The Problems with the Crucifixion!

There are several issues I have with the Crucifixion story. Don't get me wrong, I'm not disputing it happened, it's just that certain key elements of the story don't add up, and any sort of minor investigation into the historical background of the event will quickly reveal what is wrong with the story, as it has come down to us.

The only problem in answering those key questions through a historical examination, is that those people who truly believe that Jesus died on the cross, to save us from our sins, don't want to know about anything other than what it says in the Bible. For them , the Bible is unassailable. They don't even care that most of it was probably concocted from fragments of stories more than a hundred years after the event, and that ever since it has been censored, edited, cut to ribbons and altered to suit various political and doctrinal agendas.

So, you ask, what problems do I have with the Crucifixion story, as a "rational" individaul capable of examining the story objectively. Well, if we rule out the suggestion that Jesus was the Son of God, and examine his situation as though he were a mere mortal man, then the issues become obvious:

• Why did Jesus die so quickly on the cross, when usually it took days to die?
• Why did Jesus appear to die immediately after having his lips soaked by the sponge containing vinegar, was it perhaps some sort of knock-out drug used instead?
• Why did blood pour from the wound in Jesus side, inflicted by a Roman soldier? Had he really been dead, he would not have bled so easily!
• Why was Jesus body taken down so quickly? Usually the body would have been left for a significant period of time, before removal from the cross.

The answers are not immediately apparent, but can be deduced quite easily. Firstly, crucifixions were public events, and the crucifxion of Jesus was no exception, only it took place in a private garden owned by Joseph of Arimathea, and any spectators were at some distance from the event.

Secondly, the Passover was used as a pretext for taking down the body of Jesus, and as such he had to appear to die quickly. The usual practice was to leave the condemned man on the cross until his chest began to collapse from supporting his own weight, at which point the knees would have been smashed, to bring a swift conclusion to the suffering. However, we can clearly see that it wasn't intended that Jesus should suffer such a fate, so his apparent death had to be brought on prematurely. Thus the application of the sponge. There were plenty drugs found naturally in Israel at that time, which when applied correctly could slow down someones heart-rate significantly enough to cause them to appear to be dead, and it seems that that is what happened. The bleeding from the spear wound suggests that he was quite alive as he was taken down and hurried to his tomb, where we can assume he was attended to throughout the night.

So why would such an event be orchestrated in the first place? Well, Jesus appeared to die a martyrs death and be resurrected. He's looking pretty good so far. He gets to leave all his trouble behind and head for pastures new, presumably India. The Romans didn't care about Jesus, but he had some powerful friends who were able to direct the full course of events. Presumably, Pontius Pilate was aware of what was to happen, his only dicatate being that Jesus disappears forever, and that everyone believes him to be dead. Perhaps Jesus wanted to appear before the people like an angel risen from the dead, but was so prohibited by the Romans that he was left with no choice but to leave, otherwise, next time it would be for real!

Foucault's Key To the Templars Tribal Legacy!

Did I tell you already? I'm not sure... I'm reading Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco. I'm actually almost at the end of it. As usual, I have been surprised by Eco's literary ability, he really demonstrates great depth of characterisation in his novels. His background research is also meticulous, as is his ability to tie seemingly unrelated subjects together with great ease.

Bizzarely enough, as you may have noticed, I have a slight interest in the Knights Templar, among other subjects, but I hadn't realised this book would focus on them to such an extent, so I have been pleasantly surprised. It actually deals with just about every secret or open society, you can think of. Add in a splash of European History and some dazzling characters, and you have a wonderful story. I hope the ending is going to be everything it's building up to be, not like "The Island Of the Day Before", which although superbly written, had a rather anti-climax of an ending.

