I also believe that Jesus knew who he was from the beginning. But I don't think he did anything wrong by staying behind in Jerusalem, he always did only the will of the Father and did not sin. I don't think he would have to apologize for this mysterious event which must have been in God's plan, no more than he would have to apologize to His Mother for causing her the pain of seeing Him suffer. She was His co-redemtrix, and though not always fully understanding what he was doing she would have been submitted to His plan.
Maybe you are right Jonah, maybe he didn't apologise but I can't imagine the terror though, that Mary and Joseph must have felt from they realised Jesus was missing until they found him.
I always imagined the time when Jesus couldn't be found was a terrible time for Mary. After all, she knew all about the slaughter of the Holy Innocents by men in search of her Son! And she knew he was to suffer for others. I suspect she did not know when that suffering would happen, or how, just that it would come.
I was blessed today to go through my first Holy Door after Confession and Mass at the Marian Shrine at Our Lady Help of Christians- run by the Salesians of Don Bosco. What a great blessing to have this Shrine so close to home. I also can't help but think of St. Don Bosco's vision of the two great pillars that the "bishop in white" will anchor the Church to in the storm. I hope God allows me to make frequent pilgrimages this year to this holy shrine dedicated to Our Lady! Next time, I will remember my camera but for now, here is link to the website in case anyone is close enough to come here sometime this year. http://www.marianshrine.org/index.php?section=23
From the Mystical City of God book 3: http://www.catholickingdom.com/s_Library/Books/C/City_of_God_v3_The_Transfixion_AGREDA_OCR_CK.pdf CHAPTER IV. AT TWELVE YEARS OF AGE THE CHILD JESUS GOES WITH HIS PARENTS TO JERUSALEM AND HE CONCEALS HIM SELF FROM THEM IN THE TEMPLE. 35. As I have said, Mary and Joseph repeated their visit to the temple at the feast of the unleavened Bread every year. Also when the divine Child was twelve years old and when it was time to allow the splendors of his inaccessible and divine light to shine forth, They went to the temple for this feast (Luke 2, 42). This festival of the unleavened Bread lasted seven days, ac cording to the command of the divine law; and the more solemn days were the first and the last. On this account our heavenly Pilgrims remained in Jerusalem during the whole week, spending their time in acts of worship and devotion as the rest of the Jews, although on account of the sacraments connected with each of Them their worship and devotion was entirely different and greatly exalted above that of the others. The blessed Mother and holy Joseph received during these days favors and blessings beyond the conception of the human mind. 36. Having thus spent all the seven days of the feast They betook themselves on their way home to Nazareth. When his parents departed from Jerusalem and were pursuing their way homeward, the Child Jesus withdrew from them without their knowledge. For this purpose the Lord availed Himself of the separation of the men and women, which had become customary among the pilgrims for reasons of decency as well as for greater 35 36 CITY OF GOD recollection during their return homeward. The chil dren which accompanied their parents were taken in charge promiscuously either by the men or the women, since their company with either was a matter of indif ference. Thus it happened that saint Joseph could easily suppose that the Child Jesus had remained with his most holy Mother, with whom He generally remained. The thought that She would go without Him was far from his mind, since the heavenly Queen loved and delighted in Him more than any other creature human or angelic. The great Lady did not have so many reasons for sup posing that her most holy Son was in the company of saint Joseph: but the Lord himself so diverted her thoughts by holy and divine contemplations, that She did not notice his absence at first. When afterwards She became aware of her not being accompanied by her sweetest and beloved Son, She supposed that the blessed Joseph had taken Him along and that the Lord accom panied his foster-father for his consolation. 