The Great Gospel of John
Volume 3
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Jesus near Caesarea Philippi
- Chapter 39 -
Suetal's speech about the temple and the Saviour from Nazareth.
This very appropriate counter enlightenment took the listeners aback, and Suetal didn't know what he should answer. After a while however he said quite seriously, "You are quite right, but we are no less right! You see, if you always tell a child from the cradle on that two nuts and two nuts make five, this child will believe you and repeat what you said, and it will be difficult in the end to set the mature youth free from this craziness. Who explained the Law of Moses to us before now like you? What was there to do but to take the Law as it had been explained to us since the cradle?! Our elders never understood it better and the whole temple probably does not understand it either, or it does not want to understand it. Where should we have got a correct understanding? As prospective templars we never got to see the whole of Moses, because that is only permitted for the eldest and the scribes! And now tell us from where we should have got the correct understanding of the Law! Who should have explained it correctly like you?"
2
At this Julius says, "But one should be able to accept that people, once they are servants in the temple in the clothes of priests, understand the teachings of God at least as well as a heathen (old believer)! To me the religion of every people has always been very important because one can get to know a people in all their action and inaction right down to the basics; and so I believe with some justification, that every individual person in a nation must endeavor to get to know the religion of his fathers as exactly as possible, because such a religion alone can be the guide line of social interaction! In addition you are no longer disciples, but men, from whom it can be expected that they - even as priests - should understand their religion at least as well as I, who am a stranger! Now tell me, what is taught in your schools?"
3
Suetal says, "We learn to read, write and count, finally we learn also all sorts of foreign languages and then a certain excerpt from the great Scriptures, in which above all we are urgently demanded to accept everything that the temple wants and teaches as coming perfectly from God. But if so, then it begs the question from where we should take a deeper insight into our religion! It"s easy for you; for you are a lord full of power and sway from all sides. You can go into a main synagogue and just demand. Every leader will surely allow you insight into everything - and woe to him who withholds something from you! He knows well that you will then order a search through everything and what he can expect if you found something hidden! Oh, you see, a leader of the synagogue knows that well and will therefore show you everything and disclose everything, just as the high priest of Jerusalem must show the high and mighty strangers every day the holiest of holies where he himself may only enter twice according to the belief of the nation; but should the like of us try to fulfill such a desire and the devil"s water would soon be at hand!
4
Some temple servants, the so-called most secret, certainly know how the inner sanctum looks; but they are firstly very well served and secondly threatened with a hundred death sentences for the slightest betrayal, so they know how to keep their mouth shut. Now we ask more intensively from where the true light should come to our highly mysterious religion!
5
If everything happens as we have told you, you as judge and person can have no other judgment than a completely just one!
6
You already know what our crimes consist of; you can hopefully take quite clearly from this which guilt we bear, what we have told you about ourselves without fear or withholding. If you know something further about us, then forgive us, and we will inform you without fear; for whoever can die courageously, knows how to speak courageously!"
7
Julius says quite relaxed, "I have no intention of putting further mistrust in your speech, since I am too convinced that things occur in the temple as you have said, and I therefore set you free from guilt; for whoever falls from the roof and through his fall injures a child playing beneath the roof cannot bear any guilt, and in this way our hearing is at an end, and you are declared free of guilt and punishment in this respect.
8
But there is another hitch! I will ask you another question about it; it will much depend on the answer to that question whether I will be your friend or foe - and so listen carefully!
9
You will surely have heard in this time that in Nazareth a certain Jesus, a son of a carpenter there, is supposed to go around as a savior and do great, unheard-of things as deeds before the eyes of every man and spread a new religion! If you have any knowledge, so give it to me openly, for it means a lot to me!"
10
Suetal says, "We have certainly heard something whispered from afar, but we know hardly a hundredth part of what you probably know for a long time. Firstly we were always more in the southern areas occupied with fulfilling our good order and only came to this realm of Galilee a few days ago and were soon seized and therefore can know quite terribly little about your certain savior. But his reputation has spread to Damascus and Babylon, that is quite certain; but what sort of person he is, what he does and how he heals the sick, we know nothing about that and are highly curious to find out more details! Yes, if there is still a God somewhere, he can no longer watch the terrible activity of the temple and has to send the people a savior!
11
We say to you, whatever a person in his great turpitude, in his most satanic fantasy can think up, is put into action inside the thick walls of the temple. Uncountable acts of vice are committed upon mankind there and with such an indifferent cheek that you cannot imagine! The high lords of the temple seem to value the people as one values an idle sparrow. I don't want to say a word about the most superficial transgression of all of God"s laws; but new atrocities are invented and committed which the good Moses never dreamt of, for otherwise he would have placed on them a hundred deaths and ten hells as punishment! But the healing of the people, on that we don't waste any more time!
12
One would certainly do mankind a great service if once at night the temple could be destroyed along with its inhabitants with one blow. Therefore man has long been in need of a savior; but he should free humanity, not us Jews from you Romans - for you also belong to our saviors - but from the pure hellish draconarchy (dragon reign) of the temple! Then, Lord, the poor humanity will jump for joy that they have been freed from their worst enemy!
13
Friend, can there be a cheekier thought than that God the all-mighty put a most evil worm of dust over all people and over all the other creatures, so that now this worm can go unpunished according to his most evil will with God Himself and with all people and with all creation?! No, no, lord! There is either no God, or God lets such devils do their worst as in the days of Noah and Lot! Oh great, holy God, where are you, where are you whiling? Truly, what the temple does now exceeds all human imagination! Outwardly it shows the same comforting and helping face as in the days of Solomon, but inwardly it has become the hell of hells! But it is better not to speak of it any longer and we will be silent and wait to hear more from you about the savior of Nazareth!"