November 24, 2008

Bibliomancy 101

Over at Facebook — and yes, I have an account, and find it restful to chat with folks and see what's a-doing, but I don't spend my life in an alternate reality (unless you count the Church) — Bob Griffith posted a game involving taking the book nearest you, opening it to page p, and then counting sentences and reporting on the text of the nth sentence. I did so, the nearest book at hand being the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (the old edition). And here is what met my eye:

In 787, Lichfield was made an archbishopric, but the arrangement lasted for only sixteen years.

I am not into bibliomancy or even any other form of artificially assisted prophecy — I have enough trouble dealing with all those sycamore trees — but I can't help but wonder if this could be prophetic of the GAFCON New Anglican Province's fate?

— Tobias

3 comments:

rick allen said...

Well, since 787 is 666 plus the square of eleven, the number of the faithful apostles, and Litchfield is obviously Leech-field, leech being an old term for doctor, or curer, an obvious reference to a curate in the field of the Lord, and since "archbishopric" is obviously composed of "archbishop" and "ric[k]" (please don't go there with the last four letters, however tempted!), and sixteen the first square of the first square, other than the infinite series of squares of the first integer, all being one, or primal unity, I think the meaning is clear. But what the clear meaning is, I can't say.

Anonymous said...

You make a fair point. We can't tell what will be just a footnote in history. And I speak from the gafconite point of view. As a new movement it has a more than fair chance of running out of steam. I think it is only realistic to admit that.

Obadiahslope

Anonymous said...

I speak from the gafconite point of view.

So you say---but I honestly think better of you than that, Obadiah.