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Characters from the Protévangile and the Evangile de l'Enfance

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GRM 38.6

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

There is a knock at the door. Joseph walks quickly across the orchard and the room and opens it.
«Peace to you, Alphaeus and Mary!»
«And peace and blessings to you.»
It is Joseph’s brother with his wife. A rustic cart, drawn by a strong donkey, is outside in the street.
«Did you have a good trip?»
«Very good. And the children?»
«They are in the garden with Mary.»
But the children have already come to greet their mother. Also Mary comes, holding Jesus by the hand. The two sisters-in-law kiss each other.
«Have they been good?»
«Very good, and very dear. Are the relatives all well?»
«Yes they all are. They send You their regards, and they have sent You many presents from Cana. Grapes, apples, cheese, eggs, honey. And… Joseph? I have found just what you wanted for Jesus. It is on the cart, in the round basket.» Alphaeus’ wife smiles. She bends over Jesus Who is looking at her with His eyes wide open, she kisses Him on those two strips of blue and says: «Do you know what I have for you? Guess.»
Jesus thinks, but He cannot guess. I doubt whether He does it deliberately, to give Joseph the joy of giving Him a surprise. Joseph in fact comes in, carrying a large round basket. He lays it down on the floor in front of Jesus, unties the rope which is holding the lid on, he lifts it… and a little white sheep, a real flock of foam, appears sleeping in the very clean hay.
Jesus utters an «Oh!» of surprise and happiness and He is about to rush towards the little animal, but then He turns round and runs to Joseph, who is still bent down as before, He embraces him, and kisses him, thanking him.
The two little cousins look with admiration at the little creature, which is now awake and is lifting its little rosy head bleating, looking for its mother. They take it out of the basket, they offer it a handful of clover. It browses while looking around with its mild eyes.
Jesus continues saying, «For me! For me! Thank you, father!»
«Do you like it so much!»
«Oh! Very much! White, clean… a little lamb… Oh!» and He throws His little arms round the sheep’s neck, He lays His blond head on its little head and remains thus, happy.
«I brought two, also for you,» says Alphaeus to his sons. «But they are dark. You are not quite so tidy as Jesus and your sheep would always be untidy, if they were white. They will be your herd, you will keep them together and so you will no longer be loitering in the streets, you two little rascals, throwing stones at each other.»
The children run to the cart and look at the other two little animals, which are more black than white.
Jesus has stayed behind with His sheep. He takes it into the garden, gives it water to drink and the little pet follows Him as if it had known Him forever. Jesus beckons it. He calls it «Snow» and the little lamb replies bleating happily.
The guests are sitting at the table and Mary offers them bread, olives and cheese. She also puts a jug on the table with cider or water sweetened with honey, I do not know exactly which, I see that it is a very pale colour.
They speak while the children are playing with the three little animals that Jesus wanted to gather together so that He can give water and a name also to the others. «Yours, Judas, will be called ‘Star’ because it has that mark on its forehead. And the name of yours will be ‘Flame’ because it has the blazing colours of certain withering heathers.»
«Agreed.»
The elder people are talking and Alphaeus says: «I hope I have solved the matter of the boys’ quarrels. I got the idea from your request, Joseph. I said to myself: ‘My brother wants a little sheep for Jesus, that He may have something to play with. I will get two, also for those naughty boys, to keep them quiet a little, and avoid continuous arguments with other parents with regard to bruised heads and skinned knees. What with the school and what with the sheep, I will manage to keep them quiet’.

