SIDE BAR NOTES
[1] To get the most out of this chapter, prereading the following Scriptures may be helpful: Ex 12:1-6, Nm 19:1-22, Jos 5:1-6:1, Est 3:8-13, Mt 5:1-18, Jn 11:1-12:19, Mark's Passion Nar-rative (Mk 14:1-15:41) supplemented by Lk 23:44-49,
[2] Scientists have been searching for a Grand Unifying Theory that can mathematically link all the known forces of the universe since Einstein first proposed it decades ago. And once found many further believe a Theory of Everything will be revealed that will eliminate, once and for all, our need to invent a god to explain things. The 2/3rds Rule, however, seems to have, maybe, beaten them to it with its own all-inclusive theory that is not quite what atheistic science would have hoped for, or even imagined.
[3] One such instance (from Lk 22:31) is Satan’s desire to sift the Apostles like wheat, which can be seen (and commonly is) as a prophecy foretelling the splintering of the Church. This further implies the verse that follows (Lk 22:32) is a prophecy of subsequent reunification. [4] Mt 24:14.[5] Rv 21:5, Rom 8:28. [6] A prime example is found in the story of Joseph, the Patriarch (Gn 37:1-50:26).
[7] Mt 19:16-17. But “faith alone” advocates can also legitimately interpret it as the First Commandment telling us to believe in God, and the other nine simply defining what that means.
[8] They are listed in two Books of the Bible (in Ex 20:1-17 and again in Dt 5:6-21). [9] Prv 3.6.
[10] The Commandment stages are found to conform best to the Roman Catholic enumeration. [11]
The Shepherd, by Hermas (ca 110 AD) may be the first good example of the early Christians using Commandments in cate-chesis.
[12] Mt 19:21 alludes to Mt 5:1-16.
[13] … just as many Church Fathers observed. See, for instance, St. Augustine (393 AD), On the Sermon on the Mount, I, 1-5, or St. John Chrys-ostom (390 AD), Homily XV on Matthew. [14] Dt 11:26-28.
[15] Mt 19:17, among others.
[16] Jn 15:13, NLT.
[17] This is evident by the place of honor Scripture tells us they enjoy in heaven (Rv 6:9-11).
[18] Periodicity: the qual-ity, state, or fact of being regularly recurrent (as with the elements in chemistry’s periodic table).
[19] Living microbialites are still found today and can attain a size of several meters in girth.
[20] … and in accord with God's plan, of course.
[21] And the same is true of the development of multicellular life (plants and animals) that arose at the start of Day 4. [22] To give an idea of the increase in potential, biologists subdivide all living cells into two categories: pro-karyotes and eukaryotes. Prokaryotes consist of nothing greater than simple bacteria while eukaryotes are the cells that constitute every other living organism on the planet.
[23] Mt 5:3, KJV.
[24] Some can also be found in Scripture, but the first known mention of all 7 Orders leading up to priestly ordination is found in a letter written by Pope Conelius (251 AD), as ref-erenced by Eusebius (ca 313 AD) in Church History VI, 43. [25] Mt 6:25-34.
[26] This was as prescribed by Christ who told them early on, “... do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” Mt 6:31-33, NABRE. [27] Mt 5:4, KJV. [28] Although the orders of Porter, Exorcist and Subdeacon were suppressed in 1972 by Pope Paul VI, the 2/3rds Rule seems to be advocating here that they be restored, bringing the stages that led to the Priesthood back to the traditional 7, Specifically, they consist of the 4 Minor Orders (Porter, Lector, Exorcist and Acolyte) fol-lowed by the 3 Major Orders (Subdeacon, Dea-con and Priest). [29] Mt 19:21-22, Mk 10:21-22. [30] … for they shall be comforted, Mt 5:4, KJV. [31] Mt 19:29, Mk 10:28-30. [32] Mt 16:19 (but see also Is 22:19-23). [33] In that capacity, he would also later receive the charism of Infallibility, which can be seen as having been given him with the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (as per Acts 2:1-4, 14-36). [34] Ryan 1908. [35] CCC 1568 and 1582-1584 (on the Sac-rament of Holy Orders). [36] CCC 880 (on the Sac-rament of Holy Orders).
[37] Mt 5:5, KJV.
[38] Having apparently now earned enrolment into the Minor Order of Lector at the start of this Period suggests that much of the prior Period was devoted to giving the Apostles a working know-ledge of the Sacred Scrip-tures, so as to ready them for the preaching aspect of their later ministries.
[39] Mt 5:6, KJV.
[40] Ex 15:1-18.
[41] Mk 6:7.
[42] … in accord with the 3rd Beatitude.
[43] Mt 10:39, NAB (slightly paraphrased for clarity).
[44] Nm 13:1-25. For the Apostles, however, since they were not all sent out at the same time, 40 days is maybe better understood as an approximation.
[45] Mt 4:2, Mk 1:13, Lk 4:1-2.
[46] Mt 6:16-18.
[47] With Moses fasting for 40 days on 2 separate occasions (Dt 9:11-25), it contains a sense of pro-phetic foreshadowing. So with Jesus now being said to have also fasted twice for 40 days, it is nice to see this foreshadowing finally being fulfilled. [48] Mt 5:7,
"Blessed are the merciful ..." [49] Mt 5:6, "... for the sake of righteousness." And within this fast is a lesson for all those who think it wiser to choose our battles rather than allow the Holy Spirit to choose them for us. It also tells us that simply because we think we know our efforts will be futile, when it comes to saving souls, this is no reason not to try. Justice in fact, demands that we try. [50] Jn 11:1-44. [51] The 2 other resurrection stories, prior to Christ’s resur-rection, are found in Lk 7:11-17 and Mk 5:22-43. And they show no indication of Jesus being interested in publicizing either incident. [52] Jn 11:4. [53] Jn 11:6. [54] Jesus delayed going there by 2 days and was told on finally arriving that Laz-arus had been dead for 4 days. Lazarus must have, therefore, been dead for at least a day when Jesus got news. And you can tell that Jesus knew He was dead by what He told His disciples on hearing the news, that the miracle He was going to be performing would be earth shaking (Jn 11:4). [55] Many commen-tators have taken this position and are easy to find on the web, but they will not be cited here out of respect for the good work they’ve done otherwise.[56] ibid. [57] But see also Jn 2:4, Jn 7:30, Gal 4:4 and Lk 22:15. [58] This is the position held by the Expos-itor’s Greek Testament, and others. [59] Being assoc-iated with cleanliness rituals involving corpses (as is evident from Nm 19:1-22, the Torah portion that is always read on this unusual Special Sabbath), makes the raising of Lazarus a very appropriate candidate to be connected to this Sabbath. [60] Nm 19:1-22. [61] Mishna, Parah 1:1. [62] Richman 2005. [63] ibid. [64] Nm 19:19. [65] Nm 19:4-6. [66] Jn 19:29. [67] Is 1:18. [68] Heb 9:13-14.
[69] Ecc 7:23 is said in the Midrash to refer to this mystery (Bamidbar Rab-bah 19).
[70] Lk 19:41-44 may have some to do with it, too, but Jesus's tears here (Jn 11:35) are now maybe best understood in light of the situation He now, found Himself in. For He must have known that this wonderful miracle He was about to perform was the act that would bring about His own death sentence, And the subtle irony of it all would have gotten to anyone. [71] But Caia-phas's puzzling attitude is not unprecedented. It is also seen in Pharaoh’s reaction to the ten plagues of Exodus (Ex 9:12, 10:1, 10:20, 10:27 & 11:10). Their intent was to soften Pharaoh's heart, but Scripture tells us they, too, sadly, had the opposite effect. [72] Jn 11:50, NIV. [73] Mt 5:7. [74] It is also the eve of a very appropriate secular com-memoration, the Ides of March. [75] Mk 1:34, Lk 5:14, Mt 16:20. [76] Periodicity and the Beatitudes both suggest that this change in approach may have started with Jesus's intentionally high-profile raising of Lazarus. But the primary focus of the Beatitude seems more to ponder what might have been for Jerusalem (and the world) had the Sanhedrin chosen to show mercy over their misguided notion of jus-tice. [77] Mt 11:5. [78] Is 35:5-6. [79] Is 1:2-20. [80] Mt 5:8, KJV.
[81] ... recalling that each new day of the Hebrew calendar beginning at dusk. [82] ... recalling also from chapter 1 that it is so named for the messianic Scriptures read on this day, Mal 3:23 in particular, which speaks of “the great and terrible day of the LORD.” [83] Ex 12:1-3. And the purpose of doing this as much as a week in advance is presumedly to allow the lamb to become part of the household. [84] Jn 12:1-9. [85] In the Temple Sacrifice system, red paint was used to mark animals selected for later sacrifice (Babylonian Talmud, Bekhorot 58b). For Jesus perfumed oil can be said to have taken the role of the red paint, but the effect was the same. [86] Christ (literally: the anointed one) from Jn 12:1-4 in fulfillment of Dn 9:24. [87] 10 Nisan pulls double duty in the Old Testament. Along with marking the day the Jordan River was parted (Jos 4:19) it is also the original Pascal Lamb Procurement Day (Ex 12:1-3). But that day being, by tradition, also a Sabbath, lamb procurement was assigned to Shabbat HaGadol, the last Sabbath before Passover. [88] The Lion of Judah: a reference to the common Old Testament understanding of the Christ as a conquering hero, as per Rv 5:5 and 1QSb 5.29, and originally derived, perhaps, from messianic prophecies found in Gn 49:9 and Mi 5:1-7.[89] Zec 9:9-10. [90] Jn 12:16. [91] ibid.
[92] From Mk 14:1-9 (but also found in Mt 26:3-13). And there are admittedly a lot of similarities between this 13 Nisan anointing from Mark's Gospel and the scriptural descrip-tion of the 9 Nisan anoin-ting found in John's Gospel. So similar, in fact, that many believe they are simply two slightly contra-dictory accounts of the same anointing, which occurred on either 9 Nisan or 13 Nisan (not both). The 2/3rds Rule weighs in, however, to, insist that, although some of the details may have gotten jumbled together, they are still two separate anoint-ings. [93] Mk 14:7-9, NAB. [94] It took place presumedly over a few days (Jos 5:1-9) after they arrived on 10 Nisan (Jos 4:19) and before their first Passover seder meal on the evening of 14 Nisan (Jos 5:10-11). [95] This seems to be St. Paul’s opinion, anyway (Col 2:11-13, Rm 2:25-29, Phil 3:3), Jeremiah, too (Jer 4:4) and it is the opinion of the Church (CCC #527). [96] Jos 5:9, NABRE.
[97] With the many wea-pons He gave us for conducting spiritual war-fare at Calvary, we (His body) had all that was needed to finish the good work Jesus had put in motion (Jn 14:12).
[98] Mt 5:9, KJV.
[99] Jn 12:6.
[100] Mt 26:1-15, Mk 14:1-11.
[101] Along with Venus Verticorda, Veneralia is also the feast day of her companion deity, Fortuna Virilis, which loosely translates to Judas’s ultimate undoing (the fortunes of men). But in recognition of what they inspired, both deities are better understood to be demons. [102] Lk 22:3, Jn 13:2, 27. [103] Est 3:12-13. [104] Est 7:10 tells of Haman being impaled by being thrown onto a stake that was 50 cubits high, whereas Acts 1:18 tells of Judas's insides spilling out after he'd fallen headlong from a height. [105] Mt 26:19-20, Mk 14:16-18, Lk 22:13-14.
[106] Jn 13:7-11, NABRE.
[107] 1 Cor 11:27-31.
[108] 1 Cor 6:11, Eph 5:26, Ti 3:5, Heb 10:22.
[109] St. Augustine of Hippo (ca. 400 AD), Tractate # 56 on the Gospel of John. [110] Pope Benedict XVI 2011, 73-74.
[111] Ritual hand and foot washing as a fixture of worship predates Christ-ianity. But with Christ commanding His disciples to wash each other’s feet (together with St. Paul's exhortation in 1 Tm 2:8), the early Christian writings show it was recognized for its efficacy in the removal of sin and elevated to a sacramental level as a requirement for spiritual purification prior to certain liturgical undertakings (Thurston 1912). See, for instance, St. Augustine of Hippo (ca. 400 AD), Tractate # 55 on the Gospel of John. [112] Jn 20:19-23. [113] Mt 26:26-28, NABRE.[114] Jn 6:48-51.[115] Jos 5:10-12.
[116] Jos 5:13-6:24.
