In a shadowy, gloomy forest, there is a grand mountain with a blazing, eternal flame at the peak. Only a qualified few are able to ascend the peak and acquire this flame—most men lack the constitution to make the journey. These qualified men, the sages, periodically go to this source to bring back a flame for their peoples. By this flame they are both able to survive in their dark habitat, as well as to see its true nature more clearly. Sometimes it happens that some flame is exchanged by neighboring folks. Some folks never produce a sage of their own, and rely entirely on couriers to others, but nonetheless they possess the discipline to preserve the flame as long as possible.
At some point, the flame of the Jews has become quite weak, as they are notably insular, refusing to get flames except from their own sages (who they call prophets). A fellow named Josh appears amidst them, successfully scales the mountain, acquires the flame, and returns to the Jews with it. He proclaims that only he could ascend the mountain, and that from now on, everyone—not just the Jews, but also the occupying Romans, neighboring Greeks, etc—must only live off this very flame he has brought, and it can only be transmitted using his torches. Despite some scuffles amongst his followers, this community of mountainless torch-bearers prospers, keeping the flame alight for some time after Josh passes on.
Eventually, as we would expect, the flame begins to dim. Up until now, any ordinary community would acquire more fire either through the efforts of a sage, or from neighboring folks. Unfortunately, the rules laid out by Josh prohibit this—only he was allowed to go get that fire, and only the fire he acquired may be used or distributed. Those who attempt to prove themselves sages are barred from seeking the mountain, and those who attempt to find fire from others are treated savagely. Thus, life slowly becomes more difficult and the world less comprehensible for these followers of Josh.
Now the flames have gotten quite dark, and only cinders remain among the many communities sprung by Josh. This has resulted in a tremendous, unique crisis. Nobody disagrees that Josh was the only one allowed up on the mountain, and that his flame was the only flame. However, some begin to think there is no mountain at all, and that Josh and his flames were just fantasies. As they are left groping in the dark, their social structures begin to deteriorate, and their knowledge of the world clouds up. Some groups are able to live in the darkness somewhat well using their senses other than sight, but never so great as if they had illuminated vision. Others can hardly get it together.
After a long time of groping in the dark, these descendants of Josh’s followers encounter other flame-bearing peoples. This does not resolve the crisis. Some descendants still hold fast to the idea that only Josh could acquire flame from the mountain, and that only his flame could be spread; they are even so brazen as to offer their smoldering ashes to those with brightly shining flames. Some descendants doubt their eyes, clinging to their conclusions that the mountain and its fire were all nonsense anyway, or else stubbornly arguing that life is better based on the senses besides sight. A few are willing to accept these foreign flames using their foreign torches and foreign fire-maintenance equipment (a fewer still use the torches handed down by Josh to violate his precepts), but for the scorn from both the fire-doubters and Josh-fundamentalists, they wind up assimilating to these foreign communities, forming smaller communities of their own, or else persisting alone in the woods with a little fire.
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