Devout Doubts
"I will now read from the Gospel according to John, paragraph 11:25, "And Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me will live even if he dies,"" as the preacher now closed the Bible, but continued with the service…
Gibbs and Ziva sat at the back of the crematorium, as always Gibbs was watching the watchers while Ziva was wondering what she was doing at a Christian service.
"Why am I here?" she whispered to Gibbs.
"As a woman, have a look at the men; see if anyone is grieving, who looks really upset."
The service came to an end, and the minister thanked everyone for attending and that the family were having a reception at home.
-oOo-
"Agent Gibbs, thank you for coming," Alexis Jack said as she passed Ziva a cup of tea, "Sure you won't have something stronger?" as she watched Gibbs toy with the cup and saucer.
"No Ma'am I'm fine, but Mrs Parker, Sallie?"
"Agent Gibbs, I may be Alexis Parker, but my married name is Jack, I have always used my maiden name in politics."
"Mrs Jack, I apologise, we know that Sallie was murdered but we need to find a motive, was there anyone in her life that she was afraid of. Anyone who may have wished her harm," Gibbs asked gently.
"My daughter loved her job, there were not many female Seabees, but she enjoyed construction, and she loved the Navy. She enjoyed building structures, even as a child she would build with building blocks, she was always good. It was after her last tour, she came back depressed. One of the walls she had helped to build collapsed, killing a child and injuring a fellow construction worker. It was proved she had nothing to do with the death and that the building had been sabotaged, it just didn't help her mental state. She had seen too many of her fellow Navy Seals and Army colleagues killed. Something inside her died."
"When she came back, was she offered counselling?" Ziva asked.
"The MRFF (Military Religious Freedom Foundation) are telling them to find Jesus, it is the only way to overcome the trauma. What we're seeing is actually a national disgrace, a disgrace that is actually increasing suicides rather than reducing them, they not only instruct and favour evangelism but are fuelling the dangerous perception that America is on a religious crusade against the Muslim world. We're standing by as a wave sweeps over us taking our children in its wake," Alexis continued, in her political voice, "But please if you could come back tomorrow I will talk more, as you can see I have a house full," as she surveyed the room.
"Thank you for your time, Mrs Jack, what time would be best for you?" Gibbs now asked.
"Ten o'clock?"
-oOo-
Gibbs and Ziva returned the next morning. Mrs Jack looked tired, but still the professional, she was dressed for business.
"Coffee?" she enquired of the pair, who nodded their thanks, "Please take a seat while I prepare," indicating to the settee.
Gibbs and Ziva looked about the room, it was easier to gauge, now the room, was vacant of people, a picture of Jesus adorned one of the wall and Gibbs noticed two Bibles in the book case.
"I take it you prefer black coffee Agent Gibbs and Ms David a touch of milk?" as Alexis poured and handed out the cups.
"Mrs Jack, I notice that you are religious, may I ask what denomination?" Gibbs asked.
"I am an Evangelist, but I do not preach my religion, as some do, I prefer to take it in its stride, but going back to what I was saying yesterday, I realise," as Alexis now laughed, "I was preaching a little, I didn't mean to."
"No offence, Ma'am, but you were saying about the MRFF?" Gibbs continued.
"Oh yes, it is actually growing, a military evangelism, or should that be Christian Supremacy. What it is cultivating, is an Evangelical subculture. Instead of sending our traumatised soldiers to professionals for counselling, it is sending them to proselytising evangelical chaplains, who are apparently being used with increasing frequency to provide the health care, due to the acute shortage of mental health professionals."
"I'm not sure I understand," Ziva now replied touching her Star of David subconsciously.
Alexis smiled as she looked at Ziva, "They have major roles in setting professing Christians up for deception. They seduce people to think and act like a subculture instead of reading the Bible for themselves and deriving their understanding from the Bible. It has been this subculture that has infected the Evangelicals with psychology, self-esteem, political action and social activism, unity at the expense of sound doctrine, mysticism, and cult attachments to gurus, movements, and organizations. Ultimately, the end of this deception is a merging of the Evangelical Subculture."
"Subculture?" Gibbs now questioned writing in his notebook
"Yes, I had not understood the nature of the Evangelical Subculture. This subculture has its own organizations and institutions, denominations, parachurch organizations; its own magazines and radio stations and TV networks; its own celebrities; its own music industry and book stores. It has its own marketing and advertising worlds. I will show you my daughters room maybe you can make sense of the mess, if you can call it that," as Mrs Jack now stood to show the way.
They walked down the corridor to a room on the left, "I hope you find what you are looking for, as I don't. As soon as you finish I need to clear, but take what you require," Alexis said before turning.
"After you Gibbs," Ziva smiled at Jethro.
The pair entered the room, and looked about, in any normal situation you would say a teenager's bedroom, but this was the room of a 26 year old. The walls adorned with posters of Amy Grant, and Tim Tebow. On the desk beside the bed a diary, a blog, only it was called B.I.B.L.E…..Basic Instructions Before leaving Earth.
