Maya couldn’t believe the sad news coming from Paul’s mouth, as she mumbled incoherently under her breath, “They killed the Professor, my teacher is dead.” Her face turned yellow, a shiver ran down her back. Tears flooded her eyes. Yet, time was not appropriate for any delay.
No more than half an hour later, around 06:18 PM, the team of 5 finished dismantling the base camp, the Temple tent, the signposts, all traces… and left Gebel. While Paul and Jim took off together, Maya, Zago, and Youmna left, each for a different destination.
In the shelter of the night, a bizarre sound of silence reigned over Gebel.
Part III
.19.
Kadmus Sequence
Wednesday, October 27, 06:39 PM
The instructions Padre Joseph had given Paul in the heat of the moment, when the Professor’s murder had been notified, were extremely serious. His words, concerning the safety of the team, had been firm. The five of them had found shelter in different places around Lebanon, in an attempt to keep themselves away from the eyes of the Big Brother.
Thinking about that, Paul started to wonder how the Padre had known about the Professor’s death, only two hours after the incident had occurred. It was clear he knew of the Architect’s death, since he’d read it in the Newspaper, but his knowledge of the Archaeologist’s death left Paul deeply perplexed; unless Padre Joseph had a secret network connection that had informed him of the bad news, Paul reasoned, and wondered in the silence of his mind.
Time must have passed too swiftly for all of them and particularly for Paul. Night descended on him faster than he had expected. Having found a safe haven—in one of his best friends’ houses, in Batroun, an ancient Phoenician coastal city—he reposed in the calmness of the Mediterranean Sea ahead. All of a sudden, amid the wide and unbound sea surrounding him, a beeping sound came from his laptop, announcing that an email had arrived at his inbox.
Although he’d heard it, he hadn’t immediately reacted to it. In the uncanny blue sky above him, an odd small white cloud swiftly hovered over the sea, as a prelude to rain that did not pour down. It felt cold and damp. A few minutes later, Paul moved from the balcony into the room and towards his laptop. The email was from Padre Joseph, and it was written in a secret cryptogram, only Paul and the Padre knew about, or at least, that’s what he thought!
This coded system of writing, known as the ‘Kadmus Sequence’, was based on the 22 letters of the Phoenician Alphabet. The reading of the encoded message was done, first, from right to left, on the horizontal-vertical scale of 1 to 5 (Heh), to be followed, from top to bottom, on a vertical-horizontal scale of 1 to 4 (Peh). The second reading began, from top to bottom, on a vertical-horizontal scale of 5 to 2 (Kaph), to be followed, from right to left, on the horizontal-vertical scale of 4 to 2 (Sadhe). Etc…
5
4
3
2
1
He(h)
Dalet(h)
Gimel
Bet(h)
Aleph
1
Kaph
Yod(h)
Tet(h)
Het(h)/Zayin
Waw
2
Ayin
S(h)amekh
Nun
Mem
Lamed(h)
3
Tau (Taw)
Shin
Resh/Qoph
Sadhe (Tsade)
Pe(h)
4
Naturally, Paul’s adrenaline raised, as he hastened to decipher the many sequences in this email, which Padre Joseph had sent him, using a different name for additional safety measures, in case this particular message were to be intercepted by the ‘BB’s secret agents.
The embedded information in the first two paragraphs revealed that the Police had taken the matter of Dr. Hamid Saab’s death very seriously. They had cleaned up the crime scene immediately, after finding the famous Archaeology Professor’s body strangled to death. It seemed the Police had, somehow, successfully linked this incident to the death of Hiram Melki, the famous Architect. The investigation had been led by a special unit, under the leadership of Major Antoine Kanaan—a very well known police officer among Police Departments in Lebanon and abroad—reputed for having taken on, seemingly impossible and enigmatic cases, such as this one.
An Architect, an Archeologist! What a strange coincidence? Paul thought.
