Places in The Gospel as it was revealed to me

Jesus dismisses the boats saying: «I am not coming back» and followed by His apostles, and across the area which appeared to be very fertile also from the opposite shore, He turns His steps towards a mountain, which appears towards the south-west.

The apostles are walking in silence, communicating with one another only by casting glances. In fact they are not enthusiastic for the journey across this beautiful but wild area, which is full of bog grass that gets entangled with their feet; of reeds that cause drizzle of dew to fall on their heads from the edges of the leaves; of hazels that strike their faces with the hard canes of their dry fruit; of willow trees the fragile branches of which hang down everywhere tickling them; of treacherous patches of grass that seems to be growing on solid ground, whereas it conceals puddles of water into which their feet sink, they are in fact patches of foxtails and tares, growing in tiny pools and so thick as to conceal the element in which they have come up.

Jesus, instead, seems to be extremely happy in the midst of all that greenery and the thousand hues of all the flowers, which creep on the ground, or stand upright, or cling to other plants to climb up, forming thin festoons strewn with light convolvuli of a very delicate mallow pink, or forming delicate blue carpets for the thousand corollas of water myosotises, which open the perfect cups of white, pink, blue corollas among the large flat

leaves of the water lilies. Jesus admires the tufts of the water reeds, as soft as silk and pearled with dew, and He bends joyfully to watch the delicate features of foxtails, which lay an emerald veil on the water. He stops ecstatically in front of the nests which the birds are building, flying happily to and fro, trilling, darting from branch to branch, working joyfully, with their beaks full of wisps of hay, of down of reeds, of flocks of wool picked on hedges, which had torn it from migrating sheep… He seems the happiest person in the world. Where is the world with its wickedness, falsehood, sorrows, snares? The world is beyond this green flowery oasis, where everything scents, shines, smiles, sings. This is the earth created by the Father and not desecrated by man and man can be forgotten here.

• Creation - Flore
• Locations - Towards Tarichée and Mount Tabor

«I would prefer the track for caravans to this… garden, if You wish to call it so, and I am in full agreement with Simon» says the Iscariot.

«It was you who did not want the caravan route» replies Jesus.

«Ehi! certainly… But I would not have given in to the Gherghesenes. I would have gone away from there, but I would have continued beyond the river to Gadara, Pella and down to the south» grumbles Bartholomew.

And his great friend Philip concludes: «The roads belong to everybody, after all, and we could have passed through them well.»

«My friends! I am so anguished and disgusted… Do not increase My grief with your pettiness! Let Me seek some comfort in things which do not know how to hate…»

• Locations - Gadara
• Locations - Pella

«And where do we go from here? I am not familiar with this area» says Thomas.

«We will reach Tabor, we will coast part of it and will go to Nain via Endor; from there to the plain of Esdraelon. Be not afraid!… Doras, the son of Doras, and Johanan are already in Jerusalem.»

187.4

«Oh! It will be beautiful! They say that from the summit, from a certain spot, one can see the Great Sea, the Sea of Rome. I like it so much! Will You take us to see it?» John begs with his kind childish face raised towards Jesus.

«Why do you like to see it so much?» asks Jesus caressing him.

«I do not know… Because it is huge and you cannot see its end… It makes me think of God… When we were up on Lebanon I saw the sea for the first time, because I had never been anywhere else, except along the Jordan or on our little sea… and I was moved so much that I wept. So much blue! So much water! And it never overflows!… What a wonderful thing! And the stars make paths of light on the sea… Oh! do not laugh at me! I looked at the golden way of the sun until I was dazzled, at the silvery way of the moon, until I could see nothing but whiteness and I saw them getting lost far far away. Those ways spoke to me. They said: “God is in that infinite distance and these are the ways of fire and purity, which a soul must follow to go to God. Come. Dive into the infinite, travelling on these two ways, and you will find the Infinite One”.»

«You are a poet, John» says Thaddeus admiringly.

«I do not know whether this is poetry. I know that it inflames my heart.»

«But you have seen the sea also at Caesarea and at Ptolomais, and quite close, too. We were on the beach! I do not see the need to go all that way to see some more sea water. After all… we were born on the water…» remarks James of Zebedee.

