give someone a quick dose of something
All right, John, hit us with the short form.The Man from Earth · 2007 — Chapter 15 of 18 · 4'45" · C1
John Implies He Was Jesus, Explained: have something in mind
One man's account of a traveler who carried the Buddha's teachings into the Near East keeps sliding into the life of Jesus, and the room splits over whether it is a thought experiment or a claim. 'That's the medal they pinned on Jesus to fulfill prophecy.'
What happens
In a room, John gives the short version of a long history: a man meets the Buddha, moves through the Mediterranean and Rome, then tries to pass the teachings on in the Near East. His listeners seize on the obvious implication—that he is describing Jesus—and press him on prophecy, crucifixion and resurrection.
Listen for
pass something onsort ofpin something on someonepretty damn closely
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Now
Phrase of the scene
have something in mind
have a plan or picture in mind
After the list of rituals, the speaker stops at a quiet verdict: this is not the thing they originally pictured.
I have a quiet café in mind, not another loud chain.
Also in this scene
- pass something on
hand knowledge or messages down to others
- sort of
more or less, but not exactly
- pin something on someone
force a label, blame, or story onto someone
- pretty damn closely
extremely closely, said with a sharp edge
- screwed
in deep trouble; doomed
Everything marked in this scene
29 notes across 83 lines
spread gradually into
Seeped into the Roman empire.hand knowledge or messages down to others
Someone compresses a long journey into one line: carry the Buddha's teachings east and pass them on in a modern form.
He went to the Near East thinking, "Why not pass the Buddha's teachings on in a modern form."a made-up, prettified story here: legends mixed into history, not children's tales
Well, sort of. Lot of fairy tales mixed in.make a prophecy come true
Oh, no. That's the medal they pinned on Jesus to fulfill prophecy.shut the pain out
He blocked the pain as he had learned to do in Tibet and India.make bodily functions slower
He also learned to slow his body processes down to the point where they were undetectable.degree clause: The phrase marks the exact degree: his processes slowed until they could not be detected.
He also learned to slow his body processes down to the point where they were undetectable.elliptical manner clause: The final 'to' stands for 'to normalize'; as introduces the way he had trained his body, not a comparison.
His body normalized as he had trained it to.keep guard
He attempted to go away undetected, but some devotees were standing watch.to the greatest possible distance
Thus, I was resurrected, and I ascended to central Europe to get away as far as possible.Stress far and possible; let the two as-words blur.
Thus, I was resurrected, and I ascended to central Europe to get away as far as possible.not believe any of it
You don't mean a word of this, John.various guesses about something
All the speculations about Jesus.can be traced far back to
The Christ figure goes all the way back to Krishna - Hercules, of course.Keep the d in I'd faint and run say into the end.
Pretty damn closely, I'd say.a mild swear for emphasis — Mildly profane; avoid at work or with strangers.
Pretty damn closely, I'd say.scattered everywhere
The early Christian leaders, they threw away Hebrew manuscripts and borrowed from pagan sources all over the place.considered by itself
Taken alone, the philosophical teachings of Jesus are Buddhism with a Hebrew accent.doomed; in deep trouble — Casual and crude; not for formal or sensitive settings.
But a talking snake make a lady eat an apple, So we're screwed.to begin with
save our souls that we never lost in the first place.on someone's behalf or authority
It's been said that Buddha and Jesus would laugh or cry if they'd known what was done in their name.counterfactual conditional: The past perfect conditional imagines a past they never saw; 'what was done' is a passive noun clause.
It's been said that Buddha and Jesus would laugh or cry if they'd known what was done in their name.have a plan or picture in mind
After the list of rituals, the speaker stops at a quiet verdict: this is not the thing they originally pictured.
It's not what I had in mind.Let what I run together and soften the d in had.
It's not what I had in mind.nonsense; pretentious rubbish — Dated, comic slang; too odd for formal writing.
But that's Vatican flapdoodle.have no connection with
It doesn't have a thing to do with God.a route toward good
A simple path to goodness needs a supernatural roadmap.concessive clause: The clause concedes a possible objection, then leaves the main claim untouched.
