PAPHNUTIUS
SCENE I
DISCIPLES.[1] Why do you look so gloomy, father Paphnutius? Why do you not smile at us as usual?
PAPHNUTIUS. When the heart is sad the face clouds over. It is only natural.
DISCIPLES. But why are you sad?
PAPHNUTIUS. I grieve over an injury to my Creator.
DISCIPLES. What injury?
PAPHNUTIUS. The injury His own creatures made in His very image inflict on Him.
DISCIPLES. Oh, father, your words fill us with fear! How can such things be?
PAPHNUTIUS. It is true that the impassible Majesty cannot be hurt by injuries. Nevertheless, speaking in metaphor, and as if God were weak with our weakness, what greater injury can we conceive than this—that while the greater world is obedient, and subject to His rule, the lesser world resists His guidance?
- ↑ When Paphnutius was acted, the dialogue of the "disciples" was allotted to several different actors, with the interesting result that some definite characters emerged.