So now I have another four books remaining to be read, the remainder of my literary purchases from during College time. I wasn't able to read them then, because the workload was just far too intense. Anyone who says their Degree was easy, is either:

1. A Liar
2. Barking Mad
3. Stephen Hawkings Love-child

I'm none of those unfortunately, so I had to work my ass off. These are the booking awaiting a read from my dusty bookcase:

• The Tribes Of Britain by David Miles
• Turning the Hiram Key by Robert Lomas
• The Tower by Valerio Massimo Mandredi
• The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry

Seems eclectic at first glance, but when I look again at the list I can see a common thread, but perhaps that's just my mindset right now from reading Foucault's Pendulum!

The New Adventures Of Tintin!

I know it's not entirely new news, as I heard about it a couple weeks back, or rather read it on Digg, but for anyone who still hasn't heard the news, Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are going to be making a trilogy of films based on the adventures of Tintin, including one together.

Now, I don't know how anyone else feels about this, but personally, I have grave reservations. Allegedly, the films will be in a format similar to Polar Express, presumably so they can have a host of celebrities do character voices. My main reservation is that they're going to Americanise it, which would surely be tragic and completely ruin it. Secondly, are they going to base the films on the original books? and, if not, who's going to write the screenplays? Are they going to set in in the same time period, or bring it up to date? Because if the do, it will suck!

There are so many things they could do to inadvertently destroy it, and I can't help thinking that anyone who grew up reading the books and watching the cartoon series, may well be bitterly disappointed with the outcome. I remember as a child, hiring out The Black Island, from the library, and I thought it was superbly written. Of course, as an adult, I can see that it was slightly ridiculous and portayed a stereotypical Scotland rather than the real Scotland, but by God it was a fun read for a child!

So, fingers crossed they do the right thing, or else they'll have legions of closet Tintin fans to answer to!

The Ghost In the Machine!

So, the second part of the double-header as promised, detailing my experience with the supernatural, although as with my UFO sightings, I never actually saw a ghost, although I do believe it made its presence very clear to me, as I shall recount to you now.

Around the year 2000, I think it was, I was working in a very large sawmill, operating some gargantuan machine which spewed out boards at an alarming rate. As, everything was automated, there were just myself and an older guy working in that area of the mill. That part of the mill had been built just the year previous, maybe 2 years earlier, and during construction, a Swedish guy, who had been overseeing the operation was inadvertently killed by a rather large vehicle. The details of which are rather grisly and slightly dubious, so I won't divulge them here.

Anyhow, I was working away there one day, it was a nice sunny day, I was fairly relaxed I guess, I think it was a Friday, so the week was almost over. Next thing, I sensed someone running up behind me, and I thought they were going to grab the back of my neck. I suspected it was the fork-lift driver who worked at the end of our line, as he often came in with new orders or to realy some problem with the conveyor, and that was the sort of thing he'd do. Because, the machinery was elevated, about 7 feet off the ground we were working on this wooden flooring, and so I felt the vibrations as though someone was running up behind me, and at the same time, I had looked down and saw a shadow coming up from behind me.

So, given all of those indications that I was about to be grabbed from behind (I even felt as though I was grabbed, afterwards), you can imagine the surprise I got when I turned around and there was nobody there. I got a real scare. I went to see "Anon" who worked with me, but was at the far end of the machine, and at that time out of sight. I said to him, quite seriously, "I think this place is haunted!" He was a fairly sober guy, so I thought he would chide me and tell me not to be ridiculous, but au contraire. He replied "Yes, but he's a friendly ghost, he likes to knock things over for a laugh, he doesn't mean any harm!"

I've never forgotten that encounter and frequently wonder if the Swedish guy was trying to get my attention, as it seemed that he was "allegedly" held partially responsible for his own death, when rumours to the contrary suggested that, he was probably entirely blameless. No further comment!

Close Encounters of My Kind!

Alright, this is the first part of a double-header about UFOs and Ghosts, or more precisely my limited experience with both of those! Firstly, I've had perhaps 3 experiences in my life which you might consider encounters with UFOs, although no single encounter could be strictly defined as a UFO encounter, because on each occasion all I saw was a light. Well, this is Scotland and usually it's dark, so even lights can possess strange properties.