[117] Jn 6:22-71. And that Jesus did not alter His message to help the crowd understand He was only speaking metaphorically, even after they started deserting Him for saying it (Jn 6:66-68), makes it hard to deny that it was meant to be taken literally.[118] Mt 26:26-28, Mk 14:22-24, Lk 22:19-20, 1 Cor 11:23-30, along with the writings of the earliest Church Fathers, such as Ignatius of Antioch, who were emphatically taught by the Apostles, themselves, that the Eucharist truly is Christ’s Body and Blood. See his farewell letters to the Smyrnaeans and to the Romans (ca. 117 AD) that he wrote while awaiting his martyrdom. [119] In the 2nd book in this series, miraculous bonds will also be shown to manifest at the end of every other 2nd Period of Creation. [120] Jn 10:30, 17:21. [121] Pope Paul VI 1968. [122] Jn 14:27. [123] Jn 17:20-21, 1 Cor 10:16. [124] Lk 22:19. And St. Paul says it, too, in 1 Cor 11:24, 25. [125] This specific belief was ratified in 1562 at the Council of Trent (Session XXII, Canon II) as part of the Counter-Reformation. But the tradition that Christ endowed His Church with the Sacrament of Holy Orders dates back to the early days of Christendom (Ahaus 1911). [126] Brous-sard 2017. [127] Ex 29:36, 38, 39, 41, Lv 9:7. [128] It would be a fulfillment of Mal 1:11. [129] Ex 40:23-13, 30-32.
[130] Mt 5:10, KJV.
[131] The 5th century BC attempt by the archvillain, Haman (from the Book of Esther), to have all the Jews in the world killed off by decree of the Persian emperor, would count as one. [132] Mt 2:13-15, 19-23.[133] Jn 8:59, 10:31, 39, Lk 4:29-30.
[134] Lk 22:15.
[135] 2 Cor 5:21, Gal 3:13. [136] He's known this day was coming from the beginning, but there is a marked change in Christ’s demeanor after He has departed for the Garden. He shows uncertainty and His stress levels seem to go through the roof (Lk 22:41-44), all signs of sin induced anxiety. [137] Col 2:13-14, 1 Pt 2:24. [138] Jn 13:2, 21-30. [139] Through sin comes death (Rm 5:12). Conversely, where there is no sin, Satan has no power. [140] Ryan 2017. And it breathes new life into a Bible verse, Mt 24:34, often cited by critics as erroneous. [141] Admit-tedly speculative but based on countless personal testimonies on how sin clouds judgment, induces anxiety and alters perceptions of reality. [142] Mt 26:39, 42, Mk 14:36, Lk 22:42. [143] With the Sacrament of Matrimony being brought under the canopy of the New Covenant at Cana, together with the estab-lishment of the Sacraments of Baptism, Extreme Un-ction, Communion, Holy Orders and now Confir-mation in this and the previous Level, one Sacrament (Reconciliation) remains to be established. And we'll be given that one on the night of Christ's Resurrection (Jn 20:19-23). But all seven will be validated with the com-pletion of His mission on the Cross.
[144] The time of day, 8:57 AM, corroborated by Mk 15:25 as being significant.[145] That story will be expanded upon in the next chapter.
[146] Mt 5:11-12, KJV.
[147] In reference to Gn 3:22-23, the Cross is the Tree (1 Pt 2:24), and Christ’s Flesh and Blood are the lifegiving fruit of that Tree (Jn 6:53). [148] First through temptation (Mt 4:1-11, Mk 1:13, Lk 4:1-13), and after failing in that effort, through tor-ture. [149] This is a repudiation of the medieval Felix Culpa (Oh Happy Fault) belief (still popular today) that it was our fall from grace that forced Christ to come here. And in its thorough rejection of it, the 2/3rds Rule agrees, instead, with the 14th century counterargument offered by the Franciscan friar, Bl. John Duns Scotus. [150] … as prophe-sied in Gn 3:16. [151] Also known as, the place of the skull and Calvary.
[152] In contrast to Mk 15:25, Jn 19:14 reports that Jesus began carrying His cross to Calvary around noon. So allowing Him an hour to get there it places the Crucifixion right around 1PM, which is 1 minute after where the 2/3rds Rule might want to place it. [153] See notes 155 and 156.
[154] Ps 22:2, Mt 27:46, Mk 15:34.
[155] Is 53:10-12.
[156] Implied by and paraphrased from Jn 15:13
[157] In accord with Jn 3:13-14, Gal 3:13 and Dt 21:23. [158] That is how Is 52:13-14 describes it, anyway.
[159] Scripture tells of several conversions (the Roman Centurian and his companions in Mt 27:54 and the good thief of Lk 23:40-43) and suggests in Lk 23:48 of there being others. [160] ibid.
[161] Prophesied in Lk 2:35.
[162] Rv 8:1, NAB. And within this verse there seems to be a heavenly suggestion as to how we, too, should be observing, every year, those last 40 minutes of Christ's life on Good Friday.
[163] 1 Cor 8:6.
[164] 2 Cor 5:22.
[165] Gn 2:2-3, NABRE.
[166] And for those unfamiliar with Periodic Tables, it should be read one row (or one column) at a time, with the entire row (or column) being read before proceding to the next row (or column). [167] The next book of this Series is highly recom-mended to anyone who may still be having trouble comprehending this chap-ter, because to really do justice to the final acts of the Creation saga it needs to be viewed in context with all the preceeding Levels.
[1]
To this point, the existence of the scriptural key proposed in chapter 1 has been pretty much proven. More proof will be provided here and further on. But what does it mean? Ultimately, this is left for every reader to decide. As for me, I’ve already stated my belief that we’ve clearly discovered a holy relic, the Word’s Creation timetable. But even that is inadequate to describe how powerful it is in discerning the earth’s secrets when all of this chapter’s enhancements are factored in. As will soon be shown, it really is nothing short of a theological theory of everything. [2]
And I believe this, not merely because of the statistics, or the wide range of complex theological issues it resolves, but primarily because the insights unveiled by this discovery do not provide the basis for a new religion, as have so many failed attempts of the past. In sheer contrast, every insight obtained through the 2/3rds Rule beautifully corroborates the long-held beliefs of a faith community that already exists. And for those few who might still be wondering which one that is, it is the Roman Catholic faith.
But it is not the bias of the discoverer that claims this. It is a simple mathematical formula that time and again seems to side with Catholic teaching whenever a controversial question on faith or morals is raised. It is as though the 2/3rds Rule was specifically designed to resolve this issue. There is no ambiguity about it. So my condolences to those who may have hoped for a different outcome (and my apologies to those who continue to reject these conjectures because of it), but I think any initial discord this might cause is more than offset by the 2/3rds Rule’s potential to bring unity.
And if it is any consolation, it needs to also be pointed out that where the Scriptures do allude to this future reunification, they don’t paint a picture of there being one winner in a field of also-rans. [3] In consideration of the many great traditions that have grown up independently in the separation, it is likened more to a merger where every faction is mutually enriched. And the resultant Church emerges as an unstoppable force. No longer paralyzed by infighting, it would be a body drawing strength from her Sacraments and the rich traditions of her Jewish roots, with no uncertainty in teaching, and so revitalized by the unchained spirit of the Reformation that the dream of worldwide evangelization (also prophesied) [4] might finally be realized.
And this separation and subsequent reunification theme is precisely the way one would expect God to accomplish this. [5] We see it used, not only in the Bible, [6] but also in the way the Word employs it as the central theme in the first Period of every Level of the Creation saga. This and many other insights that become emphasized through the 2/3rds Rule will be explored in the second book of this Series. And it cannot be overemphasized how spectacular the big picture becomes when natural and Salvation History are reviewed in their entirety, from the Big Bang to Calvary, through the lens of the 2/3rds Rule. From that vantage point every aspect of Creation is seen to give glory to God and all the many attributes of the 2/3rds Rule are exposed as well.
In this book, and this particular chapter, however, we will be focusing solely on the conclusion of that great saga where all the Word’s labor finally came to fruition. But this being at the heart of what Christianity is all about, we’ll need to make use of every tool the 2/3rds Rule has given us pertinent to this time, to ensure we obtain as clear an understanding as possible. Accordingly, two additional attributes, which do not become self-evident until the second book, will be invoked for this one. They are 1) the 2/3rds Rule’s relationship with the Beatitudes and 2) its Periodic nature.
The 2/3rds Rule and the Beatitudes
When reviewing Levels III and IV of Creation (described in the second book in the Series), it is hard not to notice and be impressed at how the themes of the Periods of those Levels seem to parallel those of the Ten Commandments. And this is understandable. Scripture tells us that one of the basic requirements of salvation is to keep the Commandments. [7] So after our fall from grace and a divine response was necessitated to bring us back from that deplorable state, it is logical the Word might have done so (in the 10 periods that stretch from Eden to the start of His earthly ministry) by teaching us to adhere to those Commandments, one Commandment at a time.
Those Commandment stages will not be discussed in detail here, nor do they need to be. Of much greater importance, is the simple recognition that, this being true, there must be a progression of holiness with regard to keeping the Commandments, [8] whether by a society or by the individual.
In a nutshell, since God must be the top priority of our lives, [9] the Decalogue starts out with Commandments instructing us on our proper relationship with Him. We must believe in Him, and no other. We must show him the proper respect. And we must set aside time for worship. The next Commandment after that pertains to showing the proper respect to those God has raised up to have authority over us (whether it be our parental, religious, or civil authorities). And this too is very important, for in failing to do it, the entire fabric of society may break down.
Once we’ve gotten those down, the next four Commands involve our personal interrelationships, and the progression is easily seen once again. First, and foremost, in this category, we must suppress our violent tendencies and especially not murder anyone. And that includes resisting the temptation to do violence against the family by rejecting any urges to commit adultery. Steering clear of those temptations, we’re told to show further respect for our neighbors by not stealing from them or testifying falsely against them. And ultimately, we need to change our hearts (the final Command) [10] such that we are not predisposed (coveting) to commit those graver sins.
The Church has made use of these Commandments from the dawn of Christendom as an invaluable teaching tool, [11] and so apparently did the Word to rehabilitate us. But as was mentioned, these Ten Commandments are expended, right at the start of Jesus’s ministry, indicating that at least one pocket of civilization (the Jewish people) have gotten through all the necessary hurdles and are finally ready to receive their promised Messiah.
And this is the point where the Beatitudes are introduced to further describe how the Church is being formed, in each successive Period, all the way to Calvary. It is identical to the way God forms us, if we allow it. We must first learn to abide by the Commandments. And after we’ve gotten those under our belts we are ready to receive the blessings for righteous living, the Beatitudes (as laid out by Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount). [12]
And there is a definite progression in holiness to be found in the Beatitudes, as well. [13] The first simply tells us we are blessed by being poor in spirit (that is, by not putting much emphasis in our lives on temporal things). And that is basically the same thing as not coveting our neighbor’s goods (the 10th Commandment). So, what Jesus is telling us here is what the Book of Deuteronomy has already told us, [14] that if we adhere to all the Commandments (even unto the 10th) we will be blessed.
And what is the blessing? The 1st Beatitude tells us that too. It is the Kingdom of Heaven. Keeping the Commandments is our prescription for salvation. And this is not the only place in Scripture where we read this. [15]
Moving on, the next 3 blessings we receive are for making internal changes and after that the blessings are given out for our righteous interactions with others. And finally, once we’ve ascended to a certain level of righteousness, we see that the world has taken notice, and it begins to persecute us. For this achievement, God has reserved the greatest blessings.
And this implies that a final blessing be added to the 9 listed in Matthew's Gospel. It is, as Scripture tells us, the ultimate gesture any individual can make, for there is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. [16] And the blessing for this, the martyr’s crown, is also the highest found in Scripture. [17] So with Ten Beatitudes corresponding to the Ten Commandments we are taken all the way to the foot of the Cross where Christ, Himself, is the recipient of the greatest of all the blessings.
This relationship between the Beatitudes and the Church is very useful for discerning Christ’s underlying blueprint for its formation (and it will be demonstrated shortly), but the added light it provides is nothing compared to that of the 2/3rds Rule’s most powerful attribute.
The Periodic nature of Creation
In the last chapter, it was shown that the 1st Period of every Level is associated with three great Lights: the first occurring at the onset of the Period, the second (somehow begotten of the first) appearing 2/3rds of the way into the Period and the third appearing at the end and proceeding from the other two. And we just saw this being played out again in the 1st milli-Second of Level V. But it is not just the theme of the 1st Day of Creation that seems to repeat itself. When they are thoroughly examined, all the themes of the Days of Creation seem to repeat themselves throughout the Levels. And this Periodic aspect of Creation (its Periodicity) [18] provides us with an extraordinarily powerful means of unraveling mysteries throughout both natural and Salvation History.
