Soul Matters: Book 4, Monocracy Managerie

The next scene Phil found himself in, as the challenge they faced fast-forwarded, was on Mt. Sinai. He -- as Manas -- was trudging uphill with a sizeable group of elders. Moses was in the lead. His robe was off-white and a dark cloak over-shadowed it, whipping about as Moses jerked his way towards destiny.

Morrigan’s presence cat-footed into Phil’s awareness. She spoke, “He has what it takes. He’s single-minded and blessed with god-madness. Of course, he never sets foot in the true Promised Land of Enlightenment. But who of the Patriarchs did?”

The Green Man, ever the quiet counter-part to Morrigan, spoke, “The battle begins. The Elohim refuses the Israelites; Yahweh welcomes them. You must see what is to come with spiritual eyes, my son. To normal humans, it is smoke and fire, and a sapphire-paved road.”

It was early morning on Mt. Sinai. The sun had yet to breach the final walls of darkness. Sapphire-hued clouds were the stepping-stones for the Divine encounter.

“Remember Mamre,” Morrigan said after a long moment. “El Shaddai ate lunch with Abram. Well, here we have the Elohim and Yahweh coming to breakfast with 72 elders of Israel, Moses and Aaron. It is Moses’ fervent hope Aton will prevail in this encounter, but he is a no-show.”

Green Man added, “It is for Moses to rescue mankind from the excesses of polytheism. He knows this from his training in the mystery schools. The more gods there are, the less man can develop; the fewer gods, the more room for human development.”

The elders seated themselves on a rocky flat. They were barely a third of the way up the mountain. Manas fell in with his friends, and they wrapped themselves tight in their cloaks against the chill.

Manas spoke in a soft tone to the others, “What magician trick is he up to now?”

Judah replied, “He has called in the gods.”

They looked toward the figure of Moses, arms out-stretched, beseeching the morning sun for guidance.

“Will any come?” Simon queried with a tremor in his voice.

“Who knows,” Manas responded.

Aaron stood back-to-back with Moses and appeared to be calling in spirits from the opposite direction as Moses.

“Now what’s he up to?” Judah wondered. No one answered.

As the sun broke the horizon, a roaring began in the air. Phil knew it was more than diurnal winds responding to a warming atmosphere. Something supernatural was afoot.

When the sun was clear of the horizon, a lurid vermillion orb pulsing with power approached, and six gods appeared from its shimmering center.

“I see them,” Judah said breathless.

“See who?” Simon asked.

Manas responded, “There’s something there.”

Phil could see Aton through Manas’ eyes; so could Pastor Mike through Judah’s. Donna probably could see the shimmering shapes of the gods, but Simon could not.

Morrigan spoke, “You see what you believe exists. It’s what the Buddhists mean when they teach, ‘Thoughts are things.’ You know the gods exist, Virgnous. Therefore, you can see us. This man’s brain registers the data, but his mind doesn’t fully know what to do with the figure of Aton.”

The Elohim, Phil knew, were seven solar gods that helped shape the solar system. He knew a couple of names as well: El Elyon, El Olam, El Roi, and El Shaddai. El Shaddai, though, had stayed on as a moon god while the others retreated.

The Elohim paused before Moses, who prostrated himself. The rest of the company of elders did likewise.

“We are the Lord, your God. Let there be none others,” they intoned.

Another deafening roar of wind was the response, and El Shaddai appeared out of the wind.

“You are on my mountain,” El Shaddai told them. “The local tribes -- indeed, Moses’ tribe -- is welcome. You, on the other hand, are not.”

The battle began. Fire bolts arced between them. The pungent smell of burning bushes filled the air. The elders scurried for cover. Moses, though, stood his ground.

“Enough!” he called to the gods.

They stopped and stared at him. Presently, El Shaddai, adorned in white and gray robes and sporting a mane of thick white hair, said in a pensive voice, “We are competing for your favor. There must be a better way.”

“I will kill them all,” the Elohim threatened. “If we cannot claim them, no one will.”