37. Thus assured, holy Mary and Joseph pursued their home journey for an entire day, as saint Luke tells us. As the pilgrims proceeded onwards they gradu ally thinned out, each taking his own direction and join ing again with his wife or family. The most holy Mary and saint Joseph found themselves at length in the place where they had agreed to meet on the first evening after leaving Jerusalem. When the great Lady saw that the Child was not with saint Joseph and when the holy Patriarch found that He was not with his Mother, the two were struck dumb with amazement and surprise for quite a while. Both, governed in their judgment by their most profound humility, felt overwhelmed with self-reproach at their remissness in watching over their most holy Son and thus blamed themselves for his ab- 37 sence; for neither of them had any suspicion of the mys terious manner in which He had been able to elude their vigilance. After a time they recovered somewhat from their astonishment and with deepest sorrow took counsel with each other as to what was to be done (Luke 2, 45). The loving Mother said to saint Joseph : "My spouse and my master, my heart cannot rest, unless we return with all haste to Jerusalem in order to seek my most holy Son." This they proceeded to do, beginning their search among their relations and friends, of whom, how ever, none could give them any information or any com fort in their sorrow ; on the contrary their answers only increased their anxiety, since none of them had so much as seen their Son since their departure from Jerusalem. 38. The afflicted Mother turned to her holy angels. Those that carried the escutcheons inscribed with the most holy name of Jesus (of which I spoke at the Cir cumcision), had accompanied the Lord, while the other angels still remained with the purest Mother; this was the order maintained whenever the Son separated from the Mother. These, who numbered ten thousand, She asked, saying: "My friends and companions, you well know the cause of my sorrow: in this bitter affliction be my consolation and give me some information con cerning my Beloved, so that I may seek and find Him (Cant. 3, 2). Give some relief to my wounded heart, which, torn from its happiness and life, bounds from its place in search of Him." The holy angels, who, though they never lost sight of the Creator and Re deemer, were aware that the Lord wished to furnish his Mother this occasion of great merit, and that it was not yet time to reveal the secret to Her, answered by speaking to her words of consolation without manifest- ing to Her the whereabouts and the doings of their Lord. 38 This evasive answer raised new doubts in the most pru dent Lady. Her anxiety of heart caused Her to break out in tears and sighs of inmost grief, and urged Her onward in search, not of the lost drachm, like the woman in the Gospel, but of the whole treasure of heaven and earth (Luke 15, 8). The Mother of wisdom then began to discuss within her heart the different possibilities. The first thought which presented itself to Her, was the fear lest Archelaus, imitating the cruelty of his father Herod, should have obtained notice of the presence of Jesus and have taken Him prisoner. Although She knew from the holy Scriptures and revelations, and by her conversa tions with her most holy Son and Teacher, that the time for his Passion and Death had not yet come and that the king would not take away his life, yet She was filled with dread at the thought, that they should have taken Him prisoner and might illtreat Him. In her profoundest humility She also had misgivings, lest per chance She had in any way displeased Him by her con duct and therefore deserved that He should leave Her and take up his abode in the desert with his precursor saint John. At other times, addressing her absent Love, She exclaimed: "Sweet Love and Delight of my soul! Thou art impelled by thy desire of suffering for men and by thy immense charity to avoid no labor or pain; but on the contrary, I fear, O Lord and Master, that Thou seekest it on purpose (Is. 53, 7). Whither shall I go and whither shall I find Thee, Light of my eyes? (Tob. 10, 4). Dost Thou wish to deprive me of life by the sword of severance from thy presence? But I do not wonder, O my highest Good: Thou chastisest by thy absence her who did not know how to profit by thy company. Why, O my Lord, hast Thou enriched me with the delights of thy infancy, if I am so soon to lose the assistance of thy loving instruction? But, woe is me! since, not being worthy to retain and enjoy Thee as my Son, I must confess, that I am obliged to thank Thee even for the favor of condescending to accept me as thy slave ! If the privilege of being thy unworthy Mother can be of any avail in finding Thee, my God and my highest Good, do Thou, O Lord, permit it, and make me worthy of again finding