«And we are in it now as well, unfortunately!» exclaims Peter, who diverting his mind for a moment to listen to John, has not noticed a treacherous puddle and has got soaked… They all laugh, and he laughs too.

But John replies: «That is true. But from high above it is more beautiful. You see more and farther. You think that it is deeper and vaster… You wish… you dream…» and John is already dreaming… He looks in front of himself and smiles at his dream… He looks like a flesh-coloured rose spread with minute dew drops, so downy becomes his smooth clear skin of a young fair-haired man and as it gets sprinkled with a light perspiration it looks more like the petal of a rose.

«What do you wish? What are you dreaming?» Jesus asks His favourite disciple in a low voice and He looks like a father who questions a dear son speaking in his sleep. Jesus speaks to John’s soul, questioning him so gently as not to spoil the dream of His loving disciple.

«I wish to go onto the infinite sea… towards other lands beyond it. I wish to go and speak of You. I am dreaming… of going towards Rome, towards Greece, towards dark places to take the Light there… so that those living in darkness may get in touch with You and may live in communion with You, Light of the world… I am dreaming of a better world… to be bettered through the knowledge of You, that is, through the knowledge of the Love that makes people good, pure, heroic, of the Love that makes the world love and raise Your Name, Your Faith, Your Doctrine above hatred, sin, flesh, above the vices of the mind, above gold, above everything… and I dream of going with my brothers on the sea of God, on the road of light to take You… as Your Mother once brought You down to us from Heaven… I dream that I am a child, who knowing nothing but love, is happy also when facing trouble… and sings to comfort the adults who ponder too much, and moves forward… facing death smiling… towards glory with the humility of one who does not know what he is doing, but knows only that he is coming to You, Love…»

The apostles have not breathed during John’s ecstatic confessions… They remained still where they were, looking at the youngest one speaking with his eyes covered by his eyelids, like a veil thrown over the ardour rising from his heart, and looking at Jesus Who is enraptured finding Himself so completely in His disciple…

When John stops speaking, slightly bent forward – he reminds me of the gracefulness of the humble Mary of Nazareth – Jesus kisses his forehead saying: «We shall go and contemplate the sea, to let you dream My future Kingdom in the world once again.»

• André (apostle)
• Barthélémy - Nathanaël (apostle)
• Creation - Lakes - Seas and oceans
• Creation - Stars - Planets
• God
• James of Alphaeus (apostle)
• James of Zebedee (apostle)
• John of Zebedee (apostle)
• Jude of Alphée (apostle)
• Kingdom of God - Kingdom of Heaven
• Locations - Caesarea Maritime
• Locations - Mont Thabor
• Matthew (apostle)
• Philip (apostle)
• Places - Ptolemais
• Rome
• Simon the Zealot (apostle)
• Simon-Pierre - Simon de Jonas (apostle)
• The Twelve
• Thomas (apostle)

«Where are we going exactly?» asks Peter.

«To give Passover to those who suffer. I have been wanting to do it for a long time. But I could not. I would have done it going back to Galilee. Now that they compel us to go along roads that we have not chosen, I am going to bless Jonah’s poor friends.»

«We will be wasting a lot of time! Passover is near! There are always delays for various reasons.» Another chorus of complaints rises to the sky. I do not know how Jesus can be so patient…

Without reproaching anyone He says: «Please, do not hinder Me! Endeavour to understand My need to love and to be loved. I have but this solace on the earth: to love and do the will of God.»

«And are we going from here? Was it not better to go from Nazareth?»

«If I had suggested that, you would have rebelled. No one will suspect that I am here… and I am doing it for you… because you are afraid.»

«Afraid? Ah! No! We are ready to fight for You.»

«Pray the Lord not to put you to the test. I know that you are quarrelsome, resentful, anxious to offend those who offend Me and to humble your neighbour. I know all that. But I do not know you to be brave. As far as I am concerned, I would have also gone by Myself and along the main road and nothing would have happened because it is not yet the time. But I feel sorry for you. I have to obey My Mother, yes, but I do not want to upset Simon the Pharisee. I will not disgust them. But they will disgust Me.»

«And where do we go from here? I am not familiar with this area» says Thomas.

