"Philip Jose Farmer - Jesus on Mars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Farmer Phillip Jose)

their own vessels, or ascended in the lander, and captured the two. Bronski had
asked their captors if they had done so, but he had received nothing but a smile
in answer.
As the questioning proceeded, Bronski interpreted some of the sentences
for Orme.
During the first two days, they had been isolated from their interrogators
by the transparent wall. But today the Martians had entered. This meant that the
tests run on them had given them a clean bill of health. Physically, anyway. From
what Bronski told him now, their captors were not so sure about their mental
health. Or perhaps it would be better to say their theological state.
Ya'aqob said, 'Then on Earth lesous ho Christos is worshipped as the son
of the Merciful One? And he is also the Merciful One? Is this belief held by
everybody or are there dissenters?'
Orme got the impression from the man's narrowed eyes that he did not
like even to say the last sentences.
Avram Bronski said, 'As I have said, there are perhaps four billion or so
Christians on Earth, but these are split into many groups, all holding many
different views on the nature of ho Christos. The orthodox believe that lesous ho
Christos was conceived through the will of God by a virgin, Mariam. Moreover,
Mariam was herself immaculately conceived. That is, her mother bore her free of
sin. So, in a sense, her mother was the grandmother of God.'
The eyes of all six captors rolled, and they uttered a word which even
Orme recognised was not Greek.
Bronski said, 'I should confer with Captain Orme on these matters. Though
I've read much about Christianity, I am not a Christian. I am a Jew. The captain is
a Christian of a sect called Baptists. He is a devout man and much more qualified
than I to speak about the subtleties of his particular dogma.'
The Frenchman had been translating everything he said to Orme. 'That
isn't right!' Orme said. 'You tell them that you're much more knowledgeable about
comparative religion than I am. If you make any mistakes about the Baptists, I'll
tell you so.'
Ya'aqob spoke machine-gun-fast Greek. Bronski asked him to slow down.
Ya'aqob repeated.
Bronski said, 'Captain, he asked me how I can call myself a Jew when I
don't believe that lesous is the Messiah. Anyway, he says, a Jew wouldn't be
cleanshaven. He'd have a full beard. And sidelocks.'
Orme felt both confused and frustrated.
 'You tell them we'll argue religious matters later. There are more important
things to find out now. Hell, we don't even know where Hfathon and his kind
came from! Or how the humans got here! And it's vital that we communicate with
Danton and Shirazi!'
'That's right - for us,' Bronski said. 'But the religious issue, I'm afraid, is the
most important one to them. I can't make them talk about what interests us most,
you know.'
Bronski looked as troubled as Orme felt.
Orme threw up his hands. 'Who would have believed this?
Hfathon said something.
Bronski translated, 'He wants to know what's wrong with the brown man?'
'Tell him I'm black, not brown.'
Hfathon rattled off something, and the others laughed.