Shard’s response surprised him, and encouraged him to go further.

“And I have no view on religion at all.”

“Very good… that’s very good.”

“But surely this isn’t about me, personally,” the President added. “Let me assure you Shard, there’s no chance of an over-the-phone conversion here.”

“Of course not,” Shard said with a chuckle. “Your attitude is perfectly appropriate for the modern man. In the Regeneration, yours will be the voice of the ambivalent man.”

“I’m not sure about that.”

“It’s good!” Shard exclaimed enthusiastically. “In the Regeneration it will be the fair voice, the rational voice – the voice which points to the lack of proof of God’s existence, but in a way which encourages this deficiency to be addressed. You will enable the question to be considered calmly. In the end, you are the ultimate peacemaker.”

“Listen Shard,” the President said, unimpressed. “Let’s cut to the chase. I have no idea what you think is going to happen here. But as it presently stands I have no intention of taking any role in it at all.”

“Unfortunately, that’s not possible,” Shard said. “Without you we have no hope. And if we have no hope, there is no hope.”

“No hope of what? Let’s be clear here,” the President responded tersely. “I called you out of courtesy – because I was asked by a friend to do so. But I’m doing nothing at all until I know exactly what’s going on.”

Without waiting for a response he added –

“And I must say, at the moment I’m far from that.”

“Of course you are.”