frank theriault wrote: >On 5/19/07, P. J. Alling <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> Probably the fear of the number 13 predates the event but it's been said >> that Friday the 13th is especially bad dates from Friday 13 October >> 1307, Philip the Fair, King of France, with the acquiescence of the >> Pope, rounded up the all Knights Templars in France for hearsay, they >> were found guilty, executed, and their lands and fortunes were >> confiscated by the Crown. All in all I'd say that would make it an >> unlucky day, (if you were a Templar at least). >> > >I'm way up at the top of a long thread, so forgive me if I'm repeating >what someone else has said, but: > >When I was a kid, we were told that Friday the 13th was unlucky >because Judas was the 13th apostle (and hence the number 13 is >generally unlucky) and Friday in particular because that was the day >Christ was crucified (I went to a Catholic school).
13 has been regarded as unlucky since long before Christianity. Many cultures have regarded 12 as a "perfect" number and 13, one off from perfection (as well as being prime, which always makes a number stand out for good or bad), as suspect. It's more likely that the number of apostles and the number at the last supper were chosen *because of* these ancient beliefs. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
