The Great Gospel of John
Volume 7
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord on the Mount of Olives. (cont.) Gospel of John, Chapter 8
- Chapter 99 -
The call of the Indians to God is not heard.
Raphael said: "I am not angry with you, because I well know how you are. But I am saying this to you, and keep it in mind: that God is in Himself the eternal truth and wisdom and will therefore not let Himself be found or be understood by any manner of deceit, because God is holy. Deceit however - no matter in what kind of form and for what kind of motive it may be practiced - is in itself unholy, therefore damnable and is unworthy of a holy God.
2
He who wants to search and find God as the highest truth must search Him with all humility and truth in his heart and then he will also find Him this way. But God will not let Himself be found with all kinds of lies and deceit.
3
You have, since ancient times, secret wise men in your country who you are calling Pirmanji. Those also still know the one, true God. Why then do you not want to be instructed by them?"
4
The chief magician said: "Indeed we know that they are possessing a deeper wisdom and knowledge, but who can come to them? They are living in regions that are only accessible by eagles, but apart from that, not a living soul. We only know that they are living somewhere in the valleys of the high mountains. But where, that is another question.
5
However, we have come to know a few of them personally and have also spoken to them, but despite all our cleverness we were not able to know anything from them. Yet we recognized them because they could tell us exactly what has happened with us since our childhood years, and also for the future they said what still would happen to us, and that was already 10 years ago. And see, everything that they have predicted has now come true word for word.
6
However, when we begun to speak about the existence of a true God, they evaded the question and did not give us a clear answer. We were seriously insisting upon it with them and made them understand that they were in our power.
7
Then they said: "We are in the power of the only true God, and no power in the world goes beyond that power."
8
Then they suddenly left us and disappeared literally before our eyes. Even if after that, we gained by the fact that in any way we received a stronger perception of the existence of a true God, but there was nothing of a real clear understanding.
9
But as this is the case with us, so it is also the case with our high priest, because he knows as much as we do. For this reason, almost every year, he is sending out into the world a few of his most qualified subordinate priests to receive reliable information about the only true God, of whom it is written in our old book: Ja seam zkrit (I am hidden). But where? This is the eternal fatal reason why we are searching for the One who is hidden and who we can find nowhere. It is easy for our people because they deeply believe that He is hidden in a holy palace on our high holy mountain, which cannot be climbed. And by our wonders the people become more and more strengthened in that belief. But where is the only true God hidden for us? That is another question.
10
We were already searching for Him in all the corners of the Earth, which were somewhat accessible to us. We found many rare things, but until now we did not find the hidden One. And still, on the Earth, in the sky and also between the stars it looks like a house, of which the arrangement shows clearly that it has a very good and wise Father of the house. However, if one asks for Him and wants to know Him more closely, He is never present, and nobody can give the assurance having seen or having talked to Him. And still He must be somewhere and take care of the order in His house. And, young, wise friend, only now we have arrived at the right place.
11
It is not so difficult, with a serious face, to be a comforter for someone in need or, in course of time, for a whole people, while one has to lack every comfort until the last breath. And therefore, no God - if ever there is one somewhere - can blame us that we, as ancient well-tried comforters of the nations, are finally also looking for true comfort, which we already have given for an unimaginably long time to the poor, blind people. The fact that we are searching this comfort for ourselves - as you say, with the most unsuitable methods - we do not doubt at all, but how can we know what the true methods are?
12
It is true that you have shown us that God, as the eternal original truth, will only let Himself be found by the truth. This, lovely friend, is very good and very beautifully said, but what is the truth, and where can we find it in this world? Happy is the rare man who has only a perception of this truth, but where is the one who possesses it completely? Oh, tell us who He is, then we will follow Him to the end of the world and offer Him all the treasures of our great kingdom, so that He will give us a portion of His spiritual treasure.
13
You can now think of us whatever you wish, but this I am telling you now very openly and freely without any reservation - even at risk of danger that you yourself could be the hidden One who we are searching for such a long time: ultimately, man who is searching with determination for the truth, with every means which he can think of and despite every possible difficulties in life that are in this world, is equally worth a person - or maybe even more - who has the luck to have found the truth by some incalculable coincidence, but who afterwards has stubbornly kept it from his poor fellowmen and leaves them hungry and thirsty, while with a few words he maybe could have satisfied them more than sufficiently for a 1,000 years. Yes, I even say more than that:
14
It is precisely because we have already searched Him for such a long time that we are having the greatest doubts about the existence of the only, true God, and because He still lets Himself to be searched for, just like thousands of years ago. In what way are you ahead of us because the true, only God let Himself be found by you? Who can know if you have ever searched Him more zealously than we have?
15
Yes friend, in this respect it is quite difficult to talk with us Indians, because we are not people from today until tomorrow . But as we are now, we already have been since unthinkable times. The fact that we are still standing on the old spot and maybe will still remain standing another thousands of years on the same spot, we do not know for sure - at least as far as the future is concerned. But so be it. One can really not say that it is our own fault.
16
Suppose that somewhere you have hidden a great treasure, and then you say to your servants: 'Go and bring the hidden treasure back to me. If you find it, your reward will be great. However, if you do not find it, while I moreover am blindfolding you, then you will be punished for it forever.' Oh, this would be a kind of justice that you hardly could find with our tigers and hyenas.
17
If there is a God full of wisdom and goodness who would desire this from us, powerless worms of this Earth, then it would be infinitely much better for men if they were never created. If someone is asking me for the way to an unknown place, then it is my holy duty to kindly show him the way. And I have never refused anyone to show him the way, whenever that was possible.
18
However, if we are searching for God and His truth with all zeal and with all means that are at our disposal and are continuously shouting in ourselves: 'God, Creator and Lord, hidden One, where are You?' and He would not count us worthy to give an answer, then there are 3 possibilities: either He does not exist at all and everything exists eternally only according to a rule which was formed by coincidence by itself in the nature and was then arranged, or God is someone who only cares about endlessly great things, or God is a creature who is so deaf and senseless that for Him men are the same as the mites on a leaf and as the countless mosquitoes in the sky.
19
And friend, in neither of these 3 cases we do not need a God at all, because then the animals are more valuable to Him than we miserable people who are gifted with brains and intellect. Still, it remains remarkable that He has to be somewhere, but does not let Himself be found by us.
20
What do you have to say now to my honest words? Since now I have shown you how and why we are justly doubting the existence of a true God. If you want, the word is now again yours."