«Come out here, now, near the stream, in the shade of the good tree, which, if it were later in summer, would give you its apples in addition to its shade; come. We shall eat before going… Where, Son?»
«To Jala. It is near. And tomorrow we shall go to Bethzur.»
They sit in the shade of the apple-tree and Mary leans against its robust trunk.
Bartholomew watches Her, so young and still heavenly moved by the recollection She made, while She accepts from Her Son the food He has blessed and She smiles at Him with loving eyes, and he whispers: « “In His shade I am seated and His food is sweet to My taste”.»
Judas Thaddeus replies to him: «It is true. She is sick with love. But we cannot say that She was awakened under an apple-tree.»
«Why not, brother? What do we know about the secrets of the King?» replies James of Alphaeus.
And Jesus smiling says: «The new Eve was conceived of the Thought at the foot of the paradisiacal apple-tree in order to put to flight the serpent and detoxicate the poisoned fruit by means of Her smile and Her tears. She became the tree of the redeeming fruit. Come, friends, and eat of it. Because to be nourished by its sweetness is to be nourished by the honey of God.»
«Master, please satisfy an old desire of mine for some clarification. Does the Song which we are reciting[3] foresee Her?» asks Bartholomew in a low voice while Mary is looking after the boy and speaking to the women.
«The Book speaks of her from its beginning and future books will speak of Her until the word of man changes into the everlasting hosanna of God’s eternal City» and Jesus turns towards the women.
«You can hear that He descends from David! What wisdom, what poetry!» says the Zealot speaking to his companions.