[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.And what exactly issorcery? The examples I read from Deuteronomy can serve as at least a partialdefinition.Meanwhile my dictionary defines sorcery as: 'The use of powergained from the assistance or control of evil spirits.' "He paused, looking over the silent congregation."But this is 1948.Is itpossible there are sorcerers around today? And evil spirits? In a placelikeNehtakaCounty ? If there are, how may we recognize them? In Matthew 7,verse 20, Jesus tells us: 'By their fruits shall ye know them.' In otherwords, by their results.He was talking about false prophets, but the sameprinciple applies to any person."Macurdy began to feel uncomfortable.Where was Koht leading with thisbullshit?"Consider the morality tale, The Picture of Dorian Gray, in which theprincipal character lives a life of utter evil, yet does not age.Does notage! Does not deteriorate! In that case due to sorcery woven into a picture."Macurdy stared dumbfounded, his stomach sinking.Mary's hand squeezed his.Koht preached on."That is a novel, of course, a work of fiction.But it carries a powerfultruth and lesson.If you believe that Evil cannot wear a pleasant visage, thatSatan cannot give good fortune on Earth to those who worship him, you have notread, or have not heeded, your Bible.So.Is there a sorcerer in ourcommunity? I tell you that there is and that you know him."Curtis did not get up and walk out.To leave would draw attention, suggest aguilty conscience.How, he wondered, could this be happening inAmerica in1948?The sermon was not long.Koht's faults did not include infatuation with hisown voice.He ended with, "So then, if we find a sorcerer in our midst, orother evildoer as defined in the Bible, shall we run into the fields and pickup stones, and stone him to death? Or her? In the Book of John, chapter 8,verse 7, Jesus said, 'Him that is without sin among you, let him cast thefirst stone.' And of course, no one was.Or is.While in Deuteronomy 18:12 itis written, 'God doth drive them out from before thee.' And how did God drivethem out? By the hand of the children ofIsrael ! It comes down to people,God-fearing people, like you and me!"Yet Christ said we are to obey Caesar, that is, obey the government.And thegovernment does not allow us to forcibly evict someone from our communityexcept by law.Which in fact does remove many evildoers from among us.Removesthem and sends them to the penitentiary.But unfortunately, the laws do notrecognize sorcery as real, as genuine sin."So again, what can we do? While the sorcerer may be free to move among usphysically, we can shut him out of our lives, have nothing to do with him.Shun him."He stopped abruptly, leaving people hanging, causing their minds to reach.Page 15 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlAfter a long moment he said simply, "Let us pray," and bowed his head.The rest of the service was a fog to Macurdy.When it was over, thecongregation filed slowly from the sanctuary.Again Axel and Sara Severtsonstood at its door, greeters in reverse, making friendly remarks, Axel shakinghands.When Curtis reached him, the old Swede not only shook his hand, butgripped his shoulder, saying something that didn't register.Instead offollowing the crowd to the basement for coffee and cake, Curtis and Mary leftthe building.It was, he told himself, time to leave Nehtaka.But he said nothing, becausethe place that came to his mind wasn't a place he could take Mary.The transitmight kill her.6Fallout^Koht's allusion was not lost on his congregation, and he receivedconsiderable flack from members.A meeting of male parishioners was called todiscuss the issue.Koht admitted that the sorcerer he had in mind wasUndersheriff Curtis Macurdy.When questioned further, he said that Macurdy'sfailure to age was only part of the information he had against him, but herefused to elaborate, or name his source.A vote was taken to remove him from the pulpit, but it fell short of amajority of the total male membership
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