Although the Architect had been found dead in his backyard more than a month ago—the deciphered text continued—his file had been conveyed to Major Kanaan for additional examination, almost immediately after the death of the Archaeologist had occurred. Both victims had been killed in the same fashion. Nobody knew for certain whether or not there was a connection between the two murders, but it seemed quite logical to Major Kanaan that both deaths were somehow linked to the historical research they had both been conducting on Gebel.
Of course, the fifth and sixth paragraphs continued, the Police didn’t know a thing about the relation between these two men and King Hiram’s Sarcophagus. They also lack the classified information that would relate the two murders to the strange ancient Stone you have found in Gebel. They certainly know about dangerous secret agents working in Lebanon, but they might not be aware of the ‘BB’ and their connection to these murders. This essential lack of information will be mitigated, no more than a few hours from now, for we, the Church, have decided to inform both the Police and the Lebanese Government about it.
Paul felt stunned by the information he had just read in the Kadmus Sequence. He had often wondered about the Padre’s special connection to the Church. Although an orthodox Priest, he was well versed in esoteric knowledge, something that the Church might have found inappropriate to its teachings. Nonetheless, it seemed that he had some status within the Church.
Loneliness and a heavy flow of thoughts about all that was happening flooded his discomfited mind, as he went about doing errands through the room on that particular day when, suddenly, he remembered an interesting conversation he had once had with the Padre, concerning his orthodox beliefs.
It had taken place in the Padre’s office.
“Excuse me, Padre, but the other day, I was thinking about the Doctrine of Reincarnation. I wondered if there was any concurrence with such beliefs in Christianity,” Paul asked him in all seriousness.
“Yes, there are, Paul,” he answered without hesitation; his eyes sparkled with great interest. “Everything is in the Bible, the New Testament, I mean. Such indications are actually mentioned in different places, in Matthew, Peter, and John, but… the problem is, nobody reads anymore.”
Confounded, the Historian and seeker in Paul sought for tangible proofs. “Could you give me an example, Padre?” He loomed forward expectantly, rested his arms on his knees, and joined his hands, waiting.
Encouraged by his patent interest, Padre Joseph hastened to put on his black-rimmed glasses, and keenly leafed through the pages of the book in front of him. “Well… you must know that early Christians truthfully believed in Reincarnation.” He paused for a while, and then resumed his search, as he muttered, “It will only take a few seconds… It’s in here, somewhere… uh… I will find it. Don’t worry.”
Seconds later, he snatched off his eyeglasses, and smiled in pleasure, as if he’d found a treasure—a spiritual treasure, long lost within the pages of a book that millions of people around the world considered holy. Behind him stood a brown bookcase, filled with different sorts of books on Religion, Philosophy, History, Science, and more. The neatness and precision with which they had been settled on the shelves denoted their owner’s character.
“And Jesus answered and said unto them,” the Padre read aloud, in a deferential tone, quoting from Matthew 17:11-15. “Elias truly shall come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias has come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatever they pleased. So also shall the Son of man suffer at their hands. Then the disciples understood that he spoke unto them of J
ohn the Baptist.
“Here as well, in Matthew 11:11-15: ‘He had earlier said to his disciples,” the Padre continued, quoting the words of Jesus again, “Verily I say unto you, among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater one than John the Baptist: yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violent attacks, and violent men try to take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John; and if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.’”
Paul felt compelled to admire not only the Padre, but also the book in general and the profundity of these words, written in one of the four Gospels. A long silence followed that revelation. Paul was acquainted with the Doctrine of Reincarnation, also known as Metempsychosis, mentioned in several world religion books and traditions like in Hinduism, Buddhism, and the Pythagoreans’. Frankly though, to find it in the teachings of the Christian Master was something very surprising and new to Paul.
“Padre, excuse me,” Paul said, breaking off the silence that had settled in. “I just want to clarify a few things that trouble my mind. I mean, why has Christianity discredited the belief in Reincarnation and… when did this start?”
