Crusade of Tears: A Novel of the Children's Crusade by C. D. Baker Page A

shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall come to you and thy righteousness shall endure forever. Good shall come to you who are generous and lend of thy loved ones freely.
    “Oh, dear fathers and good mothers,” wailed the churchman, “thy sons and daughters are a heritage from the Lord. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in thine youth. Blessed are those whose quiver is full for they shall not be put to shame.” The legate’s words did not miss their mark. Indeed, apprehensions began lifting like fog past prime.
    Paulus turned his face toward the slack-jawed children beneath him and adroitly closed the net. “Children, obey thy parents in all things for this pleases God. Listen carefully to my words: If you be children, then you be heirs of God. Indeed you share in His sufferings in order that you might also share in His glory.
    “I send you not to an easy place, but to a hard place, and you shall shoulder the Holy Cross as did our dear Lord. You, my dear, dear children, are sent from God to overcome, for the One who goes with you is greater than the Evil One that is in this world.”
    The man’s constricting eyes swept the congregation. “If the Lord is pleased with you, He shall surely lead you into that land … a land flowing with milk and honey. Go up and take possession of it! Be not afraid and do not be discouraged.”
    He stared heavenward, now nearly weeping. “And the little ones, dear God, Thy children who know not yet good from evil, they shall enter Thy land. Thou shalt bestow it upon them, and they shall surely take hold of it. Then all mankind shall truly know that Thou art Jehovah, the Redeemer, the Lion of Judah. With windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire, go before this flock of Thy most precious lambs. May Thine many enemies become like fine dust; the ruthless hordes like blown chaff.
    “For the wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together … and the little child shall lead them. The infant shall play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put its hand into the viper’s nest. They shall neither harm nor destroy any on Thine holy mountain.”
    He relaxed a little and secured both hands on the lapels of his robes. “Brave children, the Lord is bringing you into a good land; a land with streams, and pools of water with springs flowing in the valleys and hills. A land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil, and honey. The land you shall take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drink rain from heaven.”
    Paulus closed his eyes. “On a day soon, a song shall be sung in the land of Judah. Open the gates, O Jerusalem, that the righteous children may enter in. Keep perfect peace, O my God, for those whose minds are steadfast. Help them trust in Thee forever, O Lord, our Lord, the Rock eternal!”
    He opened his eyes and stood quietly for a long moment. Then, with a pleading, inspiring voice he cried, “Children of Christendom … will you join in Holy Crusade? Will you join with the others and deliver Palestine from her oppressor? Will you serve the Almighty and His Holy Church and enter, victorious, the gates of Jerusalem?”
    Unable to restrain himself a moment longer, a young lad jumped in the air and cried, “I’ll go, blessed Father! I’ll go!”
    Then, as if a gust of wind suddenly rushed through the abbey, voices from every corner echoed the boy’s cry. “Yes! Yes! We go … we go!” Children shouted and cheered, stamped their feet and danced. A wild scramble of child crusaders then poured out the church’s doors and spilled into the courtyard. “We go! We go to God!” Many parents, now caught in the moment, laughed and sang, for they would now be heirs, heirs of blessing in a Holy Crusade—a Children’s Crusade!
    Smiling, the legate backed away from the pulpit. Abbot Udo seemed anxious and he stared forward slack-jawed