THE VALTORTA ENIGMA

A Fictionalized Life of Jesus?

 Jean-François Lavère

THE VALTORTA ENIGMA

A Fictionalized Life of Jesus?

Rassemblement à Son Image

Place des Fontaines
CAPELLE
12850 ONET LE CHATEAU

English translation by Gillian French Nicolini

© For the French edition, September 2012,
all reproduction, translation and adaptation rights reserved.

Publisher : Editions Multi-Média Rassemblement à Son Image

Place des Fontaines
CAPELLE
12850 ONET LE CHATEAU
To order, Tel: 05 65 78 01 95
www.asonimage.fr
E-mail : [email protected]

ISBN : 978-2-36463-025-3

This book also exists in Italian, German and Polish.

It can be ordered from Rassemblement à Son Image, Place des Fontaines,
CAPELLE, 12850 ONET LE CHÂTEAU,
Tel: + 33 05 65 78 01 95

© Rassemblement à Son Image, Chrétiens Magazine, publishers, January 2012. The quotations excerpted from Maria
Valtorta’s work “The Gospel as Revealed to Me” are reported with the gracious permission of the “Centro Editoriale
Valtortiano S.r.l.”, viale Piscicelli 91, 03036 Isola del Liri (FR), Italy, www.mariavaltorta.com, exclusive publisher
of the writings of Maria Valtorta, which are the property of the “Fondazione Maria Valtorta Cev – onlus.” Photo
credits D.R., cover photo: Maria Valtorta at 25. © Centro Editoriale Valtortiano.
 To the Reverend Father A. R.
and to my dear wife,
Thanks to whom I undertook this study.
 CONTENTS
Contents..................................................................................... - 9 -
Preface ...................................................................................... - 11 -
Foreword .................................................................................. - 16 -
Man of little faith, why did you doubt? .................................................... - 16 -
God cannot deny Himself, nor can truth ever contradict truth.................. - 17 -
“The agent of sin is the agent of punishment” .......................................... - 18 -
Who does not dream of finding a treasure? .............................................. - 19 -
Condemned by the Church ? .................................................. - 22 -
What is the situation regarding Maria Valtorta’s work? ........................... - 25 -
The judgement of the Church ................................................................... - 26 -
A Clumsily Romanticised Life of Jesus? ............................... - 32 -
Manzoni and Valtorta ............................................................................... - 33 -
To judge fairly... ....................................................................................... - 34 -
1 / The theme ............................................................................................ - 35 -
2 / The narration ....................................................................................... - 36 -
3 / Period and Place .................................................................................. - 38 -
4 / The Characters ..................................................................................... - 42 -
5 / The text ................................................................................................ - 46 -
The quest for precious pearls ................................................. - 51 -
Mushroom-picker or archaeologist? ......................................................... - 52 -
First and foremost, order and method. ...................................................... - 52 -
How can the credibility level of the work be objectively estimated? ....... - 54 -
This harmony of celestial things. .............................................................. - 56 -
Errare humanum est... ............................................................................... - 61 -
“There is a season for everything, a time for every occupation...”
................................................................................................... - 64 -
The dating of the important events of the life of Jesus. ............................ - 65 -
A little bit of maths... ................................................................................ - 66 -
A good sketch is worth a thousand words ................................................ - 68 -
The equal of the greatest geographers? ................................. - 80 -
The Khafre and Menkaure pyramids have disappeared! .......................... - 82 -
The petrified forest of Cairo ..................................................................... - 85 -
Bethsaida, a landlocked fishing village! ................................................... - 86 -
Enquiry in Phoenecia ................................................................................ - 88 -
The cyclopean ruins of the ancient city of Hazor ..................................... - 92 -
Did Maria Valtorta visit Antioch? ............................................................ - 93 -
A beautiful panorama in the centre of Judea ............................................ - 99 -
The Arbela gorges and the Horns of Hattin ............................................ - 106 -
And so many, so many other forgotten sites........................................... - 109 -
Distant view of Jerusalem and the Temple ............................................. - 115 -
On the Way to Sycaminon ...................................................................... - 115 -
The hot springs of Hamat Gader ............................................................. - 116 -
And Jesus made His way through towns and villages ......... - 122 -
Overland Travel. ..................................................................................... - 122 -
Travel by water. ...................................................................................... - 124 -
A few details on the method used. .......................................................... - 124 -
A totally unexpected result. .................................................................... - 125 -
Transportation of the dying Jonas on his pallet. ..................................... - 127 -
On the way from Bethsaida to Cana. ...................................................... - 127 -
Voyage from Nazareth to Maritime Caesarea ........................................ - 129 -
A cruise along the Phoenician and Syrian coasts ................................... - 130 -
From Ptolemais to Antioch ..................................................................... - 131 -
Roman bridges, milestones, farriers ....................................................... - 134 -
Jesus’s movements in Palestine .............................................................. - 138 -
The Eye Witnesses .................................................................. - 141 -
The twelve Apostles ............................................................................... - 142 -
“Then the Lord designated seventy two others” ..................................... - 144 -
Timoneus, head of the synagogue in the Jordan valley .......................... - 145 -
Philip, the bad son, who became an evangeliser..................................... - 145 -
Nicolaus, Deacon of Antioch rehabilitated? ........................................... - 146 -
They drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias ............................. - 147 -
Marjiam, the Evangeliser of Aquitaine. .................................................. - 149 -
A certain Joseph, known as The Just ...................................................... - 153 -
Full house at the Sanhedrin .................................................................... - 155 -
The Female Roman notables .................................................................. - 158 -
“Have nothing to do with that Just Man.” .............................................. - 158 -
Who was Plautina? ................................................................................. - 160 -
Converted to Christianity ....................................................................... - 161 -
Plautina and Saint Lucina ....................................................................... - 162 -
A mother called Albula and her daughter Flavia .................................... - 163 -
The Jewish friends of Jesus .................................................................... - 165 -
Joanna, Princess of Bether ...................................................................... - 165 -
Joseph the Elder...................................................................................... - 166 -
Nicodemus, Prince of the Jews ............................................................... - 167 -
Manaen, a Herodian Notable .................................................................. - 168 -
Lazarus, the faithful and devoted friend ................................................. - 170 -
And all the others, known or unknown ................................................... - 172 -
The astonishing destiny of Thusnelda, the Barbarian ............................ - 173 -
A very strange discovery near Pompeii .................................................. - 174 -
“Lord, give me some of that water so that I may never be thirsty again”.- 175 -
How were people named in Israel? ......................................................... - 181 -
The identity of Roman citizens ............................................................... - 183 -
On the correct use of I.T ......................................................................... - 183 -
Twenty talents to free John the Baptist... ............................. - 185 -
The value of currency in the reign of Tiberius ....................................... - 185 -
Judas sells Aglae’s jewellery .................................................................. - 187 -
All about talents...................................................................................... - 188 -
An audacious hypothesis ........................................................................ - 189 -
Back to the sale of Aglae’s jewellery ..................................................... - 193 -
The adventure of the pigs ....................................................................... - 195 -
The bridal dowry .................................................................................... - 196 -
The parable of the talents ....................................................................... - 196 -
Thirty deniers, the price of a common lamb ........................................... - 197 -
Hananiah’s shekels ................................................................................. - 199 -
The tribute to the Temple paid during the month of Adar ...................... - 200 -
“A land of wheat and barley, of vines of figs” ..................... - 201 -
Well-stocked kitchen gardens ................................................................. - 201 -
A profusion of flowers ............................................................................ - 202 -
Lazarus’s beautiful flax fields ................................................................ - 203 -
Thoughts on rice, oats and rye ................................................................ - 204 -
Agaves .................................................................................................... - 205 -
The prickly pears of Sychar .................................................................... - 206 -
The onagers and eagles of the Judean desert .......................................... - 207 -
Crocodiles on the Sharon plain ............................................................... - 208 -
When there is also a chameleon in the picture........................................ - 211 -
Did you say one dog, or two? ................................................................. - 212 -
Wherever is the cat? ............................................................................... - 213 -
An exhaustive architectural inventory ................................. - 214 -
An expert in Jewish, Greek and Roman monuments? ............................ - 214 -
Jerusalem, its gates, its palaces and its temple ....................................... - 215 -
Rachel’s tomb ......................................................................................... - 218 -
Jacob’s Well in Sychar ........................................................................... - 220 -
Solomon’s Pools ..................................................................................... - 221 -
The tomb of the Maccabees in Modin .................................................... - 222 -
Hillel’s tomb in Meiron .......................................................................... - 222 -
An exceptional discovery in Jerusalem .................................................. - 224 -
De Re Rustica... ....................................................................... - 229 -
Ploughing, harvesting and threshing ...................................................... - 229 -
When Jesus repairs a plough .................................................................. - 231 -
An edifying lesson in carpentry .............................................................. - 232 -
A lesson in painting ................................................................................ - 233 -
Making and working with purple ........................................................... - 235 -
Wine gladdens human hearts .................................................................. - 237 -
Resin in wine .......................................................................................... - 239 -
Grape-harvesting on a ladder .................................................................. - 240 -
Mastery of fire in the first century .......................................................... - 241 -
It’s market day ........................................................................................ - 242 -
Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?....................................... - 244 -
Phylacteries, fringes and ziziths ............................................................. - 244 -
The High Priest’s vestment .................................................................... - 245 -
The law of the orphan heiress and Mary’s marriage .............................. - 246 -
“When He was twelve years old, they went up to the Temple” ............. - 247 -
The Law and the 613 precepts ................................................................ - 249 -
The Sabbatical distance .......................................................................... - 250 -
“You shall be Holy, because I am Holy” ................................................ - 253 -
The Lunar-Solar calendar and the embolismic year ............................... - 255 -
The important Jewish festivals ............................................................... - 256 -
“What is this thing? Sciemanflorasc? What is it? ................................... - 259 -
“Its meaning was hidden from them”................................... - 261 -
The solution to exegetical problems? ..................................................... - 261 -
Bis repetita placent... .............................................................................. - 262 -
The merchants chased away from the Temple........................................ - 263 -
The two multiplications of bread ............................................................ - 265 -
The two questions on the greatest commandment .................................. - 266 -
The sinful woman and the two “Marys” ................................................. - 267 -
One Joseph Barsabbas and one Joseph Barnabas? ................................ - 269 -
A lost Biblical verse... ............................................................................ - 271 -
An apparently problematical translation... .............................................. - 271 -
The adulteress and the mysterious signs on the ground .......................... - 273 -
John and the attempt to elect Jesus king ................................................. - 274 -
The leaven of the Pharisees .................................................................... - 276 -
Verse 6, 12 from the Song of Songs interpreted? ................................... - 277 -
A rather abstruse sentence... ................................................................... - 277 -
The parable of the lost drachma ............................................................. - 278 -
A somewhat obscure verse from Luke ................................................... - 279 -
Capernaum, Korazim, Bethsaida: the accursed triangle ......................... - 279 -
“My Yoke is light” ................................................................................. - 281 -
The perverse and adulterous generation ................................................. - 282 -
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit ......................................................... - 283 -
Who is My Mother? Who are My brothers ? .......................................... - 284 -
To hate one’s father and one’s mother with holiness.............................. - 284 -
Blessed Gabriel M. Allegra’s Testimony ............................................... - 285 -
Father Roschini’s testimony ................................................................... - 286 -
The Bible omnipresent in the teachings of Jesus .................................... - 286 -
If it’s not true… it’s cleverly made up .................................. - 289 -
Jesus’s family ties ................................................................................... - 289 -
Jesus, His brothers and His sisters .......................................................... - 291 -
The lightning expansion of Christianity in the Mediterranean area ........ - 293 -
One Publius Quinctillianus ..................................................................... - 294 -
Valerius and Valeria, a divided Roman couple ...................................... - 296 -
Ethanim, the seventh or the eighth month? ............................................ - 298 -
The date of the first written Gospels....................................................... - 299 -
The Birth of Jesus and the death of Herod ............................................. - 303 -
The fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius .............................................. - 304 -
On the Primacy of Peter ......................................................................... - 306 -
The Four Gospels in one? ...................................................... - 308 -
Quintilian’s hexameter ........................................................................... - 310 -
A true evangelical compendium ............................................................. - 312 -
“Come and see…” .................................................................. - 313 -
The time for confessions ........................................................................ - 314 -
“Do not cast your pearls before swine” .................................................. - 316 -
“He who is capable of understanding, let him understand” .................... - 318 -
Epilogue ................................................................................... - 322 -
Annexe 1 .................................................................................. - 323 -
Annexe 2 .................................................................................. - 329 -
 Preface

Never has the market been so flooded with books as today.

It would be a simple matter to draw up a list of the causes they
defend, the best and the worst, through the medium of the
written word, to convince readers that their messages are as
important to the authors as to the readers themselves. What is at
stake here for the author is clearly apologetic. It is the scientific
demonstration that a work is inspired by God, the God of
Christian Revelation and that this Christian Revelation is today
addressed to our contemporaries to convey an important
message, of which the Catholic Church should take due note,
this charisma having time and again accompanied and clarified
her own history.

This is an admirable book in many ways. It looks

circumspectly and scientifically at one of the greatest, little-
known enigmas of our times, the case of Maria Valtorta,
probably the greatest visionary in the history of Christendom.
Its consequences are considerable, because the fundamental
light that Jean-François Lavère sheds on this work is based on
objective facts that stand up to scientific scrutiny and are linked
to the most recent, notably archaeological, discoveries. For the
reader, the conclusions will speak for themselves.

This remarkable work would not have been possible fifty

years ago. Maria Valtorta died in 1961 and The Gospel as
Revealed to Me was “inspired” during the darkest years of
World War II. Pope Pius XII, then reigning Supreme Pontiff,
reacted positively to it, saying, “Publish this work as it is. There
is no need to give an opinion about its origin, whether it be

-9-
extraordinary or not. Who reads it will understand”. The word
of a Pope carries weight, and conveys the idea that the Pontiff
is telling his contemporaries that this is an orthodox text. The
word of Pius XII is the best guarantee that the work conforms in
every way to the Canonical Gospels and the Magisterium of the
Catholic Church. His advice is that it should be read…
However, Pius XII notes, cautiously, as befits a Pope, “There is
no need to give an opinion about its origin, whether it be
extraordinary or not”. At that time the Holy Father did not have
the tools of objective analysis which would have enabled him to
assert the supernatural nature of the work. Nevertheless, he
leaves the door of this hypothesis ajar, going so far as to reveal
his own inner feeling: “Who reads it will understand”.

Things have changed dramatically today. Science has

progressed in leaps and bounds over the past fifty years.
Computer science has drastically changed every field of
research, unifying knowledge and classifying and coordinating
analytical data. This has brought about immense progress,
notably in the realm of what concerns us here, namely
archaeology and astronomy. Over the past fifty years, even, let
us say, since the end of the last (sic!) war, the state of Israel has
encouraged full-scale excavations on most of the Jewish and
Christian sites of its territory, the very places that Jesus and His
Apostles trod two thousand years ago. Much more advanced
knowledge than was available fifty years ago has emerged,
giving us a multitude of new and precise places and contexts of
the way of life in Late Antiquity, as the specialists call it.

This is precisely where the strength of Jean-François

Lavère’s prodigious and patient work lies. He reveals an
astonishing correlation between recent scientific discoveries
and Maria Valtorta’s visionary descriptions, which cover

- 10 -
thousands of pages with nothing crossed out, no contradictions
and within a unity of time and place substantiated by very
rigorous research. All of this half a century ago, from a sickbed,
with no documents and no link to any scientific community, this
woman “sees” live, in a sort of shortcut, what scientists would
laboriously deduce much later from two-thousand-year-old
archaeological data. Village names in Aramaic, long-lost cities
and monuments rediscovered today, knowledge of usage,
customs, landscapes, scenery and dress… a whole context
whose stunning tour de force the author of this work amply
demonstrates to be impossible, unless we take into account what
the visionary herself declares: that it is God who shows these
things to her, it is Jesus who dictates these teachings that
accompany and illustrate the Gospels within their cultural
context, never distorting them and, what is more, very often in
moving poetry, consecrating the union of Truth, Goodness and
Beauty that surges up from Christ like water from a spring.

Pius XII’s remark, “There is no need to give an opinion

about its origin, whether it be extraordinary or not” is clearly
superfluous fifty years later. The origin of this work is
extraordinary. If it were not, it would be simply inexplicable,
even unimaginable, from a scientifically objective point of
view. It is amazing that scientific rigour, in order to remain
logical, must posit the existence of a supernatural origin when
faced with a chain of phenomena in which the law of cause and
effect, the foundation of all science, is not merely called into
question, but found wanting by the very facts that it attempts to
analyse. This is the case for every miracle. In Maria Valtorta’s
case and this her brilliant work, science, that powerful tool, even
more powerful when it brings to light new data lost for two
thousand years, is not simply floundering in epistemological
subtleties, but is suddenly in sharp contradiction with its own

- 11 -
experience... How could this simple woman have known what
remained buried for two thousand years and only came to light
half a century after her death?

This veritable enigma can be classed with two other great

enigmas of Christian history: One concerning Christ Himself
and the other, the Blessed Virgin, His Mother. I refer to the Holy
Shroud of Turin and ‘la Tilma’ of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Here
again, we have had to wait until the present day and the rigorous
tools of science which come up against facts that are extremely
resistant to the logic of the phenomena under study. Science has
exhausted every resource in ever finer analyses of the facts and
the more advances it makes, the more the demands of its own
logic hit the brick wall of its own contradictions. There comes a
time when we need to leave the absurd behind us and consider
the hypothesis of the supernatural and its incursion into the field
of scientific experiment.

