Pieter rose. He took a goblet of and wine in his hand drank slowly. Calmed, he said, “My lords, there should be no war between faith and reason. Our faith is reasonable, though it does not stand or fall upon logic. After all, it stands on grace, and that, sirs, is not logical at all.”
The diners fell quiet.
Pieter went on. “But if the two become opposed in the life of a man, it is faith that shall always rule reason—”
“Nay!” shouted a diner. “Reason shall prevail, and faith must find a home in it!”
Others agreed.
Pieter, however, shook his head. “No. Reason shall not prevail because it cannot prevail. I say this because of two logical points!” He smiled. “First, reason is a mere faculty of the intellect, while faith springs from the heart. It is the heart of man that ultimately rules his mind.
“Second, unlike the intellect, faith has no bounds; it is a gift of the Infinite. The intellect cannot grasp truth because truth always enlarges itself just beyond our grasp.”
A voice grumbled, “And why would that be?”
“Because truth does not wish to be fully known,” answered Heinrich from his seat. All eyes turned toward the burly man with surprise, not the least of which was Pieter!
The priest smiled. “Ja! ‘Tis so!”
“No!” roared a merchant. The man stood and rested his hands in the folds of his robe. He looked down his long nose at the faces now turned toward him. “No, I say.” He looked squarely at Pieter. “You are a churchman, and no force on earth would more severely oppose the scholars than your Holy Church.” Murmurs of assent rippled around the table. The man went on. “My nephew is a student at university. He will be a doctor of philosophy in time. On Easter past, he shared with us the marvels of the ancients. The crusaders have brought back the works of Aristotle and Ptolemy, Socrates and Plato. In their writings we are discovering another way of thinking. Now, he says, the students are beginning to reject the dictates of others, even their professors. They are beginning to reason with their own minds, and in time, he says, that will change everything.
“When a man can think on his own, he becomes a new man indeed. He becomes a free agent, unwilling to lose himself in some vague order of others. No, he will stand apart. This, sirs, is what is happening, and I for one welcome it! We will no longer be mindless, cowering sheep led to slaughter by the Church! No, sirs. We are freemen, free to think, free to serve that which is reasonable, and free to reject that which is not!”
The diners rose, applauding. Godfrey, however, was anxious. “My dear guests,” he said slowly, “have a care. The world is what it is. The Holy Church will not be cast aside so easily. It will surely answer, and it shall do so with sincere zeal.”
Frustrated, Pieter interrupted. “You need not cast away faith to find your freedom!” His voice was nearly desperate. “No, sirs, no! You boast of your fine minds, yet you do not understand. Faith is the way of freedom.”
“The Church is a place of bondage!” shouted one. Others agreed loudly.
“Listen!” cried Pieter. “I did not say that Rome is the way to freedom. I said that faith is the way. If not checked, your scholars will simply lead us into a new tyranny. Yes, yes, use your minds freely, but do not be so foolish as to deny the mysteries—for that is where truth also abides.”
“And who should ‘check’ the scholars, old man? You and your—” A loud, rapid knocking at the front door interrupted the man’s speech. Godfrey rose and asked all for silence. He ordered an usher to the door. The man returned, ashen faced. He whispered into Godfrey’s ear. The merchant nodded and licked his lips nervously, then summoned another servant to his side. The three huddled anxiously as Wil and his fellows began to shift in their seats.
Godfrey summoned Alwin. Drawing him close, he said, “Two Templars are at my door with some men-at-arms. My servant says they demand to speak with me.”
“About what?” blurted Alwin.
“They did not say, but you must leave.” Godfrey’s face was tight and pale. “Please, my friend. Take your companions and follow my servant to the rear. Disappear into the town. They’ll surely search my home and the stable, and that should take some time.”
Alwin squeezed the man’s hand and motioned to Wil. No words were needed. The company rose quickly and hurried behind the servant toward the rear of the house as Godfrey offered an explanation to his perplexed guests. “Rest easy, all of you. We’ve some soldiers at the door who are searching for these others.”
Godfrey stiffened and spoke sternly. “Now listen. We here are all men of business. We need one another. I ask you to trust me.” He looked at the table’s vacated places and knew he could deny little. Fists were now pounding on his door. “Please, I will tell them our guests left an hour ago. I need you to keep silent on this.”