{"id":519,"date":"2007-05-02T12:48:00","date_gmt":"2007-05-02T12:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect--part-eleven.html"},"modified":"2007-05-02T12:48:00","modified_gmt":"2007-05-02T12:48:00","slug":"the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html","title":{"rendered":"THE LAZARUS EFFECT– PART ELEVEN"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ATTENTION K MART SHOPPERS. HERE IS THE REST OF THE NOVEL ‘THE LAZARUS EFFECT’. The whole novel has now been posted. For those of you who were waiting for the whole kit and kaboodle, you’ve got it now. You can cut and paste it all into one file and read away to your heart’s content. Here’s what I need from those of you out there in novel reading land. I need your succinct suggestions about how this novel could be improved or made more compelling, believable, fun, the gamut– any honest critique is most welcome. Thanks for reading— BW3.
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CHAPTER FORTY NINE: PRESSING THINGS TOO FAR<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>The press conference was to be at nine o\u2019clock Wednesday morning in order to provide time for filing stories. <\/span>Art decided to wear his best suit, a navy blue silk suit, and his yellow tie with the navy stripes. <\/span>Grace would be introducing him on the platform , Harry was not able to attend because of legal work in preparation for the trial. <\/span>When Art got to the University, Grayson was there anxious to speak with him. <\/span>\u201cDr. Art, I would be happy to go take some pictures at the tomb of Lazarus in those extra niches, are you interested ?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cSure,\u201d said Art, \u201cgo right ahead. We\u2019ll talk about it later.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAwesome,\u201d said Grayson with a big grin as he sat down on the front row.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI\u2019m eager to get to Bethany again,\u201d said Art, <\/span>\u201cBut first things first.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace came up to him and gave him a big hug. \u201cI just wanted to tell you, you are somebody special. <\/span>My mother adores you and as you put it, the Turkish Delight helped produce a Lazarus effect in our relationship. It\u2019s never been better. We must celebrate later\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace mounted the stage and got up behind the podium. The room was not quite filled but people were still coming in. <\/span>The news media that had come from abroad were all on hand, and the banks of lights on both sides of the auditorium were blinding. Art saw many of his friends from the Institute of Holy Land studies and Sammy Cohen was there as well. <\/span>\u2018This will be fun\u2019 Art said to himself. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace tapped the microphone and said, \u201dIt gives me very great pleasure to present to you, Dr. Arthur West, who will explain the significance of the recent finds in Bethany. <\/span>He will then take questions. <\/span>Without further ado, I give you the discoverer of the Lazarus stone.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>There was good applause throughout the room. <\/span>Art had not considered how the Lazarus effect might change his career, but it would. <\/span>He had been too busy focusing on helping others. <\/span>He was pleased with the phone call from the Discover Channel folks last night saying he had been renewed for another season starting in the fall. <\/span>Guess what his first few shows would be about? <\/span>Art took his clicker and began the lecture. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOssuaries, or bone boxes were a popular means of burial during the period 20 B.C. to 70 A.D. <\/span>The practice involved reburial of bones after the flesh had been allowed to desiccate for a years time, which is about how long it took in Jerusalem for the flesh to disappear. <\/span>Jews did not practice embalming like Egyptians, they would simply wrap a body in a winding sheet, having cleaned and anointed the body, and wrap spices in the winding sheet to retard the odor of the body during the period of mourning and visitation of the tomb. <\/span>This is the practice we read about in the Gospels in regard to Jesus. <\/span>He was destined for an ossuary, but the process got interrupted. <\/span>You might say he experienced the Lazarus effect.\u201d Art proceeded to show various slides of ossuaries, bones, tombs, and niches, including the ossuary of Caiaphas. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn my judgment it is no accident that in fact the rise of the Pharisaic movement with their strong beliefs about the bodily resurrection coincides with the practice of osslegium or reburial in an ossuary. The ossuary is a burial ritual which reflects a strong belief in the afterlife, in particular that bodily resurrection would happen, and so the bones needed to be kept together. <\/span>Many of you will remember that old spiritual based on Ezekiel 37 \u2014 \u201cDem bones dem bones, dem dry bones gonna rise up one day.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art sang these words in a deep baritone voice. You could tell he was loosening up and letting it rip.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThis brings us to these whole series of remarkable finds at the Church of Mary and Martha, which are still ongoing.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHere is the inscription in one of the other niches that flanks where Lazarus was buried, indicating that Martha was buried in this tomb as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cObviously, in terms of inscriptional evidence the most striking is this inscription over the Lazarus niche reading, \u2018Twice dead under Pilate, twice raised in Yeshua (i.e. Jesus), in sure hope of resurrection.\u2019 <\/span>This attests that Lazarus had already been raised from the dead once by Jesus and then had died again. <\/span>It also attests that he had been reborn and raised by Jesus during his lifetime and still looked forward to a future bodily resurrection.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI must stress that resurrection, almost without exception, in early Judaism refers to something that happens to a human body, or at least involves a human body either raised or transformed. <\/span>It is not a terminology applied to visions, dreams, hallucinations, dying and going to heaven or the like. <\/span>It has a very specific meaning\u2013 the raising up of the body or into a body. Usually in Pharisaic Judaism the focus of this was on what would happen to the righteous. <\/span>I need not remind you that just down this ridge a little further near the Seven Arches Hotel there are plenty of orthodox Jews buried on the top of the Mount of Olives so that at the resurrection they can be first up to greet Messiah when he comes. Orthodox Jews and orthodox Christians share this belief in future bodily resurrection. It is not merely a historic or ancient belief. Once Jesus died and rose again, the belief among his followers became that those who were in Christ would die and rise again and be conformed to his image.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI could talk for hours about the scroll that was discovered in the ossuary of Lazarus, but here I must just sum up my conclusions: <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFirst this scroll was written by the Beloved Disciple also known as Eliezar and we know him as Lazarus.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSecond, it contains the better part of the Gospel of John in Aramaic, not in Greek in a beautiful Herodian period Aramaic script.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThird, the scroll does not call Lazarus the beloved disciple directly, rather where John\u2019s Gospel has those words, this scroll has the name Eliezar, the ancient version of Lazarus.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cFourth, this scroll was found in the ossuary which had an inscription reading Eliezar son of Simon. <\/span>Simon then is the father of Lazarus, which makes good sense in view of the fact that Mark\u2019s Gospel says of the events that the anointing of Jesus took place in the house of Simon the leper.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFifth, this may explain why Lazarus, Martha and Mary were apparently all single. <\/span>A member of their family was a leper, and indeed Lazarus himself may have died of leprosy.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSixth, this scroll pre-dates any written Greek Gospel, and makes evident that the belief that Jesus was both divine and human was held very early on after Jesus\u2019 death. I would attribute the triggering of this belief to the fact that Jesus appeared to his disciples in the flesh after his death.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSeventh, this conclusion that a high Christological view of Jesus as both divine and human was a belief that arose soon after Easter is confirmed by the Aramaic prayer prayed by the earliest followers of Jesus\u2013 maran atha. <\/span>Come O Lord which we find in 1 Corinthians 16. <\/span>Early Jewish followers of Jesus prayed this prayer and they did not believe they were praying to a mere rabbi to come back from the dead. <\/span>The fact that they prayed TO Jesus is critical.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cEighth, this means <\/span>they considered him already a part of the Godhead. In other words, Jesus precipitated a rethinking of what monotheism meant. <\/span>Monotheism was redefined to include Jesus. <\/span>What we are dealing with in the Lazarus stone is an affirmation of miracle. <\/span>What we are dealing with in the Aramaic document found in Lazarus\u2019 ossuary is a Christological reformulation of early Jewish monotheism.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNinth, it is important also to note that the earliest Christians were all Jews and they all believed they were already living in the end times and that therefore eschatological events were coming to pass back then, all involving Jesus and his community of followers. In short they did not focus on offering up prophecies about the late twentieth or early twenty-first century and would not have been encouraging us to look for correspondences between Biblical prophecies and our own day, but rather between OT prophecies and Jesus\u2019 day and the NT era. <\/span>This in my judgment…\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art was interrupted in mid-sentence by two noises that sounded like thunder inside the auditorium. <\/span>He paused, looked down at his blue suit and saw it turning red beneath his right shoulder. Dizzy, he began falling, he saw Grace rising and running to catch him and his mind for some reason turned to the verse in Judges 5.27 and he began mumbling the poetry in Hebrew: <\/span>\u201cAt her feet he sank, he fell; there he lay. At her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—-dead.\u201d <\/span>Then blackness and silence engulfed him. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY: <\/span>PRE-TRIAL JITTERS <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Late Wednesday morning, the phone rang in Benjamin Levi\u2019s office. <\/span>The Judge\u2019s secretary was on the line. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cJudge Dershowitz has asked me to inform you <\/span>that Simon Siegal has been retained as counsel for the defense. <\/span>Apparently, he has worked in Israel before. <\/span>The Judge also wants to remind you that the trial must deal strictly with the evidence and the crimes committed in Israel. One more thing, I just got word of a shooting of Dr. West over at Hebrew University, know anything about it?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo,\u201d said Benjamin, \u201cI\u2019ll ask Harry Scholer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry had been sitting in the outer room chit-chatting with the secretary.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>She was asking him: \u201cWhat are your plans for the rest of the day? <\/span>Have you time for lunch with Mr. Levi?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn my country I would ask for a rain check \u2013 but if I did that here I could starve this summer!\u201d <\/span>They both laughed. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>As Levi was hanging up, his secretary announced that Harry Scholer was in the outer room. <\/span>Levi greeted him with a quick question. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat do you know of an American lawyer named Simon Siegal? <\/span>Seems he flew in here in a hurry Monday night and has agreed to represent Dr. Stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry\u2019s eyes went wide. <\/span>\u201cYou\u2019re kidding? <\/span>Simon Siegal! <\/span>High profile lawyer, very talkative, usually wins his cases. <\/span>Last I knew he was working for the ACLU. <\/span>I wonder how much experience he has with Jewish law? <\/span>Can we check on that?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI\u2019ll put a paralegal on that right away <\/span>\u2013 <\/span>we need to know as much about Siegel as we do about Stone. <\/span>And then there\u2019s Ray Simpson. <\/span>Have you thought of how we can use Simpson to our advantage?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry was more encouraging on that point. <\/span>\u201cYes, we can use him to establish motive, as well as relate the facts of what happened at the tomb in the morning. <\/span>Art is not planning to press charges concerning his brief \u2018entombment\u2019 with Lazarus! <\/span>I guess he feels it was a learning experience! <\/span>I\u2019ve already talked to Simpson and his lawyer. <\/span>As part of a plea bargain for a lesser sentence he will testify against Stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cAs legal counsel to the IAA, we recommend a suspended sentence, a major fine, and two years of parole where he does community service, here in Israel, planting trees or something. <\/span>Then he can leave the country.\u201d said Levi. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRaymond\u2019s no master mind, that\u2019s for sure! <\/span>At least in the US, there\u2019s the whole issue of power relationships. <\/span>There are legal precedents in regard to the relationship between professors and students where the latter can be exonerated of all kinds of things on the basis that they could not say \u2018No\u2019 to their superior.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery true,\u201d said Levi. <\/span>\u201cBesides the student is going to get the sympathy vote in a trial. <\/span>It will be good to have your knowledge of the moral issues. <\/span>Thank you for being willing to help. <\/span>Apparently, with Simon Siegal on board, we have our hands full.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd now Harry, I was trying to figure out how to tell you this but instead of tiptoeing around it I will just say it. I must share some bad news\u2014 it looks like one of our star witnesses, Art West has just been shot, are you aware of this?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry sat down stunned. <\/span>\u201cWhere have they taken him, I must go at once.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He flipped open his cell phone and called Grace Levine. <\/span>The phone rang for what seemed like an eternity, but finally she picked up. \u201cHello yes,\u201d she said curtly.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cGrace, this is Harry, what has happened with Art?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe\u2019s been shot, the ambulance is taking him just n
\now to Sinai hospital, it doesn\u2019t look good. <\/span>Its madness here at the auditorium with police scrambling everywhere trying to catch the shooter or shooters, it appears there were two shots, I must go. <\/span>If you\u2019ve got it in you, you better start praying now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOh no,\u201d said Harry, and buried his face in his hands. <\/span>He flashed back to when his brother had been brutally murdered in Jerusalem only four years ago while he was minding his own business sitting in a caf\u00e9 in Tel Aviv and a bomb went off.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWho could have wanted to kill someone as harmless as Art?\u201d <\/span>Harry realized he had better get to the hospital fast.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY ONE: <\/span>AUDITING THE AUDITORIUM<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Pandemonium had broken out once the shots were fired. <\/span>Officer Shimon had been on the stage once again, and from his vantage point the shots seemed to have come from behind one of the two banks of lights on either side of the auditorium, or in other words from behind the cameramen. <\/span>He had called for an immediate lock down of the room on his walkie talkie, but some people had already fled the room upon first hearing the huge noise of the shots. <\/span>The acoustics in this auditorium were so alive that the sound had been amplified several fold sounding more like a bazooka than a hand gun or rifle. <\/span>Shimon had called for back up and the police station had all but emptied to respond to his urgent call.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>There were people screaming, and lying down in the aisles, and covering their heads. <\/span>Grace had acted fast, but had not quite reached Art before he hit his head on the microphone stand as he fell and then the floor. <\/span>He was bleeding profusely from just below his right shoulder and he was totally unconscious, but breathing. <\/span>Grace opened her cell phone and dialed 919* at once and summoned the ambulance to the back door of the Golda Meir auditorium. <\/span>She took her scarf off and tried to staunch the wound that was bleeding profusely. <\/span>The question rattling around in her head was \u201cWho could have done this to Art?\u201d <\/span>It couldn\u2019t be Stone or Simpson, they were both in custody. <\/span>The ambulance had better get here fast. <\/span>Fortunately there was a back route they could take to the back door of the auditorium. <\/span>She looked up and saw Grayson Johnson kneeling on the floor in front of the stage praying and praying. <\/span>\u201cThank goodness someone is intervening with the Almighty just now\u201d she muttered.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The air was hot and heavy and Sadiq Hadassah was moving fast down the hill into the Kidron valley on foot. <\/span>He had chosen deliberately to go the crowded route so he could be lost in the multitudes, walking down the road that goes by the chapel known as Dominus Flevit and then the Garden of Gethsemane. <\/span>He knew he could catch the number 2 bus right at the corner where the road bent just beyond the Garden of Gethsemane. <\/span>His emotions ran the gamut from fear to exhiliration. He had finally done something to stop the Christian blasphemy of the God who is One. <\/span>Whatever the legal consequences, if he was caught, he knew he would be praised by those whose opinions mattered most to him\u2013 Rabbi Menachem and the sons of Zion. <\/span>He would go report to them first, and then he would disappear and go visit relatives in an obscure neighborhood in Hebron. <\/span>He thought about calling Jamison Parkes Law, but he decided against it. He wasn\u2019t entirely sure how he would react to this latest exploit of his. <\/span><\/p>\n

