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

Bronski said, 'He wants to know why a colour-blind person would be
selected to lead a space expedition.'
'Tell him that "black" is a manner of speaking. If you've got kinky hair and
everted lips and a dark brown skin, you're black. It's a... uh... semantic matter.
Political. You can have straight hair and blue eyes and thin lips and still be black.
Oh, what the hell!' he said, throwing up his hands. There they were, the first
humans on Mars, or so they thought, and they were discussing religion and
semantics.
'I don't think I'll interpret that,' Bronski said. 'We're confused enough
without going into that sort of thing.'
Hfathon spoke again.
Bronski said, 'He says his skin is the same colour as yours, and he's
definitely brown.'
Ya'aqob spoke sharply then, as if he realised the interrogation was going
astray. Bronski answered the question that followed.
'To explain why I consider myself a Jew would take even longer, and be
as detailed as explaining why Orme is a black man. Can't we get down to more
immediate issues? Won't you tell us something of yourselves? Once we
understand how you came here and why you're still here when it seems, to me at
least, that you could leave this planet, why, then we can get back to your line of
questioning. We'll have a clearer idea why you are so interested in our theology.
Rather, theologies, for there are many on Earth. Thousands, perhaps.'
The six Martians went into conference then, speaking the language which
Hfathon had said was Krsh.
When they were through, Ya'aqob said, in Greek, 'You are probably right.
Please pardon us for what must seem to you an excessive curiosity about certain
matters. It is not excessive for us. Indeed, it is the only thing that really matters in
our world. But if we're going to get any place we should proceed from the simple
to the complex so that we may understand each other.
'But I do have a few questions which may seem irrelevant to you but which
we'd like to have answered before we start our mutual education. For one thing,
why, if the black man is a disciple of Christ, and therefore Jewish, is he not
Jewish? Would a Gentile be circumcised?'
'It has long been the custom to circumcise male infants in the Western
world,' Bronski said. 'Not because of religious reasons but for sanitation. Of
course, the Muslim religion, which stems from the Jewish religion in part, also
requires circumcision. Also, the ancient Egyptians, who held our fathers in
bondage, circumcised.'
Ya'aqob looked blank, then said, 'Muslim? Well, you are right. One
question only leads to a hundred others. But there is one more on this subject.'
He gestured at the blondish Sha'ul, who opened the box and removed a
pile of rations from the lander. So the Martians had entered the vessel. Danton
and Shirazi must have seen this and so would all of Earth. He could imagine the
consternation, the wonder, the frustration. Perhaps the two had tried to
communicate with the invaders, but they would not have known, of course, that
only New Testament Greek would be understood. Not that it would have done
them any good. Neither could speak it.
Sha'ul held up a can of meat in his gloved hand. The top of it had been
removed. Its casing was a thermoplastic hydrocarbon. It could be boiled in water
to make a nutritious soup.