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They looked up at him in amazement.






" Please, excuse me, " he said, speaking correctly, but with a foreign accent, " for presuming to speak to you without an introduction... but the subject of your learned discussion is so interesting that..."

Here he politely removed his beret, and the friends had no choice but to raise themselves slightly and bow in response.

" No, more likely he's French, " thought Berlioz.

" A Pole? " thought Bezdomny.

It should be added that the poet found the foreigner loathsome from the moment he opened his mouth, whereas Berlioz rather liked him, or, if not liked him, then... how shall we say it.. at least took an interest in him.


Never Talk to Strangers 7

" May I join you? " asked the foreigner politely, and the friends moved apart involuntarily; the foreigner deftly seated himself between them and immediately joined their conversation.

" Was I mistaken when I heard you say that Jesus never existed on earth? " asked the foreigner, focusing his left green eye on Berlioz.

" No, you were not mistaken, " Berlioz replied courteously. " That's exactly what I said."

" Ah, how interesting! " exclaimed the foreigner.

" What the devil is he after? " thought Bezdomny with a scowl.

" And do you agree with your friend? " queried the stranger, turning to Bezdomny on his right.

" A hundred percent! " confirmed Bezdomny who loved pretentious, figurative expressions.

" Astonishing! " exclaimed the uninvited discussant, and then, looking around furtively for some reason, and muffling his already low voice, he said, " Excuse my persbtence, but did I understand you to say that you don't believe in God either? " He made his eyes pop in mock fright and added, " I swear I won't tell anyone."

" That's right, we don't believe in God, " answered Berlioz with a faint smile at the tourist's fear, " but we can talk about it freely and openly."

The foreigner leaned back on the bench and practically squealed with curiosity as he asked, " You mean you're atheists?! "

" Yes, we are, " answered Berlioz with a smile, while Bezdomny thought in irritation, " He's sucking to us like glue, the foreign pest! "

" Oh, how delightful! " cried the amazed foreigner, turning to look first at one writer and then the other.

" In our country atheism comes as no surprise to anyone, " said Berlioz in a polite and diplomatic way. " The majority of our population made a conscious decision long ago not to believe the fairy tales about God."

Here the foreigner made the following move: he got up, pressed the astonished editor's hand, and uttered these words, " Allow me to thank you with all my heart! "

" What are you thanking him for? " queried Bezdomny, blinking.

" For very important information that I, as a traveller, find extraordinarily interesting, " explained the eccentric from abroad, raising his finger in a meaningful way.

The important information had apparently made a really strong impression on the traveller, since he anxiously scanned the surrounding buildings, as if in fear of spotting an atheist in every window.

" No, he's not English..." thought Berlioz, while Bezdomny wondered, " Where in hell did he learn to speak Russian like that, that's what I'd like to know! " —and he scowled again.

" But, may I ask, " resumed the guest from abroad after a moment's troubled reflection, " what do you make of the proofs of God's existence, of which, as you know, there are five? "


8 The Master and Margarita

" Alas! " answered Berlioz regretfully, " all of those proofs are worthless, and mankind has long since consigned them to oblivion. Surely you would agree that reason dictates that there can be no proof of God's existence."

" Bravo! " exclaimed the foreigner, " Bravo! You've said just what that restless old sage Immanuel said about this very same subject But here's the rub: he completely demolished all five proofs, and then, in a seeming display of self-mockery, he constructed a sixth proof all his own! "

" Kant's proof, " retorted the educated editor with a faint smile, " is also unconvincing. No wonder Schiller said that only slaves could be satisfied with Kant's arguments on this subject, while Strauss simply laughed at his proof."

As Berlioz was speaking, he thought, " But, who is he anyway? And how come his Russian is so good? "

" This guy Kant ought to get three years in Solovki for proofs like that, " blurted out Ivan Nikolayevich, completely unexpectedly.

" Ivan! " whispered Berlioz in consternation.


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