The pair looked around, not only the walls adorned with posters but with the sign of a fish.
"You know what the sign means Gibbs?" Ziva asked.
"Nope, but I'm sure you know and Ducky will love to tell us….hey look bracelets, they have the fish sign too."
"Friendship bracelets," Ziva added.
"Kelly had a couple of Strawberry Shortcake, but bag and tag, and some of the CD's, we'll see if Abby can make head or tail of this," Gibbs concluded.
-oOo-
"Wow, Killah Priest" Abby said looking down at the diary.
"Who?" Gibbs asked bemused.
"Killah Priest, he's a black rapper out of Brooklyn, He is known for his intensely spiritual lyrics, loaded with metaphors and religious references. This particular reference was off Heavy Mental, 15th track, B.I.B.L.E. awesome," Abby oozed.
"And he's an evangalist?"
"Not that I know of, but Amy Grant,she's a Christian singer, and wow Gibbs some of these CD's… Stryper, Petra and Die Happy…..she was well into Christian music or White Metal as they say. But Gibbs, this one by Petra, their album Come and Join Us, has "God Gave Rock and Roll to You," Abby continued.
"Originally written and recorded by the great British Rock group Argent," Ducky added.
"Oh yes, I remember the song, it was on the film "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey," Tony responded.
"Exactly and it went on to become a Contemporary Christian rock anthem," Abby replied.
"But getting back on course here, Tim Tebow, I know of, a star quarterback for the Denver Broncos.," Gibbs replied.
"True, and a real hardcore evangelical Christian, he was raised by two Baptist missionaries and he even prays during football games," Tim answered.
"But the fish sign, I know it is Christian but what does it mean?" Tony now asked with a puzzled look on his face.
"I= iota, X= Chi, Q= Theta, U or in some cases Y= upislon and finally S= sigma, when put together they become ichthys or roughly translated as 'Jesus Christ, God's Son, Saviour", Abby replied.
"And may I add," Dr Mallard now asked entering the conversation again, "The 1st letter of the Greek alphabet, Alpha, looks like a fish, and remember your Bible, Revelations 22:13, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, in other words, the First and the Last, the beginning and the End."
"And of course Ducky, in Revelations 1:8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come the Almighty," Abby added with a smug smile.
"I am Jewish, I do not believe in this, we are still waiting for the true Messiah, who has not come to Earth to redeem the children of Israel," Ziva replied defiantly.
"Please," Ducky continued, "An old joke declares that America and England are divided by a common language. In the same way, you could say that Judaism and Christianity are divided by a common Bible, except that, historically speaking; the consequences of that division have not been a laughing matter. It is exactly because Jews and Christians agree on the divine status of the Hebrew Bible that their disagreement about the New Testament has been so fraught."
"Good, but returning to Sallie and this Evangelical Subculture," Ziva now asked.
"Yes, thetragedy of the subculture," as Ducky began his psychological profile of Sallie, " Is that those people who have a sincere desire to follow Jesus get side tracked into a zeal for being a part of this worldly system. It is like joining a club. The club member begins to wear the clothes and trinkets, as you can see from the bracelets, they watch "Christian" TV and listen to "Christian" radio; worship the "Christian" celebrities," pointing to the CD's and the posters. "A cult-like mentality develops among people who see this system as identical to the Body of Christ. Their zeal is for the trappings of the subculture. It is its own religion," as Ducky now continued in full flow, "If someone tries to point out the unbiblical nature of some aspect of this subculture people will take offense because you are criticizing their religion. The subculture becomes the message. The "gospel" that people preach is for conversion to the system, not really to Jesus Christ. The pop culture of Evangelicalism feeds on institutionalism, denominationalism, "non-denominational" institutional church organizations, and the professional clergy system. The professional clergy and their church organizations, in turn, find an indoctrinated constituency to fill their pews and programs. Both the subculture and the institutional churches turn a relationship with Jesus and his people into a participation in a religion and a lifestyle," Ducky continued.
"I had been aware that Christendom, if you can call it that, has a worldly religious structure consisting of political and economic empires and bureaucracies, both Protestant and Catholic, these two religions have fought religious wars and undertaken crusades to retake the "Holy Land" my land, they have burned people at the stake, and continued to preach false Christs and false gospels of works, and they continue to talk about the counterfeit unity called Ecumenicalism," Ziva shouted, "And the MRFF have documented that literature associating Jews with the devil, is now being distributed by chaplains on U.S. military bases and naval ships. This I find very disturbing."
"Can I butt in here," Tim now asked looking at the team, "But this book you brought back, "Goths Gamers and Grrrls: Deviance and Youth Subcultures" by Ross Haenfler, I find disturbing, as an author….."
"And looking at you and Abby, "a Gamer and a Goth," Tony added sarcastically.
"Excusey moi," Abby suddenly said her hands on her hips, "I have read the book and contrary to popular belief Goths are not depressed and grumpy. We lead happy normal lives; it is a safe place to play with death and the darker side of the human existence," as she now waved her hands down as if soothing Karma.
