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Authors: Tim Lahaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
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wondered, might one or two meaningful connections with adults dull her pain?
Marilena had sat in the back next to her sulking husband. When Viviana Ivinisova began her routine, Sorin never even looked up. And when it came time for the darkness and the candle, Marilena could tell he was dozing.
She herself was more skeptical that second meeting, fighting to detect generalizations and tricks as Ms. Ivinisova told the past, predicted the future, and seemed to read minds. Sitting in the back proved propitious, as Marilena was able to read body language and group dynamics. People were buying this, no doubt. But she steeled herself against being swayed as she had been the week before.
Until Viviana caught her eye.
Was it just Marilena’s imagination, or was Viviana returning her gaze every few moments? The woman didn’t appear to look at anyone else. Oh, she faked it. People in the second or third row likely thought Viviana was looking directly at someone in the fourth or fifth row or farther back. But Marilena could tell that she was looking between people and at the back wall, sometimes at the ceiling.
That was not unusual for teachers and public speakers. Marilena had been taught that a professor was supposed to maintain eye contact with various students. But she happened to be one who found that disconcerting and distracting, so she faked it.
Viviana appeared largely to be faking it too, except when she greeted newcomers or interacted with someone who admitted that he or she had gotten a message from the great beyond about them personally. And when she looked directly into Marilena’s eyes.
She kept trying to tell herself she was imagining it, that being eight rows back she couldn’t really know. But she could. Did Viviana detect Marilena’s skepticism, or was she trying to reach her because it was obvious her husband was a lost cause? Did the woman see something in Marilena?
“In the remaining moments,” Viviana said, “I have two messages to convey.” First she spoke for more than five minutes on misconceptions about the spirit world, concluding, “Many of you are familiar with the Bible and what it says about clairvoyance, fortune-telling, and evil spirits. I merely want to remind you that this represents only one view and is, in my opinion, neither valid nor representative of the majority of the best thinking on the subject. For our purposes, we must remain open to the views of most spiritually sensitive people. We believe that while there are negative spirits, not all should be considered enemies of God. And—and I beg your indulgence to think this through if you happen to be a believer in God and that the Bible is His message to mankind—it does not necessarily hold that opposing God is sin.”
Marilena had no idea how many in the room might be people of faith. Romania, she knew from history, had been swept through eons of varying views on the subject of God. From paganism through Catholicism to Orthodoxy to the atheism attendant with Communist rule, the nation seemed to have settled into a secular humanism that tolerated pockets of quaint and ancient churches of varying stripes. Regardless of where someone stood on belief in God, most had at least a cursory understanding of religious teachings. God was the supreme being benevolent or judgmental depending on your denominational preference—and His adversary was the devil.
Now Viviana Ivinisova seemed to be asking that everyone, regardless of their religious beliefs or lack thereof, consider an alternative. “I’ll get deeper into this in the coming weeks,” she said. “But for now, allow yourself to consider that if there is a God, it would be to His advantage to make a sinner out of someone who threatens Him. Especially if that opponent happened to be right. Maybe it is not a sin to presume upon God’s exclusive right to preeminence. I know that is a revolutionary concept, so mull it over and keep an open mind for when we get back to
Marilena had sat in the back next to her sulking husband. When Viviana Ivinisova began her routine, Sorin never even looked up. And when it came time for the darkness and the candle, Marilena could tell he was dozing.
She herself was more skeptical that second meeting, fighting to detect generalizations and tricks as Ms. Ivinisova told the past, predicted the future, and seemed to read minds. Sitting in the back proved propitious, as Marilena was able to read body language and group dynamics. People were buying this, no doubt. But she steeled herself against being swayed as she had been the week before.
Until Viviana caught her eye.
Was it just Marilena’s imagination, or was Viviana returning her gaze every few moments? The woman didn’t appear to look at anyone else. Oh, she faked it. People in the second or third row likely thought Viviana was looking directly at someone in the fourth or fifth row or farther back. But Marilena could tell that she was looking between people and at the back wall, sometimes at the ceiling.
That was not unusual for teachers and public speakers. Marilena had been taught that a professor was supposed to maintain eye contact with various students. But she happened to be one who found that disconcerting and distracting, so she faked it.
Viviana appeared largely to be faking it too, except when she greeted newcomers or interacted with someone who admitted that he or she had gotten a message from the great beyond about them personally. And when she looked directly into Marilena’s eyes.
She kept trying to tell herself she was imagining it, that being eight rows back she couldn’t really know. But she could. Did Viviana detect Marilena’s skepticism, or was she trying to reach her because it was obvious her husband was a lost cause? Did the woman see something in Marilena?
“In the remaining moments,” Viviana said, “I have two messages to convey.” First she spoke for more than five minutes on misconceptions about the spirit world, concluding, “Many of you are familiar with the Bible and what it says about clairvoyance, fortune-telling, and evil spirits. I merely want to remind you that this represents only one view and is, in my opinion, neither valid nor representative of the majority of the best thinking on the subject. For our purposes, we must remain open to the views of most spiritually sensitive people. We believe that while there are negative spirits, not all should be considered enemies of God. And—and I beg your indulgence to think this through if you happen to be a believer in God and that the Bible is His message to mankind—it does not necessarily hold that opposing God is sin.”
Marilena had no idea how many in the room might be people of faith. Romania, she knew from history, had been swept through eons of varying views on the subject of God. From paganism through Catholicism to Orthodoxy to the atheism attendant with Communist rule, the nation seemed to have settled into a secular humanism that tolerated pockets of quaint and ancient churches of varying stripes. Regardless of where someone stood on belief in God, most had at least a cursory understanding of religious teachings. God was the supreme being benevolent or judgmental depending on your denominational preference—and His adversary was the devil.
Now Viviana Ivinisova seemed to be asking that everyone, regardless of their religious beliefs or lack thereof, consider an alternative. “I’ll get deeper into this in the coming weeks,” she said. “But for now, allow yourself to consider that if there is a God, it would be to His advantage to make a sinner out of someone who threatens Him. Especially if that opponent happened to be right. Maybe it is not a sin to presume upon God’s exclusive right to preeminence. I know that is a revolutionary concept, so mull it over and keep an open mind for when we get back to
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