Inauguration Day 2009

This morning there is a feeling of reverence yet I can't help getting superstitious thoughts out of my mind . It is the legend , the prophecies of the "Anti-Christ" . Nostradamus be damned , you copycat ." Revelations ", "Daniel" be damned , you pseudo-prophetic fire and brimstone crowd controllers . I am past Christianity , past delusional visions of apocalypse , past the entire conception of divine intervention or planning . No , it isn't that I haven't spent years researching ,studying , and searching through those many , many traditions ,stories , and what have been called prophecies . In my mind I have found explanations and dispelled every one of these superstitious visions yet Obama looks like the "Anti-Christ" .
I am surprised I haven't seen more fiction on this idea or even "Bible Thumping" , right wing preachers who are harping on this theme . Maybe I have just missed them coincidentally and they are out there . The security around the celebration of this event today are more than anything I have ever seen in Washington DC . The gathering of people must be something of record though , at this point this morning , I can only speculate . This event electing a relatively young man practically out of nowhere to the highest post in the civilized world and the adoration he is receiving is becoming extraordinary . Watching from the safe distance of the television brings tears to my eyes . It reminds me of seeing "Porgy and Bess" and crying throughout the entire opera . I am glad I am not in the throngs of people today like I was at the Kennedy Center that night . At intermission , wiping my eyes , I felt I should be alone . I guess I was alone and no one really noticed me as they were involved with their own experience . We all are alone throughout this life in spite of the illusions of love and our clinging to work and family . We do face our decisions ,our sickness and eventual death alone . We are little castles looking out at other little castles who are having similar experiences . Is it any wonder that human beings invent scenarios that attempt to explain existence ?
Getting back to this terrible dream , "Anti-Christ" , Obama , assassination , and sixes on foreheads ..... The conversation turns to the economy , the big package , the "Bailout" , "Ask not what your country can do for you , etc.." , the stranger , the slave , the emancipated people , the hope of the world , the savior of the world , and the resolution to all of our human anxiety . I am an atheist . I don't carry a flag or wear "Atheism" on my shoulder nor am I trying to convert people yet I can't get these visions out of my head this morning , Inauguration Day 2009 . I wonder how many others have had these questionable visions ?

OK , I have to reiterate about "666" , one of the dispellings I mentioned earlier . Barbara Thiering , a great archaeologist , theorist, and writer found a consistency inside the Qumran scrolls that was deciferable and repetitive called the "Pesher" . "Pesher " writing wasn't new to the Hebrew community and it was actually known to the Catholic church till around the ninth century . Some of the theories and ideas behind Barbara's writings , in a nutshell ,can be found at this site :
Barbara Thiering's Site

The point is that they knew the translation of "Revelations" wasn't what it appeared to be or the way their commentators were suggesting then or even to this day .What did "666" represent?
The answer is that it is a play on the numerical values of Hebrew letters, together with the grades in the initiation process. It is simply intended to say: "Simon Magus’ monasteries are evil". There is no relevance to us!

The "Beast" was Simon Magus, who in the Book of Revelation was the great enemy of Christians, for he was conducting a rival mission to theirs. He controlled monasteries that used the Qumran system of grades, naming them by Hebrew letters. Certain grades marked significant stages. These were called Taw, Resh and Samekh. At Taw, a man was at the very top and was equal to the highest priest. At Resh he entered the sanctuary and could act like a lesser priest. At Samekh, he became an initiate, beginning the studies that would lead him higher. Below is the list of grade letters and numbers.

Since Hebrew letters were also used for numbers, Taw could be read as 400. Resh could be read as 200, and Samekh as 60. That totals 660. Further, when initial letters alone were used, they were accompanied by the letter Waw, as is illustrated in the Scrolls (CD 4:19). The numerical value of Waw is 6. Total, 666.

The writers of Revelation (one of the early parties in the Church) were very interested in numbers, following their Pythagorean studies, but were too attached to magic-sounding numbers. They knew that semi-educated people would read significance into them, and used 666 as a way of describing evil. Before the present information became available, scholars used to think that 666 in meant the Roman emperor, but they could not account for the actual number. Now it is explained by the Qumran grade numbers, which account for many details of the pesher.

Here is the system of Hebrew letters, numbers, and grades from initiation upwards For the significance of all the grades,

Taw ---400 --- High Priest Michael
Shin 300 Deputy Priest Gabriel
Resh 200 Sanctuary Priest Sariel
Qof 100 Levite Raphael Sadhe 90 PE 80 Ayin 70 Samekh 60 Initiate
Numerical value of all Hebrew letters. Aleph 1, Beth 2 , Gimel 3, Daleth 4, He 5, Waw 6, Zayin 7, Heth 8, Tet 9, Yod 10, Kaph 20, Lamedh 30, Mem 40, Nun 50, Samekh 60, Ayin 70, Pe 80, Sadhe 90, Qof 100, Resh 200, Shin 300, Taw 400.