——–<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Pinned to the floor on the left side of the auditorium was a young <\/span>man with a backpack and a gun on the floor next to him. <\/span>Officer Hoffner had been standing at the back left hand corner of the auditorium and had seen the young man get out of his seat, walk forward toward the cameras, lean against the far wall, and then suddenly whip out a pistol and take dead aim at Art West and fire. <\/span>Hoffner had gotten there only seconds after the shot knocking over one of the cameramen as he pinned the young man to the floor.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat is your name?\u201d <\/span>Hoffner <\/span>kept saying to the young man, whose arm was pinned behind his back.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The youth would only say \u201cI want my lawyer, Jamison Parkes Law. I should be allowed to call him now.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Law, thought Hoffner, wasn\u2019t he that fundamentalist lawyer from Texas. Could he be behind this shooting? <\/span>He decided to allow the young man to make his call and then interrupt it.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The boy used speed dial and soon he had Law on the line. <\/span>\u201cGuess what Mr. Law,\u201d said the youth, \u201cI think I scored one for the good guys, I just put a stop to Art West\u2019s criticism of your views on prophecy. <\/span>You said he was a loose cannon who needed to have a rag put in his mouth at our last meeting of the Millennial Dawn Society. <\/span>I did it.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Jamison was pacing the floor of his flat: \u201cWhat have you done?\u201d he screamed over the phone line. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI shot the dude, and put an end to his big mouth\u201d bragged the young man.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou did what?\u201d <\/span>Law screamed.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c I thought you would be pleased,\u201d said the youth glumly.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>At this juncture Hoffner interrupted and took the phone. <\/span>\u201cMr. Law it sounds as though your follower has been more than a little over zealous. You will need to come down to the station and make a statement ASAP. We are carting the young man off to jail right now.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat did you say your name was young man?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cJames is the last name. <\/span>My first name is Yeshua, son of messianic Jewish parents, but most people call me Jesse\u2014 Jesse James.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell,\u201d said Hoffner, \u201cthis is the last round up for you cowboy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

———————–<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mohammed could hardly believe his luck\u2014finally most of the officers were leaving the station. <\/span>For days he had staked out the police station trying to figure a way into it, in a desperate ploy to see if he could kidnap a celebrity prisoner and then negotiate a hostage exchange for one of the Hamas leaders he particularly admired. He knew it was a desperate gambit, but Hosni the great Hamas leader was only two days away from execution. <\/span>Lurking on the opposite street corner from the police station, he reviewed the plans he had made over a week before. <\/span>He knew the station was old and did not even have air conditioning vents. Apparently no one had installed security systems on the back of the building, not expecting people to be brazen enough to try and break into the building! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Once the vast majority of police cars had peeled out of the station, Mohammed went around the back, put on his ski-mask, picked the lock, disabled the ancient bell alarm, turned out all the lights and went down the basement corridor where the cells were. <\/span>Mohammed had read the papers closely enough to know there was an important American or two in custody. <\/span>He wanted the one that would put up the least resistance. Looking into the cell on the left hand side of the corridor he saw a disheveled older man. <\/span>He had found his mark. Shining his light right in his face he said in the bad English he had practiced for weeks<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou no speak, I shoot you now for sure\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone raised his hands and stood up quivering, while Mohammed rather easily jimmied the lock on the cell. Pushing the older man down the dark corridor and holding his pistol firmly in the small of the man\u2019s back, Mohammed and his prisoner rapidly exited the building.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The next thing Stone knew, he was first in broad daylight then he was blindfolded, thrown into the back of a car, and then for good measure knocked over the head with the butt of a gun. <\/span>The last thing he remembered hearing before all went blank was the screeching of tires as the small getaway car headed somewhere fast.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY TWO: <\/span>MIRA
\nCLE AT SINAI ?<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The ambulance had come with some dispatch and Art\u2019s vital signs were holding steady when they were monitored by the EMT folks in the ambulance. <\/span>\u201cComing in, get ready, we\u2019ve got a bleeder and surgery is going to be needed immediately,\u201d said one of them to the emergency room staff<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cO.K.\u201d <\/span>was the only reply on the other end of the line. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOh yes, and you had better called Dr. Mordecai and get him prepped at once.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRight,\u201d. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The ambulance, with full sirens blaring, was racing up the hill towards the hospital, and the gurney in the back on which Art was laying was swaying back and forth with every curve. <\/span>He was hooked up to a heart monitor, and one of the EMT staff was busy applying direct pressure to the wound hoping to slow down the flow of blood.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWe had better get there quick,\u201d said the staffer, \u201chis blood pressure is beginning to drop rapidly.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The entrance to the emergency room at Sinai Hospital was under a portico, and as the ambulance wheeled its way in three nurses were standing waiting for the back doors of the ambulance to open so they could wheel Art right into surgery. <\/span>Everything was prepped and ready. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dr. Mordecai was standing just inside the door, and the minute he saw the blood pressure of Art and his pale demeanor he was yelling for units of blood \u201cStat\u201d <\/span>he said. <\/span>This was a life and death matter, no ordinary surgery. <\/span>The first task would be to stop the bleeding.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The lights in the operating theater were blazing hot and bright, and the nurses had already ripped West\u2019s suit off of him and covered him in a thin blue blanket. Blood was pouring out of the wound, and almost before the gurney had come to a rest and West was transferred to the operating table, Dr. Mordecai was making an incision right next to the wound and immediately clamping off the hemorrhaging artery. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cO.K., we have stopped the bleeding,\u201d said Mordecai, \u201cNow get the miniature X ray machine over here quick, and let\u2019s see if we can find the bullet.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As they were wheeling the machine over, Mordecai told the nurse to raise up West and look for an exit wound, and sure enough there was one. <\/span>\u201cWell one good thing, we don\u2019t have to fish any metal out of him, but do the X ray anyway.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>But the X ray showed that there was indeed a piece of metal in Art, a bullet.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo he was shot more than once,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cand from different angles. <\/span>Job two is to get the other shell out of him. <\/span>This was a delicate matter as the bullet had entered from the left side and had lodged itself next to the liver and gall bladder without actually entering either one. <\/span>Delicately Dr. Mordecai used forceps to extract the bullet. <\/span>\u201cSpong,\u201d he said to the nearest nurse, and she wiped the doctor\u2019s forehead as he was beginning to sweat profusely. \u201cAlright, get the units of blood ready to go. <\/span>Go ahead and feed him a pint or two, as we\u2019ve got to go in and sow up that ruptured artery.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The surgery on the artery was indeed delicate and it took over two hours to finish the job without disrupting anything else. <\/span>At one juncture Art\u2019s pulse had gotten so low that they were contemplating sticking a needle in him with a stimulant, but it proved to be unnecessary. <\/span>By late afternoon, the Doctor had done everything he could to save Art West, and he was prepared to tell those waiting outside the ICU that he was critical but stable.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>As he walked into the waiting area he saw the familiar long faces of Kahlil and Hannah, and Grace Levine, as well as one other gentlemen the doctor didn\u2019t know, Harry Scholer. <\/span>They all looked grim, as though they had been weeping or praying or both. <\/span>Dr. Mordecai said \u201cThe next 24 hours are critical, but Dr. West has his fitness and luck on his side. One bullet exited through his right back, the other lodged next to his liver coming from a very different angle. <\/span>Were their two shooters shooting from two different angles?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace did a double take and said: <\/span>\u201cWell there were two noises but we though they came from two shots from the one shooter. <\/span>Are you telling me that two people were trying to terminate Art West?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes it certainly looks that way the bullets came from two very different angles,\u201d said Dr. Mordecai. <\/span>\u201cIn any event you are welcome to wait out the night here, I will have the nurses give you regular reports. We have done all we can for now. It is now in the hands of the Blessed One.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace said thank you to the Doctor for everyone, and then added \u201cI think it best if we say nothing to the media until we know what will transpire with Art, but Harry would you call Officer Hoffner and tell him there was another shooter who may have gotten away?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRight away,\u201d said Harry, glad to have something constructive <\/span>to do. <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY THREE: THE WISDOM OF THE RABBI<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Rabbi Menachem was some 79 years of age, and while he had always been radical as well as orthodox in his views, he had never sanctioned murder to silence an opponent who was not himself violently attacking Jews. <\/span>So it was with considerable consternation that he sat and listened to Sadiq Hadassah, having already promised to keep this a confidential conversation. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRabbi I have, since I have joined the sons of Zion always followed your teaching, and it was my understanding that the blasphemers had to be stopped. <\/span>Was that not your teaching?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes my child, but have you not noticed that I myself have never used more than non-violent protest and legal means to achieve such ends? <\/span>Do you not remember the day in front of the McDonalds on Ben Yehuda St? <\/span>Did you hear anyone tell you to start firing at that upstart of a woman?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo rabbi, I did not,\u201d Sadiq said glumly. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery well then, what you have done, though I do not doubt your motives were good, was wrong, wrong in the way you went about this. We can not sanction violence against those who have not physically attacked us. <\/span>Hamas, is a different story, as you know.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, but rabbi, it is hard to tell the difference sometimes. <\/span>Aren\u2019t ideas as dangerous as weapons sometimes?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, sometimes they are but the Torah is very clear\u2014 \u2018only an eye for an eye\u2019 and so on. <\/span>That command was meant to limit violence to a proportional response not license it. <\/span>The proper response to West was to refute his ideas of course, not shoot him!\u201d and here the rabbi became animated.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut what should I do now rabbi? <\/span>If I turn myself in, it will not go well with me, and I will never be of service to the sons of Zion again. <\/span>And perhaps I have only wounded him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The rabbi pondered this. <\/span>He did not want to betray a confidence, but he also did not want his own name associated with immoral acts of violence. <\/span>\u201cLet us wait a day or two and decide shall we? <\/span>Let us wait and see what happens to Professor West who has so disturbed you. <\/span>But you must promise me this my child.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes rabbi, what is it?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou must promise me you will contact me in two days, and then you must abide by what we decide on that occasion. <\/span>In the mean time, go visit your relatives in Hebron as you said you will do, put your house in order. <\/span>Pray and read the Torah, especially the Psalms, and as I said, call me in two days.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Sadiq nodded and said \u2018Shalom\u2019 as he left in sadness. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>When he had closed the front door, the rabbi murmured to himself \u201cman is made for trouble, as the sparks fly up.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR: <\/span>THE PRICE OF FREEDOM<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>He awoke with a pounding headache and a huge lump on the back of his head. <\/span>Just touching it made
\nhim more woosy. <\/span>He had absolutely no idea where he was, other than he was in a dark room, handcuffed to a bedpost, and the room had no ventilation or air-conditioning. <\/span>Sweat dripped down his forehead, and in the midst of all his chaotic thoughts another dismal one came to him \u201cThey will think I tried to escape! <\/span>Just marvelous!\u201d said Stone to no one in particular.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mohammed was sitting in the next room mulling over exactly who he should call about his prisoner. He had had enough sense to buy a new Go phone that would be difficult to trace and <\/span><\/p>\n

had lots of minutes on it. <\/span>He had bought it in the name of a distant deceased relative at a now defunct address in Bethlehem. <\/span>They would never trace it to him. <\/span>Finally he decided the smart move was to call the American press. <\/span>It was they who most cared about what happened to Stone. <\/span>He did not want a ransom, just a straight-forward prisoner exchange. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Almost immediately someone picked up the phone at the Herald Tribune office in Jerusalem. <\/span>\u201cHello, yes,\u201d <\/span>came a female voice across the line in Hebrew.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mohammed, speaking through a cloth over the phone, said \u201cDo you speak Arabic?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes,\u201d <\/span>said the girl. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cGood, then listen very carefully. <\/span>We have kidnapped Dr. Patrick Stone and have him in a safe house. Unless Hosni the great Hamas leader is released by the police by nine o clock tomorrow morning, <\/span>Dr. Stone will be executed. <\/span>Am I clear? <\/span>Do you understand the message?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI understand\u201d <\/span>said the shaky voice at the other end of the line.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThen you must tell your editor this at once, and tell them to call the police. I will call back in two hours. The police must give you clear directions as to when and where the exchange can be made. <\/span>No games, no tricks, or Stone is dead— understand.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI get it, and now I must go,\u201d <\/span>and she rang off.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

<\/span>Mohammed was counting on the fact that the Israeli police could not afford to look bad in front of the world-wide press which had shown up for the trial of Stone. <\/span>If anything went wrong the Israelis would have a lot of explaining to do to Washington, and their own supposedly impregnable security and police force would lose face even with their own people. <\/span>Mohammed thought he had the Israelis right where he wanted them.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Officer Hoffner was the first man back to the station and when he walked in the front door, <\/span>Office David was sitting at the desk. <\/span>He had the disgruntled Jesse James in handcuffs with him. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAll been quiet here?\u201d Hoffner asked David. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, but its time to do the afternoon check on the prisoners.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Officer David got up, but suddenly the phone rang.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI \u2018ve got to get this, can you go downstairs and check on Simpson and Stone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCertainly,\u201d <\/span>said Officer Hoffner. <\/span>\u201cI\u2019ve got to install this young man in one of those cells anyway.\u201d <\/span>Hoffner had gotten about half way down the stairwell <\/span>when Officer David began screaming. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSomeone on the phone says Stone has been kidnapped! <\/span>Impossible! <\/span>Check quick!\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Within two minutes Hoffner <\/span>was standing in front of the open cell door and just shaking his head. \u201cHow in the world do we explain this to Officer Shimon? What do we have here— a revolving door? <\/span>What else can go wrong today?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>Hoffner led James to the next cell down and opened the door.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn <\/span>you go son. With any luck your lawyer friend will be by to see you soon.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Jesse just hung his head and cried and shuffled into the cell offering now resistance. In his mind he had gone from hero to zero in nothing flat.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE: MARKING TIME<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry enjoyed the warm, dry weather of Jerusalem. <\/span>Cold, wet and rainy days in Washington did not appeal to him at all. <\/span>When Grace could stand the pacing of Harry and the el Said\u2019s no longer she sent them all off <\/span>to Kahlil\u2019s shop to give them something to do, promising she would call them the minute she had any word at all. <\/span>At the antiquities shop, Hannah had prepared a light lunch including pita bread and baba ghanoush. <\/span>Lots of fruit and nuts were piled on another plate. <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Kahlil was doing much better. <\/span>His head sported a small bandage, his badge of courage. <\/span>He was back to his jovial self in the shop. <\/span>Only now he was humming Coltrane tunes. <\/span>And business had returned as well, with the huge press of tourists in town buying all sorts of things. The publicity surrounding the Lazarus stone had made stone objects from the biblical period all that much more popular. <\/span>Kahlil could hardly keep tablets in stock.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry enjoyed a pleasant two hours eating, talking and even haggling. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

He realized he was spending more and more time with Hannah \u2013 and enjoying every minute. <\/span>But there was business to consider. <\/span>He slowly and gently began to prepare Kahlil and Hannah for the trial ahead, but his unspoken and greater concern was for Art. <\/span>Would he survive this, and even if he did, would he ever be his effervescent self again?<\/span><\/p>\n