Thee, so that I may go with Thee in the desert, to sufferings, labors, tribula tions, or whatever Thou wilt. My Lord, my soul desires to merit at least in part to share thy sorrows and tor ments, to die, if I do not find Thee, or to live in thy service and presence. When thy Divinity hid Itself from my gaze, thy amiable humanity at least remained; and, although Thou wast austere and less kind to me than Thou hadst been, I could throw myself at thy feet; but now this happiness is taken away from me and I have lost sight entirely of the Sun which enlightens me, left only to groans and sighs. Ah Love of my soul! What sighs from the inmost of my heart can I send Thee as messengers? But I am not worthy of thy clemency, since my eyes find no traces of Thee. 40. Thus this sincerest Dove persevered in her tears and groans without cessation or rest, without sleeping or eating anything for three whole days. Although the ten thousand angels accompanied Her in corporeal forms and witnessed her affliction and sorrow, yet they gave Her no clue to find her lost Child. On the third day the great Queen resolved to seek Him in the desert where saint John was ; for since She saw no indications that Archelaus had taken Him prisoner, She began to believe more firmly, that her most holy Son was with saint John. When She was about to execute her resolve 40 and was on the point of departing for the desert, the holy angels detained Her, urging Her not to undertake the journey, since the divine Word was not there. She wanted also to go to Bethlehem, in the hope of finding Him in the cave of the Nativity ; but this the holy angels likewise prevented, telling Her that He was not so far off. Although the blessed Mother heard these answers and well perceived that the holy angels knew the where abouts of the Child Jesus, She was so considerate and reserved in her humility and prudence, that She gave no response, nor asked where She could find Him; for She understood that they withheld this information by command of the Lord. With such magnanimous rev erence did the Queen of the angels treat the sacraments of the Most High and of his ministers and ambassadors (II Mach. 2, 9). This was one of the occasions in which the greatness of her queenly and magnanimous heart was made manifest.
41. Not all the sorrows suffered by all the martyrs ever reached the height of the sorrows of most holy Mary in this trial ; nor will the patience, resignation and tolerance of this Lady ever be equalled, nor can they; for the loss of Jesus was greater to Her than the loss of anything created, while her love and appreciation of Him exceeded all that can be conceived by any other creature. Since She did not know the cause of the loss, her anxiety was beyond all measure, as I have already said. Moreover, during these three days the Lord left Her to her natural resources of nature and of grace, deprived of special privileges and favors; for, with the exception of the company and intercourse of the angels, He suspended all the other consolations and blessings so constantly vouchsafed to her most holy soul. From all this we can surmise what sorrow filled the loving heart of the heavenly Mother. But, O prodigy of holiness, prudence, fortitude and perfection! in such unheard of affliction and sorrow She was not disturbed, nor lost her interior or exterior peace, nor did She entertain a thought of anger or indignation, nor allowed Herself any improper movement or expression, nor fell into any excess of grief or annoyance, as is so common in great affliction with other children of Adam, who allow all their passions and faculties to be disarranged, yea even in small difficulties! The Mistress of all virtue held all her powers in heavenly order and harmony; though her sorrow was without comparison great and had pierced her inmost heart, She failed not in reverence and in the praise of the Lord, nor ceased in her prayers and peti tions for the human race, and for the finding of her most holy Son. 42. With this heavenly wisdom and with greatest dili gence She sought Him for three successive days, roam ing through the streets of the city, asking different per sons and describing to the daughters of Jerusalem the marks of her Beloved, searching the byways and the open squares of the city and thereby fulfilling what was recorded in the Canticles of Solomon (Cant. 5, 10). Some of the women asked Her what were the distinctive marks of her lost and only Son; and She answered in the words of the Spouse: "My Beloved is white and ruddy, chosen out of thousands." One of the women, hearing