LeFevre’s face flushed. “Forgive me. I do not wish to be uncivil. But regardless of what His Holiness has authorized, the removal of artifacts from Notre Dame would be regarded as a cardinal sin.”
“Let those without sin be the first to cast stones, Father. When Napoleon sacked Rome, he brought the entirety of the Vatican archives with him to France. More than three thousand chests’ worth.”
“At least Napoleon was a Christian,” LeFevre shot back. “He wanted nothing more than to be closer to Jesus Christ. Hitler’s reputation is quite different.”
Himmler crossed his left leg over his right before he spoke. “Had you read the fuhrer’s autobiography, you would know he was raised Catholic.”
“Judging by the way he has treated the Jews of France, I sincerely doubt that he can truly love Jesus Christ, who was himself a Jew.”
“Ah!” Himmler stood. “Yes. Precisely the problem. The matter of Jesus’ alleged race.”
LeFevre rose, wringing his hands. “There is no question of Jesus’ background, which is why your interest in possession of the relics confounds me.”
“I beg to differ. Scholars such as Dr. Seiler here have created new hope for Christianity in the Third Reich.”
“By what means? Dare I ask?”
“If I may,” Dr. Seiler interjected, clearing his throat. “Three years ago I embarked on an archeological expedition of the Middle East to discover whether Germanic people had served in the Roman army during biblical times. Significant evidence was found of Nordic influence, including a number of ancient sites where Germanic runes were present. And furthermore — ”
“We’ve no time for lectures,” Himmler interrupted. He removed his eyeglasses, and with a handkerchief from his pocket, leisurely wiped spots from the lenses. “To make a very long story short, our scholars at the Ahnenerbe have determined that Jesus of Nazareth is likely of Aryan descent.”
LeFevre’s eyes bulged. “Apparently your scholars have not even read the Bible!”
“Be honest,” Himmler said. “Two thousand years of interpretations and translations. Substantial amounts of prophecy omitted or missing. Even you must admit scripture cannot be trusted word for word.”
LeFevre paced the other side of the room. “Church doctrine is very clear. Jesus was borne of immaculate conception in Mary’s womb.”
Himmler reached inside his jacket pocket. Wolf saw a glint of metal and feared the worst. Alas, it was only a black-faced Doxa pocket watch with large white numerals. “The matter of Jesus’ divinity is not in question. Those who know me realize that I am quite open to the paranormal.”
“Paranormal? Divinity is hardly part of the occult!”
The reichsfuhrer did not raise his voice as he spoke and wound the watch. “You will admit that the Bible never specifically identifies Mary’s parents?” He gave the baffled priest only a moment to contemplate his question before continuing. “An expedition to Palestine revealed that German people were recruited into the Roman army a full century before Jesus’ birth. These divisions with high concentrations of Aryan soldiers occupied Nazareth and Galilee. Further, there is ample evidence that the non-Aryan populations were moved out of Nazareth and Galilee well before Mary’s birth. Do you follow me, priest?”
Father LeFevre’s hands were trembling. He bore the look of a man pushed to the edge of sanity. “I am trying.”
“The dissemination of genetic material, both willingly and by force, is an inevitable consequence of military occupation. Given the ethnic makeup of the Nazareth and Galilee, and the presence of young male soldiers in the vicinity, then Mary would be at least partially Aryan, if not fully Aryan.”
The priest shook his head. “What is the point of this conversation?”
“The point is that this war cannot last forever. Europe cannot sustain a protracted conflict. But imagine if the fuhrer could be persuaded to turn to Christ?”
Wolf felt dizzy. What was it that Nagel had said on the train? The success of Ahnenerbe research and operations will be directly proportional to the cultural strength of the German people.
“Consider it,” Himmler said. “If the fuhrer could embrace the notion of a Christian state, rooted in Germanic blood, the war could end tomorrow. Millions could be saved.”
Wolf struggled to contain his emotions. Until now he he’d had trouble reconciling Himmler’s passion for collecting Christian artifacts. He wondered if it was nothing less than a desire to bottle up the entire religion and lock it away. But now he realized that he had been wrong about that. Christianity was, in fact, central to the war strategy.
The priest brushed past Wolf. Despite the frigid temperatures within the room, he reeked of nervous perspiration. “Your slim theories about the rape and resettlement of the ancient Jews will prove nothing.”
“You underestimate German ambition. No one could have foreseen the invention of the V-2 rocket. A rocket that can reach London without a pilot! Just as our scientists have honed our powers of destruction, recent advancements in biological science may also expedite peace. For example, our researchers have studied nucleic acids called DNA for many decades. Are you familiar with the concept?”
“No.”
“DNA is nothing less than the genetic code with which living organisms are constructed.”
“Nonsense. God alone is the architect and creator.”
“Perhaps. But I am told that one day soon, the concept of using cranial measurements to determine ethnicity will be replaced by DNA examination of each individual. In the meantime, blood research is an acceptable intermediary step. Already, German physicians can determine paternity from simple blood tests. Our forensic investigators can determine guilt in murder cases with a growing degree of accuracy based on dried bloodstains. Even as we speak, a racial studies team at the University of Leipzig is working to harness the ability to perform blood and DNA tests on ancient bone fragments.”
Finally the priest could take no more. He opened a desk drawer and took a heavy set of keys from it. He took his lamp from the wall and opened the door. “You are wasting your time,” he sighed. “I will prove it to you.”
He went past Wolf and Lang toward a door at the far end of the landing.
“But the treasury is downstairs,” Dr. Seiler objected.
LeFevre shook his head as he inserted a key in the door. “The occupation has left France impoverished. Even the most devout Parisians may be far too hungry to ignore the treasury’s temptations.”
He entered the room and lit two additional lanterns, illuminating a windowless chamber crowded with glass enclosures displaying robes, various reliquaries, crucifixes, ancient Bibles and more. The collection was every bit as crowded as Himmler’s private museum — moreso, in fact — but had clearly been hastily assembled.
LeFevre set his lamp to the side and unlocked a large cabinet. He pulled from it an elaborate shrine constructed of bronze and glass that, judging by the grimace on the priest’s face, was quite heavy. It was 88 centimeters high, and the top was fashioned to resemble a royal crown encrusted with diamonds and other precious gems. The base was encircled by figurines, the most prominent of which was a likeness of St. Louis, sitting on a throne of lion’s head armrests, holding the Holy Crown in his hands. Himmler stood behind LeFevre as the priest first donned white gloves and then removed the top, setting it carefully aside. He reached inside and removed the transparent circular reliquary that held the braided holy thrushes. The thrushes were tied together with golden thread.
He turned and held it under the lantern’s illumination for Himmler and Seiler to examine. “As you can well see,” LeFevre said, “There are no thorns in the crown. It is a forgery. You have wasted your time, professor.”
Wolf and Lang shared a glance. The priest was clearly lying. The papal document that Himmler had brought with him, clearing the transfer of the relics to Germany, would not be enough to convince the priest to let them go without a fight.