————- <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Jamison Parkes Law now had a real situation on his hands. <\/span>Jesse James, an American citizen was in jail for shooting Art West, and all because he misunderstood what Law had been urging his disciples to do. <\/span>Never in his wildest imagination did he think his young followers would see his moral call to arms as a literal call to arms. <\/span>He too was learning something on this day about dangerous ideas and dangerous forms of rhetoric. <\/span>\u201cDamage control,\u201d he kept saying to himself \u201cdamage control.\u201d <\/span>As he road in his Volvo down to the police station he reflected on what he was going to say to the police. <\/span>Of course he would disavow the violence, but what else should he say? <\/span>Should he tell them he would be the legal representative for James? <\/span>He knew he must resist the temptation to simply abandon James, or else he himself might be abandoned by the rest of his following. <\/span>They had all liked James immensely, he was just too impetuous, too much of a \u201cshoot first and ask questions later\u201d kind of person, and now he had proved it quite literally. <\/span>He was only 19 years of age. <\/span>What was to be done? <\/span>Law decided he would provide counsel for James, and he would advise him to say nothing, while waiting to see what would happen with West. <\/span>More than one person was now marking time, as West struggled for survival. <\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span> <\/p>\n

CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX: <\/span>OVER JORDAN, BUT NOT OVERJOYED<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>The Prime Minister himself had called in his top hostage negotiator Avner Galal to deal with the Stone-Hosni mess. <\/span>However much the Prime Minister had enjoyed using the rhetoric that he did not negotiate with terrorists, this time the consequences of not doing so were too severe. <\/span>Naturally once the exchange was made they would track the terrorists down and run them to ground.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Galal was a no-nonsense kind of man. He had serve with Yadin in the \u201967 war, and he knew all the ins and outs of negotiation and exchange, or at least he thought he did. But he had never heard of a hostage exchange bei
\nng made on the Allenby bridge itself. <\/span>This was a first. <\/span>Galal had been given the full use of <\/span>the para-military boys who worked with the Mosad, the secret police, but he had chosen just four of their finest to accompany him with Hosni to the bridge. <\/span>Officer Shimon had come with him as well to identify Stone. <\/span><\/p>\n

Did this location mean that the terrorist that had Stone was a Jordanian? <\/span>It seemed unlikely since Jordan had been in the process of normalizing things with Israel to some degree and their authorities denied knowing anything about this. He tried to envision in his mind the exchange on the bridge and all the possibilities, but there were too many contingencies to consider. What especially worried him was the request to have Hosni placed in full body armor for the exchange. <\/span>He guessed they wanted to eliminate the eliminating of Hosni by long range rifle fire after the exchange. <\/span>He was already sweating, his camouflage uniform turning darker shades of green and brown by the minute.<\/span><\/p>\n

——————- <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone could hardly believe it when he had stepped out of the car in the middle of the night and while still blindfolded was ordered to start gradually walking through the shallow waters of the Jordan to the other side, a gun planted firmly in his back. <\/span>How in the world had he gotten to a place where he could cross over Jordan into another country without notice? <\/span>His head was still killing him, but at least the kidnapper had given him some pita bread and hummus before they left the safe house and got in the car. <\/span>He surmised that they wanted to keep the \u2018merchandise\u2019 in tact until the exchange or ransom was paid. <\/span>He had no idea what the arrangements were.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Muhammed, <\/span>like many older Palestinians to this day, carried a Jordanian passport, because of course until the war, all of the eastern part of Israel right up to eastern Jerusalem belonged to Jordan. <\/span>He had called his friend Ishmael who lived in Jordan and worked in the duty free shops and asked him not only to meet him at the bridge, but to tell the guards that one of their own was escaping from Israel and its secret police. <\/span>Well– it was mostly true. They would be sympathetic. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Thus when Muhammed with Stone in tow had gotten up the east bank of the Jordan and come up on the back side of the shops at the check point just beyond Allenby bridge, Muhammed walk directly with Stone to the guard\u2019s booth where he told Ishmael to meet him and in the bright light of the booth he could see they were playing cards. Nothing could be easier. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSalam alechum\u201d <\/span>he said in a quiet voice so as not to startle them. <\/span>Ishmael flashed a big smile and returned the greeting, hoping up and giving Muhammed a big hug. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt has been too many years\u2026. Let me introduce you to my friend\u2014this is one of Jordan\u2019s finest\u2014Hussein.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Hussein stood up and notice the disheveled old man and came to attention\u2014\u201cAnd who in the world is this?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo not worry\u201d said Mohammed, <\/span>\u201cHe will not be with us long. But you must notify your superior\u2019s as he will shortly be exchanged for the great Hosni\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHosni, the one known as the jackal? <\/span>Hosni the one who killed a whole busload of people outside of Jerusalem last year? <\/span>That Hosni?\u201d <\/span>queried the guard. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes that one,\u201d <\/span>said Muhammed.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWho then is this, that is worthy of such an exchange?\u201d <\/span>asked Ishmael. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI present to you Dr. Patrick Stone— the great antiquities thief!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stunned, <\/span>both Jordanians looked hard at the short, balding older man in rumpled clothes and could hardly believe their eyes. <\/span>This was the man they had seen on the Jordanian news? <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Hussein was on the phone at once, calling and waking up his superior\u2014General Atta.<\/span><\/p>\n

He would want to be in on this matter. <\/span>Atta had quickly phoned King Abdullah to alert him to what was happening, and the King had given Atta specific instructions on how to handle this matter. After the recent bombings at hotels in Amman, <\/span>Abdullah was not interested in cozying up with terrorist of any kind. <\/span>So it appeared that everyone was going to be in for a surprise when the sun came up on Allenby bridge in the morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN: <\/span>FOREIGN EXCHANGE<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dawn came quickly over the Jordan river, and there was not a breath of wind on this hot morning. There was however a weather report that the first \u2018hamsin\u2019 might come through later in the day— the dreaded heat and dust storm. <\/span>General Atta had arrived an hour before dawn in his full dress uniform, with three other Jordanian soldiers armed to the teeth. <\/span>Nothing was going to be left to chance. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The light began to creep over the Golan onto the bridge itself, which Muhammed could now see clearly for the first time from the checkpoint booth. <\/span>Atta had already briefed Muhammed as to what he wanted to do. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI expect to receive a phone call from Lt. Galal shortly, and after that we will work out the details.\u201d <\/span>His voice was authoritative and cold. <\/span>Unlike his Jordanian friend at the guard booth, <\/span>the General was not even cordial to Muhammed, much less treat him like a hero. <\/span>This made <\/span>Muhammed nervous. <\/span>Had he made a mistake?<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The cellphone of the General began to ring, playing a Arabic dance tune. <\/span>Grabbing his jacket which held the phone, the General flipped it open and said <\/span>\u201cSalam aleichum\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd shalom to you as well said Avner. <\/span>We have an agreement then as to how this is to transpire\u2014yes? <\/span>No soldiers crossing the bridge, <\/span>no funny business. <\/span>Just Stone walking our way and \u201cthe Jackal\u201d walking in your direction across the bridge?\u201d <\/span>The arrangements had already been made through channels, and the decisions simply conveyed to Avner and General Atta. There would be no delicate negotiations, no haggling, no backshish\u2014just a one for one swap, done by the book. <\/span>The exchange was to take place at precisely 8. a.m.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIndeed,\u201d <\/span>said the General, \u201csimple and clean. We are understood then\u201d and he hung up his phone. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Meanwhile Stone was at the point of collapse. It had all been too much for him, the aging overweight, academic. It was like he was caught in the middle of the plot of a B movie. <\/span>At the moment he was sitting in the toilet shaking, trying to go to the bathroom one more time, he was so nervous. <\/span>No one had tortured him, but still the situation seemed ominous to him. Certainly no one was offering him food or water, nor did anyone speak to him. <\/span>The guard stood right outside his stall waiting for him to emerge. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Suddenly a wave of nausea came over Stone and he stood up, turned around and started vomiting into the toilet. <\/span>The guard could here this, and became concerned. <\/span>The exchange was only five minutes away. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cGeneral Atta! <\/span>This man is sick. <\/span>What should we do?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>It was clear that Stone was in no condition to travel, and might only barely be able to walk across the bridge. <\/span>Atta immediately called Avner.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWe have a problem,\u201d he said. <\/span>\u201cStone is busying throwing up in the guard\u2019s toilet and is extremely weak. <\/span>Give me an extra thirty minutes to clean him up. <\/span>There will be no tricks. We don\u2019t want any part of this antiquities thief!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Avner listened for a moment and thought\u2014\u201cis this some kind of ruse? <\/span>Surely not since the General seems thorough disgusted with the \u2018marked man\u2019.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cO.K. but lets get this over with quick, I hear the sirocco is coming, the dust storm.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Looking out of the guard booth and up at the sky Atta notice that it had gone from blue to a sort of light tan color. <\/span>This did not bode well. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou are right\u201d said the General, I will call you back as soon as we are ready.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The guard had to help Stone out of the toilet he was so shaky. <\/span>They gave him some cool water, and an aspirin for his headache.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHere, take this\u2014you will feel better.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stifling the desire to wretch again, <\/span>Stone drank down the water and swallowed the pill without difficulty. <\/span>He was quickly escorted to the bridge. The time was 8:15. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The General phoned Avner once more— \u201cwe are as read as we can be. Stone may need help from you once he gets to your half of the bridge.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRight, we anticipated that, and Officer Shimon, whom you can now see standing at the other end of the bridge if you look through a rifle scope, will be waiting, in case he is needed. <\/span>He is not armed. I repeat he is not armed. <\/span>One more thing. Part of the deal was that \u2018the jackal\u2019 is in full body armor. <\/span>Its bound to be stiflingly hot in this weather, but we are doing exactly what was asked.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The Jordan river is in fact not very wide at all at the Allenby bridge crossing. It is more like a creek than a river, especially in June, and so the walk for the prisoners would not be a long one. <\/span>The sun which had risen earlier, had now given way to an annoying haze. <\/span>Atta looked up again, and listened intently. <\/span>He began to hear the distant <\/span>roar, sounding at first like continuously rolling thunder. <\/span>He frantically phoned Avner— \u201cright now, quickly get your man on the bridge, the hamsin is coming\u201d. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone was shoved out on the bridge at precisely 8:17 and Hosni was as well. <\/span>The two men began walking, the latter with a better stride than the former. <\/span>From the middle of the road <\/span>Muhammed watched this. It seemed more like a death march than <\/span>a flight to freedom. <\/span>Yet he was excited thinking about the prospect of meeting his hero— \u2018the jackal\u2019. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Shuffling his way along, then stumbling once, Stone was about half way across the bridge when the hamsin hit full force— at first with only twenty mile an hour winds. <\/span>The jackal had made it almost entirely to the Jordanian side before the strong biting, sand-filled wind hit, but not Stone. <\/span>Stone fell flat on his face on the concrete with a thud.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Atta and one of his guards ran to Hosni and grabbed him and dragged him the rest of the way across the bridge. There was no danger <\/span>of any gunfire from the Israelis since they could not see a thing at the far end of the bridge. <\/span>At the same time, Shimon, running as fast as he could into the wind and shielding his eyes by putting on his shooting goggles started yelling\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI am coming Dr. Stone, <\/span>I am coming.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>There was no response, except a low moan, which might have been the wind or it might have been Stone. <\/span>Reaching the spot where Stone fell, <\/span>Shimon picked the man up in his arms and turned toward Israel. At least the wind was with him. <\/span>Shimon was a large man— 6\u20196\u201d and with strong arms. <\/span>In his earlier years he had been on the Israeli Olympic team as a weight-lifter. <\/span>Carrying Stone was not a huge task, if only the wind would not blow him down. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Shimon could not see a thing as he tried to traverse the last 100 yards of the bridge. <\/span>Avner was standing facing the wind shouting \u201cHere, <\/span>here, <\/span>come in this direction. <\/span>Over here\u201d. <\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile the \u2018jackal\u2019 was in the custody of <\/span>Gen. Atta and his men.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Flashing a smile which revealed at least two teeth missing, Hosni said to the General<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAllah akbar\u201d <\/span>(God is great).<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The General replied: <\/span>\u201cAllah is indeed great but you are nothing but trouble. <\/span>We will be escorting you to a Jordanian prison. <\/span>And as for your hero-worshipping friend Muhammed. <\/span>We have plans for him as well. <\/span>He will be confined to the Palestinian refugee camp outside Amman.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Muhammed could hardly believe what he was hearing. <\/span>\u201cHow can this be? <\/span>You also are Moslems!\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>General Atta replied curtly— \u201cMost Moslems do not believe in terrorism and kidnapping as a solution to our problems. <\/span>You shame the faith that you name!\u201d <\/span>And with that both Hosni, <\/span>now stripped of the battle regalia and Muhammed were handcuffed and were thrust into the back of an armed car vehicle, never to be seen again in <\/span>Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Meanwhile, <\/span>Shimon, his arms getting heavy had finally reached the end of the bridge and could just see Lt. Galal. <\/span>\u201cI have made it, praise be heaven\u201d <\/span>said Shimon as he gave out of gas, and set Stone gently down. <\/span>Stone, <\/span>breathing heavily, was nonetheless conscious.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhere am I?\u201d he asked feebly. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWelcome back to the Promised Land Dr Stone. <\/span>We will take you back to the comfort of your cell and some military food now.\u201d <\/span>Stone just grunted and gently set himself down in the back of the jeep. <\/span>His resistance was so low, he had no fight left in him. <\/span>They could do as they like with him— he didn\u2019t care any more. <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT: <\/span>BAIL DENIED<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Simon Siegal could hardly believe his luck. His client, who had a shaky case at best, had now become an object of no little sympathy from the press, which had plastered pictures of him back on the front page of <\/span>the Herald Tribune and the Jerusalem Post. <\/span>The <\/span>Tribune especially had run a full length article with their secretary and correspondent being interviewed about the phone call from Muhammed and what ensued there after. <\/span>Their photographer had managed to get a shot of Stone when he was returned to the police station looking distraught and distressed and disheveled\u2014in fact totally pathetic. <\/span>Siegal was sure that the sympathy vote generated by this story would help the case. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Friday morning\u2019s pre-trial hearing was gaveled into session and the line up for the trial was set. <\/span>On the one side of the docket was Simon Siegal, and on the other was Benjamin Levi, Harry Scholer, and various legal aides. <\/span>Stone had been allowed to rest in his cell, rather than appear before the judge at this juncture. Judge Dershowitz was noted for acting with dispatch as a no nonsense judge. <\/span>The charges were officially read into the court records. <\/span> <\/span>\u201cCounselor Siegal, how does your client plead .\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNot guilty on all counts,\u201d said Siegal emphatically. <\/span>\u201cAnd we request release of my client with an appropriate bail.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dershowitz looked at Siegal and said, \u201cNice try, counselor but since this man has already fled the country once and been dragged out of the country a second time, and has access to considerable funds once he is out of jail, I am denying bail. <\/span>He will continue to be remanded into the congenial custody of the police in the Jerusalem police facility, and if he needs medical attention we will send it his way from Sinai hospital. <\/span>Any other motions Mr. Siegal?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, your honor. <\/span>We request that cameras and reporters be kept out of the courtroom since this is such a high profile case.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI am inclined to agree with you on that, counselor. <\/span>Mr. Levi, have you any objections to a closed trial?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, your honor,\u201d said Benjamin Levi. \u201cBut we would like permission to speak to the press each day once the day\u2019s proceedings are done.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou may do so, and I will also have the court reporter hand out a summary of the proceedings each day as well. <\/span>Is that satisfactory to both parties?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, your honor,\u201d came the collective reply.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Then Mr. Siegal interjected, \u201cI have one more matter to bring up, your honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cProceed,\u201d ordered the judge.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI have a motion to dismiss the gun as evidence since my client\u2019s fingerprints were never found on it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The judge looked at the affidavit, and then asked, <\/span>\u201cWhat does the prosecution say to this motion?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>At this juncture Harry lept into action. <\/span>\u201cYour honor, this is a typical tactic of Mr. Siegal who likes to exclude one piece of evidence after another until he makes them all disappear. <\/span>The prosecution is prepared to present clear evidence that <\/span>the gun found on the scene belonged to Patrick Stone\u2019s father, Leroy, who lived in Johnson City Tennessee. <\/span>And that Dr. Stone\u2019s prints, while not on the gun, his DNA was found from the hair fibers on the coat Said wore the night of the shooting, a coat which has the powder residue from the gun on it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThat\u2019s enough for me for now,\u201d said the judge. \u201cMotion to suppress the weapon is denied. <\/span>Anything else?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes your honor,\u201d said Harry, \u201cAs you no doubt know one of our main witnesses, Art West is clinging to life at Sinai hospital, and we are having some trouble getting one of our witnesses here in time Dr. William Arnold. <\/span>There may be a need for a motion for a long recess and continuance at some point.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI understand, and must allow it if it comes to that. We want this to be a fair trial for both sides\u201d said the judge. <\/span>\u201cThat\u2019s all for today gentleman.\u201d <\/span>The gavel sounded the end of the proceedings.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>As they were leaving the courtroom Benjamin said to Harry, \u201cNice work, I am glad you know Siegal\u2019s tactics. <\/span>I am quite certain he has more rabbits up his sleeve.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u2018Indeed,\u201d said Harry. \u201c But last I checked June is rabbit hunting season.\u201d <\/span>Both men smiled <\/span>as they walked down the courthouse steps. <\/span>Harry was trying to portray a positive demeanor but he was inwardly more than a little troubled. <\/span>Stone would now have the sympathy vote on his side— he could be called a victim of <\/span>Hamas terrorism, something an Israeli jury would have feelings about. <\/span>And how was Art? <\/span>How could they win the trial without Art? <\/span>Suddenly Harry was jolted out of his revere by the insistent ringing of his cell phone. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cGrace here,\u201d said the voice at the other end. <\/span>\u201cArt\u2019s vital signs are stable and his blood pressure is back to normal, but he is not conscious yet, by the design of the doctor who wants his body to repair for a while before waking him. Nonetheless, the news we have is good.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI am so relieved to hear this, be sure to call Kahlil and let him know as well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI will,\u201d said Grace, and rang off. <\/span>Surely, thought Harry, things must begin to get better soon.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER FIFTY NINE: <\/span>GRAYSON GOES GRAVE DIGGIN\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Grayson Johnson was enjoying his Thursday off as much as he could, considered that he had not been allowed to see Dr. West at the hospital and had been told by Dr. Levine that perhaps he had best go do some of the tasks Dr. West would want him to be doing just now. <\/span>He thought this was a good way to keep himself occupied and so he resolved to go back to the tomb in Bethany. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grayson rather missed Avi Hoffner\u2019s company. <\/span>After recording last Thursday\u2019s phone call, Avi was busy with other detective work. <\/span>But as a reward for his co-operation in these matters he had been given an IAA pass to crawl around in the Lazarus tomb. <\/span>When Hoffner informed him of this on Tuesday, Grayson nearly leapt out of his Nike sneakers. <\/span>\u201cAwesome! <\/span>I am for sure honored and you can count on me to comb every square inch of that tomb. <\/span>I\u2019ll take my digital camera. <\/span>I\u2019ve got Thursday off!\u201d <\/span>Art had already given him a few basic guidelines of what he could and could not do at a dig site, but he felt confident that Grayson would do just fine. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grayson set out with his backpack and a determined look in his eye. <\/span>When he arrived at the tomb, he notice it was cordoned off. <\/span>On instructions from Art, he went in the church and showed Mustafa his badge and a note from Art West and another from Officer Hoffner. <\/span>Mustafa, a man used to interesting characters, said, \u201cThat is fine. <\/span>Please be careful. <\/span>Do not break anything or take anything.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Taking out his heavy duty flashlight, Grayson shimmied through the hole in the back of the tomb, turned on the flashlight and began combing the walls first. There was really nothing but carved out rock to see. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>But his next object for attention was the niche on the right which had thus far not been examined closely. <\/span>Crawling into the empty space and lighting the roof of the enclosure, Grayson found an inscription similar to the one Art had found in the other niche. <\/span>This inscription, however, was not in Aramaic, it was in Greek. <\/span>Grayson, budding scholar that he was, took two years of Greek at Fruitland Bible Institute. <\/span>Slowly, he made out the poetic words one by one:<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span> <\/span>Here lay Mary, the one who anointed Jesus <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>Now Mary resides where the departed marty
\nrs dwell<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Carefully taking three pictures, Grayson crawled out of the niche and pondered the allusion in the inscription. <\/span>Grayson knew his Bible well, especially his New Testament. <\/span>As a fan of the \u201cLeft Behind\u201d series he had studied the book of Revelation many times. <\/span>He recognized the reference to Revelation 6 which speaks of the departed saints being under the altar in heaven. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOK,\u201d said Grayson, \u201cBut are we being told that Mary and her ossuary were like, raptured to heaven? <\/span>Even Mr. LaHaye said nothing about caskets being beamed up. <\/span>So probably that\u2019s a bogus idea.\u201d <\/span>He decided to look over the rest of the tomb once more and think about the inscription while he did. <\/span>There turned out to be nothing more that was new in the tomb.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Crawling out of the tomb, he checked his pictures and found that the inscription showed up clearly. <\/span>He went back to talk to Mustafa. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSir, is there any record of Mary and Martha\u2019s bones being moved under the altar of this church a long time ago.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe church you see is a rather modern church with a modern altar. <\/span>But it is built on the foundations of the ancient church of Mary and Martha. <\/span>I <\/span>have always wondered why the church was not also named for Lazarus. <\/span>Sometimes churches were named for those buried under the altar in that place. <\/span>I tell you what I will do. <\/span>The crypt in this church is off limits to tourists due to its dangers. <\/span>But I shall take a trip down there and see what can be found. <\/span>I am sure the priest will approve.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grayson smiled and said, \u201cOK, <\/span>gotta run, but would you call me if anything comes to light. <\/span>Here is my phone number at the house. Later Dude.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