Keywords

GRM 38.7-8

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«But this year You also will have to send Jesus to school. It is time.»
«I will never send Jesus to school,» says Mary resolutely. It is most unusual to hear Her talk in this way and above all to hear Her talk before Joseph.
«Why? The Child must learn to be ready in good time to pass His exam when He comes of age…»
«The Child will be ready. But He will not go to school. That is quite definite.»
«You will be the only woman in Israel to do that.»
«I will be the only one. But that is what I am going to do. Isn’t that right, Joseph?»
«Yes, that’s correct. There is no need for Jesus to go to school. Mary was brought up in the Temple, and She knows the Law as well as any doctor. She will be His Teacher. That’s what I want, too.»
«You are spoiling the Boy.»
«You cannot say that. He is the best boy in Nazareth. Have you ever heard Him cry, or be naughty, or be disobedient, or lack respect?»
«No. That’s true. But He will do all that if You continue to spoil Him.»
«You do not necessarily spoil your children just because you keep them at home. To keep them at home implies loving them with good common sense and wholeheartedly. And that is how we love our Jesus, and since Mary is better educated than a teacher, She will be Jesus’ Teacher.»
«And when Your Jesus is a Man, He will be like a silly little woman frightened even of flies.»
«He will not. Mary is a strong woman, and She will give Him a manly education. I am not a coward, and I can give Him man-like examples. Jesus is a creature without any physical or moral faults. He will grow, therefore, upright and strong, both in His body and in His spirit. You can be sure of that, Alphaeus. He will not be a disgrace to the family. In any case, that is what I have decided, and that is all.»
«Perhaps Mary has decided, and you…»
«And if it were so? Is it not fair that two, who love each other, should have the same thoughts and the same wishes, so that each may accept the wishes of the other as if they were his own? If Mary should wish silly things, I would say to Her: ‘No’. But She is asking for something which is full of wisdom, and I agree, and I make it my own. We love each other, we do as we did the first day, and we shall go on doing so as long as we live. Is that right, Mary?»
«Yes, Joseph. And let us hope it will never happen, but when one should die without the other, we will still go on loving each other.»
Joseph pats Mary on the head as if She were a young daughter and She looks at him with Her serene loving eyes.
38.8 Her sister-in-law interferes: «You are quite right. I wish I could teach! Our children at school learn evil and good. At home they only learn what is good. But I do not know whether… if Mary…»
«What is it you want, My dear sister-in-law? Speak freely. You know that I love you and I am happy when I can do something that pleases you.»
«I was thinking… James and Judas are only a little older than Jesus. They are already going to school… for what they have learned!… Jesus instead already knows the Law so well… I would like… eh, I mean, if I asked You to take them as well, when You teach Jesus? I think they would behave better and be better educated. After all, they are cousins, and it is only fair that they should love one another like brothers. Oh! I would be so happy!»
«If Joseph wants, and your husband agrees, I am quite willing. It is the same to speak to one as to speak to three. And it is a joy to go through the whole Bible. Let them come.»
The three children, who have come in very quietly, are listening and are awaiting the final decision.
«They will drive You to despair, Mary,» says Alphaeus.
«No! They are always good with Me. You will be good if I teach you, will you not?»
The two boys move near Mary, one on Her left side, the other on Her right, they place their arms around Her shoulders, they lean their little heads on Her shoulders, and they promise all the good in the world.
«Let them try, Alphaeus, and let Me try. I am sure you will not be dissatisfied with the test. They can come every day from the sixth hour until evening. It will be enough, believe Me. I know how to teach without tiring them. You must keep their attention and let them relax at the same time. You must understand them, love them, and be loved by them, if you wish to get good results. And you will love Me, will you not?»
Two big kisses are the answer.
«See?»
«I see. I can only say: ‘Thank You’. And what will Jesus say, when He sees His Mummy busy with others? What do you say, Jesus?»
«I say: ‘Happy are those who listen to Her and build their dwelling near Hers’. As for Wisdom, happy are those who are My Mother’s friends, and I am happy that those whom I love are Her friends.»
«But who puts such words on the lips of the Child?» Alphaeus asks, astonished.
«Nobody, brother. Nobody in this world».
The vision ends here.