Is there a particularly cloudy Period? Take a look at the events of the same Period in a different Level and suddenly, the veil is lifted to give us clues as to what may have transpired. In this fashion, we can get a very good understanding of the final fate of the Neanderthals, the whereabouts of Israel’s lost tribes and many other great questions from antiquity. But again, we are not going to get into that here. Those mysteries are also associated with Levels III and IV and are dealt with in the next installment. We can, however, use this tool to get a clearer picture of the events of Levels V and VI. To do that, we need to revisit chapter 2 and the Genesis Creation account (as science has fleshed it out for us) to find the central theme associated with each of the 6 Days.
As to the 1st Day, it was already determined in the last chapter to be all about Lights (3 in total). And the 3rd Light is life, arriving at the end of the Day and simultaneously with the ignition of the Sun in our primordial solar system. At this point, however, living cells are prokaryotic, meaning that they have no nucleus and are capable of being nothing more than simple bacteria.
But on the 2nd Day, some of those life forms (cyanobacteria) have learned to extract energy from light via a rudimentary form of photosynthesis, and it is motivating them to migrate from the security of the ocean’s depths (where they may have originated) to the treacherous surface, where they are callously exterminated, as soon as they get there, by the sun’s U/V light (but not all). Those fortunate few who find themselves in shallow waters band together into massive colonies called microbialites, [19] where the carcasses of their fallen comrades make up the structure and also serve as a solar shield for the survivors.
They, of course, have no consciousness of what they are doing. This is all happening simply by their attraction to the sun’s energy. [20] And it is not an easy time - in more ways than one. The oxygen they are releasing has done a number on the atmosphere, reducing its greenhouse gas levels to such an extent that it triggers a global ice age. And if that is not enough, life at this time was entirely anaerobic (meaning that in the presence of free oxygen, they die). So being trapped under the ice with a deadly poison (the waste product of their metabolism) building up around them, there were, understandably, massive, localized extinction events popping up throughout the globe. A few cyanobacteria, however, soldier on somehow, even through that, and eventually, by the end of the Day their tenacity is rewarded. A bond is formed when, according to science, one of these bacteria ingests another and it, in turn, becomes its nucleus!
Now the science books do acknowledge that this was a watershed moment in evolutionary history. But they are also prone to downplay it, so as to hide how truly miraculous it was that this should happen. These texts read, in that regard, like the proverbial cop at the site of an accident saying, “move along people, nothing to see here.” But don’t be fooled. And let’s be clear, that two individual life forms (in being and in purpose) would suddenly (or even gradually) abandon their individuality to transform into one common life form (in being and in purpose) is so bizarre by any conceivable natural mechanism that divine intervention is still the most logical way to explain it. [21] But it did happen. And the result is the first eukaryote cell with life’s potential suddenly being increased a billion-fold. [22]
The way it works, the nucleus holds all the instructions (the DNA) and the various other structures within the cell, that developed as a result of this collaboration, carry those instructions out. This compartmentalizing of responsibilities allows the cell to grow more and more complex, with the interrelationships it forms with its various organelles eventually growing to include other cells. But that is the subject for another Day.
For this moment in time, the miracle of nucleation occurred alongside the arrival of another consequence of life’s utilization of the sun’s energy, the primordial ozone layer (and the beginnings of a U/V shield that will eventually allow life to thrive unscathed on the Earth’s surface). The eukaryotes, with their superior style of photosynthesis, begin producing oxygen (a byproduct of the process) at a much higher rate. And this may have had something to do with the world being plunged into two more global ice ages. So life continued to be in dire straits throughout the 3rd Day of Creation. But, being extremely versatile by comparison, it was not quite as bad for the eukaryotes as it had been for their prokaryote ancestors. And necessity being their mother, their first important adaptation was the innovation of sexual reproduction.
But this again was not just another mundane development, as science might like to describe it. In consideration of how comparatively simple the former method of reproduction (by cell division) is, it is again extremely difficult to explain, by evolutionary processes alone, why such a convoluted system as sexual reproduction would have come about. Science may surely one day be able to tell us every coincidence that happened along the way to produce it. But the question will likely remain impossible to explain, by natural means, why life might have jumped over so many hurdles to create something that it would have had no idea of how vitally important it would be to its existence.
And the importance of this development cannot be understated, because it allowed for species diversification at previously unheard-of rates. Eukaryotes had learned to procreate as imitations of their Creator. And in so doing, by the end of the Day many of these eukaryotes had not only evolved to tolerate oxygen, they flourished in it. Life had learned to breathe, and the planet’s climate would soon be under the firm control of life, itself, with its newfound ability to produce CO2 (a biologically produced greenhouse gas) to balance things out. And with the simultaneous arrivals of both the plant and animal kingdoms, life had also become multicellular (and huge), with the newly dried land was just sitting there waiting to be populated.
The world became life’s oyster throughout Day 4, with animals evolving from simple sponges, worms and jellyfish all the way to mammals. But of equal importance was the innovation of the five senses. And with the superior brain power of mammals, life could finally see (and recognize) the Light that had been the engine behind all the changes in the Level. Life could also now feel which led to the greatest development at the end of the Day, Love! With the advent of live births, and the need to nurture their young, that inextricable connection mother’s feel for their offspring was introduced, out of necessity, into our world. Maternal love originated here (the first of several new forms of selfless love that would arise and grow in the 4th Periods of all the subsequent Levels).
And this brings us to Day 5, which science is prone to label a huge mistake. It was 130 million years long and dominated by gigantic meat-eating reptiles. But they were completely wiped out at the end of the Day. And mammals didn’t develop much at all during this time. “So, what was the point?” is the common atheistic objection. To which the 2/3rds Rule chimes in with a ready response.
It wasn’t the mammals (or even the dinosaurs) that were the focal point of the Day. It was the earth itself that transformed. With the senses and feelings and love fully developed from the onset, the world became beautiful in response. Food became delicious. Animals became graceful and colorful. And plants became majestic. The birds and the social insects and butterflies and flowers and all the fruit bearing plants and many modern trees originated here. As the bible might put it, the earth was quite literally transformed into a land of milk and honey. And it was all due to natural selection brought on by life’s new sensibilities and a new-found appreciation for itself. It was not a waste. It was the culmination and reward for an eon of labor. The Word had taken a brief detour to beautify our world, as life patiently awaited the arrival of a new Light to herald the next Level of Creation.
And the theme for this Day, along with those just described for the other Creation Days are what we should be seeing in the 6 Periods of all the Levels (as shown in Figure 5.2).
So having now summarized and tabulated the central themes of each of the 6 Periods, we are ready to get back into the higher Creation Levels (starting with the 5th) to show how Periodicity and the Beatitudes apply. For the sake of clarity, it is better to start completely over than to try to pick up where we left off. But that won't expend too much effort since most of the heavy foundation stones for the first 4 Periods of Level V were already laid in chapter 4. Another clarifying addition is that each Period will now also be preceded by a heading and subheadings to remind readers what they should expect to see playing out in the Period. One final caveat needs to be issued, however, before diving into this.
What follows is the equivalent of a Gospel narrative. And even though it does not stray in any way from the accounts given in the 4 New Testament Gospels, it does add greater detail to the structure they laid out, which may make some readers uncomfortable. The ordering of events, or the emphasis placed on them, may be in conflict with how they’ve always been imagined (or taught to be). In some places, this narrative may also be diametrically opposed to the teachings of some non-Catholic Christian sects. And traditionalists, even among Catholics, may find some of the conclusions that are drawn difficult to accept.
Be that as it may, this narrative was not created to push any particular agenda. It is simply a retelling of the stories pertaining to the final 5 years of a 15-billion-year Creation epic from the perspective of a mathematical formula that now seems extremely likely to have been given us by God. There may be other ways to logically pull all the data together. But for now what follows is the author’s best guess at what happened using all the tools the 2/3rds Rule has provided, while being always mindful that staying true to Sacred Scripture is the highest priority. The interpretation that results may, therefore, be novel, but the inspired Word of God is treated, throughout, as sacrosanct. That said, we begin, once again, at the start of Creation Level V.
The Ministerial Years (Creation Level V) – revisited
Period: milli-Second 1 of Creation Level V
Defining Dates: September 22, 28 AD to September 27, 30 AD to September 30, 31 AD
Span: 2 years, 5 days + 1 year, 2.5 days = 3 years, 7.5 days total (approx.)
Central Theme: Light / Initiation
Description: Three great Lights appear, the first at the start, the second well into the Period, and the third (begotten of the other two) appearing at the end to become the focus of the entire Level.
Beatitude: The 1st – “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” [23]
And, as may be recalled from chapter 4, this Level is all about the inception and subsequent formation of the Church. It all began in this 1st milli-Second of Creation with the 1st Light (John the Baptist on the 1st day of Sukkot in 28 AD) and the 2nd Light (Jesus on Yom Kippur in 30 AD) beginning their respective ministries. Both are heavily involved, throughout this Period, with provided the Church her first Sacrament under the New Covenant: Baptism (the Sacrament of Initiation). In so doing, they are also attracting throngs to hear them speak with many being baptized into their movement. And at the very end of this 1st Period (which is also the start of the 2nd), on Simchat Torah in 31 AD, we see that twelve of these early followers are selected for special assignment. They will become known as the 12 Apostles and will one day constitute the clerical arm of the Church. They are also, therefore, the 3rd Light of this Level. And their spiritual formation as the Church’s first ministers will be the focus of each subsequent Period.
In terms of Holy Orders, to which they have now been officially enrolled, it can also be seen as their induction into the first of seven orders the Church has designated for this path. This one would be the minor order of Porter, which might be better understood in this context as Novice. [24] And although it may seem a little contrived to try to fit their career path into this framework, it will make a lot more sense as they progress further into it in the later Periods.
In keeping with Periodicity, we can more easily, however, that they have been called to enter the seemingly treacherous waters of Faith. In their lives prior they had always been self-sufficient, believing that they, alone, were responsible for their own livelihoods. But in their selection, they are now being taught to rely solely on God for their needs. [25] Having stripped themselves of their possessions (like Jesus and John before them) they have become, quite literally, poor [and not just] in spirit. And they do all this willingly out of their fascination for what Jesus and John have been preaching: the Kingdom of God. [26] They don’t yet know what that means. But they do know that they want to be part of it.
Period: milli-Second 2 of Creation Level V
Defining Dates: September 30, 31 AD to October 1, 32 AD
Span: 367.5 days (which is approx. 1 year & 1 day, given that 32 AD was a leap year)
Central Theme: Communion
Description: Drawn into dangerous waters, the subjects of the Level work together and are miraculously bound at the end.
Beatitude: The 2nd - “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” [27]
Holy Order: Porter [28]
So by this Period we see from the Beatitudes that the Apostles should be grieving. And there may be some literal meaning behind this grief, too, with John the Baptist’s implied imprisonment at the start of the Period and his death at the end. But in a more universal context, it is maybe better understood as the grief we all feel for our former lives when we embark upon such a journey. It is not easy to abandon everything. [29] But Scripture also promises us consolation for the effort, [30] as did Christ for His Apostles. [31] Periodicity says this, as well, in suggesting that the Apostles got through the ordeal by supporting each other. And where in the end we saw that one in their number, Peter, was given the keys to the kingdom and the power to bind and loose, [32] it tells us he became in effect the nucleus of that fledgling clerical body. [33]
Periodicity suggests further that there is an even greater sacramental aspect to all this. And in looking closer at the Sacrament that applies (the Sacrament of Holy Orders) we find in Catholic teaching that it confers on the priest an indelible special character, [34] that binds him to Christ, to the Church’s mission and to his brother priests. [35] The Catholic Catechism summarizes it this way.
When Christ instituted the Twelve, "He constituted [them] in the form of a college or permanent assembly, at the head of which he placed Peter, chosen from among them." Just as "by the Lord's institution, St. Peter and the rest of the apostles constitute a single apostolic college, so in like fashion the Roman Pontiff, Peter's successor, and the bishops, the successors of the apostles, are related with and united to one another." [36]
Thus, the Apostles were miraculously bound that day, to each other, to Peter and to Christ (in accord with Church teaching). And by drawing strength from this bond, they would not merely subsist in the impossible environment they were immersed in, like the first eukaryotes who foreshadowed them, they would eventually flourish in it. They are not there yet. And they are not yet priests either. But this bond has gotten them one step closer to both goals.
Period: milli-Second 3 of Creation Level V
Defining Dates: October 1, 32 AD to February 1, 33 AD
Span: 122.5 days
Central Theme: Transformation
Description: The subjects still in desperate waters are transformed by the miraculous bond
Beatitude: The 3rd - “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” [37]
Holy Order: Lector [38]
And as the Apostles continued their journey, we can see the Beatitude that defines this 3rd milli-Second of Creation suggesting that the difficulties involved in trying to live without all the trappings they used to identify themselves by have made this a humbling experience for them. But it tells us, too, that they have a lot to look forward to in staying the course. Their destiny is to one day lead the Pilgrim Church on earth after Christ, their teacher, departs their company. And humility will be for them a vitally important character trait if they are to be successful in that role.