Her thus describing Him, said: "This Child, with those same marks, came yesterday to my door to ask for alms, and I gave some to Him ; and his grace and beauty have ravished my heart. And when I gave Him alms, I felt myself overcome by compassion to see a Child so gracious in poverty and want." These were the first news the sorrowful Mother heard of her Only- Private Use Only 42 CITY OF GOD begotten in Jerusalem. A little respited in her sorrow, She pursued her quest and met other persons, who spoke of Him in like manner. Guided by this information She directed her steps to the hospital of the city, think ing that among the afflicted She would find the Spouse and the Originator of patient poverty among his own le gitimate brethren and friends (Matth. 5, 40). Inquiring at that place, She was informed that a Child of that description had paid his visits to the inmates, leaving some alms and speaking words of much consolation to the afflicted. 43. The report of these doings of her Beloved caused sentiments of sweetest and most tender affection in the heart of the heavenly Lady, which She sent forth from her inmost heart as messengers to her lost and absent Son. Then the thought struck Her, that, since He was not with the poor, He no doubt tarried in the temple, as in the house of God and of prayer. The holy angels encouraged Her and said: "Our Queen and Lady, the hour of thy consolation is at hand: soon wilt Thou see the Light of thy eyes; hasten thy footsteps and go to the temple." The glorious patriarch saint Joseph at this moment again met his Spouse, for, in order to in crease their chance of finding the divine Child, they had separated in different directions. By another angel he had now been likewise ordered to proceed to the temple. During all these three days he had suffered unspeakable sorrow and affliction, hastening from one place to an other, sometimes without his heavenly Spouse, some times with Her. He was in serious danger of losing his life during this time, if the hand of the Lord had not strengthened him and if the most prudent Lady had not consoled him and forced him to take some food and rest. His sincere and exquisite love for the divine Child made him so anxious and solicitous to find Him, that he would have allowed himself no time or care to take nourishment for the support of nature. Following the advice of the holy princes, the most pure Mary and Joseph betook themselves to the temple, where hap pened what I will relate in the next chapter.
"They were overcome when they saw Him, and his mother said to him, "My child, why have you done this to us? See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.' He replied 'Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand what he meant. He went down with them then and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority. His mother stored all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and with people. Luke 2 48-52.
There is more than one way to say sorry. You can express regret for having done wrong and caused harm. You can also express regret that someone has had to suffer because of your right actions. It reassures the other person that they are loved and cared for and valued beyond price despite what needed to be done.
Scripture tells us that Jesus went through all that we go through. That being the case it must include normal human development which in itself includes self awareness. One of the great joys of a parent is in seeing a child becoming aware of his own and others identity. Da,da,da....mum,mum, mum. ( dad usually comes first, sorry mums, its not fair) The child at first usually refers to himself in the third person, "me, me me etc but soon learns his name and the names of his siblings. Still he says "Tom wants this, Tom wants that etc" until one day he says "I want this." I have no reason to believe that Jesus did not go through this human growth in self awareness. Of course he had to deal not only with his human identity but also his divine identity. Scripture tells us that after he returned with his parents he grew in wisdom. If he already knew everything he would not have needed further growth. It also tells us he grew in stature. He grew up under the love and guidance of Mary and Joseph and God. The scripture is quite clear. As an edit humility demands that I must say it is quite clear only to me and only for now. I am open to further wisdom
Thank you for your insightful comment Mary Rose. I had to look up the word 'behest' and I think I understand what you meant. Mary is the Seat of Wisdom: Jesus sat on her knee.