Keywords

GRM 38.7

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

But this year You also will have to send Jesus to school. It is time.»
«I will never send Jesus to school,» says Mary resolutely. It is most unusual to hear Her talk in this way and above all to hear Her talk before Joseph.
«Why? The Child must learn to be ready in good time to pass His exam when He comes of age…»
«The Child will be ready. But He will not go to school. That is quite definite.»
«You will be the only woman in Israel to do that.»
«I will be the only one. But that is what I am going to do. Isn’t that right, Joseph?»
«Yes, that’s correct. There is no need for Jesus to go to school. Mary was brought up in the Temple, and She knows the Law as well as any doctor. She will be His Teacher. That’s what I want, too.»
«You are spoiling the Boy.»
«You cannot say that. He is the best boy in Nazareth. Have you ever heard Him cry, or be naughty, or be disobedient, or lack respect?»
«No. That’s true. But He will do all that if You continue to spoil Him.»
«You do not necessarily spoil your children just because you keep them at home. To keep them at home implies loving them with good common sense and wholeheartedly. And that is how we love our Jesus, and since Mary is better educated than a teacher, She will be Jesus’ Teacher.»
«And when Your Jesus is a Man, He will be like a silly little woman frightened even of flies.»
«He will not. Mary is a strong woman, and She will give Him a manly education. I am not a coward, and I can give Him man-like examples. Jesus is a creature without any physical or moral faults. He will grow, therefore, upright and strong, both in His body and in His spirit. You can be sure of that, Alphaeus. He will not be a disgrace to the family. In any case, that is what I have decided, and that is all.»
«Perhaps Mary has decided, and you…»
«And if it were so? Is it not fair that two, who love each other, should have the same thoughts and the same wishes, so that each may accept the wishes of the other as if they were his own? If Mary should wish silly things, I would say to Her: ‘No’. But She is asking for something which is full of wisdom, and I agree, and I make it my own. We love each other, we do as we did the first day, and we shall go on doing so as long as we live. Is that right, Mary?»
«Yes, Joseph. And let us hope it will never happen, but when one should die without the other, we will still go on loving each other.»
Joseph pats Mary on the head as if She were a young daughter and She looks at him with Her serene loving eyes.

Detail

Alphée disapproves of Mary keeping Jesus at home instead of sending him to school. He also disapproves of Joseph letting her decide. His brother replies:

Keywords

Holy Family

GRM 38.9

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

38.9 Jesus says:
«And Mary was My teacher and the teacher of James and Judas. That is why we loved one another like brothers, not only because of our relationship, but for our science and the fact that we had grown up together, like three shoots supported by one pole only: My Mother. There was no other doctor in Israel like My sweet Mother. Seat of Wisdom, and of true Wisdom, She taught us for the world, and for Heaven. I say: ‘She taught us’ because I was Her pupil just like My cousins. And the ‘seal’ was kept on the secret of God against Satan’s investigations, and it was safeguarded by the appearance of a normal life.
Did you enjoy this sweet scene? Now be in peace. Jesus is with you.»

Keywords

GRM 39

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

The Virgin prepares clothes for Jesus with Mary of Alphaeus. She dyes his clothes. It seems that she obtained the color through her embroidery, and that this gift came from Rome. In any case, the Mother of Christ thanks her relative for her help, and she declares that Jesus is like a son to her.

The vision stops and resumes later. Maria describes Jesus at the age of twelve. He is with his parents and relatives, surrounded and loved. Mary asks Joseph to bless him, so that their Child will draw strength from him, and she will learn to detach herself from him a little more. Joseph assures her that their relationship will not change, and that he will not compete with her for the Son they hold so dear. Mary kisses Joseph's hand in an affectionate gesture, and the patriarch of the Holy Family blesses them both. Then they set off...

