No More Learning

But everybody really religious, and thereby freed from these extremes of stupidity, cowardice, and heartlessness, must look with real good will at a
straightforward, frank, in a word, honest opponent and denier of religious truths. It is so rare to meet
such a one in our time, and it is even difficult for me to describe to you how greatly I am pleased when
I see an open enemy of Christianity. In nearly everyone of them I am inclined to see a future St.
Paul, whilst in some of the zealots of Christianity
there seem to be looming }udas, the traitor himself.
But you, Prince, have now stated your opinion so
frankly that I positively refuse to include you amongst the innumerable Judases and little Judases
of our time. I can even foresee the moment when I shall feel towards you the same kind disposition of humour which I experience when meeting out- and-out atheists and infidels.
? THE END OF HISTORY 177
POLITICIAN. Now that we have safely come to the
conclusion that neither those atheists and infidels,
""
nor such true Christians as our Prince, represent
the Anti-Christ, it is time for you to show us his real
portrait.
MR. Z. You want rather too much, your Ex-
cellency. Are you satisfied, for instance, with a single one of all the innumerable portraits of Christ which, you will admit, have sometimes been made even by artists of genius ? Personally, I don't know
of a single satisfactory portrait. I believe such is even impossible, for Christ is an individual, unique in His own kind and in the personification of His essence good. To paint it, a genius will not suffice. The same, moreover, has to be said about Anti- Christ : he is also an individual, singular in com-
pleteness and finish, a personification of evil. It is impossible to show his portrait. In Church litera-
ture we find only his passport with a description of his general and some special marks . . .
LADY. No ; we do not want his portrait, God save
You had better explain why he himself is wanted, what his mission is, and when he will come.
MR. Z. Well, in this respect I can satisfy you even better than you expect. Some few years ago a fellow-student from the Church Academy, later made a monk, on his death-bed bequeathed to me a manuscript which he valued very much, but did not wish, or was not able, to publish. It was entitled, "A Short Story of the Anti-Christ. " Though
us!
N
? 178 SOLOVIEV
dressed in the form of fiction, as an imaginary fore- cast of the historical future, this paper, in my opinion, gives all that could be said on this subject in accordance with the Bible, with Church tradition, and the dictates of sound sense.
POLITICIAN. Is it the work of our old friend
Monk Barsanophius ?
MR. Z. No; this one's name was even more ex-
quisite : Pansophius, he was called.
parson. Ifyouwillpermitmetogoupstairstomy room I will fetch the manuscript and then read it
to you.
LADY. Make haste, make haste ! See that you
don't get lost !
(While Mr. Z. was out, the company left their seats and walked in the garden? )
POLITICIAN. I wonder what it may be : is it my
eyesight that is getting weak, or is something taking place in nature? I notice that in no season, in no
place, does one see those bright clear days which formerly used to be met with in every climate. Take to-day : there is not a single cloud, and we are far from the sea, and yet everything seems to
be tinged with something subtle and imperceptible, which, though small, destroys the full clearness of things. Do you notice this, General?
GENERAL. It is many a year since I began to notice it.
POLITICIAN. PanSophius?
MR. Z. Not in the least. A son of a Russian
Was he a Pole ?
? THE END OF HISTORY 179
LADY. Last year I also began to notice, and not
only in the air, but in the soul as well, that even
"
there the full clearness," as you style it, is no
longertobefound. Allisseizedwithsomeuneasi-
nessandsomeill-omenedpresentiment. Iamsure,
Prince, you feel it too.
PRINCE. No; I haven't noticed anything par-
ticular : the air seems to be as usual.
GENERAL. You are still too young to notice the
difference, for you have nothing to compare with. But when one remembers the 'fifties one begins to feel it.
PRINCE. I think the explanation first suggested was the correct one : it is a matter of weak eye-
sight.
POLITICIAN. It is hardly open to argument that
weareevergrowingolder. Butneitheristheearth
getting younger, so that our mutual fatigue now begins to show itself.
GENERAL. I think it is even more likely that the
Devil, with his tail, is spreading fog over the world. AnothersignoftheAnti-Christ!
LADY (pointing to Mr. Z. , who was coming down
fromtheterrace]. Weshalllearnsomethingabout
this presently.
