Katherine Jhawarelall, 35, a Hindu woman living in Seaview, Durban, South Africa, claims to have the "stigmata of Jesus" on her palms, feet and stomach. She says she has healed the sick with her touch, and is the reincarnated Christian Messiah and Jewish Holy Man — Jesus Christ.

Ms. Jhawarelall has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of South Africa, majoring in sociology and criminology. She claims she was born with the marks on her body, but only recently figured out their meaning, and her real identity.

Mysterious markings are also appearing on walls in her house and in her garden, she said.

She claims to be "7.635 billion light years old" but says she can't remember most of it. Now even her parents believe she is the reincarnated Saviour of the World, though local officials have warned townspeople to be "wary of her revelation."

Despite her extreme age (which apparently she measures in units of distance, a very godlike quality, wouldn't you agree?), she says that on the morning of her 33rd birthday on May 15, 2004, she woke up with a swollen arm and realized there was a message written on her skin: "Happy birthday, Katherine. God gave you life."

She also claims to be the reincarnation of other gods and angels. "I carry the legacy that Jesus Christ is the Archangel Michael and He is universal. In Judaism he is Mikael, in Hinduism he is Shiva, Saraswathie, Luxmi, Lord Krishna and Shirdi Baba, in Christianity he was Jesus Christ and in Islam he is Hasrat Mikael."

Apparently she is healing people with light that shines from her stigmata. She told the Post, "In the past two years the stigmata have developed a pulse and a beam of blue or golden light can be seen emanating from the markings. I have used these markings and light to heal many sick people."

She said many people had threatened her life and "several attempts had been made to assassinate me."

Read the full article. It discusses her beliefs as well as those of her supporters and detractors. It's bizarre reading, and drives home the fact that religion can be the absolute wackiest thing on the planet. We've got Christians saying she can't be Jesus because Christians don't accept reincarnation and we've got Hindus saying she's crazy, because gods can't be reincarnated, only humans. The article tosses out plenty of quotes from all over the theological spectrum, and the only thing they all agree on is, she's not Jesus.

Reincarnation | Jesus Christ | Second Coming | Stigmata | Katherine Jhawarelall | Hindu | Sacred Fems | SacredFems.com