“I will not raise my hand against the leaders of Israel,” El Shaddai countered. “Let us eat and drink with them, Lord Aton. Let them choose between us.”

Moses approached, and El Shaddai said, “I revealed myself to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as El Shaddai, but was not known to them by my true name, Yahweh. From now on, you shall know me as Yahweh.”

Simon’s tremulous voice was close to Manas’ ear, “What is happening?”

Manas didn’t know how to answer. Phil prompted him to say, “They want us to choose between them.”

“They who?”

“The Elohim and El Shaddai,” Manas said, his mind still under Phil’s influence. He continued, “Our belief and worship is what gives them life. They need us.”

“No, no,” Simon retorted. “They give us life. All we are we owe to the gods.”

“And if the gods don’t deliver? If the gods allow us to be defeated in battle? Then what, Simon? Then we abandon them and take our prayers and sacrifices to a different god.”

Simon craggy face wrinkled in thought. The other elders within hearing became pensive as well. Then Moses’ voice brought their attention back to the divine drama.

“The Hebrews have always believed in One God,” he spoke with intensity. “Since the time of Joseph, the One God lived in Egypt until finally the Hebrews knew his name -- Aton. The new Pharaohs lost faith by enslaving us, and the Hebrews are returning to Canaan. We are taking our One God, Aton, with us.”

The crowd of elders murmured among themselves as Moses paced the plateau before them.

Yahweh ambled forward and Moses stepped back. Yahweh addressed them, “What separates man from the gods? Death. For those who step across the boundary, they step across their own graves to enter the realms of pure Being. Aton brings you death. El Mot is your god of death. He is of the Elohim, and he brings you the firm boundaries to make the people one nation, a strong unified nation.”

Yahweh strode with graceful artistry before them, and his gestures brought images to their minds of how they already moved as one people. Yahweh then said, “I knew Moses in Midian. I called him to bring you home to the God of your fathers. He confused me with Aton and I decided to slay him. Now I am glad I did not. Israel needs the boundary of death Aton represents. Still,” Yahweh paused for a long moment, “Israel also needs to cherish life. Thou shalt not kill is, and always was, the price for the Blessing of Abraham.”

The elders, once again, began to murmur among themselves. Manas was totally confused, as were those around him. Yahweh spoke in riddles: death, boundaries, life, no killing, the Blessing. What was the connection? What was Yahweh’s point?

“The point is balance,” Phil tried to drive into Manas’ mind.

“No good,” Morrigan told him. “You’ll have to focus yourself deeper than his mind, Virgnous.”

Frustrated, Phil focused on what was happening on the plateau. The Elohim was moving forward.

“If we cannot have them,” they said in one voice, “no one will have them.”

“We can both have them,” Yahweh answered dismissively. Then he softened his manner to say, “You can have them in the way only you can. I can give them the Blessing. We must merge. None of us is full enough to contain the needs of these people. They will grow into a mighty nation, and they will need our combined strength to sustain them.”

“They may not be seduced by other gods, nor eat at their sacrificial feasts, nor mingle with their daughters,” the Elohim said. Phil took his statement to mean they were agreeing with Yahweh.

“And I,” Yahweh intoned, “will disperse a nation in their path, broaden their roads and borders. In return, they will come together three times a year to worship.”

Moses was as confused as the rest of the elders, Phil could see. The logic the gods operated from was vastly different than that of mortal man.

Moses asked them, “What are we to do?”

Yahweh turned to him, “Follow us up the mountain. Bring two tablets. One is for the word of the Elohim. They are sun gods with Aton and Ra, and you know their laws from the Egyptians: do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness. One tablet is for my law, which is to honor life. Send the elders back to camp.”

The scene shifted again, fast-forwarding through the mundane days of awaiting Moses’ return.

When Phil could see through Manas’ eyes again, the golden calf Ihy was adorned for the Spring fertility festival, which was in full swing. Manas, Simon, and Judah were sitting around a fire. Wine gourds were at their feet.