(All took their seats, and Mr. Z. began to read
his manuscript. ")
? A SHORT STORY OF THE ANTI-CHRIST. >
Pan-Mongolim ! The name is savage, But it pleases my ear immensely,
As if it were full of forebodings
Of the great destiny appointed by God. .
LADY. Where is this motto taken from?
. .
MR. Z. I think it is the work of the author himself.
LADY. Well, we are listening.
MR. Z (reads). The twentieth century A. D. was the epoch of the last great wars and revolutions. The greatest of those wars had its remote cause in
the movement of Pan-Mongolism, which originated in Japan as far back as the end of the nineteenth
century. TheimitativeJapanese,whoshowedsuch a wonderful cleverness in copying the external forms of European culture, also assimilated certain Euro- pean ideas of the baser sort. Having learned from the papers and text-books on history that there were in the West such movements as Pan-Hellenism, Pan-Germanism, Pan-Slavism, Pan-Islamism, they proclaimed to the world the great idea of Pan- Mongolism; that is, the unification under their leadership of all the races of Eastern Asia, with the
object of conducting a determined warfare against the foreign intruders, that is the Europeans. As in the beginning of the twentieth century Europe was
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 181
engaged in a final struggle against the Moslem world, they seized the opportunity to attempt the
realisation of their great plan first, by occupying Korea, then Peking, where, assisted by the revolu-
tionary party in China, they deposed the old Manchu
dynasty and put in its place a Japanese one. In this the Chinese Conservatives soon acquiesced, as
they understood that of two evils the less is the
"
better, and that family ties make all brothers,
whether they wish it or not. " The state indepen- dence of old China already proved unable to
maintain itself, and subjection to the Europeans or the Japanese became inevitable. It seemed clear,
however, that the dominance of the Japanese, though it abolished the external forms of the Chinese state
organisation (which besides became palpably worth- less), did not interfere with the main foundations of
the national life, whereas the dominance of the Euro-
pean Powers, which for political reasons supported Christian missionaries, would have threatened the very spiritual basis of China. The national hatred in which the Japanese were formerly held by the Chinese developed at a time when neither one nor
the other knew the Europeans, and in consequence this enmity of two kindred nations acquired the
character of a family feud and was as unreasonable as it was ridiculous. The Europeans were unre-
servedly alien, nothing but enemies, and their pre- dominance promised nothing that could flatter the national ambition, whilst in the hands of Japan the
? 182 SOLOVIEV
Chinese saw the tempting bait of Pan-Mongolism, which at the same time made more acceptable to
their mind the painful necessity of assimilating the
"
external forms of the European culture.
Will you
understand, you obstinate brothers," the Japanese urged them repeatedly, "that we take from the Western dogs their weapons, not because we like them, but so as to beat them with their own devices ?
If you come out to join us and accept our practical guidance, we shall soon be able not only to drive
out all the white devils from our Asia, but also to conquer their own lands and establish the true Middle Empire all the world over. You are right
in your national pride and your contempt for the
Europeans, but you should keep these feelings alive not only by dreams, but by sensible actions as well.
In these latter we are far in advance of you and have to show you the ways of mutual benefit. If you look around you will see yourselves what little gains you have obtained by your policy of confidence in your- selvesandmistrustofus yournaturalfriendsand protectors. YouhaveseenhowRussiaandEngland,
Germany and France nearly divided you up amongst themselves, and how all your tigerish schemes could show only the harmless end of the serpent's tail. " The sensible Chinese found this reasonable, and the
Japanese dynasty became firmly established. Its first care was, of course, to create a powerful army
and fleet. The greater part of the Japanese troops were brought over to China and served as a nucleus
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 183
for the new colossal army. The Japanese officers
who could speak Chinese proved much more suc-
cessful instructors than the dismissed Europeans,
whilst the immense population of China, with Man-
churia, Mongolia, and Tibet, provided a sufficient
supply of good fighting material. It was already
possible for the first Emperor of the Japanese dynasty to make a successful test of the power of
the new Empire by driving out the French from Tonkin and Siam, and the English from Burma, and by adding to the Middle Empire the whole of Indo-China. Hissuccessor,Chineseonhismother's side, combined in himself Chinese cunning and
tenacity with Japanese energy, agility, and enter- prise. He mobilised a four-million army in the
Chinese Turkestan, and whilst Tsun-li-Yamin, his
Prime Minister, was confidentially informing the Russian Ambassador that this army was intended for
the invasion of India, the Emperor with his immense forces suddenly invaded Russian Central Asia,
and having here raised against us all the population, rapidly crossed the Ural Mountains and overran
Eastern and Central Russia with his troops, whilst the Russian armies, mobilised in all haste, were hurrying to meet them from Poland and Lithuania, Kiev and Volhyn, St. Petersburg, and Finland.
