And there shall be no more death

[birthmural]

It had been some time since the Son of Satan felt the need to deliver a sermon, or rather since he was able to overcome his own fears. He knew he was a poor priest, at least when it came to guiding a congregation, but the people needed comfort. He only wished he could deliver. And so he held a service in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The reading was from Luke.

"While he [Jesus] was still speaking, someone arrived from the house of the synagogue official to say, 'Your daughter has died. Do not trouble the Master any further.' But Jesus had heard this, and he spoke to the man, 'Do not be afraid, only have faith and she will be safe'. When he came to the house he allowed no one to go in with him except Peter and John and James, and the child's father and mother. They were all weeping and mourning for her, but Jesus said, 'Stop crying; she is not dead, but asleep'. But they laughed at him, knowing she was dead. But taking her by the hand he called to her, 'Child, get up'. And her spirit returned and she got up at once."

After the reading Daimon paused, gathering himself. He seemed to be on the verge of tears and he cleared his throat before speaking, softly at first but then gaining momentum.

He spoke of loss. The loss of crew members they had held dear, who had been taken before their time. The young girl in particular came to mind. And while he was inexperienced, the sermon itself was slightly above mediocre. At the very least, it came from the heart.

"Although they may seem gone to us, their spirits have also risen, called by the Lord. There is a life beyond this one. There is a place of light and truth, with beauties and wonders beyond what we know. Our friends, our loved ones, I tell you now that they are not dead, they are but sleeping and one day we shall all be reunited again in a world without pain or suffering." And then a curious thing happened. Daimon could no longer contain his tears. They fell silently down his face. "I'm sorry." He stammered and left the podium, overcome.

Comments

[foreseen-future.livejournal.com]

Nura enters the Church of the Holy Supulchre, dressed in her attire of tight jeans, a v-neck top, and flip-flops. When she hears the words spoken, she knows to quietly shut the door behind her, and then step aside with her voice kept down until the sermon was done. There hadn't really been churches in Metropolis...but Naltor, however, had been quite spiritual in its own way, so she knows her manners.

[birthmural]

Daimon took several minutes to compose himself before he slowly walked to the front of the church. He needed to at least attempt to give spiritual guidance to those in need. Or at the very least a kind word.

[foreseen-future.livejournal.com]

Nura sees the man come near and puts on a friendly smile. "Hello," she says.

[birthmural]

"Hello." Daimon replied. "May I help you?"

[foreseen-future.livejournal.com]

She pushes back a clump of hair over her shoulder, shaking her head. She doesn't really have anything that she needs help with (at least, not that she'd want to vocally voice or involve someone else in), although perhaps the man was asking her generally. "Not really."

She tightens her smile. "Though, that was a lovely sermon."

[birthmural]

"I- thank you." He couldn't quite hide the surprise in his voice. Had it been good? He was sure he was terrible at this. "I'm sorry. What is your name?"

[foreseen-future.livejournal.com]

"Nura Nal-Dox," the precog says with a smile.

[birthmural]

"Daimon Hellstrom." He said, offering a hand. "A pleasure to meet you."

[foreseen-future.livejournal.com]

She takes his offered hand and shakes it, still smiling. "Same to you, Mr. Hellstrom."

[fieldpromoted]

Trudy hadn't known there was a clergyman on the ship, but as soon as the network post had gone up about services in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre she had gone digging through her meager assortment to try and find something Church-appropriate. She knew that most of the people on the ship wouldn't give a damn, but Trudy had been raised Catholic, and old habits died hard.

It was strange to have mass without the bells and the incense, without the procession down the aisle, but Trudy - in her uniform, because nothing else was remotely formal enough - came and participated anyway.

When the sermon was over and the priest left the altar, overcome, Trudy pulled down the prayer bench and settled there, hands folded, her cross necklace cradled in her fingers. It would be a while before she moved.

Sorry for the delay

[birthmural]

Daimon initially gave Trudy time on her own, but as her stay lengthened, he quietly approached her. He didn't say anything yet. He didn't want to disturb her if she was deep in thought.

No worries

[fieldpromoted]

It wasn't really that she was deep in thought, it was that she was struggling to figure out the way to frame this so that she could accept it. Cassie had done a vital service for the ship - but she'd been barely old enough to make the decision for herself. Trudy sighed, releasing the cross and sitting back.

"Hey, Father," she said, folding up the prayer bench behind her. "Thanks for the service."

[birthmural]

"You are welcome. Although, I am not a priest. I left seminary before I was ordained. I am simply, to the best of my knowledge, the only person most qualified to hold church service."

[fieldpromoted]

Trudy rested her hand on the wood of the pew and dropped her cross back down to let it rest on her shirt. "You don't have to be a man of the cloth to be a man of the church," she said. "You did a good thing, I didn't know there was a church on board."

It comforted her in a very deep way that God was with her on the ship, and she would certainly be coming here more often.