“The Father’s kingdom is the hearts of men. And I say to you, unless the Son of Man came in vain among you, my word shall not be as Dead Sea fruit. I speak not to a party or a sect, but to all who would keep the faith, of whatever countenance or caste.
“In this slender folio which I hold in my hand is contained the divine genius of the ancient and the modern world, the gold of its dreams, the bread of its aspiration. The souls of the just through whom the Father spoke of old time have been summoned anew; the prophets, the magicians, the makers of harmony, have been gathered together, so that the terms of the Truce may take visible shape in the sight of all nations.
“I say to you, let none oppose it. This Mandate speaks to the bosoms and the business of men. Through it man shall cast off his chains. Through it he shall hear the voice of his Father, which is in Heaven. The Kingdom shall be made manifest; and all wars shall cease; and this old unhappy earth shall see the light of the promised day.
“There are strong spirits who do not approve this Mandate. They have their place in the hierarchy; they are of the chosen friends of mankind; sacred Hellas and imperial Rome are with them; they have the sanction of the elder gods, but I say to them, judge not that you be not judged. The Apostate has sinned against the Light, but millions of her children have been purified by sacrifice. Man may live a slave, and in a vile cause may die a king. The enemy of the human race has bred great souls. And in the last account let these stand the surety of her that bred them. Therefore I say to you again, judge not that you be not judged.”
There was a pause of curious intensity. When the familiar voice ceased for a moment, Brandon, as if in a dream, peered through the stifling silence to the figures round the fire. One there was standing in their midst, whom he could not yet see, but of whose magical presence his every fiber was aware. Suddenly he caught a gesture of the uplifted head and the voice flowed on.
“Empires and kings shall pass away, but My Word shall not pass away. And I say to those who pray for the Apostate, let her cast out the devil in her entrails and return to the old way. Let her seek again the voice of the Father in the trees and the grass, the rivers and the mountains, let her weave again her enchanted harmonies in homage of the Love He bears her. Then shall her fields again grow fruitful, the sweet past shall renew itself with increase, her grateful brothers in science shall again take her hand.
“I see around me the souls of the saints waiting to be reborn. Through unnumbered ages they have held on high the lamp of Truth. Let them return to a sweeter world, a world enkindled and renewed in the Father’s Love.
“Here, in the presence of all that is, and all that was, I affirm the Beautiful, and the Good.
“I affirm Justice, Truth, and Mercy.
“I affirm the universal brotherhood of men.