Having no ready plan of campaign, and being faced with an immense superiority in numbers, the fighting qualities of the Russian armies were sufficient only to allow them honourable defeat. The swiftness of
? 184 SOLOVIEV
the invasion left them no time for a proper concen- tration, and corps were annihilated one after another in desperate and hopeless battles. The victories of the Mongols also involved tremendous losses, but these were easily made good with the help of all the Asiatic railways, while the Russian Army, two hundred thousand strong, and for some time con- centrated on the Manchurian frontier, made an abor- tiveattempttoinvadewell-defendedChina. After leaving a portion of his forces in Russia, so that no new armies could be formed in the country, and also to fight the numerous bodies of franc-tireurs, the Emperor with three armies crossed the frontiers ofGermany. Herethecountryhadhadsufficienttime to prepare itself, and one of the Mongolian armies metwithacrushingdefeat. Atthistime,however, in France the party of belated revanche acquired the power, and soon the Germans found in their rear an army of a million bayonets. Finding itself be-
tween the hammer and the anvil, the German Army was compelled to accept the honourable terms of peace offered to it by the Chinese Emperor. The exultant Frenchmen, fraternising with the yellow men, scattered over Germany and soon lost all notion
of military discipline. The Emperor ordered his army to cut up allies who were no longer useful, and
with Chinese punctiliousness the order was exactly carried out. Simultaneously in Paris workmen sans
patrie organised a rising, and the capital of Western culture joyfully opened its gates to the Lord of the
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 185
East. His curiosity satisfied, the Emperor set off to Boulogne, where, protected by the fleet that had come round from the Pacific, transports were speedily prepared for ferrying his army over to England. He was short of money, however, and so the English succeeded in buying him off with a sum of one
milliard pounds. In a year's time all the European States submitted as vassals to the domination of
the Chinese Emperor, who, having left sufficient troops in Europe, returned to the East in order to
organise naval expeditions against America and Australia.
The new _MongQlian--yoke-aveF Europe lasted for half-a^century. Intheinnerformsoflifethisepoch
was marked by a general confusion and deep mutual
permeation of European and Eastern ideas, provid- ing a repetition on a grand scale of the ancient
Alexandrian syncretism. The most characteristic
facts in the practical walks of life were three : the
great influx into Europe of Chinese and Japanese
workmen and the consequent acuteness of social and
economic problems; the continued activity of the
ruling classes in the way of palliative attempts in order to solve those problems; and, lastly, the in-
creased activity of secret international societies,
organising a great European conspiracy for expel- ling the Mongols and re-establishing the indepen- dence of Europe. This[colossal conspiracy^which
was supported by the local national governments, in so far as they could evade the control of the
? 186 SOLOVIEV
Emperor's legates, was organised in masterly fashion and was crowned with most brilliant success.
An appointed hour saw the beginning of a massacre of the Mongolian soldiers, and of annihilation and expulsion of the Asiatic workmen. Secret bodies
of European troops were suddenly revealed in various places, and a general mobilisation was car-
ried out according to plans previously prepared.
The new Emperor, who was a grandson of the great conqueror, hurried from China to Russia, but his
innumerable hordes suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the All-European Army. Their scat- tered remnants returned to the interior of Asia, and
Europebreathedfreelyagain. Thelongsubmission to the Asiatic barbarians due to the disunity of the
States, which troubled themselves only about their
own national interests, was now over, brought to an end by an international organisation of the whole of the European population. As a natural conse- quence of this fact, the old traditional organisation of individual States was everywhere deprived of its former importance, and the last traces of ancient monarchical institutions
Europe in the twenty-first century represented an alliance of more or less democratic nations the
UnitedStatesofEurope. Theprogressofmaterial
culture, somewhat interrupted by the Mongolian yoke and the war of liberation, now burst forth with a
greaterforce. Theproblemsofinnerconsciousness,* however, such as the questions of life and death,
gradually disappeared.