At least one good thing had turned up today. <\/span>Grayson made a mental note to spend an hour or so once he was home, just praying for Dr. West\u2019s health. <\/span>He decided to pray as though he were the voice of Dr. West beseeching God, <\/span>using Psalm 18\u2013 \u201cI call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears….He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes who were too strong for me…He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dr. West was in the hands of God, reasoned Grayson, the best place he could be. <\/span>On that thought he was able to lie down and get his first good night\u2019s rest in three days.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER SIXTY: <\/span>LIFE LINES AND DEATH WATCHES<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>The Doctor had come into Art\u2019s room and told the nurse not to give Art any more magic sleeping potion. It was time for him to be allowed to wake up. <\/span>Grace had been sitting patiently in the room they had wheeled Art into waiting to hear from the doctor again. <\/span>Dr Mordecai smiled and said \u201c Your Dr. West is a fighter, I th
\nink he is out of danger now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThat\u2019s both a relief and a laugh,\u201d said Grace, \u201cArt West the fighting pacifist. I always knew he was a bundle of outrageous extremes. <\/span>But seriously, how long realistically before he might be allowed to go home so we can stop this death watch?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIf when he awakes, all is well, I would say another 3-4 days, but we will have to wait and see. He should be awake in an hour or so.\u201d <\/span>The Doctor smiled again and left. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace bided her time by reading the latest issue of Harry Scholer\u2019s magazine, Biblical Artifacts. <\/span>She had been particularly intrigued by the article arguing for a reassessment of the Jehoash Tablet and its authenticity. <\/span>At about ten in the morning Art began to stir in his bed, and calling for water. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace slipped some ice chips in his mouth, and he said \u201cthanks nurse,\u201d having not yet opened his eyes. <\/span>Grace turned on her best New England accent and replied <\/span>\u201cWhy you are most welcome! This is <\/span>Nurse Levine from Brockton Mass.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art opened his eyes with a start and said \u201cGrace, its you\u201d, and began to weep. \u201cWhat am I doing here?\u201d <\/span>Grace began to tear up as well and said \u201cWell there was this little matter of two different assassins trying to gun you down while you were lecturing on resurrection. I guess they wanted to see if you could embody your theology literally.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art smiled and said <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt hurts too much to laugh, but that was a good one. <\/span>Hey did you hear the one about President Bush and Moses?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo,\u201d said Grace \u201cbut I can hardly wait to do so.\u201d <\/span>This was good, Art was trying to be his old self. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell it seems the President was walking down the corridor in an airport with his secret service guys when he saw this man who looked remarkably like Moses, and he went up to him and asked \u201cAre you Moses?\u201d <\/span>But the man never stopped and just kept walking. <\/span>The President was miffed and so he sent one of his secret service men after the guy and told him to ask the man if he was Moses. <\/span>The secret service quickly caught up with the man and said \u201cExcuse me sir, are you Moses, you sure look like Moses. Why didn\u2019t you respond to the President when he spoke to you\u201d <\/span>Moses replied \u201cYes I am Moses, but the last time I spoke with a bush, I got in big trouble.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace just burst out laughing. <\/span>Art said \u201cPlease don\u2019t make me laugh, the stitches you know, the stitches on both sides!\u201d <\/span>Grace got out her cell phone and dialed up Harry. <\/span>\u201cHarry,\u201d she said \u201cWe\u2019ve got a live one here, the death watch is over. Art just cracked a joke.\u201d She handed the phone to Art: \u201cHi friend,\u201d said Art, \u201cHow are you and trial getting along.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cJust fine Art, only we are going to need your testimony, so I am thinking maybe we will send a videographer over your way tomorrow morning if you are feeling up to it.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSure\u201d said Art, \u201cI\u2019ve got nothing better to do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cExcept get well from two bullet wounds,\u201d hollered Grace from the other side of Art\u2019s bed.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHarry, please call Kahlil and tell him I am back in the land of the living will you?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSure thing.\u201d said Harry \u201cThings are beginning to look up. Back to trial preparation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOnce a lawyer, always a lawyer,\u2019 said Art turning to Grace and adding \u201cDid I tell you the one about the man who was on his death bed and had his wife call his two lawyers, telling her to get them over to his house quick, as he wanted to die like <\/span>Jesus, between two thieves.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Grace said, \u201cEnough, enough, I am beginning to think the anesthesia has so altered your brain waves that you\u2019ve been turned into a candidate for Christian Comedy Central. <\/span>Give it and yourself a rest, and I\u2019ll be back after a visit to the IAA office.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRight,\u201d said Art and as she was leaving he said, \u201cBut did I tell you the one about King David being the first to ride a motorcycle because the Bible says \u201cHis triumph was heard throughout the land…\u201d <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cOiveh, \u201c said Grace and smiled, \u201cSomeone put him back to sleep… please!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER SIXTY ONE: <\/span>CLASH OF THE TITANS<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>The courtroom was gleaming with sunlight pouring in through the windows on this hot June day. <\/span>The lights hardly needed to be on. <\/span>But the searching white hot spotlight of truth would be bringing the real heat and light in this room. <\/span>The courtroom had filled up an hour before time for the trial, and the press in great hordes were camping outside the building waiting for any and every bit of news possible. <\/span>The headline in the Jerusalem Post <\/i>this morning was CLASH OF THE TITANS. <\/span>Two famous Jewish lawyers were about to have a go at it in public over the most famous theft in the Holy Land in recent memory.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>When the combatants entered the room Benjamin Levi was wearing a dark blue, pin-stripe suit, as was Harry Scholer, the difference being that Levi went for the reserved dark tie whereas Harry wore his natty red bow tie. Various legal aides trundled into court behind them like participants in a Roman triumph. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Simon Siegal made a striking entrance wearing a hunter green suit. <\/span><\/p>\n