The first encounter was, when myself and a few mates went for a wander in the countryside in late October aged 18-19, pitch dark, and probably with a drink in. We were heading into the hills (walking) near Arradoul, when we saw a light (seemingly) in a nearby field. Initally it looked as though it was a bicycle light, but then the light stopped and started shining up into some nearby trees. Very odd we thought, and as we discussed it, the light suddenly turend and shone towards us. The next thing this light, and whatever object it was attached to, took off, up towards the hills, and at a fair speed too, ceratinly faster than a bike could go. Our puzzlement only increased when we moved closer to where we had first seen the light, and realised it was a newly ploughed field, all the fields there had been ploughed, and there was no road, yet the light had moved across the field with no wobbling motion, which indicated to us, that whatever the object with the light had been, it couldn't have been on the ground, or it would have been alll over the place.

That first encounter as odd as it was, in no way prepared me for the other 2 encounters I had, almost exactly a year apart from each other. In my early 20's ,say around 1995, I was working at a sawmill in the Woods near Fochabers, and each morning I had to get off the bus and walk about a mile through the woods and a farmyard to get there (in the very dark, with big cats wandering around (but, that's for another time)). So, on this morning, I get to the farmyard and strangely (more exciting than scary), there was what appeared to be a massive spotlight shining down from above this row of trees, near the stream (like those ones you see in war films, that bright). The light was shing here and there and then it shone on me, so I just stood looking at it for a while, it was very close, and there was absolute silence. Then, just like that it disappeared, without a sound.

Then, perhaps a year to the day later ( I surmise), almost the same thing again, except this time I arrived at the sawmill, to see a light (identical to the first) panning around by the stream, about 50 yards from the mill. I wanted to go closer, but I couldn't do it, because I realised that whatever it was I was looking at, it was definitely unnatural. As before, the light disappeared in an instant. I later thought, as cows are abducted by aliens (apparently), that both lights had been over the stream, in spots where deer would cross, or come out of the woods to drink, perhaps they had been after deer. I offer no explanation for what I saw, alien or not, I recount what I saw faithfully, and leave the cause open to interpretation. Tomorrow, my most singular ghostly encounter laid bare!

The Mysterious Comte De St.Germain!

Who was the msyterious gentleman pictured above, who styled himself the Comte De St.Germain? and besides his love for ostentatious jewellery and his command of several languages, what secret did he possesss that made him apparently ageless? For the Comte was not only an extremely knowledgable man with wisdom seemingly beyond the grasp of a mere mortal, but he also moved freely among the aristocracy of Europe for at least two centuries, while always maintaining the appearance of a man in his late forties. His first documented appearance was in 1700, and his last in 1896, which would have made him around 245.

The man is all the more remarkable for the information he imparted to certain individuals, for instance it is told that he had descibed locomotives, steamships and space travel. He was supected to be none other than Christian Rosenkreutz himself, and was said to possess the Elixir of Life. He himself claimed to be 4000 years old owing to his discovery of the Elixir of Life, and that he had gone under many guises throughout that time, but it's true that he had access to untold wealth, and his advice and company were sought by almost every European monarch.

You can decide for yourself whether the Comte was a charlatan, or if he did indeed possess the secret of eternal life. Perhaps other cirumstances contributed to his ability to live to an impossible age at a time when the average life expectancy was only 35 years of age. Who knows? But, it's certainly a compelling tale, that's for sure!

Disastrous Drive Crash to Report!

Quick post tonight, as I've been busy most of the day trying to recover my files after my "D" Drive crashed. Believe it or not, it's my first ever drive crash. The drive was OK, just inaccesible and I had to use a file recovery program to recover most of the files. Unfortunately I had masses of stuff on there, and only this morning I was pondering backing it all up to dvd.

Well, I got most of it back, and some of what was lost I can get again, but there was stuff that was virtually irreplacable, for instance I finally had a backup copy of The Beyond album "Crawl", which I have on vinyl, but as I haven't had a record player for years, wasn't much use to me. I only recently manged to acquire an audio copy with great difficulty, I might never be able to replace that, and other stuff too.