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 187
the ultimate destiny of the world and mankind, made more complicated and involved by the latest researches and discoveries in the fields of psychology ^ andphysiology theseasbeforeremainedunsolved.
Only one important, though negative, result made itself apparent : it was the final bankruptcy of the
materialistictheory. Thenotionoftheuniverseas a system of dancing atoms, and of life as the result" of mechanical accumulation of the slightest changes
in materia, no longer satisfied a single reasoning intellect. Mankind had outgrown that stage of
On the other side, it became equally evident that it had also outgrown the in- fantilecapacityforanaive,unconsciousfaith. Such ideas as God, creating the universe out of nothing,
philosophical infancy.
were no longer taught even at elementary schools, -^^e
A certain high level of ideas concerning" such sub- cV ^o
jects had been evolved, and no dogmatism could
And though the majority of thinking people had remained faithless, fiie few believers had of necessity become thinking"^ thus
"
Be
risk a descent below it.
fulfilling the commandment of the Apostle : infants in your hearts, but not in your reason. "
At that time there was among the few believing spiritualists a remarkable man many called him a superman whowasequallyfarbothfrominfantile intellect and infantile heart. He was still young,
but owing to his great genius, at the age of thirty- three he already became famous as a great thinker,
writer, and politician. Conscious of the great power
"
"
.
? 188 SOLOVIEV
of spirit in himself, he was always a confirmed spiritualist, and his clear intellect always showed him the truth of what one should believe in : good, God, Messiah. In this he believed, but he loved onlyhimself. HebelievedinGod,butatthebottom
of his heart he involuntarily and unconsciously pre- ferred himself to Him. He believed in good, but
the all-seeing eye of the Eternal knew thaCthis would bow down before Evil as soon as it bribed him not by a deception of senses and base pas- sions, not even by the bait of power, but only by his own unutterable
neither an unconscious instinct nor an insane ambi-
tion. Apart from his exceptional genius, beauty, and nobility of character, the reserve, disinterested- ness, and active sympathy with those in need, which
he evinced to such a great extent, seemed abundantly to justify the immense self-love of this great
spiritualist, ascetic, and philanthropist. Did he deserve blame because, being, as he was, so gener- ously supplied with the gifts of God, he saw in them the signs of Heaven's special benevolence to him, and thought himself to be second only to God himself? In a word, he considered himself to be what Christ in reality was. But this conception of his higher value showed itself in practice not in the exercise of his moral duty to God and the world,
but in seizing his privilege and advantage at the expense of others, and of Christ in particular.
At first he had no ill-feeling towards Christ. He
self-love. ^]
This self-love was
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 189
recognised His Messianic importance and value, but he was sincere in seeing in Him only his own
the moral achievement of Christ and His uniqueness were beyond an intel- lect so completely clouded by self-love as his. He
"
greatest precursor
reasoned thus :
Christ came before me. I come
second. But what in order of time appears later
is in its essence of greater importance. I come last
at the end of history for the very reason that I am
most perfect. I am the final saviour of the world,
and Christ is my precursor. His mission was to
precedeandprepareformycoming. " Sothinking,
the superman of the twenty-first jcejitury applied to
himself everything that was said in the Gospels about the second advent, explaining the latter not as a return of the same Christ, but as a replacing of the preliminary Christ by the final one that is, by himself.
At this stage the coming man presented few characteristic or original features. His attitude to
Christ resembled, for instance, that of Mahomed, a
truthful man, against whom no charge of harbouring
evil designs can be brought.
Yet in another way this man justified his selfish
"
preference of himself before Christ.
Christ," he
said, "preaching and practising in life moral good,
was a reformer of mankind, whereas I am called to ""
be the benefactor of that same mankind, partly reformed and partly incapable of being reformed.
Iwillgiveallmenwhattheyrequire. Asamoralist.
? J*r
Christ divided men by the notion of good and evil. I shall unite them by benefits which are as much needed by good as by evil people. I shall be the true representative of that God who maketh His sun to shine upon the good and the evil, and who maketh the rain fall upon the just and upon the unjust. Christ brought the sword; I shall bring peace. He threatened the earth with the Day of
Judgment. But the last judge will be myself, and
my judgment will be not only that of justice, but also that of mercy. The justice that will be meted out
in my sentences will not be a retributive justice,
^however,butadistributiveone.