«We will reach Tabor, we will coast part of it and will go to Nain via Endor; from there to the plain of Esdraelon. Be not afraid!… Doras, the son of Doras, and Johanan are already in Jerusalem.»

• Doras (son of Doras)
• Ignorance of Jesus Christ
• Jesus' omniscience
• Locations - Endor - En-Dor
• Locations - Esdrelon plain
• Locations - Nazareth
• Pharisees
• Places - Naïm
• Simon of Capernaum (Pharisee)
• The Virgin Mary
• Yokhanan or Giocana Ben Zacchaï (Sadducee and Pharisee)
• Yokhanan peasants

«I wish to go onto the infinite sea… towards other lands beyond it. I wish to go and speak of You. I am dreaming… of going towards Rome, towards Greece, towards dark places to take the Light there… so that those living in darkness may get in touch with You and may live in communion with You, Light of the world… I am dreaming of a better world… to be bettered through the knowledge of You, that is, through the knowledge of the Love that makes people good, pure, heroic, of the Love that makes the world love and raise Your Name, Your Faith, Your Doctrine above hatred, sin, flesh, above the vices of the mind, above gold, above everything… and I dream of going with my brothers on the sea of God, on the road of light to take You… as Your Mother once brought You down to us from Heaven… I dream that I am a child, who knowing nothing but love, is happy also when facing trouble… and sings to comfort the adults who ponder too much, and moves forward… facing death smiling… towards glory with the humility of one who does not know what he is doing, but knows only that he is coming to You, Love…»

• Apostolate - Evangelism
• Chair
• Comfort - Relief
• Death
• Doctrine
• Faith
• Gold
• Heroism
• Humility
• Incarnation
• Kindness
• Knowledge
• Light of the world
• Locations - Greece
• Love
• Purity
• Serenity
• Sin
• To be like a little child - To have the soul of a child
• Vice

And they carry on along the road towards Mount Tabor, the huge mass of which appears to be nearer and nearer, while the marshy aspect of the ground changes, as the soil becomes solid and dry and the vegetation thinner, making room for taller plants and bushes of clematis and blackberries, the new leaves and early flowers of which are a pleasant sight.

• Locations - Mont Thabor
• Locations - Towards Tarichée and Mount Tabor

Jesus and the apostles have passed Mount Tabor and left it behind them. They are now walking on a plain lying between that mountain and another one facing it, talking of the climb made by them all, although at the beginning the elder ones had not been too keen. But now they are happy they had gone up to the top. The journey is now easy because they are on a main road which is quite comfortable for walking. It is early in the morning because I am under the impression that they have spent the night on the slopes of the Tabor.

«That is Endor» says Jesus pointing to a poor village built on the first heights of the other mountain. «Do you really want to go there?»

«If You wish to make me happy…» responds the Iscariot.

«Let us go, then.»

«But is it a long way?» asks Bartholomew, who, because of his age, is not very keen on walking tours.

«Oh! no! But if you wish to stay…» says Jesus.

«Yes! You may stay. I will go with the Master» says Judas of Kerioth immediately.

«Listen, before making up my mind, I would like to know what there is to be seen… From the top of Mount Tabor we saw the sea and after the boy’s speech I must admit that I saw it properly for the first time and I saw it as You see: with my heart. Here… I would like to know whether there is anything to learn, because in that case I will come even if it is tiresome…» says Peter.

«Do you hear that? You have not yet said what you intend doing. Be kind to your companions and tell us now» says Jesus invitingly.

«Did Saul not go to Endor[1] to consult the necromancer?»

«Yes, he did. So?»

«Well, Master, I would like to go there and hear You speak of Saul.»

«In that case I will come, too!» exclaims Peter full of enthusiasm.

«Let us go then.»

They walk fast along the last stretch of the main road, which they leave to follow a secondary road, which takes straight to Endor.

