Tue Sep 16, 2008 8:33 am
Kaye wrote:
I am not sure why, exactly, but when I first saw this card (in a booster set) I thought of this tale from history:
The Legend of Lalibela
In the thirteenth century, a son was born to the royal family in Ethiopia. Walking with him in her garden, his mother stopped when a swarm of bees suddenly appeared and hovered about the infant. His mother named him then "Lalibela" which means "the bees know he will be great."
As Lalibela grew into a fine young prince, he became a Christian in a country that was, at the time, the only Christian country in all of Africa and Asia. But his older brother was jealous. He did not want Lalibela to grow and be a greater ruler than he. So he poisoned him and Lalibela fell into a deep sleep that lasted for three days.
But Lalibela did not die. Instead he had this dream, which may not have been a dream:
Angels took him to heaven. He knelt before God and God told him to build a New Jerusalem. Lalibela went then into the red rock mountains of Ethiopia. The bare, majestic slopes swept out before him -- pink, red and orange.
"Here I shall build," breathed Lalibela. And he closed his eyes and prayed.
Suddenly, a host of angels appeared, carrying hammer, chisels, and dozens of tools that Lalibela had never seen before. The angels looked silently at Lalibela. Lalibela nodded, "Here we shall build."
Without any other words, Lalibela and the angels worked throughout the long, cool night. In the morning, the angels vanished. Lalibela stood alone. The hills rolled away from him, smooth and unbroken by spires, pillars or statues of any kind.
Was all their work in vain? Had it all been a delusion or dream?
But then Lalibela looked down. Rising out of the depths of the Earth, their roofs even with the surface of the ground, were eleven stone churches. They were not built with wood or piled stone. They were carved out of the mountainsides and the Earth itself. One of the churches was four storeys high and carved in the shape of a cross. All the churches had windows, doors, columns and arches and each was a single piece.
Nothing like the churches had ever been made anywhere on Earth... and nothing like them would ever be built again.
"We have built," said Lalibela. "Christ is with us."
Today, Archaeologists know that it would have taken 40,000 men many, many years to create these wonders.
One might think that a man like Lalibela would have Key for his strong connection to the Divine but I always think of Jared. Of course, this is also the Biblical significance of Jared:
Jared (Hebrew:
) in Judeo-Christian religious belief was a fifth generation descendant of the first human beings, the man called Adam and his wife, Eve. His father Mahalalel, great-grandson of Seth, was 65 years of age when Jared was born.
While the Bible speaks of Jared having become father to several sons and daughters, only Enoch is specifically noted by name (born to his father in Jared?s 162nd year) [ref. Gen.5:18, 22a, 24; Hebrews 11:5b; Jude vs.14&15]. The sole named grandchild of Jared?s is Enoch?s son Methuselah, the longest living human mentioned in the Bible [ref. Gen.5:18, 21, 27]. Additionally, Jared was a forefather of Noah and his children, and a pre-Global Flood ancestor of Jesus Christ [ref. Luke 3:23-37]. Jared was 962 years old when he died, the second longest living person mentioned in the Bible.
His son, Enoch, is best known, perhaps for "Enoch walked with God, and was not, for God took him," thus avoiding death at the age of 365.
Does Jared have a current role in the MG3K mythology? Is anyone writing about him? I would be curious to start up a conversation about this intriguing character.
) in Judeo-Christian religious belief was a fifth generation descendant of the first human beings, the man called Adam and his wife, Eve. His father Mahalalel, great-grandson of Seth, was 65 years of age when Jared was born. 
Even if I knew nothing about Penelope, it would make me want to learn more. And I think that's what makes an amazing image. Something that makes you stop and want to explore further. It's the same reason I loved Summer's Kianira image. She seems like a fascinating character.