They are still not yet aware of these things. But they will be by the end of the next Period. For here though, they are still in the difficult wax on, wax off, stage of their formation, knowing only that things continue to be hard, just not quite as hard as they’d been. When this all started for them, though, they were 12 pride-filled individuals all engaged in seeking their own end. As the beatitude suggests, however, the bond is stripping them of their egos and teaching them to work together as a team. And in this way we can assume, by the way things went in Day 3, that by the end of the Period they have not merely learned to swim in these dangerous waters of faith, they are virtually walking on them (as imitations of their master). Also like their forebears, the first multi-celled creatures, they are more than they’d ever been before and far more than just the sum of their parts. They are one in purpose and in mission. And as new creations (brothers in Christ) they were poised and ready at the start of milli-Second 4 to take on new challenges, with Christ being more than happy to oblige.
Period: milli-Second 4 of Creation Level V
Defining Dates: February 1, 33 AD to March 14, 33 AD
Span: 40.8 days
Central Theme: Retrospection
Description: Having tamed the deadly waters they’ve been thrust into, the subjects of this Level eventually “see the light” that invited them into it, with a new manifestation of God’s love also emerging in their hearts at the end of the Period.
Beatitude: The 4th - “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” [39]
Holy Order: Exorcist
This Period began on Rosh HaShanah LaIllianot. But the day prior (January 31, 33 AD) is a Special Sabbath. It is Shabbat Shirah (the Sabbath of Song), which commemorates the song sung by the Israelites as they crossed the parted Red Sea to escape Pharaoh’s army. [40] This seems a fitting occasion to describe the Apostles who have also just emerged unscathed from dangerous waters, and are primed, like the Israelites, to attain a higher level of responsibility in the Promised Land. In their faith walks with Christ, they have crossed over the boundary that separates them from the bondage of their former codependent lives and are now reliant solely on God as fully functional missionaries.
Having become well versed in the Scriptures in the last two Periods (as the Minor Order they attained in the last Period suggests) they have also now risen to a status deserving of being inducted into a higher, that of Exorcist. And the various clues (including this last one) suggest that this is where Christ did officially enroll the Apostles into that Minor Order by giving them authority over unclean spirits and then sending them out in twos on their first missions. [41]
Periodicity suggests further that the Apostles should have also obtained a new sense through their missionary activities. And having emptied themselves of their egos in the previous Period, [42] and now being engaged in selfless works of charity in this one, it is to be expected that they might gain some insights. It would be just as Jesus prophesied when he told them that all those who bring themselves to nought for [My sake], find out who they are. [43]
They didn’t know it at first, but they’d been on a journey of self-discovery. And in returning from their missions, they can now clearly see the Light that started them on this path. It is the Church and their own role in it. And through their missionary work they have also discovered a feeling that they’d never experienced before. It is their newfound love for the laity. They are fathers now, spiritual fathers, with Periodicity suggesting that the inspiration for all the hospitals and charitable organizations that so typify the Church today originated in the hearts of the Apostles as they were being formed by Christ in that hope filled spring of 33 AD.
So how long were they away? One week? Two? The Gospels do not say. But an Old Testament foreshadowing of their mission (the story of the 12 spies sent by Moses into Canaan) may provide the missing information. They were gone 40 days. [44] And as might have been expected, that is also the exact number of days that make up this 4th Period. The Apostles don’t all leave on the same day, though, as is commonly portrayed. Scripture says rather that they were sent out sporadically. And the length of time each pair was gone is also likely only approximately 40 days. That number of days does not apply only to the Apostles in this Period, however. And in its primary role, which has nothing to do with them, it tells us a lot.
For we are getting very close to Calvary now and Christ’s crucial role at the culmination of the Creation saga is taking more and more precedence. The Apostles are nearly trained and the holiday that marked the start of this Period, Rosh HaShanah La'Illanot (discussed at the end of chapter 4), has made it very clear Jesus has to prepare Himself for what is coming. The Beatitude associated with this 4th Creation milli-Second, which speaks of hungering and thirsting for righteousness is also very telling of what He does in response. Is this the 2/3rds Rule’s way of telling us that Jesus has just commenced another 40-day fast?
Scripture has already informed us that He embarked on such a fast at the onset of His ministry. [45] And the Rule has confirmed that this happened by proposing to us the very day that it started (Rosh Chodesh Elul). In consideration of what He is about to face in Creation Level VI (Passion Week), is it not logical and equally appropriate that He would do the same just prior to the end of His ministry? He would also be fasting while many of the Apostles are away on their missions that He might do it in a fashion He’d always told them to follow – in secret. [46]
And once again we see the Church’s intuition (this time regarding Lent) may have had a New Testament basis. The very early Church did, incidentally, observe two fast periods in her Liturgical calendar (the other being Advent). And so, we are now being told, did Christ. [47]
And the Beatitudes, this one and the one that follows, give us some insight into the focus of this second fast. He was fasting for mercy, [48] but not for Himself. His hope was to soften the hearts of those who despised Him, the Sanhedrin. He knew the terrible calamities that would befall His chosen people if they took the wrong path, and He also sadly knew that His fasting would be for nought. But justice still demanded He do everything humanly possible to try to stop it. It was just the right thing to do. [49]
And in one final attempt to win them over, John’s Gospel tells us that, just prior to coming to Jerusalem, Jesus performed a great miracle to prove who He was and make it seemingly impossible for the world to reject Him. He raised the man, Lazarus, who was four days in the tomb, back to life. [50] This was not the first time He’d raised someone from the dead. [51] But it is the only time we’re told that He did it with the intent of people knowing of it. [52] So it merits a closer look.
And one of the more intriguing aspects of it is that after receiving the news that Lazarus was sick, we’re told Jesus delayed going to him for two days. [53] Why should He have done this? That question has become the subject of controversy with many of the opinions it has spawned displaying how woefully ignorant many modern Christian commentators are in the study of mathematics.
To begin with, when you do the math you realize very quickly that Lazarus would have already been dead when Jesus was informed of his illness, [54] so He wasn’t being callous about it and allowing His friend to die in order to make a spectacle out of his resurrection, as some have ridiculously suggested. [55] Delaying the miracle when Lazarus was four days dead rather than two would definitely increase the dramatic effect of Lazarus being raised. But that also seems insensitive toward the feelings of Lazarus’s family. Some nevertheless do take this milder solution arguing that the pain inflicted was justified to bring about a greater good. [56] But putting it in more modern terms, how might we react to a politician who delayed bringing aid to victims of a catastrophe to maximize the dramatic effect? They might try to rationalize that it was for the greater good (their good, that is). But the charge of showboating would still be justified. And it is certainly not the sort of thing you’d expect of an all-loving God.
In light of the incongruity, and in accord with John 7:1-9, which clearly shows that Jesus was always working off of a schedule set by His Father, [57] a much more logical position has been proposed that simply argues it is the Father's schedule that mandated the 2-day delay. [58] The 2/3rds Rule concurs with that position, noting that there is a Special Sabbath that would have occurred 1-week prior to the end of this Period. And it is a Sabbath with a rather odd yet very appropriate theme. It is Shabbat Parah (a Sabbath to honor the ashes of the red heifer). [59]
It is the first of 3 Special Sabbaths leading up to Passover. And this particular Sabbath is a call to purification. It comes from the Book of Numbers whose prescription for ritual purification after coming into contact with a dead body was to wash in water mixed with the ashes of a red heifer slaughtered outside of the encampment and burnt to ash for that purpose. [60] The mixture was called the water of lustration.
The Talmud adds that the red heifer was to be at least 3 years old. [61] And in the Second Temple Period it was to be taken across a special bridge built from the Temple to the Mount of Anointing where it was slain. [62] There being only two animal sacrifices required to be made outside the Temple (the red heifer and the Yom Kippur scapegoat) and this bridge being used to escort both from
from the Temple, the red heifer became, to the Jewish mind, the scapegoat equivalent for Passover. [63] And that may explain how and why this Special Sabbath came into existence as a call to purification anticipating Passover. Its location on the calendar being 1-week prior to Shabbat HaChodesh (the second call to purifi-cation) makes sense, too, since the purifi-cation ritual took place over 7 days. [64]
Cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet dyed wool was to also be burned with the carcass and blood of the slaughtered heifer was to be sprinkled in the direction of the Temple 7 times. [65] This imagery, being so symbolic of the imagery of Calvary, the early Christians had no difficulty seeing Christ as the embodiment the red heifer, with the wood and hyssop conjuring up thoughts of the crucifixion, [66] and the scarlet wool symbolizing our sins, [67] which the blood of Christ washes away. [68] But how does all this show that Jesus raised Lazarus on Shabbat Parah? Yes, He would have been in contact with a dead body. But it wouldn’t have been the first time that happened in His ministry. There has to be something more. And there is. It is found in an ancient mystery surrounding the ashes of the red heifer, a mystery according to Jewish tradition that King Solomon, in all his wisdom, could not explain. [69]
The mystery lies in the fact that although the water of lustration was used to cleanse the defiled of impurity, Scripture also reports that it caused the priests involved in making it to become impure. So the problem that stumped the Rabbis (and Solomon, too, supposedly) was how one substance could both purify and defile. And it does have to be considered the height of irony that the person involved in removing an affliction from someone should gain the affliction for their efforts. But isn’t that exactly what happened to Jesus in raising Lazarus from the dead? Jesus had fasted for 40 days to change the hearts of the Sanhedrin. He had shown them every imaginable sign to help them repent and accept Him. But in the end, it would only make Him weep, [70] as their hearts got even harder. [71] This raising of Lazarus would provoke, at the very end of this Period, Caiaphas’s famous reply.
It is better [he said] that one man die … than that a whole nation perish. [72]
Period: milli-Second 5 of Creation Level V
Defining Dates: March 14, 33 AD – March 27, 33 AD
Span: 13.6 days
Central Theme: Preparation
Description: The world is made more beautiful in response to the display of love.
Beatitude: The 5th - “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” [73]
Holy Order: Acolyte
It is the start of milli-Second 5. Jesus’s greatest miracle has now made Him a marked man and the date is March 14, 33 AD. [74] It is also a Special Sabbath, Shabbat HaChodesh, which is a second call to the Jewish people to prepare themselves for the month of Nisan and the Passover.
And the Gospels assert for the bulk of His ministry, Jesus did all He could to stay out of the limelight. To that end, He tried to keep His identity and even His healings a secret. [75] The timing just hadn't been right. With two weeks to go before Holy Week, however, Jesus has thrown all that aside. Having entered the Blessed are the merciful phase of His ministry, Jesus and the Apostles are performing incredible acts of mercy for the people just outside of Jerusalem. [76]
They are leaving no doubt (to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, anyway) that He truly is the promised Messiah. For the people of Judea, the world has suddenly become filled with hope and beauty. The blind see, the deaf hear and the lame walk, [77] just as Isaiah had foretold, [78] but the Sanhedrin and the Temple authorities are having none of it. They are showing no mercy whatsoever, so neither will they (or their city) receive it. [79] And they were absolutely clueless, in that spring of 33 AD, of the calamities they were bringing down on themselves.
Holy Week (Creation Level VI)
Period: micro-Second 1 of Creation Level VI
Defining Dates: 7:40 PM, March 27 to 7:58 AM, March 29 to 8:33 AM, April 1, 33 AD
Span: 1.5 days + 3 days = 4.5 days total (approx.)
Central Theme: Light / Initiation
Description: Three great Lights appear, the first at the start, the second well into the Period, and the third (begotten of the other two) appearing at the end to become the focus of the entire Level.
Beatitude: The 6th - “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” [80]
Holy Order: Subdeacon
The 2/3rds Rule next takes us to the logical beginning of Holy Week and the start of a new Level. It is Friday, 7:40 in the evening of March 27, 33 AD, making it the onset of one final Special Sabbath before Passover, [81] Shabbat HaGadol (the Great Sabbath). [82] This is the day the Jewish people observed God's command to procure their sacrificial lamb for the upcoming holiday. [83] And according to John’s Gospel Jesus was anointed on this night. [84]
He was in Bethany being honored by a dinner at the home of Lazarus (whom He'd just raised from the dead) and his sisters, Martha and Mary, when Mary knelt down in front of Him, poured perfumed oil on His feet and dried them with her hair. For this He praised her and asked that she reserve some of the oil for His burial. And it is not difficult to decipher the higher meaning. By this anointing (and in keeping with the messianic implications of this Sabbath) Jesus had just been marked. It occurred in a manner different from the way sacrificial animals were supposed to be marked back then when selected for sacrifice. [85] But the use of perfume rather than paint served the same purpose in setting Him apart. He was now officially consecrated the world's Paschal sacrifice, the Lamb of God. [86] That was the 1st Light of Holy Week.
