"If you travel elsewhere in Britain you will find temples to the old gods, still in use. The foothold of the Christian Church in this land is tenuous, at best. That it exists at all is due to the efforts of the bishops here in Britain, men like our own Bishop Alaric, whose saintly piety and caring gave hope to the people who knew him. When a man, or a woman, can have no hope of being able to keep anything he or she owns for any length of time, then that person's sense of personal dignity and worth, his own integrity, becomes special to him. Bishop Alaric and his fellows worked hard to keep the people of this land free from despair. They taught them love, charity and the belief in the merciful omnipotence of God and His Son, Jesus... They offered people the hope of happiness beyond this squalid and vexatious life on earth, and they adopted the tenets of Pelagius, because they believed his teachings and beliefs to be righteous and wholesome in the eyes of God." He paused again and such was the power of iris delivery that none attempted to interrupt him. Eventually he continued.
"Let me repeat that. Alaric and his fellow bishops believed that the ways and the teachings of Pelagius were righteous and wholesome in the eyes of God. By direct association, Alaric and his like saw no dichotomy between the tenets of Pelagius and the word of the Christ Himself." The tall priest made as if to speak but he was cut off by the savage, chopping motion of my father's hand. "And now," my father went on, his voice level and temperate, his delivery slow and considered, "now, in the space of three short days, we are ordered—not requested—to accept the allegation—not the fact—that Pelagius is apostate, that his teachings are sinful, and that our beloved friend and mentor, Bishop Alaric of Verulamium, was a sinful man, misguided and inept, irresponsible and incompetent...
"We are commanded to recant our allegedly profane beliefs; to accept your unsubstantiated assurance that our entire way of life is in error; to admit, under pain of eternal damnation, that your way of worshipping our God is the right way and the only way; and to sue for your clemency. We are required to review our entire social structure and to relegate our own womenfolk to an inferior status that is entirely alien to us as Celts and Romans in the first place, and to the entire social mores of the people of Britain thereafter."
Picus's voice was the only sound audible in the room. He paused once more to let all he had said sink home to his listeners, then continued. "All of this you made abundantly clear to me yesterday. You made it painfully clear. And I told you then that I would consider your words and your message and arrive at a decision on how life in this Colony is to proceed from this day forth. In the meantime, you have been kept apart from my people. Imprisoned, as you choose to describe it. Let me point out to you that the laws of hospitality in this Colony and in this land are sacrosanct, and mutually binding upon host and visitor... It was you who forced my hand in the matter of your detention, by causing unnecessary, unwarranted and unprecedented strife beneath my roof. I chose to extend that detention after my interview with you yesterday, because your intolerant zeal alarmed me when I considered the effect it might have among these people of ours, who are simple people, unused to sophistry, oratory and semantics.
"It is with my mind attentive to the needs and the general welfare of the people of our Colony that I have deliberated upon your words and made my decision. I have said I am a soldier. I am no philosopher, nor am I a theologist, but for better or worse, I have a responsibility for the welfare of this Colony, and I believe in fulfilling one's responsibilities. It is therefore my responsibility, I believe, to learn more of these sweeping changes of which you bring word, and to seek assurance from the highest level of authority to which I can gain access that such changes come as the result of careful consideration and debate, and are not foisted upon us simply at the whim of a mere man or even a group of men seeking to further their own aims. It would be irresponsible of me to accept your assertions at face value: they are too sweeping, too extreme and too important to be taken lightly. That is my administrative decision, as Commander- in-Chief of this Colony. Take it with you back to Rome... We are not obdurate, but neither are we prepared to risk endangering our immortal souls without prudent investigation of the circumstances governing this signal change of posture within the Church." He paused again, and again the silence held until he resumed.
"On the other hand, as a man and a soldier, I find that I have no sympathy for your point of view. I find this idea of Monasticism both odious and offensive. It seems unnatural. Had Jesus wished his followers to behave in this fashion, He would have clearly stated so, or so it seems to me. He was an articulate speaker on all other things. I hear no misogyny in the Words of Jesus. Was it not He who said: Let he who is without sin cast the first stone?... That, sir priest, tells me that the Christ Himself recognized man's right to responsibility and self-determination. I will embrace the tenets of Pelagius personally, until someone more wholesome and more reasonable than you convinces me that I am wrong."
The priest could bear his own silence no longer. "You are accursed!" he cried out. "You are blasted with the sin of Lucifer, gross pride! And you will burn in Hades!"
My father's patience finally snapped and his voice became brittle with disgust. "Get these people out of my sight! Popilius, see to it they are given food and drink and have them taken under heavy escort to the borders of our land and forbidden re-entry." He had to shout to make himself heard above the imprecations of the priests who were now all shouting, creating pandemonium. Popilius's men must have been waiting directly outside, for they appeared immediately and began herding the shouting zealots out of the hall, and even after they had left, their shouting continued. "Popilius!" My father's voice had risen to a roar.
"General?"
"A heavy escort. I want those people out of here quickly and I want them out now. Put them in a wagon. Gag them if you have to."
Popilius left and my father sat down again, ashen-faced. For a long time nobody in the Hall moved or spoke. The shouting outside died away into silence. Then Julius Terrix, leader of the Council and the son of one of the first Colonists, rose to his feet.
"Picus Britannicus. You have said that your decision is to be inviolable for twenty-four hours, and you have taken upon yourself an awesome responsibility in behaving as you have this day." I felt tension knotting in the pit of my stomach anew, but he went on, "I have no right to speak for any other here, since we have not acted as a Council in this matter, but I, personally, endorse your stance, your decision, and the thoughtfulness with which you presented it. On behalf of myself and my wife, I thank you."
Everyone in the room must have been holding his breath, as I was, waiting for Julius Terrix to make his pronouncement, for as soon as his thanks were uttered the entire circle of men were on their feet, cheering my father in a way that I had never heard before. I crossed to his side, my heart swelling with pride and affection, and offered him my hand, and only the steely pressure of his fingers on my arm betrayed how relieved he was by the general approval of his actions. I nodded to him and would have left him to his congratulations, but he retained his hold on my arm and pulled me aside.