Anastasia's Grail

by Mary Pearson

hoax. This kind of potential—to dismantle the (allegedly) male-dominated Christian Church, or to prevent such an occurrence—is ample reason to embark on a crusade.’

  ‘Similarly, concrete proof of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, Who is God come to earth as a man, (such as is exhibited by the Shroud of Turin) is sufficient spark for any crusade. There are plenty of people who have had and do have a vested interest in discrediting or destroying such a relic, as It undermines the godlessness of the world. It forces us to accept that this life is not all there is. Many people were and are threatened by the impact of this artifact.’

  ‘So what do we discern from history…?’

  ‘Several historical books of the New Testament contain accounts of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus. And so we have the man of the Shroud—obviously a Jewish man of antiquity—who appears to have gone through the exact same tortures which Jesus went through, according to these accounts. When compared objectively with other historical books of antiquity, we find these books of the Bible to be the best attested sources because, not only are there far more of these ancient manuscripts in existence, but they were written far closer to the actual time of the original than were any other sources of ancient history. They were also written and translated into numerous languages, and are more widely quoted than any other sources in history.’

  ‘Moreover, these accounts appeared during the lifetime of the participants and, if incorrect or inaccurate, you would think these participants would have spoken up to refute them. Yet history shows the witnesses never recanted, not even when tortured to death. Excepting Judas, the betrayer, all of the Apostles of Jesus Christ were martyred. At least the first eighteen popes of the church He established went to their death rather than to deny their Faith.’

  ‘And what of the cult of Mary Magdalene…? Scholars agree the first Gnostic Gospels originated during or after the second century AD, long after the Bible-approved Gospels were written. The gnostics were more focused on personal inspiration and less on historical facts in their beliefs. Historically speaking Mary herself either accompanied the Mother of Jesus to Ephesus, where she quietly died, or she accompanied her brother, Lazarus, to evangelize France, where she quietly died. If the Merovingian line originated from her, it was not noted for martyrs or saintliness.’

  ‘As I stated at the beginning and throughout this talk, all three possible grails are associated with the Knights Templar. All three claim to have been guarded by this sect. The original Templars were noted as having a strong devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and to St. John. The Templars have never been connected with a devotion to Mary Magdalene. It is interesting to note that, historically speaking, those Templars who were executed for heresy went to their death for ‘worshiping a bearded face’.”

  With that, Stacy slightly bowed her head to the panel and she and Arthur exited.

  “How did it go?” she asked when they were out of earshot.

  “Good… very good. Only one thing…” Arthur furrowed his brows with concern. “I had read somewhere…”

  “What…?” Had Stacy gotten some integral fact completely wrong?

  “Mary Magdalene had a beard.” Arthur nodded gravely. “Yes, I definitely read it.”

  Stacy fake punched his arm. “You can take that Darth Vader wannabe costume off. Arthur,” Now she was all seriousness. “Thank you for helping me. I really appreciate it.”

  At this point the door to the conference room opened and the panel members trooped out. Several nodded before proceeding down the hallway. It was the French teacher, Mme Dupont, who spoke for the group. “Your research was thorough. Many of us found the content of your speech—disturbing.” She hesitated. “However, the delivery was excellent… You pass.” She nodded and followed her companions. Arthur and Stacy stared wordlessly as they disappeared in the distance.

  After they were no longer in sight, Stacy breathed. “Oh well, I pass, anyway.”

  “You more than pass,” Stacy turned back at the sound of a voice. It was one of the business owners. “I liked your speech. It’s about time someone stuck up for Christianity.” He gave her a thumbs up and followed the others down the hallway. His words were encouraging, but Stacy couldn’t help but notice that he waited to say them until no one else would hear.