Keywords

GRM 39.2-3

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

39.2 I see Mary bending over a tub, or rather a terracotta container, in which She stirs something that steams in the cool clear air which fills the kitchen garden in Nazareth.
It must be the depth of winter, because, with the exception of the olive-trees, all the plants and trees are bare and look like skeletons. High above, the sky is very clear and there is a beautiful sunshine. But it does not mitigate the bitterly cold wind that shakes the bare boughs and the little green-grey branches of the olive-trees.
Our Lady is wearing a heavy dark-brown dress, which is so dark that it is almost black, and She has tied in front of it a rough piece of cloth, like an apron, to protect it. She takes out of the vessel the stick with which She was stirring its contents and I can see some beautiful ruby-red drops dripping from it. Mary looks at them, She wets Her finger with them, checks the colour against Her apron and seems satisfied.
She goes into the house and then comes out with a lot of skeins of snow-white wool. She dips them patiently and carefully into the tub, one by one.
39.3 While She is busy doing that, Her sister-in-law, Mary of Alphaeus, comes in through Joseph’s workshop. They greet each other, and start conversing.
«Is it coming all right?» asks Mary of Alphaeus.
«I hope so.»
«That Gentile lady assured me that it is exactly the colour, and that is exactly how they do it in Rome. She gave it to me only because of You, because of the embroidery work You did for her. She said that not even in Rome is there anyone who can embroider so well. You must have become blind doing it…»
Mary smiles and shakes Her head as if to say: «It was a mere trifle!»
Her sister-in-law looks at the last skeins of wool, before handing them over to Mary. «How beautifully You have spun them! They are so thin and smooth that they look like hair. You do everything so well. And You are so quick! Will these last ones be of a lighter colour?»
«Yes, they are for the tunic. The mantle is darker.»
The two women work together at the tub. They then pull out the skeins of a beautiful purple colour and they run quickly to dip them into the ice-cold water that fills the little vessel under the thin spring of water that tumbles babbling softly. They rinse them over and over again, then they lay the skeins on canes which they fasten to the branches of the trees.
«They will dry very well and rapidly in this wind,» says Her sister-in-law.
«Let us go to Joseph. There is a fire in there. You must be frozen,» says Our Blessed Lady. «It was very kind of you to help Me. I did it very quickly and without working so much. I am very grateful to you.»
«Oh! Mary! What would I not do for You! To be near You is a great joy. And then… all this work is for Jesus. And He is such a dear, Your Son!… I will feel that He is also my Son, if I help You with His feast when He comes of age.»
The two women go into the workshop, which is full of the smell of planed wood, as is usual in carpenters’ workshops.

Keywords

GRM 39.4

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

39.4 And the vision comes to a halt… to start again with Jesus, Who is now twelve years old, setting out for Jerusalem.
He looks most handsome, and has grown so well that He looks like a younger brother of His very young Mother. He already reaches up to Her shoulders with His blond curly head, His hair is no longer short as in the first years of His life, but long down to His ears, and looks like a small golden helmet fully wrought in bright curls.
He is dressed in red: a beautiful light ruby-red. A long tunic hangs down to His ankles so that only His sandal clad feet can be seen. His tunic is loose, with long wide sleeves. Round His neck, at the end of His sleeves, at the hems, there is a Greek fret woven colour on colour, and it is very beautiful…

Detail

Physical description of Jesus as a child.