Phil was able to seize control of Manas’ soggy mind and speak, “Donna, Pastor Mike, are you there?”

“I am,” they each responded.

Then the angelic voice of Manuel penetrated the gloom, “So am I. You’ve got about an hour before Moses gets here.”

Morrigan’s voice bumped in and spoke through Manas, “What’s an angel doing here?”

“I’m helping,” Manuel answered.

“Some help,” the Green Man observed. “Weren’t you supposed to be the Angel of the Lord inspiring Aaron to wait?”

“That was then,” Manuel pouted. “This is now.”

“Wait a minute,” Donna interjected. “You are responsible for this orgy?”

“No. Well, maybe. They’ve been waiting here for a month. The full moon was up. What was one more spring festival? I didn’t know Moses would get so upset.”

Morrigan’s tone was dripping disdain, “It’s as though the bridegroom leaves the wedding to go a-whoring. They are breaking the Covenant with Yahweh.”

The rebuke rolled off Manuel who answered, “It’s just a little party.”

“Yeah,” Phil interjected, “one we get killed over.”

“Hopefully, not this time,” Manuel chirped back. Then he added, “Remember, the big thing with Yahweh, especially after the assimilation of the sun god -- whoever those might all be -- is contempt. There is no unforgivable sin except contempt.”

Pastor Mike observed, “It’s the same as denying the Holy Spirit.”

“Right,” Manuel confirmed. “With contempt, you deny Divinity and enshrine the Flesh.”

“Isn’t this little bacchanal just that?” Donna challenged.

“Not at all,” Manuel replied. “They’re honoring Balaath -- the Divine Feminine. Moses took it all wrong.”

“Is this what gets us killed?” Phil asked. “We tried to get Moses to see reason?”

“I can’t say,” Manuel answered. “I probably already said too much. I better go. Good luck.”

Silence met this announcement. Phil turned his attention inward.

“Morrigan, how do I influence Manas to see what you said? This party is a betrayal of the Covenant.”

“I don’t think he knows the Covenant extends to him,” Morrigan answered. “In the past, it was only passed down to the Patriarchs. They were bound to El Shaddai -- not the people.”

“So he doesn’t know,” Phil summarized. “But he must be made to know.”

“If you are to survive,” Morrigan said, “yes.”

Green Man spoke, “Male power is simple, my son. It’s loyalty, justice, and mercy. Yahweh now embodies each of these attributes. Manas must embrace them.”

“But how?”

“I don’t know,” Green Man said.

Phil’s frustration returned and he focused on the others. The fire was dying down, and the elders were curling around it wrapped in their robes.

He said, “See if you can get into their dreams and scare them with visions of an angry Aton.”

“Okay,” Donna answered. “Ishtar said she would show me how.”

Pastor Mike concurred, and Phil went to work summoning a dream for Manas. It was a particularly gruesome dream Phil hoped would work.

Too soon, the sound of a raging Moses broke through the sweet sound of the last lyre.

“What have you done?!” Moses demanded, and the stone tablets crashing asunder accentuated his words.

Aaron rose to calm his raging brother with, “You’re alive. Thank God, Moses. We thought you died up there.”

Manas and the others rolled over to face the commotion.

“Moses is back,” Judah muttered as he awakened and pushed himself into a seated position.

“He missed the party,” Simon chuckled as he sat up and pulled a blanket around his shoulders.

Moses’ fit of rage continued. He overturned the bull-calf. He kicked sleeping couples. Aaron scurried beside him saying, “Do not be consumed in anger’s flames. Yahweh cannot be served if you melt in his sun. The people merely sought comfort in the Spring festival. We are in Balaath’s valley. They only sought to honor her.”

“Get them up,” Moses demanded. “It must be decided right now. Who will stand with the One God, and who will perish?”

Moses’ bodyguard was quick to act. They fanned out through the sleeping crowd and roughly brought everyone nearby, which included the elders, to stand before Moses. The final Patriarch perched himself above them on a jutting rock. A quickly kindled fire beside him cast his stocky frame in dancing shadows and firelight.