Our times are indeed complex and fascinating! The

advances in science and technology have brought us the best,
but also the worst, our creature comforts, but also the
forgetfulness of God that it so often brings in its wake. It has
even been said in the West that ‘God is dead’... Many churches
are empty... Little by little, Christian influence has been
marginalized by a certain type of humanism cut off from its
evangelical roots. And yet, the great enigmas of Christianity
endure, with all the strength of Divine Providence that
accompanies the people of believers. The Holy Shroud of Turin
does not prove the Resurrection of the Christ Jesus, but it
consistently stands up to ever more demanding scientific
investigation, rather like a permanent question mark, postulating
a ‘space’, an ‘afterlife’ that makes this prestigious relic an
acceptable witness to fortify the Christian faith in the face of the

- 12 -
world. Our Lady of Guadalupe’s Tilma also bears witness for us
(thanks to modern science, unable to explain phenomena that,
like an unyielding brick wall, consistently resist analysis) to the
fact that the Mother of Jesus is legitimately the Mother of Saints
and of sinners. Mary will probably be recognized one day as co-
redeemer of mankind by the grace of Her Son. As the
Apocalypse of Saint John announces, She is invested in the
Communion of Saints with a particular mission in the end times.

As for the third “enigma” that of Maria Valtorta, fifty years

after her death it remains stubbornly impervious to science,
bearing witness to the Supernatural which brought forth this
magisterial work for us. For us indeed, we who await the Return
of Christ in the difficult times which will precede it, times in
which “the faith of a great number will grow cold”, times which
will bring the persecutions foretold by numerous prophets. This
testimony of a simple and humble soul is given to us like a
journey twenty centuries back in time, in order for us to
rediscover the roots of our faith in the footsteps of He Who
walked on the earth and on the waters of the earth, and still
walks among us today, still Alive, always present, Jesus of
Nazareth, the Messiah, Son of David and Saviour of Mankind.

May I finally mention the judgement of Padre Pio, who

during his life was another miraculous witness to Christ, whom
he carried within himself. This Saint needed neither science nor
technological advances to advise the people he directed about
The Gospel as Revealed to Me. His advice was, “Not only can
you read it, you must read it!” Enlightened as he was by the
Holy Spirit, could he have advised people to read a work that
did not come from God? Moreover, if it comes from God,
shouldn’t His “instrument” be speedily and attentively
examined by the Church as an authentic witness of Jesus?

- 13 -
Shouldn’t the Church be privileged to relay the Word of Christ,
whose incarnation continues in our troubled times via the
manifestation of charismas, the mark of His solicitude? Pope
Benedict XVI asked Christians to recapture the Christian spirit
of the Early Church. Would it be unreasonable to do so also
through the work of Maria Valtorta, when we know that it was
ordered by Paul VI for the Vatican library and that Cardinal
Stanislas Dziwisz testifies that he has often seen a volume of
The Gospel as Revealed to Me on the bedside table of Pope Saint
John Paul II?

Whatever the answers to these questions, we extend our

thanks to Jean-François Lavère for this considerable labour
which has put the reliability of Maria Valtorta’s “revelations”
into the forefront. Thanks to this indispensable work, their
supernatural origin appears legitimately established here,
following the analyses of great theologians like Mgr. Roschini,
who have clearly established their perfectly orthodox nature. As
for the fruits, in quantity and quality, by which, according to
Holy Scripture, we are to judge the tree, fruits received by
people who testify that they have reached a better understanding
of Christ’s Love and received the benefit of many graces after
coming into contact with this unquestionably inspired work...
that it leads to an authentic spirituality in which the True
Tradition, given by the Lord to His first disciples, is what we
absolutely must retrieve when the chaff threatens to suffocate
the wheat! Many saints have announced a renewal to come; the
return to a poor, modest and virtuous Church, manifesting true
unity, far removed from the pathetic squabbles born of nostalgia
or repulsion for the Church of our grandmothers’ times! Christ
did not manifest Himself to Maria Valtorta in order take us on
some quaint tourist walk, but most truly to show us the way to
this renewal.

- 14 -
On this Ash Wednesday 2012,
+ Mgr. Johanan-Mariam.

- 15 -
 FOREWORD

Man of little faith, why did you doubt?

Mt 14, 31
« When you seek the truth, you must start by doubting ». St Thomas Aquinas

We first came into contact with Maria Valtorta’s work in

the 1980s through the initiative of a priest and friend. He had
already read The Gospel as Revealed to Me1 three times when
he told us with all the authority conferred by his doctorate in
theology: “I have found no theological error in The Gospel as
Revealed to Me and I strongly recommend that you read it”. My
wife immediately followed this wise council and began to do so.
Very soon, not wanting to keep this discovery to herself, she
tried her best to share it with me. After a few weak excuses like
“not tonight, my dear, I’m too tired…”, I finally accepted, with
a marked lack of enthusiasm, her repeated requests to listen as
she read a chapter aloud to me every evening, while I “relaxed”
with crossword puzzles...

Convinced of my supposed intellectual powers, I only

needed to hear a few pages to “understand”, like so many of the
“the wise and learned” before me, that it was yet another of
these “pseudo revelations invented by a mystic with an over-
active imagination”. As Henri Poincaré once remarked, “To
doubt everything or to believe everything are two equally facile
solutions, both of which dispense with thought”. From then on,
my “reason” took control, and I was very soon exasperated by
all those “useless, apocryphal and unverifiable details” which
spoilt my listening pleasure. How often did I, irritated, say to
my dear wife, “OK, that’s enough, skip the details and come to
1
Maria Valtorta’s main work, published in 10 volumes by the CEV, 03036 Isola del Liri, Italy

- 16 -
the point”, at the risk of spoiling her own pleasure! I still
continued, however, to lend a more or less distracted ear to this
“gilded legend”, partly in order to humour her, partly out of
respect for the recommendations of our friend the priest and
also, a little, “to hear the rest of the story”. But I did not abandon
myself completely. I refused to “become like a child again” and
the “treasure” remained hidden from me for the whole of the
first of the ten volumes that make up the work.

God cannot deny Himself, nor can truth ever contradict

truth
Vatican Council I, Dei Filius IV

Then came the second volume and these few luminous words
of Jesus (vision of February 9, 1944): “I desire to give to
whoever believes in Me a vision brought down to the truth of
my stay upon earth”244.8. And a few pages later, (dictated on
February 4th, 1944): “The more attentive and precise you are
(in describing what you see), the greater will be the numbers of
those who will come to Me...The implication is that the
descriptions must be known”L.2, Ch. 4, p.21. I then noticed in the
notebooks that on January 25th 1944, Jesus had already given
“this gentle advice” to Maria Valtorta: “So remember to be as
meticulous as possible when you repeat what you see to them.
The slightest detail is important and is not “yours”, but “mine”.
(...) In the contemplations, you observe a lot, but in your haste
to write them down (...) you sometimes leave out certain details.
You must not do this. Put them at the bottom of the page, but
write them all down”.

2
The references of the quotes are those of the 2004 Italian original version as well as those of the 2017
English version.

- 17 -
 These few words had the effect of an electric shock on me.
I, who had kept complaining about “these superfluous
descriptions”, there I was, suddenly struck by the awareness that
these “useless and over-abundant” details, upon which my
unbelief had fed, were there precisely to reinforce my faith!
These descriptions were not futile lest, or padding in the text,
put there for “poetically sensitive minds” to admire. They were
there to be subjected to the cool scrutiny of human logic, given
to strengthen our Faith. It was therefore by the study of these
details that “the wise and learned” could fortify their belief in
the veracity of the teachings contained in the work transmitted
by Maria Valtorta.

“The agent of sin is the agent of punishment”

Wisdom, 11, 16

I had had great doubts... It now behoved me to undertake

a great study. On that day, and since the means to do so were
shown to me, I decided to investigate and seized the branch that
had just been proffered to me. All that I had to do was to verify,
systematically and with all possible scientific rigour, every
detail given in the work, analysing its credibility, coherence and
precision in order to judge the overall veracity of the work, thus
applying to it the age-old principle of Ambrosaster3 : “All truth
comes from the Holy Spirit, regardless of who expresses it”.

I must admit that when I made this decision my scepticism

for the work had not completely dissipated. I thought “in one or

3
Omne verum a quocumque dicatur a Spiritu Sancto est : this principle, attributed to St. Ambrosia, is
reported by St. Thomas Aquinas in his Complete Theological Works (I-II, quest. 109, art. 1).
(continued on following page...)

- 18 -
two months I’ll be certain as to whether all of this is true or if
there are errors in it”4...

But, according to the adage “Dubitando ad veritatem

parvenimus”5 , at that time I was a long way from imagining that
this study would reveal a host of hidden treasures to me, to the
point that I would catch a glimpse of “the splendour of the
Truth” of which John Paul II spoke to such effect...

Who does not dream of finding a treasure?

“Let us seek something that is a good in more than appearance – something that is
solid, constant and more beautiful in its more hidden part, for this let us delve. And it is
placed not far off; you will find it – you need only to know where to stretch out your hand.
As it is, just as if we groped in darkness, we pass by things near at hand, stumbling over the
very objects we desire.”
Seneca, On the Happy Life III, 1

The quest for Truth can be compared to the search for

treasure. And in this, as in every treasure hunt, in order to have
the best chances on your side, you need to choose your basic
equipment carefully: a precise map, a good metal detector and a
strong pickaxe.

The map is Holy Scripture with the Gospels as its

centrepiece. Those who go off on a Treasure hunt without this
map will discover from bitter experience that all that glitters is
not gold. More often than not they will find only tawdry,
illusory trinkets, the modern idols against which Benedict XVI
warned us: “money, the thirst for possessions, power and even

4
Similar analyses carried out on the writings of Marie of Agreda and St.Anne Catherine Emmerich had
fed my scepticism concerning the quality of the transcription of certain visions.
5
By doubting we reach the truth (Cicero, De officiis).
(continued on following page...)

- 19 -
knowledge”6... The Scriptures indicate the real Way that leads
to the Truth.

The detector that will enable us to find and extract the

nuggets of Truth from within the fields of error and lies is called
Faith. Faith guides us step by step in our quest, leading us
towards the Truth, as the compass needle once helped the sailor
to stay on course. When Faith shows us clearly enough where
Truth is to be found, the time is ripe to truly discover it and
admire its beauty.

It is then the turn of the pickaxe to remove everything that

still keeps it hidden from us. In this parable, the pickaxe is, of
course, reason. We can use it to dig, clear away, and sift. And
suddenly, to our joy and bedazzlement, the treasure appears,
illuminating the spirit with a thousand lights.

We must not, however, lose sight of the fact that in this quest
for Truth, Faith must always precede reason, as Pope John Paul
II 7 reminded us: “Faith alone makes it possible to penetrate the
mystery in a way that allows us to understand it
coherently”...Thus, the signs that Revelation presents “serve to
lead the search for truth to new depths, enabling the mind in its
autonomous exploration to penetrate within the mystery by use
of reason’s own methods, of which it is rightly jealous. Yet these
signs also urge reason to look beyond their status as signs in
order to grasp the deeper meaning which they bear.” (...)
“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit
rises to the contemplation of truth”(...) “Human beings attain

6
Benedict XVI, Sermon of 13 September 2008 at the Esplanade des Invalides, Paris.
7
In his splendid encyclical, Fides et Ratio (September 14th 1998)

- 20 -
truth by way of reason because, enlightened by faith, they
discover the deeper meaning of all things”.

Private revelations, visions and apparitions concerning the

evangelical message can be seen as so many notes on the map.
They often illustrate Scripture, making it more pleasurable to
read and easier to understand. But the map, Scripture itself, is
written once and for all. We can neither add nor subtract
anything. That would change its very nature or even make it
illegible. This is what the Church explains when she declares
Revelation to be finished. She is the guarantor of its content and
the conservation of its Message, “The Church watches over its
treasure as a mother watches over her children”. It is thus her
duty to judge everything concerning the Deposit entrusted to her
care. And this is the reason why, before embarking on a detailed
study of a document such as The Gospel as Revealed to Me, it
is also licit and prudent, even indispensable, to have a clear
vision of the position of the Church on the subject. Otherwise,
in the words of Saint Paul8, , concerning the message transmitted
by Maria Valtorta, in what way “would [it] be useful, if it brings
us neither revelation, nor science, prophecy nor teaching?”

So, let us now look at the true judgement of the Church on

Maria Valtorta’s work.

8
First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians 14, 16 in which he writes: “Now suppose, brothers, I come
to you and speak in tongues. What good shall I do if my speaking provides no revelation, or knowledge,
or prophecy, or instruction?

- 21 -
 CONDEMNED BY THE CHURCH?
“With the help of the Holy Spirit, it is the task of the entire
People of God, especially Pastors and Theologians, to hear, distinguish
and interpret the many voices of our age, and to judge them in the light
of the Divine Word, so that revealed Truth can always be more deeply
penetrated , better understood and set forth to greater advantage”..

Vatican Council II, The Church in the Modern World. Gaudium et Spes, § 44.

If there is one field in which the Catholic Church exercises

caution, it is that of private revelations. But this circumspection
does not mean that all revelations are unworthy of faith. One
need only consider the private revelations of the saints or the
blessed, such as Maria of Agreda, John Bosco, Anne Marie
Taïgi, Saint Matilda, Saint Gertrude... to name but a few. The
Church has only given “negative approbation” to their writings,
declaring that it “finds nothing contrary to Faith or Morals in
their writings”.

Concerning the writings of Bridget of Sweden, John Paul II

stated even in the Motu Proprio of October 1st 1999: “Yet there
is no doubt that the Church, which recognized Bridget’s
holiness without ever pronouncing on her individual
revelations, has accepted the overall authenticity of her interior
experience”. And at the beatification of Anne-Catherine
Emmerich on October 4th 2004 by Pope St. John Paul II,
Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, the prefect of the Congregation
for the causes of saints said in an interview given to the
Osservatore Romano on October 7th 2004: “The works under
discussion cannot therefore be considered as written or dictated
by Anne-Catherine Emmerich nor as faithful transcriptions of
her declarations and accounts, but as a literary work by
Brentano, who has so amplified and manipulated them that it is

- 22 -
impossible to establish the true core of the work that may be
attributed to her”.

The approbation of the Magisterium does not claim to tell us

anything other than that they are “probable and piously
credible, and that we can read them without danger, and even
with edification”. In fact, the Church very rarely affirms the
“supernatural” nature of a private revelation or apparition. This
attitude is consistent, notably in order to remind us that
“Revelation is closed” dating from the death of the last apostle
and that nothing can be added to “this sealed deposit”9. Private
revelations must always be put back into the framework of
Revelation proper, given to us in Jesus Christ and by His Spirit
living in the Church. These revelations, for example, those of
mystics such as Saint Catherine of Siena or Saint Theresa of
Avila, do not modify Christian Doctrine, but “only further
enlighten it”.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (§67) recalls this in

the following terms: “Throughout the ages, there have been so-
called "private" revelations, some of which have been
recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong,
however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or
complete Christ's definitive Revelation, but to help live more
fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the
Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to
discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes
an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church”. Hence,

9
For example, when the Church pronounces a dogmatic definition, it does not proclaim a new
revelation, but only explains what was already contained in the deposit of faith.
(continued on following page...)

- 23 -
Urban VIII approved the writings of Marie d’Agreda 10, but
refused to confirm their “celestial origin”.

Similarly, on December 11th, 1878 Leon XIII, referring to

the apparitions at La Salette and Lourdes, declared: “It is only
permissible to believe them with purely human faith”.

Moreover, as Benedict XIV remarked in his time11 : “It must

be clear that the approbation given by the Church to a private
revelation is nothing more than the permission granted, after
close examination, to make this revelation known for the
instruction and the good of the faithful. We cannot and must not
grant an assent of faith to such revelations, even when approved
by the Church. According to the dictates of prudence, all we can
do is grant them the assent of human belief, insofar as such
revelations are probable and credible for piety. (…)
Consequently, it is possible not to grant our assent to such
revelations and to turn away from them, but with fitting
modesty, for the right reasons and with no contemptuous
intention”.

Thus, private revelations constitute a field of liberty, insofar

as they are free of doctrinal errors.

10
Maria de Agreda completed a first writing of God’s Mystical City in 1637, but burned it in obedience
to her confessor’s advice. Her superiors later ordered her to re-write it. She finished this task in 1660
and died 5 years later. Her work gave rise to very heated debates, prompting Innocent XI, on August 4th
1681, to temporarily forbid the reading of it, placing it in the Index for 3 months. For 14 years the
Inquisition Tribunal contested it, the Sorbonne condemned several extracts of God’s Mystical City in
1679 but the order of St Francis issued a peremptory refutation of this. Then, in 1704 Pope Clement XI
formally forbade it to be put into the Index catalogues, which was nevertheless done in 1710 (according
to the theologian Eusèbe Amort). Finally, on March 14th 1729, Benedict XIII affirmed with his total
authority that the books of God’s Mystical City could be retained and read. This was 92 years after the
first writing and 69 years after their publication! (According to V. Viala, Vie Divine de la Très Sainte
Vierge Marie, 1916, reprinted by Tequi).
11
Benedict XIV, Book III, De servorum Dei beatificatione C.53, n. 15.
(continued on following page...)

