A Saving Cup

A Saving Cup

Simon and his new brothers landed in Egypt after enduring bad weather and abuse from the crew of the ship. The crowd at the dock looked at them suspiciously. Simon steered them to the far end of the pier to wait while he helped the crew unload the cargo. Eli, the youngest of the group, pitched in to help, and the captain complained when he paid him a small wage. But that gave them a bit of money to travel until they found other Christians to help them while they spread the good news.

The captain looked at Simon and asked, “Why is a Roman soldier hiding among Christian beggars?”

Simon leaned in, “Because that’s what I am now. You did not have a soldier on your ship.” He gave the man an unwavering stare and shook his hand in a vice-like grip. When he turned loose, part of his pay was still in the captain’s hand.

“I only carried Christians,” he answered.

Samuel, their leader, scolded Eli. “We don’t want to attract so much attention.”

“I thought that was our whole mission,” said Eli. “You can’t keep the word under a bushel.”

“I think he just wants us to be more careful when we choose our audience. At least until we get off this dock,” said Josiah, looking at the sailors and merchants staring at them.

He nodded politely as they took their leave. “God be with you all.”

The crowd laughed as they hurried away.

Simon walked slower than the others. “Why did we scurry away like mice?” he asked Samuel.

“Because we want to survive long enough to get the message to the next town. I know you are new to this, and I admire your zeal. But our audience was not there.”

“Where are we going?”

“Heliopolis,” said Eli, coming up beside Simon. “We have friends there. Then, we will decide which routes each group will take towards the coast.”

“Each group? We won’t all stay together?”

“No, we need to cover as much country as possible. And, the Romans don’t look twice at two or three men. Fifteen makes them suspicious.”

“They certainly do,” said Simon.

Eli stopped walking. “Why do you say it that way?”

“I’ve seen how they act in crowds, that’s all.”

Simon glanced over his shoulder and dropped to the back of the group. After a few minutes, Eli dropped back to walk with him. “What are you watching?”

“It looks like someone is already suspicious,” Simon said, jerking his head behind them.

It looked like a family following them. They were closely watching the group and talking among themselves.

“Should we tell Samuel?” asked Eli.

“Don’t bother,” said Simon. He turned and strode toward the family.

The father put himself between his family and Simon. “Hello, friend.”

Simon nodded to him and smiled at the family. “Do we interest you, friend?”

“Very much. We are from Heliopolis, and we heard that there may be a group of preachers coming. We saw you leaving town and wondered if you were them.”

“Preachers!” laughed Simon. “Do I look like a preacher to you?”

The man shrugged. “We have never seen any, so yes, you do.”

Simon threw his head back and laughed. “We are going to Heliopolis to preach. We are supposed to be meeting friends there.”

“Be careful, there are Roman spies. This new religion scares the emperor.”

Simon raised his eyebrows. “Roman spies?”

The man nodded.

Simon turned to Eli. “Tell Samuel I will walk a little way with our new friends.”

Eli gave him a sidelong glance and hurried to carry the message to Samuel.

“They say they are from Heliopolis and wanted to know if we are the preachers that are coming. When they mentioned spies, Simon said he would walk with them.” Eli explained.

“And Simon thought this was safe. What if they are the spies?” Samuel asked.

“I think that is what he wants to find out. Have you noticed how cautious he is? And how none of the crew bothered him. Do you think he is a criminal hiding from the Romans?”

“I think we should not be so open with him until we find out,” said Samuel.

The two groups walked along, talking among themselves.

“He was very friendly on the trip over,” said Josiah. “Maybe he is just a new convert. He had a lot of questions.”

“Those could be just questions, or he could be looking for information to betray us,” Jonah said.

“Let’s see what he learns from that family,” said Andrew. “Don’t let your suspicion run away with you.”

They all stopped at a well, and Simon rejoined the group of Christians. “They seem honest. The father, Jedediah, told me where the soldiers stay and where they look for Christians. To avoid them, they meet in different places every week. They have a network to smuggle the preachers in and out of town.”

“Did they mention the people we are supposed to meet?” asked Benjamin.

“I don’t know, you never told me who we are meeting,” Simon said with a shrug.

As they neared Heliopolis, Samuel started walking with Jedediah and his family. “Can you tell me where we can meet our friends in the city?”

“There is a man named Micah, selling sandals just inside the gate. You should separate into smaller groups before you get there. The soldiers are suspicious of large groups,” Jedediah explained.

