Chapter 9 Chapter VII

The small apartment in Saint-Sulpice Church is located on the second floor of the church, to the left of the choir.This is a two-bedroom residence with stone floors and minimalist decoration, where Sister Sandrine Biel has lived for more than a decade.The nearby convent is her official residence. Some people may ask, why does she live here?Because she likes the tranquility of this church, there is only a bed, a telephone and a simple stove, but she feels that life is very comfortable.She is the church's logistics director, overseeing all of the church's non-religious affairs - major repairs, hiring temporary staff and guides, taking care of daily post-service security and ordering things like wine and wafers for communion .

Tonight, the piercing ringing of the phone suddenly woke her up from her deep sleep on the small bed.She feebly picked up the receiver. "I am Sister Sandrine. This is Saint-Sulpice." "Hello, Sandrine," the man said in French. Sandrine sat up.what time is it?Although she recognized her boss' voice, he had never called her at night to wake her up in fifteen years.The abbot was very devout, and went home to sleep immediately after mass. "I'm sorry to wake you up, Sandrine," said the Abbess.From the voice, he himself was also a little dazed and upset, "I have to ask you a favor, I just received a call from an influential bishop in the United States. You may know him, Manuel Aringa Losa, do you know?"

"Is he the bishop of Opus Dei?" Who in the church doesn't know him?Aringarosa's conservative sect has grown in power in recent years. In 1982 Pope John Paul II unexpectedly elevated Opus Dei to his own personal denomination, officially sanctioning all their practices.Since then, their status has suddenly soared a lot.Suspiciously, the year Opus Dei rose to prominence was the same wealthy sect accused of funneling billions of dollars to the Vatican Institute for Religious Works, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, and pulling it out of bankruptcy. The year that was saved.The second frown is that the Pope has put the process of canonization of the founder of Opus Dei on the "fast track", shortening the time limit for obtaining "sainthood" from the usual one century to twenty years.Sandrine couldn't help wondering why Opus Dei had such a high status in Rome, but ordinary people don't disagree with the Holy Pope.

"Bishop Aringarosa called for my help," the abbot told her in a nervous voice. "One of his men is in Paris tonight..." Listening to this weird request, Sandrine felt that Monk Zhang Er was puzzled. "Excuse me, are you saying this Opus Dei guest can't wait for dawn?" "I'm afraid I can't wait. His plane left early. He's looking forward to seeing Saint-Sulpice." "But it's much more interesting to see the church during the day. The rays of the sun coming in through the oculus, and the sloping shadows falling on the gable, are what make Saint-Sulpice so special."

"Sandrine, I know that, just do me a personal favor and let him in tonight. He'll probably be there around one o'clock. That's twenty minutes." Sister Sandrine frowned. "Of course. I'd love to." The abbot thanked her and hung up the phone. Sandrine was still puzzled.She lay down again under the warm blanket for a while, trying to fight off sleepiness at the same time.Her sixty-five-year-old body didn't wake up as quickly as it used to, although tonight's call had undoubtedly awakened her senses.Opus Dei had always made her uncomfortable.Leaving aside the sect's adherence to the mysteries of corporal punishment, their views on women were medieval at best.She had been horrified to learn that while the male member was at mass, the female member was forced to clean his apartment for free; that the women slept on hardwood floors while the men had hay mattresses; —It’s all about atonement for original sin.It seemed that Eve's bite from the tree of knowledge became a debt that woman was destined to pay forever.Sadly, while most of the world's Catholic churches are moving in the right direction of respecting women's empowerment, Opus Dei is threatening to reverse the trend.Even with these thoughts, Sister Sandrine accepted the order.

She lifted her legs out of bed, stood up slowly, and stepped on the cold stone in her shoes with her bare feet, feeling bitingly cold.The coldness rose along her body, and a sudden sense of fear hit her. A woman's intuition? A believer in God, Sister Sandrine has learned to find peace in the calm voice of her own soul.But tonight, those voices were gone, as silent as the empty church around her.