Excerpt: The Heart of Aladon

“For far too long the government of Aladon has desecrated us, has desecrated our bodies and our souls. We have been used, we have been befouled, and it ends now.” Father Palmer had a hypnotic voice, almost unaffected by the distance and static of radio.
“’Sacred is the body, and sacred you shall make it’, our bishops teach. ‘In our body resides our soul, and the house of the soul shall be pure too, a blessing on the base earth.’ Brothers and sisters, tell me then, tell me how sacred the government considers our body. Tell me how much the government and the energy industry revere their bodies, vessels for the holy soul, vessels for their link to the Lord our God, when they destroy our bodies to power this city of sin?”
An uneasy murmur rippled through the gathered officers. Some sounded angry. How dare he, they seemed to say. How dare he?
A brief pause on the radio as Father Palmer paused to let his words sink in.
“Our hearts are as much a part of our body as our hands, the hands we use to pray to the Lord, as our tongues, the tongues we use to sing praise of God’s almighty power, as our ears, our ears with which we hear his righteous words!” Another pause, more murmurs. “Why then, brothers and sisters, are our hearts removed from us at death? Why do our leaders find it necessary to go against the Lord our God and take away our hearts, our hearts which beat with the love for the Lord? Why are our sacred hearts used for the dirty, common purpose of powering this city?”
At this Elbury growled and gripped the arms of his chair tightly.
“‘Whole and pure in soul ye shall be at the gates of the Kingdom,’ it is written. Whole in soul, but not in body? Will we be accepted into the Kingdom without a heart, without which we cannot love? Brothers and sisters, this government is rebelling against God Himself!”
“Nutjob!” one of the officers roared, and others responded in kind. Elbury said nothing, but continued to look livid. James’s brow was furrowed as he tapped a nail against his teeth.
“And so, citizens of Aladon and true believers in the Lord Almighty, I implore you: rebel. Defy your leaders, defy the practices this city is built on, and obey the word of God, for only with a whole and pure body, a body as unblemished as our souls, may we reach Heaven.
“This afternoon, the members of the order of the Righteous Heart will be holding a demonstration on Wellsworth Street in the Fourth District. True believers, we urge you to attend and join us in our glorious work in unmaking this city of lies and sin. Farewell, brothers and sisters, and may God bless you and cherish you.”