Ishalljudgeevery man according to his deserts, and shall give every- body what he needs. "
In this magnificent spirit he now waited for God
to call him in some unmistakable fashion to take
uponhimselftheworkofsavingmankind; forsome
obvious and striking testimony that he was the elder
son,thebelovedfirst-bornchildofGod. Hewaited
and sustained himself by the consciousness of his
superhuman virtues and gifts, for he, as was said,
was a man of irreproachable morals and exceptional
genius.
Thus this just but proud man waited for the sanc-
tion of the Most High to begin his saving of man-
190 SOLOVIEV
but he could see no signs of it. He had passed . ,(6
the age of thirty. Three more years passed by. A
thought suddenly leaps into his mind and thrilled
""
him to the core. What," thought he, what if by
kind
;
? here, presently?
A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 191
some accident it is not I, but the other one . . . the Galilean. If He is not my annunciator but the true deliverer, the first and the last one? But in that case He must be alive. . . . Where is He, then? What if He suddenly comes to me . . .
What shall I tell Him? Shall I not be compelled to kneel down before Him as the very last silly Christian, as some Russian peasant
'
Lord, Jesus And it will be
reverence to God and Christ, a sudden fear_was
and grew in his heart, next followed by a burning
ewuy^ consuming all his being, and by an ardent "
who mutters without understanding :
'
I, the serene genius, the superman !
And here, instead of his former reasoning and cold
Christ, forgive me, a sinful man !
hatred that takes the
breath away *
I^and^ not He !
Hedidnot no,didnotrise!
It is it is very. I,s
*
i ii i_ -> *^ ~\ i~-
He is dead, is and will ever be !
His body saw cor- ruption in the grave as that of the very last. . . . " And, his mouth foaming, he rushed in convulsive movements out of the house, through the garden, and ran along a rocky path covered by the dark
gloomy night.
His rage calmed down and gave place to a
despair, dry and heavy as the rocks, sombre as the
night. He stopped in front of a sharp precipice, from the bottom of which he could hear the faint
soundsofthestreamrunningoverthestones. An
unbearable anguish pressed upon his heart. Sud-
"
denly a thought flashed across his mind.
Shall I
" It cannot be !
? 192 SOLOVIEV
? ShallIaskHimwhattodo?
image. pities . . . Oh,no, !
call Him
the midst of darkness he could see a pale and grief-
stained " He me. never
He did not rise !
Hedidnot!
Hedidnot " And
!
he leapt from the precipice. But here something firm like a column of water held him up in the air.
He felt a shock as if of electricity, and some un- known force hurled him back. For a moment he becameunconscious. Whenhecametohissenses he found himself kneeling down a few paces from
thebrowoftheprecipice. Astrangefiguregleam-
ing with a dim phosphorescent light loomed up before him, and its two eyes pierced his soul with
their painful penetrating glitter. He saw these two piercing eyes and heard some unfamiliar voice
coming from the inside or the outside of him he could not tell which a dull, mufBed voice, yet distinct, metallic and expressionless as from a
gramophone. beloved son !
Andthevoicesaidtohim "
: Oh,my
Let all my benevolence rest on thee !
Why didst not thou seek for me? Why hast thou
stooped to worship that other, the bad one, and his father? Iamthygodandfather. Andthatcrucified mendicant heisastrangerbothtomeandtothee. I have no other son but thee. Thou art the sole,
the only one Begotten, the equal of myself. I love thee, and ask for nothing from thee. Thou art
alreadybeautiful,great,andmighty. Dothywork in thine own name, not mine. I harbour no envy
of thee. I love thee. I require nothing of thee.
f cs
"
And in
? -
Peace and
1
A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 193
He whom thou regardest as a God, demanded from Hissonanabsoluteobedience eventodeathona cross and even there He did not help Him. I demand from thee nothing, and I will help thee. For the sake of thyself, for the sake of thine own dignity and excellency, and for the sake of my own
disinterested love of thee, I will help thee !
