Chapter 24 – After
The Second Coming did not arrive with a Heavenly Herald nor Wrathful Thunder. There was thunder, and a small rainstorm resulted in a rainbow heralding the arrival of Jesse & Magda Godson to a valley in Switzerland that had belonged to the Godson family for centuries.
Jesus started raising sheep (an unusual number of black ones) and goats – just enough to keep up appearances that they were self-sustaining, selling homespun wool and goat's milk products to local businesses. Madge spun and wove and worked on child #1. Baby Joseph was born 11 months after their arrival ("Ða never got enough credit, but now he has a namesake")1. Together, they made an idyllic farm and home. They attended various churches for special events, such as weddings and christenings, but avoided going as much as they could ("I'd be a self-indulgent prig to show up and Madge says it's triggering", Jesu told Aziraphale in a letter)1. Mary and Joseph came to visit, but they were not comfortable in corporal form, so they decided that visits would be limited to the children's birthdays. Jesus and God had met several times, which Jesus described as "carefully making progress."1
Aziraphale and Crowley gave God and Jesus a tour of Earth, so they could better understand the issues they were discussing. They showed them the beauty and hope in Mankind's creations but also that most of the truly awful was invented by Man, not Hell. Hell was mostly just reaping what man's ambition had sewn. The ambitions and ego of both Gabriel and the Metatron were a major contributing factor. They had forgotten to include Love and Mercy in their works. The tour reinforced God's desire to have them work together to keep The Balance.
God had taken over the Supreme Archangel duties, realizing She had neglected her creation and needed some 'hands on' time. She occasionally sent messages to the two angels, that She called 'The Balance' or called them to confer. She contacted Jesus almost daily; He really was the Prince of Peace. Some of the Singing Women were brought in and God shared their stories of their work in Purgatory. Angels were sent to work in human form at refugee camps and relief centers around the world. "To sharpen their Empathy", God said. Saraquiel came back from six weeks with Doctors without Borders with a new focus for her determination.
Uriel had easily assumed the duties of the Metatron, although she asked Muriel to help with those communiques that required a more perky or uplifting delivery than Uriel could achieve. Michael, relieved of the stresses and responsibilities of duty officer, was more than satisfied being God's Office Manager. She got to know everything without having to sneak and was learning about the Mercy side of the business, since Gabriel had only used it to extort the results he wanted.
Muriel and Raph were apprenticing with Aziraphale, planning to take over his post as ambassador, and assisting him in his higher position as Guardian Angel. Eric was assigned to Crowley and as Inter-Realm Ambassador, he sometimes had Raph's help when in Heaven.
The world was calming down after the buildup to Armageddon. The pandemic had been an unfortunate consequence, but while hunkered down, everyone had time to reevaluate their priorities. While many in power were still all about getting more and gathered their own disciples, those more interested in peace had become aware of their own power when they worked together to improve the health of the world. With God and Jesus back in place, Crowley and Aziraphale began to make plans…
1 Later to be known as "The Gospel of Jesus' letters to Aziraphale".