Sign of the Cross

Neither of them knew exactly what the stone was saying. And they realized they wouldn’t unless they fetched Boyd or Maria for help. But where was the fun in that?

Instead they decided to examine the contents on their own. They figured, how much damage could the two of them do? They were only going to take a short peek inside, not even for a minute. They would push the lid aside, take a look, and then push the sucker back. No one would ever know. It would be their little secret.

They studied the box’s construction and decided they should push it from Payne’s side. Smiling, they counted to three, then heaved with all their might. The stone lid groaned and trembled, then slid five inches to the right. A wisp of ancient air filled their nostrils but they didn’t care. Not one bit.

They were too intoxicated by what they found within.

76

Monday, July 31

Kusendorf, Switzerland

Their helicopter hovered above the Archives for several seconds, just enough time for Payne and Jones to view the reconstruction from the air. It had been less than three weeks since the fire, but the work zone was buzzing. Bulldozers were plowing. Trucks were hauling. Workers were cutting boards and pounding nails. Things were looking great, at least to novices like them.

Sadly, they couldn’t say the same thing about Christianity.

Payne and Jones had spent two weeks researching the topic, more to appease their curiosity than anything else. They read books. They talked to experts. They did everything in their power to answer the questions that were bothering them. And some of the answers left them perplexed.

For instance, they never knew that the Koran, the Islamic bible, asserts that Christ’s crucifixion was faked. Yes, faked. Muslims view Christ as a prophet, someone who should be revered in the same terms as Abraham, Moses, and Muhammad, so it stunned Payne and Jones that the Koran questioned Christ’s integrity. Yet it comes right out and says that he wasn’t crucified. The line reads:

[4:157] And their saying: Surely we have killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of Allah; and they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but it appeared to them so…

Amazingly, this verse wasn’t stashed away on a hidden scroll or locked in the Vatican’s basement. It is known by a billion Muslims around the world. Still, neither Payne nor Jones had ever heard about a fake crucifixion until they met up with Boyd and Pelati.

How is that possible?

How could something so important be ignored by the Western world?

Whether it’s accurate or not wasn’t the point. Payne couldn’t understand why this line was never discussed in a public forum. Why no one was curious enough to investigate it. Payne joked it was too bad Oliver Stone didn’t direct The Passion of the Christ. Because he would’ve come up with a much different ending to the film — something with a conspiratorial twist.

Oh well, maybe Mel Gibson is planning a sequel?

Changing subjects, they also found several interesting facts about Pontius Pilate. The most surprising was Pilate’s close friendship with Joseph of Arimathea, who played a major role in the crucifixion and Christ’s final resting place. All four Gospels claim that Christ’s body was sealed in a tomb on Joseph’s personal property, even though Roman law forbade crucifixion victims from being buried. During this era, victims would be left on the cross for days where they would eventually be eaten by birds. Furthermore, the Romans were so adamant about this law that they actually posted guards to make sure that the victim’s friends or relatives didn’t touch the corpses.

Yet Pilate was willing to go against this code and gave Jesus’s body to Joseph of Arimathea, even though he had no rightful claim to remove it. Unless, of course, something was going on behind the scenes, and Pilate and Joseph were coconspirators in the deception.

Stranger still is the wording that was used in Mark’s Gospel. In the original Greek version, when Joseph asked Pilate for Christ’s body, he used the word soma, a word that refers to ‘a living body,’ not ptoma, a word that means ‘a corpse.’ In other words, Joseph asked Pilate for someone who was still alive. This line was eventually changed in Latin and English translations of the Bible because translators used nonspecific words that failed to explain whether Christ was living or dead when he was removed from the cross. However, in the original version, even Mark says that Christ was alive when he was turned over to Joseph.

Payne and Jones came up with dozens of facts like these, tidbits that weren’t talked about in most churches, even though they’d been verified by experts. Payne wasn’t sure why that was — conspiracy? ignorance? something else? — but they intended to keep digging until they were satisfied. In fact, that was one of the reasons that they came back to the Archives.

To get the answers that they were looking for.

As soon as Payne and Jones landed, Petr Ulster greeted them with a hug. The stress that had been evident in Vienna was no longer there, replaced with a twinkle in his eye and a warm smile. All in all, he looked even happier than he did when they’d first met. And that was saying a lot, because Ulster was one of the happiest people Payne had ever come across.

‘Jonathon! D.J.! It’s so wonderfully great to see you! I’m so glad you could return.’

‘Wouldn’t have missed it for the world,’ Jones replied.

Payne nodded in agreement. ‘Looks like you’ve been busy.’

‘Very!’ Ulster said. ‘But it’s been wonderful. I’ve always been tempted to expand the Archives, and this gave me the perfect excuse. If the donations keep pouring in, we’ll be able to double in size.’

Payne whistled, impressed. ‘And what about the artifacts? Did you lose anything in the fire?’

‘Nothing invaluable. There were some personal items, things with sentimental value that we couldn’t salvage. Like my grandfather’s photo collection.’

Payne groaned at the loss. ‘You mean the ones in the hallway? Man, I loved those.’

‘Me, too. But thanks to you, I still have one of the pictures.’

‘Really?’

He nodded. ‘The one with the Lipizzaner stallions. Remember, you took it off the wall to show us the laughing man? Because of that, the picture survived.’

‘Just like an American,’ said a gruff voice from behind. ‘Saving our horses again!’

Payne turned and saw Franz. ‘Ja! Ja! It’s true. You soldiers are always showing off.’

Payne smiled and greeted him with a handshake. ‘How have you been, Franz? Still resting up from our little adventure?’

‘Adventure? That was nothing! My recent trip to Amsterdam, now that was an adventure.’

The thought of a naked Franz made Payne and Jones slightly nauseous.

‘So, why are you here?’ he asked. ‘Are you here to help? We could use some more hands.’

‘Franz!’ Ulster scolded, laughing. ‘These are our guests. They should be treated as such.’

Franz waved dismissively. ‘Don’t start with me, Petr. Even the woman is working!’

‘What woman?’ Jones asked.

‘Your woman,’ Franz said. ‘Ja, ja! She got here yesterday with Dr Boyd.’

‘My woman? You mean Maria? She’s here?’

Payne loved the look on Jones’s face. A mixture of bliss, confusion, and total shock.

‘Oops!’ Payne said. ‘Did I forget to mention that? Sorry. It must’ve slipped my mind.’

‘Wait a second! You knew about this?’

‘Duh! That’s the only way I could’ve planned it.’

‘But I thought she was in Italy, taking care of her brother and her family’s estate.’

‘Not anymore,’ Payne said. ‘By the way, when did Maria become your woman? Does she know about that?’