Next to her, Gloria stood up and made her way to Pastor Marcel. They spoke for a moment before shaking hands. Smiling at the congregation as she passed, Gloria left the Oratory of Saint Maria for the final time.

Krause watched as other members of the congregation spoke with each other, saying their farewells, that they would meet again in Stuttgart. She made her way around the Church, smiling, saying goodbye, and shaking the hands of others in the congregation. Sam shook her hand vigorously, thanking her for all her help since he had joined. Though she tried to remember, she was sure that today was the first time she had spoken to him.

The sun set outside the windows of the Oratory. Krause had already said her goodbyes to the few members of the congregation that remained, so she could no longer put it off. She took a deep breath, gripping her necklace nervously, as she made her way to the altar, where Pastor Marcel had just finished a conversation with an older woman.

“Julia,” Pastor Marcel said as she approached. “I was wondering how long it would take until you said goodbye to me.” His smile was sly.

“It doesn’t feel real, does it?” she asked. “It feels like we started this journey just yesterday, but it has already been months. If I had been told that I would have come this far in less than a year, I don’t think I would have believed it. The Church has come so far in so little time.”

“Hmm,” Pastor Marcel agreed. “The perception of time certainly is a strange beast, unto itself. Days, months, years… it quickly becomes difficult to discern between them, everything becoming one as the world moves unceasingly around us.” He smiled again, and this time it was genuine, though there was a distant sadness in his eyes. “Romans 13:11. ‘And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has come for you to wake from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than we first believed.’ We have merely been asleep for so long that it feels strange to finally reenter the light. ‘The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.’” He paused for a moment, seemingly forgetting that she was there.

“Pastor Marcel?” Krause asked.

“Hmm?”

Krause felt close to tears. “I fear that… I fear that some of my loved ones do not truly believe in the Church, or the word of the Beanmeister. My husband, Henry, has denounced the Church since its inception. He believes that the Church is a cult, and if he ever found out that I was a member, I’m sure he couldn’t love me anymore. And, Loretta Gartner, a member… previously a member of our congregation… told me that she didn’t believe any part of the Church doctrine just yesterday morning. She told me that the End of Days and the Great Tribulation were nonsense. She used the Beanmeister’s name in vain as well. I’m scared for them. Are they going to be punished?” She was crying now. “Are they going to be treated as though they are unbelievers? Are they going to be grouped in with the soldiers fighting the Beanmeister, with the men that detain our fellow believers? Are they going to be left behind after the Great Tribulation, or are they going to be spared? Will the Beanmeister help them?”

Pastor Marcel only stared at her for a moment, his shoulders falling slightly. “That… is a difficult question. Truthfully, though I commune with the Beanmeister Himself, I do not understand why He chooses the people He does. Perhaps there is a deeper reason to why I was chosen, to why you were chosen. If that is true, then there may be a deeper reason why your husband and Loretta don’t believe. At the end of the day, only the Beanmeister knows what they are thinking. Do they truly believe that our Church is a cult, or are they merely saying that because they are scared, misinformed about our true intentions? Once His plan comes to pass, I am sure that they will be able to see the truth behind the Beanmeister’s words. But that will come in time. It is understandable why so many people are afraid to accept such a radical truth. It scares them. The people in our Church now, they are the same people that were able to accept the truth before anyone else. They will be rewarded for this, but that does not mean all others will be punished. The Beanmeister will forgive them for their shortcomings. Do not fear.”

Krause smiled, though her cheeks were wet with tears. “You really think that they will see the errors of their ways?”

Pastor Marcel laughed softly. “Julia, our goal is not to make them fear us. Our goal is to make them believe us, believe in the Beanmeister. They will see the light soon enough. For now, all you can do is wait.”

“Thank you.”

“No, thank you, Julia. I hope to see you again in Stuttgart.”

After that night, she never saw Pastor Marcel again.