The Great Gospel of John
Volume 10
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord in the region of Caesarea Philippi (cont.)
- Chapter 19 -
The captain asks for the purpose of the struggle in nature.
Raphael said: "You have asked me a very important question, and I certainly would also be very well able to answer you, but you have much too little penetrated into the sphere of the pure spiritual, and in this way you would not understand the full truth.
2
But I can assure you that firstly the disciples of the Lord are fully instructed about that for already a long time, and besides them, also many other people, Jews and gentiles, and secondly that also you will come to a clear understanding about this. There will be opportunities today where you will also in this respect be able to glorify and praise the love and wisdom of the Lord.
3
Believe me that the Lord came precisely to this small hill so that at the sight of the water birds which eat the small fishes your old objections about the love, goodness and wisdom of a true God would come up. You came up with this, as I also knew a long time beforehand. And so, at the right time you will be given a correct light in this matter.
4
Friend, life in itself is a struggle. Who, as a good and pious person, can proceed to the highest, free spiritual life if he did not first very earnestly have to fight for it? But by what else should man fight, other than by the dangers that surround him on all sides? And these were put and allowed on this Earth by the Lord so that man should recognize them and would fight against them until he would overcome them. But now enough about this, after the morning meal there will be more of this."
5
When our Raphael had said that, a messenger came to tell us that the morning meal was ready, upon which we left our little hill and went to the house of Ebal to partake of the morning meal.
6
After the morning meal we went directly outside, but to another bigger hill from where we not only could see the bay of Gennesaret but could also view a big part of the Lake of Galilee. On that hill the Romans had some kind of stronghold in order to watch from there every movement that was considered unusual on the lake and on the not unimportant bay of Gennesaret. For that reason Roman guards were always set out on that hill and they would not easily allow anyone to come there, except when the captain himself or another commanding subordinate as leader would be present in a group that wanted to visit that hill.
7
Since the captain himself was with us now with 2 of his subordinate officers, we did not have the least of trouble to make use of that beautiful hill.
8
Several open tents were placed there, provided with benches which the captain put in order to make use of them, and he also let a couple of new tents to be set up for us.
9
When we took place in the tents, it was quiet for a while, and they all looked at the scenes in the shore and in the bay.
10
Suddenly the captain saw several big eagles flying from the higher mountains to the lower shores of the lake and said: "There we have again some uninvited guests from that height, at the same time as always, to get a very tasteful morning meal at the shores of the lake.
11
Although the water birds are also animals of prey that feed themselves with fishes and all kinds of other water animals, but they nevertheless seem more gentle to our mind, and their robbing and killing of innocent water animals does not make such disturbing impression on our heart and emotion than when a mighty eagle shoots down from the sky like an arrow to one of the many water birds, grabs it with its claws and carries it then to some rock, devours it there and eats its flesh."
12
While the captain was still expressing his human reflections, an eagle threw himself down in a field of reeds at the shore of the lake and grabbed a big pelican that was satiated with fish, and that made of course a great spectacle in the air because he was grabbed by the sharp claws of the eagle.
13
It did not take long before the other eagles followed the example of the first one, which made the Roman so angry that he walked to Me and said: "O Lord and Master, did You not see or did You not want to prevent that those greedy birds of prey attacked the more gentle water birds in a manner that is crying to Heaven for every human being with better feelings? Can such terrible scenes, which daily occur often in the world of nature, contribute to make the human heart more gentle and urge him to active neighborly love and mercy?
14
No, then I will remain with my old basic principles that I heard a few years ago from the mouth of an old wise Greek in Alexandria: 'The whole Earth is a nest of robbery and a valley of tears for the noble man. For everything that he sees and that happens to him is loaded with the eternal curse of the gods. It is nothing else than a continuous existence and a miserable and quick coming into existence, and a cruel death is always the result of the existence. And must man, who is tormented most of all in his existence, still live a completely good, noble, humane life and continuously honor the cursing gods? But how can he do that when he sees only a cruel raging of the whole nature around him? So let man also, for the curse that is cast also over him from the gods, become like a lion, a tiger or an eagle and revenge himself on his fellow creatures - no matter if they are human beings or animals. Let him try to become a king and enjoy his life that is short anyway, despite of the gods.'
15
Lord and Master, I do not say now that that wise Greek has expressed a real and true principle for the well being of men, since I have found a very different life's principle with You according to which I also will live and act from now on. But say now You Yourself if the whole natural man - especially in a land where it swarms with all kinds of animals of prey - can as a result of his observations and experiences finally come to another basic principle for the human life on this Earth, even if he basically has a good mind, as this can often be well observed with children who are still under age.
16
Let us look at the countries where it swarms with all kinds of animals of prey, and the people who must continuously hunt them to prevent of being devoured by them. How are these people? They are just as wild as the animals that surround them. They rob and kill, and you cannot find any love and even less real mercy among them, and no desire or tendency to a good ordered, peaceful activity.
17
On the other hand, if we look at a people that I once met in Armenia. In the country of that people, a former wise king exterminated very zealously as many wild animals as possible by many very skilled hunters. And also the eagles and vultures were not spared. They were only allowed to keep the gentle and useful house animals. And farming was the main activity of that people. And I say to You, o Lord and Master, that I hardly met a more gentle and peaceful little people on any continent.
18
During the daytime and at night you can travel in that country over all big and small roads, without being afraid to be attacked by a wild animal and even less by a predatory person. And in whatever house you enter, no matter how simple it may be, they receive you in the kindest way. And with all love and kindness they serve you with everything they possess in that house with whatever man needs.
19
And to whom should the people of that mentioned country be grateful for this excellent, good, kind and gentle way of development of the mind? To that wise king who purified his country of all wild animals of prey.
20
For You, o Lord and Master, it would be even much easier to purify the whole Earth of all wild animals. And then the people, who would not have to fight with lions, panthers, tigers, hyena's, bears, wolves, foxes and still many other wild beasts, would, with a good education, soon look like the mentioned Armenians."