Anything that happens, happens within nature, whether we believe in it or not.John Implies He Was Jesus, explained
What's really going on
What begins as a compressed history of ideas keeps collapsing into a first-person claim. The story moves from the Buddha to Rome to the Near East, but the room hears the implication before the narrator states it: 'He's saying he was Christ.' The reply tries to separate the man from the title—'That's the medal they pinned on Jesus to fulfill prophecy'—yet the details keep returning to the body: 'I don't scar.' The discomfort is not only doctrinal. A familiar story is being reclassified as borrowed, edited and pinned on someone, and the group has to decide whether this is an intellectual game or a confidence trick. 'You don't mean a word of this, John.' The quote captures the real stakes: not whether the history is accurate, but whether anyone in the room can trust the person telling it.
Theme
FaithThe group tests a familiar religious story against myth, history and a personal claim, forcing each person to defend what they believe.
PhilosophyThe dialogue turns religious history into an argument about evidence, myth and what counts as a meaningful teaching.
Listen for
- as far as possible — Stress far and possible; let the two as-words blur.
- I'd say — Keep the d in I'd faint and run say into the end.
- what I had — Let what I run together and soften the d in had.
Thus, I was resurrected, and I ascended to central Europe to get away as far as possible.He turns the resurrection story into a practical escape: he was thought dead, then left for central Europe to put distance between himself and his followers.
"I am what I am becoming."The sentence frames identity as ongoing change rather than a fixed label; in the scene it is offered as the Buddha's idea and as what the speaker taught.
It's been said that Buddha and Jesus would laugh or cry if they'd known what was done in their name.The line says that teachings are often used for purposes their originators never intended, and that the result could provoke either laughter or grief.
It's not what I had in mind.It means 'this is not what I intended or expected.' In the scene it answers the gap between a simple teaching and the elaborate rituals built around it.
A simple path to goodness needs a supernatural roadmap.The line mocks the idea that being good requires an elaborate supernatural system; goodness is presented as something simple enough on its own.
Questions about this scene
Why does the group react so strongly to the story about Jesus?
Because the story stops sounding like distant history and starts sounding like a personal claim. One line puts it plainly: 'He's saying he was Christ,' and another says, 'You don't mean a word of this, John.' The reaction is about what the story implies, not just the facts.
What does 'flapdoodle' mean here?
It means nonsense or empty show. The line 'But that's Vatican flapdoodle' dismisses the ceremony and ritual described just before it as human-made nonsense rather than something to do with God.
Does the conversation conclude that Jesus never existed?
It does not settle that question. The dialogue runs through competing guesses—'He was black, he was Asian'—and ends the list with 'He was a benevolent alien, he never existed at all.' Its focus is how titles and stories get attached to a figure, not a verdict on whether he existed.
Why does he bring up Hercules?
To place the Christ figure in a wider pattern. The listed parallels are 'Born of a virgin, Alcmene,' 'A god for a father, Zeus' and 'The only begotten,' all offered as older pagan versions of familiar Christian claims.
The Man from Earth · 18 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 16the jury is still outSo You Were Jesus
Chapter 1itchy feetJohn Gets Itchy Feet
Chapter 2itchy feetJohn Oldman's Farewell Toast
Chapter 3pan outJohn's Caveman Hypothetical
Chapter 4a day overNot a Day Over 900
Chapter 5just happenedI Just Happened, Not a Mission
Chapter 6You can't go home againJohn's Farewell Talk
Chapter 7almost wish it were trueNever Told the Buddha
Chapter 8no way to disproveNo Way to Disprove John's Story
Chapter 9So much forJohn's Caveman Claim Under Fire
Chapter 10I never saidJohn Says He Is Only Old
Chapter 11survivor's guiltJohn on Dying and Survivor's Guilt
Chapter 12on the ropesWill's Wife Just Died
Chapter 13a touch of senilityJohn Recalls Losing a Man in Brussels
Chapter 14no need of that hypothesisPressing John About the Bible
Watching · Chapter 15have something in mindJohn Implies He Was Jesus
Chapter 16the jury is still outSo You Were Jesus
Chapter 17If I said noJohn Won't Confirm He Was Jesus
Chapter 18chasing our tailsJohn's Story Is Called a HoaxChapter 15 of 18 · about 13 min to go