And one-third of the way into this 1st Creation micro-Second, on 10 Nisan (which was on a Sunday that year), Jesus entered Jerusalem, in humble procession, offering Himself to the people as their Lamb. It has been commemorated every year since as Palm Sunday. But to the people of the city this day was Yom HaAliyah, [87] the holiday that commemorates the Jordan River being miraculously parted, allowing the Israelites to triumphantly pass through it as they entered into the Promised Land. So that is how they were seeing Jesus, too, as He entered their city. He was their liberator, the Lion of Judah, [88] the warrior-king sent from heaven who was going to set everything right. That was the 2nd Light.
And by coming into the city on the colt of an ass, to align His entrances with an ancient prophecy foretold of the promised Messiah, [89] Jesus had actually orchestrated it that way. He wasn’t doing it, however, for the people of Jerusalem that day. They mostly missed that particular connection, and Scripture says as much. [90] He did it rather, for us, that we might look back on this day and see this fulfillment of prophecy. [91] The learned Scribes and the Pharisees didn't miss it, though. They knew the Scriptures forward and backward and had no difficulty understanding what Jesus was claiming by intentionally coming into their city this way.
And the Beatitude associated with this Period perfectly describes the situation. The people, having heard of all His wondrous deeds outside the city, were ecstatic on finally seeing His arrival. It was the fullness of time; everyone could feel it. And in their hearts, made pure through their desire for baptism into His Church, He was the Son of God, in fulfilment of a thousand prophecies, come to save them from their oppressors. To the Temple officials, however, whose hearts were anything but pure, He appeared as just a common lowlife charlatan, and a dangerous charlatan at that, who needed to be dispatched as soon as possible. They also saw, though, that doing it with the people being so fired up about Him was going to be a challenge. Little did they realize that Jesus would soon be removing that barrier, Himself.
He did this simply by telling the people the truth about His ministry. Along with the miraculous healings He performed in the city, He was also telling them that His intent was not to overthrow the Romans but to show the people the proper attitude toward them. His message was one of paying their taxes, loving their enemies and turning the other cheek. And it had to have been a hard message to hear, too hard for many.
Nevertheless, at the end of this 1st micro-Second of Creation, the 3rd Light of the Period was shining brightly. And it shone forth from a 2nd anointing performed on Him just two days before Passover. But this one, He said, was in preparation for His death (implying that it was now imminent). [92] It was a woman again who did the anointing. And she did it by breaking open a jar of expensive perfume and pouring it on His head this time (not His feet). This provoked Judas to complain over the extravagance. And to that Jesus scolded …
Let her alone. Why do you criticize her? She has done me a kindness.
… by perfuming my body she has anticipated its preparation for burial.
I assure you, wherever the good news is proclaimed throughout world,
what she has done will be told in her memory. [93]
This implies something much more than a simple anointing. And in looking to the Israelites again for a foreshadowing the timing is found to correspond exactly to their nation’s mass circumcision right after they’d entered the Promised Land. [94] Circumcision being also a foreshadowing of Baptism (the Christian Sacrament of Initiation), [95] we should expect there may be something similar happening here. But this was called the Second Circumcision (not the first) and it is also being applied to a second anointing implying that Jesus is giving us a new Sacrament here, an initiation Sacrament.
It is not Baptism, though. He gave us that 2 1/2 years earlier on Yom Kippur at His own Baptism when He took our sins from the baptismal waters so
so that we might be cleansed from them. In keeping with all the clues, therefore, this new initiation Sacrament should also be one that prepares us for entering a Promised Land. And with Jesus’s reference to His own death that Promised Land would obviously be the hereafter.
The Book of Joshua, also tells us that this Second Circumcision was needed to remove from the Israelites, the reproach of Egypt. [96] So this Second Baptism should be expected to remove from our souls, somehow, the reproach of this world before we die. Why is this necessary? And how does it do that? These are questions that may not be answerable until after we get to that far shore.
But for here it is no wonder that Jesus said this woman would be remembered for what she did. In her great act of love she gave us the Sacrament of Extreme Unction. And through this anointing we can assume that Christ sanctified the chrism used in this Sacrament in the same basic way we’ve deduced that He sanctified the waters of Baptism. In so doing He was also telling us that He certainly was the savior of Israel. But He was also here for everyone else. So He would be doing this as the Lion in union with the Lamb. And it would be by His dying for our sins that He would overthrow Satan’s kingdom, through Love, not force. [97]
This had to have been an especially difficult message for the Apostles who found themselves facing treacherous waters once again. The way the crowds were turning on Jesus, and after what He had just said, it could no longer be ignored that Jesus had come to Jerusalem to be slain. And those who continued with Him would very likely reap the same reward. But they’d been through something like this once before (in the last Level) and they’d survived those waters. So to a man, they would endeavor to stay by His side. All, that is, save one.
Period: micro-Second 2 of Creation Level VI
Defining Dates: 8:33 AM, April 1, 33 AD to 8:51 PM, April 2, 33 AD
Span: 1.5 days
Central Theme: Communion
Description: Drawn into dangerous waters, the subjects of the Level work together and are miraculously bound at the end.
Beatitude: The 7th - “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." [98]
Holy Order: Transitional Deacon
As the holder of the common purse, Judas had always been able to find excuses to cheat while the others were emptying themselves and going through their Level V transformations. [99] And so, since he never fully committed, he never really experienced what they had, and he never obtained their level of insight. From his perspective, he was suddenly in the jaws of a suicide cult that he needed to extricate himself from as quickly as possible. They had all gone crazy, but he alone had the brains to make the best of a bad situation. Accordingly, on that Wednesday morning, and at the onset of the 2nd micro-Second, is where the Scriptures tell us Judas, incited by the anointing, deserted the others and made his deal with the Sanhedrin. [100] There is no Jewish holiday to commemorate this event, nor should there be, for what is there to celebrate?
Today it is often referred to as Spy Wednesday because Judas, from this point on, had become a spy for the enemy camp. But back then, the Romans were observing a very telling holiday on that day. It was called Veneralia in honor of their pagan goddess, Venus Verticordia (the changer of hearts). [101] Demon goddess is perhaps a better descriptor in consideration of what was motivating Judas that day. [102] But today, in the west, we observe another very appropriate commemoration every year on this date. It was, after all, April 1 in 33 AD, April Fools’ Day, the day that Judas bet against God.
The Bible too is not to be silenced on the foolishness of Judas’s actions, for he did it on 13 Nisan: the same day that Haman (the archfiend of the Old Testament) hatched his plot with the king of Persia to kill all the Jews in the world. [103] That Judas and Haman would both later suffer a similar fate, is maybe to be expected. [104]
Judas aside, there is much more to this Period than his tragic defection. It culminates with the last Julian calendar date predicted by the 2/3rds Rule prior to the date of the Crucifixion. It is Holy Thursday, April 2, 33 AD. And the time predicted, 8:51 PM, makes it very appropriately connected with the Passover Seder Jesus and the Apostles were observing (as reported in the Synoptic Gospels). [105] But before this meal is over Jesus will have given us two new Sacraments and introduced us to a third, so it is understandable that the Rule should have set it apart.
As the story goes in John’s Gospel, after they had already sat down to eat, Jesus rose, grabbed a towel and a basin and began washing each of the Apostles’s feet. They objected at first thinking it undignified that their master should do this for them. But He assured them …
“What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him, “Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him, “Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him, “Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.” [106]
So this was no ordinary foot washing. And in spite of how some might like to limit its meaning, there was much more going on than Jesus giving the Apostles a lesson in humility. The last line of the above excerpt tells us clearly that this foot washing was just an outward sign, that while their feet may have been getting cleansed of dirt, their souls were being cleansed of sin. How else can it be explained that not all were cleaned? And it is understandable in consideration of the Sacrament He was about to bestow on them (Communion) that they needed to be cleansed of their sin, for Scripture tells us we need to be in the state of grace to properly receive it. To be otherwise is to bring down judgment on ourselves. [107]
But these verses also mention bathing as another means of having one's sins removed. And this is an obvious reference to Baptism, as Scripture employs bathing phraseology several times to describe that Sacrament. [108] This tells us, therefore, that Jesus is introducing another new Sacrament in this act. And it would be one that takes away those sins we’ve committed since our Baptisms. That is how the early Church saw it, [109] and still sees it today. [110] It is the Sacrament of Reconciliation, which is seen here in an unusual form. Acknowledging that, Jesus told them they would later understand and connect it to the risen Christ bestowing on the Apostles His power to forgive sins. [111] And He did give them that power on the night following His Resurrection. [112] So this foot washing was just a glimpse of what was coming.
And since the only requirement of the penitent for having their sins removed through this Sacrament is a contrite heart, that would explain why Judas (who was anything but sorry for the grave sin he was about to commit), did not get clean. The question remains, however, as to why Jesus chose this particular form. But that will be explained very soon, as there are two other Sacraments associated with this Period, and both had need for this preliminary cleansing. They also show up, almost simultaneously, right after Jesus and the Apostles return to the meal. The first of the two is, of course, the Sacrament of Communion. As Matthew's Gospel describes it ...
When they were seated again, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples He said, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins." [113]
And within these words of invocation, the Holy Eucharist was born. It is the real Bread from Heaven that the manna the Israelites received from God to sustain them in the wilderness, only prefigured. [114] And speaking of that manna, it is on this very night, following their first seder meal in the Promised Land, some 1,500 years earlier, that God stopped providing it for them. [115] This tells us clearly that it was both a foreshadowing of Communion and that Christ’s life continued to be on a parallel path with the lives of the ancient Israelites. Yet, in one very important way, the two paths were divergent.
They were in parallel because, from this point forward, they were both engaged in wars of reclamation. For the Israelites it was the campaign they waged against the indigenous Canaanites to reclaim from them the Promised Land (which Scripture tells us started with the battle of Jericho a few days later). [116] And for Jesus, His focus was on the reclamation of the entire world from Satan's stranglehold, with the events of this night and the following day being so decisive they mark a turning point in that offensive. Like the conquest of Jericho, it gave God's Kingdom a foothold into Satan's world, and one that assured that total victory would one day be achieved.
The big difference between the two paths, however, is that Christ was not going to do this through force, as everyone had expected. It would all be accomplished through spiritual warfare. His army was to be us, His Body, (which we now had the potential of becoming through Communion). And the weapons we'd be wielding would not be swords and battleaxes, but the Sacraments, all of which He would be validating by freely submitting His life to the Cross. More on that shortly.
But some have claimed that the Eucharist is just some sort of metaphorical representation. They greatly limit its power and reject its transcendency, in so doing. And they take this position in spite of Jesus spelling it out pretty plainly that it truly is His body and blood throughout the 6th chapter of John’s Gospel. [117] The added testimony of the early Church Fathers on the matter (which includes those whose writings make up the New Testament), [118] does not phase them either. This contraposition, therefore, being so entrenched, it can reject so much evidence against it, it is doubtful its adherents can be moved by further arguments, especially any coming from outside of Scripture. The 2/3rds Rule will, nevertheless, weigh in on the matter.
And the argument it puts forth is a good one, because it tells us that this Sacrament was given to us at 8:51 PM on April 2, 33 AD, making it the last act of the 2nd micro-Second of Creation. This is the moment that the Word was to bestow upon the subjects of this Level a miraculous bond to help them cope with the challenges they are facing.
So just as it was at the end of the 2nd Day of Creation, when a simple one-celled organism was ingested by another to become its nucleus and again at the end of the 2nd milli-Second of Creation when Christ’s Church was given its nucleus in the selection of Peter, [119] here on this 2nd micro-Second of Creation, God is giving us the ultimate gift, Himself, that, by our ingesting Him in the great Sacrament of the Altar, He can become our nucleus, that we can become one with Jesus, just as Jesus is one with the Father. [120] The Eucharist is not, therefore, a metaphor. It truly is the Body and Blood of Christ.
And in keeping with the Beatitude for this Period, those who partake of this Sacrament of Peace. [121] Christ’s peace, [122] become, as was said, one with the Son and thus sons and daughters (or children) of God the Father. [123] This is God’s prescription for world peace, if the world would only heed it.