Receive
thou my spirit ! As before my spirit gave birth to
thee in beauty, so now it gives birth to thee in ^power" With these words of the stranger, the!
mouth of the superman involuntarily opened, two I ^{u
piercing eyes came close up to his face, and he felt ! r>cfr \-- j m&qtt
an icjnbreath which pervaded the whole of his being. \ At the same time he felt in himself such st-rength,
-- vigour, lightness, and joy as he had never before
At the same moment the luminous
experienced.
image and the two eyes suddenly disappeared, something lifted the man up in the air, and brought him down in his own garden, before the very doors of his house.
Next day the visitors of the great man, and even
his servants, were startled by his inspired air. They would have been even more startled could they have
seen with what supernatural quickness and facility he was writing, locked up in his study, his famous
"
SL^ rework entitled,
The Open Way to the Universal
The previous books and the public activity of the superman had always met with severe criticisms.
though these came chiefly from men of exceptionally o
<*<-*-*
+r
? 194 SOLOVIEV
deep religious convictions, who for that very reason
possessed no authority, and were hardly listened to when they tried to point out in everything that the "Coming Man" wrote or said the signs of quite an exceptional and excessive self-love, and a complete absence of true simplicity, frankness, and sincerity.
But now with his new book he brought over to his side even some of his former critics and adver- saries. This book, composed after the incident at
the precipice, evinced a greater power of genius thanhehadevershownbefore. Itwasaworkthat
embraced everything and solved every problem. The noble respect of the ancient traditions and
symbols stood in it side by side with a bold and thorough radicalism in the sphere of social and
political problems, an unlimited freedom of thought
with the most profound appreciation of everything mystic, the absolute individualism with an ardent
fidelity to the common weal, the most lofty idealism
of the guiding principles with the perfect definite- ness in practical necessities of life. And all this
was blended and cemented with such artistic
genius that every thinker and every man of action, however one-sided he may have been, could easily view and accept the whole from his particular
individual standpoint without sacrificing anything to the truth itself, without actually rising above hi. <
Ego, without in reality renouncing his one-sided ness, without correcting the inadequacy of his view and wishes, without making up their deficiencies
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 195
This wonderful book was immediately translated into the languages of all the civilised nations, and many of the uncivilised ones as well. During the whole year thousands of papers in all parts of the world were filled with the publishers' advertisements and the eulogies of the critics. Cheap editions with
portraits of the author were sold in millions of ^
"
of the incomparable, the great, the only one! Nobody raised his voice against the book. On -
every side it was accepted as the revelation of the all -complete truth. In it all the past was given
its full and due justice, all the present was appraised
with such impartiality and catholicity, and the happiest future was brought near in such a con-
vincing and practical manner that everybody could
copies,andallthecivilisedworld andnowitstood .
for nearly all the globe resounded with the glory -
^
" not help saying :
Here at last we have what we "
need. Here is the ideal, which is not__ajiJLItQpia. Here is a scheme which is not a dream. " And the^ wonderful author not only impressed all, but he
was agreeable to everybody, so that the word of ^G.
"
Christ was fulfilled :
the Father, and you accept me not. Another will come in his own name him you will accept. " For
it is necessary to be agreeable to be accepted.
It is true some pious men, whilst praising the
book whole-heartedly, had been asking why the
name of Christ was never mentioned in it
" Christians had rejoined :
I have come in the name of
but other So much the better.
;
O2
^f
? 196 SOLOVIEV
Everything sacred has already been stained enough
in the past ages to make a deeply religious author extremelycarefulinthesematters. Thenthebook
is imbued with the true Christian spirit of active
love and all-embracing goodwill. And what more do you want? " And everybody agreed.
Soon after the publication of " The Open Way," which made its author the most popular man that
had ever lived on earth, an international constitu- tional congress of the United States of Europe was tobeheldinBerlin. ThisUnion,foundedaftera series of international and civil wars which had been brought about by the liberation from the Mongolian yoke, and had resulted in considerable alteration in the map of Europe, was now menaced with peril, not through conflicts of nations, but through the internal strife between various political and social
parties. The heads of general European politics, who belonged to the powerful brotherhood of Free-
masons, experienced certain insufficiency of execu- tive power. The European unity obtained at such
a great cost was every moment threatening to fall to pieces. There was no unanimity in the Union
"
Comite permanent universel" as not all the seats were in the hands of true masons. The independent members of the Council were entering
into separate agreements, and things seemed to be driftingtoanotherwar. The"initiated"thende-
cided to establish a personal executive power endowed with some considerable authority. The
Council or
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 197
principal candidate was the secret member of the Order "theComingMan. " Hewastheonlyman
withagreatworld-widefame. Beingbyprofession learned artilleryman, and by his source of income
rich capitalist, he was on friendly terms with many financier and military man. In another, less
enlightened time, there might have been put against him the fact of his extremely obscure origin. His
mother, a lady of doubtful reputation, was very well known in both hemispheres, but the number of people who had grounds to consider him as their son was rather too great. These circumstances, however, could not carry any weight with the age which was so advanced as to be actually the last one.