Patrick Stone looked better than he had in many days, wearing a brown tweed jacket and looking every inch the Yale professor he was, but with enough of a limp to remind those in the courtroom of his recent travails. <\/span>Apparently someone really had looked after him and coached him on how to behave. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Certain documents had already been made available to all the parties concerned, and entered into the court records. <\/span>This included Stone\u2019s passports, hotel receipts, a copy of the agreement made between Stone and the British Museum, copies of Stone\u2019s bank statements, and the purchase agreement for Chateau Puissant. <\/span>The IAA had dropped the charges concerning the manuscripts found in the figurines. <\/span>And Art West by conversation with Harry had told him to drop all charges pertaining to his short entombment in Bethany. <\/span>That left charges of theft, forgery and attempted murder. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Jury selection had begun the Monday after the pre-trial hearing. <\/span>The jury pool had already been skimmed by the two principle attorneys with each rejecting four jurors for cause. <\/span>A lot of pre-trial publicity had made jury selection difficult.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Judge Dershowitz then addressed Siegal and Levi. \u201cGentlemen, you may make your opening statements to the jury, Mr. Levi first.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLadies and gentleman of the jury, this is no ordinary trial. <\/span>Because the nature of this crime strikes at the heart of both the Jewish and Christian heritage here in Eretz Israel, and endangers our ability to continue to have and pass on that legacy, we are dealing with far more than theft and assault. <\/span>We are dealing with an attempt to get rich by stripping a people of its heritage and identity. <\/span>This is the crime of all looters and forgers who seek to profit by illicit means. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe Lazarus stone is no ordinary artifact. <\/span>The British Museum paid the enormous sum of 20 million pounds sterling to obtain it. <\/span>The theft of this object would be equivalent to the theft of the chariot of King Tut or the Rosetta stone. <\/span>And what makes this crime all the more heinous is that it has been perpetrated not by a petty thief or ordinary tomb raider, but by a well known professor from a prestigious university in the United States. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cUnlike the ordinary thief who cannot read ancient languages, this thief <\/span>[pointing to Patrick Stone], this thief knew precisely what he had found and precisely what its value was likely to be. <\/span>So desperate was he to have this object that he was prepared to attempt murder with his own gun to silence the one man, an antiquities dealer here in Jerusalem, a good and honest man, who knew he had possession of this stone. <\/span>Stopping at nothing Stone connived to get the Lazarus stone out of the country and sell it to the British Museum before anyone could stop him. On top of this he tried to blacken the name of another man, Professor West,
\nand throw the scent off his own trail by having the British Museum transfer over a million dollars into West\u2019s Jerusalem bank account, fingering him as the one really guilty of stealing the Lazarus stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHere is a driven, self-centered, greedy man who wanted to cash in on someone else\u2019s inheritance. <\/span>Unlike the case of Jacob and Esau, this man [again pointing at Stone] didn\u2019t bargain for another man\u2019s inheritance, he stole it outright. Outrageous! <\/span>It is our contention that Patrick Stone should feel the full brunt of Israeli justice, not least so that it will be a deterrent for all that might seek to follow in his footsteps. <\/span>By early Jewish law, he himself should be stoned! <\/span>We need to make an example out of Dr. Patrick Stone, and we intend to leave no evidentiary stone unturned until justice is done!\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>There was a round of applause in the courtroom, which Dershowitz gaveled into submission. <\/span>Simon Siegal arose looking confident. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt is a sad day when anyone loses something precious, all the more so if it has great historical significance. <\/span>But this artifact is not lost. <\/span>Indeed it is being held for eventual display to the public at one of the world\u2019s leading museums <\/span>\u2013 the British Museum, home to other Jewish artifacts. <\/span>One could argue that Professor Stone has done the world a favor, by personally bringing the inscription to London. <\/span>With our outdated laws pertaining to relics, the inscription might never leave Israel. <\/span>Indeed, it would probably languish in some laboratory examined by scholars alone \u2013 much like other scrolls have not been released to the public. <\/span>And you know, ladies and gentleman, far more people visit London, where it is safer. <\/span>Our terrorist environment frightens tourists away! \u201c <\/span>There. Siegal had already managed to remind the audience of terrorists in general, and now he could build on that. He could not resist adding <\/span>\u201cOur terrorist environment even led to the kidnapping of Dr. Stone my a member of Hamas, right out from under our noses. I am sure you have all read about the brutal treatment of Dr Stone, who is still healing from his injuries at terrorists\u2019 hand.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFurthermore, this <\/span>Lazarus stone is of much greater importance to the Christian world, than it is to us. <\/span>For us, it is an interesting curiosity that raises a few questions. <\/span>For devout Christians the inscription confirms the Gospel accounts that Jesus actually was a faith healer! <\/span>That Jesus raised the dead! <\/span>For Christians, the words on the stone <\/span>provides a witness that Jesus and resurrection go together, <\/span>that Jesus and messiahship go together!\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAsk any of the IAA members here who have seen this stone whether it has that significance for them as Jews. <\/span>I think not. <\/span>So let us not exaggerate the nature of this theft. There is a reason why Dr. Stone went to a Christian nation to sell this object.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut wait, what if Dr. Stone did not steal this object at all? <\/span>Suppose he obtained it from his over-zealous teaching assistant, Raymond Simpson, whose fingerprints were all over the forged copy of the stone and its mail wrapper? <\/span>The testimony will show that Simpson was in the tomb and made the copy of the inscription. <\/span>Can any one of you here say that if this object was brought to you, you would not be tempted to keep it? <\/span>Can any of you say that once you had the valuable object and had sought to have it brokered to the proper people right here in Jerusalem, but were turned down by a leading antiquities dealer, that you would not be very angry with that dealer? <\/span>Even admitting that Khalil el Said was harmed in the process, the evidence will show that no assault was intended, that Kahlil el Said\u2019s wounds were accidental only. \u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThough you see here a well- known, international scholar, it was not always so. <\/span>In fact, Patrick Stone comes from humble origins \u2013 from Johnson City Tennessee. <\/span>His grandparents sold illegal whiskey, or \u2018moonshine\u2019 as it is called, to put food on the table. <\/span>Patrick\u2019s father, Leroy, rose to be mayor of that small town, he was a heavy drinker, who beat his son Patrick, telling him he was no good and would never amount to much. <\/span>The lashing out of his father in word and in deed drove Patrick to spend his life trying hard to prove that he was somebody, somebody important. <\/span>His father belittled his academic accomplishments, calling his son an educated fool.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you know ladies and gentleman what that does to a person\u2019s psyche when a parent abuses, neglects and belittles? <\/span>I think you do know the lasting effects of such abuse. <\/span>Now picture in your mind Patrick Stone. <\/span>Though he was a grown man who had accomplished much in academia, it was never enough, never validated him to the one person he most wanted approval from \u2013 <\/span>his father. <\/span>There is often a great gap between who a person is, and how they see themselves. <\/span>This was clearly the case with Patrick Stone. <\/span>Good enough was never good enough.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOn that fateful day when the Lazarus stone came into Patrick\u2019s possession, he was like a child in a toy store, only now the child within him saw a way to finally prove to at least the scholars at one of the world\u2019s greatest museums that he was somebody, somebody important. <\/span>He managed to turn the stone over to
\nthe world\u2019s most famous museum which promised to keep his identity a secret \u2013 imagine the humility in that act! <\/span>In his heart, he knew he had broken away from the need to please \u2013 he had done the right thing!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt is a sad and tragic story, the tale of Patrick Stone who in a moment of weakness made a tragic error in judgment despite a previously spotless record of integrity. <\/span>Which one of us has not had such a moment of weakness? <\/span>Who are we to cast the first stone, as Mr. Levi has suggested we should? <\/span>I submit to you, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, that Patrick Stone, <\/span>deserves a better fate. <\/span>I trust that when you judge the evidence in light of the man, you will judge with mercy and fairness.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>By the time Siegal had finished his amazing opening salvo, some members of the jury were in tears. <\/span>Harry whispered to Benjamin, \u201cLike I said, we really have our work cut out for us in this case.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The gavel brought everyone back to reality. <\/span>\u201cWe will recess until after lunch,\u201d said Dershowitz firmly.<\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span> <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIXTY TWO: <\/span>THE CASE FOR THE PROSECUTION<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The lunch recess had been uneventful, and Harry had not eaten much, so revved up was he after Levi had told him he would be first up to bat to do the inquisition on Ray Simpson.<\/span><\/p>\n

Scholer had tirelessly prepared himself, and so he stood up before the court, cleared his throat and said:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c The prosecution calls Raymond Simpson.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>Dressed simply but neatly in khaki slacks and a plaid sport shirt, not a suit, as the prosecution did not wish to portray him as a professional of any kind, Ray took the stand. <\/span>After he was sworn in, Scholer began to grill him.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Simpson what, is your relationship with Patrick Stone?\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI am his teaching assistant at Yale, and his doctoral student.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd what was it that brought you to Israel?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDr. Stone asked me to come and help him with his research, and I was excited to do so. <\/span>It will look good on my resume.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, and how would you describe the work Dr. Stone asked you to do this past month while in Israel?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNothing at all like what he asked me to do when I was at Yale.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat do you mean? <\/span>Describe what he asked you to do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, for one thing, instead of doing research or digging, he had me trailing Dr. Arthur West. <\/span>He even had me trail him to a bank and get his checking account number by devious means. He was obsessed with finding out what Dr. West was doing in Bethany. <\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cObjection.\u201d said Siegal. <\/span>\u201cSome of this calls for speculation about the state of mind of Dr. Stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSustained,\u201d said Dershowitz \u201cthe last sentence will be stricken from the record.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Scholer continued, <\/span>\u201cTell us more about what he had you do besides follow Dr. West.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, here\u2019s a short list. <\/span>First, he asked me to help trap West in the tomb behind the Church of Mary and Martha. <\/span>It took both of us to move that stone quickly before Dr. West could get out. <\/span>Secondly, later that same day, Dr. Stone brought me pictures of an inscription. <\/span>He asked me to make a quick copy. <\/span>Thirdly, he asked me to wrap up the copy, take it to a courier, and make sure the copy would arrive on Dr. West\u2019s doorstep the following morning. <\/span>Finally, on Tuesday afternoon he left me a number of figurines and a note which I later threw away. <\/span>The note said to store the figurines in my locker at the Bethlehem bus station.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDid you know where the inscription came from?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI read the text \u2013 I knew it was from the Bethany Church. <\/span>I\u2019m sorry about all that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd the figurines \u2013 did you know what was in them. <\/span>Didn\u2019t you find the request rather strange?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI swear I didn\u2019t know what was in the figurines. <\/span>And I couldn\u2019t figure out why he would want them hidden in my <\/b>locker of all places. <\/span>If they weren\u2019t valuable, why not leave them at his apartment?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you, Mr. Simpson. <\/span>We enter into the records exhibits A, B and C– <\/span>the copy of the stone inscription including the paper wrapping, the four figurines, and the key to the locker. <\/span>However, for security sake, the manuscripts have been removed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dershowitz once again took control. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you wish to cross-examine this witness, Mr. Siegal?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCertainly your honor, I have but a few questions for him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Simpson, how old are you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/span> <\/p>\n

\n

<\/span>\u201cTwenty-seven, sir.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd would you consider yourself a responsible adult?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMore like an educated fool!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd did Professor Stone actually order you to do anything?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, it would be more correct to say he strongly urged me to help.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u2018Very good, and so he did not threaten you in any way, right?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, indirectly, I suppose, in the sense that he told me if I helped him that he would write me a glowing recommendation for a job at John\u2019s Hopkins. <\/span>Believe me, when Dr. Stone says \u2018jump,\u2019 I just reply \u2018how high.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, of course, he is your superior. <\/span>Would it be true to say, Mr. Simpson, that you have been offered a more lenient sentence for your cooperation with the prosecution.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, that\u2019s so. <\/span>I\u2019ll be doing community service for some time.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOne more thing, were you present with Dr. Stone either when he was alleged to be in the antiquities shop or later when he is alleged to have assaulted Mr. el Said?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir, I was home with my room mate, Grayson Johnson, drinking Maccabee beer and eating Cheetos.\u201d <\/span>Laughter broke out in the courtroom.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cExactly so, and so you have no personal knowledge at all of Dr. Stone committing any act of violence on those occasions \u2013 <\/span>correct?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI wasn\u2019t in either place.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLastly, did Dr. Stone tell you where he was going and what he was doing when he fled the country?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c No sir, his note simply said he was going home, and that he would <\/span>see me back at school. <\/span>He even left me money and the use of his flat.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cVery generous of him, wouldn\u2019t you say?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/span> <\/p>\n

<\/span>Before Raymond could answer the question, Siegal turned and said, \u201cNo further questions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRedirect, your honor!\u201d <\/span>cried Levi.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Simpson, if Dr. Stone was such a great mentor, why then did you feel compelled to attempt to flee the country?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBecause I knew that Dr. Stone and I had done something wrong, and I was afraid he would leave me holding the bag.\u201d <\/span>This led to some murmuring in the court room, but Simpson was allowed to step down.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>As Raymond was dismissed, Levi called his next witness, <\/span>Kahlil el Said.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>\u201cMr. el Said, what is your profession?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI am an antiquities dealer in the old city.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd is it not correct to say you are one of the leading experts amongst the dealers in ancient stone objects?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes. <\/span>I am proud of my reputation as an honest antiquities dealer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo then it is in no way surprising that Dr. Stone came and showed you <\/b>what we now call the Lazarus stone, seeking to sell it to you or have you broker it to another.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, it is not surprising.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat was the demeanor of Dr. Stone when he came into the shop?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe was pacing the floor. <\/span>When I turned him down, he called me an imbecile! <\/span>Then he rudely referred to my shop as a \u2018small business in a God-forsaken part of town!\u2019 <\/span>He was most insulting. <\/span>I was shocked that one claiming to be an academic would say such demeaning things.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNot surprising <\/span>by American standards. <\/span>Sorry, your honor for the sarcasm. <\/span>Now, Mr. el Said, are you quite certain that it was Dr. Stone, the man sitting over there, who came to your shop.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAbsolutely sure.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. el Said, I see that you have a bandage on your head. <\/span>Can you tell the court how you came to injure yourself?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI was shot. <\/span>When I fell I hit my head on an iron bench in the park behind the Shrine of the Book. <\/span>I spent a week in the hospital.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you have any idea who shot you, could you see his face in the dark?<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, that man!\u201d <\/span>Kahlil pointed to Patrick Stone.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDid you have a conversation with Patrick Stone before he shot you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe said, \u2018How could you deny me like that? <\/span>Surely I can convince you to broker the inscription for me!\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou took that to refer to the conversation earlier in the day?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, I did.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThen what happened?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe pulled out a small gun and began to wave it at me. <\/span>I grabbed his hand. <\/span> <\/span>Apparently, the gun went off. <\/span>That is all I remember!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut you are sure it was Dr. Patrick Stone that shot you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWithout a doubt.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you, Mr. el Said, nothing further. <\/span>I hope your full health returns.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Again Dershowitz pronounced, \u201cMr. Siegal, do you have any questions at this point.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal arose and approached el Said.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAt any time before he pulled the gun, did you feel threatened?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNot really, he had already shown his true colors in my shop.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhy did you grab the gun?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt was foolish, perhaps, but I just wanted that gun to go away!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you feel that your actions caused the gun to go off \u2013 that my client never intended to hurt you, merely to scare you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI agree, that is possible.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIs it not the case that you were in a coma for a long time after the shooting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, for several days, and then I had amnesia, but my memory is clear now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIs it not possible that some other angry client assailed you and you thought it was Stone because his anger was
\nfresh in your mind? <\/span>Isn\u2019t it possible in light of your concussion <\/span>that you have muddled things up in your mind?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI don\u2019t believe so, and besides the man spoke English with an American not an Israeli or Palestinian accent. <\/span>I have not had other Americans angry with me of late.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo more questions, your honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Judge Dershowitz was impressed by Siegal\u2019s probing <\/span>questions. <\/span>He definitely steered the onus of the crime away from his client. \u201cCall your next witness, Mr. Levi.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Levi\u2019s voice rang out, \u201cThe court calls Detective Hoffner to the stand.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDetective, can you tell us in what capacity you have been involved in these matters.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn various ways. <\/span>I examined both the weapon and the coat. <\/span>I was also involved in the recovery of the manuscripts in the figurine, and monitoring the whereabouts of Dr. Stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLet me enter into record, exhibits D, E and F \u2013 the gun, the coat, and the tape recoding. <\/span>Very good . Tell us first what you found when you examined the gun. Where was this found?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt was found on the park bench beside the body of Mr. el Said when we arrived at the crime scene.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI see, <\/span>tell us about this weapon.\u201d <\/span>Levi held up Exhibit D, the gun.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt is a nineteenth century derringer, one shot only. <\/span>I tracked it to a gun shop in Johnson City Tennessee. <\/span>The owner of the shop claimed that such a gun was owned by Dr. Stone\u2019s father, Leroy. <\/span>We now have an affidavit showing that the gun used to shoot el Said matches the description of the gun owned by Dr. Stone and his father. <\/span>We also have documents from Dr. Shelby Hande of the United States explaining the historical significance of this antique weapon.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, we have those reports. <\/span>And were there any finger prints found on the weapon?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, but not those of the defendant. <\/span>Rather they were the prints of Dr. Arthur West who arrived at the scene apparently after the shooting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI see. But if there are no prints of the gun, how do we know Dr. Stone is the perpetrator and not Dr. West?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt involves two bits of evidence. <\/span>First, Dr. Stone\u2019s DNA was found in hairs on el Said\u2019s coat that he wore that night. <\/span>This can hardly be explained if he was not there, and the gun was right next to the body. <\/span>Secondly, as I said before, we have a sworn deposition from Johnson City Tennessee that such a gun belonged at one time to Dr. Stone\u2019s father, Leroy. <\/span>The natural inference must be that he is the shooter.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd not Dr. West?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir, he was immediately tested for gun powder residue and blood splatters. <\/span>He was clean.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNothing further your honor,\u201d said Benjamin Levi.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The Judge\u2019s gaze shifted. <\/span>\u201cMr. Siegal?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal strode forward and looked Hoffner in the eye.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDetective Hoffner, how long have you been on the force? <\/span>And what is your area of expertise?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cEight years now specializing in forensic science including guns and ballistics.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good. <\/span>Have you ever dealt with a handgun quite like this before?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd you do not know that Leroy gave his son such a weapon, do you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir, but it is a logical inference.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, well many things are logical if you are arguing in a circle. Would you consider yourself an expert in the forensic matter of <\/span>examining DNA evidence based on hair fibers?\u201d
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell . . . not technically , but our lab boys do know about these things..\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDetective Hoffner, can you please tell us about the phone call you monitored in the house of Raymond Simpson here in Jerusalem earlier this month?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes sir. <\/span>Simpson was already in custody, but Stone did not know that, and so he spoke with Simpson\u2019s room mate Grayson Johnson.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat was said?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt is all on tape. <\/span>Exhibit F I believe. <\/span>Stone was wanting to ask Johnson to tell Simpson to return the figurines!\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd these figurines, Exhibit B, contain priceless manuscripts, is that correct?! <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe very same sir.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLet me be clear about this, he turned to the jury, Mr. Stone wished for Raymond Simpson to return <\/b>the figurines! <\/span>To the Three Arches shop?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe specifically said not to return them to the shop. <\/span>He wanted to give Raymond specific directions on how to return those figurines. <\/span>He didn\u2019t mention they contained manuscripts.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo Dr. Stone planned to return the manuscripts to their rightful owner.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Benjamin Levi jumped up, \u201cObjection your owner, calls for speculation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSustained. <\/span>Be careful, Mr. Siegal,\u201d said the Judge firmly.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDetective, was this a legal <\/b>wire tap?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes sir, by the book.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, nothing further.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry and Benjamin looked at each other \u2013 the testimony about the figurines certainly painted Stone in a more pleasing light. <\/span>Levi arose, and said, <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI have one last witness, and I will be brief your honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhen is a loquacious man like you ever brief? <\/span>Carry on,\u201d smiled the judge.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI call Mustafa el Din, caretaker of the Church of Mary and Martha.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mustafa came to the dock wearing his clerical robe.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMustafa, I have but one question for you. <\/span>Have you ever seen the defendant wandering around the inside or outside of the Church of Mary and Martha?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, on Tuesday, June 1, I saw two men roaming around the church in the morning. <\/span>One was the man sitting there, Dr. Stone. <\/span>The other man was younger, and I did not see his face clearly. <\/span>I was busy in the church the rest of the day and saw no one else.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDid you see them wandering around the back of the church?\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI saw them wandering in that direction in the morning, yes.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThat\u2019s all I have for this witness.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The judge looked at Siegal. <\/span>\u201cYour turn!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. el Din, is it your testimony that on June first my client was wandering around your church? <\/span>Did you actually see him behind your church?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, I saw two men heading in that direction, and then I went back in the church. <\/span>One of the men was Dr. Stone for sure.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut at the time you didn\u2019t know who they were, nor did it seem important to you to see what they were up to since you went back in the church? <\/span>Is that not right?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI was very busy on that day. <\/span>There was no reason to be alarmed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAh, they posed no threat?\u201d said Siegal who turned, held up his hands, and went to his seat before objections could even be raised. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dershowitz gaveled the first day\u2019s proceedings to an end. <\/span>It had been a draining experience for all. <\/span>Harry turned to Levi and said, \u201cSo far so good. <\/span>All evidence points to his guilt.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>But as Siegal turned to leave he whispered to Stone, \u201cSo far so good. <\/span>You never came across as a true criminal. <\/span>You are a good man who never meant to hurt anyone, and with your latest escapade you are a victim of terrorism as well.\u201d <\/span>Things were looking up for Patrick Stone.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER SIXTY THREE: TURNING POINTS<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>The videographer had come right on time, with both Simon Siegal and Harry Scholer in tow, to film Art West\u2019s testimony and responses, and at that moment he was sitting up in his bed drinking Haifa orange juice and trying not to look like death warmed over. <\/span>He had shaved for the first time, and with the help of the nurse he had showered and combed his hair. <\/span>\u201cYou can\u2019t make a silk purse out of a sow\u2019s ear.\u201d said Art to himself. <\/span>Art had talked to Grace at some length about what he would say at the trial, talking through with her his strong feeling of wanting the court to have mercy on Stone. <\/span>Grace had reminded him that that must be left in the judge and juries hands. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cO.K. <\/span>said Art, \u201cI am as ready as I can be. Roll the tape….\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/span>Jamison Parkes Law had called the guard to let him out of Jesse James\u2019 cell. The word was out that West was out of danger, and so the most James could be charged with was assault with a deadly weapon. <\/span>But Art West had told Harry the night before by phone that he did not plan to press charges against his assailants. <\/span>The office of the prosecuting attorney was mulling over whether to charge James anyway. <\/span>Law turned and said to James: \u201cRemember, the less said the better. We will wait to see what the prosecuting attorney intends to do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRight,\u201d said Jesse, \u201c but you know I don\u2019t feel bad about what went down. <\/span>The man was a menace.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI told you to zip it!\u201d said Law, \u201cthe authorities are monitoring this place.\u201d <\/span>And he walked out in disgust. <\/span>\u201cI think I know how Jesus must have felt about Judas, on some occasions,\u201d he muttered to himself.<\/span><\/p>\n

