Posted on 09/09/2002 7:48:19 AM PDT by robjna
On a tour of Texas, the Pope took a couple of days off his itinerary to visit the Texas coastline on an impromptu sightseeing trip. His 4X4 Pope mobile was driving along the beautiful shoreline when there was an enormous commotion heard just off the headland. They rushed to see what it was and upon approaching the scene, the Pope noticed in the water a hapless man wearing an Oklahoma Sooner's football jersey, struggling frantically to free himself from the jaws of a 25-foot shark.
At that moment a speedboat containing three men wearing Texas A&M football jerseys roared into view from around the point. Immediately, one of the men took aim and fired a harpoon into the shark's ribs, immobilizing it instantly. The other two reached out and pulled the Oklahoma man from the water and then, using long clubs, beat the shark to death. They bundled the bleeding, semi-conscious man into the boat along with the dead shark and then prepared for a hasty retreat when they heard frantic shouting from the shore. It was the Pope summoning them to the beach.
After they reached shore, the Pope praised them for the rescue and said, "I give you my blessing for your brave actions. I had heard that there were some bitter hatred between the people of Texas and Oklahoma, but now I have seen with my own eyes this is not true. I can see that your society is a truly enlightened example of true harmony and could serve as a model on which other states could follow". He blessed them all and drove off in a cloud of dust.
As he departed, the harpooner asked the others, "Who was that?" "That," one answered, "was his Holiness the Pope. He is in direct contact with God and has access to all of God's wisdom. "
"Well," the harpooner replied, "he don't know nothing about shark fishing. Is the bait holding up okay or do we need to get another one?"
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