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Jesus Christ in The Gospel as it was revealed to me

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GRM 163.1-6

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

Jesus goes to Elijah, who has invited him to a banquet. Four other Pharisees are present: Uriah, Joachim, Simon and Samuel. On Christ's side, Judas accompanies him. The others did not come, and when Elijah notices, he worries that they may have been offended by his past behavior. But Jesus assures him that his disciples hold no grudges, nor are they proudly sensitive.

The Lord says a few words to Elisha, and then everyone settles down to eat. They start talking about the Roman vexations and the taxes imposed on the Pharisees. They take offense and ask Jesus for his opinion. He replies that as a Jew, he takes offense at the Roman incursions into the places of prayer, but as a man, he does not. He explains his thinking, pointing out that his interlocutors do business in the synagogues so that they can hide money from the tax authorities, safe from prying ears, and that this is why the Romans enter places of worship. He, on the other hand, is poor and doesn't have to worry about that, but he encourages his interlocutors to be honest, to tell the truth, about their wealth.

The conversation then turns to the restoration of the Kingdom of Israel, and Jesus quotes the Old Testament, when Saul offered the offering without Samuel, against the Lord's orders. Saul did not remain king. Likewise, God knows his time, and Jesus speaks very clearly of his Kingdom, which will be universal and will not be established by rebellion.

Finally, the Messiah encourages Elijah to come with him to give the obolus to the poor, but Elijah refuses, claiming that he is old and tired. He tells him to go with Judas, whom they know well, and once outside, the Iscariot leaps up in anger. Jesus calms him down and advises him to leave all judgment to God.

GRM 164

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

Jesus is in Capernaum and leaves the disciples. Mary of Alphaeus, Mary Salome and the Virgin return to Nazareth. Susanna returns to Cana. For his part, Christ and the Twelve go to the Arbel Gorge to pray. He leaves Isaac, Timon and Joseph of Emmaus, urging them to join them in prayer.

Without a word, the group obeys, but the climb is difficult and by the end, even the youngest lose their cheerfulness. They're really in the mountains, near rocky caverns, and Jesus says they'll stay there in prayer for a week, to prepare his apostles for something great. They're a long way from any village, and the weather is quite mild; besides, they have just enough food.

Jesus has been with the first disciples for about a year, and the Savior wants to train them all to be his ministers. To this end, he uses the great weapon of prayer, and gives a short lesson on it. Finally, he points out that they will meet in the morning, at noon and in the evening, to pray together and break bread, and that each one will return to his cave, remaining "before God and his soul". Thanks to this retreat, they will reach the age of spiritual reason, and "the rest will come later".