- 24 -
 It was undoubtedly in the same spirit that the Sacred
Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith recommended that this
indication should appear in future editions of Maria Valtorta’s
work: “The visions and data reported in the volumes (Maria
Valtorta’s) cannot be recognised as being of supernatural
origin, but can be considered as literary forms used by the
author to relate the life of Jesus in her own way”12. Dictated as
it is by the virtue of prudence, this attitude should thus not come
as a surprise to adequately informed Catholics.

What is the situation regarding Maria Valtorta’s work?

The world over, detractors of The Gospel as Revealed to Me
put forward the fact that it was placed on the Index in 1959 as
their main, if not sole, argument to discourage readers with dire
warnings. They state, or suggest, that this condemnation proves
the harmful content of the work, occasionally even going to the
length of declaring it to be inspired by Satan (sic!). They reject
it as a whole, dismissing both the work and its potential readers
with a contemptuous wave of the hand and the peremptory:
“Move on, please, move along!” Others, never having found the
time to study this monumental work, use the rough and ready
method of taking a sentence out of context, often not even
bothering to refer to the original version. How easy it is then for
them to “prove” just about anything! Over the last decade,
Catholics, North Americans in particular, have sometimes been
so disconcerted and confused by these simplistic, unfounded
arguments that they have turned away from the work.

12
Letter dated 18/9/95 to the Canadian bishops, transmitted by Mgr Carlos Curis (Apostolic Nuncio in
Ottawa) and published by the Canadian editor Karl Keating on his internet site in 2007.

- 25 -
The judgement of the Church
The judgement of the Church on Maria Valtorta’s work is,
of course, far removed from this simplistic, distorted, black-and-
white caricature. Here are some facts supporting this statement:
A/ There is no official Church text denouncing Maria
Valtorta’s work as contrary to Faith or Morals. If such a text
existed, the detractors of the work would surely not have waited
50 years to publish it!
B/ In contrast, one of the first people who read the
manuscript was Monseigneur Alfonso Carinci13, Secretary to the
Congregation of Rites. As early as 1949 he declared: “There is
nothing in this work that is opposed to the Gospel. On the
contrary, one might say that it contributes to a clearer
understanding of its meaning”.
C/ The future Cardinal Agostino Bea (1881 – 1968), then
Rector of the Institute of Pontifical Biblical Studies, and Pius
XII’s confessor, wrote in 1952: “I have read a large part of
Maria Valtorta’s books in typewritten manuscript… As far as
exegesis is concerned, I have found no error in the parts that I
have read…”
D/ The fact that the prohibited books were placed on the
Index of Forbidden Books in 1959 does not, in Maria Valtorta’s
case, call into question the orthodoxy of the text, but rather, as
Bishop Roman Danylak reminded us on 13/2/200214, the fact
that it was diffused before receiving the official Imprimatur15.

13
In charge of the movement entitled Adoratio Quotidiana et Perpetua Sanctissimi Eucharistiae
Sacramenti inter Sacerdotes Cleri.
14
“The Poem of the Man-God was placed on the Index of Forbidden Books, not because of doctrinal
errors, but because it was printed without the required nihil obstat and imprimatur”...
15
“Imprimatur” means “Let it be printed”. This is the formula used by the ecclesiastical authority to
indicate its approbation of books on religious subjects which, in its judgement, may be published without
damage to the truths of faith and to the integrity of morals.
(continued on following page...)

- 26 -
Cardinal Edouard Gagnon16, in a letter dated 31/10/1987,
addressed from the Vatican, judged as “being in total conformity
with the demands of Canon Law the type of Imprimatur granted
by the Holy Father before witnesses”17. His doctoral thesis in
Canon Law on “La censure des livres: Etude historique et
juridique des canons relatives à la censure préalable des livres”
confers upon him the authority to make this judgement 18.
It was only the excessive haste, born of the enthusiasm of
Maria Valtorta’s friends, to make this work known to as many
people as possible, and as soon as possible, that seems to be at
the root of this regrettable misunderstanding.
The notification on the abolition from the Index of Forbidden
Books on June 14th 196619, made a clear distinction between the books
placed on this Index because their content was reprehensible from a moral,
theological or anticlerical point of view and the other literary works, such
as the writings on private revelations, published without the previous
assent of Church authorities. Maria Valtorta’s work was, in its time,
classed in this second category.

It is therefore unjust, inaccurate and even dishonest, to

imply, or to allow others to believe, that The Gospel as Revealed
to Me was placed on this Index because it contained errors of
Doctrine, Faith or Morals..
E/ Moreover, in January 1962 Father Berti was given an
authorisation to publish by the Vice Commissioner of the Holy
16
Then President of the Pontifical Council for the Family and the Pontifical Committee for International
Eucharistic Congresses.
17
An allusion to a remark made by Pius XII on 26/2/1948. Having personally read the text in 1947, the
Pope’s opinion was favourable, authorizing the publication of the work, removing nothing, not even the
explicit declarations that it was reporting “visions” and “dictations”. He did not, however, approve the
preface, which mentioned a supernatural phenomenon, clearly stating: “Publish this work as it is. There
is no need to give an opinion about its origin, whether it be extraordinary or not. Who reads it will
understand”. According to the Osservatore Romano of 27/2/1948, those present were Father Migliorini
and Father Berti, both of the Order of the Servites of Marie and their Prior, Father Andrea M. Cecchin,
none of whom contested the veracity of this statement when it was published.
18
Reported by Father Ovila Mélençon in his book, Exorcismes et pouvoirs des laïcs. P16 and 17.
19
Notificatio de Indicis librorum prohibitorum conditione, 14 juin 1966: AAS 58 (1966) 445.
(continued on following page...)

- 27 -
See, Father Marco Giraudo: “You have our total approbation to
continue the publication of this second edition of The Gospel as
revealed to me by Maria Valtorta” (...) “We shall see how it is
received”20.
F/ As early as 1970, Father Gabriel Allegra 21 was one of
the greatest promoters of the work in the world22. He died in
1976 and was beatified by the Church on April 23rd 2002. He
publicly defended the work23, declaring that it contained nothing
contrary to Faith. If this public stance had not been in
accordance with the judgement of the Church, she would most
certainly have opposed the decree of his beatification!
G/ In 1972 a series of courses based on the work was given
at the theological pontifical Marianum Faculty in Rome. Later,
in 1973, Father Roschini, who had been an advisor to the Holy
See since 59-60, published his book The Virgin Mary in the
writings of Maria Valtorta, needless to say, with the tacit
approval of the highest Church authorities...
H/ In a letter dated May 6th 1992, addressed to the editor
E. Pisani, Monseigneur Dionigi Tettamanzi, secretary to the
Italian Episcopal Conference, made it clear that all Catholics
were permitted to read Maria Valtorta’s work, on the sole
condition that they should not consider it as a supernatural
work. This reservation, a constant reminder by the Church
concerning private revelations or apparitions, cannot be
interpreted as a negative judgement24.

20
Quoted by the editor Pisani at the end of volume 10 of the French edition of 1985, page 8.
21
Theologian, biblical exegete, (1907-1976), translator of the Bible into Chinese.
22
The text, in eleven highly documented pages of his public discourse in Macao in 1970 to promote
the translation of Maria Valtorta’s work in diverse languages, is available on Internet.
23
His letters in favour of Maria Valtorta’s work figure even in his official bibliography!
24
In each country, it was the secretary of the Episcopal conference who transmitted the official position
of the Church on such a work.

- 28 -
 I/ In August - September 1992 Mgr. Roman Danylak, then
Bishop of Toronto, (and afterwards in Rome) published a very
exhaustive text in defence of the work, in which he wrote in
particular: "There was, and is, nothing morally, theologically or
scripturally objectionable, nothing that is contrary to Church
teaching or opposed to the authority of the Church, in Valtorta's
works. This was the conclusion of the several authorities that I
have adduced, as well, also, of the censors of her works who
were responsible for the article in the Osservatore Romano of
1960…I have studied The Poem in depth, not only in its English
translation, but in the original Italian edition with the critical
notes of Fr. Berti... I have further studied in their original
Italian the Quaderni or notebooks of Maria Valtorta for the
years from 1943 to 1950. And I want to affirm the theological
orthodoxy of the writings of Maria Valtorta"..The complete text
can be consulted on his Internet site25. This bishop provides his
sources and his testimony is indisputable. He confirmed his
opinion again on February 13th, 2002 in another detailed article:
“I declare that there is nothing objectionable in the Poem of the
Man-God and in all the other writings by Maria Valtorta
concerning Faith and Morals”26. Following this, he gave his
Nihil Obstat, Imprimatur to an Internet site27 dedicated to Maria
Valtorta’s writings! (This is perhaps the first Internet site that
has received an Imprimatur!)

These few, far from exhaustive, testimonies have been

retained because they come solely from high-ranking Church
authorities.
*
25
http://www.heartofjesus.ca/MariaValtorta/inDefense.htm.
26
"Not only am I saying that there is nothing objectionable in The Poem of the Man-God and all the
other writings of Valtorta in so far as faith and morals are concerned."
27
http://www.bardstown.com/~brchrys/.

- 29 -
 In the early 1970s, the Church noted that “because of
present-day instruments of knowledge, the contributions of
science and the exigencies of rigorous criticism”, it was
becoming “more difficult, if not impossible, to arrive as speedily
as before at the judgements which formerly concluded inquests
on the subject.” New norms for the discernment of revelations
were then defined by the Holy Congregation for Doctrine and
Faith and approved by Pope Paul VI on February 24th, 1978: “In
order for the ecclesiastical authority to be able to acquire
greater certainty concerning any apparition or revelation, it
will proceed in the following manner:
a) first of all, by judging the fact according to positive
and negative criteria...
b) then, if this examination is favourable, by allowing
certain public religious and devotional demonstrations, all
the while continuing an extremely cautious investigation of
the facts (which amounts to the formula: “for the moment,
there is no opposition”).
c) finally, after a certain lapse of time and in the light
of experience, (from a particular study of the spiritual fruits
engendered by the new devotion), by judging the authenticity
of the supernatural nature, if the case requires it”.

The few preceding reminders and testimonies show that in

the case of Maria Valtorta this is exactly the approach adopted
by the Church, at her own rhythm, which is not the rhythm of
the world. And we observe that, fifty years after its publication,
the Church has not condemned the content of the work
concerning the Doctrine of Faith or Morals28, nor has she yet
made a definitive judgement on its possible supernatural nature.
Let us hope that this long finalizing process will contribute to
28
For more details on the sole official criticism of the content of the work, see the following chapter,
“A clumsily romanticised life of Jesus”?

- 30 -
lift the scruples of certain Catholics who, through obedience and
humility, or unknowingly deceived by often peremptory
statements of misinformed censors, have turned away from a
work considered by others as “an inestimable treasure of
universal literature”.

Let us also hope that the censors will meditate and put into
practice the exhortation that Monseigneur R. Danylak addressed
to them: “I strongly urge that all the critics obtain and study
The Poem of The Man-God, reading it in its entirety, and not
relying on cursory impressions or the rehash of other critics.
They will find in it, I am sure, the peace and joy, the deeper and
more intimate knowledge of our Divine Saviour and His Blessed
Mother that I and countless other readers around the globe,
have found”. In fact, like everything relating to education or
knowledge, this work forms “a whole” on which it is impossible
to make an unbiased judgement without previous immersion in
its plenitude by a reading that is at once assiduous, attentive,
critical and free of preconceived ideas. And, to close the subject,
I adhere totally to the words of Blessed Gabriel Allegra, who
ended his intervention in favour of the work29 in 1970 by these
words: “Now, without anticipating the judgement of the Church,
which, as from the present moment I accept with absolute
submission, I take the liberty of affirming that, given that the
principal criterion of the discernment of spirits is the Word of
the Lord: “By their fruits you will know them” (Matthew 3, 20)
and given the good fruits that the Poem produces in an ever-
increasing number of readers, I think that it comes from the
Spirit of Jesus”.

29
This declaration also shows that he had perfectly understood that the fact that it was placed on the
Index of Forbidden Books in1961 was not a fundamental judgement on the work.

- 31 -
 A CLUMSILY ROMANTICISED LIFE OF JESUS?
“...these volumes appear to be little other than a long (and) verbose life of
Jesus...”30
“Disparagements have a great advantage over reason: that of being accepted
without proof by a multitude of readers”
Alessandro Manzini, Unpublished and rare works 2, 482

“A Clumsily Romanticised Life of Jesus31 ”, is in fact the first

and only official criticism of Maria Valtorta’s work, as it
appeared in an anonymous article in the Osservatore Romano
on Wednesday, January 6th, 1960.

This subjective opinion does not

condemn the content (orthodoxy in
relation to Doctrine, but only the form (the
length of the work, its presupposed
descriptive errors, its style...). Of all the
negative judgements of the work, this one
is the most surprising, one might even say
paradoxical. Coming from the Church,
one would more readily expect
commentaries on the doctrinal content of
the work and its conformity to Faith and
Morals...

History has consistently spawned clumsily romanticised

lives of Jesus. They are forgotten in the space of a few months,
sometimes a few years, rarely longer... However, in this
instance, this clumsily romanticised life has been translated into
twenty languages and its word-of-mouth diffusion has been

30
“Questi volumi appaiono nient'altro che una lunga prolissa vita romanzata di Gesù”.
31
Una vita di Gesù malamente romanzata was the original title of the article.

- 32 -
growing exponentially for fifty years, all without the help of
noisy media campaigns!

Manzoni and Valtorta

But what, in fact, is a good historical novel? Alessandro
Manzoni32, was one of the masters of this genre and, like him,
many authors have tried to answer this question. It transpires
from their reflections that a good historical novel is a life
experience, with adventure, a successful crossing-over, or a test.
It is a book that can be taken up at different stages and devoured
from one end to the other. It is both dynamic story-telling and a
gripping tale. It binds the reader so closely to the characters that
he cannot put it down. It is easily made into a film. Many writers
seem to agree on this. As they write their novels they visualise
them, cutting them up into sequences and varied plans.

The historical novel should be gripping, breathtaking. Its

interest should also come from its faithful reproduction of
historical ways and customs. According to Gilbert Sinoué’s
definition “to successfully level the information, so that it is
conveyed effortlessly, and the [historical] documentation is
woven into the very fabric of the novel... these are the two
essential qualities of an author of historical novels”. Above all,
he should re-instil life into the characters and their times. He
should bring History to life and literally resurrect the past. Louis
Maigron adds: “The interest of an excellent historical novel lies
in its accuracy, its faithful reproduction of the way of life and
customs of the historical period (...) the heroes are never
anything more than illustrious people, there is simply a
background fabric to their scenes, which is always History.
32
Alessandro Manzoni 1785 – 1873 whose historical novel The Betrothed (in Italian I Promessi sposi)
is widely considered to be a masterpiece.

- 33 -
What the customs of these times were, how they felt, their
thought processes, in short, their collective soul, which is the
only possible subject of a historical novel33 ». Unlike the History
book, the historical novel shows what people really were, as
“History is made explicit through the individual destinies of the
characters”. This is why Alessandro Manzoni wrote: “The
historical novel is perhaps the best History book34 », and why
someone wrote about Victor Hugo “that he brought to bear on
the history of his country a firmer and more penetrating eye than
that of historians themselves35 ». Maria Valtorta’s readers will
think that all these definitions perfectly describe her work,
insofar as it can be considered a simple novel! Which of course,
only a superficial reading could lead one to imagine. But even
were it so, the depth and coherence of the characters, the places
and events, the quality of the style and the wealth and diversity
of the vocabulary cannot fail to awaken the reader’s admiration.

To judge fairly...
Whether the appreciation of this work is positive or negative,
it is of paramount importance to justify it. In order to try to
objectively determine the quality of this work, we will put The
Gospel as revealed to me through an evaluation grid, adapted to
the analysis of a historical novel36. We will successively
examine the relevance of the subject chosen, how it is treated,
the rendering of the times and places, the authenticity of the
characters and the quality of the text.

33
L. Maigron, Le Roman Historique à l'Époque Romantique, 1912.
34
A Manzoni, Réflexions sur le roman historique.
35
Augustin Thierry, 1824. Quoted by Jacques Bony, Lire le romantisme. Nathan, 2001, p.78 – 79.
36
These evaluation grids are sometimes used by reading groups, or by teachers to help their pupils to
form judgements.

- 34 -
1 / The theme
The story concerns past events that have left their mark on
history.
The historicity of Jesus Christ is accepted today. For us all,
believers or unbelievers, He is one of those illustrious figures
who have changed the course of our life and times. He is even
the most frequently filmed historical figure in the history of the
cinema.
The subject should interest a maximum of readers.
There is no doubt that the subject (the life of Jesus) always
has, and always will arouse passionate interest in untold
numbers of people of all races and nations. The interest that the
subject arouses is such that many readers testify that after
reading it, they proceeded to re-read it37.
The novel relates the history of a country, a figure or a
period.
In Maria Valtorta’s work, the country is Palestine, under
Roman domination. The central figure is Jesus Christ and the
period covers the beginning of the Christian era, between 20 BC
and 40 AD.
The plot remains plausible within its time; it might contain
fictitious adventures.
As this is the life of Jesus, we can simply take note of the
fact that the story told by Maria Valtorta is perfectly coherent,
not only with the four Gospels, but also with many episodes
transmitted by Tradition. In addition, there are new adventures
in the text that some people might consider fictitious or
apocryphal...
37
Mgr João Pereira Venâncio (1904 – 1985) Bishop of Leiria-Fatima, former professor of dogmatic
theology in Rome, confessed that he had continuously read and re-read the 10 volumes. (Quoted by J.
Haffert).