The men broke into several small groups just outside the city. They blended into the crowd, pushing through the gate, and lingered at various stalls, waiting for some sign from Samuel as to where they should go.

Samuel and Jonah stopped to examine some sandals, and Samuel spoke to the seller for quite a while. He seemed to be haggling over the quality and price of the shoes. Finally, he replaced them on the table and walked further down the street.

Within a few moments, various people approached each of the groups of preachers and, acting as if they knew them well, escorted them from the market. They took them into the narrow streets of residences and ushered them into different homes. All the men were welcomed with food and water.

“Where have our brothers gone?” asked Josiah.

“To the homes of our brothers,” answered a man named Lucas. “We will keep you safe until the meeting tonight. You will want to rest, it is not for several hours, and you have been walking all day.”

“How did you know where we were?”

“The children playing beside Micah’s stall told us. They spread the news better than ants, and no one pays attention to them.”

The men smiled at the cleverness. “But how do you know you gathered all of us? We split up before we reached the city.”

Jedediah’s children told us how many you were.

Josiah shook his head at Jonah, “And you were worried.”

Late that night, the men were led to caves under the outskirts of the city. “This is a graveyard,” said Eli nervously.

“The dead have no tongues,” said Simon.

The worship and teaching lasted all night. Just before dawn, everyone crept back to their homes.

Jedediah walked with Samuel. “Why does Simon never speak up?”

“He is new to the church and not confident.”

“He may be new to the faith, but he is very confident. Was he a sailor?”

“Why do you ask?” said Samuel.

“He seems,” Jedediah paused, “rougher than the rest of you. And, I know you met him on the ship.”

“I don’t know his whole story. He came to the ship from a wool merchant who paid for him to travel with us. But he worked the whole trip. In the evenings, he would question us about everything.”

“Did you notice his scars and the weapon he hides?” Jedediah asked.

“I did, and I did not ask about them. Every man has a past. I trust him.”

After the men parted, Samuel thought he might ask in passing about the scars.

The next day, Simon was helping carry water from the well. A voice came from a doorway, “Marcus, are you doing women’s work now?”

Simon’s hand went to his dagger, and he spun in the direction of the voice. It was an old comrade, Artemis. Simon crowded him back against the door, “Quiet, please. No one can know I’m here.”

“It’s too late for that,” his friend said. “I was with another centurion when we heard someone talking about the preacher with scars. I tried to suggest it was about a sailor or bandit. But the story about you deserting to follow the Nazarene is everywhere. Word came that you escaped on a ship. You’re a hunted man.”

Panic sprang up in Simon. He couldn’t go back to the disciples. The soldiers might already be watching him. He had to get out of town before the next meeting. “Artemis, can you help me. The people I came with all they want is to teach this new religion.They aren’t a threat to anyone. Can you get me out of the city?”

Artemis shoved him away. “What do you think I am, some callous bootlicker? Yes, I can get you out. It has to be tonight. They are questioning the people who were talking about you.” He thought for a moment. “Come to this exact spot at second watch. Tell no one.”

Simon skulked around the edge of the market the rest of the day. He had to hide from soldiers and anyone who might have noticed him with the preachers. He stole a cloak and kept his face and scars hidden. He had no way of letting his new friends know what had happened. At last, night fell, and just before the second watch, he crept back to the doorway to wait for his friend.

During the afternoon, the other centurion had questioned the man he overheard. His answers were confused, as if the man were mad. Others said he was a half-wit and saw dangerous people everywhere. Without good information, he was thrown back onto the street.

Jonah was on his way to help with the water when he saw Simon duck into the doorway with the Roman. When Simon came out and went the opposite direction, Jonah was sure he was a spy and carried the story back to the others. Samuel and Eli could not believe it. All the men were moved to different safe houses and were not allowed outside during the day until they left the city.

Artemis met Simon as promised. He was anxious and rushed Simon to the gate of the city near the cemetery. A cart waited there full of bodies. “Drink this,” he said, handing Simon a flask.

“Is it poison?” He thought Artemis was offering him a final way to escape.

“Very close, I don’t know how far away you will be when you wake up. Goodbye, old friend.”

The last thing Simon heard before he passed out was, “I heard him speak, too.”

Simon awoke with a mouth so dry he could spit dust. He smelled like a corpse. He sat up and found a flask under his body. He tasted it, water. He drank half in one go. He had no idea where he was, apparently, nowhere. He looked around for any clues.

The sun was rising, and after another drink, Simon began walking east toward the sea. Toward his new brothers.