• André (apostle)
• Barthélémy - Nathanaël (apostle)
• James of Alphaeus (apostle)
• James of Zebedee (apostle)
• John of Zebedee (apostle)
• Jude of Alphée (apostle)
• Locations - Mont Thabor
• Matthew (apostle)
• Philip (apostle)
• Simon the Zealot (apostle)
• Simon-Pierre - Simon de Jonas (apostle)
• The Twelve
• Thomas (apostle)

The man does not say anything and remains where he was, while Jesus with His apostles, passing over large stones which must have been part of very strong walls, upsetting green lizards and other ugly looking insects, enters a large smoky grotto, on the walls of which there are still graffiti signs of the zodiac and similar things. In a corner blackened by smoke there is a niche and under it a hole which looks like a gully-hole for water. Bats hanging in disgusting bunches decorate the ceiling and an owl, upset by the light of a branch which James has lit to ensure they do not tread on scorpions or asps, complains by flapping its wadded wings and closing its ugly eyes which cannot bear the light. It is perched in the niche, and the foul smell of dead mice, of weasels and birds in decomposition at its feet is mixed with the stench of dung and of the damp soil.

«It is really a lovely place!» says Peter. «Your Tabor and your sea were much better, my boy!» And then addressing Jesus: «Master, satisfy Judas at once because this is not… Antipa’s royal hall!»

«Certainly. What is it that you want to know?» He asks Judas of Kerioth.

• Animals
• Bats
• Herod Antipas
• John of Zebedee (apostle)
• Locations - Mont Thabor
• Owls
• Simon-Pierre - Simon de Jonas (apostle)

They reach the house. The man is there, on the threshold, wearing a clean dark tunic and a mantle to match, a pair of new sandals and carrying a large haversack over his shoulder. He closes the door and then, what is strange in a man who might be considered hard-hearted, he takes a white hen, perhaps his pet, which squats tamely in his hands, he kisses it weeping and lays it down.

«Let us go… and forgive me. But my chicken always loved me… I used to speak to them and… they understood me…»

«I understand you, too… and I love you. So much. I will give you all the love that the world denied you in thirty-five years…»

«Oh! I know! I can feel it! That is why I am coming. But be indulgent to a man who… loves an animal which has been more faithful to him than men…»

«Yes… Forget your past. You will have so much to do! And, experienced as you are, you will do it very well. Simon, come here and you, too, Matthew. See? This man was more than a prisoner, he was a leper. And this one… a sinner. And they are very dear to Me, because they know how to understand poor hearts… Is that right?»

«Thanks to Your goodness, my Lord. But you may rest assured, my friend, that everything is cancelled by serving Him. Only peace remains» says the Zealot.

«Yes. Peace and a new youth taken over from old vices and hatred. I was a tax collector. Now I am an apostle. The world is in front of us. And we know all about it. We are not absentminded children who pass near the harmful fruit and the bending plant and do not see facts. We know. We can avoid evil and teach other people how to avoid it. And we can straighten up those who bend.

Because we know what a relief it is to be supported. And we know Who supports: Him» says Matthew.

«That’s true! Quite true! You will help me. Thank you. I feel as if I were passing from a dark foul smelling place to the open in a flowery meadow… I felt something similar when I came out, at long last free, after twenty years of imprisonment and brutal work in the mines in Anatolia and I found myself – I escaped one stormy evening – on the top of a wild mountain, but in the open, in a place full of sunshine at dawn, and covered with scented woods… Freedom! But now it is better! Everything is more sublime! I had not been in chains for fifteen years. But hatred, fear and solitude were still like chains to me… But now they have been shaken off!…

• Locations - Mines of Anatolia
• Matthew (apostle)
• Simon the Zealot (apostle)

«Here, take this. It’s the key of my house. I am going away, for good. I am grateful to you because you are my benefactor. You have given me a family. Do what you like with my property… and look after my chicken. Treat them well. A Roman comes every Sabbath and buys eggs… You will make a profit… Take care of my little hens… and may God reward you for it.»

The old man is astonished… He takes the key and stands open-mouthed.

Jesus says: «Yes, do as he told you and I will be grateful to you, too. I bless you in the name of Jesus.»

«The Nazarene! You! Mercy! I have spoken to the Lord! Women! Men! The Messiah is here!»

He screams like an eagle and people rush from everywhere.

«Bless us! Bless us!» they shout. Some shout: «Stay here!» and others: «Where are You going? At least tell us where You are going.»

«To Nain. I cannot stay.»

«We will follow You. Do You mind?»

«Come. Peace and blessing to those who remain here.»

They go towards the main road and take it.

• Messiah
• Places - Naïm
• Romans