- 35 -
2 / The narration
The main thread enables the reader to situate the story and
to follow its progress.
The chronology is so precise that it has been scientifically
possible to reconstruct a day by day dating of all the events of
the three years of the public life of Jesus. Jean Aulagnier 38, by a
meticulous study of 4,000 indications noted here and there over
the 6,000 pages of the work, was the first to reconstruct a
perfectly coherent chronology of the life of Jesus in minute
detail. As I was unable to find the sources of this study, I took
it up in detail with modern computer tools. The research and
scientific analysis of thousands of clues (climate, astronomy,
chronology, calendar, the duration of journeys, etc) found all
over the work, and covering the three years of the public life of
Jesus, confirm their coherence. As for the lunar descriptions,
their perfect chronological concordance requires a level of
competence that few amateur astronomers possess...

This chronology, which sometimes differs from those that

we see today, perfectly takes into account:
1. The integral content of the evangelical writings, as well as
numerous Old and New Testament passages.
2. Historical, archaeological, climactic and geographical data.
3. A wealth of first century information transmitted via
Christian, Jewish and Roman writings.
4. The most recent exegetical discoveries.
The subject is sufficiently developed.
This is a monumental, 6,000 page work. This is even the
principal criticism levelled at it by some of its detractors.
38
For further details, see the chapter “There is a season for everything, a time for every occupation”.

- 36 -
The causes and consequences of the facts are clearly
presented.
As Gabriel Allegra remarked, in The Gospel as Revealed
to Me, “the inter-connection of facts is spontaneous, natural,
flowing logically from the circumstances. This is particularly
true of the conversation with Nicodemus, the speech about the
Bread of Life, or the polemical theological speeches given in
Jerusalem, on which subject the well-known efforts of the
greatest exegetes to situate and explain them in context remain
fruitless” (…) “But it is also the case for apparently
“unimportant” facts, briefly mentioned in the Gospels, as for
example, the evangelization of Judea at the beginning of the
ministry of Jesus (John 3, 22), the invectives against the lakeside
towns (Matthew 11, 20), or the secret meeting at Chouza’s
house to proclaim Jesus king (John 6, 15). Minor facts that
exegetes, novelists or apocryphal writers have never thought of
analyzing or of replacing in their context”.

Gabriel Allegra further stated: “There is a series of visions

in which the mysteries of the birth of Jesus, His agony, His
passion and His resurrection are described with celestial words
and images, with angelic eloquence, while at the same time,
such great light is shed on the mystery of Judas, on the attempt
to proclaim Jesus king, on His two brothers/cousins who do not
believe in Him, on the awakened impression of the Gentiles
towards Him, on His love for lepers, for the poor, for the elderly,
for children, for the Samaritans and especially on the depth of
His ardent and delicate love for His Immaculate Mother”.
The author holds the reader’s interest.
On this point, we need only mention some of the
innumerable testimonies of readers that demonstrate their
interest in the work. Whether it be Wayne Weible, an

- 37 -
international reporter and Christian preacher from South
Carolina (1987)39, Sister Monica Foltier of Cincinnati (1987)40,
John M. Haffert, an editor and author (1955)41, or the missionary
A.S. Rosso, OFM, a professor and editor who said in 1974: “I
always find something new in it, even after my eighth reading”.

3 / Period and Place

The story contains precise information.

The anonymous author of the article in L’Osservatore

Romano criticizing the work took the liberty of writing:
“specialists in biblical studies will certainly find many errors,
historical, geographical and others”. He would no doubt have
been well advised to start by re-reading the old adage “Sutor, ne
supra crepidam”42, given the numerous attestations by
specialists categorically contesting his affirmations.
Not only is the work full of precise information, be it
historical, topographical, architectural, geographical, cultural,
etc., but it also very often provides precisions known only to a
few specialists, or even totally unknown at the time of writing
and which have since been confirmed by archaeology. I will
give several examples later…

39
“I must say that I consider these to be the most beautiful books that I have ever read, excepting the
Holy Scriptures… I shall be eternally grateful to Maria Valtorta for this monumental work. I
recommend it wherever I speak”.
40
It’s fantastic. I couldn’t put it down. As soon as I had finished my first reading, I started reading it
all over again…”
41
John Mathias Haffert (1915 – 2001) was the co-founder of “The Blue Army of Fatima” movement
and the author of many books. “I have all 10 volumes of The Gospel as Revealed to Me in Italian and
in French. It is the most beautiful work that I have ever read and I consider it a benediction from God.
I’m 70-odd and of all the books that I have ever read in my whole life, The Gospel as Revealed to Me is
among those that have been of the most precious aid to my spiritual life”.
42
“Shoemaker, not beyond the shoe.” The Greek painter Apelles of Kos had listened to the advice of a
shoemaker about a shoe that he had just painted. When the shoemaker advised him to correct the leg
too, Apelles gently reminded him that he was judging beyond his expertise. (Reported by Pliny the
Elder, Naturalis Historia, XXXV).

- 38 -
 Let us just listen to Father François Paul Dreyfus (1918 –
1999), a specialist at the Biblical and Archaeological School in
Jerusalem: “I was very impressed when I found in Maria
Valtorta’s work the names of at least six or seven towns that are
not mentioned in the Old or New Testaments. These names are
known only to a few rare specialists, and are unknown to non-
biblical sources (...) How, then, could she have known these
names if not by the revelations that she claims to have
received?” (Letter to the CVE, 1986).
The author succeeds in transporting us to the precise time
and place of the novel.
Here is some more from the biblical scholar Gabriel Allegra
43
: “If Mary of Magdala or Joanna of Chouza had been able
during their life to see what Maria Valtorta sees, and had
written it down, I believe that their testimony would not differ
much from that of the Poem. Valtorta observed with such
intensity the place and personages of her visions that anyone
who has been in the Holy Land for studies and has repeatedly
read the Gospels, need make no excessive effort to reconstruct
the scene” (...) “One might say that in this Work the Palestinian
world of the time of Jesus comes back to life before our eyes;
and the best and worst elements of the characters of the chosen
People--a people of extremes and enslaved by every mediocrity-
-leaps alive before us”.
The author credibly describes the place where the story
unfolds.
Plausibility is one of the essential characteristics of a good
historical novel. And Maria Valtorta describes towns,
monuments, reliefs, the type of soil, forks in the roads,
milestones, varieties of crops, (corresponding to the type of

43
Excerpt from his message given in Macao in 1970.

- 39 -
soil), Roman bridges, aqueducts, springs (flowing in certain
seasons, dried-up in others) and a wealth of other elements,
which turn out to be astonishingly precise when verified by
specialists. In several cases, recent archaeological digs have
shown the accuracy of the places that were as yet undiscovered
in Maria Valtorta’s lifetime44.
The Sardinian geologist and mineralogist Vittorio Tredici
wrote in 1952: “I would like to stress the author’s precise and
inexplicable knowledge of panoramic, topographic, geological
and mineralogical aspects of Palestine”. And Hans J. Hopfen,
an agronomic engineer at the FAO, published a detailed map of
first century Palestine in which he included the greater part of
the hundreds of geographical data contained in the work 45. Note
too, the testimony of Mgr Alfonso Carinci (1862 – 1963), the
Secretary to the Holy Congregation of Rites, who stated: “The
topography of Palestine conforms to its reality to the point that
even those who have lived there for many years would probably
not be able to describe it with such precision and in such minute
detail”.
As for anachronism, that other trap that unfailingly lies in
wait for the historical novelist in his quest for credibility, it is
extremely rare in Maria Valtorta’s work 46.
The author renders local colour and traditions faithfully.
By local colour (or historical colour) we mean the
description of clothes, gestures, stylistic formulas, habits,
everyday objects, architecture and furniture, in short, everything
that gives the story the appearance of authenticity. Maria
Valtorta excels in the detailed description of daily tasks, such as

44
See several examples in particular in the chapter “The equal of the greatest geographers? »
45
J. Hopfen, Indice e Carta della Palestina per L’Evangelo como mi é stato rivelato 1987 ed. CEV
2003.
46
On this subject, see the paragraph “Errare humanum est”.

- 40 -
the drawing of water from the fountain, ploughing, harvests,
grape-picking... She infuses life into the long lines of pilgrims
on their way to Jerusalem, the insecurity in the mountain
regions, the colourful, noisy crowds on market days, fishing
techniques, or the manoeuvres of the Roman galleys coming
alongside the military ports of Caesarea, Ptolemais and
Alexandroscene. Her descriptions of the high priest’s vestments,
the Pharisees and the women are perfect. She even notes the
differences in pronunciation between the inhabitants of the
different regions of Palestine! The depiction of customs is more
concerned with characters in depth, their behaviour, their
prejudices, their different ways of expressing themselves, of
admitting or hiding their eternal passions, from themselves or
from others. Customs are shown in this work principally
through the characters’ subjects of conversation. In fact, these
conversations reveal the peoples and the mentalities of the
times. So in Caesarea, the epicurean Romans are concerned with
the quality of the wines and the organizations of their orgies to
come. The soldiers swear “by Minerva” or “by Jupiter”. They
often talk about dreams or presages. The Pharisees never miss
an opportunity to remind all and sundry of the observance of the
precepts of law, whereas for the humblest, food and health
occupy, as might be expected, a prominent place in their daily
lives. Maria Valtorta describes the disgust of the Jews for certain
impure animals (pigs, dogs…), and she also mentions the animal
sacrifices from which our civilization recoils, but which was a
part of the daily life of the times.

- 41 -
4 / The Characters
The story features known as well as imaginary characters
The work does indeed feature many principal and
secondary characters47, many of whom really existed. Many are
the figures who made up the circle of those close to Jesus, of
whom the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, History or
Tradition tell. Maria Valtorta omits none of them, from the most
famous to the least familiar. She even mentions certain people
known only through the epistles of St. Paul. But it is no easy
task to find the members of the Sanhedrin at the time of Jesus in
the writings of Flavius Josephus, the Talmud and other
documents. The most important study on this subject is the one
which enabled Auguste Lémann in 187748, to establish a list of
fifty names (out of a total of 72). Yet, Maria Valtorta mentions
them all (in addition to others as yet unidentified by
historians)49, sometimes, truth to tell, with purely phonetic
spelling!
Equally surprising is her inclusion in the work of
characters known principally to Byzantine tradition, such as
Phostine the Samaritan, or Eucheria, the mother of Lazarus,
Martha and Mary or their father, Theophilus the Syrian, as well
as Timon of Aera, one of the first 7 deacons, or even Porphyria,
Peter’s wife, mentioned only by the Byzantine hagiographer St.
Symeon Metaphrastes. Here is what Bishop Roman Danylak
said about it in 1992: "I find significant confirmation of the many
characters of apostles, disciples, penitents, etc., mentioned not
only in Scripture, but in the liturgical and patristic tradition of
the Church in the Byzantine tradition. Her characters are not

47
Close to 800 people, named or anonymous, have been counted.
48
His work, “Valeur de l’Assemblée qui prononça la peine de mort contre Jésus Christ”, met with the
approval of Pope Pius IX.
49
See the chapter “The eye witnesses”.

- 42 -
imaginary... but real people, whose identity is confirmed by the
Fathers and the liturgical feasts of the Byzantine Church..."
(See his Internet site http://www.heartofjesus.ca/.) What is there
to say about the presence in the work of pagan women like
Thusnelda, wife of Arminius, who was delivered up to
Germanicus as a slave, and who we later find freed, at the side
of Valeria? Or again, women like Albula Domitilla, the
confident of Claudia Procula in the work, historically known
through a single, 3-word mention by Suetonius and who turns
out to be the mother of Flavia Domitilla, future wife of
Vespasien and great grandmother of Saint Domitille! Even more
surprising is the case of Caecilius Maximus50, an officer in the
Roman army, simply mentioned by Maria Valtorta in a brief
dialogue between two Roman soldiers. He has no role in the
work. And yet, his historical reality can today be considered as
proven, thanks to the fortuitous discovery of 127 clay slabs
during works on the motorway near Pompei in 1966!
The author’s depiction of his characters is realistic.
Here’s what the renowned mariologist, Gabriel Maria Roschini
(1972)51 has to say on the Virgin Mary: “I feel compelled to
confess frankly that the Mariology that emerges from Maria
Valtorta’s writings (...) was a real discovery for me. No other
text on the subject, not even the sum of all that I have read and
studied, has ever given me such a clear, vivid, complete,
luminous, fascinating idea, at the same time simple and sublime,
of Mary, that Masterpiece of God’s”.
Gabriel Allegra was also surprised, as were most of the
readers of the work, by the exceptional coherence of all the
50
These cases and others are mentioned in detail in the chapter “The eye witnesses”
51
OSM 1900-1977. He was also a professor at the Pontifical University of Latran (Faculty of
Theology), a philosopher, a theologian, a hagiographist, advisor to the Sacred Congregation for the
doctrine of faith, and advisor to The Sacred Congregation for the causes of Saints. He is the author of
130 books and a great number of articles.

- 43 -
charcters. He wrote this about it:“That a novelist or a
playwright of genius may create unforgettable characters is a
known fact; but of the numerous novelists or playwrights who
have approached the Gospel in order to use it in their creations,
I do not know of one who has drawn from it such richness and
sketched with such force and so pleasingly the figures of Peter,
of John, Mary Magdalene, Lazarus, Judas -especially of Judas
and his tragic and pitiful mother, Mary of Simon- and of so
many, many others (and I omit for now Jesus and Mary), as does
Valtorta so very naturally and without the least effort”.
The characters come to life before the reader
In order for life to be infused into characters, they should
be made both credible and coherent. And it is true that one of
the most remarkable qualities of this work is the coherence of
the individual personalities of each and every character, how
they evolve and how they react in the most unforeseen
situations, Gabriel Roschini added this remark about Mary:
“From this Mariology there emerges the living and active
Virgin Mary who thinks, meditates, speaks and acts in the most
diverse situations52. Everything is true-to-life and bears the mark
of authenticity, the inexorable worsening of Lazarus’s health,
Mary Magdalene’s slow conversion, Judas’s fatal decline, or the
unease of the Pharisees, developing into their growing hatred of
Jesus… Every single detail rings true in the work: the sweat-
soaked faces and the dust-covered clothes after a long walk, the
fig-smeared face of a child, Gamaliel’s perplexity faced with the
Rabbi of Nazareth, the incredulity of some and the exuberant
enthusiasm of others at a miracle. It is as if Maria Valtorta
herself is there, present in the midst of each scene. She smells
the smells, feels the heat or the cold, hears the background noise
and turns round to see others arriving.
52
Gabriel M. Roschini La Vierge Marie dans l’œuvre de Maria Valtorta. CEV 1973, page 40.

- 44 -
The characters’ psychological universe is restored.
Re-creating what historians call the mental tools of the era
is probably the most difficult concept, as much for the author as
for the reader. In the work, the psychology of the characters is
extremely rich, so that we can see and observe the diversity of
the apostles. Peter appears exactly as Benedict XVI53 described
him: “a resolute and impulsive nature, imposing his views, if
necessary by force … But sometimes he is also timorous and
naïve, but an honest person, capable of sincere repentance”.
How different he is from his brother, the shy, but effective
Andrew, the totally pure, shy John, the jovial, meticulous
Thomas, the wise and conciliating Simon the Zealot, or the
down-to-earth Matthew. Each one thinks and acts in accordance
with his temperament. The personal character of each apostle
“imprints itself indelibly on the heart of the attentive reader”.
Throughout the work we follow the efforts that Jesus makes for
Judas and meditate on Mary’s role. The attitudes of diverse
Jewish groups (Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenians) or those of
the pagans, is in perfect conformity with what we know of them
from the few contemporary testimonies, especially those of
Flavius Josephus, the historian. Maria Valtorta excels in her
descriptions of ambition, anguish, fear, shame, love, hatred and
all the other emotions inherent to human nature. Featuring the
characters, she seems to touch what is authentic to this era more
accurately than any historian before her.

53
Benedict XVI Catechesis on the apostolic ministry, Wednesday, May 17th 2006.

- 45 -
5 / The text
The choice of the title is judicious.
The present title, The Gospel as revealed to me, perfectly
reflects the content of the work.
The quality of the language used in the dialogues and
descriptions is adapted to the historical context.
The author of a historical novel faces many difficulties, the
worst of which are not, as one might think, those of historical
truth, but rather of the writing of it. How to transpose original
dialogues in Aramaic, Latin or Greek into modern language
while remaining true to the spirit? Today’s sentences are short,
clear and to the point, whereas the Ancients were given to long,
explanatory phraseology. And as H. Daniel-Rops54 : noted: “The
Hebrew art of speaking had nothing in common with the Greek
and Roman ideas of eloquence... The (Israelite) art of speaking
was not so much to convince by reason, as to establish contact
with the sensitivity of the audience”. This was not the eminent
linguist Gabriel Allegra’s least surprise when he noted that “In
the Dialogues and Discourses which form the structure of the
Work there is, in addition to an inimitable spontaneity (the
Dialogues), something of the ancient and at times the hieratic
(the Discourses). In sum, one hears a very good translation of
an Aramaic or Hebraic manner of speaking, in a vigorous,
multiform, robust Italian. It is again to be noted that in the
structure of these Discourses, Jesus either moves in the wake of
the great Prophets, or adapts Himself to the method of the great
rabbis who explain the Old Testament by applying it to
contemporary circumstances. Let us recall the Pesher
["Interpretation"] of Habakkuk found in Qumran and compare
it (passing over the word itself) with the "pesher" which Jesus

54
In La vie quotidienne en Palestine au temps de Jésus, Hachette 1961, p324 onwards.

- 46 -
gives us of it. We may also compare other explanations which
the Lord gave for other passages of the Old Testament and for
which we possess, in whole or in part, the commentaries of the
rabbis of the 3rd or 4th Century B.C., but which obviously
follow a traditional style of composition much more ancient,
and probably also contemporaneous, with Jesus. Besides an
external similarity of form, we will perceive such superiority of
depth, of substance, that we will finally understand fully why the
crowd said: “No one has spoken like this Man”. But he also
refutes any objections from those who might consider the
teachings of Jesus to be too modern: “There is in the Poem,
therefore, a transposition, a translation of the Good News
announced by Jesus into the tongue of His Church of today, a
transposition willed by Him, since the Visionary was deprived
of any technical theological formation. And this is, I think, in
order to make us understand that the Gospel message
announced today by His Church of today, and with today's
language, is substantially identical with His Own preaching of
twenty centuries ago”.
The use of appropriate words reproduces the atmosphere of
the time and the place.
Although the work contains an exceptional wealth of
erudition, the management of this erudition goes almost totally
unnoticed because it is so naturally integrated into the story.
Here are some examples, among thousands. Only the informed
readers of the Talmud of Babylon will notice the use of the
nickname “Faba” (bean) given in the work to Nathanael ben
Phiabi: this evokes a historical, but little-known Roman pun,
difficult to translate today, about the appetite of one of the
members of this illustrious family of Sanhedrists55.
55
Yevamos 63a and Gemara (Yoma 39b) relate that this nickname was given to the descendants of
Yishmael ben Phiabi because of their arrogance and because they took goods that did not belong to
(continued on following page...)