But we are not yet done with all that transpired at that meal, for at the very moment Christ was saying the words of invocation, “This is My Body” and “This is My Blood,” Luke's Gospel tells us He was also tacking on the words, “Do this in remembrance of Me." [124] And the Church has held for centuries that in those words the Apostles were ordained into the priesthood so that they might provide the Sacrament of Communion for the laity. [125] It is backed up by two arguments from Scripture, as well. [126]
The first argument comes from the recognition that in the Greek source text for Luke’s Gospel the Greek verb for "do" can also be translated "offer." And it is, in fact, translated that way in several verses of the Septuagint (the ancient Greek Old Testament) in the contest of offering sacrifices. [127] Another (and maybe better) translation of that verse in Luke's Gospel, therefore, is “Offer this in remembrance of Me,” which sounds very much like a command to offer sacrifice: the primary function of a priest. [128]
And the other argument from Scripture takes it a step further with an Old Testament parallel. It notes that the ritual for consecration into the Levitical priesthood (which foreshadowed the Apostolic Priesthood) required first that the candidates be washed, with specific attention being placed on the washing of the hands and feet. [129] So the mystery of the earlier foot washing is resolved. Christ prepared them for the Eucharist by washing their feet in the middle of the meal to make it clear that, along with their need to be spiritually cleansed prior to their reception of the Eucharist, the Apostles were also being prepared for their ordinations.
And the 2/3rds Rule, once again, concurs, adding only that it wasn’t all accomplished in one day. The Apostles had been on the trajectory to becoming priests from the day they were selected, having been inducted symbolically into the 4 minor orders in the last Level, and progressing through 2 major orders in this Level all the way up to the ultimate goal of their formation, ordination into the priesthood at the end of this Period.
Period: micro-Second 3 of Creation Level VI
Defining Dates: 8:51 PM, April 2, 33 AD to 8:57 AM, April 3, 33 AD
Span: 12 hours, 6 minutes
Central Theme: Transformation
Description: The subjects still in desperate waters are transformed by the miraculous bond.
Beatitude: The 8th - “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." [130]
Holy Order: Priest
Throughout His time amongst us, Jesus had to contend with many attempts on His life. Some were made even before He was born. [131] But as they pertained to Him they were never more than a temporary annoyance. As a child it just meant that He had to live in Egypt for a while. [132] And as an adult, whenever angry mobs picked up stones to kill Him for sundry imagined blasphemies, we read that He was prone to just walk right through them, as though they were not there. [133] He knew that they had no power over Him so long as He was without sin. And He also knew that the Father alone has the power over life and death. So if the Father (who always has our best interests in heart) is allowing it, there is nothing for the true person of faith to object to. But even more than that, Jesus knew that in all those other incursions, His hour had not yet come.
But sitting with the Apostles that evening, after having given them the ultimate gift, His very self in the Eucharist, this was all about to change. He told them when He gave it to them how much He'd longed to do it, [134] which tells us clearly that it had been part of the plan from the start. But He withheld until the very end of His ministry. Why? Was it for the sake of showmanship? Was He just saving the best for last for the sake of showmanship? That's not very likely, considering how crucial it was to salvation.
Reading between the lines, Scripture provides the answer. It informs us that Jesua actually became sin for our transgressions. [135] And His abrupt change in demeanor after the institution of the Sacrament, highly suggests that this is when and where it happened, [136] that in giving of Himself so unselfishly in the Sacrament to allow us to become one with Him, it also required that He become one with us. And that unfortunately included becoming one with our sins. It was also not in the manner of the Yom Kippur Scapegoat where they were just laid upon his shoulders. They had to become part of Him, so that our sins could be nailed to the Cross, just as He would be. [137] And in that very act His hour had come. Satan’s spy was dispatched immediately to spread the news. [138] The Son of Man had just become vulnerable. [139] The Night of Shadows had begun.
Jesus departed the meal, as well, retiring to the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives to pray. It is a mountain also known as the Mount of Anointing, the site where the red heifer is slaughtered and immolated. And the olive trees that grow there are some of the oldest living things on the planet, with some that witnessed Jesus’s prayers that night, thought to still be alive today. [140] For Jesus, however, those trees were likely the furthest things from His mind.
Our sins were something He had never before experienced, and it seems to have unnerved Him terribly. It should have brought a fog of uncertainty down on Him, as it does for all of us, and no longer would He have known exactly what was going happen. All He should have now known with certainty was how He felt. And those feelings were telling Him that He had suddenly become a magnet attracting every evil thought and intention in Jerusalem. [141] And He knew that they were coming. And He knew that it was going to be horrible. And He knew, from conversing with the Father in the Garden that night, [142] that there was nothing He could (or should) do to stop it, if everything was to go according to plan.
So when they came to arrest Him around midnight, as He knew they would, He put up no fight. And He accepted all their abuse at the mock trial He was subjected to, knowing full well what the verdict would be regardless of what He might say. So He opened not His mouth. [143] And by the end of the Period He was standing before Pilate, a man condemned to death by the Temple authorities, awaiting the next act of this horrible play.
For the Apostles, who found themselves still emersed in rough waters, the feeling of impending doom was with them, too. But it was becoming too much for them this time. The miraculous bond they’d just received could have helped immensely had they made proper use of it. It is a situation reminiscent of the 3rd Day of Creation. After those first procaryotes received their gift of a nucleus, most also did nothing more with it. They’d become eucaryotes at the start of that Day. And they remain simple one-celled eucaryotes to this day. Some, however, made use of the gift to become more than they had ever been or could have ever conceived of being. And by the start of Creation Day 4 they had evolved, by joining with other such creatures, into multi-celled lifeforms with real hearts that would one day be capable of knowing and expressing the same selfless love their Creator expended in creating them.
And with the Apostles that night we see much the same behavior. They had all sworn to stay by Jesus’s side to the bitter end. But the moment He was arrested they all scattered with the exception of Peter and John. And by morning even Peter had faltered leaving John, as the sole representative of the Apostles to see things through. He was not alone, however. The holy women, which included Jesus’s aunt Mary (the wife of Clopas) and Mary Magdalene, had also found the courage to stay by Christ's side. And by midmorning all (having been confirmed in their faith) were more than they had ever been before. [144] Together with Jesus’s Blessed Mother (who’d been confirmed in her faith many years prior) [145] they were the first that could rightly be called soldiers in Christ.
And when we, too, make use of that great gift of Communion to become what we were always meant to be (as did John, and the holy women) we have the promise that that tiny nucleus we’ve been given at the altar will evolve into a true heart (just as it did on the 3rd Day) capable of expressing that same wondrous love John and Mary and their companions witnessed on that great and terrible final day of Creation. It was a love that all of Jesus’s Apostles would eventually have to learn if His Church was going to survive what lay ahead. And John, through his bravery that day, would be the first.
Period: micro-Second 4 of Creation Level VI
Defining Dates: 8:57 AM to 12:59 PM, April 3, 33 AD
Span: 4 hours, 2 minutes
Central Theme: Retrospection
Description: Having tamed the deadly waters they’ve been thrust into, the subjects of this Level eventually “see the light” that invited them into it, with a new manifestation of God’s love also emerging in their hearts at the end of the Period.
Beatitude: The 9th - “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you." [146]
The Beatitudes for the last Period and this one both offer blessings to those being persecuted. In micro-Second 3 it was persecution for righteousness’s sake, which fit well with what Jesus and His followers were going through. In this 4th micro-Second, however, the Beatitudes shift tense from 3rd to 2nd person and the persecution is no longer for a nonspecific purpose. It is persecution for Christ’s sake. suggesting that it applies here solely to Christ, and in a larger sense to those Christians who’ve gotten so close to Christ in their faith walks that they’ve been granted the privilege of knowing firsthand a little of what Jesus went through this day. And He went through a lot.
He'd suffered physical and verbal abuse already in His arrest and trial. Upon being handed over to the Romans, however, at the start of this Period, the suffering shifted into high gear. It began with Pilate, reluctant to execute a man he thought innocent, having Jesus horribly scourged, to an inch of His life, thinking it would appease the crowd. His men also draped Him in a royal vestment and crowned Him with thorns after the scourging to mock His claims of kingship. But neither had any effect. Never mind that Jesus had been telling them to love the Romans. That was bad enough. But what sort of Messiah allows Himself to be flogged?! Certainly, none they’d ever heard of. He was obviously a fraud. So they screamed all the louder for crucifixion.
In one last ditch effort to save Him, therefore, Pilate offered to release a prisoner in honor of the Passover holiday, giving the crowd a choice between Jesus and a notorious murderer. To that they fittingly chose to save the one they most identified with, calling for Jesus once more to die. So in the end Pilate simply washed his hands of the affair and gave the crowd what they desired.
But let us clear, it wasn’t Pilate that was calling the shots here. It was Satan. And he wanted to make this as gruesome and as terrifying an experience as possible. He had also been carefully planning this torture from the day we first sinned in the Garden, because he knew that God so loved the world that He’d send His only Son to save us from the stranglehold we'd given him. Our connection to the fruit of the Tree of Life had, thus, also been severed by our sin and it needed to be restored. [147] And so, knowing that it would all come down to this one day, he waited some 90,000 years for it to happen. But his primary goal was not to kill the Son but to break Him. [148] That was his plan A.
But let us be clear on one other very important point. That plan was always doomed to fail, because God had His own Plan A. It was the establishment of His Sacramental Church on earth at precisely 3:00 PM that day. He’d put that plan into motion some 15 billion years earlier. And there was nothing Satan could have ever done to stop it. It mattered not that he’d incited Adam to sin. Neither Caiaphas’s treachery, nor Judas’s betrayal had any effect, either. And although it has become popular to think otherwise, [149] in the end the only lasting effect sin has is on the souls of those who commit it and on the souls of those who allow it to infect them. For God, all it did on this day was make things a whole lot more painful than they should have been. [150]
And so, in following the story to the end of this Period, we see Christ, condemned by the crowd, and now also by Pilate, being forced to carry a heavy wooden cross through the streets of Jerusalem and out of the city to a hill called Golgotha, [151] the place of His impending execution. It is standard Roman practice with condemned criminals, intended to shame them further for their crimes by making them play an active role in their own demise. But to the shock of the bystanders who've seen this many times, there is no crying or pleading or cursing as they have been accustomed to seeing. Jesus does not fight against the cross He's been given (any more than He did the crown of thorns). He accepted our gifts (just as He'd done throughout His earthly life), embraced them actually, made them His own, and in this fashion, He returned the shame of the cross (and that of the crown) back to those that subjected Him to it.
And when He arrived at His destination and He stretched out His hands, allowing His executioners to nail His now naked body to that cross in a pose so shockingly vulnerable, He was telling us all the proper attitude to take to the world. Let it do as it likes. It has no power over the truly righteous soul. There are conflicting reports, but John’s Gospel suggests that Christ was lifted up somewhere around 1 PM. [152] And that would seem to mark the end of this 4th Creation micro-Second, but not quite exactly.
The actual event that stands as the cusp between the two Periods is hard to determine precisely But it can logically be argued that it occurred shortly after Jesus was raised up. And this is determined by turning our attention back to John and the holy women to see how they were faring through all of this. For in so doing we find that just as Jesus was transformed in this Period, [153] so were they. Having conquered the last barrier to spiritual freedom, the fear of physical death, they emerged at the start of this Period with a totally new outlook on the world, unlike any they had ever had before. They could see all the madness happening around them, but it was as if they were watching it as a play that they were no longer a part of. They had somehow transcended it.
So while the rest of the world had lost its mind, Jesus’s tiny Church of four was gaining a new sense. In witnessing all the events unfold, with a clear vision uncluttered by fear, things were starting to make sense. What they saw was as tragic and sad as it was inspiring, and all were beyond words to express it. They had never seen anything even close to it before, yet it was also somehow familiar. They couldn’t put their finger on it, though, not until the very end of the Period when they heard Christ’s cry from the Cross,
“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani!" [154]
And it was like being struck by a bolt of lightning. He was quoting Scripture, one of the Psalms of David. And not just any Psalm. It was the first verse from a Psalm of lament that they all knew well, and one that perfectly described what they were witnessing. It harkened also to Isaiah’s suffering servant, dying for the sins of humanity just as he’d foretold! [155] Until now these Scriptures had been largely ignored, (or misunderstood) even by the Apostles. No one could decipher them. But now Christ’s full vision for the Church was being recognized. It was not being destroyed this day. It was being born!! The time, by the 2/3rds Rule’s estimate, is 12:59 PM. The 4th Creation micro-Second is over and the 5th has just begun.
Period: micro-Second 5 of Creation Level VI
Defining Dates: 12:59 PM to 2:20 PM, April 3, 33 AD
Span: 81 minutes
Central Theme: Preparation
Description: The world is made more beautiful in response to the display of love.