Keywords

Jesus as a child

GRM 39.4-6

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

I see Jesus with His Mother going into the dining room (let us call it so), in Nazareth.
Jesus is a handsome young boy, twelve years old, tall, well built, strong but not fat. He looks older than His years, because of His complexion. He is already tall, in fact He reaches up to the shoulders of His Mother. His face is the rosy round face of a child and later, in His youth and then in His manhood, it will get thinner and thinner and it will become colourless, the colour of some very delicate alabasters with a hue of yellowish pink.
Also His eyes are still the eyes of a child. They are large, wide open when looking, with a sparkle of joy lost in the seriousness of His glance. Later they will not be so wide open… His eyelashes will cover half of them to conceal the excessive wickedness which is in the world, from the Pure and Holy One. Only when working miracles they will be open and bright, even brighter than now… to cast out demons and death, to heal diseases and sins. And they will no longer have that sparkle of happiness mingled with seriousness… death and sin will be more and more present and close, and with them the knowledge, also the human knowledge of the uselessness of His sacrifice, because of the unwillingness and aversion of man. Only in the rarest moments of joy, when He is with faithful believers and particularly with pure people, mostly children, will His holy mild kind eyes shine again with happiness.
But now He is at home with His Mother, in front of Him there is Saint Joseph who is smiling lovingly, and there are His little cousins who admire Him, and His aunt Mary of Alphaeus who is patting Him… He is happy. My Jesus needs love to be happy. And in this moment He has it.
He is dressed in a loose woollen tunic which is a light ruby red colour. It is soft, perfectly woven in its compact thinness. Round the neck, in the front, at the ends of the long wide sleeves and at the bottom of the tunic which hangs down to the ground, so that only His feet can be seen, there is a Greek fret which is not embroidered, but woven in a darker colour into the ruby of the tunic. He is wearing new sandals which appear to be very well made, they are not just the usual soles tied to the feet by means of straps of leather. His tunic must be the work of His Mother because Her sister-in-law admires and praises it.
His lovely blond hair is already somewhat darker than when He was a little boy, with auburn reflections in the curls ending under His ears. They are no longer the soft graceful curls of His childhood. It is not yet the wavy long hair of His manhood, reaching down to His shoulders, ending there in a soft, big curl. But it already resembles more the latter in its colour and style.
39.5 «Here is our Son,» says Mary lifting Her right hand which is holding Jesus’ left one. She seems to be introducing Him to everybody and confirming the paternity of the Just man who is smiling. And She adds: «Bless Him, Joseph, before leaving for Jerusalem. There was no ritual blessing for His first step in life, because it was not necessary for Him to go to school. But now that He is going to the Temple to be proclaimed of age, please bless Him. And bless Me with Him. Your blessing…» (Mary sobs softly) «will fortify Him and give Me strength, to detach Myself a little more from Him…»
«Mary, Jesus will always be Yours. The formality will not affect our mutual relationship. Neither will I contend with You for this Son, so dear to us. No one deserves, as You do, to guide Him in life, o my Holy Spouse.»
Mary bends down and takes Joseph’s hand and kisses it. She is the respectful, loving spouse of Her consort!
Joseph receives the sign of respect and love with dignity, he then lifts the hand which She has kissed and lays it on the head of his Spouse and says to Her: «Yes. I bless You, o Blessed One, and I bless Jesus with You. Come to me, my only joys, my honour and essence of my life.» Joseph is solemn. With his arms stretched out and the palms of his hands turned down above the two heads which are bent down, both equally blond and holy, he pronounces his blessing: «May the Lord look upon You and bless You. May He have mercy on You and give You peace. May the Lord give You His blessing.» And then he says: «And now let us go. The hour is favourable for the journey.»
39.6 Mary takes a wide dark brown mantle and She drapes it on the body of Her Son. How She caresses Him in doing so!
They go out, they close up the house. They set off. Other pilgrims are going in the same direction. Outside the village the women separate from the men. The children go where they like. Jesus stays with His Mother.
The pilgrims go along through the country which is so beautiful in the happiest springtime, and they sing psalms most of the time. The meadows are fresh and the crops are fresh, and the leaves on the trees have just begun to bloom. You can hear men singing in the fields along the roads and birds singing their songs of love among the branches of the trees. Clear streams reflect like mirrors the flowers on the banks, while little lambs are jumping about near their mothers… Peace and happiness under the loveliest April sky.
The vision ends in this way.

Detail

Physical description of the infant Jesus and Joseph's blessing before leaving for Jerusalem.

Keywords

GRM 40

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

The Holy Family arrives at the Temple in Jerusalem. After praying, Joseph and Jesus go to a room where Jesus is examined by doctors of the Law. Joseph introduces them to his Son, then the men address the Child. He declares his name and asserts that he knows how to read symbols and the true meaning of Scripture. Listening to him, the doctors recommend that Joseph entrust him to Hilled or Gamaliel.