- 47 -
 And who can say today (without solid knowledge of the
Judaism or the Bible), that on the High Priest’s Rational the
words “Doctrine and Truth”56, were written, or that the Pascal
lamb was eaten with charoset, or that the stone that sealed the
tombs was called a golal? Who can describe the role of the
paranymph today, as Maria Valtorta does?
Who still remembers that fouace was a very popular dish
in Antiquity and that muslum, sicera or Falerne were drinks that
the Romans loved? Who can unerringly name the animals that
were immolated during the Ludi Ceriales167.7? That is, a pig, a
ewe and a bull.
How many present-day readers fully appreciate the
meaning of Latin expressions like “to wear the virile toga” or
“Libitina’s embrace”? How many know that “the fable of the
stones changed into men” is an allusion to Pyrrha and Deucalion
who, in Greek mythology, roamed the world after the Deluge,
throwing stones over their shoulders. These stones were
changed into men and women and repopulated the earth in this
way.
How credible it seems to hear someone walking along a
Roman Via talking about “six stadiums” to designate the
sabbatical distance, which is rigorously precise 57. What is more
natural than that a reveller should say of his expenses: “It’s
twenty thousand sesterces, or if you prefer, two hundred gold
pieces”, which is correct, as one hundred sesterces made up an
aureus. And what is more natural than to hear in mid-
August:“The sun is still in Leo, for a little while” at a time when
the observation of the sky was the best way to determine the

them. Instead of calling them ben Phiabi, they were given the derisive nickname ben Faba or ben
ha’Afun, a pun on the Latin word faba meaning bean
56
This is confirmed by Saint Jerome in the Epistle to Fabiola.
57
The specialists in general only speak of the amots (cubits), the mil, or today, the kilometer for this
distance.
(continued on following page...)

- 48 -
passage of time? These are, clearly, only a few examples58 taken
at random among the thousands that figure in the work. And this
erudition, always extremely discreet and integrated naturally
into the dialogues, goes unnoticed at first sight.

When all is said and done, isn’t the essential quality of a

good historical novel to bring to life, to literally resuscitate the
characters, their thoughts and emotions, their joys, their fears,
their worries, their troubles, so that everything rings true and the
reader can literally see them living in front of him, without any
improbable detail intruding to spoil his jubilation. This is an
extremely difficult task when it comes to an evocation of the life
of Jesus and His teachings. Extremely rare is the author who can
achieve this. And it is exactly in this that The Gospel as
Revealed to Me excels, if its enthusiastic readers are to be
believed. A work of great scope, a conclusive result, a gripping
read: this is the successful historical novel type par excellence.

To declare that The Gospel as Revealed to Me is nothing

more than a “Clumsily romanticised life of Jesus” appears
therefore to be a purely arbitrary opinion that does not stand up
to analysis. This opinion even becomes unjustifiable when we
base it, as we have just done, on objective and widely accepted
criteria. Considering the extremely wide variety of Maria
Valtorta’s readers of all origins, nations, cultures and levels of
education, I recall this opinion of Tolstoï’s: “Great works of art
are great because they are accessible and comprehensible to
all”59. Thus, it seems legitimate to ask the following question:
Shouldn’t Maria Valtorta’s “novel” be placed on the same level
as the works of Dante, Shakespeare and Manzoni or Hugo,

58
On average, we find one example of this kind on each page of the work, but they are so discretely
integrated into the context that only a closely attentive reader can pick them out.
59
Leon Tolstoï (1828 – 1910), What is art?

- 49 -
Cervantes and Goethe as an authentic literary masterpiece?
When, in addition, we recall that Maria Valtorta composed these
thousands of hand-written pages in barely four years, crossing
out practically nothing, immobilised on a sickbed, and with only
a few, very summary, documents at her disposal and that
“although her intelligence was lively and her memory excellent,
she had not even finished secondary school”, we can
legitimately wonder how she could have written such a work.

We are thus faced with what must now be called “the

Valtorta enigma”...

- 50 -
 THE QUEST FOR PRECIOUS PEARLS
“... There is a treasure hidden inside. I don’t know where, but a little courage will
lead you to it, you will find it...”
Jean de la Fontaine, the Ploughman and the Children
“If you look for it as though for silver, search for it as though for buried treasure,
then you will… discover the knowledge of God”. Proverbs 2, 1 – 9
“Seek and you shall find”. Luke, 11, 9
“There are treasures everywhere, but you have to look for them… This requires
fatigue, work and audacity. And, above all, there should be no bias” 221.3

In 1978 the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith

recommended for private revelations, “base discernment less on
the fruits attributed to the private revelation, than on the reality
of the fact”. To this end, its advice was to answer a few
questions in succession:
• Does the message conform to Revelation and Church
Tradition?
• Does it agree with “Faith and morals”?
• Is the visionary credible?
• What are the fruits of this revelation?

Before we started seeking rare gems in Maria Valtorta’s

text, we made sure we were not treading on mined ground: the
testimonies of Church authorities confirmed that Maria
Valtorta’s text is faithful to the Evangelical Message and to
Tradition, and that it contains nothing contrary to the Doctrine
of Faith or Morals. The first two questions proposed by the
Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith were thus answered in
the affirmative.

Furthermore, it is surely not a bad novel, as some claim

after a superficial or incomplete reading. Anyone, after a

- 51 -
slightly more attentive examination, will see that it is, on the
contrary, an authentic masterpiece.

We will therefore base this work on the examination of the

third point “Is the visionary credible?” as we can now submit
the text to the judgement of reason alone in order to test its
degree of credibility. In so doing, we will follow the observation
of St. Thomas Aquinas: “Introducing reason is not mixing
water with the pure wine of the Word of God; it is converting
water into wine”.

Mushroom-picker or archaeologist?
In order to seek precious pearls in Maria Valtorta’s text,
there are, in theory, two possible methods:
The first is like the person who goes looking for
mushrooms, armed only with his instinct for finding them. The
gems are so numerous that whoever looks for them, here and
there in the work, will find them regularly and each new find
will be a source of enchantment for the seeker.
The second method is the archaeologist’s. This is to mark
the land into squares and meticulously search the smallest piece.
Every gem is then taken, without any preconceived idea as to its
value, listed, numbered and carefully put away... Who knows
whether this stone will not later fit into a splendid set of jewels,
or whether that insignificant tessera will not one day complete a
superb mosaic?

First and foremost, order and method.

Although from my earliest years I’ve always loved
mushroom-picking, my scientific training led me to choose this
second method of systematic research. All the material details

- 52 -
present in the text were accordingly listed, classified and put
into a database. To do this, I adapted the classifying methods for
books on technical norms to the data contained in Maria
Valtorta’s books.

As I had no reason to prefer any particular classification,

and I remembered what Pascal wrote: “The last thing that you
find as you create a work, is to know what you should put first”,
I have indicated this classification “in alphabetical order of
merit”60:
ARTS and FINE ARTS: architecture (monuments, town-
planning), music literature, sculpture…
ASTRONOMY: Lunar phases, the sun, planets, stars and
astrological data.
BOTANY and ZOOLOGY: fauna, flora, agriculture, animal
husbandry.
EDUCATION: teaching, training, leisure activities, games...
ETHNOLOGY: traditions, social life, habits and customs,
folklore, family, everyday objects, food, lodging...
GEOGRAPHY: place names, reliefs, landscapes and settings,
sites, rivers…
GEOLOGY: geophysics, mineralogy, chemistry,
crystallography
GEOPOLITICS: nations, regions, communication routes,
commerce, transport...
HISTORY: events, feasts, cults, biographies, genealogy,
groups, institutions...
INDUSTRY and TECHNIQUES in all their diversity, crafts,
metallurgy...
MEDECINE: health, biology, hygiene, pharmacy, illnesses,
epidemics, symptoms, treatments...
60
According to a sally by Jules Renard.

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METEOROLOGY: seasons, climate, (winds, rain,
temperature...), earthquakes, floods, vegetation cycles...
METROLOGY: units of length, weight, time, currencies and
also chronological milestones (events, ages, anniversaries,
commemorations...) and space-time indications (distances
travelled, movements...)
RELIGIONS and BELIEFS: pagan divinities, demons, oracles,
superstitions, precepts...
SOCIAL SCIENCES: Politics, Law, Legislation, Justice,
Administration, Military Affairs…
STATISTICS: demography, population, mortality...

This classification alone gives us an idea of the variety of

subjects treated in The Gospel as revealed to me. In addition, as
we went on, these headings, although somewhat arbitrary,
enabled us to classify the wealth of details excerpted from the
work and, above all, to find them later without undue difficulty.

How can the credibility level of the work be objectively

estimated?
Test everything, keep what is good” 1 Ts 5, 21

Over ten thousand details (two per page on average!) were

listed, analysed and, whenever possible, verified. Theoretically,
this is easy: the details are simply examined one by one and the
four criteria of historicity generally accepted by contemporary
exegetes, applied. These are:
The multiple attestations criterion: when the same
information is repeated by different, independent sources.
The convergence criterion: when the reported events are
coherent with others (date, progression or localisation,
compatibility and the absence of anachronisms).

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The dissemblance criterion: (that of discontinuity or
dissimilarity): when the facts reported do not fully conform to
the image that its partisans would have conveyed
spontaneously61.
The plausibility criterion: that analyses the events reported
according to the historical milieu in which they take place.
This, in fact, requires time, but the means at the disposal
of present-day researchers are far more sophisticated than those
of previous decades. Internet has made it possible (on condition
that the sources are carefully compared!) to assemble data
difficult to find until now, or else dispersed the world over,
which would formerly have been inaccessible to a lone
researcher. Each detail studied can be qualified by one of the
eight following attributes:
Correct: (true, verified, sure, proven, attested, incontestable,
indisputable).
Coherent: (concordant, justifiable, harmonious, logical,
rational, ordered, compatible, correct).
Decisive: (capital, crucial, determining). This particularly
concerns details crucial to the verification of time-space
coherence, such as chronological dating and geographical
localisation.
Possible: (credible, plausible, convincing, probable).
Improbable: (unreal, unconvincing, doubtful, surprising)
Illogical: (contradictory, anachronistic, incoherent, confused,
imprecise).
False: (absurd, erroneous, impossible, incorrect)
Unclear: (unverifiable, ambiguous, vague, insoluble) for
whatever does not fit any other category.

61
When, for example, Maria Valtorta shows the relapse of certain people possessed by the devil that
Jesus had previously cured, or the desertion of some disciples.

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 It should also be made clear that the means to simply verify
(and confirm almost every time!) the veracity of all these details
were enormous and far beyond Maria Valtorta’s reach. Many,
indeed, most of them, did not even exist in her time: astronomy
software, access to Israeli, Syrian, Lebanese or Jordanian
archaeological databases, archives from biblical institutes, a
plethora of scanned ancient works, notably the stories of
pilgrims’ journeys to the Holy Land, maps and satellite photos
of Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, the consultation of
numerous writings from the earliest centuries that have come
down to us, etc. The extreme abundance of apparently
insignificant details should normally expose the author to
imprecision, errors or contradictions that could result in the
discrediting of the work as a whole. However, in Maria
Valtorta’s case precision and coherence are so high that in order
to examine each instance, a book per theme would not be
enough62 !
This harmony of celestial things.
Chateaubriand63

The case of the coherences deserves an explanation. First

of all, their number is truly exceptional in the work. I have
compiled and verified close to five thousand, and cannot pretend
to have detected them all. The whole forms an intricate web
which, at first sight, appears inextricable until it has been sorted,
classified and listed. If it is relatively easy to verify that the
different descriptions of a monument or a landscape are
mutually coherent, or that this character has already come across
Jesus on the road, an allusion to a piece of advice, a teaching, or
a past discussion is quite another thing. As the context of these

62
Some examples may be found in each of the following chapters of the present work.
63
F. René de Chateaubriand, Le Génie du Christianisme 1803, t.1, p. 384.

- 56 -
discussions is rarely provided, only attentive reading, method, a
good memory and a little luck can find the link between two
sentences that are sometimes thousands of pages apart in the
work!

The promise to teach them the Our Father is one of the

simplest illustrations of this. At the very beginning of His public
life, Jesus announces His intention: “I will also teach you to
pray. I will teach you the most holy prayer, but so that it will not
be a vain formula that you recite, I want your heart to already
be steeped in a minimum of saintliness, light and wisdom... I will
teach you the holy prayer later”62.2. Further on, it is Peter who
brings up the subject again: “Master, said Peter, one day you
said to John, James, Andrew and me that you would teach us to
pray...” “I also answered then: When you are sufficiently
prepared, I will teach you the sublime prayer...119.10” Then it’s
John’s turn: “You promised us that you would teach us your
prayers. Will you do it this year? I will do it”149.3 But only after
one year does Jesus remind them and keep His promise: “One
day, and not only one day, you said to me, Teach us to pray as
You pray...”203.2. And Jesus says this of the Our Father: “It is
such a perfect prayer that the waves of heresies and the course
of centuries will not alter it.”203.5
Maria Valtorta also mentions, page after page, over two
hundred promises made by Jesus, ranging from simple projects
like, “I will come here often”49.7; “for Pentecost. If you are at
the Temple, you will see Me”54.3; “You will come, Master? I will
come”67.6; “We will go to his house one day”71.4, or more formal
promises: “You will see Her. You will come to My house one
day. Mary will greet you.”76.6; “I will come back again to thank
you... and to ask you again for bread and rest”83.2, up to the
promise made to Gamaliel by the Child Jesus and recalled, time

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and again, before its accomplishment: “You want this sign and
you will have it! I repeat the long-ago words: ‘The bricks of the
Lord’s Temple will tremble at My last words’ ”114.9.
I analysed these 200 promises made by Jesus, and all of
them, without exception, find their accomplishment somewhere
in the work, if one only pays a little attention. Personally, I know
of no literary work (nor do I think that another such exists) in
which the author has so intertwined into her text 200 promises
which were kept further on in the
work, sometimes thousands of pages
later! There are other examples that
can be provided by the numerous
descriptions of the house in
Nazareth, the city of Jerusalem and
the Temple, of Joanna’s palace in
Tiberias, the house of the Clear
Water, those of Lazarus or Simon
the Zealot in Bethany, etc. There is
such an abundance of detail
throughout the work that little by
little the reader gets a precise mental picture of these places.
Lorenzo Ferri, an Italian artist, in collaboration with Maria
Valtorta, even attempted the delicate task of illustrating some of
the scenes that she describes64.

But the coherences arise from numerous other causes: the

reminders that Jesus gives of His tireless, patient teaching, the
protagonists’ comments, their memories of places already
visited, of words spoken or events witnessed, and even
Valtorta’s personal memories. We should also mention all the

64
See the work Valtorta and Ferri. Centro Editoriale Valtortiano 2006. Cf above the illustration of the
house and gardens of Lazarus of Bethany (with the kind authorization of the editor).

- 58 -
details concerning the psychological coherence of each
character, but I lack the competence to treat this subject, which
alone, would keep specialists busy for days on end.

Finally, every coherence, whether immediately noticeable

or not, contributes massively to the irresistible impression of
harmony, of true-to-life reality and personal experience that the
majority of Valtorta’s readers feel. This level of coherence
should dissipate the doubts and the reticence of the most
sceptical of them. I cannot imagine that a human being, however
great his genius, however methodical his work, could invent and
memorise, without the smallest error, a storyline of such
extreme complexity in which the actions, words, memories,
projects or promises of over seven hundred characters are so
harmoniously interwoven!

However, I have not yet mentioned what, to my mind, are

the most surprising instances of coherence, that is to say, those
which spring from the random order in which Maria Valtorta
received certain visions. For example, in Book 4: “a portly,
ageing man arrives at the door and hurries towards Jesus”298.2.
Maria Valtorta has never seen him, nor has she ever seen the
place she describes in this vision of August 20th 1944. And yet,
the readers will recognise Jacob and his house, because Jesus
was already there a year earlier, as described in a vision in Book
2: “the place with the well and the oven at the back, and the
apple tree to one side, and here’s the kitchen door, wide
open”110.5, but it was a vision that Maria Valtorta received much
later, on February 17th 1945, and which was then put into its
place in the work at the final compilation.

