better.
“A fine man of the cloth. I’m sure the girls will learn much from his church services,” continued Aunt Mabel serenely. “And they will learn even more from Sunday School.”
“Sunday School?” repeated Pandora incredulously. “There’s an actual school on Sundays? And we’re going to it?”
“Yes, dear, it will be for your own good,” smiled Mabel.
“How will it be for my own good?”
A flash of anger at being questioned appeared in Mabel’s eyes, but it disappeared almost instantly, leaving Pandora wondering if she had imagined it.
“By giving you a thorough education in the Bible.”
“Why will that do me good?” asked Pandora in puzzlement.
“The Bible is the source of all our morality, our knowledge of right and wrong,” clucked Mabel, never missing a stitch in her knitting.
“What, like saying in Isaiah that children should be slaughtered for their father’s crimes, even though in another part of the Bible it says you shouldn’t suffer for the sins of the father?” asked Pandora as Mabel stared in surprise.
“See, I already know about the Bible,” continued Pandora. “I learnt it all from Dad years ago when we studied the Greek Testament. So I don’t need to go to Sunday School.”
Mabel shot a venomous look at Mr Laskaris, who was smiling proudly at his daughter’s knowledge, though his smile was tinged with sadness–he and Pandora had spent a lot of time together when she was younger, sharing their interests, before she hit her teenage years and developed her own separate life.
“I see that your Bible knowledge is rather incomplete and one sided,” said the old woman after a pause of several seconds in which she groped for a reply. “Sunday School will no doubt repair the damage of your misunderstandings.”
“How can I have misunderstood? Isn’t it god’s word?”
“Those with insufficient knowledge can twist the words to suit their own purposes,” snapped Mabel, dropping a stitch. “Now look what you’ve made me do!”
“How do you know your interpretation is better than Dad’s?” demanded Pandora, her temper now rising. “Are you saying you’re better than him?”
“I see there is a lot of work to be done,” snapped Mabel, her face revealing that she did indeed think she was better, though she quickly smothered the expression under a guise of long-suffering martyrdom. “How fortunate that you have moved here, before it is too late.”
“You’re the one who needs to learn, if you think you’re better than someone else just because of your Bible interpretation,” snorted Pandora in anger. “Go online and you’ll see hundreds of views on what the Bible means.”
“Fortunately for education and decency, there is no Internet connection in the village,” snarled Mabel, delighted to have found one area where her word was definite and the victory hers. “No company can get a signal out to us, so we are spared the filth and degradation that the Internet imports into people’s homes.”
“What?” exclaimed Pandora. “But you can get dongles that pick up the signal and—”
“There is no connection to the village,” Mabel repeated with a maddening satisfaction. It was clear that, in Mabel’s mind, this closed the discussion. “Now, what did you two girls get up to yesterday?” asked Mabel of the twins, pointedly ignoring the seething Pandora.
“We went to the quarry,” said Sarah.
Mabel started in anger. “You should keep away from the quarry. It’s dangerous,” she snapped.
“In what way?” asked Anne with genuine interest.
“Dangerous,” replied the old woman assertively. “How did you find out about it?”
“We were invited.”
“By whom?” demanded Mabel sharply.
“Teddy Rawlins,” replied Sarah, happily ignorant of the fresh surge of anger in the old woman’s eyes.
“Teddy Rawlins should know better than to encourage other children to imitate him,” said Mabel. “He is a naughty child. More must be
“A fine man of the cloth. I’m sure the girls will learn much from his church services,” continued Aunt Mabel serenely. “And they will learn even more from Sunday School.”
“Sunday School?” repeated Pandora incredulously. “There’s an actual school on Sundays? And we’re going to it?”
“Yes, dear, it will be for your own good,” smiled Mabel.
“How will it be for my own good?”
A flash of anger at being questioned appeared in Mabel’s eyes, but it disappeared almost instantly, leaving Pandora wondering if she had imagined it.
“By giving you a thorough education in the Bible.”
“Why will that do me good?” asked Pandora in puzzlement.
“The Bible is the source of all our morality, our knowledge of right and wrong,” clucked Mabel, never missing a stitch in her knitting.
“What, like saying in Isaiah that children should be slaughtered for their father’s crimes, even though in another part of the Bible it says you shouldn’t suffer for the sins of the father?” asked Pandora as Mabel stared in surprise.
“See, I already know about the Bible,” continued Pandora. “I learnt it all from Dad years ago when we studied the Greek Testament. So I don’t need to go to Sunday School.”
Mabel shot a venomous look at Mr Laskaris, who was smiling proudly at his daughter’s knowledge, though his smile was tinged with sadness–he and Pandora had spent a lot of time together when she was younger, sharing their interests, before she hit her teenage years and developed her own separate life.
“I see that your Bible knowledge is rather incomplete and one sided,” said the old woman after a pause of several seconds in which she groped for a reply. “Sunday School will no doubt repair the damage of your misunderstandings.”
“How can I have misunderstood? Isn’t it god’s word?”
“Those with insufficient knowledge can twist the words to suit their own purposes,” snapped Mabel, dropping a stitch. “Now look what you’ve made me do!”
“How do you know your interpretation is better than Dad’s?” demanded Pandora, her temper now rising. “Are you saying you’re better than him?”
“I see there is a lot of work to be done,” snapped Mabel, her face revealing that she did indeed think she was better, though she quickly smothered the expression under a guise of long-suffering martyrdom. “How fortunate that you have moved here, before it is too late.”
“You’re the one who needs to learn, if you think you’re better than someone else just because of your Bible interpretation,” snorted Pandora in anger. “Go online and you’ll see hundreds of views on what the Bible means.”
“Fortunately for education and decency, there is no Internet connection in the village,” snarled Mabel, delighted to have found one area where her word was definite and the victory hers. “No company can get a signal out to us, so we are spared the filth and degradation that the Internet imports into people’s homes.”
“What?” exclaimed Pandora. “But you can get dongles that pick up the signal and—”
“There is no connection to the village,” Mabel repeated with a maddening satisfaction. It was clear that, in Mabel’s mind, this closed the discussion. “Now, what did you two girls get up to yesterday?” asked Mabel of the twins, pointedly ignoring the seething Pandora.
“We went to the quarry,” said Sarah.
Mabel started in anger. “You should keep away from the quarry. It’s dangerous,” she snapped.
“In what way?” asked Anne with genuine interest.
“Dangerous,” replied the old woman assertively. “How did you find out about it?”
“We were invited.”
“By whom?” demanded Mabel sharply.
“Teddy Rawlins,” replied Sarah, happily ignorant of the fresh surge of anger in the old woman’s eyes.
“Teddy Rawlins should know better than to encourage other children to imitate him,” said Mabel. “He is a naughty child. More must be
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