—————— <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Rabbi Menachem\u2019s phone in his study was ringing off the hook. <\/span>Finally he managed to get to his chair and pick it up. <\/span>He moved slowly these days. <\/span>The last few weeks had really taxed his patience and wisdom. <\/span>It turned out to be a police officer in Migdal. \u201cIs this Rabbi Menachem?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes,\u201d said the Rabbi, \u201cWhat may I do for you?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI have here a note from someone named Sadiq Hadassah, do you recognize that name?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes,\u201d said the Rabbi, \u201che was supposed to have called me yesterday, but he failed to do so.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell rabbi, that would have been impossible as Sadiq yesterday morning, after charging a group of Palestinians who were throwing stones at the Jewish settlement he lived in in Hebron, was shot dead by one of the members of Hamas who had been goading the children into throwing stones.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>A tear began to form in the rabbi\u2019s right eye.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRabbi, this note is to you from Hadassah, and so I thought I should read it: \u2018Rabbi, I am sorry to have failed you in various ways, but perhaps in the end I can redeem the honor of my name, which means \u2018Righteous\u2019 as you know very well, and show myself worth of being a son of Zion by standing up against those who seek to destroy our Jewish settlements here in Hebron. Tomorrow morning I plan to go out and stand against the rock throwers and the guns and tell them to leave us alone. <\/span>If you receive this note, you will know I have died in a noble cause, as I have left it in my pocket to be found by the police. May God be with you and your righteous teachings.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you officer,\u201d said the Rabbi, and hung up with tears now streaming down his face. Quoting Sirach he said to himself \u201c\u2018Blessed are those who die in the Lord…\u2019 <\/span>There is now no reason to tell anyone about Sadiq\u2019s mistakes. He has paid the ultimate penalty already, and is past the point of no return. I shall arrange for an honorable funeral for him now.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>For some reason a line from a poem the rabbi had learned as a child came to mind \u201cLife and death upon one tether… and running beautiful together\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

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CHAPTER SIXTY FOUR: <\/span>THE CASE FOR THE DEFENSE<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The second morning of the trial began with Simon Siegal striding into the courtroom in a bright blue jacket. <\/span>Someone had failed to turn on the air conditioner early enough, and everyone was sweating at ten o\u2019clock in the morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The first witness that Siegal called was Dr. Shelby Hande of Memphis Tennessee. <\/span>Harry and Levi had no idea why Siegal thought it was so important to bring this gentleman all the way from the US. <\/span>They looked forward to this piece of testimony. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dr. Hande looked rather like Colonel Sanders given his gray hair, goatee and mustache. <\/span>He was dressed in a tweed jacket and dark pants held up by red suspenders. <\/span>He cut quite a figure, and the word colorful was more than appropriate.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDr. Hande, thank you for coming all the way to Jerusalem.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLeast I could do considering you were paying. <\/span>I plan to enjoy a little sight seeing afterwards. <\/span>I didn\u2019t realize you were Civil War buffs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>There was a little ironic laughter in the room, since what the term \u2018Civil War\u2019 meant to most Israelis was the struggle between Palestinians and Jews and to others it was an oxymoron\u2013 there had never been a war that was civil. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Hande, here we have exhibit C, the derringer alleged to have been used in the shooting of Kahlil el Said.\u201d <\/span>He handed the weapon to Shelby who looked it over carefully.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you recognize this type of gun?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, indeed I do. <\/span>It\u2019s a nineteenth century, single bore, one shot derringer, carried on one\u2019s person as a last line of defense.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDefense, you say?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou hard a hearin? <\/span>Yes sir, defense, both during and after the American Civil War. <\/span>A derringer like this one is hardly an offensive weapon. <\/span>It produced no velo
\ncity to the bullet and if you were more than five feet from the intended target little damage would be done. <\/span>As I said, it\u2019s a last line of defense weapon, to be used only at close range. <\/span>They\u2019re more of a souvenir or a curiosity item, kept as a family heirloom.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNow, Dr. Hande, in your judgment would an intelligent person, a knowledgeable person from Tennessee like yourself <\/span>know that this was no assault weapon?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cObjection. <\/span>Calls for speculation about what Dr. Stone <\/span>knows,\u201d called out Harry Scholer.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRephrase the question,\u201d ordered the Judge.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOK. <\/span>Dr. Hande, in your judgment if someone knew anything about this antique derringer, would they set out with this weapon to assault someone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir, that\u2019s ludicrous on the face of things. <\/span>If I wanted to kill s someone, I\u2019d use a Colt 45!\u201d <\/span>The jury now had visions of the Wild West. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut perhaps someone might bring it for protection or as a threat perhaps?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, that\u2019s far more plausible.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you very much, Dr. Hande.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCross-examine?\u201d asked Dershowitz.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry rose up. <\/span>\u201cDr. Hande, I have long been an admirer of your volumes on the Civil War, and I have no dispute with what you say about this gun, but let me ask you, Was this weapon ever known to be used to kill anyone, any record of anyone killed by being shot by this gun?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, but only in very close quarters. <\/span>More often it might be used to finish someone off.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut as you yourself have said, this weapon carried only one bullet. <\/span>You might well feel malicious and angry enough to shoot someone with this weapon without worrying too much that you were likely to kill them, isn\u2019t that true?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDerringers like this were used in duels if it was to be real close quarters. This was a regular thing. <\/span>Sometimes there would be sword fights \u2013 with some wounds. <\/span>Then derringers would finish the duel, again to redeem one\u2019s honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, is honor a major consideration for people raised in Tennessee.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNowadays, no,\u201d said Shelby. \u201cFolks have lost their sense of honor and shame mostly, in America, even in the South, but for men of my age or thereabouts, raised in the old South, then yes, it could be an honor thing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOne more thing. If you had a precious antiquity from the Civil War that you wanted to sell, say Robert E. Lee\u2019s sword, or the saddle worn by Traveler his horse, if you went to a Civil war memorabilia dealer and he refused to even talk price with you, would that make you angry, would you feel shamed by that exchange?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes I would, and so would <\/span>many other Southern gentlemen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo speaking again only for yourself, might this lead you to try and do something to redeem your honor in regard to the one who shamed you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes sir, that is entirely possible.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you, nothing further.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The Judge\u2019s voice rang out in the heat of the morning. <\/span>\u201cMr. Siegal, call your next witness. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI would like to call Dr. Arthur West to the stand but since that is clearly impossible since he is in the hospital I have gone to him and asked my questions, as has Mr. Scholer. <\/span>I am happy to report he is on the mend.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal popped the video tape into the large TV VCR unit which was hooked up in tandem with a second unit so all of the principles including the judge and the jury could watch this crucial testimony. Siegal began the questioning<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDr. West, I must be direct with you, though I am mindful of not over taxing you today.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cGo right ahead.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWere you scheduled to have a
\nmeeting with Kahlil el Said at nine o\u2019 clock in the park behind the Shrine of the Book on the night he was shot?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, I was.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd did you make that meeting?\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell in a manner of speaking. When I got there Kahlil was already shot and on the ground. <\/span>I heard the shot as I was walking up the hill near the Shrine.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWould it be correct to say that your fingerprints were the only one\u2019s found on that derringer?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, that is correct.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry Scholer got carried away at that point. <\/span>Sticking his face in the camera he said: \u201cYour honor, testimony has already been heard clearing Dr. West of the shooting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal continued:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd would it be correct to say that you were the person who discovered the Lazarus stone, and also had a close relationship with Kahlil el Said.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u2018Yes, I have known Kahlil el Said for many years.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd lastly would it also be correct to say that you were short on money for this season\u2019s dig, and so selling a precious piece of antiquity might have funded you quite well?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAs to the first part of the question, you are right. <\/span>I was short on funds. <\/span><\/p>\n

As for the second part, my integrity has been upheld in this matter, and I am not on trial here. <\/span>I would never sell something found more recently than 1978 in this land. <\/span>Never. <\/span>This ought to be clear from the fact that I turned over to the police all the money that mysteriously appeared in my bank account a few days ago, It\u2019s against the law to sell such antiquities.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cBut it is strange that you are the only one who has a self-admitted link to the crime scenes and to Kahlil, whom Dr. Stone had not met before, and it is only you who have prints on the gun. <\/span>And last but not least, you were found in possession of the forged copy of the stone. <\/span>Is that not so?\u201d <\/span>By now Simon was becoming more insistent and strident in his tone.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAll of these things are true, and yet I have committed no crime. <\/span>All of the evidence so far presented accurately explains all of these situations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThank you, Professor West, enlightening but not convincing since you are the only one who has admitted to all the right connections in this case.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry Scholer then appeared in front of the camera:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c Dr West,\u201d he began, \u201cCan you tell the court where you went the very morning you discovered the Lazarus stone in the tomb?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAfter a quick shower and change of clothes at home, I went straight to the IAA with my digital pictures, which are even dated as to time. They show that I reached the IAA office within an hour of taking that picture.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, and tell me would it have been logistically possible, since no one before you even knew there was a Lazarus stone, to have taken that picture, then chiseled the stone out of its place and hidden it, then showered, gone straight to the IAA and shown them the picture, then returned to the tomb and acted surprised it was gone? <\/span>Would such a course of actions made any sense at all?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn my judgment no,\u201d said Art, \u201cand anyway the date and time on the picture shows I did not have time to chisel out the stone and hide it before going to the IAA. That\u2019s a delicate operation which takes at least an hour in itself, as limestone is fragile and the stone would have broken if it had not been chiseled out with care.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo you are saying, just to be completely clear, that there is no way you stole the Lazarus stone and sold it to someone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCorrect,\u201d said Art, \u201cas should have been apparent since we now know that Patrick Stone had it in his possession and sold it to the British Museum since the Museum has told the court so.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHow would you characterize your relationship with Patrick Stone? <\/span>Have you been friends or close colleagues?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo we have not, indeed for whatever reason Dr. Stone has avoided me, and there seems to be some antipathy. We have never hit it off, and he has never been in my house either in the States or here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo anyone
\nwho knows you, would know that a scheme that would involve both you and Patrick Stone in some antiquities crime is highly unlikely?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIndeed\u201d said Art, \u201c and the British museum also attested that it was Stone who gave them my account number to wire the money to.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHow in the world did Stone get your account number, if you were not close friends and he had never visited you?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c I have no idea, but it had to be by some nefarious means.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry interjected: \u201cLet the record show that Simpson has already testified he got the number for his mentor when he followed West to the bank one day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This was the end of the video tape testimony and it was clear that the wounded warrior West had cut a sympathetic figure on tape. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The Judge called out: \u201cMr. Siegal, have you a further witness?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell no your honor but <\/span>I\u2019d like to recall, Kahlil el Said.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI object, your honor,\u201d said Levi. <\/span>\u201cThe man has already testified.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe is here in the court, I believe, so I will allow it,\u201d said the Judge.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. el Said, I am sorry to trouble you further, but I must ask one more time. Had you ever personally met Dr. Stone before that day you claim he was in your shop?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo sir\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd even on that occasion, did you know that he was Dr. Stone?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, it was a brief exchange, but memorable after all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSo you had never seen Stone before that day in your shop, didn\u2019t know he was Stone then, and after that you got a blow on the head and your memory came back slowly \u2013 right?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIf you say so,\u201d said Kahlil fuming a bit.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo more questions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry rose and asked Kahlil, \u201cHasn\u2019t the doctor cleared you to go back to work in the shop on the assumption that you are now of sound mind?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, that is correct,\u201d said Kahlil feeling a bit better. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry nodded his head toward the judge who said, \u201cYou may step down ,<\/span><\/p>\n

