Ch. 4, Jesus at Jerusalem
“Son of Man: Urantia,” 2nd edition
Jesus at Jerusalem
Jesus’ first Passover experience was a turning point in his life. In the beginning his human emotions were at their peak and he was full of anticipation, but as reality set in his divine side became disappointed with all he saw and heard. Jesus had started causing problems in Nazareth even before everyone left for Jerusalem. The Jews considered the Passover a man’s event: the women were allowed go but since it was not required they usually stayed at home. So at first Mary had no intention of attending the Passover. But Jesus said to exclude women was wrong and if his mother did not go to Jerusalem, neither would he. Mary gave in, and because she did many other women from Nazareth who normally would not have gone to the Passover went with her.
On the first day of the Passover, Jesus and all of the other Jewish boys had to go through ceremonies where they devoted themselves to God and committed to upholding Jewish law and tradition. According to those laws and traditions Mary and the other women were not allowed to watch their sons become men. Jesus was not happy with the situation, but other than telling Joseph some of his feelings he held most of them back until they all returned to Nazareth.
Jesus, of course, was still asking his parents many questions about almost everything. But the only answers they could give him were based on Jewish dogma. For Mary, Joseph, and the rest of the Jews the core belief dominating their existence was that God was an all-powerful being who became angry and punished the people who offended him. Jesus resented these types of answers: he knew that there is never a valid reason for anyone to ever fear God. Eventually Joseph became frustrated with Jesus’ attitude and ordered him not to question the Jewish laws anymore. But in this case Jesus did not give up. He told Joseph that it was not reasonable for people to think that God acted in anger. Jesus explained to Joseph that as his mortal father he could not love Jesus more than did God, his divine father. And if Joseph loved him so much that he did not get angry with him, then how could God who loves him even more want to hurt him? Jesus’ argument put Joseph in a spot, and neither he nor Mary ever again tried to counter Jesus’ belief in the love and mercy of God.
Jesus Views the Temple
The temple complex consisted of many buildings and could hold two hundred thousand people at once. It was noisy and crowded. Being from Nazareth, Jesus was accustomed to a much smaller temple where everyone knew everyone else. He thought the ceremonies were routine and impersonal, and he saw nothing holy or focused on worshiping God. Vendors were changing money and selling animals more like it was the public market than a sacred temple dedicated to his Father.
The most horrific experience for young Jesus was the priests slaughtering the animals to please God. This butchery happened at a large bronze fountain under a rock ledge in front of the temple altar. So many animals were being massacred that thick rivers of blood flowed down the pavement, and the priests were gory and covered from toe to head in globs of blood. The shrill screams from the herds of terrified animals sickened Jesus and he convinced Joseph to take him away. He had witnessed enough human barbarism for the day.
Jesus and the Passover
That night Mary, Joseph, and Jesus visited Simon’s family in Bethany. They ate lamb for dinner in accordance with the custom for the Passover. This was the first of seven days of ceremonies, and since it was Jesus’ first time attending he was asked to tell the legend of the Passover for all of the guests. Jesus recited the story well, but Mary and Joseph could tell that he was upset with what he had seen at the temple. What neither of them realized was that Jesus was already thinking about changing the Jewish customs and doing away with any belief that killing animals pleased God. It was a restless night for the family: Jesus was distraught at what he had seen and Mary and Joseph were worried about him resisting Jewish traditions.
The next day Simon’s son, Lazarus, took Jesus for a tour of Jerusalem. It was a calmer day for Jesus and by evening he knew his way around the temple. Jesus was still not yet thirteen years old, so he was not allowed to participate in the discussions being held. Not being able to speak kept Jesus’ questions at bay, at least for a while. As the week wore on Mary and Joseph often found their son sitting off by himself thinking. Jesus was acting strangely and they were getting worried: by this time Mary and Joseph just wanted Jesus safely back in Nazareth.
Jesus’ mind was filled with questions. Of the thousands of people from all around the world attending the Passover, Jesus met and talked with over a one hundred and fifty of them. He was always interested in other people, and by now he knew something about the cultures in Egypt, Parthia, Turkestan, Mesopotamia and the western Roman empire. All of these contacts just made Jesus want to keep learning more about humanity.
Mary and Joseph Leave
The party that had traveled from Nazareth for the Passover had all agreed to leave and return home the day after the Passover week. Their plan was for everyone to form two groups outside of the temple at about ten o’clock that morning, the men in one and the women and children in the other as normal. Jesus had gone to the Passover with the women’s group, but since he was now a man he was supposed to walk home with their group. This created some confusion, and Mary and Joseph each thought that Jesus was travelling with the other. But Jesus had earlier gone to the temple, and when he heard some of the priests having a discussion about angels he forgot about the trip home. Jesus was left behind in Jerusalem, and Mary and Joseph did not realize this until they met each other in Jericho later that night.
First and Second Days in the Temple
Jesus remained in the temple all day listening to the priest’s discussions: he was less stressed now that most of the people had left. Afterwards, he walked to Bethany and spent the night at Simon’s house. The family was happy to see him, but for most of the evening Jesus kept to himself meditating in the garden. He had not said anything all day when he was in the temple because he was still not technically old enough to participate, but now he was determined to speak.
