as--which does not bear within itself the germ of
redemption. Evil contributes to the ultimate salvation of men, and, in
that respect issues from Good, and shares the merits belonging to
Good. This has been admirably expressed by the Christians, in the myth
concerning the man with red hair, who, in order to betray his master,
gave him the kiss of peace, and by such act assured the salvation of
men. Therefore, nothing is, in my opinion, more unjust and absurd than
the hate with which certain disciples of Paul, the tentmaker, pursue
the most unfortunate of the apostles of Jesus without realising that the
kiss of Iscariot--prophesied by Jesus Himself--was necessary, according
to their own doctrine, for the redemption of men, and that if Judas
had not received the thirty pieces, the divine wisdom would have been
impugned, Providence frustrated, its designs upset, and the world given
over to evil, ignorance, and death.

MARCUS. Divine wisdom foresaw that Judas, though he was not obliged
to give the traitor's kiss, would give it, notwithstanding. It thus
employed the sin of Iscariot as a stone in the marvellous edifice of the
redemption.

ZENOTHEMIS. I spoke just now, Marcus, as though I believed that the
redemption of men had been accomplished by Jesus crucified, because I
know that such is the belief of the Christians, and I borrowed their
opinion that I might the better show the mistake of those who believe in
the eternal damnation of Judas. But, in reality, Jesus was, in my eyes,
but the precursor of Basilides and Valentinus. As to the mystery of the
redemption, I will tell you, my dear friends--if you are at all curious
to hear it--how it was really accomplished on earth.

The guests made a sign of assent. Like the Athenian virgins with the
baskets sacred to Ceres, twelve young girls, bearing on their heads
baskets filled with pomegranates and apples, entered the room with a
light step, in time to the music of an invisible flute. They placed
the baskets on the table, the flute ceased, and Zenothemis spoke as
follows--

"When Eunoia, 'the thought of God,' had created the world, she confided
the government of the earth to the angels. But they did not preserve
the dispassion befitting masters. Seeing that the daughters of men were
fair, they surprised them in the evening by the wellside, and united
themselves to them. From these unions sprang a turbulent race, who
covered the earth with injustice and cruelty, and the du