ntion to
them; I just pray straight up."

"I don't understand praying to God in the House of Baal. `Thou shalt
not make unto thee any graven image.'"

"But they say the Church has loosed that command now. And of course we
can't set ourselves up above the Church."

"What on earth do you mean? Art thou God, to kill and to make alive,
that thou shouldst style the keeping of His command `setting one's self
above the Church?' The Church shall never guide me, if she speak
contrary to God."

"But how can she, when God inspires her?"

"There is another question I want settled first. How can I believe that
God inspires her, when I see that she contradicts His distinct
commands?"

"I suppose the priest would say that was very wicked."

"What do I care for that popinjay? How did _you_ get over it? Had you
no sensation of horror, when you were required to bow down to those
stocks and stones?"

"Well, no," said Christian, speaking very slowly. "I believed what
Gerard had taught us, and--"

"When did Gerhardt ever teach you that rubbish?"

"He never did," answered David. "The priests taught us that. And I did
find it main hard to swallow at first."

"Ah! I'm afraid I shall find it too hard to swallow at last. But there
is nothing of all that in this book."

"I know nought about books. But of course the Church must know the
truth," responded David uneasily.

"This is the truth," answered Countess, laying her hand upon the book.
"But if this be, that is not. David--Ruth--I believe as you do in Jesus
Christ of Nazareth: but I believe in no gilded images nor priestly lies.
I shall take my religion from His words, not from them. I should like
to be baptised, if it mean to confess Him before men; but if it only
mean to swallow the priests' fables, and to kneel before gods that
cannot hear nor save, I will have none of it. As the Lord liveth,
before whom I stand, I will never bow down to the work of men's hands!"

She had risen and stood before them, a grand figure, with hands clenched
and eyes on fire. Christian shrank as if alarmed. David spoke in a
regretful tone.

"Well! I thought that way myself for a while. But they said. I
couldn't be a Christian if I did not go to church, and attend the holy
mass. The Church had the truth, and God had given it to her: so I
thought I might be mistaken, and I gave in. I've wondered sometimes
whether I did right."

"If that be what baptism means--to put my s