The Childhood of Jesus
The Gospel of James
Biographical Gospel of the Lord
- Chapter 217 -
A Lesson In Geometry
WHEN ALL HAD STILLED their hunger with the cold fish they arose, thanked Joseph for this good meal and then went out into the open; for the sun was still above the horizon.
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When most of the guests from Cyrenius' company had gone outside, the little Child asked him,
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'Cyrenius, do you not recall what you asked Me out there at the scene of the fire, when I praised the fish of the Mediterranean for their quality and fine taste?'
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Here Cyrenius considered a bit but could not remember his question.
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He therefore said to the little Child, 'O my Lord, my life, forgive me - I must confess before You that I have completely forgotten it!'
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Here the little Child smiled again and full of gentleness reminded the somewhat embarrassed Cyrenius,
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'Did you not ask Me whether the Mediterranean is in the middle of the land?
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I then referred you to the small earth-globe at which you were to look and decide for yourself whether this sea is really in the middle of the land.
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See, now would surely be the best time to settle this matter!
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So take the little earth in your hand and find the answer to your question.'
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And Cyrenius replied, 'Yes, by my poor soul, this I surely would have completely forgotten if You, o Lord, had not reminded me of it now.'
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Here James at once sprang into the side chamber and brought the little earth to Cyrenius
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who then promptly sought and soon found the Mediterranean.
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And as he pointed to the Mediterranean with his finger, the little Child asked him,
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'Cyrenius, is that really the middle of the land? Or how does the matter seem to you?'
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Cyrenius answered, 'I dare say that I am good at figures according to Euclid and Ptolemy
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and therefore know from the geometry of spheres that on the surface of a ball every given point is in the middle of the surface because in the first place each point is precisely the same distance from the center of the ball,
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and secondly because all lines going out from it to its corresponding point on the opposite side of the ball are of the same curvature and length.
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According to this basic axiom it follows that this sea can be named the Mediterranean.
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But on the other hand I also find that every sea is in the same category and can be a sea in the middle just as well.'
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And the little Child rejoined, 'Therein you are quite right; but for all that the principles of Euclid still do not apply here,
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and this sea can still be called a sea in the middle exclusively -
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for wherever the Lord is, there also is the true middle.
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And behold, the Lord is now here by this sea, and therefore the middle of the sea is also here.
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That is a different computation of which Euclid did not dream, and it is more correct than his."
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This explanation greatly alerted Cyrenius and he continued to study the globe.