These visions, which were not all received in

chronological order, are not the least mysterious facet of this

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work. When replaced in their context, they fit in perfectly and
easily. So it is with the visit to the house of Ismaël the Pharisee
and the curing of the man with dropsy (Luke 14, 1-6), received
on September 11th 1944 and described in winter: “a wide road,
swept and hardened by the cold wind of a wintry morning... a
timid covering of harvests just peeping out... this winter
morning...”335.1. It fits perfectly into the work, just between two
visions received a year before, on November 19th and 20th 1945,
describing the same winter period!
*

In the myriad of details tested, the level of credibility for a

work of this type is absolutely unique and exceptional: over
99.6% of these details are classed as exact, coherent, decisive,
credible or possible. It is also noteworthy that in the remaining
0.4%, over 0.3% are classed as unresolved, a circumstance
which in no way indicates that these details are erroneous!

Hence, the mathematical credibility, if I may say so, of

what is verifiable in this work, approaches 100%. There is
obviously nothing in common here with anything that can be
analysed in other, previous mystical works. I have even
wondered whether all these authentic details were given
precisely to our incredulous times, yet another gift for all those
who humbly and sincerely seek the Truth.

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Errare humanum est...
Seneca

Even if the material errors remain exceptional, the work is,

fortunately, not totally exempt of errors. Jesus Himself gives
Maria Valtorta the reason for this: “Human descriptions of
places, as well as facts and feelings, are ‘translations’, and for
this very reason they are always incomplete, inexact, in feelings
if not in words and deeds65 ».

This is consistently true of all private revelations. The

revelations of many saints, such as Bridget of Sweden,
Catherine of Sienna66, Maria of Agreda, Catherine Emmerich,
Catherine Labouré, Mechtilde of Helfta, Anne-Marie Taïgi,
Vincent Ferrier, or closer to us, Saint Maximilian Kolbe, etc. all
contained errors. This should not shock us, as they are human
testimonies into which illusions of the imagination, or personal
interpretations, intrude.

When the Church canonises someone, it canonises his heroic

virtues, never the veracity of his revelations! “And though I
have the power of prophecy, to penetrate all mysteries and
knowledge, and though I have all the faith necessary to move
mountains... if I am without love, I am nothing.” (1 Co 13, 2).
And what counts in revelations of course, is the message and its
conformity with the teachings of the Church rather than the
precision of details. But what is perhaps the most remarkable
thing about Maria Valtorta’s text is that on the one hand its
coherence highlights certain instances of incoherence in other,

65
The 1944 notebooks, Friday March 3rd, page 193.
66
G.Roschini (op. cit.) reports that Benedict XIV analysed one of the extasies during which the Virgin
reputedly said that She had not been conceived without the stain of original sin (according to the
thomistic theory).

- 61 -
previous texts (those of Maria of Agreda or C. Emmerich, for
example), and on the other hand, her errors, seen up close, (and
although this might seem paradoxical at first) tend to reinforce
the credibility of the whole.

The inaccuracies are, in fact, almost exclusively due to Maria

Valtorta’s personal interpretations. It is easy to distinguish
between the words of Jesus, always precise and coherent67 even
when they are simple observations (like “the moon in the last
quarter”), and Maria’s impressions or initiatives, whose
descriptions can sometimes be inaccurate or approximate, as
when she writes: “I see the moon rising”, when the context and
other details supplied show, on the contrary, that it is setting. Or
again, when she experiences “a beautiful summer’s morning”,
while the scene that she describes is clearly set in spring.

Elsewhere, Maria Valtorta writes “a screwdriver (I think)

that falls twice from the workbench”42.2, immediately
neutralising the finicky critics ready to pounce on a possible
anachronism... And again, when she does not differentiate a
papyrus from a parchment, all that she proves is that her
personal knowledge, like that of so many other people, is not
infallible. In all humility, she repeatedly informs her readers of
her own limits, as for example, when she says “a length of about
30 metres” or “a volume of 10 litres”, her advice to her readers
is “not to take my indications as articles of faith”118.1.

The advice that Jesus gave her after she had made a
mistake was undoubtedly ever-present in her mind: “Just notice
how only one sentence omitted or one word miscopied can
change everything. And you, who are alive, can correct the

67
The very rare cases that can be problematical are honestly indicated by the editor’s notes in the Italian
version.

- 62 -
mistake immediately as you write. Think about it and you will
understand to what extent twenty centuries have deprived the
Apostolic Gospel of certain parts. This in no way alters the
doctrine, but it does make the Gospel more difficult to
understand. This explains many things. If we go back to the
origins, we will find yet another of Disorder’s manoeuvres and
many more can be attributed to the sons of Disorder. You see
how easy it is to make transcription errors”165.11.
The fact is that Maria Valtorta wrote down the descriptions
of her visions, as well as the dialogues of her dictations,
immediately and as they arrived, with extreme care and
attention. Eliminate the few imprecise details and the rare
personal errors that she makes and you are amazed to find that
you are left with fewer than ten indications among all the
verified points in the work that can still appear to the present-
day researcher as improbable, illogical or false. Fewer than ten
indications analysed as improbable out of a whole of over ten
thousand material data gathered and verified! This is clearly an
extraordinarily low level of error in comparison with any other
similar work! This a priori unimaginable and totally unexpected
result constitutes, if not proof, at least a strong indication of
credibility for the work as a whole68. And this, without doubt,
contributes to the multiple and mysterious aspects of the
Valtorta enigma...
*

68
Of course, the essential indication of authenticity remains its full and total conformity with the
dogmas and teachings of the Church.

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 “THERE IS A SEASON FOR EVERYTHING, A TIME FOR
EVERY OCCUPATION...”

Ecclesiastics, 3, 1

Historians and exegetes have for centuries tried in vain to

reconstitute the existence of Jesus precisely, in a logical,
chronological sequence. For Chronology is indispensable to the
comprehension of History, as the historian Théodore Mémain69 :
reminded us: “Chronology and geography are like the two eyes
of history. Without them, everything that has come down to us,
facts and knowledge, is nothing but murky chaos that
overburdens the memory without enlightening the mind”.
The historicity of the time Jesus spent on earth has never
been seriously contested by historians. But after centuries of
more or less sterile debates and research, their certainties about
His time on earth finally come down to very little: “Jesus, born
in Bethlehem in about 4, 5 or 6 AD, was crucified and died,
probably on April 7th in the year 30 AD, after having taught
publicly for about three years”. And even this consensus
minimum is not unanimous today!
It has reached the point that, following the studies carried
out from 1950 to 1970 by exegetes, theologians or historians 70,
many people thought that it was impossible to establish a
biography, a life of Jesus and arrived at this peremptory,
supposedly definitive, opinion: “The historian now knows that it
is impossible to reconstitute the existence of Jesus precisely and
in detail, apart from His life in Galilee and His death around

69
Th. Mémain, Etudes chronologiques pour l’histoire de N.S. Jésus-Christ, 1867, chap. 1, P. 2.
70
For example: Rudolph Bultmann, Jésus, Seuil 1968; Ernst Käsemann, Le problème du Jésus
historique, Essais Exégétiques, Delachaux et Niestlé 1972 ; E. Trocme, Jésus de Nazareth vu par les
témoins de sa vie, Delachaux et Niestlé 1971 ; Ch. Perrot, Jésus et l'histoire, Desclée 1979.
(continued on following page...)

- 64 -
the thirties AD. As for situating any of His words within the
framework of His life on earth, it is definitively impossible71”.

The dating of the important events of the life of Jesus.

Fortunately for us, Maria Valtorta did not know that it was
impossible! So she transmitted to us such a coherent chronology
of the time Jesus spent on earth that Jean Aulagnier72, after long
and scrupulous studies73, managed to date day by day all of the
details of the life of Jesus as reported by the four evangelists.
Having thus accomplished what the historians of his time
considered impossible, he thought that in the same way that we
“judge the tree by its fruits”, his study would be judged by its
results, without his having to justify every last detail of it. As I
belong to the generation of the anti-establishment protesters of
May ’68, I started by doubting his analysis as “too good to be
true”. Despite the excellent relations I enjoyed with Jean
Aulagnier, he could not totally convince me. Just to make sure,
I decided to go over his work systematically, using the powerful
modern-day IT tools74 at my disposal. I was thus able not only
to verify the validity of his conclusions, but also to reinforce,
and in some cases, refine them by taking into account over 5,000
new details, which had been considered unimportant or simply
not exploitable in his time75.

71
Quoted by the historian Elian Cuvillier, Regards sur l’histoire de la Recherche du Jésus historique..
72
Jean Aulagnier, Avec Jésus au jour le jour, Edition JA, 1985.
73
For 5 years he analysed over 4,000 reference marks scattered throughout the 6000 pages and explains
his methodology on page 11 of his book..
74
Astronomy software, ephemeris by NASA, calendar converters, Excel spreadsheets.
75
For example, all the details indicating the position of the moon at different hours of the night.

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A little bit of maths...
To try to explain the extreme precision of some instances
of dating in an understandable way, we might need to briefly
resort to mathematics.

A lunar phase (for example “the full moon”) is visible for,

let us say, three days every month. Hence, the probability that a
description of the moon will coincide with a Sabbath (one day
out of seven) is (3/30)x(1/7), or about 1.5 percent. But when
Maria Valtorta adds for example that the olive trees are in
flower, or that the wheat is ripe, occurrences which last less than
30 days a year, this gives us (1.5/100)x(30/365), or one chance
in a thousand that this information can provide a date that is
coherent with the rest of the chronology. If, in addition, the
event described is identified with a Jewish feast day, as for
example “Eight days before the Passover”, then we are faced
with (1/1000)x(1/365), that is, barely three chances in a million
that these independent details will make up an accurate whole!

But what is there left to say when we notice that there are
several dozen of these key dates76 that can be established by
crosschecks with at least three or four other criteria of this kind,
and sometimes more! What is even more unsettling is the fact
that these criteria are more often than not scattered, apparently
at random, throughout the work, sometimes separated by
hundreds of pages and can go completely unnoticed without a
systematic search and meticulous data collection!

In addition, hundreds of other dates appear to be attached

to these key dates by decisive details 77, as for example “the next
76
In fact, at least two key dates per month during the three years of the public life of Jesus!
77
Jean Aulagnier spoke of “trains of events” that he likened to carriages behind a locomotive

- 66 -
day”, or “Three days after our departure”, or “the following
Sabbath”, or again “today after the Sabbath and two days”, or
also “Friday evening one day, the evening of the Sabbath two
days, this evening three days...” A systematic study of all these
decisive details then shows that the dating of events is thus
totally interlocking, forming a whole that is unimaginably
homogeneous, humanly inconceivable and almost incalculable.

What is even more remarkable and paradoxical is that

Maria Valtorta does not for one moment appear to be aware that
the precision of her descriptions will make it possible to
establish this “exceptional calendar of the life of Jesus”, and
that in fact, she does not provide a single date, stricto sensu,
from start to finish throughout the six thousand pages of her
work! In addition, if you think about it, chronology, (the
knowledge and the order of events in the course of history)
seems richer in what it teaches and more useful than mere dating
(determining the date of events). But what historian, once he has
painstakingly reconstituted the chronology of his story, could
resist the temptation to provide a few dates to support his
hypothesis? Furthermore, if, as I have already indicated, you
add that Maria Valtorta did not receive all these visions in the
right order, then the mystery thickens even more!

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A good sketch is worth a thousand words
Napoleon

For lack of a good sketch, here are some examples to

illustrate this saying:
The first meeting with Peter and Andrew
The clues: The meeting takes place on a Saturday, in front
of the synagogue in Capernaum, just as they are leaving after
the Sabbath service. The day before, at the dawn of Friday,
James and John, returning from their nocturnal fishing, came to
tell Peter and Andrew that they had met the Messiah. They had
spent the whole day listening to Jesus – “We stayed with Him
all day until late into the night”48.3, – and had not been able to
go fishing with Peter and Andrew that night, “a night when the
fishing is so good”, because the moon was “high in the sky”48.6.
A few days previously78, John and James had met Jesus on the
banks of the Jordan, on “a cool Adar morning”597.3.
The analysis: In March 27 AD, the moon was full on the
9th. On Thursday 11th, it went into the zenith at midnight and it
was the only Thursday in that month on which the moon was
high at sunset. So the meeting with Peter and Andrew took place
on Saturday March 13th 27 AD79.
Commentary: This example shows how patient the reading must be…
Indeed, in book 9 Peter, remembering his first meeting with Jesus, mentions this
apparently insignificant detail of an “Adar morning”, firmly and irrefutably placing
in time a scene described in book 2!

78
Dated elsewhere as the beginning of March 27 AD thanks to other clues.
79
All dates were transposed to the “Gregorian calendar”. The lunar positions and phases were checked
using several types of astronomic software (among them, the Redsift software) and ephemeris published
by NASA.

- 68 -
The appointment with the Roman women in Tiberias
The clues: The scene is set in 28 AD, just after the
apostolic group’s retreat “for a week”164.4 in the Arbel gorges,
“at the end of the scebat moon”165.10, and just before the five
days of the Sermon on the Mount170.14; 171.6; 173.2 which ends on
a Saturday176.6. About 20 days before, Jesus had said to Joanna:
“at the end of the scebat moon, I will be at your house”158.4.
When He arrives late for the appointment, the porter at the house
of Joanna, wife of Chouza, tells Him: “They’ve been waiting for
You for three days, because they didn’t want to be late”.
Afterwards, Jesus joins His Apostles at sunset, “a ray from the
new moon coming right down to His level, a little comma in the
sky, a blade of light”169.4
The analysis:
1/ The meeting took place after a complete week, ending
with the sabbatical rest and the eve of another complete week:
it was therefore a Sunday. In the year 28 AD, astronomy
indicates that the end of the Shevat moon falls on February 11th
28 AD. Consequently, only Sunday, February 13th 28 AD fits
the bill here.
2/ The new moon (Adar) having appeared on Saturday,
February 12th 28 AD, the end of the Shevat moon, (the date of
the appointment) was thus on Friday 11th. The Roman women
waited for three days, which is another way of confirming that
the meeting took place on a Sunday. This can only be Sunday,
February 13th 28 AD.
3/ On February 13th 28 AD it is possible to establish by
astronomy that the moon, a very slim comma, low on the
horizon, set barely one hour after the sun, at 6.30 p.m. at
nightfall. This is the only possible evening that corresponds to
this lunar description in the whole month!

- 69 -
 Commentary: In this example, the surprise is born of the abundance of
decisive clues (no fewer, in fact, than a total of 25!), scattered between chapters
158.4 and 174.17 in book 3, all of them in perfect concordance. These numerous
clues enable us to pinpoint the same date via three different reasonings. This is
wholly unexpected and totally stupefying!

The death of Uncle Alpheus

The clues: Throughout the year 27 AD, Alpheus’s health

was declining. At the beginning of September, when Jesus had
been travelling for two weeks and was in Ptolemais, He received
a letter from His Mother, brought by the shepherd Joseph,
informing Him that “Alpheus returned to the bosom of Abraham
at the last full moon” with the advice “not to come to Nazareth
before the end of the period of mourning”104.6. But Jesus decides
to return immediately to “weep with them before the end of the
period of mourning”104.8. The very next day, they arrive in
Nazareth as “evening is falling and the arc of the rising moon
(...) is already going into its second quarter”105.1.

The analysis: Alpheus died at the full moon, between the

1 and the 3rd of September, (the full moon having been on
st

Thursday, 2nd September 27 AD). Mary advises Jesus not to

return before the end of the period of mourning, on account of
the atmosphere in Nazareth. She tries to inform Jesus as quickly
as possible in order to prevent an unexpected return on His part.
As the 4th was the Sabbath, the messenger (Joseph the shepherd)
could not have left until the 5th and could only have arrived in
Ptolemais, (30 km from Nazareth) that evening. So Jesus could
not have reached Nazareth until the next day, Monday 6th in the
evening, (that is, between the 4th and the 6th day of mourning).
But the 6th is the last day in September on which the moon still
rises as the first stars appear “in the deep cobalt of the sky, just
where the orient advances progressively with its stars”105.1.
Once again, this is the only compatible day!

- 70 -
 Commentary: In this example, the motivations and movements of the
characters must be analysed and the Sabbath, as well as the duration of the Jewish
period of mourning (7 days), taken into account. We should also refer to the precision
of the Italian text “arco di luna crescente” as the vaguer French translation “le
croissant de la lune” (the crescent moon) would have made it impossible to pinpoint
the date with such precision.

In ten days at the Fish Gate

The clues: In the evening of Wednesday 25th June 27 AD

(a known date thanks to several decisive clues) Jesus gives the
shepherds an appointment “in ten days near the Fish Gate in
Jerusalem, at the first hour”82.5. On the following Friday, July
2nd, Judas and John leave for Jerusalem in the morning and Jesus
gives John this appointment: “In four days, we’ll meet again”,
then He specifies to Judas: “At sunrise in four days at the Fish
Gate”83.3. On Monday, July 5th in the morning, Jesus says to
Simon: “Tomorrow at dawn is the appointment at the Fish
Gate”85.1, then He decides to meet John at Gethsemani: “at this
hot hour, he’ll be at the Olive Grove House”, and we find John’s
remark surprising: “You, Master? I was expecting You this
evening”85.6, whereas it is Monday and the appointment appears
to have been fixed for Monday morning with the shepherds and
Tuesday with John!