  That Sunday Ezekiel, Arthur, Emily and Stacy received the Sacrament of Confirmation. She had passed the test easily the previous Monday, and Father Joseph had given her unreserved approval. The service began like any other Mass, with introductory prayers and the three readings from the Bible. The second reading was from Acts 2, where the disciples, gathered together in the Upper Room, received the Holy Spirit in the form of Tongues of Fire Which rested on the head of each. They were emboldened to go forth and spread the Good News. The Bishop preached his homily on how each of the confirmed is required to go forth, as did these disciples, and spread the Truth, by his actions as much as or more than by his words, wherever God has placed him. When he told them this would not always be comfortable and that many would not be able or willing to hear, Stacy really knew that he spoke accurately.

  The Bishop concluded by reading an excerpt from each of the candidate’s letters to him, which demonstrated the qualities we are to have as modern-day disciples. From Stacy’s he chose to read the part where she had said she would be writing next year and the following year if need be, in order to be confirmed. He praised her spirit of humble tenacity.

  Following the homily, the candidates, Stacy among them, were presented by their instructor, Fr. Joseph, who declared them sufficiently prepared for the Sacrament. The Bishop lead them in a renewal of their Baptismal promises, where they were called formally to reject Satan and all his works and empty promises, and to profess their belief in all the Truths which are taught by the Catholic Church. Then, one by one, using the Saint’s name by which they were choosing to be known as adults in the faith, the Bishop laid hands on them and marked the sign of the Cross on their foreheads with the blessed oil which is reserved for this purpose. As Stacy stepped to the front of the line, and with the choir softly chanting, Confitemini Domino, she heard the bishop address her for the first time by the name she had chosen for herself: Jude. She chose this saint to be her Patron over Saint Pio and her namesake, Anastasia, because she, like Saint Jude, wanted to be His Face-Bearer for the rest of her life. Not only that, but she knew she was a hopeless case, as Zeke had first said. Saint Jude just seemed the right choice. She closed her eyes and felt the joyful Holy Spirit waves wash through her body as they had when she was absolved for the first time. When she opened her eyes the first thing she saw was the Shroud-face of Jesus-Pantocrator, His eyes glowing softly as He looked down upon her. He almost appeared to have a look of pride on His face. Finally Stacy was an adult in the faith.

  Will Rise Again

  It was the day of the prom and, once again, Emily worked her magic on Stacy’s hair. Arthur had been more than happy to serve as her escort. This would be an attention-getting flipflop as Darius would undoubtedly bring Libby as his date. They were an inseparable twosome now, despite Libby’s assurances to the contrary. Not that Stacy cared. She was relieved to hear that Junie reserved little affection for him either, although she was still keeping his (and her) secret.

  Emily had been happy to exchange necklaces with Stacy. She had also accepted the ruby velvet dress, which Stacy was glad to get out of her closet. Stacy had butterflies thinking of the one dance she and Arthur had shared at the winter formal. She found herself hoping that he would be as pleasantly surprised by her appearance as Darius had been.

  Arthur was on time and had brought her a wrist corsage made of white roses and emerald carnations. (In passing, Stacy wondered if Libby had been forced by Darius to pay for her own corsage, or did he reserve such treatment for suckers like her?) There were little emerald jewels glued among the flowers and in her hair, which echoed the dazzling real ones in her necklace. Arthur took all of this in for a moment, and then he looked down. �
�You are so beautiful, Stacy. I don’t feel worthy to escort you.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous!” Stacy kicked his foot, and she wondered if he had felt the same way when he took Libby to the last one.

  They arrived at the Prom, not surprisingly, before Darius and Libby and quietly took their place in the Grand March line, which was alphabetical by the female’s last name. It would be a lie to say that people took no notice of Stacy’s fabulous attire. She looked like Scarlett O’Hara in the picnic scene from Gone With the Wind. It would also be a lie to say that there were no whispers about her escort, easily recognizable as Libby’s winter formal date. However, when Darius and Libby finally entered, they drew much more overt attention in the striking black and white they had chosen for this dance. Darius was wearing a black Armani tux, complete with top hat. Libby’s dress plunged daringly in both front and back, showing her figure to full advantage. They were the closest to having celebrity status of any couple at the school. They drew rapt attention.

  As with the last dance, this one included a royal court, only there would be three female and three male attendants chosen to accompany the King and Queen. Unlike the last dance, this