  Then thou goest to Jerusalem, Paul asked, to confute me?  No, Paul, I shall not return