On his way to the temple the next morning Jesus stopped on the brow of Olivet, the ridge where he had been so excited on first seeing Jerusalem. Back then he had been full of joy: now he cried for his people. On the one hand they were accountable to the Roman legions, and on the other they were slaves to their religion with its mean and angry God. Their bondage was complete. Mary and Joseph left Jericho early and returned to Jerusalem looking for Jesus. After they did not find him in town they spent the night with Mary’s relatives.
Jesus arrived at the temple before noon. He behaved as required for his age, but then he started asking questions. Most of the priests tolerated this, at least up until Jesus questioned the justice of condemning a gentile to death just because he had wandered into a supposedly sacred area of the temple when drunk. This protest was too much for one of the priests, and he demanded to know Jesus’ age. Jesus replied that he was lacking four more months before turning thirteen years old, but also that he had been consecrated at the Passover and had finished all of his schooling in Nazareth. For most of the teachers that explained the problem, because instantly they started asking one another if any good ever came out of Nazareth. The leader of the discussion group decided it was not Jesus’ fault that he was in the temple before he was actually thirteen years old, but rather the fault of the liberal teachers in Nazareth. They agreed to let Jesus stay and participate.
The Third Day in the Temple
By the third day the word had spread in Jerusalem that there was a young man in the temple asking questions that the rabbis could not answer. When Jesus arrived at the temple that morning he had an audience hoping to see him confuse the wise men of the law. Simon had walked in from Bethany and was also there. Mary and Joseph were still looking for Jesus and at one point they were actually in the temple, but it never dawned on them that he would be taking part in the discussions.
For more than four hours Jesus debated with Jerusalem’s religious leaders. He did not argue with them, he taught them with his questions. Or rather, in the way that he would ask his questions: Jesus always worded them so they challenged people’s beliefs while at the same time showed them better ways. He never took unfair advantage of people, and he treated everyone with respect. Jesus’ goal was never to just win an argument, but instead to give people greater truth and understanding of God the Father. By the time the day was over everyone in the temple was pondering why they separated men and women; if God already loves us, why do we kill animals to please him; why can businesses operate in a temple dedicated to worshiping God, and is the messiah that we are all waiting for supposed to be a king on a material throne or someone to lead a spiritual kingdom of love?
The Fourth Day in the Temple
Jesus was so focused on the talks in the temple that he forgot about his parents. Mary and Joseph were more worried every day, and by this point they thought that maybe Jesus had gone to visit John in the City of Judah. But before leaving Jerusalem to see if Jesus was with John, they went to the temple to see if John’s father, Zacharias, was there. Instead they found Jesus.
All morning Jesus had impressed everyone present with his knowledge of the scriptures, especially for a boy of his age. The rabbis had just started the afternoon round of talks, and Jesus had been invited to sit next to the head teacher and explain his ideas about how to pray. At this point, Mary and Joseph arrived. They were both shocked to see Jesus talking with the men, but Mary was also furious. She busted in on the group and in front of everyone began scolding Jesus. They had been searching for him for three days, she said. What was he thinking? Did he not care that they were worried about him, and on and on. Joseph was upset, but he held his piece and let Mary do the speaking, or in this case, yelling. Everyone present was shocked, and sat there wondering what Jesus was going to do.
When Mary had finished venting her feelings at Jesus, he stood up in front of his mother. He said that while he was at fault, Mary was also going too far by scolding him in the temple. She was not even supposed to be in the men’s area, and he had already been recognized as a son of the law: he was officially a young man. It was not proper for her to be yelling at him in front of everyone, and especially in his Father’s temple. After a moment’s thought, Jesus then asked his mother why they had spent so much time looking for him. He said they should have expected to find him in his Father’s house since it was time for him to be about his Father’s business. This comment left Mary speechless, and astonished everyone else. After a moment Jesus told his parents that everything was proceeding according to his Father’s will, and they left to go home.
On the way back to Jericho, Jesus again stood on the brow of Olivet and looked down on Jerusalem. This time he did not cry; instead, trembling with emotion he vowed to someday return, clean out the temple, and break his people’s bondage to their old beliefs. When the family arrived back in Nazareth, Jesus had a short talk with his parents. He told them he would never again cause them to worry while he lived in their house. Jesus had to balance obeying his parent’s rules on Earth, and doing his Father’s will in spiritual matters. If there was conflict between the two, Jesus would not agree with his mother and father but he would follow their wishes.
Joseph was confused; he was not sure what to think about his son. But Mary had heard Jesus’ vow on the brow of Olivet that someday he was going to return to save his people from bondage. Mary held to her beliefs and kept trying to prepare Jesus to sit on the throne of David as the King of the Jews: she even went so far as to recruit her brother, Jesus’ favorite uncle, to help her mold him into a Jewish patriot. But Jesus’ mission was spiritual not political, and not just for the Jews but for everyone in the world.