The analysis: This appears to be a double incoherence...

except if we remember that the day begins at sunset for the
Jews. The appointment with the shepherds was made for Friday
evening (to our way of thinking), but, in fact, the Sabbath had
already begun. So, “in ten days” means Tuesday morning and
not Monday, as we might have thought. Also, the appointment
given to John “at the beginning of the fourth day” was on
Monday evening, according to the Oriental way of counting
days, and not Tuesday morning!

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 Commentary: There are many other instances in the work in which this
Jewish way of counting days is naturally taken into account in the dialogues between
the characters (for example in chapters 82.5; 260.9...), whereas in her personal
descriptions, Maria Valtorta always describes days in the western way. This
example appears as a very clear indication of the authenticity of these visions.

The miraculous healing of Joanna, wife of Chouza

The clues: At the beginning of August 27, Jesus, who was

passing through Tiberias to meet Jonathas the shepherd, learns
that he has just taken Joanna toward the mountains of Lebanon.
He tells the old nurse: “If Jonathas comes back within six days,
send him to Nazareth to Jesus, Son of Joseph”99.4. “I am going
to Nazareth now for a few days…” The following week, Jesus
is about to leave Nazareth: “I waited for the five days I spoke of
and, to be on the safe side, I added today…” Night has fallen:
“As soon as the moon rises, we’ll leave”102.1 and “The sun is
still in Leo for a little while”102.1. Then Jonathas arrives and
describes his journey: “On the third morning, seven days ago,
she sent for me”102.4 and he tells them about Joanna’s dream.
Then they leave: “Night has fallen and the moon, in its first
quarter, is rising at this moment”102.6. Further on, we read: “In
the moonlight, we left Cana behind…Quite a long walk again in
the moonlight”102.7.

The analysis: In Antiquity, an easy way to estimate the

passing of the seasons was to observe, just before dawn, which
constellation was in the place where the sun was going to rise.
As the months go by, each of the 12 constellations of the zodiac
seems to replace the preceding one in a slow, ascending
movement. This cycle is renewed every year in exactly the same
way. So, when Jesus says that “The sun is still in Leo for a little
while”, astronomy tells us that it’s exactly as if He was saying
“it’s almost the 18th-20th of August”. Now, if we observe, as
Maria Valtorta does in this episode, that the moon rises at the

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beginning of the night and continues to light the night, we can
immediately deduce that this phase is close to the last quarter,
which took place on Thursday, 12th August 27. On the following
days the moon rises late in the night and the crescent moon is
waning, which would tend to invalidate Maria Valtorta’s
description. Now, if we consider that Jonathas left 10 days
before on a long journey, it was probably at the beginning of the
week, on Sunday 1st or Monday 2nd of August, just before the
full moon that is so propitious for night-time journeys in
summer. So we can conclude, with remarkable precision, (more
or less one day) that the healing of Joanna occurred during the
night of August 12th – 13th in 27 AD.
Commentary: We note here that Maria Valtorta is mistaken when she
indicates “the first” quarter, but as she stipulates that the moon rises after nightfall,
then lights the night, this clearly proves that it is “the last” quarter. (No human
being is infallible when he relies on his knowledge or impressions).

The raising of Jairus’s daughter and the banquet at Simon’s

house

Now, here is another example which fits into a sequence of

about sixty consecutive days, all perfectly defined80 by no fewer
than seventy nine decisive details!

The clues: This period, beginning at the Passover in 28 (the

end of March), takes us, day by day, with a multitude of clues,
to the end of May in 28 AD.

-Two days before the meal, just after the raising of Jairus’s
daughter, Jesus says to Simon the Pharisee, who is inviting Him:
“Tomorrow, I can’t come. It will be in two days’ time”232.4. It is

80
After the Passover of the year 28 AD, a period described “day by day” from 30th March 28 to 8th June
28!

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evening and the witnesses say, “In a moment, when the moon is
high”232.8. (Vision dated July 28th, 1945)

-The day before the meal, “It’s evening... but the moon is
already rising”233.1, and a little later “the moon, now high”233.5
(Vision dated August 12th, 1944, a year before the previous
one!).
- The following Friday “Go back to your houses before the
Sabbath arrives”237.4 in the afternoon, Jesus mentions the meal
at the house of Simon the Pharisee “five days ago now”237.3, and
later in the evening, “when it’s already dark”237.5 the conversion
of Mary Magdalen: “Mary came to Me three evenings ago”237.6.

The analysis: The raising of Jairus’s daughter thus took

place on Monday, May 29th, 28 AD, just after the full moon on
May 25th, 28 AD, (the only Monday in that month on which the
moon rises just after dusk, as it does the next day, Tuesday). On
the Tuesday, Jesus relates the parable of the Lost Sheep. It
touches Mary Magdalen so deeply that she decides to convert.
Then the dinner with Simon is on Wednesday, May 31st, 28 AD,
(vision received on January 21st, 1944!) as is the anointing by
the repentant Mary Magdalen.
Commentary: From Chapter 200 to chapter 245, there is an uninterrupted
sequence of events. The coherence seems even more remarkable here, as the
different visions describing this sequence were not all received in the right order, but
in fact cover a period of almost two years, between January 1944 and September
1945, which in no way affects their space-time coherence!

And to round it off, here are two final examples illustrating

the degree of extreme precision of certain descriptions by Maria
Valtorta.

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The departure from Sycaminon towards Dora and Caesarea

The clues: This scene can be situated, thanks to the

preceding information, on one Monday evening early in the
month of June 28. Jesus is on the beach at Sycaminon, “at the
extremity of the gulf”250.1, at “the farthest point of the bay, which
reaches out into the sea like a bent arm”250.3. The description is
even detailed enough for us to pinpoint, give or take 50 metres,
the place on the coast where they are resting, leaning back on
Mount Carmel, which looks as if it is going to fall into the sea
here! First of all, Maria Valtorta explains: “still no moon in the
night...”250.3, then she indicates a little further on: “The moon is
rising higher and higher... The moon makes a silvery path on
the water...”250.9, and again: “in this tranquil moonlight… the
resplendent whiteness of the moonlight…”250.11. A few days
later, in the following Thursday night to Friday morning, the
Apostolic group is getting ready to leave Sycaminon, a little
before dawn, for a very long stage towards Caesarea… “a very
beautiful setting moon… the moon that’s about to set”253.1 then
they all set off on their walk “in the silence of the nascent
dawn”253.5.

The analysis: On the Monday, the “rising” of the moon

during the night, then its setting on the Thursday, just after the
nascent dawn, confirm a period between the first quarter and the
full moon, which dates the stay in Sycaminon unambiguously
between Monday June 19th, 28 and Thursday June 22nd, 28 AD.
But on Monday June 19th, 28 AD, the moon has already risen at
sunset and Maria Valtorta’s first remark “still no moon in the
night” could thus seem erroneous...
Commentary: In truth, the moon in its first quarter has already risen. But a
rigorous topographical plan proves that the beach, at sea level and the nearby spurs
of Mount Carmel, 185 metres high, are in fact blocking the view to the east. So, seen
from the beach, the moon will only appear about two hours after sunset (at about 11

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 pm) in the south west, in the spot where Mount Carmel no longer blocks the view of
people sitting on the beach. Maria Valtorta’s description of this scene is thus
perfectly compatible with the topography of the place, which is the only thing
that can justify it!

The announcement of the death of the Baptist and the

multiplication of the breads
The clues: One Wednesday evening in August 28 AD,
Jesus is in Capernaum a town lit by “the red light of torches and
the silvery light of the almost full moon”269.12. The following
Friday, “it’s the eve of the Sabbath”270.7, towards the end of
August “The grape harvest will soon begin”270.1. John the
Baptist’s three disciples come to tell Jesus of John’s death270.3.
While “it is dark”271.1, Jesus decides to leave at once by boat,
“in the pallor of the full moon”271.1 in order to be far from
Capernaum during the Sabbath81. “They go down to the lake...
the moon is at its zenith”271.5, and Peter, a good seaman, adds:
“We can leave the boats at Tarichea. We’ll arrive there at
dawn”271.5. When they arrive, “a good mile, perhaps more, from
the little peninsula of Tarichea”271.1 (...) “the moonlight
declines as the moon sets and sinks behind a hill”271.5.

The analysis: In August 28 AD, the full moon was on the

22 / 23rd. So the only two possible days are Friday, August 18th,
nd

(just four days before the full moon), combined with Friday,
August 25th, (two days after the full moon). On that night, we
know from astronomy that the moon is at its zenith between
midnight and 1 a.m. So we know that the departure time is 1
a.m. They have to sail 19 km, going south, which, with a light
breeze, (about 4 km per hour), will take them 5 hours. So they
arrive within sight of Tarichea at dawn. The boat docks at the
mouth of the Jordan. The hills, situated seven to eight kilometres

81
N.B. Journeys by sailboat were allowed during the Sabbath but not by rowboat, which would have constituted
forbidden work on that day.

- 76 -
south west of Tarichea (Har Adami and Har Yaveel), are over
500 metres above the level of the lake, or at an angle of almost
5° above the horizon. Astronomy software shows that the moon,
at the first signs of dawn, is 20° above the horizon. As dawn
arrives, the moon is only at 15°. It disappears (at 5°) at 5.50 a.m.
exactly at the time of the arrival in Tarichea according to Peter’s
estimate!
Commentary: The five lunar descriptions are so precise here that not only
can we fix the date with absolute certainty, but we can even pinpoint the time of their
departure from Capernaum as well as that of their arrival in Tarichea! The level of
the lake (- 300m) must be taken into account, as well as the height of the mountains
south-west of Tarichea, where the moon sets at this season, to understand that on
that day, (and only on that day), the moon sets exactly as dawn appears, just as Maria
Valtorta says! The precision of this description is astounding!

These few examples were chosen from among dozens of

other possible ones. We could quote numerous other examples,
every bit as remarkable, but it would take a whole book on the
subject to describe them all. As I have already said, the dating
of events in Maria Valtorta’s work is based on thousands of
crosschecks of clues, and the degree of reliability so obtained in
the reconstitution of the chronology of this period is totally
unrivalled even by that of historians! May we just point out, for
example, that as far as the death of Herod the Great is concerned,
there are two main theories82, based principally on clues
provided by Flavius Josephus. These two theories have been
battling for supremacy for decades. One theory dates it on April
3rd, 4 BC, while the other opts for January 26th, 1 BC. The
Jewish historian Flavius Josephus is the almost undisputed
benchmark as far as historical dating goes and we have to be

82
See the paragraph The birth of Jesus and the death of Herod.
(continued on following page...)

- 77 -
content with that, even though his works contain many instances
of incoherence, imprecision or flagrant chronology errors83 !
Let us just remark in passing that this does not, however,
prevent a number of authors from granting Flavius Josephus,
who wrote over a hundred years after the events, greater credit
than they generally grant the historical data reported by the
evangelists, especially the Gospel according to Saint Luke, who
culled his information from contemporary eye witnesses. Here,
concerning the public life of Jesus, it is not only some events,
but all of them, as reported by the four evangelists, that can be
pinpointed to the precise day on which they occurred! Such a
level of precision and coherence is practically inexplicable...
But it becomes even more inexplicable, if we may say so, when
we remember, as I mentioned at the beginning of this chapter,
that the visions were not transcribed (or transmitted?) in
chronological order. “In the contemplations, I will not follow a
chronological order corresponding to that of the Gospels. I will
take the points that I consider to be the most useful on a
particular day, for you or for others, following my own order of
teaching and of goodness”44.8.

Before Maria Valtorta, no human brain had ever been able

to imagine such a coherent chronology of the life of Jesus, based
on thousands of concordant details. Could it be that Maria
Valtorta, by a mystery that science cannot explain today, simply
described, in one way or another, and to the best of her ability,
what she saw and heard? It is easier to understand the
enthusiasm of Jean Aulagnier, who concluded his study84 : in
this way: “No, these texts in no way resemble what an

83
For example, as Andrew E.Steinmann (Concordia University, River Forest, IL) demonstrates in his study on the
reign of Herod the Great.
84
J. Aulagnier, op. cit. page 303.

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imaginative mystic might write, nothing that the genius of a
forger can imagine. They are truly, in their precision, in their
coherence and in their expression, the description of the very
words and the authentic scenes that Maria Valtorta received the
extraordinary grace to hear and see”. The work transmitted by
Maria Valtorta today enables anyone who is curious, honest and
impartial, to find an answer to the question that seems to have
bothered generations of historians for centuries, in vain:
Exactly when did all of this take place?
But we shall now see that even chronology is far from the
unique, mysterious wonder of this work...

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 THE EQUAL OF THE GREATEST GEOGRAPHERS?
The renowned German historian and philologist, Ulrich von
Wilamowitz85 appreciated both the work and the literary talents
of the geographer Strabo86 “which enabled him to describe a
place that he had never been to, better than Pausanias87 who
had been there”. What would he have said, we wonder, about
Maria Valtorta, who, without ever having left her room, and
practically with no documents, gave a precise and exact
description of hundreds of places in ancient Palestine? She
provides a wealth of totally new information, unknown during
her lifetime, much of which was confirmed only after her death.
But she also describes the climate, the relief, the geology, the
hydrogaphy and the communication routes. She also shows how
the elements affect the way of life of the populations.

If, as has been said, “the role of geography is to locate

what happens on the surface of the earth 88 », and if its object is
“the description and interpretation of the distribution of men
and things on the surface of the earth 89 », then it is certain that
Maria Valtorta has left us a magnificent work of Palestinian
geography in the times of Jesus. One of the first to have realised
this seems to be Hans J. Hopfen, who, as early as 1987,
assembled a large number of the geographical data found in the

85
Ulrich von Wilamovitz-Moellendorff 1848 – 1931, a recognised expert in Greek literature.
86
Strabo of Amaseia (57 BC – 25 AD), one of the most renowned geographers of Antiquity.
87
Pausanias, known as the Periegete (115 – about 180), a renowned geographer and traveller of
Antiquity.
88
Paul Claval, Histoire de la géographie. Nathan 1998. (Paul Claval is a French geographer and
professor at the University of Paris-Sorbonne).
89
Armand Frémont, Aimez-vous la géographie? Flammarion. 2005. (Armand Frémont is a French
geographer, who was the scientific director at the CNRS, secretary of State for Universities, rector of
academies, and president of the scientific council of the DATAR).
(continued on following page...)

- 80 -
work on a detailed map of Palestine90. I also mentioned earlier91
the astonished admiration of reputed Biblicists, such as G.
Allegra or Father François Paul Dreyfus, of Monseigneur
Alfonso Carinci, or the Sardinian geologist Vittorio Tredici, for
the precision of the geographical details. At the end of the
1990s, David J. Webster92 indicated that he had undertaken a
six-year study of the information on 255 sites mentioned in the
work. In the account that he gave of his work, circulated in 2004
(30 typewritten pages) he counted and classed 79 sites that were
still unknown in the 1939 edition of the International Standard
Bible Encyclopaedia. Of these 79 sites, 62 are not even
mentioned in the 1968 Macmillan Bible Atlas, and 52 are not
even to be found in the Bible. However, 29 have since been
authenticated by the study of ancient sources and now appear in
the 1989 edition of The Harper Collins Atlas of the Bible.

To this we must add that the most recent archaeological

research has already confirmed the locations, as indicated by
Maria Valtorta, of more than ten sites or so. These locations
were either contested, or else totally unknown, at the time she
was writing her work!

From the year 2000 onwards, thanks to researchers, we

have had access to maps of Israel, on a scale of 1:50,00093 and
much more precise satellite views94 offering hitherto
unimaginable possibilities of investigation. Since then, with the
advent of internet, we can now consult hundreds of maps of
90
Hans J Hopfen, Indice e carta della Palestina per l’Evangelo come mi é stato revelato” 1987, ed.
CEV 2003.
91
See the paragraph “The author describes the place in which the story unfolds in a credible way”.
92
An American Baptist Pastor, who tells of his conversion to Catholicism after reading The Gospel as
Revealed to Me.
93
For example the maps circulated by Berkeley University
94
Especially the internet sites such as Google Earth or Géoportail.

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Palestine of all eras, as well as a great number of ancient
accounts of pilgrims or travellers.

As we now have easy access to the tools to check Maria

Valtorta’s geographical descriptions and names, it was very
tempting to use them. I must admit that I did not long resist this
temptation, any more than I can now resist the pleasure of
sharing with you some of the innumerable gems I discovered
here and there in the work...
The Khafre and Menkaure pyramids have disappeared!
When Maria Valtorta describes the Holy Family’s stay in
Egypt, she does not at first seem to know the exact location. She
writes: “It’s in Egypt. No doubt about that, because I can see
the desert and one pyramid...”36.1, then further on, “The sun is
going down on the bare sands and a veritable fire sets the sky
alight behind the far-away pyramid36.3 (...) The pyramid seems
darker”36.4. Only in book two do we learn that the flight ended
at Matarea: “He who had fled farther than Matarea 119.1 ... it will
be sadder than your first birthday in Matarea...”133.4, and again
in book 4: “Although the goodness of the Lord has made our
exile in Matarea less difficult in a thousand ways”247.8.
Matarea95 is a district of the ancient city of Heliopolis, 20
km north east of the three pyramids of Giza. It was a hospitable
land for persecuted Hebrews and a large Jewish colony lived
there in the time of Jesus. The most ancient mention of Matarea
as the Holy Family’s refuge seems to come from the childhood
Gospel, (Arabic apocrypha, also known as the Gospel of
Thomas) relating a tradition attested since the 2nd century. Since
then, and up to the present day, the fountain of the Virgin and
the Tree of Mary are venerated in this place, both mentioned,
95
Today, El Matariya. Coordinates: 30° 07’ N / 31° 16’ E / Altitude +25m.