Jesus taught us all humility, Yes Joe I too think he would have somehow expressed his regret that his mummy and daddy were so worried. He would not have wanted them to suffer
The Infant Jesus is the almighty God, the absolute perfection. God has the absolute knowledge of the past, present and the future. He wouldn’t ever fail or do something that could make Him regret it later, and He didn’t. "Beg for forgiveness"? When He respectfully replied to Mary and Joseph He did it with the authority of the Father. That “little escapade” is, in fact, the 5th joyful mystery of the rosary. A mystery of faith that Mary, the Mother of God, understood it very well. May She help us understanding it as well as She did. However, if that kind of approach is so holy and correct, in line with all that we always knew, why should we be so concerned on the attempts of justification? View attachment 3982 Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, 1862
Psalm 85:10 Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Psalm 89:14 Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. We moderns tend to establish Dichtomies in our way of thinking. Everything has its proper place in our minds and everything has to put in its place. Faced with the concepts of Divine Mercy and Divine Justice we tend , I think to place them in our mind as opposites. Hence a dicotomy, a parting of the ways. The Ancients did not think, like this. The psalmist plainly saw Justice and Mercy as two parts of a whole. We would tend to think of someone who falls under the Mercy of God as somehow escaping His Justice. Or someone who falls under the Justice of God as failing to come under His Mercy. The Psalmist, on the other Hand sees the two as being doorways to the other, of dancing together is you like. Justice is the doorway to Mercy and Mercy to Justice, the two are together like two sisters. I think this is a mystical concept hard for us to fathom in these modern times. We find it hard to come to terms with seeming paradox. Yet paradox lies at the heart of all that is truly mystical. The mysteries of the Rosary are a good example of this. The End Game of the Rosary is not to , 'Solve', the Mysteries, there is no end game. Each Mystery is an Eternal pilgrimage into paradox. . A pigrimage into the Eternal Mystery that is God. If we think we have , 'Found' the solution, we have not even taken the first steps on our journey. I think this is one of the many reasons why modern man is so uncomfortable with Contemplative prayer. We want things quickly and we want them, 'Clean'. Heaven I suspect , will be an unending journey into the heart of Mystery. I think to many of us this would sound a little like hell. We have to let go. To listen to the story instead of writing it.
Encouraging words from Saint Faustina's diary. For when we need some help with our work. 65 One time during the novitiate, when Mother Directress sent me to work in the wards‟ kitchen, I was very upset because I could not manage the pots, which were very large. The most difficult task for me was draining the potatoes, and sometimes, I spilt half of them with the water. When I told this to Mother Directress, she said that with time I would get used to it and gain the necessary skill. Yet the task was not getting any easier, as I was growing weaker every day. So I would move away when it was time to drain the potatoes. The sisters noticed that I avoided this task and were very much surprised. They did not know that I could not help in spite of all my willingness to do this and not spare myself. At noon, during the examination of conscience, I complained to God about my weakness. Then I heard the following words in my soul. From today on you will do this easily; I shall strengthen you. That evening, when the time came to drain off the water from the potatoes, I hurried to be the first to do it, trusting in the Lord‟s words. I took up the pot with ease and poured off the water perfectly. But when I took off the cover to let the potatoes steam off, I saw there in the pot, in the place of the potatoes, whole bunches of red roses, beautiful beyond description. I had never seen such roses before. Greatly astonished and unable to understand the meaning of this, I heard a voice within me saying, I change such hard work of yours into bouquets of most beautiful flowers, and their perfume rises up to My throne. From then on I have tried to drain the potatoes myself, not only during my week when it was my turn to cook, but also in replacement of other sisters when it was their turn. And not only do I do this, but I try to be the first to help in any other burdensome task, because I have experienced how much this pleases God.
I thought when Jesus was 12, He would have reached young adulthood in the Jewish tradition. And for this reason I had thought Saint Joseph who was used to Jesus going with His mother along with the women and younger children, thought Jesus was with His mother. Now that Jesus had reached 12, I thought His mother had believed He must have gone with His foster father and the company of the men who were travelling together. Of course God must have allowed the parents to miss this detail because Jesus was meant to fulfil some task known to God. I believe there is a whole load of possibilities in the Lord making this information known to us. One thing that I wonder is, should we be looking for signs in our children by 12 years old to discern which father they are seeking to serve. 12 seems to be the age when many young people stop going to Church these days for example. Another possibility to take from this knowledge is how Blessed Mother never stops searching until she finds her Son there in the Temple. I often think she waits there in the Temple or Church along with her Son today, waiting for us to come and join Jesus and Mary in God's house, as a united family under God. She searches for us; but God has let us know where to find her when ever we want. Yes, we can call her whenever we need her; but how much nicer is it for mum when the children make the effort to go visit her. Another possibility to take from this knowledge is how the elders were astonished at Jesus wisdom and knowledge at such a young age, yet God required Jesus wait another 28 years patiently before beginning His mission. I wonder if God wants to teach us how important our mothers advice and wisdom is in our lives. Remember the old saying, 'mother knows best.' There might be more to that old saying than meets the eye. The most important possibility this information brings to mind is how Jesus was lost to Blessed Mother for 3 days at 12 years old, and again 21 years later when He was Crucified and buried in the tomb. Number fans might make some amazing conclusions from the numbers in all that. Just some things I have thought on the 5th Mystery in Holy Rosary. OOOPPPPS a bit wordy.