"The Coming Man" was almost unanimously elected president of the United States of Europe
for life. And when he appeared on the platform in
all the glamour of young super-human beauty and power, and with inspired eloquence expounded his
universal programme, the assembly was carried away by the spell of his personality, and in an outburst of enthusiasm decided, even without voting, to give him the highest honour, and to elect him Roman Emperor.
The congress closed amidst general rejoicing,
and the great elector published a manifesto, which "'
.
began with the words : Nations of the World ! I *o*,
"
give you my peace," and concluded, the World !
Nations of Ov The promises have been fulfilled ! An eternal universal peace has been secured. Every attempt to destroy it will meet with a determined
? *
,
under the supreme authority of the Roman Em- Y peror. FThere still remained a few independent tribes . and little States in remote parts of Asia and Africa, tut with a small but chosen army of Russian, German, Polish, Hungarian, and Turkish regiments the Emperor set out for a military march from the Eastern Asia to Morocco, and without much blood- shed brought under subjection all the insubordinate States. In all the countries of the two hemispheres he installed his viceroys, choosing them from among the native nobles who had been educated in Europeanfashionandwerefaithfultohim. Inall the heathen countries the native population, greatly
impressed and charmed by his personality, pro- claimedhimastheirsupremegod. Inasingleyear a real universal monarchy in the true and proper
sense of the word was established. The germs of
198 SOLOVIEV
and irresistible opposition, since a Power is now established on earth which is stronger than all the otherPowers,separatelyorconjointly. Thisincon-
querable, all surmountable power belongs to me, the authorised elector of Europe, the Emperor of all its forces. International law has at last secured the sanctionwhichwassolongmissing. Henceforthno
'''' Power will dare to say War when I say Peace !
Europe, particularly in America, powerful im-
perialist parties were formed which compelled their Governments to join the United States of Europe
Peoples of the world, peace to you !
festo had the desired effect. Everywhere outside
"
This mani-
? "
Nations of the World !
I have promised you
A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 199
wars were radically destroyed. The Universal
League of Peace met for the last time, and having
delivered an exalted panegyric to the Great Peace-
maker, dissolved itself as being no longer necessary.
On the eve of the second year of his reign the
World's Emperor published a new manifesto :
peace,andIhavegivenityou. Butpeaceisjoyful
only through prosperity. Who in peace-time is
threatened with poverty has no pleasure in peace.
I call, therefore, all the cold and hungry ones to
come to me, and I will give them food and
" warmth !
Here he announced a simple and com- prehensive social reform which had already been enunciated in his book, and which then captured allthenobleandsoundminds. Now,owingtothe concentration in his hands of the money resources of the world and of the colossal land properties, he could carry into effect that reform in accordance with the wishes of the poor and without causing
much pain to the rich. Everybody now received^ according to his talents, and every talent according \ to its work and merit.
The new lord of the world before everything else was a kind-hearted philanthropist, and not only a
philanthropist, but even a philozoist. He was a vegetarian himself, prohibited vivisection, and insti-
tuted a strict supervision over slaughter-houses; whilst societies for protecting animals received from
himeveryencouragement. Butwhatwasmoreim-
? 200 SOLOVIEV
portant than these details, the most fundamental form of equality was firmly established among man-
kind, the equality of universal satiety. This took place in the second year of his reign. Social and economic problems had been finally settled. But if
satisfaction is a question of primary importance for the hungry, the satisfied ones crave for something
else. Even satiated animals usually want not only to sleep, but also to play. The more so with man- kind which has always post panem craved for circenses.
"
The Emperor-superman understood what his mob wanted. At that time a great magician, en- wrapped in a dense cloud of strange facts and wild stories, came to him in Rome from the Far East. The rumour spread amongst the neo-Buddhists credited him with a divine origin from the god of Sun Suria and some river nymph.
