They all wondered at God, so foreseeing and so thoughtful, who had made the moon to give light to men by night, and the stars so that the darkness should not be complete.
"Well, then," inquired Gabriel, "why is there not a moon always if it was made to give us light ?" There was a long silence.

They were all thinking over Gabriel's question.

The bell-ringer, being most intimate with the master, ventured to put the question about which they were all thinking.

"What were the heavens, and what was there beyond the blue ?" The square was now deserted and in darkness, there was no light but the gentle shimmering of the stars scattered in space like golden dust.

From the immense vault there seemed to fall a religious calm, an overwhelming majesty that stirred the souls of those simple people.
The infinite seemed to bewilder them with its vast grandeur.
"You," said Gabriel, "have your eyes closed to immensity, you cannot understand it.