GMA As Joan of Arc or FVR As John the Baptist?

CONSUELO DE TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA: AT LEAST BEHEADING WAS FOR THE NOBILITY, ONLY SAVIORS GOT CRUCIFIXION...

FIDEL V. RAMOS, (confounding flattery with malice by thinking himself Charles VII), in his Press Conference this week called again upon President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo "to do the noble thing and cut her term short," -- preferably to six years total reigning time at the helm, by stepping down on say, 20 January 2007, which would be the Sixth Anniversary of the Edsa II People Power Coup d' Etat that brought her to power. FVR added an historial allusion by saying "Gloria can do a Joan of Arc". (Hat tip to the Hillblogger for reminding me of this short but potent remark of Fidel Ramos that has gotten him into a lot of trouble ahead of Saturday's LAKAS-CMD party caucus. (PDI's editorial on that.) In comments to a previous post H.B. says--

...Jeanne d'Arc who was beatified only in 1909 or almost 500 years later after her "conversations with God", was considered not only a 'witch' during her time but was branded mentally ill, a lunatic of some kind, because everytime she was bedevilled by the urge to attack English garissons, she would tell the King that she had been conversing with God who had instructed her to launch the attack (as we have learned recently, no less than Archbishop Cruz had said that speaking to God is called prayer but when God answers you back, that's schizophrenia). That must be one of the FVR's reasons for equating Jeanne d'Arc to Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Secondly, Jeanne d'Arc was used, exploited, egged on, given the resources to do all the things she wanted to do because at the end of the day there was one political purpose, prop up King Charles VII so the latter could get back on the throne without being besieged by the English all the time. And when Charles VIII was finally firmly entrenched in power, there was no more use for poor Jeanne d'Arc - she had to go, burned at the stakes!

WHO WAS JEANNE D'ARC? "(Joan of Arc in English) was born in Domrémy (Lorraine) in 1412, daughter of Jacques d'Arc and Isabelle Romée (died 1458). She played a major (and somewhat mysterious) role in rallying the flagging forces of Charles VII against the English occupier in 1429, leading her troups to breaking the siege of Orléans and having Charles VII officially crowned king in Reims the same year. She was later captured and sold to the English, who burned her at the stake for heresy and perjury in 1431, in Rouen. Her case was officially reopened and the sentence annulled in 1456." She was canonized a Roman Catholic Saint in 1920.

BITS from this Biography of Jeanne d'Arc:

1412 (?), Jan 6 - Born at Domremy to Jacques and Isabelle d'Arc, during the Truce of Leulinghen. Sporadic warfare continued between two rival French factions, the Armagnacs and Burgundians.

1424 (?) - Joan "heard a voice from God to help me govern my conduct" while in her family's garden.

1429, June 18 - Her army crushed a large English force at the Battle of Patay, during which the English lost nearly half of their troops.

1429, July 17 - Charles VII was crowned at Reims' Cathedral. Joan was at his side, holding her banner.

WHO WAS SALOME AND WHY WAS JOHN THE BAPTIST BEHEADED?In the Gospel According to Matthew (14:1-12) one reads --

For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him.
When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

The story of Salome, Herodias, Herod the Tetrarch and John the Baptist are touched on by FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS, the great First Century A.D. Historian of Jewish Antiquities.--

Antiquities 18.5: Herodias was married to Herod, the son of Herod the Great by Mariamme the daughter of Simon the high priest. They had a daughter Salome, after whose birth Herodias, taking it into her head to flout the way of our fathers, married Herod the Tetrarch, her husband's brother by the same father, who was tetrarch of Galilee; to do this she parted from a living husband.

Antiquities 18.5.2 116-119: Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's army came from God, and was a very just punishment for what he did against John called the baptist [the dipper]. For Herod had him killed, although he was a good man and had urged the Jews to exert themselves to virtue, both as to justice toward one another and reverence towards God, and having done so join together in washing. For immersion in water, it was clear to him, could not be used for the forgiveness of sins, but as a sanctification of the body, and only if the soul was already thoroughly purified by right actions. And when others massed about him, for they were very greatly moved by his words, Herod, who feared that such strong influence over the people might carry to a revolt -- for they seemed ready to do any thing he should advise -- believed it much better to move now than later have it raise a rebellion and engage him in actions he would regret. And so John, out of Herod's suspiciousness, was sent in chains to Machaerus, the fort previously mentioned, and there put to death; but it was the opinion of the Jews that out of retribution for John God willed the destruction of the army so as to afflict Herod.

ON SATURDAY THE 14th LAKAS-O-NOSTRA all the Lakas families, now called LAKAS-CMD, all the capos crimini, bastones, regime, soldati and the consiglieri, all will meet to make the peace and continue LAKAS-O-GMA under the new, younger, more imaginative, more aggressive leadership not given to flights of democratic baptism or silly urgings to do noble things that are the stuff of old men's dreams....There is some suspense over what will happen to Joe de Venecia -- but not much...Sorry to shift into tomorrow's metaphor after such a nice visit to the First Century...