Christ is made to read part of the Decalogue. He must continue by heart, and each time he pronounces the Lord's name, he bows. He asserts that if we bow to kings of the earth who are but dust, we must bow even more to the King of Kings, on whom every creature depends.

He was then asked about the Sabbath law and the sanctification of feasts. Does the hen who lays an egg or the ewe who gives birth on that day commit a sin? No, because the beast obeys the Creator's laws and commits no sin. If man makes her work on the Sabbath, it's her master who bears her sin.

The doctors are impressed. They ask a final question by having him read a passage from the second book of Chronicles. This passage, which took place a few centuries earlier, speaks of the scribe Saphan. He reads a book by the priest Elchias before the king and tears his clothes afterwards because the people no longer follow the Lord's prescriptions and his anger is great. Is there a symbol in this text? Jesus replies that it is rare for there not to be, and says that we must not circumscribe in time what is eternal. The Word declares that Israel no longer has the wisdom that comes from God, despite the six hundred and thirteen precepts, for they know them, but no longer put them into practice.

The doctors declare that the child is perfect and of age. The celebration comes to an end, and Joseph and Jesus return to Mary.

Keywords

GRM 40.1-3

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

40.1 The Temple on a feast day. People going in and coming out of the enclosure gates, crossing yards, halls and porches, disappearing in this or that building on the various floors, which form the bulk of the Temple.
Also the group of Jesus’ family go in singing psalms in low voices. All the men are in front, the women come behind. Other people have joined them, perhaps from Nazareth, perhaps their friends in Jerusalem. I do not know.
Joseph, after worshipping the Most High with all the others at the point, obviously, where men were allowed to do so, (the women stopped on a lower landing), parts from the rest and with his Son goes back through some yards, he then moves to one side and enters a vast room which looks like a synagogue. I do not know why. Were there synagogues also in the Temple? He speaks to a Levite and the latter disappears behind a striped curtain, then he comes back with some elder priests, I think they are priests, they are certainly masters in the knowledge of the Law, and they are therefore appointed to examine the believers.
40.2 Joseph introduces Jesus. First of all, they both bow down deeply to the ten doctors, who have sat down with dignity on low wooden stools. «Here,» he says, «this in my Son. Three months and twelve days ago He reached the age which the Law prescribes to come of age. And I want Him to comply with the prescriptions of Israel. I would ask you to note that His constitution proves that He is no longer in His childhood or minor age. And I ask you to examine Him kindly and fairly, to judge that what I here, His father, have stated, is the truth. I have prepared Him for this hour and for this dignity of son of the Law. He knows the precepts, the traditions, the decisions, the customs of the fringes and the phylacteries, He knows how to say the daily prayers and blessings. Therefore, since He knows the Law in Itself and in its three branches of Halascia, Midrasc and Aggada, He can behave as a man. Therefore I wish to be free from the responsibilities of His actions and of His sins. From now on, He must be subject to the precepts and He must pay the penalty for His failures towards them. Examine Him.»
«We will.
40.3 Come forward, Child. What is Your name?»
«Jesus of Joseph, from Nazareth.»
«A Nazarene… can You therefore read?»
«Yes, rabbi, I can read the words which are written and those which are construed in the words themselves.»
«What do you mean?»
«I mean that I also understand the meaning of the allegory or of the symbol which is hidden under the appearance, as a pearl does not appear but it is inside an ugly closed shell.»
«A clever answer and a very wise one. We seldom hear that on the lips of adults; in a child, and a Nazarene in addition!…»
The attention of the ten has been awakened. Their eyes do not miss for an instant the beautiful blond Child, Who is looking at them sure of Himself, without boldness, but also without fear.
«You honour Your master, who, certainly, was deeply learned.»
«The Wisdom of God was gathered in his just heart.»
«But listen to that! You are a happy man, father of such a Son!»
Joseph, who is at the end of the room, smiles and bows down.

Keywords

Joseph of Jacob (Saint Joseph)