This magician, Apollonius by name, was doubt- i. v lessamanofgenius. Asemi-Asiaticandasemi-"Ty
European, a catholic bishop in partibus infidelium, he combined in himself in a most striking manner
the knowledge of the latest conclusions and appli- cations of Western science with the art of utilising all that was really sound and important in the tradi- tional mysticism of the East. The results of this combination were startling. Apollonius learned amongst other things the semi-scientific and semi-
mystic art of attracting and directing at will the atmospheric electricity, and the people said of
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 201
him that he could bring down fire from heaven.
However, though startling the imagination of the crowd by various unheard of phenomena, for some
time he did not abuse his power for any special selfish ends.
It was this man who came to the great Emperor," saluted him as the true son of God, declared that he had discovered in the secret books of the East cer- tain unmistakable prophecies pointing to the Em- peror as the last saviour and judge of the Universe, and offered him his services and all his art. The
Emperor, completely charmed by the man, accepted him as a gift from above, decorated him with all
kinds of gorgeous titles and made him his constant
companion.
So the nations of the world, after they
had received from their lord universal peace and
universal abolition of hunger, were now given the
possibility of never-ending enjoyment of most
diverse and extraordinary miracles. Thus came to end the third year of the reign of the superman.
After the happy solution of political and social
problems, the religious question was brought to the front. ThiswasraisedbytheEmperorhimself,and
in the first place in its application to Christianity.
At the time the position of Christianity was as follows : Its followers had greatly diminished in
numbers and barely included forty-five million men in the whole world ; but morally it made a marked
progress, and gained in quality what it lost in numbers. MenwhowerenotboundupwithChris-
? 202 SOLOV1EV
tianity by any spiritual tie were no longer recorded amongst the Christians. Various Christian persua-
sions fairly equally diminished in their numbers, so
that the proportional relationship amongst them was maintained almost unchanged. As to mutual feel-
ings, hostility did not entirely give place to amity, but considerably softened down, and points of dis- agreement lost much of their former acuteness. The Papacy had been long before expelled from
Rome, and after long wanderings had found refuge in St. Petersburg on condition that it refrained from
propaganda there, and in the country. In Russia it soon became greatly simplified. Leaving prac-
tically unchanged the number of its colleges and offices, it was obliged to infuse into their work a
e fervent spirit, and to cut down to the smallest
Slimits its pompous ritual and ceremonial. Many p*
strange and seductive customs, though not formally abolished, fell of themselves into disuse. In all the
other countries, particularly in North America, the
Catholic priesthood still had a good many repre- sentatives, possessed of strong will, inexhaustible energy and independent character, who welded to- gether the Catholic Church into a closer unity than it had ever been before, and who preserved for it its
As to Pro- testantism, which was still led by Germany, especially since the union of the greater part of the Anglican church with the Catholic one this had freed itself from its extreme negative tendencies, the
international, cosmopolitan importance.
? A STORY OF ANTI-CHRIST 203
followers of which openly went over to the camp
of religious apathy and unbelief. The Evangelical
church now contained only the sincerely religious, */ headed by men who combined a vast learning
with a deep religious feeling, and an ever-growing desire to bring to life again in their own persons the
living spirit of the true ancient Christianity. Rus- sian orthodoxy, after political events had altered the
official position of the Church, lost many millions, of its sham nominal members; but it won the joy of
"^ v
numbers, began to grow in strength of spirit, which \, it particularly revealed in its struggle with the
numerous sects, not entirely devoid of the de- moniacal and satanic element, which found root
among the people and in society.
During the first two years of the new reign, all
Christians, frightened at, and weary of, the number of preceding revolutions and wars, looked upon their new lord and his peaceful reforms partly with a benevolent expectation, and partly with an unre- served, sympathetic, and even a fervent enthusiasm. But in the third year, after the great magician had made his appearance, serious fears and antipathy began to grow in the minds of many an orthodox Catholic and Protestant. LThe Gospel and Apostolic texts speaking of the Prince of this Age and of
Anti-Christ Jvere now read more carefully and led -^ J^
"
old believers," and even many of the positively religious sectarians. This renovated Church, though not increasing in
^^
unification with the best part of the
?