Free The God Box by Alex Sanchez Page A

..." I knew our Bible Club was scheduled for that Wednesday, but I also recalled what a disaster our last meeting had been. So I looked away and lied: "Um, I'm not sure when it is." Afterward, I prayed for God's forgiveness.My fib did no good anyway. Angie or Dakota must have told Manuel about the meeting, because when I arrived at Bible Club, he was already there with them.
    My stomach slid down to my shoes.Across the circle of chairs sat Elizabeth and Cliff, darting glances at Manuel while murmuring in low voices with two other girls.Angie motioned to an empty seat she'd saved for me.Cliff had volunteered to lead that day's discussion, about the Sermon on the Mount, another of my Scripture favorites. He asked Elizabeth to start us off in prayer, but when she had finished, he75unexpectedly announced, "Instead of the Sermon on the Mount, I think we should discuss Genesis Nineteen."I blinked at him in surprise. We had never changed the scheduled passage at the last minute. People hastily flipped through their Bibles to recall what Genesis 19 was about. But I already knew. It told the story of Sodom and Gomorrah.Angie looked worriedly at Manuel and objected, "We didn't prepare for that.""Okay, let's take a vote," Cliff replied, as if he had anticipated the objection. "Majority rules. All those opposed to changing today's reading, raise their hands."Angie, Dakota, Aaron Esposito, and I lifted our hands. I'd assumed Manuel would too, but he didn't."You can vote too," I whispered to him."Thanks. I will." But he still didn't raise his hand."Those in favor of changing the reading?"
    Cliff asked, raising his arm alongside Elizabeth and the two other girls. That made it a tie, four against four, except... Manuel also raised his hand.Everyone in the circle stared at him. Even Cliff eyed him suspiciously."It's one of my favorites." Manuel smiled. Was he being sarcastic?"All right then." Cliff cleared his throat. "Genesis Nineteen." He began reading aloud, '"The two angels came to Sodom in the evening--'""Excuse me," Manuel interrupted. "But the story really starts in chapter eighteen."Cliff peered at him warily, as if suspecting a trap. "We voted to read chapter nineteen""All right." Manuel shrugged. "But the story starts in chapter eighteen."Cliff resumed reading about how Lot, a nephew of Abraham,76rose to meet the two male angels at the city gate and invited them to spend the night at his house: They said, "No; we will spend the night in the street." But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.'"I tugged nervously at my wristband, knowing we were about to get to the bad part.'"But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house; and they called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may know them.'""From Sunday school I knew that to "know" someone was often the Biblical way of saying to have sex. But in this passage it confused me. Did it mean that every single male in the city--"both young and old ... to the last man"--was homosexual? That seemed kind of unlikely. But if they weren't, then why would they all have mobbed the house demanding to "know" the visiting strangers?My palms started to sweat as Cliff pressed on with his reading:
    '"Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, and said, "I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. Behold, I have two daughters who have not known man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please; only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof.'"""Can we stop a moment?" Dakota cut in. "If Lot, Abraham's nephew, is supposed to be a righteous, good, God-loving guy, how can he offer his two virgin daughters to be raped?""I agree," Angie spoke up. "What kind of dad is that? Isn't he just as bad as the rest of