So, I had to reformat the drive and accept the inevitable. I'll just take it as a sign to be more cautious in future, as I had assumed (reasonably enough, I thought) that if a drive was to go, it would be the "C" Drive, because it has the system files on it, and those are the ones you expect to get damaged. Well, it just goes to show you, you can never be to complacent!

All Connected By Silver Threads!

Today I'd like to expound upon an idea which has been going around in my head for many years now. It was my father who first informed me of this supposition many years ago, when he was reading some Lobsang Rampa books. Like Erich Von Daeniken, Lobsang Rampa has been branded a charlatan in many circles, but it's not really about belief in my opinion, but rather about getting new ideas out into the open.

The premise put forward by Lobsang Rampa was as follows:

We each of us are linked by a silver thread (symbolically) to a higher-self, but several others are also linked similarly, by silver threads, to that same higher-self. When the threads get crossed, that's how people become schizophrenic, their personalities have in essence merged with anothers, although they are in some way connected.

To be honest with you, I quite like this suggestion, but I've considered several other possibilites tied in with it. Suppose, that all the individuals connected to the higher-self, live in different times, and that time therefore is linear. This would acount for cases of past lives remembered by some individuals, in other words, not past lives, but lives of other individuals connected to the higher-self. Alternatively, all of the lower-selfs are the same self, but time is irrelevant. This would make for a great pub discussion, don't you think?

Fear and Loathing!

Here's a clip I found from one of my all time favourite films, Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas. I don't usually go in for films of this sort, but this film just sort of sucks you right in. Even though there is much better material in the film, this part still gives you an idea of the goodness to come. There are several sections later in the film where I was literally ROFL. If you haven't seen it, you really should!

The Inherited Ritual of Modern Freemasonry!

What is known about the rituals of the Knights Templar? Very little really, we know what they were accused of when the order was condemned by Phillip the fair and the Pope Clement (who Phillip had in his pocket), but those accusations were probably largely spurious and so tell us nothing in effect. It had been suggested that the rituals of the Knights Templar were a precursor for modern Freemasonry, and that may well be the case, as there are several factors which commend the suggestion. Alternatively we must also consider the purported Operative guild origins of Freemasonry, an idea largely prevalent in England, and which may simply be a device whereby the Grand Lodge of England can claim that Freemasonry originated in that country (which clearly it didn't!).

The Knights Templar had 3 ordinary grades within the order: Squire, Sergeant and Knight, like the three degress in Freemasonry: Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft amd Master Mason. But these can be equally equated to the traditional craft roles of: Apprentice, Journeyman and Master.

But why stop with the Knights Templar, where did their rituals originate? surely the subject matter of Masonic rituals is Old Testament anyway, so why not look further back? The Knights Templar were accused of including in their rituals, certain practices which were akin to Catharism, which in turn had inherited those ideas from earlier Gnosticism, which leads us back to Jesus. But surely Jesus wasn't a Freemason I hear you say? Hmmm, well the raising of Lazarus from the dead seems decidedly like the ritual of the 3rd Degree in modern Freemasonry, when viewed subjectively, and Jesus own resurrection was essentially the same ritual again.

Following the route back through Jesus who had connections with several fairly diverse sects, a path can be traced back to the Israelite exodus from Egypt, led by Moses who had been initiated into the secrets of the Egyptian High Priests. Safe to say, that Moses took what he had learned and adapted it into something new and unique, but surely much of the secret rituals he had learned would have been preserved by him and practised within the High Priesthood of the new Judaic religion.

So, it's possible to conclude that elements of sacred ritual have been preserved since ancient times and permeated down through the ages till the present day. The modern rituals have probably lost all of the substance and intent which was implied originally, having been distilled down to a fraction of the original and adapted to suit many differnt agendas, but a clear lineage is a possibility!