Mr. el Said.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>At that point, Levi asked if he could approach the bench. <\/span>A courier had quietly entered the court room during Kahlil\u2019s testimony. <\/span>The judge summoned both Siegal and Levi to the bar. <\/span>Harry said, \u201cWe have a witness in the hall who couldn\u2019t get here yesterday.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Siegal, I am trusting that since you didn\u2019t challenge this name before you will not challenge the name now \u2013 William Arnold.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal was not pleased, but tried to maintain a poker-face. <\/span>He said. \u201cAlright, he can come in but I have the right to cross-examine him.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIndeed you do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe prosecution calls William Arnold.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>William Arnold came into the court wearing a seersucker blazer and white gauze shirt. <\/span>His dark features and goatee made him stand out from the crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Arnold, can you state your profession?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, and it\u2019s Dr. Arnold.. <\/span>I am a professor of Aramaic and Biblical Studies at a leading seminary in Kentucky, Asbury Seminary.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, and to get right to the point, were you in Kahlil\u2019s shop the day Patrick Stone came in? <\/span>If so, please describe what happened.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes I was. It was late afternoon, Tuesday, June 1. <\/span>I had just finished purchasing some coins. <\/span>I have here the receipt to prove that I was there on that da
\ny. <\/span>I carefully save receipts from such purchases. <\/span>It even has a time stamp on it.\u201d <\/span>He handed the receipt to Harry who passed it to the Judge. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry smiled, \u201cI\u2019m glad you are very careful with your money, Dr. Arnold. <\/span>And do you give equal attention to the details about people\u2019s names and faces.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201c I do indeed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDo you know Dr. Patrick Stone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI have met him at ASOR meetings several times. <\/span>That\u2019s the American <\/span>Society of Oriental Religion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd did you see him in Kahlil\u2019s shop on the day in question, fuming and trying to sell something?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, I saw him on that precise day with the package in his hand. <\/span>I couldn\u2019t see the contents from where I was sitting in the back of the shop. <\/span>He started shouting. <\/span>Hannah el Said, I believe, was hiding behind a desk.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNothing further.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal leapt up. <\/span>\u201cDr Arnold, you say you know Patrick Stone, and yet how can you be sure? <\/span>Are you a personal friend of his?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, I am not, but I have certainly met him before and spoken briefly with him. <\/span>Here is an ASOR program from three years ago. <\/span>There was a listing of the panelists for a discussion \u2013 <\/span>Patrick Stone and William Arnold were listed side by side. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u2018This proves nothing. <\/span>For all we know Dr. Stone did not show up for this panel discussion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAh, but he did,\u201d smiled Dr. Arnold. <\/span>\u201cIn the very next issue of ASOR we have the dialogue that he and I and the other scholar had on that occasion.\u201c <\/span>He handed the journal to Siegel who was obliged to enter it into evidence.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou have no idea, however, what was in the package?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNo, I never saw it. <\/span>When Mr. el Said returned, embarrassed, he dismissed the incident.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYou are a much younger man that Patrick Stone, still making your reputation \u2014 <\/span>yes?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnd so it would be to your advantage to claim you had a relationship with the famous Patrick Stone of Yale \u2013 <\/span>yes?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNot any more,\u201d said Arnold and smiled.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal made a face and said: \u201cNothing further your honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMr. Siegal, have you any more witnesses?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSince we believe we have shown reasonable doubt about Dr. Stone\u2019s guilt in these matters, the defense rests, now your honor,\u201d said Siegal.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cVery good, we will hear closing statements on Monday at 10 AM. <\/span><\/p>\n

Court is dismissed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>On the steps of the courthouse the press stuck microphones first in the face of Siegal and then in the faces of Levi and Scholer asking for comments. <\/span>On this day both parties said, \u201cThe transcripts which will be available in about a half hour, speak for themselves, we are confident of victory in this matter.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span> <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIXTY FIVE: <\/span>CLOSING ARGUMENTS<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span>Harry spent most of the weekend working on and practicing his closing speech to the jury. <\/span>Art had finally come home and was lying on the couch listening periodically but had a habit of dozing off. <\/span>He was physically and emotionally drained. <\/span>He had told the truth in the videotape, but why did he feel so sorry for Stone? <\/span>He prayed a prayer that mercy tempered with justice, rather than the reverse would prevail. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>On the other end of town, Simon Siegal spent the weekend having
\nlong talks with Patrick Stone. <\/span>Saturday afternoon was no exception.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI think a guilty verdict will possibly come your way. <\/span>The prosecution is probably so smug at this point, that I doubt they would be open to a plea bargain. <\/span>Sentencing will be important. <\/span>I think I\u2019ve built a good sympathy case for you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSympathy, you say. <\/span>How much damage did Arnold do me?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cProbably a good deal. <\/span>I was doing damage control to stop the \u2018ugly American\u2019 characterization.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat would jail time look like?\u201d said Stone .<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, on the theft charge, they could sentence you to twenty years. <\/span>But I think we\u2019ve shown that you had no intention of hurting Kahlil \u2013 even though you left the scene of the crime. <\/span>What we will have to do is plead for the minimum time and early parole.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone thought for a while and said, <\/span>\u201cI\u2019m sixty-eight years old. <\/span>I\u2019ve kept all of this from <\/span>my mother. <\/span>She\u2019s senile, you know. <\/span>She\u2019ll probably never miss me.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Siegal was not used to losing, but on this occasion he had a sick feeling in his stomach. <\/span>He decided that he had better come up with a tour-de-force closing statement to evoke maximum mercy from the court.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Judge Dershowitz spent his weekend mulling over his options for sentencing. <\/span>He was not a man lacking in sympathy for the weaknesses of human beings, especially the desire to secure oneself in old age. <\/span>He knew the jury would likely go for a guilty verdict \u2013 but they may opt for lesser charges. <\/span>There were mitigating circumstances to consider. <\/span>He had felt a nudge in the direction of justice tempered with mercy. <\/span>The inscription would be returned. <\/span>He believed that Stone had not planned to hurt el Said. <\/span>He was surprised to learn that Stone planned to give back the small manuscripts. <\/span>Stone was not the usual criminal <\/span>\u2013 but a man suddenly out of control after a fairly controlled life.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Monday morning came too early for all the participants in the trial. <\/span>Most of them loaded up on caffeine. <\/span>The new Starbucks coffee shop near the courthouse had been doing a big business since the trial began. <\/span>Siegal went to the jail to escort Patrick into court. <\/span>Art arose earlier than usual for morning devotions but decided he needed to not go through the emotional trauma of the end of the trial and so he would stay at home. <\/span>His spirit was troubled. <\/span>Sammy Cohen and Grace Levine decided to come together. <\/span>They had not missed one minute of the proceedings. <\/span>The matter with Ray Simpson had been resolved. He was ready to begin community service, but today he was allowed to attend the final session.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>It was difficult even to climb the steps to get into the Maccabee Courthouse on this morning. <\/span>Harry and Benjamin barged their way through the crowd. <\/span>Siegal and Stone, of course, were escorted by the police. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Judge Dershowitz gaveled the session into order, and invited Siegal to deliver his closing arguments. <\/span>On this day Siegel wore a dark business suit, and his mood <\/span><\/p>\n

was serious. <\/span>No flippant remarks today. <\/span>He wanted to look penitent and invoke the sympathies of the jury today. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn Ecclesiastes we read: <\/span>\u2018There is no righteous man on earth who solely does what is right and never sins.\u2019 <\/span>Paul in Romans says the same thing: \u2018All have sinned and fallen short of God\u2019s glory.\u2019 <\/span>I have not put my client on the stand because he is not a young man, and burdened with the weight of his current problems. <\/span>Patrick Stone would be the first to admit he has his failings. <\/span>He made some mistakes in regard to the Lazarus stone. <\/span>The evidence seems to suggest he stole it, but remember that he did not keep the stone, he delivered it safely into the hands of the British Museum. <\/span>Mr. el Said suffered a severe blow to the head, which may have affected his memory, but the gun seems to suggest that my client did indeed shoot el Said. <\/span>I absolutely believe my client when he tells me that his shooting of Kahlil el Said was entirely an accident, brought on by Mr. el Said himself when he grabbed the gun. <\/span>And the gun \u2013 a derringer \u2013 we have heard testimony that this gun is hardly offensive. <\/span>At most, Stone meant to instill some fear in the man. <\/span>There is certainly reasonable doubt in regard to the charge of attempted murder! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDr. Stone\u2019s life has not been an easy one. <\/span>His upbringing was hard, his lack of recognition even by family galling, and it appears he was envious of Dr. Arthur West and his accomplishments. <\/span>I asked you before jury, as I do again now, have you never been tempted to cheat when someone or fate offered you the chance of a lifetime? <\/span>I think you know very well we have all had such temptations.\u201d
\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe difference is, Dr. Stone followed through. <\/span>Nothing premeditated. <\/span>Hasty plans. <\/span>A lot of luck. <\/span>He found himself with money and a way to take care of his dear mother and make his retirement years comfortable.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cRemember, Dr. Stone has not one crime to his record in sixty-eight years. He has been a well-respected academic. <\/span>Should all of that go for naught because of one colossal blunder? <\/span>Is there no such thing as a second chance for a man who has only crossed the boundaries of the law once?\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIt is my hope that you feel some pity, some mercy in your heart for this man. <\/span>Garnish his ill-gotten gains, return the stone to the Israeli museum, but if you impose a harsh sentence now, he will never see the light of day again. <\/span>He is sixty-eight years old and hardly in the peak of health. <\/span>If he goes to jail for any length of time at all, he will never have a chance to bounce back, to redeem himself, to try again to be a good man. Furthermore, he has been a recent victim of a terrorist\u2019s kidnapping\u2014a harrowing experience to be sure.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cLadies and gentleman of the jury. <\/span>Let that stone [he pointed to the picture of the Lazarus stone set on an easel] be returned. <\/span>But let that Stone [he pointed to Patrick] be returned to his home, not the jailer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>There was a hush in the court room. <\/span>The speech had been eloquent and moving, and there were plenty of tears, especially amongst the older persons in the room. <\/span>To watch the ruination of a once proud and noteworthy human being was hard even for the most hard-hearted.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry Scholer arose, sipped a little water out of a glass, and walked around to face the jury. <\/span>He looked each one in the eye before he said a word. <\/span>\u201cFriends, he said, this is a sad day. <\/span>No one should be gloating over the ruination of a man\u2019s life. <\/span>But the saddest part of it all is that Dr. Patrick Stone has no one but himself to blame. <\/span>He cannot blame his parents, he cannot blame his culture. <\/span>He had coped well and not violated the law his whole life. <\/span>He earned a Ph.D. and though not the most notable of scholars, he was a professor at a prestigious university.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone made a tragic series of decisions recently. <\/span>Who knows why it happened now? <\/span>Perhaps he ceased to fear or even believe in God? <\/span>Perhaps he became tired of being an academic with no real prospects of further achievement. <\/span>Perhaps he was just tired of living a mundane, lonely life. <\/span>But consider for a moment a contrast.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhen Arthur West was at the scene of Kahlil el Said\u2019s shooting, and had actually touched the gun that shot Kahlil, he called both the ambulance and the police. <\/span>He did not think of himself first; he did not run and hide. <\/span>In fact, he went to the hospital and gave blood for Kahlil.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhen Arthur West first discovered the Lazarus stone, he took pictures and reported his findings to the IAA. <\/span>Even when the forged copy of the stone was found in his house he did not run away. <\/span>He faced the police inquiry with dignity. <\/span>When Art West had a huge amount of money unexpectedly turn up in his bank account he turned it over to the police!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWhat a contrast with the man who stole the stone, ran from a crime scene, left his teaching assistant in the lurch, swindled the British Museum, and snuck off to a life of luxury in Monaco! <\/span>Which of these sets of actions are the actions of an honest and good man? <\/span>I am sure you know the answer to that question.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWe have presented clear and compelling evidence of the guilt of Dr. Stone, both in regard to the theft and forgery, and in regard to the shooting. <\/span>In regard to the theft, Dr. Stone was seen in the area of the tomb at the church; he was seen in Kahlil\u2019s shop with the stone and positively identified by William Arnold, and we have the affidavits of Dr. Oliver St. James of the British Museum who handled the so-called sale of the stone for millions of dollars. <\/span>All of this has been entered into evidence.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn regard to the forgery, it is clear that Patrick Stone ordered Raymond Simpson to make the copy and have it delivered to Arthur West.\u201d <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cIn regard to the shooting, Stone\u2019s it was his family heirloom, a derringer, that shot Kahlil el Said, and his hair fiber was found on the jacket Kahlil wore that day.\u201d <\/span> <\/span>His memory may be fuzzy about the details, but Mr. el Said has stated that Patrick Stone did indeed shoot him. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe testimonial evidence against Dr. Stone is both clear and compelling. <\/span>And I would remind you again of this fact \u2013 the IAA has been working very hard in recent years to stop looting and forging. <\/span>The Lazarus stone is a major archaeological find. <\/span>Don\u2019t send the wrong signals to looters that they can get off with a slap on
\nthe wrist when they try and steal our history for the sake of money and personal gain. <\/span>Don\u2019t let it happen. <\/span>As the Bible says, \u2018Whatsoever a man soweth, that he shall also reap.\u2019 <\/span>Thank <\/span>you.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry sat down feeling he had risen to the occasion and at least had left the right message ringing in the juror\u2019s ears. <\/span>The judge dismissed the jury with the charge. <\/span>\u201cCome back with a unanimous verdict on these various counts as soon as you reasonably can.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The jury left the court room, as did everyone else. <\/span>As usual, all the counselors spoke to the media saying they were confident justice would be done. <\/span>Everybody put their cell phones on ring, and went out to eat. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIXTY SIX: AND THE WINNER IS . . .<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The jury was out only five hours. <\/span>At four o\u2019clock, the foreman of the jury called the judge and said, \u201cWe are ready to deliver the verdicts.\u201d <\/span>Legal aides stationed at the court house started calling all the principles. <\/span>The verdict was in.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>The courtroom was packed and the jury came in all looking somber. <\/span>The judge sat down in his seat, used his gavel, and said: \u201cMembers of the jury, have you reached a verdict in this case?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The foreman stood up and handed the judge a folded piece of paper. <\/span>Slowly Judge Dershowitz surveyed the verdicts. <\/span>He turned to the foreman. <\/span>\u201cOn the count of stealing the Lazarus inscription, how do you find? <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWe find the defendant guilty, your honor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>On the count of forgery, how do you find? <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>We find the defendant guilty, your honor.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Then the judge took a deep breath. <\/span>\u201cIn regard to the attempted murder of <\/span>Kahlil el Said, how do you find?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWe find the defendant NOT guilty of attempted murder, but guilty of aggravated assault.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Stone buried his head in his hands and wept, his shoulders and torso shaking.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u2018Thank you jury, you are dismissed from further duties.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Then, surprisingly, Judge Dershowitz said, <\/span>\u201cSince it is within my powers to pass sentence NOW, I intend to do so now. <\/span>This was obviously a serious set of crimes committed by Dr. Stone, and he should not receive preferential treatment because of his academic contributions to society. <\/span>I have determined that the following sentence meets the requirements of justice tempered with mercy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFirst, Dr. Stone must serve ten years in prison; however, he will be eligible for parole after five years.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSecondly, all ill-gotten gains must be returned to the British Museum through the garnishing of his two bank accounts, and the sale of his house and car in Monaco. <\/span>If there is a windfall of extra money upon the sale of the house, the extra money must be set aside for the building of the Lazarus stone and papyri museum, next door to the Shrine of the book.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThirdly, in consultation with the IAA we have worked out an agreement with the British Museum whereby one piece of the small papyri will go into the collection in the British Museum, in exchange for the return of the Lazarus stone.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFourthly, the el Said family is free to sue Dr. Stone at any point if they so choose.\u201d <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cFinally, Mr. Simon, I am afraid you will have to accept that your work was pro bono.\u201d <\/span>At this the gavel smashed down for the last time.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Harry stood up and yelled \u201cHallelujah!\u201d <\/span>He hugged Benjamin Levi and his son, and Grace, and anyone else he could hug. <\/span>Simon Siegal shook Dr. Patrick Stone\u2019s hand and watched as he was led away. <\/span>They would discuss appeals but he could not see any reason to argue for a lesser sentence. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art for his part was glad to hear by phone from Harry that Stone had not gotten life in prison. <\/span>Of course, now he would lose his academic post as well, but there was nothing to be done about that. <\/span>Now he could go back to concentrating on his work again. <\/span>Suddenly the phone rang. <\/span>It was Hannah.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAre you feeling well enough to go out tonight for a while? Want to catch the 9 o\u2019clock <\/span>show at the Le Jazz Hot \u2013 <\/span>you won\u2019t believe it but Diana Krall is in town.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWow,\u201d said Art. <\/span>\u201cYou bet. <\/span>I\u2019ve been wanting to hear her. I\u2019m going to call Grace and see if she will come.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Hannah replied shyly. <\/span>\u201cYou could also invite that nice Harry Scholer. <\/span>And I should tell you, my father and I will not be suing poor Dr. Stone. <\/span>It is time to forgive and forget.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art figured the fastest way to find Grace was to phone her. <\/span>He invited her to the show. <\/span>She hesitated, \u201cI would love to go but I have a favor to ask. <\/span>Can we bring my mother? <\/span>She and I have been enjoying each other\u2019s company of late. <\/span>And she was fascinated by my description of the jazz club. <\/span>Let\u2019s bring her!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSure, the more the merrier,\u201d agreed Art. <\/span>The Lazarus effect, thought Art, things brought back from the dead, even troublesome relationships, even me from two gunshot wounds.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The line to get into Le Jazz Hot was reasonable, and soon the whole crew had arrived and were sharing a meal. <\/span>An interesting group it was: <\/span>Hannah and her father, Kahlil; Grace and her mother, Camelia; Art and his friend Harry Scholer. When they were finishing their baklava and coffee, they wandered down to the little tables in the front of the small club. <\/span>Not ten minutes later a beautiful blond in a black jump suit appeared. <\/span>Her guitar player, bassist and drummer started out without her. <\/span>She then joined them with a rousing rendition of Coltrane\u2019s version of the Broadway tune, \u2018My Favorite Things.\u2019 <\/span>Before Art knew what was happening Hannah and Harry were up on the dance floor! <\/span>Art smiled a huge smile, and simply said \u2013 \u201cthe Lazarus Effect\u201d. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIXTY SEVEN: <\/span>THE LAZARUS EFFECT<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Tuesday morning about ten o\u2019clock, Art\u2019s phone rang. <\/span>This time it was Mustafa. <\/span>\u201cBrother Art, you must come soon. <\/span>I have been working with Grayson Johnson for some days. <\/span>And now, we have a surprise for you here at the church.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHow about I come this afternoon, say about one o\u2019clock. <\/span>Shall I bring anyone?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes, you may bring everybody! <\/span>I hope it will be a joyful time! <\/span>You must all come!\u201d <\/span>With that rather unusual barrage, Mustafa, a man normally <\/b>of few words, hung up. <\/span>Now Art was eager just to do what he had prayed about and then get himself to Bethany.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The headlines in the Jerusalem Post <\/i>this morning said it all:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>STONE GUILTY OF STEALING STONE<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

