Selected Articles
Man the Choicemaker
Nature vs. Government
A Fairy Tale of Glibness of Pap
"Be Thou an Honest Man?"
"Champion Y'shua Jesus"
Halloween 365 Nights-a-Year
Humble? On Purpose?
"In League with the Stones..."
Law or Principle
"Paid In Full."
Hands of a Teacher
"The Flyer said..."
The Force in Motion
The Jew
The Value of the Individual
"Why un-Believers Can't THINK"
"The Mathematics of Life"
Butter and Honey
Declaration of Independance - Intro
Humanism
Isaac Newton
Letter to Sam Lamb
Tribute to an Uncommon Educator
Classic Mediocrity
U.S. Marines
A New Life
Under God
"Big Jim" Causey
Leadership
A Fairy Tale of Glibness of Pap
In 1993, a dozen Christian leaders were invited by President Clinton to attend a private breakfast at the White House. It was for the stated purpose of "sharing concerns" with the Christian community of the Nation.
None of the Christian leaders voiced any criticism of Clinton's policies, however, some of those present denounced other Christians who had voiced national criticism of Clinton's policies on abortion, homosexuals in the military, and condom distribution in the schools. Generally, the President was praised and validated as a fellow-Believer.A Fairy Tale of Glibness of Pap
by James Fletcher Baxter
© 1997 All Rights Reserved
In the fullness of time, John the Baptist was invited to the palace of Herod the Tetrarch. Upon receiving the invitation, John cancelled his weekly Jordan River obligation and purposed to go to the palace with a big smile on his face and a great big positive thought in his head. "I won't mention any negativity of Herod's, such as his glands and his brother's wife," John thought. "After all, there are no crocodiles here. They are all in the great River Nile. Yeah! That's it! They're all in the great River Nile. Cool!""Anyway," thought John, "I want him to think I'm a great guy in case he might want my advice in the future, and then I will have a positive influence on his choices."
So, along with several other community leaders, John went to the palace with great hopes of ingratiating himself to the ruler.
* * *
After breaking the fast with dainty finger sandwiches, kiwi fruit in oil of banana, and tasty Girl Scout Cookies, the occasion turned to the light banter of good fellowship among like-minded men of the royal kingdom. After a pause, Herod burped, looked at John, and said, "What think ye, John? What might you tell me to aid in my rule of this country? You have three minutes. GO!"John gulped, and with a quick plunge into a sea of words, he blurted, "There are no crocodiles here! Gulp! I just wanted you to know." The other leaders looked at each other.
"Yeah," chirped Herod, "I know what you mean. I had a lot of crocs back home. Heh-heh. You still have two minutes."
"Well," piped John, "I have great respect for the Office of Tetrarch, and gulp...."
"And,....?" smirked the Tetrarch.
"And, well, gulp, Tet Herod, I really feel you are 'Mr. Cuteness,' in all your ways, and...."
"And,....?" yawned Herod.
"Gulp, well, I don't think you could have ascended to this throne unless you were a really smart feller and had many skills, known and unknown, and we are like-spirited brothers!"
"TIMES UP," shrilled the Tetrarch. NEXT!"
And, so they went, from the first to the last, proclaiming Herod's virtues of royal cuteness and cool brilliance. John was correct. There was not one 'crocodile' in the whole bunch!
Finally, Herod the Tetrarch yawned, fluttered his eye-lids, mewed, and waved them all away from his presence and out of his throne room - every one except one of the group who was invited to stay overnight.
* * *
John was never again invited to the palace. To his last day he mused about what he might have said to make a better impression in order to have a lasting influence on Herod and his future choices. He never understood why.... "Oh, well," thought John. "I never really wanted the reputation that goes with 'kissing it up' to celebrities. At least, I still have my glibness of repetition and detailed attention to pap. Anyway, if I made any errors, who is great enough or worthy to correct me? Hmmph!"John never was corrected and, to this day, no one has ever heard of John.
But, after all, this is a REAL Fairy Tale!
* * *
NOTE: The true story of manly John the Baptist and his leadership can be found in the Gospel of Matthew, including, the following tribute from Jesus: "Verily, I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist..."
Matthew 11:11 KJV