“Well…” he nodded, and stood up to grab an impressive book from his bookcase. From the title on the leather cover, the Historian comprehended that the content conferred on Christian history. “The Doctrine of Reincarnation is based on one essential law that says, ‘you reap what you sow’,” the Padre read, still standing by the bookcase. He then turned in Paul’s direction, and continued, “It clearly states that humans live an eternal life through a journey of evolution and experiences they ought to have on the spiritual, mental, and physical levels. Hence, on the physical plane, humans are responsible for whatever actions they take in their lives, in the present and in the future.”
Padre Joseph reverted to his seat behind the desk, and pursued, “In my opinion, this law does not at all contradict the teachings of Jesus and the God he preached about.” He paused, taking a breath. “On the contrary, it strengthens the position of humans here on Earth and out there, in the wide Universe. It shows that we have great responsibility to assume in life, for we reap what we sow… Henceforth, if we have been sowing well, we should be reaping well, evolving, to finally become what we really are—Sons of God. Jesus always encouraged us to become what we are, in reality. Didn’t he?” He looked at Paul piercingly.
“Unfortunately, such a belief was misperceived by the Church as a great danger to the power of the Christian dogma. However, not only Christianity but also Judaism and Islam consider Reincarnation a belief-form of paganism! I wonder why? Anyway, the Doctrine of Reincarnation was absconded around 553 AD, at the Second Synod Council of Constantinople, held under the reign of Emperor Justinian. Strangely though, and without the attendance of the Pope, the Council declared: ‘If anyone asserts the fabulous pre-existence of souls and shall submit to the monstrous doctrine that follows from it, let him be excommunicated.’”
A moment of intense reflection passed for Paul, as he slouched back on his seat. “Hmmm… Could you please elaborate a little more, say, philosophically on the Doctrine of Reincarnation?”
“I will,” Padre Joseph asserted, taking off his glasses. “Our present life is determined by our former one, whether it has been lived in a rightful way, by good virtues, or a wrongful way, by evil deeds. In addition to that, the actions of this present life determine the conditions of the future one, as well. It is a cycle, processed either by our conscious mind, or by our instinctive will,” he answered calmly and closed the big book.
“I see!” Paul said. “If we look from afar at the chain that ties that cycle in knots, we would not deem this present life as predestined by God, but rather, by an omnipresent conscious state that links the past, present, and future into one frame of total existence,” the Historian suggested philosophically and waited for the Padre’s opinion.
Padre Joseph placed his right hand on his forehead, and closed his eyes in deep meditation. Paul seemed to have a comprehensive respect for the infinite silence that ensued, and the Padre’s moment of personal reflection. Finally, he took his hand off his brow, and extended his palm in Paul’s direction.
“God is that Omnipresent Power,” he asserted firmly. At his guest’s lack of response, Padre Joseph took the New Testament in his hands, and read, “Christ said God is Love. He, who cannot love, cannot know God.” He removed his eyeglasses swiftly, threw them on the desk, and spoke with great emotion, “These words are beautiful. He is amazing. I mean… St. John. Don’t you think?”
“Yes, they are, indeed, very nice words, but… but if God is Love, then Padre, why does hate exist and killing persist?” Paul caught him by surprise.
“Hate, my son, is not the work of God, nor is killing. Evil comes from us humans, not from God. Do you know why? The answer is simple. It is because we do not know how to love. If we knew that, we would definitely have known God and his Son. Let me tell you what happens after that. Peace would prevail on Earth only when we come to comprehend, and live by this great truth of all time—Love,” he explained succinctly, and with that powerful charisma that characterized him, he looked at Paul straight in the eyes. There was no doubt that a knowledgeable person, such as him, knew perfectly well how to put words together—words that appealed to every listener.
