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Line 57: “One hundred fifty three chymical aphorisms. Briefly containing whatsoever belongs to the chymical science. Done by the labour and study of Eremita Suburbanus. Printed in [[Latin]] at [[Amsterdam]], October 1687.” --> ==In the Bible== The [[Gospel of John]] (21:1-14) includes the narrative of the ''[[Miraculous catch of 153 fish]]'' as the third appearance of Jesus after his [[Resurrection of Jesus|ressurrection]]. .<ref>Biblegateway John 21:1-14 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%2021:1-21:14&version=NIV]</ref> The precision of the number of fish in this narrative has long been considered peculiar, and many scholars, throughout history, have argued that 153 has some deeper significance. [[Jerome]], for example, wrote that [[Oppian]]'s ''Halieutica'' listed 153 species of fish<ref>"Early Christians and Animals", Robert McQueen Grant ,p23, Routledge, 1999 ISBN 0415202043</ref>. St. Louis-Marie de Montfort, in his fifth method of saying the Rosary, considers that the number 153 was foreshadowing of the number of [[Hail Mary]]s in the Rosary: "its fruitfulness as shown in the net that St. Peter by order of Our Lord threw into the sea and which though filled with 153 [representing 153 Hail Marys in the Rosary] fish did not break." [http://www.montfort.org.uk/Writings/MSR.html] The fact that ''the measure of the fish'' was known to include 153, as one of its two numbers, and that the ''measure'' of how many fish the disciples are said to have caught is also 153, has not gone unnoticed by many scholars{{Who|date=May 2009}}, with some{{Who|date=May 2009}} suggesting that the number of fish in the New Testament episode is simply down to being the most familiar large number to the writer, or a deliberate reference to the geometric nomenclature as a sort of [[in-joke]]. A story was told of Pythagoras by [[Iamblichus]]<ref>Guthrie and Fideler, 1988, The Pythagorean Sourcebook, 64-65</ref>, then [[Porphyry (philosopher)|Porphyry]]<ref>Guthrie and Fideler, 1988, The Pythagorean Sourcebook, 128.</ref> describing how Pythagoras correctly predicted the amount of fish caught by fishermen. Neither Iamblichus or Porphyry's accounts describe a miraculous catch nor specify the number of fish caught and the Gospel accounts make no mention of Jesus predicting the number of fish caught.<ref>"Porphyry, Life of Pythagoras", English translation Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, par 25, 1920[http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/porphyry_life_of_pythagoras_02_text.htm]</ref><ref>"Iamblichus: Life of Pythagoras", Translated by Thomas Taylor, p41, Kessinger Publishing, 1998 ISBN 0766102173[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=BcpQAtbqEm0C&pg=PA41&lpg=PA41&dq=Iamblichus+pythagora+fish&source=bl&ots=tbibhxWsPE&sig=-SHiD3aGuyJjk32mDg1mVic6vKQ&hl=en&ei=OWD8SaL6GIONjAfQhYGSAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4]</ref> Some scholars{{Who|date=May 2009}} have argued that the entire Biblical episode is a coded reference to a geometric diagram, since [[Pythagoreanism]] saw geometry and numbers as having deep esoteric meaning, and via [[Hermeticism]] (and more minor routes) it was profoundly influential in the development of Hellenic [[Greco-Roman mysteries|mystery religion]]s, and in certain aspects of [[gnosticism]], an early belief system with disputed origins<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gnosis.org/overview.html |title=Gnosis Overview |accessdate=2007-11-19 |last=Edwards |first=Dean |date=1994-05-18 |work= |publisher=La Casa del Paese Lontano}}</ref>. The number 153 has several curious mathematical properties. <ref>{{cite web |last= Gupta |first= Shayam Sunder |title= Curious Properties of 153 |url=http://www.shyamsundergupta.com/c153.htm |accessdate-2009-06-26}}</ref> Scholars regarding the unnamed [[Beloved Disciple]] as [[Mary Magdalene]] have noted that in Greek [[gematria]] her epithet "n Magdalhnh" bears the number 153, thus revealing the identity of the Gospel's author.<ref>"Mary Magdalene: The Illuminator", p. 61. William Henry Adventures Unlimited Press</ref> ==In the military== | |||