Someone told Mariam, "I don't believe you." The Rabbi told Mariam, "The truth is the truth. It is a neutral deposit of factual matter. Whether it is believed or not neither adds nor detracts from it. It simply is." It is often difficult to judge what is the truth and what is not. In a world where everything is not always as it seems, and fear and passions sometimes affect words and actions, it is possible to doubt. And sometimes, for good reason. However, truth will always triumph eventually. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we follow Him, we have the happiness of knowing that in His Kingdom, all will be known - and truth will be the order of the Kingdom.
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John 14:6
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Mariam loved all whom she met. Following the Rabbi as His disciple had changed her - she met all with delight and joy, finding in them brothers and sisters of the universal family. Rabbi Jesus told her, "Love is no respecter of boundaries."
Mariam was inclined to be a champion grudge holder. She could forgive, but found it hard to forget another's perceived slight. The Rabbi gently explained to her a helpful rule, "Remember those who have been good to you, and sift the others away through the fingers of kindness." Forgiveness means being willing to forgive others, as they sometimes have to forgive us. Not every slight or hurt we deliver was intentionally meant. By letting bygones be bygones, relationships can flourish and not eternally founder. We need to rejoice in the memories given us by those who have left us feeling nurtured and cherished, and to sift away the bad memories given to us by those who did not - through the fingers of kindness, the process of forgiveness. Jesus has taught us that we are to forgive, over and over again. This means that justice will not always be served to us by others, yet we must forgive them - and pray for them. It is only by forgiving - as fully as our Master forgave even those who had crucified Him as He was dying on the cross - that we can fulfil the mandate placed upon us as disciples of the Most High.
Forgive Seventy Times Seven
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Matthew 18:21-22
21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
Mariam asked the Rabbi, "What is true love?" Rabbi Jesus answered, "It is allowing the other person to be." True love does not seek to control, change or denigrate the beloved. True love allows the other the emotional space to be their spontaneous selves, and thus to grow. True love implies total respect, each for the other.
Mariam had helped someone. She wished to offer further assistance, but was financially unable to do so. The Rabbi told her, "You can heal some of the world's ills; but not all." The full healing of the woes of the world fall to the Saviour alone. With the sacrifice of His Life He has fully atoned for each of our sins. Yet to each of us falls the privilege of being in a position to assist others. Let us do what we can. We are told by the Saviour that this is the way He wishes us to live our lives. At our Final Judgement the good we have done when we had the chance to do so will be taken into account. A truly frightening warning has been given not to disregard our human duty of care towards others.
Matthew 25:31-46
The Final Judgment
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[a] you did it to me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
Mariam felt sad. The Rabbi told her, "Is this not the vale of tears?" True happiness will only ever be ours in the next world. Even the Son of God carried a cross in this life. We will rejoice eternally in heaven once our eternity has been won. But we need to travel life's road first.
Mariam asked the Rabbi about abortion, the intentional killing of an innocent unborn. The Rabbi told her, "What you cannot create, do not destroy." As humanity, we can co-create a human life, but we cannot create (out of nothing) - life. Let us respect the right to life of another, especially one so helpless and dependent upon us.
Mariam spoke with a spiritual master from another religious faith. Mariam told the Rabbi, "He spoke of pure living, love and kindness; of God, and of prayer." Rabbi Jesus answered warmly, "He spoke with my words." There are many roads to God. Respect of others helps the true disciple to share spiritual riches with those of differing spiritual cultures.
Mariam witnessed the suffering of another as a result of impulsive and unwise decision. The Rabbi said sadly, "A few moments of pleasure; a lifetime of pain." Adhering to the commandments during extreme temptation will save much heartache. Rather than a list of don'ts, the ten commandments are a list of do's which give the template for a peaceful and happy life.
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Exodus 20 2-17
Deuteronomy 5:6-21
A Traditional Catechetical Formula
I am the LORD your God,
who brought you out
of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of bondage.
I am the LORD your God,
who brought you out
of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of bondage.
1. I am the LORD your God:
you shall not have
strange Gods before me.
You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself a graven image,
or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above,
or that is in the earth beneath,
or that is in the water under the earth;
you shall not bow down to them or serve them;
for I the LORD your God am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers
upon the children to the third and the fourth
generation of those who hate me,
but showing steadfast love to thousands of those
who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall have no other gods before me
. . .
You shall not take
the name of the LORD your God in vain;
for the LORD will not hold him guiltless
who takes his name in vain.
You shall not take
the name of the LORD your God in vain
. . .
2. You shall not take
the name of the LORD your God in vain.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Six days you shall labor, and do all your work;
but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God;
in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son,
or your daughter, your manservant,
or your maidservant or your cattle,
or the sojourner who is within your gates;
for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
and rested the seventh day;
therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.
Observe the sabbath day,
to keep it holy
. . .
3. Remember to keep holy the LORD'S Day.
Honor your father and your mother,
that your days may be long in the land
which the LORD your God gives you.
Honor your father and your mother
. . .
4. Honor your father and your mother.
You shall not kill.
You shall not kill.
5. You shall not kill.
You shall not commit adultery.
Neither shall you commit adultery.
6. You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
Neither shall you steal.
7. You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbor.
Neither shall you bear false witness
against your neighbor.
8. You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor's house;
you shall not covet your neighbor's wife,
or his manservant, or his maidservant,
or his ox, or his ass,
or anything that is your neighbor's.
It appeared as if chaos reigned in society. Mariam felt panicked, and reached out to the Rabbi for guidance. She told the Rabbi, "All around me the fabric of our society as I know it is crumbling." The Rabbi answered her, "But you stay upright." In times of difficulty we need to cling to God, and He will help us in our time of trial. God is our Rock to Whom we can cling when our strength feels weak; He is the stronghold in our times of doubt; He is our Refuge when troubles come our way. Psalm 18;2 "The LORD is my Rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my stronghold in Whom I take refuge, my Shield, the Glory of my salvation, and my High Tower.
Mariam felt lifted from herself during prayer. She returned from immersing herself in prayer to God, refreshed and renewed. She asked the Rabbi what had happened during this time. The Rabbi answered, "You reached out and touched the heart of God."
Mariam was thirty three. She felt old. The Rabbi told her, "Do you have any idea what a spark you are beside the fire of my age?" The Son was there when the foundations of the earth were laid. Age is a passing concept. The seasons of the body from the spring of our infancy to the autumn of our age bring about their changes within us. Our spirit - as we follow in the footsteps of the Son of God - is ageless and eternal, lasting forever.
Mariam spent time in prayer with someone from another form of religious faith. The Rabbi was pleased. "The truly religious do not argue about religion."
The Rabbi encouraged Mariam to remind an acquaintance about His teachings regarding forgiveness and empathy. Mariam asked the Rabbi, "Why do you send me there, Lord? I really didn't want to get involved." The Rabbi told her, "He needs to be reminded about my words. It's all very well to talk Jesus; it's another thing to live Jesus."
