Chapter 21

“I don’t get it,” Oscar said in frustration.

“What don’t you get?” the Reverend asked with patience.

“I keep hearing about the teachings of Jesus, but I’ve read the parts where he’s alive and I don’t see any teachings. Sure, there are a couple of stories and the sermon on the mount, but nothing that says these are my teachings.”

“It is the story as a whole that constitutes his teachings,” the Reverend replied.

“Most of it is about what his followers thought he meant. You can’t trust that. They argued and squabbled all of the time,” Oscar said. He flipped through the pages and pointed out example after example of where the apostles argued about what Jesus meant when he told them something. He frowned and said, “I don’t mean any disrespect, but if I were Jesus I would have gathered a slightly smarter crew to follow me.”

The Reverend sat back and thought about his student’s observation. It was not a very flattering observation about the New Testament. Finally, he said, “What were the teachings of John Carter?”

“There weren’t any really. We have the two rules. If it harms none, then do it. Protect the weak from the strong,” answered Oscar.

“So if some people were to write about what John Carter said sixty years from now, what would they say about him?”

“I have no idea,” Oscar admitted.

“There are a lot of people who interacted with John Carter on a regular basis. Some of them have even written books about their experiences. Am I right?”

“Yes, you are.”

“If we were to package all of those books, or at least the better ones of them, together in a single volume, what would you have?”

“Lots of second hand stories about what John did and some of the things he said to them.”

The Reverend sat back and pointed to Oscar. He said, “You’d have a book that was a lot like the New Testament.”

“I suppose so,” Oscar said.

“The truth of John Carter would be sprinkled through it with little insights into what made him great. I knew John Carter and I can tell you that the stories would barely touch the surface of the man and what made him great. I view the New Testament the same way in how it presents Jesus,” the Reverend said. He shrugged his shoulders and said, “It becomes a very interesting book if you view it in that light.”

“I’ll buy that,” Oscar said. Looking over at the Reverend, he asked, “So what are the teachings of Jesus?”

Settling into his chair, the Reverend answered, “Let’s examine some of the episodes of his life in terms of what it says about the man rather than the son of God. Let’s explore the kind of character that he demonstrated in his actions. Does that sound like a reasonable approach to getting a handle on his teachings?”

Nodding his head, Oscar said, “Sure. I assume that we’ll begin at the beginning, which in this case is his birth.”

“Wrong. We begin with the bloodlines,” the Reverend countered. Holding up the Bible, he said, “Let’s begin with the book of Matthew.”

Oscar commented, “Interesting that they trace the bloodline through the fathers until Jesus. He gets his legitimacy through Joseph even though it is said that he was conceived before Joseph had a chance to lie with Mary.”

“That’s our second point of discussion,” the Reverend said with a grin. He said, “We have a couple of bloodlines to cover. Don’t forget about John the Baptist.”

Head hurting from the discussion with the Reverend, Oscar sat down in the third year dining room and examined the menu. After two months back on campus, he had gotten used to the new living arrangements. Kirk came over to the table and sat down while saying, “Hello, roomy. You look tired. How’s it going?”

This year, his roommate was majoring in physics. It was strange to have a roommate with whom he wasn’t having sex. Oscar answered, “I had four hours of nonstop dissection of the New Testament. I’ve read that book six times now.”

“Sounds rough.”

“How was your day?”

“We had one of those really horrible lectures in thermodynamics. There are times when I think my head is going to explode,” Kirk said. He was taking mechanics, thermodynamics, and electricity and magnetism that quarter. They were all three semester courses. All of the engineering students were in his classes as well. He knew that after this year, his classes would be down to a handful of students.

“Still enjoying mechanics?”

“Love it. Sometimes I wonder if I wasn’t meant to be a structural engineer,” Kirk answered. He looked around the dining room and asked, “Where’s Debbie?”

“She’s having dinner with Georgia tonight,” Oscar answered.

Cole wandered over to the table and sat down. He had arrived just in time to hear Oscar’s answer. He said, “They seem to be getting along together now.”

Nodding his head, Oscar said, “Ever since Debbie took care of Jean, she seems to be less hesitant about touching another woman.”

“And Georgia? How is she dealing with the changed Debbie?”

Oscar was silent as he considered Georgia. He answered, “She doesn’t say anything about the increased intimacy other than to say that she appreciates the attention.”

