Twin Passions - Prologue. Prologue

When the time of her labour came, there were twins in her womb.

And when she was in labour, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying: ‘This one came out first.’

But as he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out. And she said: ‘What a breach you have made for yourself!’ Therefore his name was called Pherez.

Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called

Zerah.

Genesis 38:27-30

The faint light of morning's gentle glow pressed gingerly through the vibrant colours of the small chapel's window. The illuminated scene showed a 14-year-old boy knelt on a pile of wood, his head downcast and his eyes shut. Even in the dull light of the morning, his bare chest seemed to glow with a rosy hue that radiated through his sculpted body. The boy was Abraham's greatest joy; conceived in his hundredth year with his wife, a woman whom he thought was like an orchard in winter: barren dispute its grandeur. The beautiful youth in the glass sat below two arms. One of the arms, draped in an elegant red sleeve, clutched a wicked dagger which pointed to the Issac's glowing flesh. The other arm, with skin of brilliant blue, grasped the wrist through the red material. Written at the bottom of the window were the words: ‘Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.’

The window's colours cascaded across the cold stone floor and glistened off the bejewelled golden cross which stood at the altar and held Earl Ralph's gaze. Today, the 9^th of February 1383, was a dark contrast to the anticipation and excitement of the previous night. Late in the evening his wife, Lady Philippa, had gone into labour and the castle was abuzz with the inhabitants anxiously awaiting the birth of Ralph and Philippa's first child. However, it wasn't one new life that came into the castle early the next morning; but two. Philippa bore Ralph twin boys and the extra strain proved to be too much for her. She died without having held either child. So the accounting for the morning was quite simple: two lives at the cost of one.

'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away,' Earl Ralph mumbled wordlessly into his clasped hands.

The meditation provided him little solace. He had loved his wife. It was not the kind of love most noblemen might enjoy; the sort that grows and matures with age. People of noble birth do not have the luxury of choosing their partners and most had a depraved indifference towards their spouses and, at the best, some develop a certain bland fondness for each other. But Ralph and Philippa were different; they two fell madly in love when they first met. The first time Ralph held Philippa's hand, he knew the two had been made for each other.

Ralph took a deep breath; he was distraught over the loss of his wife, but he knew that it was not her death that was gnawing at his stomach. He was worried about his sons. He heard the sound of hard leather soles slapping against the stone floor. It had to be Father John, the only other person who would enter the family chapel at this time. John was educated at Oxford University and consequently, was a staunch conservative. Despite his kindness and genuine love for his family, Ralph had never found John to be very comforting or provide much guidance.

Without taking his eyes from the cross, Ralph asked: 'What is the story of Pharez and Zerah meant to tell us?'

John walked to the altar and stood behind the bible, which was opened on a golden lectern. He preferred to speak from this spot, which imbued him with a sense of power and purpose. He always felt his arguments had more weight when spoken from upon-high and he liked to look down on the noble family whist they were seated. He was the one of the few people in England who stood above the powerful nobles and he liked to remind them that whilst they ruled on earth, in the Kingdom, they had no power and that it was men like him who would stand close to the Lord at the End of Days. He cleared his throat and in his most reverent and powerful voice began:

Tamar was to give birth to twins. What happened on the day, as the midwife facilitated those births, was both interesting and significant. One of the twins managed to stick his hand out of Tamar’s birth canal. Seeing it, the midwife immediately tied a scarlet thread on it to identify that child as being the firstborn and heir. But God had other plans. The child with the red thread withdrew his hand back into the womb and his brother exited the canal first instead.

Surprised at this turn of events, the midwife declares the actual firstborn as having ‘created a breach’ and thus names him Pharez. Why, you ask? Perhaps to simply demonstrate to us that God’s ways are indeed not always our ways. The word ‘Pharez’ means breach or violation. This child broke the rules on who was to be first. God is no respecter of persons when it comes to being first or second or last.

'What does the other twin's name, Zerah, mean?' Earl Ralph asked already fairly sure he knew the answer.

'It means “shining light”,' John answered perfunctory.

Ralph frowned, and asked: 'What happened to the boys?'

'What do you mean?'

'The twins, what happened after they were born and Pharez took Zerah's inheritance?'

'Cheated of their birthright, the descendants of Zerah separated from the children of Israel soon after the Exodus. Some of the children of Zerah went north to Greece. Others went to Troy. After Troy fell to the Greeks, a group of Zerahites migrated to Britain via Malta. In England, they founded "New Troy," which the Romans much later renamed Londinium, now London.'

'So we might well be descended from Zerah?'

'Indeed. Other Zerahites settled down in Ireland, after residing for a time in Spain, where they founded the city of Saragossa, literally, the City of Zerah. By the time of David, a princely clan of Zerahites was established as Ireland's royal family, ruling a part of the tribe of Dan, the Tautha de Danann of Irish legend, which had also settled there.'

'But the boys never saw each other again?'

'I'm afraid I don't understand your question, Earl Ralph.'

'The boys, they couldn't both inherit. And so fought, separated and never saw each other again.'

'Yes, of course, as God intended it.'

'It worries me to think that my twins might fight over my lands and influence someday. I wish that there was something I could do to spare us all the heartache that arises from feuding twins. I'm worried about the future of my family, John.'

John was feeling uncomfortable with the tone and direction of their conversation.

'Surely you wouldn't do anything that might upset the will of God, would you?'

'No,' Ralph said dismissively.

'I should think not.'

'But I do fear that I will always worry about my boys and what they will do. I have no way to prove which was born first; they will simply have to take my word for it. It might tear everything asunder. I want my boys to love each other, the thought of them fighting over title and property makes me ill. I can't see God's reason in this.'

John could not condone any sort of heretical thinking, not from his Earl and certainly not in his church.

'I am sure that you will let the wisdom of God lead you, Earl. You cannot let your thoughts stray from His path. What have you named the boys?' John asked, trying to change the subject.

'Phillipa and I decided we would name our first born son Roland after my father and, when the time came, our second Robert, after her father.'

'Of course Roland means “new land”; but what does Robert mean?'

'It means “bright flame”.'

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