This morning you saw the following BBC video report:
3 August 2010. Last updated at 04:20 ET
Bone fragments of St John the Baptist appear to have been found on Sveti Ivan Island near Bulgaria's southern Black Sea. He is considered one of the most important figures in Christianity. Further tests are still to be carried out on the fragments, which were discovered late last month.
The BBC's Malcolm Brabant reports. . . .
This is a surprise to you, but a similar find was in book one and thus you have a greater personal identity with the concept of this news item.
Awkwardly, yes, I do. It is exciting to see real archeological finds. Though, strangely, I was just as exciting when Justin was reading the Greek inscribed note within the ancient jar found in the cave where the Dead Sea scrolls were found. All fiction of course, but ‘I was there’ looking at the Greek through the character’s (Justin’s) eyes. So, I suppose, it is even more exciting to see a similar ancient find. Of course, this may just be fiction too. Further tests have to be made to determine if it is truly ‘the’ John the Baptist’s remains. If they can gather the DNA (highly unlikely I think) that would be most cool, mainly (to me) because John was supposed to be Jesus’ cousin I believe. Below from Wiki.answers:
“John the Baptist was the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth (Luke 1:5-25). Jesus was Mary's son, conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:26-38). Mary was Elizabeth's cousin (Luke 1:36). So the relation between Jesus and John the Baptist was that of second cousins.”
From: Wiki.answers online
**
So, to me, this is rather exciting. Back in the mid-seventies when I was gathering ideas for a story I created an imaginary jump from gathering the DNA of Jesus from the Shroud of Turin. What I had in mind at the time was a story in which Jesus’ DNA was rediscovered and scientists secretly made a clone cell which inserted into a live host womb became a clone embryo and so on, this way a prophecy was fulfilled, albeit, not the same as religious people had imagined. It is still a good idea and similar stories have been written. Eventually, I incorporated the concept in the Merlyn books in which the character Diplomat was created. Dan Brown did a much better job using genetics and skipping the clone concept altogether.
Now, in real life, if the current remains are of John the Baptist and eventually a DNA construction could be made and the DNA cloned, it may be possible to create the DNA of Mary, the mother of Jesus. That would still be something. A return, as it were, of the host Mother of Jesus. So, then, at least genetically, you could create a half brother or sister of Jesus. That would be rather tricky cool beans.
It sounds a bit of satire running between the lines above, orndorff.
I can’t help it. What a twist. Dark humor creeping up into a slight grin. What would good people do? What would religious people do? It would be like bringing back the saints, at least those we have the remains of. Then where does it stop? Some people would want to bring back a favorite relative or friend or famous person. Grave robbing would be a big deal. I can see it now. Very funny, especially when people think the world has already gone mad. Mary Shelley might want to smile a bit too. Bring her back, at least genetically. See what happens when she hits the environment of her twenty-first century day. Yeah, I think it is funny in a quirky sort of way. In order not to get people mixed up, all the clones could be shipped to Mars for colonization. Ray Bradbury would like that. Yep, very funny. John Cleese would have to play a part in the movie version.
Are you quite done?
I suppose. Self-entertainment, that’s all it is. I have a good imaginary time while I am here, still in existence on Earth. I am retired. I can afford the imagination. Why not?
Post, orndorff. – Amorella.
**
Late lunch at Five Guys on Tylersville; now Carol is in Kroger’s while you wait. While driving over to lunch an older lady waved from the car behind you and you waved back. She waved again and you suddenly realized it was your old assistant principal back in the mid-seventies, Miss Anna G. You will check with Jim P., but that is who the woman looked like. A.G. has been a minister for years but this is the first time you have seen her since she retired in the seventies. Everyone always knew where they stood with Anna G. – principal, teacher, or student. You enjoyed working with her because of that characteristic as well as her civilized politeness.
If it wasn’t Anna, the woman brought back the memory, that is more than enough to mention her here. She was ‘old school’ and so was I as were a lot of others during that decade. That’s when kids were still interested in the classics and grammar as well as they enjoyed reading novels and even some non-fiction. Many had been brought up in old fifties decade culture being that we are in Cincinnati. Each generation is their own, of course, but part of me could identify with those times. Alas, I also identified with the Beats and counter-culture of the sixties. I am hybrid-cultured I suppose, though I have never thought that before.
Newsweek arrived today and it has a picture of Samuel Clemens on the front cover so I read it pretty much all the way through. Then I picked up my reader and continued with Twain’s Autobiography for a short while and while I covered a lot of words, many of them setting descriptive one paragraph held out some promise and here it is on page 184 of the e-reader version from the Free Reader App on the iPad.
“It seem a pity that the world should throw away so many good things merely because they are unwholesome. I doubt if God has given us any refreshment which, taken in moderation, is unwholesome, except microbes. Yet there are people who strictly deprive themselves of each and every eatable, drinkable and smokable which has in any way acquired a shady reputation. They pay this price for health. And health is all they get for it. How strange it is; it is like paying out your whole fortune for a cow that has gone dry.”
From: Chapters from My Autobiography by Mark Twain.
The hammering cultural themes we put up with today. Many for good health. It is refreshing to read Twain and at the same time realize that those who do not deprive themselves of the above will likely be out of this earthy place earlier and save the family from investing good money in an unhealthy old body of little use beyond sentiment as this free living person will die earlier and not have to, at least for long, join the ranks who leave this world by way of a hospital bed and a spent body plugged up to tubes for modern cultural satisfaction.
Tomorrow let’s explore more of chapter six, orndorff. Post. – Amorella.
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