Decomposition of the Fable

Here is a nice little Easter-y article from the A.P. Basically, if you read the story, it states that a Greek monk, buried 15 years ago has "not decomposed". Now they have him on display in a monastery near Lamia, in a special glass case.

Now, read further into the story. Second paragraph: "...Vissarionas Korkoliakos remains largely preserved..." Ok, well, that's a little different than "not decomposed", but not too much of a stretch.

Next, look at the photo in the article. It's kind of small, so click on it. You will get a bigger photo, and the detail "Found partially decomposed last month after 15 years of burial. A little further out there on the grand decomposition scale, but again, not bad.

Now look at the larger photo you brought up. He is lying right to left, or facing away from the camera. No, those aren't his shoes on this end, that is his face. Or rather, what's left of it. Partially decomposed? Sure, if that means barely intact, black, and decaying. The rest of his body is covered in vestments, but I'm sure it looks similar.

So What??, you are asking. Nothing, really. Just -- people are looking very hard for miracles right now. As a recovering Catholic, I knew growing up that if you were destined for Sainthood, you would NOT decompose, regardless of how long you were buried, laid out, etc. IMHO, he would not qualify.

Now, Vladimir Lenin, on the other hand -- there's a survivor (so to speak)! 80 years gone, and he still looks 53. A little dusty, sure, but nothing a compressed air can and a little polish can't take care of. Still, I don't think Lenin is on the fast-track to Sainthood at this point.