"So, would you two be interested in having a look inside while I prepare for mass?" Frederico asked.
Bjorn nodded eagerly. "I'd love to have a look."
"And how about you?" Frederico asked, looking at Ante.
"Well, why not? It's not like we are in any rush or anything."
"So what are two uniformed men up to here in Lundby on a Sunday morning?" Frederico asked as the three headed up to the church.
"We're actually off duty," Ante explained. "We're only in uniform because we did not bother to change into civilian."
"Is that so? Well, the uniform looks nice and warm."
"And so does your suit," Ante replied politely.
"Thanks. It is a wool suit, as you can see. Just the thing for the kind of weather we get up here."
Frederico opened the heavy oak door to the church, letting Bjorn and Ante in before him.
"It's a nice little church, you got here," Bjorn said as they stepped into the aisle. "And there's your throne up there, I see."
"His throne, you mean," Frederico corrected. "It symbolizes the fact that no one can legally sit on a throne, except for Jesus."
"And are you expecting his arrival any time soon?" Ante asked playfully.
"Not physically, no," Frederico answered in earnest. "But in spirit, he never left. And in that respect, he's sitting there right now."
They walked up to the throne which was placed to the right of the altar, elaborately decorated with gold paint, flower patterns, and a red velvet cushion.
"The return of Jesus is not a physical return of Him in flesh and blood as many believe," Frederico explained. "Such a return is of course impossible, and will never happen. But the return of His spirit is not only possible, but happening everywhere as we speak. Every day, we see people turning away from the false prophets and returning to Jesus, and as they do so, they see clearly all the evils that are around them, and they stand up to it, and they refuse to take part in it."
Bjorn nodded, not fully understanding what Frederico was trying to say. But it sounded good, even quite convincing.
"And what exactly are these people seeing?" Bjorn asked, curious to hear if Frederico could explain the evils that he claimed to be everywhere.
"They see the false laws and the false prophets for what they are," Frederico explained.
"The laws that violate the Golden Rule?" Bjorn asked.
"Exactly! And the agents enforcing this evil, the false prophets. It's all in the Bible. Mattheu 7:12 to be exact."
"It is?"
"It is indeed," Frederico said with a smile. Then, quoting the passage in the Bible, he added "Therefore all things whatever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."
"And?"
"Well, there you are," Frederico concluded confidently. "We either adhere to the Golden Rule, or we don't. If we do, we embrace the law and the prophets. And if we don't we are obeying false laws and false prophets. It's either or. You can't have it both ways."
"And that is basically what you preach in this church?" Bjorn asked.
"It is indeed. That is why this church is called the Church of the Golden Rule. We embrace the golden rule completely, and we invite people to join us. First by bringing them into the empire. And then, once His law has been fully embraced, we proceed to His kingdom where we can find eternal piece and forgiveness."
Bjorn nodded impressed. "It makes perfect sense," he noted. "So are you going to push a Bible on us now, or do you have other plans?"
"No, no. That's not how we do things here. It is entirely up to you to embrace this or not. I'm just telling you how to proceed."
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