“The sons of Levi are with me,” Moses shouted. “All those who oppose me will die at their hands.”

“For what reason?” someone shouted back.

“Did the elders not tell you?” Moses stormed.

“Tell us what?”

Moses commanded, “Bring the elders to me.”

As the elders shuffled forwards, Manas whispered to Simon, “What an arrogant ass. Does he think he can bully us all?”

The comment scared Phil. Manas was ready to confront Moses on his attitude rather than on principle. Phil frantically searched for leverage in Manas’ mind.

Morrigan spoke to him, “In later times, the Jewish people consider Moses the first Prophet and the 72 elders as sharing in the prophetic landscape.”

“How so?”

“They all saw God,” was Morrigan’s reply.

“Not everyone who sees God comes away with the same conclusions,” Phil observed.

“No,” Morrigan agreed. “Each to his own, and each within his own worldview. Manas is struggling towards a higher estate, though.”

“Can you calm him down?” Phil wondered.

“Of course,” Morrigan answered. In moments, an oozing maternal warmth flowed into Phil and into Manas as well. Manas sighed deeply and stood with respect before the unquiet Moses.

“You witnessed it,” Moses was saying to them. “The One God spoke to us and we made a pact. As vassals to a lord, we have a covenant. With this covenant, the world we live in finally makes sense. Our God created the world by separating the elements. He separated us from other men to be his Chosen people. He has left us the task of maintaining the order in creation.”

This prologue captured the elders’ attention. As Moses noted the studied silence, he calmed down somewhat and continued, “Our God is a ‘living’ God. He rules over all life. In the beginning he allowed us to eat only the fruit of the earth. We couldn’t kill animals for food. After the Flood, he allowed us flesh, but only those with cloven hooves. Can you see this is one way we enforce the order of creation?”

“Not really,” one elder answered. “I understand blood is life, and blood is forbidden because of it. I do not see the difference between the animals. Nor do I understand God’s insistence on these things. Did he explain it when you were on the mountain?”

“Yes, he did,” Moses answered in an excited voice. “Predators are unclean because they feed on all living things. Those animals living mixed lives -- who live in the water and on the land -- are unclean because they violate the order of life. In all hybrids, there is disorder, chaos. God’s law reminds us of our obligations to Divine order, to Divine balance.”

Manas was slowly becoming irritated by Moses’ monologue. Phil sought to keep him calm, but the elder finally blurted out, “And what of the Elohim and the Elim, Moses? How do they fit into Yahweh’s scheme?”

“Or is it Aton?” Simon added. “Which ‘one god’ is Israel’s god. With whom do we have a covenant?”

These questions started the whole group of elders talking. In the confusion, Phil turned inward for understanding.

Green Man said, “The Elohim are sun gods that different people know by different names: Aton, Ra, Apollo and others. The Elim are the lesser gods, like Balaath. Both come from the north. Yahweh-El Shaddai comes from the south. The people have yet to envision En Sof -- the Great Mystery, which lies behind all the masks of God. The priests see it, but the people don’t.”

“We’re going to get ourselves killed over a semantic misunderstanding?” Phil was incredulous.

“It would seem so, my son,” Green Man replied. “To them, though, it’s truly a question of significance. They want to worship the right god.”

Morrigan broke in, “What they don’t know is this is the last time the gods will ever walk the earth with the Jewish people. Their religion evolves to a new level with Moses. When Yahweh and the Elohim reunite, and the Covenant is secure, there is a new way to God. No longer will people invite the gods into statues. Instead they will invite God into their hearts. And the idea of the One God becomes more important than his name.”

“We’re road-kill in the shift,” Phil observed. “Manas, Simon and Judah, as well as many others, stand in the way of evolution, and Moses runs them over.”

“To give them all a higher sense of order and balance,” Green Man observed.

Phil, though, was not happy about the higher gains mankind achieved because of this night. He was worried about his skin.