"I too have read the book and us "Gamers and Hackers" as the chapter really likes to call us. We gamers need to belong, and good hackers seek holes in security, and repair."
"Yes, and the Gamers? You belong to secret communities. You create an identity online, one that differs from your own, do you not Elflord. Now the Grrrls I would like to know more about," Tony laughed.
"Actually the full chapter title is "Riot Grrrls and fic writers…."
"And again, you know this Gemcity, being a writer of fiction and an Elflord?" Tony replied sneering.
"Actually," as Tim took his composure, "Grrls, as in a unique way of combining girlish aesthetic with expressions of rage, bitterness and political acuity. Creative expression focused on common female issues such as: sexism, mental illness, body image, eating disorders, sexual abuse, rape, domestic violence, and homophobia. Slash fiction, using two characters from a story and simulating a relationship. These can be heterosexual but are usually homosexual. They started with the fantasy Kirk and Spock in Star Trek, but now include such relationships as Batman and the Joker or Harry Potter and Ron. Groups of people will meet and discuss slash fiction in an environment without hate.
Girls can be open about sex in their discussions. There is not really a pinpointed style for the Riot Grrrl culture," Tim now concluded.
"So this rage, bitterness and the political views, we could be talking the Russian feminist punk rock protest group, Pussy Riot," Tony began to argue.
"Oi, this is getting out of hand and not getting us anywhere, back to the point in hand," Gibbs now shouted.
"See religion always starts wars and arguments," Ziva sighed.
-oOo-
"You all realise that Evangelicalism can be traced back to my own Presbyterian upbringing," Ducky began to say, " Evangelicalism itself, I believe, is a North American phenomenon, deriving as it were from the influence of Pietism and Puritanism along with the Presbyterians. Evangelicalism picked up the peculiar characteristics from each strain – warmhearted spirituality from the Pietists, doctrinal perfection in language, morals, and ritual from the Presbyterians, and individualistic introspection from the Puritans," Ducky now continued, "I remember as a child sitting on cold wooden pews, while the minister would bible thump, waking up old Mrs Simpson from her slumbers. Usually the wafting of mint "Pan Drops" and the rustle of sweety papers always made the Minister even more angry."
"I had a brief Catholic schooling, when we were moving bases, some of the nuns I knew could get extremely agitated," Tim began to say, "But now I think, with my father's illness and everything, I would like to follow some of the Buddhist thinking and ideas of Penny, the Zen thoughts."
"I may bowl with the Nuns and go to church, but I was brought up in the deep South we had our own Gospel Choirs, and I did become an anarchist at one point, but too many rules," Abby added, "But you Tony, what would you say your religion was or is?"
"I would love to say WASP," Tony smiled looking about, "You know White Anglo Saxon Protestant."
"Tony you may be white, but please Anglo Saxon, you are off Italian blood," Ziva replied.
"I know, but I am off rather a small restricted group, whose family wealth and elite connections allow them a degree of privilege held by few others, and my mother was English remember, Uncle Clive and my cousin Crispian …. Clive Paddington. I spent my 17th summer in Blighty remember. Uncle Clive was my mentor. Anglo Saxon, Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire. One of Uncle Clive's primary residencies was this manor house. In the summer, they would have these...annual regattas, and cricket on the lawn," Tony continued.
"Thought it was croquet?" Tim questioned.
"Whatever? Cricket on the village green then, but I would like the think I had a certain upbringing," Tony grinned.
"But in recent years, another minor usage of the word WASP, has appeared in northeastern states to refer to a fashion style or a preppy lifestyle. WASPs are still considered prominent at prep schools and expensive private high schools, primarily in the Northeast. A common practice of WASP families was to present their daughters of high school and college age, traditionally at the age of 17 or 18 years old, to the world, very much like the English debutantes which I assume you were introduced to at your time at Henley?" Ducky now added and enquired.
"Oh yes, Uncle Clive certainly did, he showed me around."
"Then I would say definitely Tony is a WASP," Ziva added.
"You do have a point there," Gibbs now replied.
"But Jethro, what about you? You never mention any religious tendencies," Ducky now asked.
"Duks, the Corps was my religion, my faith, but when Shannon and Kelly died, I did seek some help from one of the Bases' padre's but like we have said, it didn't help. I did light candles; still do if the occasion arises, Kate always wondered, if I was a Catholic. And I have been known to give advice, on where to find suitable companions," Gibbs continued thinking of his first meeting with Kate.
"And now?" Ducky asked.
"Nothing, I will just wait and see if there is a calling for me, but in the meantime may we get back to this case and let's see if we can wrap by tomorrow Sunday, if we all pray together then maybe our collective Gods will give us the answer," Gibbs replied looking at his team, who were all nodding in agreement, this case had given them all thoughts on religion, and maybe they had doubts about whatever religious callings they had…..Devout Doubts.
The End.