Reading the words of Luke, Mary definitely did not seem too pleased with Jesus at first. Why is that so hard to accept. I find it hard to believe that some people know better than the evangelist. There is much angst in the ezchange betwenn Jesus and Mary. A natural reaction for any mother. There is almost a hint of an accusatory tone "Don't you know how much worry you have caused us!". In ignorance some people interpret the response of Jesus as being somewhat stroppy. Most people of my generation would have expected a clip around the ear for talking back like that especially under those circumstances, usually with the retort "Don't talk to your Mother like that! Can't you see what you've done." Sometimes, however, adults mistake authority for arrogance. Interpreting Jesus response as arrogant is that kind of mistake: He meant no offense. As Basto so rightly says he spoke with the Authority of God. Ignorance, however, cannot be used as an excuse for misinterpreting the words of Mary: She is clearly unhappy. I am sure when that settled, which would have been very quickly, the joy flooded in. A bit like the grace that flooded in at the moment of her own conception and stopped original sin in its tracks. No one here, as far as I know, has talked about begging for forgiveness but simply saying they would not be surprised if Jesus expressed regret for the upset his actions had caused. He was not sorry for the actions themselves, but regretted the pain they had caused His Mother. There would be something wrong if He did not care. Again just a normal human response that one would expect from a loving child, a human child, and Jesus of course, was fully human as well as fully God. Sometimes people say thinks like "He's only human" while excusing a defect. But only Jesus shows us how to be fully human and He has no defects. There is always joy in finding Christ but usually pain in the seeking.
Today's responsorial psalm stuck with me for some odd reason today: "R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. Justice shall flower in his days, and profound peace, till the moon be no more. May he rule from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts; the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute. All kings shall pay him homage, all nations shall serve him." The verses that I highlighted seem to me to support a coming era of peace within history and not references to the New Heavens and New Earth for clearly these verses refer to events within history not eternity. What do you think?
"They were overcome when they saw him......But they did not know what he meant." I wonder how many parents have experienced this with teenage children! Yes they were blessed with Jesus, the human form of God, but the Holy Family were human in every sense. They understand our lives. Their experience of the human condition is our experience of the human condition, work and worry, joy and sadness, solace and suffering, consternation and confidence etc etc. But most of all....love.
I am sure several of you already mentioned this somewhere (unfortunately, I have no time to read everything), but could this Holy Year of Mercy not be the preparation short before the coming of the Warning of Garabandal (see also: http://illuminadomine.com/2015/10/02/st-faustina-and-the-door-of-mercy/). Glenn ? No hints received from Conchita ? ☺ The Blessed Michel Sopocko (and spiritual director of Saint Faustina) organised a competition during which a painting of Jesus of Mercy, according the visions of Saint Faustina, had to be drawn. It was Prof. Slendzinski who won this competition. Below you see this painting. Watch the closed door behind Jesus. Could this closed door be the closing of the Holy Jear of Mercy ?
Although I am still on the fence regarding Garabandal, I can't think of a better time for the Warning to come than during the Holy Year of Mercy. As I understand it, the Warning is basically just a global, miraculous Examination of Conscience meant to draw sinners back to God. The whole point of the Holy Year of Mercy is to draw sinners back to God. So, if the Warning is for real then I think it will happen during this Holy Year of Mercy. If the Warning doesn't happen in this Holy Year of Mercy it woud be a strong indication to me that Garabandal is leading us on a wild goose chase.
