“Chinese will be half an hour,” he said rejoining her in the lounge, “Okay so where do we start?”
She grabbed the first book from the pile.
“Anything on Jesus Christ. Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Needle in a haystack.”
“We’ll need to define our searches. The internet will help.”
“Okay. So what should I look for? Seriously.”
“Von Werner has been gravely injured. The burns to his face, neck and hands are extensive….”
Natalie remembered back to that day standing on the ‘wavecrest’ ship when she saw Von Werner’s body brought back on board. She could still remember the blistered flesh. It still made her feel sick.
“If he is intending to use the spear to heal himself we need to work out what he will do next. The legend of the spear states that whoever holds it will be invincible. I think we should start with the history of whoever has owned the spear. If anyone in history or legend has had any kind of miracle or anything unusual happen to them whilst the holy lance has been in their possession. What do you think? Is that a good place to start?”
“I don’t know. I guess so. You’re the archaeologist.”
Dennis quickly tapped in the holy lance on google. The third link on the first page included images.
“That’s our piece,” he said. He clicked on the top link which was Wikipedia and began to read.
“Anything?” Natalie asked after seeing his intense concentration.
“No it’s pretty much everything I’ve already written about it in the magazine. There’s a blue link here for St Maurice but it’s something I’ve already read before and something about the town in Switzerland named after him. Nothing new I’m afraid.”
“Why don’t you try Jesus Christ.”
He entered the name in the search box and clicked on the top link. Wikipedia again.
“What am I looking for?”
“Is there anything about his travels?”
Dennis checked the box of headings on the left.
“A little.”
“What about his acts?”
“Acts?”
“You know, his miracles.”
“Oh.”
Dennis re-entered his search.
“Ah! Here we are. The supernatural deeds of Jesus Christ….”
There was a buzz from the kitchen.
“That’s either Jim or the take away.”
“I’ll go,” Natalie said.
She resumed her seat, empty handed.
“Now the miracles of Christ,” Dennis continued as if she hadn’t left, “Are put into four categories. We have exorcisms, cures, controlling nature and resurrecting the dead.”
“You’ll just have to go through them all.”
“Here’s the list. We have for cures, healing the mother of Peter’s wife. Healing the deaf mute of Decapolis. Healing the blind at birth. Healing the paralytic at Bethesda. The blind man of Bethsaida. The blind man Bartimaeus of Jericho. Healing the centurion’s servant. Healing an infirm woman. The man with a withered hand. Cleansing a leper. Cleansing ten lepers. Healing a man with dropsy. Healing the bleeding woman. Healing the paralytic at Capernaum. Healing in Gennesaret. Two more blind men. Shall I go on?”
“Yes I’ve got one in mind we can go back to. Carry on.”
“Okay. Next we have exorcisms. Probably not what we’re looking for but I’ll read them out. A boy possessed by a demon. The Canaanite woman’s daughter. The Gerasenes demonic. The synagogue in Capernaum. Exorcising at sunset. The blind and mute man and exorcising a mute.”
“Nothing there. What’s next?”
“Resurrecting the dead. A young man from Nain. The daughter of Jairus. Raising Lazarus. The others are under nature, controlling nature. The marriage at Cana. Walking on water. Calming the storm. Transfiguration. Feeding the multitude. The draught of fishes. Cursing the fig tree. The coin in the fish’s mouth….”
“That’s one hell of a list,” Hutchinson said joining them, “What is it?”
“The miracles of Christ.”
“They’re just the ones we know about.”
“What?”
“They’re just the ones recorded. You know from the gospels. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. There were other miracles he performed outside of the new testament.”
”Where will I find them?”
“Try the internet. I think he performed the others when he was a child.”
“Wait,” Natalie said, “Go back.”
“Back where?”
“Something about a man with a hand.”
Dennis scanned the computer page again. Then he said.
“Under cures. The man with a withered hand.”
“Yes read that one.”
“This is recorded by Mark, Luke and Matthew. On a Sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue. The Pharisees of the law watched him to see if he would perform. They were looking for an excuse to have him accused and arrested so they asked him if it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath. Jesus replied ’If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath will you not take hold of it and lift it out. Is a man not more valuable than a sheep. Therefore it is perfectly lawful to do good on the Sabbath. Jesus then turned to the man and said ’stretch out your hand’ The man stretched it out and it was healed.”
Natalie looked from Dennis to Hutchinson.
“Not much to go on there is there?” Dennis said.
“These events all occurred before the holy lance comes into the story though,” Hutchinson added.
“Well keep searching,” Natalie replied, “We’ll find a link somewhere.”
The kitchen buzzer sounded again.
“That’ll be the Chinese,” Dennis got up and took fifty pounds from his wallet. He returned with the food and placed it on the table, then went into the kitchen and returned with plates and cutlery. The three of them settled to eating. Every once in a while Dennis would click on his laptop.
“We’ll just have to keep searching,” Natalie said, “There will be something.”
“It must be a cure,” from Hutchinson, “The other categories don’t really fit in with Von Werner’s injuries.”
Dennis checked every miracle of christ that he could find. He shook his head.
“Nothing really gives us a clue.”
“What about that journal Von Werner had. Have you still got it?”
Dennis jumped to his feet.
“Yes.”
He went to his bookcase and rummaged through a pile of books laying down flat.
“It’s here somewhere,” he said moving some more. Then he found it, “Ah here it is.”
He gave it to Natalie. She opened it and began flicking through the pages. Then a quarter of the way through it she stopped. Hutchinson was watching her.
“Have you found something?”
Natalie’s eyes continued to move over the page she was on.
“Nat.”
“There may be something here.”
The two men joined her on the couch, sitting either side of her.
“Saint Helena,” Hutchinson said, “Who was she?”
Dennis reached across the table for his laptop. The page in the journal was hand drawn. There was a large sketch of a shrine. There was a detailed drawing of a woman under a domed ceiling holding a large wooden cross. Underneath the sketch were the words ’St Helena’s shrine, St Peter’s basilica’
“Is that in Rome?” Hutchinson asked.
Natalie nodded.
“Vatican city.”
She turned the page. There were more drawings. Simple sketches, of pieces of rope, what looked to be a tunic, some nails which looked to be Roman, some pieces of wood and the holy lance. Under each drawing were words in German.
“Saint Helena,” Dennis said, “also known as the empress Helena was the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine the great. Birthdate not known but thought to be either 246 or 250AD. Died 330AD. Famous for finding the relics from Christ’s crucifixion. She found the nails and rope used to fix him to his cross. She also found the cross on which he was crucified. She found a total of three crosses and had a woman from Jerusalem, who was near death, touch each one. When the woman touched the third cross she was cured.”