Beatitude: The 10th - Blessed are they who lay down [their] lives for their friends, for there is no greater love than this. [156]
Looking for the beauty on this 5th micro-Second of Creation, is a little difficult at first to find. We know from Periodicity that it must exist, but the sun has been darkened by the amount of oppression weighing down on our Lord as He hung on that Cross we’d given Him, and from His perspective it is opposite day. At its start, where He should have been seeing water, He saw only desert as He stood before the Sanhedrin to be judged by them. Oh, He transformed all right in the following Period, but not into something most any of us would have wanted, He was accursed now [157] and His body was so badly beaten by Pilate’s torturers it was no longer recognizable. [158] But Jesus soldiered through it all. His love for us so strong that it was turning everything back around to where it was supposed to be.
And John and the holy women were not the only ones who were seeing it. Scripture suggests that most continued to be oblivious to it all. To them it was just another Roman execution of someone deserving what He got. A few, however, were deeply moved by what they saw, some converting on the spot. [159] And maybe the most heartening, from Jesus’s point of view, was the conversion of the thief who’d been crucified beside Him. [160] We can assume that Jesus could see it all from the perch we'd given Him that day. The tiny Church He’d planted had taken root and was growing. And it must have been for Him like a cool sip of water to quench the powerful thirst He'd developed from the desert He was in.
But with the 7 Sacraments all in place, and ready to be activated upon His death, there remained but one final embellishment to bestow on Christ’s beloved Bride. So here, on this 5th and final Period of Level VI, the Period where God steps back to bring something beautiful into our world, we see Christ entrusting to the care of John, the sole remaining representative of the Church’s hierarchy, His Blessed Mother.
She’d been in training with Him from the day she was conceived and knew intimately well what it meant to be Christ’s mother. But seeing Him suffer so greatly this day, her immaculate heart so conjoined to His, she could feel every lash that He took and every pain that He endured for the sake of mankind. [161] His beloved Bride became her daughter that day, too. And she was now ready to live out her eternal destiny, together with the Church’s spiritual fathers, as the spiritual Mother of Christ’s Body, the Church. The time is 2:20 PM and Creation Level VI is ready to transition into micro-Second 6. The sky remains darkened. The moon has started to go into eclipse (although it cannot yet be seen). And it is in these final 40 minutes of Jesus’s life, where Level VII will bring this great saga home.
Christ’s death on the Cross (Creation Level VII)
And what can be said of this, the highest Level in the Creation saga? We have no more tools to decipher the events of the Level. The Beatitudes have all been used up. We’ve even added a 10th to get to the end of Level VI. We could maybe look at the last 7 statements Jesus made from the Cross for our guide. But several of those statements have already been said in the previous Period. It would appear instead to be more appropriate to simply honor the silence and end our discussion here in awe and reverence. Those last 40 minutes appear to be reserved for Jesus alone and we have no business prying. It is as Scripture proclaims.
When the Lamb broke open the seventh seal …
there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. [162]
Before concluding, however, there is a discrepancy to clear up. It may have been noticed that Palm Sunday occurred 1/3rd of the way into the 1st micro-Second rather than 2/3rds as it is with all the other Levels. This may be a reference to Christ finding Himself in opposite day at the end of the Level. But a better resolution to this issue lies, I think, in finding the meaning of the 2/3rds Rule; for what reason would God choose to create in 2/3rds increments if not to emphasize the Father and the Son (the two members of the Trinity that Scripture tells us were integrally involved)? [163] That would appear to be the most obvious explanation.
And by that understanding, it means that here on this crucial last week of Creation where 15 billion years of labor finally all came together, the Son was forced to go it alone. It is not because the Father didn't want to be involved. It is rather that the Son was about to go to a place the Father could not go. Because of our failures in Eden and thereafter, He is about to become sin, our sin, personified, that we might all be saved. [164] And as was already noted, He apparently did this by connecting to us (and thus our sin) at the Last Supper.
In that great act on that fateful night as our Lord was giving us the means to be set free, He became the red heifer. Our freedom was bought for the price of His captivity, our life given back to us at the cost of His death and one that He knew in advance would be inhumanly severe. Yet He did it anyway. His love for us was so great it trumped every other emotion He may have had. And that takes us to the very end of the Creation saga. It is the 6th nano-Second of the 6th micro-Second of the 6th milli-Second of the 6th Second of the 6th Minute of the 6th Hour of the 6th Day of Creation. One final click as Christ utters tetelestai (it is finished) with His final breath and gives up His spirit. The 7th Day has finally arrived. Or as the Bible puts it …
“On the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing; he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation." [165]
And it remains the 7th Day to this day. The work of the Father in tandem with the Son is done. The work of the Holy Spirit in tandem with Christ’s Body continues. In other words, Creation now belongs to us. What shall we do with it? This is a fitting question to end this chapter on. What more can be said? This discussion has come to an end.
Graphics displaying how Levels V and VI relate to the Beatitudes and Periodicity (Figures 5.3 and 5.4, respectively) are provided at the end of the chapter. The second of the two, Figure 5.4, [166] is incomplete, however. It doesn’t show, for instance, the significant events defining Levels II, III and IV. That information is reserved for the next installment in this Series (as is the completed version of this table). [167] In simply reviewing the abbreviated table found here, however, it should still be easy to see how Periodicity works and how effective it might be in unravelling those other great mysteries of history that have already been alluded to.
And even though those ancient mysteries will not be revealed here, there are still a few questions in the life of Christ left to resolve. Chief among them is how exactly can someone's death atone for someone else's sins. That will be explored in chapter 7. But first, the 2/3rds Rule has another little surprise in store. And it has to do with Mary.
And for those having trouble reading Figure 5.4 (either because the print is too small or your device is truncating the graphic) an interactive, zoomable version is available by clicking on the button below. But this being an important graphic, and the viewer provided is so much better at portraying it, it is highly recommended that all avail themselves of it, regardless of how easy they may find it to read here.
REFERENCES
Ahaus, H. 1911. Holy Orders. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton
Company. Available at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11279a.htm.
Broussard, Karlo, 2017. Did Jesus make the Apostles Priests at the Last Supper? Catholic
Answers website. Available at https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/did-jesus-
make-the-apostles-priests-at-the-last-supper.
Pope Benedict XVI. 2011. Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance Into Jerusalem. San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 73-74.
Pope Paul VI. June 27, 1968. “Homily: The Sacrament of Unity and Peace.” L’Osservatore
Romano (Weekly Edition in English). 3. Available at https://www.ewtn.com/library
Richman, Rabbi Chaim, 1977. The Mystery of the Red Heifer: Divine Promise of Purity, Part II:
The Red Heifer in Temple Times – The Ceremony. Jerusalem, Israel. Excerpts reprinted by
the Temple Institute. Available at https://templeinstitute.org/red-heifer-the-ceremony/
Ryan, George, 2017. “The 2,000 Year Old Olive Trees That Sheltered Jesus Christ,” The
UCatholic website. Available at https://ucatholic.com/blog/the-2000-year-old-olive-trees-
Ryan, Michael James, 1908. "Character (in Catholic Theology)." The Catholic Encyclopedia.
Vol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Available at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen
/03586a.htm. Last visited: 3/7/24.
Thurston, H. (1912). Washing of Feet and Hands. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York:
Robert Appleton Company. Available at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15557b.htm.
ENDNOTES
[1] To get the most out of this chapter, prereading the following Scriptures may be helpful: Ex
12:1-6, Nm 19:1-22, Jos 5:1-6:1, Est 3:8-13, Mt 5:1-18, Jn 11:1-12:19, Mark's Passion
Narrative (Mk 14:1-15:41) supplemented by Lk 23:44-49.
[2] Scientists have been searching for a Grand Unifying Theory that can mathematically link
all the known forces of the universe since Einstein first proposed it decades ago. And once
found many further believe a Theory of Everything will be revealed that will eliminate, once
and for all, our need to invent a god to explain things. The 2/3rds Rule, however, seems to
have, maybe, beaten them to it with its own all-inclusive theory that is not quite what atheistic
science would have hoped for, or even imagined.
[3] One such instance (from Lk 22:31) is Satan’s desire to sift the Apostles like wheat, which
can be seen (and commonly is) as a prophecy foretelling the splintering of the Church. This
further implies the verse that follows (Lk 22:32) is a prophecy of subsequent reunification.
[4] Mt 24:14.
[5] Rv 21:5, Rom 8:28.
[6] A prime example is found in the story of Joseph, the Patriarch (Gn 37:1-50:26).
[7] Mt 19:16-17. But “faith alone” advocates can also legitimately interpret it as the First
Commandment telling us to believe in God, and the other nine simply defining what that
means.
[8] They are listed in two Books of the Bible (in Ex 20:1-17 and again in Dt 5:6-21).
[9] Prv 3.6.
[10] The Commandment stages are found to conform best to the Roman Catholic
enumeration.
[11] The Shepherd, by Hermas (ca 110 AD) may be the first good example of the early
Christians using Commandments in catechesis.
[12] Mt 19:21 alludes to Mt 5:1-16.
[13] … just as many Church Fathers observed. See, for instance, St. Augustine (393 AD), On
the Sermon on the Mount, I, 1-5, or St. John Chrysostom (390 AD), Homily XV on Matthew.
[14] Dt 11:26-28.
[15] Mt 19:17, among others.
[16] Jn 15:13, NLT.
[17] This is evident by the place of honor Scripture tells us they enjoy in heaven (Rv 6:9-11).
[18] Periodicity: the quality, state, or fact of being regularly recurrent (as with the elements in
chemistry’s periodic table).
[19] Living microbialites are still found today and can attain a size of several meters in girth.
[20] … and in accord with God's plan, of course.
[21] And the same is true of the development of multicellular life (plants and animals) that
arose at the start of Day 4.
[22] To give an idea of the increase in potential, biologists subdivide all living cells into two
categories: prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Prokaryotes consist of nothing greater than simple
bacteria while eukaryotes are the cells that constitute every other living organism on the
planet.
[23] Mt 5:3, KJV.
[24] Some can also be found in Scripture, but the first known mention of all 7 Orders leading
up to priestly ordination is found in a letter written by Pope Conelius (251 AD), as referenced
by Eusebius (ca 313 AD) in Church History VI, 43.
[25] Mt 6:25-34.
[26] This was as prescribed by Christ who told them early on, “... do not worry and say,
‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things
the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the
kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” Mt
6:31-33, NABRE.
[27] Mt 5:4, KJV.
[28] Although the orders of Porter, Exorcist and Subdeacon were suppressed in 1972 by Pope
Paul VI, the 2/3rds Rule seems to be advocating here that they be restored, bringing the stages
that led to the Priesthood back to the traditional 7, Specifically, they consist of the 4 Minor
Orders (Porter, Lector, Exorcist and Acolyte) followed by the 3 Major Orders (Subdeacon,
Deacon and Priest).
[29] Mt 19:21-22, Mk 10:21-22.
[30] … for they shall be comforted, Mt 5:4, KJV.
[31] Mt 19:29, Mk 10:28-30.
[32] Mt 16:19 (but see also Is 22:19-23).
[33] In that capacity, he would also later receive the charism of Infallibility, which can be seen
as having been given him with the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (as per Acts 2:1-4,
14-36).
[34] Ryan 1908.
[35] CCC 1568 and 1582-1584 (on the Sacrament of Holy Orders).
[36] CCC 880 (on the Sacrament of Holy Orders).
[37] Mt 5:5, KJV.
[38] Having apparently now earned enrolment into the Minor Order of Lector at the start of
this Period suggests that much of the prior Period was devoted to giving the Apostles a
working knowledge of the Sacred Scriptures, so as to ready them for the preaching aspect of
their later ministries.
[39] Mt 5:6, KJV.
[40] Ex 15:1-18.
[41] Mk 6:7.
[42] … in accord with the 3rd Beatitude.
[43] Mt 10:39, NAB (slightly paraphrased for clarity).
[44] Nm 13:1-25. For the Apostles, however, since they were not all sent out at the same time,
40 days is maybe better understood as an approximation.
[45] Mt 4:2, Mk 1:13, Lk 4:1-2.
[46] Mt 6:16-18.
[47] With Moses fasting for 40 days on 2 separate occasions (Dt 9:11-25), it contains a sense
of prophetic foreshadowing. And with Jesus now being said to have also fasted twice for 40
days, it is nice to see this foreshadowing finally being fulfilled.
[48] Mt 5:7, "Blessed are the merciful ..."
[49] Mt 5:6, "... for the sake of righteousness." And within fast is a lesson for all those who
think it wiser to choose our battles rather than allow the Holy Spirit to choose them for us. It
also tells us that simply because we think we know our efforts will be futile, when it comes to
saving souls, this is no reason not to try. Justice in fact, demands that we try.
