be virtuous, because virtue and love flow
from Christ, and because, when death closes my eyes, I shall find life
and happiness, I shall find myself and thee. Why not love and accept a
religion which both speaks the truth and destroys death? Who would
not prefer good to evil? I thought thy religion opposed to happiness;
meanwhile Paul has convinced me that not only does it not take away, but
that it gives. All this hardly finds a place in my head; but I feel that
it is true, for I have never been so happy, neither could I be, had I
taken thee by force and possessed thee in my house. Just see, thou hast
said a moment since, 'I love thee,' and I could not have won these words
from thy lips with all the might of Rome. O Lygia! Reason declares this
religion divine, and the best; the heart feels it, and who can resist
two such forces?"

Lygia listened, fixing on him her blue eyes, which in the light of the
moon were like mystic flowers, and bedewed like flowers.

"Yes, Marcus, that is true!" said she, nestling her head more closely to
his shoulder.

And at that moment they felt immensely happy, for they understood
that besides love they were united by another power, at once sweet
and irresistible, by which love itself becomes endless, not subject to
change, deceit, treason, or even death. Their hearts were filled with
perfect certainty that, no matter what might happen, they would not
cease to love and belong to each other. For that reason an unspeakable
repose flowed in on their souls. Vinicius felt, besides, that that love
was not merely profound and pure, but altogether new,--such as the world
had not known and could not give. In his head all was combined in this
love,--Lygia, the teaching of Christ, the light of the moon resting
calmly on the cypresses, and the still night,--so that to him the whole
universe seemed filled with it.

After a while he said with a lowered and quivering voice: "Thou wilt be
the soul of my soul, and the dearest in the world to me. Our hearts will
beat together, we shall have one prayer and one gratitude to Christ. O
my dear! To live together, to honor together the sweet God, and to know
that when death comes our eyes will open again, as after a pleasant
sleep, to a new light,--what better could be imagined? I only marvel
that I did not understand this at first. And knowest thou what occurs
to me now? That no one can resist this religion. In two hundred or
three hundred years the whole worl