“Does she ever initiate a hug or a kiss?”

“That’s not her style,” Oscar replied. He saw the expression on Cole’s face and said, “Really, that’s not her style.”

Rather than answer, Cole looked across the table at Oscar. He was willing to sit there all night if necessary. Kirk asked, “A woman who doesn’t hug and kiss? That doesn’t sound right.”

“She hugs and kisses me. She just isn’t into that with women,” Oscar said.

“All women hug and kiss each other,” Kirk said. He pointed across the room at two women who hugged on meeting at a table.

“I hadn’t really thought about it,” Oscar answered. He noticed that Cole was still watching him. Concerned, he asked, “What?”

Shaking his head, Cole asked, “So what is Georgia’s style? I’m talking in terms of intimacy.”

“She’s pretty gentle when she’s Georgia and she’s a tiger when she’s George,” Oscar answered.

“I don’t think she has a split personality,” Cole said. He continued to gaze at Oscar.

Shifting uncomfortably, Oscar didn’t know what to make of the comment. He hadn’t meant to suggest that Georgia did have two personalities. Cole continued to stare at him. Oscar finally asked, “What?”

“I’m just thinking about George and Georgia,” Cole answered.

Frowning, Kirk said, “Can’t you Druids ever come out and say what you mean? This is frustrating.”

Cole and Oscar both looked at Kirk with identical smiles on their faces. Cole asked, “What would be the fun in that?”

“How can we remain mysterious and aloof if we say things outright?” Oscar asked with a grin.

Kirk got up and said, “I give up. I get enough of that in class.”

Oscar watched Kirk walk off. Turning to Cole, he said, “I’ve heard other students saying the same kind of things about us lately. It’s like they are all frustrated. What do you think?”

“You’re right. I wouldn’t worry about it though,” Cole replied.

“Why?”

“They are in the midst of learning to think for themselves. For the first time in their lives, people are not giving them answers when they are having difficulty coming to a conclusion. It’s frustrating when someone steals your crutch.”

Oscar realized he had been doing the same thing with his peers without thinking about it. He wondered when he had stopped giving explanations and started asking leading questions. After a minute of thought, he realized that it had begun in the middle of last year. Now he was even avoiding the leading questions. Shaking his head, he said, “We’ve both been doing it. Were you aware of that?”

“Not really. It was only when Oliver pointed it out to me that I realized what I had been doing. Recently, I noticed that you were doing it, too.”

Oscar nodded and said, “I find that interesting.”

“And I find it interesting how easily you changed the topic of conversation. Getting back to George and Georgia,” Cole said wiggling his eyebrows at his fellow student.

“You think it is easy to change the topic of conversation like that?” Oscar asked innocently.

Knowing that Oscar was going to avoid the subject with all his power, Cole stood and said, “You must have other things to worry about. Don’t bother thinking about it.”

“I’ll think about it,” Oscar said flippantly.

“Take my advice and try not to think about it,” Cole said. He emphasized the word think.

After five minutes of trying not to think about it, Oscar slumped forward with his head in his hands. Every attempt not to think about it reminded him of Georgia. The waitress came over with a glass of iced tea knowing that he usually ordered it with his dinner. She asked, “What do you want to eat?”

Oscar looked over at her and said, “Sometimes I’m too smart for my own good.”

“It sounds to me like you should be ordering crow. Closest we have is chicken. Would you like that broiled, fried, or with dumplings?”

Chuckling at her deadpan delivery, Oscar said, “Dumplings, please.”

She winked at him and said, “Good choice.”

Oscar watched her walk off thinking about how special the staff of the school was. Of course, that thought led him back to thinking about his girlfriend. He wondered what Cole was suggesting when he kept talking about George and Georgia. He hadn’t made much progress on the issue when the waitress stopped by with his Chicken and Dumplings.

Seeing that he was still wrestling with whatever was bothering him, she asked, “What’s the matter, Oscar? You look like you have something on your mind.”

“Cole was asking me about my girlfriend.”

“Which one, Georgia or Debbie?”

“Georgia.”

The waitress looked at Oscar for a minute. She knew how they joked about George and Georgia. She said, “You know, my name is Roberta. It would really make me feel odd if my husband called me Robert.”