[50] Jn 11:1-44.
[51] The 2 other resurrection stories, prior to Christ’s resurrection, are found in Lk 7:11-17
and Mk 5:22-43. And they show no indication of Jesus being interested in publicizing either
incident.
[52] Jn 11:4.
[53] Jn 11:6.
[54] Jesus delayed going there by 2 days and was told on finally arriving that Lazarus had
been dead for 4 days. Lazarus must have, therefore, been dead for at least a day when Jesus
got news. And you can tell that Jesus knew He was dead by what He told His disciples on
hearing the news, that the miracle He was going to be performing would be earth shaking (Jn
11:4).
[55] Many commentators have taken this position and are easy to find on the web, but they
will not be cited here out of respect for the good work they’ve done in other areas.
[56] ibid.
[57] But see also Jn 2:4, Jn 7:30, Gal 4:4 and Lk 22:15.
[58] This is the position held by the Expositor’s Greek Testament and others.
[59] Being associated with cleanliness rituals involving corpses (as is evident from Nm 19:1-
22, the Torah portion that is always read on this unusual Special Sabbath), makes the raising
of Lazarus a very appropriate candidate to be connected to this Sabbath.
[60] Nm 19:1-22.
[61] Mishna, Parah 1:1.
[62] Richman 2005.
[63] ibid.
[64] Nm 19:19.
[65] Nm 19:4-6.
[66] Jn 19:29.
[67] Is 1:18.
[68] Heb 9:13-14.
[69] Ecc 7:23 is said in the Midrash to refer to this mystery (Bamidbar Rabbah 19).
[70] Lk 19:41-44 may have some to do with it, too, but Jesus's tears here (Jn 11:35) are now
maybe best understood in light of the situation He now, found Himself in. For He must have
known that this wonderful miracle He was about to perform was the act that would bring
about His own death sentence, And the subtle irony of it all would have gotten to anyone.
[71] But Caiaphas's puzzling attitude is not unprecedented. It is also seen in Pharaoh’s
reaction to the ten plagues of Exodus (Ex 9:12, 10:1, 10:20, 10:27 & 11:10). Their intent was
to soften Pharaoh's heart, but Scripture tells us they, too, sadly, had the opposite effect.
[72] Jn 11:50, NIV.
[73] Mt 5:7.
[74] It is also the eve of a very appropriate secular commemoration, the Ides of March.
[75] Mk 1:34, Lk 5:14, Mt 16:20.
[76] Periodicity and the Beatitudes both suggest that this change in approach may have started
with Jesus's intentionally high-profile raising of Lazarus. But the primary focus of the
Beatitude seems more to ponder what might have been for Jerusalem (and the world) had the
Sanhedrin chosen to show mercy over their misguided notion of justice.
[77] Mt 11:5.
[78] Is 35:5-6.
[79] Is 1:2-20.
[80] Mt 5:8, KJV.
[81] ... recalling that each new day of the Hebrew calendar beginning at dusk.
[82] ... recalling also from chapter 1 that it is so named for the messianic Scriptures read on
this day, Mal 3:23 in particular, which speaks of “the great and terrible day of the LORD.”
[83] Ex 12:1-3. And the purpose of doing this as much as a week in advance is presumedly to
allow the lamb to become part of the household.
[84] Jn 12:1-9.
[85] In the Temple Sacrifice system, red paint was used to mark animals selected for later
sacrifice (Babylonian Talmud, Bekhorot 58b). For Jesus perfumed oil can be said to have
taken the role of the red paint, but the effect was the same.
[86] Christ (literally: the anointed one) from Jn 12:1-4 in fulfillment of Dn 9:24.
[87] 10 Nisan pulls double duty in the Old Testament. Along with marking the day the Jordan
River was parted (Jos 4:19) it is also the original Pascal Lamb Procurement Day (Ex 12:1-3).
But that day being, by tradition, also a Sabbath, lamb procurement was assigned to Shabbat
HaGadol, the last Sabbath before Passover.
[88] The Lion of Judah: a reference to the common Old Testament understanding of the Christ
as a conquering hero, as per Rv 5:5 and 1QSb 5.29, and originally derived, perhaps, from
messianic prophecies found in Gn 49:9 and Mi 5:1-7.
[89] Zec 9:9-10.
[90] Jn12:16.
[91] ibid.
[92] From Mk 14:1-9 (but also found in Mt 26:3-13). And there are admittedly a lot of
similarities between this 13 Nisan anointing from Mark's Gospel and the scriptural description
of the 9 Nisan anointing found in John's Gospel. So similar, in fact, that many believe they are
simply two slightly contradictory accounts of the same anointing, which occurred on either 9
Nisan or 13 Nisan (not both). The 2/3rds Rule weighs in, however, to insist that, although
some of the details may have gotten jumbled together, they are still two separate anointings.
[93] Mk 14:7-9, NAB.
[94] It took place presumedly over a few days (Jos 5:1-9) after they arrived on 10 Nisan (Jos
4:19) and before their first Passover seder meal on the evening of 14 Nisan (Jos 5:10-11).
[95] This seems to be St. Paul’s opinion, anyway (Col 2:11-13, Rm 2:25-29, Phil 3:3),
Jeremiah, too (Jer 4:4) and it is the opinion of the Church (CCC #527).
[96] Jos 5:9, NABRE.
[97] With the many weapons He gave us for conducting spiritual warfare at Calvary, we (His
body) had all that was needed to finish the good work Jesus had put in motion (Jn 14:12).
[98] Mt 5:9, KJV.
[99] Jn 12:6.
[100] Mt 26:1-15, Mk 14:1-11.
[101] Along with Venus Verticorda, Veneralia is also the feast day of her companion deity,
Fortuna Virilis, which loosely translates to Judas’s ultimate undoing (the fortunes of men).
But in recognition of what they inspired, both deities are better understood to be demons.
[102] Lk 22:3, Jn 13:2, 27.
[103] Est 3:12-13.
[104] Est 7:10 tells of Haman being impaled by being thrown onto a stake that was 50 cubits
high, whereas Acts 1:18 tells of Judas's insides spilling out after he'd fallen headlong from a
height.
[105] Mt 26:19-20, Mk 14:16-18, Lk 22:13-14.
[106] Jn 13:7-11, NABRE.
[107] 1 Cor 11:27-31.
[108] 1 Cor 6:11, Eph 5:26, Ti 3:5, Heb 10:22.
[109] St. Augustine of Hippo (ca. 400 AD), Tractate # 56 on the Gospel of John.
[110] Pope Benedict XVI 2011, 73-74.
[111] Ritual hand and foot washing as a fixture of worship predates Christianity. But with
Christ commanding His disciples to wash each other’s feet (together with St. Paul's
exhortation in 1 Tm 2:8), the early Christian writings show it was recognized for its efficacy
in the removal of sin and elevated to a sacramental level as a requirement for spiritual
purification prior to certain liturgical undertakings (Thurston 1912). See, for instance, St.
Augustine of Hippo (ca. 400 AD), Tractate # 55 on the Gospel of John.
[112] Jn 20:19-23.
[113] Mt 26:26-28, NABRE.
[114] Jn 6:48-51.
[115] Jos 5:11-12.
[116] Jos 5:13-6:24.
[117] Jn 6:22-71. And that Jesus did not alter His message to help the crowd understand He
was only speaking metaphorically, even after they started deserting Him for saying it (Jn
6:66-68), makes it hard to deny that it was meant to be taken literally.
[118] Mt 26:26-28, Mk 14:22-24, Lk 22:19-20, 1 Cor 11:23-30, along with the writings of the
earliest Church Fathers, such as Ignatius of Antioch, who were emphatically taught by the
Apostles, themselves, that the Eucharist truly is Christ’s Body and Blood. See his farewell
letters to the Smyrnaeans and to the Romans (ca. 117 AD) that he wrote while awaiting his
martyrdom.
[119] In the 2nd book in this series, miraculous bonds will also be shown to manifest at the
end of every other 2nd Period of Creation.
[120] Jn 10:30, 17:21.
[121] Pope Paul VI 1968.
[122] Jn 14:27.
[123] Jn 17:20-21, 1 Cor 10:16.
[124] Lk 22:19. And St. Paul says it, too, in 1 Cor 11:24-25.
[125] This specific belief was ratified in 1562 at the Council of Trent (Session XXII, Canon
II) as part of the Counter-Reformation. But the tradition that Christ endowed His Church with
the Sacrament of Holy Orders dates back to the early days of Christendom (Ahaus 1911).
[126] Broussard 2017.
[127] Ex 29:36, 38, 39, 41, Lv 9:7.
[128] It would be a fulfillment of Mal 1:11.
[129] Ex 40:23-13, 30-32.
[130] Mt 5:10, KJV.
[131] The 5th century BC attempt by the archvillain, Haman (from the Book of Esther), to
have all the Jews in the world killed off by decree of the Persian emperor, would count as one.
[132] Mt 2:13-15, 19-23.
[133] Jn 8:59, 10:31, 39, Lk 4:29-30.
[134] Lk 22:15.
[135] 2 Cor 5:21, Gal 3:13.
[136] He's known this day was coming from the beginning, but there is a marked change in
Christ’s demeanor after He has departed for the Garden. He shows uncertainty and His stress
levels seem to go through the roof (Lk 22:41-44), all signs of sin induced anxiety.
[137] Col 2:13-14, 1 Pt 2:24.
[138] Jn 13:2, 21-30.
[139] Through sin comes death (Rm 5:12).
[140] Ryan 2017. And it breathes new life into a Bible verse, Mt 24:34, often cited by critics
as erroneous.
[141] Admittedly speculative but based on countless personal testimonies on how sin clouds
judgment, induces anxiety and alters perceptions of reality.
[142] Mt 26:39, 42, Mk 14:36, Lk 22:42.
[143] With the Sacrament of Matrimony being brought under the canopy of the New
Covenant at Cana, together with the establishment of the Sacraments of Baptism, Extreme
Unction, Communion, Holy Orders and now Confirmation in this and the previous Level, one
Sacrament (Reconciliation) remains to be established. And we'll be given that one on the
night of Christ's Resurrection (Jn 20:19-23). But all seven will be validated with the
completion of His mission on the Cross.
[144] The time of day, 8:57 AM, is corroborated by Mk 15:25 as being significant.
[145] That story will be expanded upon in the next chapter.
[146] Mt 5:11-12, KJV.
[147] In reference to Gn 3:22-23, the Cross is the Tree (1 Pt 2:24), and Christ’s Flesh and
Blood are the lifegiving fruit of that Tree (Jn 6:53).
[148] First through temptation (Mt 4:1-11, Mk 1:13, Lk 4:1-13), and after failing in that
attempt, through torture.
[149] This is a repudiation of the medieval Felix Culpa (Oh Happy Fault) belief (still popular
today) that it was our fall from grace that forced Christ to come here. And in its thorough
rejection of it, the 2/3rds Rule agrees, instead, with the 14th century counterargument offered
by the Franciscan friar, Bl. John Duns Scotus.
[150] … as prophesied in Gn 3:16.
[151] Also known as, the place of the skull and Calvary.
[152] In contrast to Mk 15:25, Jn 19:14 reports that Jesus began carrying His cross to Calvary
around noon. So allowing Him an hour to get there it places the Crucifixion right around
1PM, which is 1 minute after where the 2/3rds Rule might want to place it.
[153] See notes 156 and 157.
[154] Ps 22:2, Mt 27:46, Mk 15:34.
[155] Is 53:10-12.
[156] Implied and paraphrased from Jn 15:13.
[157] In accord with Jn 3:13-14, Gal 3:13 and Dt 21:23.
[158] That is how Is 52:14 describes it, anyway.
[159] Scripture tells of several conversions (the Roman Centurian and his companions in Mt
27:54 and the good thief of Lk 23:40-43) and suggests in Lk 23:48 of there being others.
[160] ibid.
[161] Prophesied in Lk 2:35.
[162] Rv 8:1, NAB. And within this verse there seems to be a heavenly suggestion as to how
we, too, should be observing, every year, those last 40 minutes of Christ's life on Good
Friday.
[163] 1 Cor 8:6.
[164] 2 Cor 5:21.
[165] Gn 2:2-3, NABRE.
[166] And for those unfamiliar with Periodic Tables, it should be read one row (or one
column) at a time, with the entire row (or column) being read before proceding to the next
row (or column).
[167] The next book of this Series is highly recommended to anyone who may still be having
trouble comprehending this chapter, because to really do justice to the final acts of the
Creation saga it needs to be viewed in context with all the preceeding Levels.
Published: March 31, 2024
Last Update: April 6, 2024