“And when he (Jesus) was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what
shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God.
Thou knowest the commandments. Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour
thy father and mother.
And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and
give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.”
The Gospel of St. Mark, Chap. 10, 17-22
This is the story of the one who came running, Alexios, son of the Jewess, Hannah, and the rich Greek merchant of Alexandria,
Lysandros, whose ships trade along the length and breadth of the Mediterranean and the outer oceans and whose caravans
trek from Damascus to the Far East. He is educated by the finest teachers in Alexandria, and from childhood he travels with
his father learning the languages, customs, commerce, and politics of the peoples in the lands where his father trades. He has
seen the world from the coasts of Cornwall to the turquoise walls of Persepolis.
He marries his childhood sweetheart, the Egyptian beauty, Nefret, and parts with her reluctantly to go about his father’s
business accompanied by his lifelong companion, the towering African slave, Pavlos, whom he rescued from a cruel trader
when they were both children.
While traveling through Judea he has occasion to meet the Nazarene rabbi, Jesus, whom he rescues when he comes upon him
fleeing from a murderous mob. He finds himself drawn to this teacher whose words trouble his heart. When Nefret dies after
the still birth of their firstborn, his joy of life dies with her, and following his father’s death, he relocates to Rome
where he becomes involved with a group of Christians among whom is a woman he comes to love.
Now he finds himself in a deadly game of saving Christians from the cruel emperor Caligula, a daring and dangerous choice
that will radically change the course of his life.
Author’s note: How I discovered the one who came running
I was first introduced to the above verses from the Gospel of St. Mark as a child attending daily chapel at an Episcopal
church school. They have haunted me all my life, causing me to wonder who that man was. What was his mysterious story that
the gospels say nothing more about? I finally had to create one for him.