A friend shared this with me the other day and I thought it would be good to share here – mc.

Reprinted from JAMA – The Journal of the American Medical Association

REVISED from JAMA – The Journal of the American Medical Association March 21, 1986, Volume 256
Copyright 1986, American Medical Association

ON THE PHYSICAL DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST

William D. Edwards, MD; Wesley J. Gabel, M Div; Floyd E Hosmer, MS, AMI

From the Departments of Pathology (Dr. Edwards) and Medical Graphics (Mr. Hoamer), Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.; and the Homestead United Methodist Church, Rochester, Minn., and the West Bethel United Methodist Church, Bethel, Minn. (Pastor Gabel).

Jesus of Nazareth underwent Jewish and Roman trials, was flogged, and was sentenced to death by crucifixion. The scourging produced deep stripelike lacerations and appreciable blood loss, and it probably set the stage for hypovolemic shock, as evidenced by the fact that Jesus was too weakened to carry the crossbar (patibulum) to Golgotha. At the site of crucifixion, his wrists were nailed to the patibulum and, after the patibulum was lifted onto the upright post (stipes), his feet were nailed to the stipes. The major pathophysiologic effect of crucifixion was an interference with normal respirations. Accordingly death resulted primarily from hypovolemic shock and exhaustion asphyxia. Jesus’ death was ensured by the thrust of a soldier’s spear into his side. Modern medical interpretation of the historical evidence indicates that Jesus was dead when taken down from the cross.

The life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth have formed the basis for a major world religion (Christianity), have appreciably influenced the course of human history and, by virtue of a compassionate attitude towards the sick, and also have contributed to the development of modern medicine. The eminence of Jesus as a historical figure and the suffering and controversy associated with his death has stimulated us to investigate, in an interdisciplinary manner, the circumstances surrounding his crucifixion. Accordingly, it is our intent to present not a theological treatise but rather a medically and historically accurate account of the physical death of the one called Jesus Christ.

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The killings continue in Northeast Congo. I asked friends in Congo to send news:

From Damiri (church planter, pastor and a bishop over the churches):

There have been many attacks and killings in the region that have caused our pastors, their families and many church members to move, some to Beni, some to Butembo and others in the deep equatorial forest. After several attacks in Biane, pastor Muyali has moved to Beni with his family and some of his church members, most of them displaced and started living at about 40 kilometers from Biane, near Mambelenga.

Last month as Muyali and Alphonso (our pygmee brother) were preparing to build our church in Mambelenga. Killers came day time and shot bullets on people in the market, others were killed by axles and machetes, houses and a clinic were burnt down. They kept their operation until next morning. Our church members ran to Apende for refuge, pastors escaped from killings in Mambelenga, but until today nobody can tell how many were killed in Mambelenga. About a week later Apende was attacked, Noela [Bethuel’s wife] had left two days before the attack, she had been teaching there; after Mambelenga was attacked, there was no taxi taking people out of that zone, Bethuel had to send brother Bosco from Beni to get Noela back to Beni.

During Apend’s attack, Pastor Germain’s family was scattered in the jungle for one day they did not know where is each other family member was, finally when they decided to go to Beni, we thank God they reached Beni the next day after three motorbike break on their way to Beni in very bad spots where killers pass most of the time.
Some of our Church members from Apende are in Beni, while others went to Mongamba where Pastor Elu is planting our church. Five of our churches are closed now due to the massacres. Pastors and their families are now in Beni and Butembo. 

It is now about one month since Oicha was attacked, people do not sleep in their houses in Oicha fearing for their lives, because killers come sometimes while people are asleep. So every evening they lock up their houses and go to the city center to spend the night on the main road sides. About three weeks ago we had a group of 50 displaced from Oicha, they came to our church in Butembo for assistance.

Beni is full of refugees from all the suburbs around. The main problem is that, they leave almost everything in their villages and cities, they have no food, no pets, no jerrican to fetch water, no bedding… our churches in Beni and Butembo have been assisting the refugies a little bit, but needs are great. 

About one month now, the Italian ambassador got killed at about 15 kilometers from Goma [far to the South]. The officer that went for investigations also got killed. 

We have more than 100 rebel groups in our region. But killers in Beni are Islamist “Daesh”.
The situation is complicated, because some of our soldiers are involved, sometimes things that were looted in villages and cities are found in the army barracks.

Thanks for praying for North Kivu and Ituri region.

From Bethuel (pastor, businessman and bishop):

We are grateful to  all brothers and sisters who care for the Church in Congo. Indeed, we are crossing a very traumatizing period. 

Since the killing of our two missionaries [a few years ago], we have not been able to live in peace. We are serving God in very insecure zones. When one of us goes in those risky zones we feel like we may never see him back again, but God cares. 

The ministry is heavy on us but we are not discouraged. Orphans, widows… displaced people cry day and night for help. Six years of bloodshed, it is too much. 

God have mercy on us.

Here are the pastors:

A friend turned one of my podcasts into a video for our American Sunday School class a couple of weeks ago.

Behold, The German Lemon:

https://vimeo.com/416964877

A friend of mine is a doctor in the Northeast USA. Her husband oversees a major Covid-19 treatment facility. Over the past few days, she and I have exchanged emails, and I thought it might be useful to share what she said. Below is an edited version of our communication.

My friend:

The whole point of a lockdown is to “flatten the curve” so transmission doesn’t occur so quickly, rather than running like wildfire though society overwhelming the medical profession and hospitals. If we can slow it down, we can have time to look for cures, and possibly a vaccine, although I’m not getting my hopes up on that one.

We also need to protect our medical personnel, or we won’t have any left to carry on. We are already learning so much about who is at risk, the crazy and many ways this affects people of all ages.  There are loads of research protocols working on these things now and they are already coming out with information, even if it’s only things that aren’t working.

It’s sobering to look back at the flu epidemic of 1918 which started in Haskell, Kansas and killed over 50-100 million people worldwide in a relatively short period of time. I’m listening to the book The Great Influenza by John Barry.

We learned a lot from that pandemic, but clearly there are many today who are not taking those lessons to heart. Young people in particular were hit hard, particularly boys sent off to war. It was horrific and devastating. When the virus first hit in Kansas a small town it wasn’t as fatal as it became later when it hit the Army barracks. This virus could do the same. It can morph and take on more devastating effects. There were also areas of the world where it was not as lethal.

Influenza in a bad year in the USA in the last decade killed about 60,000+ people, and that was with a vaccine in America. Normally it’s more like 30,000/yr.  This is already beyond that and we are trying to contain it in the strictest way we can. We don’t even know if you can get immunity if you have it once. It could be like malaria (not a virus caused illness) where you get it over and over, and it could potentially kill you each time you acquire it. The residual effects this disease is having on people who survive might be lifelong. My daughter’s boyfriend who is a neurologist, just gave a lecture on all the neurologic manifestations they have seen with COVID, stroke being one of the worst ones. Continue reading →