They\u2019d be talking about that trial and its sentencing for a long time. <\/span>The general sentiment on the street was that Patrick Stone got off lightly, but no one was complaining too loudly since the inscription would be coming back to Israel soon enough, and without cost to the country. There was much to say, and much to share, and the impact of the Lazarus findings would reverberate for a long time to come. <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Art spoke to Grace, and said, \u201cYou gotta come with me and Grayson. <\/span>I hear there is another surprise at the Church of Mary and Martha.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cAnother one? <\/span>This I have to see.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI\u2019ve got to go over to the police station and retrieve my passport and do one other errand. <\/span>They are finally giving me the passport back. I guess that means I\u2019m truly in the clear.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOf course you,\u201d are said Grace, \u201cshall we meet for lunch at Solomon\u2019s Porch and then go to the church?.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSure,\u201d said Art, \u201cMy appetite is coming back and I could really use some shwarma and rice.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThe shwarma the better,\u201d quipped Grace.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMy bad puns are rubbing off on you, see ya soon.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The police station was remarkably quiet on this day, and Officer Shimon was surprised to see the tall figure walk slowly into the station. <\/span>\u201cI\u2019m here to retrieve my passport and to see Yeshua James.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cNot a problem,\u201d said Hoffner, \u201cI will accompany you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The walk down stairs to the cells was taken slowly by Art as he didn\u2019t want to push himself too hard just yet. <\/span>He came to the cell where Stone had once been, but now Yeshua was sitting there biding his time.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cOfficer will you give me a private minute with this man, he\u2019s not armed now. Would you just wait down at the end of the hall, and I will call for you when I\u2019m done. Open the cell and lock me in there for a minute.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art could see the stunned look on James\u2019 face and how uncomfortable he was with this surprising development, but he shrugged his shoulder\u2019s and said nothing.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art sat down next to the young man and said: \u201cJesse, I wanted to come and say personally to you that I forgive you, as does Jesus. <\/span>You misjudged me, misjudged me badly. I am not the betrayer of the Bible or of Bible prophecy. Genuinely orthodox Christians like myself and Jamison Law can disagree on some things and still be genuine Christians. <\/span>So I want to say again, I forgive you, but you need to get right with the Lord. <\/span>You need to seek his face. You need to receive the forgiveness he has to offer not merely acknowledge that it exists. What you did was wrong, very wrong, but I have no intent to prosecute or persecute or lecture you about it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span>Jesse finally looked up and looked deeply into Art\u2019s eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cReally,\u201d said Jesse, his voice quavering.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYes,\u201d said Art, \u201creally, the heart of the Gospel is forgiveness.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cDr West would you pray with me, I feel so lost and alone and scared.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSure, lets just pray the prayer Jesus taught us all to pray\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>They began the Lord\u2019s prayer, but when they got to the line about forgive us as we forgive others, Jesse broke down and wept unashamedly holding on to Art\u2019s hand, and said \u201cthank you, thank you, now I can face tomorrow.\u201d <\/span>After a few more minutes Art gave Jesse a hug, and called for Officer Hoffner. <\/span>He turned as he was leaving and smiled at Jesse one last time.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Lunch was rather subdued, and Grace could see Art was pondering things so she was quiet. They had truly enjoyed the shwarma and rice at lunch, it was time to meet Mustafa and Grayson at the church. <\/span>Art thanked Sarah and Grace insisted on getting the tab. They decided to go to the church in Grace\u2019s snazzy red Mazda. <\/span>It took only twenty minutes driving along the top of the Mount of Olives to get to the church. <\/span>Grayson came on the run. <\/span>Slowly, behind him, came another young man. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCome and see down in the crypt, come and see!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cSlow down, Grayson.\u201d West\u2019s eyes shifted to the young man coming towards him \u2013 Raymond Simpson! <\/span>West\u2019s surprised look said it all. <\/span>The two men shook hands while Grayson explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cYeah, Dr. Art. <\/span>You know <\/span>Raymond, my roomie. <\/span>I told you I saw him everyday in jail <\/span>\u2013 I didn\u2019t bail on him like \u2018you know who\u2019 if you get my drift. <\/span>Anyway, the Gospel is powerful, man. <\/span>Raymond\u2019s really on board now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, welcome, Raymond. <\/span>Praise the Lord! <\/span>With your expertise in antiquities, we could use you around here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cWell, the authorities are a bit nervous about me being around digs!\u201c Raymond laughed. <\/span>\u201cBut I\u2019ve been helping Grayson and Mustafa. <\/span>And with your recommendation, anything is possible.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mustafa came and handed them all flashlights. <\/span>Bending over, Mustafa led everyone down into the crypt that lay directly under the high altar in the ch
\nurch. <\/span>After many steps they reached the bottom.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Mustafa said, \u201cShine your lights straight ahead.\u201d <\/span>They did so, and could see what looked like a primitive stone altar, but a very unusual one as it was an altar standing on high legs. <\/span>Underneath the altar could be seen something protruding out each end. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cCome and see,\u201d said Mustafa, his voice almost breaking into tears. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art, Grace, Grayson and Raymond went over to the altar, and Mustafa said, \u201cShine your lights underneath.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>They did so, and there were two small ossuaries, one with the Aramaic name Miriam, which was Mary, the other with the name for Martha. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cThey are here,\u201d said Mustafa. <\/span>\u201cAll along they are here beneath the altar of our church. <\/span>The inscription that Grayson found in tomb said, \u2018Mary buried like saints in Revelation 6 under altar.\u2019\u201d <\/span>His English was falling apart because of the excitement, but they caught his meaning. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art sat down on the damp stone, overcome. <\/span>He shone his light on the front ledge of the altar and he saw a faint inscription in Greek. <\/span>It too was from the book of Revelation. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Allow me, said Raymond. <\/span>\u201cBlessed are those who die in the Lord, henceforth.\u201d <\/span>Tears welled up in his eyes. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Art was also overcome. <\/span>\u201cIt\u2019s all here, all these years, waiting to be discovered, and now this crypt will mean the revival of this church. <\/span>People will come from everywhere to see all of this.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>To Grace he said, <\/span>\u201cL\u2019Chaim <\/span>[\u201cto life\u201d].\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>To Mustafa, \u201cTo the One who came to give life and give it abundantly.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>To Raymond and Grayson, \u201cTo life everlasting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>And to each one of them, \u201cTo the Lazarus Effect.\u201d <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>They all responded in unison, \u201cTo the Lazarus Effect!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

THE END \ud83d\ude42<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ATTENTION K MART SHOPPERS. HERE IS THE REST OF THE NOVEL ‘THE LAZARUS EFFECT’. The whole novel has now been posted. For those of you who were waiting for the whole kit and kaboodle, you’ve got it now. You can cut and paste it all into one file and read away to your heart’s content.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-519","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nTHE LAZARUS EFFECT- PART ELEVEN - The Bible and Culture<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"THE LAZARUS EFFECT- PART ELEVEN - The Bible and Culture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"ATTENTION K MART SHOPPERS. HERE IS THE REST OF THE NOVEL ‘THE LAZARUS EFFECT’. The whole novel has now been posted. For those of you who were waiting for the whole kit and kaboodle, you’ve got it now. You can cut and paste it all into one file and read away to your heart’s content.…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Bible and Culture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2007-05-02T12:48:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ben Witherington\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"THE LAZARUS EFFECT- PART ELEVEN - The Bible and Culture","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"THE LAZARUS EFFECT- PART ELEVEN - The Bible and Culture","og_description":"ATTENTION K MART SHOPPERS. 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You can cut and paste it all into one file and read away to your heart’s content.…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html","og_site_name":"The Bible and Culture","article_published_time":"2007-05-02T12:48:00+00:00","author":"Ben Witherington","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html","name":"THE LAZARUS EFFECT- PART ELEVEN - The Bible and Culture","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/#website"},"datePublished":"2007-05-02T12:48:00+00:00","dateModified":"2007-05-02T12:48:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/#\/schema\/person\/d1fd6c7893819eabc624db38ecfd8426"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/2007\/05\/the-lazarus-effect-part-eleven.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"THE LAZARUS EFFECT– PART ELEVEN"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/","name":"The Bible and Culture","description":"All Things Biblical and Christian","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/#\/schema\/person\/d1fd6c7893819eabc624db38ecfd8426","name":"Ben Witherington","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/75e\/75ec11e1916a2008bc4cc638a0a0de2fx96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/bibleandculture\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/75e\/75ec11e1916a2008bc4cc638a0a0de2fx96.jpg","caption":"Ben Witherington"},"description":"Bible scholar Ben Witherington is Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary and on the doctoral faculty at St. Andrews University in Scotland. A graduate of UNC, Chapel Hill, he went on to receive the M.Div. degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from the University of Durham in England. He is now considered one of the top evangelical scholars in the world, and is an elected member of the prestigious SNTS, a society dedicated to New Testament studies. Witherington has also taught at Ashland Theological Seminary, Vanderbilt University, Duke Divinity School and Gordon-Conwell. A popular lecturer, Witherington has presented seminars for churches, colleges and biblical meetings not only in the United States but also in England, Estonia, Russia, Europe, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Australia. He has also led tours to Italy, Greece, Turkey, Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. Witherington has written over thirty books, including The Jesus Quest and The Paul Quest, both of which were selected as top biblical studies works by Christianity Today. He also writes for many church and scholarly publications, and is a frequent contributor to the Beliefnet website. 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