Paul smiled. Despite the Padre’s orthodox beliefs—on what is termed as esoteric teachings, refuted by the Church—they did not alter his deep faith in Christ, as Light of the world, the Path, Truth, and Life. “He is the true prototype of the Kosmic and divine man. He called upon us, not to be slaves, but rather, to be free!” the Padre had often said.
Then Paul recalled that he had not asked the Padre about the Holy Grail, a religious Christian symbol he had wanted to know about for many years.
“What is the Holy Grail, Padre?”
“Oh! The Holy Grail!” He sounded really surprised, his eyebrows lifted as he wondered. Then, he slouched back on his seat, and advanced, “The Holy Grail was the sacred cup used by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper. Legend relates that Joseph of Arimathea, a Christian adept, kept the Grail with him after the last supper ended. During the Crucifixion, he filled it with the blood of Jesus, bleeding on the cross. After departing for Britain, Joseph kept the Cup of Life, and passed it down from generation to generation in his family.”
“Legend also relates that the Knights of the Round Table, who appeared in Britain around the 6th century AD, had endorsed a secret holy mission: the quest for the Holy Grail. From among them emerged a few prominent figures, like the semi-legendary King Arthur, Lancelot of the Lake, Merlin the Enchanter, and Parsifal,” he concluded.
The discussion between Paul and the Padre had become engrossing. Paul took several drags from his cigarette, and smiled. Padre Joseph, very well versed in Christian esoteric knowledge, filled him in on a few more details on the Holy Grail, saying that the Blood in the Grail meant the Spirit in the Body. It was a spiritual search! The Historian paused, contemplating that prospect. Those last words meant a lot to him. Time flew by. Almost two hours had passed before Paul finally stood up, and left the office with a tranquil and contented mind, and the Padre made sure, as always, to bid him farewell with the blessings of the Virgin Lady!
Coming back from his reverie, Paul walked slowly to the balcony of his shelter in Batroun, put his elbows on the banister, and enjoyed the view of the mild sea waves crushing gently on the rocks a few meters beneath him. His watch marked 07:17 PM. In spite of all the tranquility he perceived, four words kept coming back from memory, pending in his mind, and haunting his present.
“The Cup of Life,” he muttered under his breath.
Even though Padre Joseph had not made any connection between the Holy Grail and the Sarcophagus—neither in the coded messages he had emailed earlier, nor during the course of that conversati
on, long ago—Paul could not stop thinking about it the next morning on the road down to the Beirut National Museum. There was no doubt about it, one of the paragraphs he had decoded, using the Kadmus Sequence, still lingered unequivocally in his mind. The Police don’t know a thing about the relation between these two men and King Hiram’s Sarcophagus. They also lack the classified information that would relate the two murders to the strange ancient Stone you have found in Gebel.
Once inside—just over an hour later—Paul hurried to the exact spot where the Sarcophagus had been exhibited. It was not there! Immediately, he questioned one of the guards at the Museum who informed him that the director of the Museum had recently relocated the Sarcophagus into the ‘Restoration Hall’, further down to the right.
“What?” Paul spat out in outrage. “You mean… I cannot see it?”
“I’m afraid not,” he answered politely. “It needs to go through some repairs… and please, Sir,” he added with power, “Could you lower your voice?”
“But… it’s important. I have to see it!”
“That cannot be possible,” he sounded adamant.
Paul turned his head in disbelief, and moved away like a broken knight who had just lost a battle. It seems the situation is very critical, his mind considered in total confusion.
“Sir!” the guard called, as Paul reached the exit door. “The item you wanted to see will be back on display in a month or two.”
Hearing this was not pleasant to the Historian. He continued out, jumped into his blue Jeep, and drove back to Batroun. An hour later, he lay back on his bed, looking pensively at the ceiling. And then, it dawned on him like a flash, as he remembered the meeting with Padre Joseph, when it had all started, after he had arranged everything for them with Dr. Nabil Hourani—the director of the Museum.
The Phoenician Code Page 17
