Then they heard a cry rise from the crowd before the Court of Justice--at first difficult to distinguish, but ever clearer. The people were crying “Crucify! Crucify!” “Is that not too severe, regarded as a punishment?” said Caiaphas. “No,” answered the Levite; “one of his disciples called Simon or Peter drew his sword and wounded one of the servants called Malchus.” “Do we need any more witnesses?” “But the Teacher said, ‘Put up thy sword into its sheath, for they that take the sword, shall perish with the sword.’” “That is a difficult saying,” said Annas, and went down. But the people continued to cry, “Crucify! Crucify!” THE WILD BEAST Before the temple of Jupiter Latiaris in Rome, two men of the middle classes met each other. They both remained standing in order to contemplate the new temple, which was different from all others, and looked as if it had felt the effects of an earthquake. The basement had the shape of a roof; the columns stood reversed with their capitals below, and the roof was constructed like a basement with cellar-windows. “So we meet here again, Hebrew,” said one of the two, who resembled a Roman merchant. “Was it not in Joppa that we last met?” “Yes,” answered the Hebrew. “One meets the Roman everywhere; he is at home everywhere; one also meets the Hebrew everywhere, but he is at home nowhere. But tell me, whose temple is this?” “This is the Temple of the Wild Beast, the Emperor Caligula, the madman, the murderer, the incestuous. He has erected it to himself; his image stands within; and the madman comes every day to worship himself.” So saying, the Roman made a sign on his forehead, moving the forefinger of his right hand first from above, below, and then from left to right. The Hebrew looked at him in astonishment. “Are you not a Roman?” “Yes, I am a Roman Christian.” “Where do you live?” “Here under Rome, in the catacombs.” He pointed to a hole in the ground, which resembled those that led down to the cloacae. “Do you live here under the ground?” “Yes, that is where we Christians live; there we lie like seed in the earth, and germinate.” “Those are grave-vaults down there.” “Yes, we are buried with Christ, and await the resurrection.” “Have you a temple down there?” “We have our religious service there, and to-day we celebrate the birth of Christ.” “Someone is coming down the street,” said the Hebrew. The Roman opened the trap-door in the ground in order to descend. From below the sounds of a choral hymn were heard. “The City hath no need of the moon, neither of the sun, for the glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” “Who is the Lamb?” asked the Hebrew. “Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of the World.” “Do you think the world is redeemed, while this mad Caligula....” “The world will be redeemed, if we continue to hope.” “You have, then, taken the promise away from Israel?” “No, we have inherited the promise, for Christ was of the stock of Israel.”