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moreover, in Maria Valtorta’s text. Henri de Beauveau, in
Voyage au Levant (1615), calls this place “La Méterée, the
place to which the Virgin ran away with her beloved Son, fleeing
the persecution of Herod”.
Later, Cornelis de Bruyn
(1623 – 1683) passed
through Matarea and
explains in his Voyage au
Levant: “This is the place
where it is believed that
Joseph and Mary chose to
reside when they left for
Egypt”. Why does Maria
Valtorta see only one of
the three pyramids from this place?
We notice that the orientation of the Giza pyramids is
south-west / north-east and Matarea is exactly in their axis.
Consequently, and only in this sector (on a swathe of about two
or three kilometres wide), the Cheops pyramid effectively hides
the Khafre and Menkaure pyramids, situated just behind it! The
drawing above, done in 1850, is a view of the north of Giza,
seen from Heliopolis.
It is conceivable that,
going east, we would
see only one “far-
away pyramid”. We
need only look at the
photograph above –
(taken between 1875
and 1925, from the
north-east in relation
to the pyramids, as the

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Geneva Museum specifies) – to clarify this explanation.

As this is not a particularly spectacular viewpoint, it is,

unsurprisingly, not mentioned by any of the innumerable
travelers to Cairo over the centuries.

So, Maria Valtorta’s use of a simple singular, “the

pyramid”, is a strong signal of the authenticity of this vision on
this scene.
Note: It was precisely in the close vicinity of Matarea, in the Coptic Zeitoun church,
that the Virgin appeared several times, in 1968, as witnessed by tens of thousands of people.

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The petrified forest of Cairo
In book 4, Jesus remembers His early childhood in Egypt. “I
could compare a large part of Israel to the petrified forests seen
here and there in the Nile valley and in the Egyptian desert.
They were woods upon woods of living plants... for reasons
unknown, like accursed things, they not only dried up, as do
trees, which, although dead, can still be used as firewood in
homes... But these trees were not used as firewood. They turned
to stone. Stone. The silica in the ground seems, as if by
enchantment, to have risen through the roots to the trunk, to the
branches and up to the leaves96. The winds then broke the
weakest branches that became like alabaster, both hard and
soft. But the biggest
branches are there, on
their powerful trunks,
to deceive tired
caravans of people,
who, in the dazzling
reflections of the sun
or by the spectral light
of the moon, see the
silhouetted shadows of
trunks rising from the
plains or in the depths of the valleys. (…) Real ghosts! Illusory
appearances of living things, true presence of dead things. I saw
them. Although I was only a toddler, I remember them as one of
the saddest things on Earth”248.13 / 14.

96
This hypothesis of silica substitution is one of two theories put forward today by scientists to explain
the formation of this forest. (See www.bezra.com/en/mota7agera.asp).
(continued on following page...)

- 85 -
 There are several sites of fossilized forests in Egypt. The
El Maadi97, site, about 15km east of the historical centre of
Cairo, could be the site referred to here. Indeed, this site is 17
km south-east of Matarea, not very far from the place of exile in
Egypt. This forest was already mentioned in 184098. Endangered
by urban development today, the remaining 7 square kilometre
zone was classed as a protected site in 1989 and subsequently
classed as a UNESCO heritage centre in 2003.
It is quite remarkable to find a description of this site in a
1945 text, a time when it was still almost unknown in Europe.

Bethsaida, a landlocked fishing village!

In June 1945, Maria Valtorta reports a vision: “Jesus tells
me, showing me the river Jordan, or rather the point at which it
flows into Lake Tiberias and where the city of Bethsaida lies, on
the right bank of the river, looking northwards: ‘Now, the town
no longer seems to be on the banks of the lake but slightly inland
and this disconcerts the specialists. The explanation can be
found in the fact that this side of the lake was filled up by twenty
centuries of alluvium deposited by the river and by rock slides
from the hills of Bethsaida. The town was then exactly at the
mouth of the river, where it flowed into the lake, and even the
smallest boats, in the seasons when the waters of the river were
at their highest, could navigate quite a long way, as far as
Korazim. However, the river itself was still used as a port and a
shelter for boats from Bethsaida during storms on the lake. This
is not meant for you, but for the fastidious, nitpicking doctors...’
”179.1.

97
Coordonnées 29° 59' 10'' N / 31° 22' 45" E / Altitude +178m.
98
Notice on the petrified forest near Cairo, Geography Society Bulletin, 2nd series, t. 13.

- 86 -
 The location of
Bethsaida was sought in
vain for almost 1,500
years, the town having
disappeared in about 324
AD, after an earthquake.
The archaeologist E.
Robinson’s hypothesis in
1839 was that the mound
known as e-Tell was
perhaps a vestige of
Bethsaida, but this
hypothesis was not
accepted by the majority of
the researchers of the time.
It was only from 1987 that
it was confirmed by
archaeological digs.
It is today accepted that the lake was larger in the time of
Jesus. So the fishing village of Peter, Andrew and Philip is 1.5
km north of the present-day mouth of the river Jordan, north of
Lake Tiberias, exactly on the latitude of Korazim, as those who
read Maria Valtorta’s manuscript in 1947 learned forty years
earlier!

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Enquiry in Phoenecia
In her work, Maria Valtorta several times mentions
Alexandroscene, an ancient city, almost unknown today. She
gives precise and detailed descriptions of its location:
“according to the indication on the Roman milestone:
Alexandroscene - m. V (...) a real stairway in the steep, rocky
mountain, its nose plunging into the Mediterranean. It comes
into sight progressively as you go up. This road, one might say,
these terraces, can only be travelled on foot or by donkey. But
the road is still very busy, perhaps because it is a good
shortcut... “That must be the storm cape”, says Matthew,
pointing to the headland coming out into the sea (...) “From the
summit we’ll see Alexandroscene and beyond it is the White
Cape. My John, you’re going to see a large extent of sea!” says
Jesus (...) But it will soon be dark. Where shall we sleep? In
Alexandroscene. You see? The road is starting to go down and
there’s a plain below, right up to the town that you see over
there (...) The town of Alexandroscene is more military than
civilian. It might some have strategic importance that I don’t
know of. It nestles between the two headlands and looks like a
sentinel guarding this part of the sea. Now that both capes are
visible, we see a large number of fortified towers forming a
chain with those on the plain and in the town, where, towards
the coast, the imposing Camp dominates...”328.1/2.

Later, there is another mention of the strategic road: “trying

to reach the road going from the sea inland. It must be the same
one, that forks at the base of the headland, leading to
Alexandroscene…”330.8. And again in Book 7: “on the terraced
road hewn out of the rock, that they took to go to the last village
on the border between Syro-Phoenicia and Gallilee – and it

- 88 -
must be the one I saw when they were going to
Alexandroscene”474.8
All these descriptions are perfectly correct and verifiable.
Roch Hanikra99 (the Cape of the Grotto) is situated in the
extreme north of Israel, on the Lebanese frontier, where its
white chalk cliffs meet the Mediterranean Sea. The Arabs called
this site Ras el-Nakoura, the Jews Sulam Tsur and the Christian
pilgrims Scala Tyrorium (the ladders
of Tyre). In about 333 BC, Alexander
the Great is thought to have had these
ladders (or steps) hewn out for his
soldiers and their horses. They were
later used by the Roman legions and
the Crusaders.
This is a little-known site today,
but some drawings from 1836 remain,
like this one… As Maria Valtorta
seems to have read on the Roman
milestone, Alexandroscene99 was
indeed situated 5 Roman miles (“m
V”) from the place where the ladders of Tyre begin. That is,
exactly 7.5 km further north.

99
Coordinates 33° 05' 34'' N / 35° 06' 14'' E / Altitude +55 m.

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 Ras en Naqoura “a mountain spur reaching out into the sea (…) its nose plunging
into the Mediterranean” seen from Aczib

Here is what a modern tourist guide says of Tyre 100:

“Between two headlands on the Phoenician coast, the Ras el
Bayada101 and the Ras en Naqoura102 are the ruins of a
considerable town whose only claim to fame is the fact that
Alexander the Great stayed there after the capture of Tyre. The
town was built and named Alexandroscene in his honour”.

100
On the internet site www.lifeintheholyland.com.
101
In 1884 Victor Guérin op. cit. said that this headland was then called the Ras el Abyad (Pliny’s
Promontorium Album), i.e. the “White Cape” the exact name that Maria Valtorta gives it!
102
Also called Rock Hanikra, that Matthew identifies as the Storm Cape, as that was where the Apostles
encountered a storm on their way to Tyre. A photograph of Rock Hanikra justifies this other description
“a boat spur (…) with its rocky veins whitening in the sun”325.1.

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The El Bayada Cape (Promontorium Album or White Cape) and the view towards Tyre on
the horizon

This town still existed in the time

of Jesus, as le pèlerin de Bordeaux
(333) mentions having stopped there.
And a 14th century legend (by
Nicephorus Callistus) reports that
Zosimus, renowned for his miracles in
the reign of Justinian, came to
Alexandroscene from Tyre on his way
to Ptolemais. “There, a lion devoured
the donkey that was carrying his
baggage. Zosimus then ordered the lion to carry the baggage!”

But in the 19th century, all that remained of this formerly

flourishing city, today totally non-existent,103 were a few stones!
Note: The U.N. blue helmets have now installed a large military base right next to
the archaeological site of Alexandroscene (3 or 4 km away, in Naqoura).

103
Victor Guérin, Terre Sainte, vol 2 page 143.

- 91 -
The cyclopean ruins of the ancient city of Hazor
Coming from Gerghesa on His way to Meron and Giscala,
Jesus meets Rabbi Gamaliel, and speaks of the ruins of Hazor
that He has just passed:
“no flowers bloom there, it
is a desert land that the
work of men and nature
cannot make fertile. All
human work comes to
nothing there, as does the
work of the wind that
transports the seeds,
because the cyclopean
ruins of ancient Hazor are everywhere, and only nettles and
brambles can grow in these fields of stone, where only snakes
live”160.4.
This is the only reference to Hazor in the whole work.
These ruins were discovered in 1870, but the immensity of the
site was only revealed when archaeological digs began in 1955,
(they were still ongoing in 2008). No one had ever mentioned
the “cyclopean ruins” prior to 1955, except Maria Valtorta in
1945!
The town covers an area of 80 hectares, (or 10 times the
size of Jerusalem at that time!), so immense that the
archaeologists did not at first think that the whole area was just
one city. But this is now proven and the site, still a total desert
today, constitutes the greatest excavation site in the whole of
Israel. This immense city, mentioned several times in the Bible,
was definitively destroyed by an earthquake in 732 BC.

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Did Maria Valtorta visit Antioch?
Perhaps Maria Valtorta went to Antioch… in the time of
Jesus? This question can legitimately be asked when the
numerous details that she provides on Antioch and its region, in
those times, are analysed.
The Cretan navigator, Nicomede points out: “the real port of
Antioch is Seleucia on sea, at the mouth of the Orontes”321.3.
Correct: Port of Antioch, north of the mouth of the Orontes, a
site studied in 1907 by V. Chapot.
He adds: “The town that you see, the biggest one, is Seleucia.
The other, towards the south, is not a town, but the ruins of a
devastated place”.
Correct: It is the old Greek colony of Posideion (today Al
Mina, which means the port in Arabic). This ancient Greek
colony, known to mythology and mentioned by a few Greek
authors (including Strabon), was destroyed in 413 BC and
abandoned. In the time of Jesus, it was a field of ruins. When
Maria Valtorta mentioned it in 1944, only a few archaeologists
knew it, as is still the case today!
Nicomede continues his explanation: “That range is the Pierios,
which gives the town of Seleucia the name of Pieria”.
Correct: Pieria is the name of the mountain range situated in
the north of Seleucia.
“This peak, towards the interior, beyond the plain, is Mount
Casio, dominating the Antioch plain like a giant”.
Correct: Mount Cassius, height 1,739 m, is so called by Pliny
and Strabo. But today it is known as Djebel-Akra, the bald
mountain.
“The other range in the north is the Aman range”.
Correct: It is Mount Amanus, which separates Syria from
Cilicia.

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“Oh! In Antioch and Seleucia you will see the works that the
Romans did! They could not have made anything bigger. It is
one of the best ports, with three docks, and canals and jetties
and dykes”.
Possible: The site of Seleucia is today completely silted up, but
some archaeological soundings would seem to indicate the
great size of the dykes, walls and canals. Will a future
excavation one day bear out this description?
In the following chapter, the Apostles leave Seleucia on their
way to Antioch: “They take a road close to the walls until they
leave via a gate, walking along a deep canal at first and then
along the river itself”322.4.
Correct: The vestiges of this canal, later enlarged by Titus, are
today still visible.
Syntyche marvels: “All those myrtles!” and Matthew echoes:
“And laurels!”
Correct:See Ovid’s The Metamorphoses, book 1, for example.
“Near Antioch, there’s a place dedicated to Apollo” reports
John of Endor. Simon the Zealot, who knows the place, having
already been there, adds: “You’ll see one of the most beautiful
valleys in the world. Apart from the obscene cult that has
degenerated into even more disgusting orgies, it is a valley of
the earthly paradise.” A little further on, he adds: “Daphne, her
temple and her copses are also in this poetic valley”322.6.
Correct: The geographer Strabo104 declares: The Antiochians
hold their panegyrics there. And Nonnos of Panopolis, a 5th
century Greek poet tells of Daphne’s Phrygian orgies105
They are approaching Antioch, as the Zealot explains: “Here’s
Antioch with its towers and ramparts. We’ll enter it by the gate

104
Strabo, Geography, book XVI, 2, 6.
105
Nonnos of Panopolis, Dionysiaques Song 40.

- 94 -
near the river”. And in answer to Peter’s question: “This town
is heavily fortified, isn’t it?” he says: “Heavily. With walls of
grandiose height and thickness, in addition to the hundred
towers that, as you see, look like giants standing on the walls,
with impassable ditches at their feet”.
Correct: In 1861, Emile Isambert106 wrote that of the 130
original towers, 50 remained, in mute testimony to the military
genius of the Romans.

Antioch circa 1785 by Louis-François Cassas

Simon gives more details: “And even the Silpio’s summits

contribute to defence”.
Correct: Nothing remains today of these ruins at the summit of
the Silpius, but Louis-François Cassas made a few sketches in
the 18th century.
A thousand pages later in the work, a letter from Syntyche
provides more, profuse, details on Antioch, which was then the
third city of the Empire, after Rome and Alexandria: “As I write,

106
Adolphe Laurent Joanne, Ad. Chauvet, Emile Isambert, Itinéraire descriptif, historique et
archéologique de l’Orient. Hachette, 1861, page 618.

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from one of the terraces of the house, I can see (...) the palace
of the Legate in the island”461.4.
Correct: Libanius of Antioch (314 – 394) wrote that the
governer’s palace occupied a quarter of the island107.
“its royal streets, its walls with hundreds of strong towers and,
as I turn around, I can see the summit of the Sulpius above me
with its caserns and the second palace of the Legate”.
Correct: This is exactly the description that Libanius gives.
Later, the Crusaders built a citadel with the vestiges of this
second fortified palace.
Further on in her letter, Syntyche continues: “A Roman lady
wanted to invite me to her splendid house near the colonnades
of Herod”461.19.
Correct: History and Archaeology attest this colonnade, later
extended by Tiberius.
“A proselyte, a widow living near the Seleucia bridge”
Correct: This bridge, rebuilt several times, was still there in
1785.
“A Greco-Assyrian family who owns shops in a street near the
Circus”.
Correct: The ruins of the Circus were found near the
governor’s palace
“And here I am in the house of Xenon, on the slopes of the
Sulpius near the caserns. The citadel looms menacingly from its
summit. However, unappealing as it is in appearance, it is better
than the rich palaces of the Onpholus”.
Correct: The word is, of course, the Omphalos, the city centre,
where a remarkable statue of Apollo once stood.
“and of the Nimpheus”.

107
Libanius of Antioch, Oraison IX.

- 96 -
 Correct: Also in the Omphalos, the city centre, stood the
grandiose Nymphaeum of Antioch, which supplied the whole
city with water. It was destroyed by an earthquake that ravaged
the city 108 .
Mention should also be made of the city of Antigonea323.
and the gardens of Lazarus... Archaeologists are today still
searching for this city, a contemporary of Antioch, but which
had already started to decline at the time of the Roman
conquest109.

Photo of the vestiges of the Nymphaeum of Antioch today

108
Reported by Evagrius Scholasticus (534 – 549), Ecclesiastical History, L3 c. 12.
109
Isambert (op. cit. p.619)situates Antigonea north-east of Daphne, near Antioch, just as Maria
Valtorta describes, whereas archaeologists are today searching for it a little further east.

- 97 -
 The map of 1st century
Antioch here opposite was
established according to Glanville
Downey (Ancient Antioch, 1963).
It corresponds perfectly to Maria
Valtorta’s descriptions. And yet,
these were written 20 years
previously, before the publication
of this map

So, all this information

is correct, even if
verification often turns out
to be long and arduous.
Indeed, this information
can be found here and there
in several books. But, of all
the numerous books that I
consulted for this study, I
have found none which
contain all the data transmitted by Maria Valtorta. Concerning
Antioch and its surrounding region, she provides over twenty
pertinent details, some of which are known only to a few people.
The quality of the description of Antioch and of the surrounding
region is undoubtedly yet another document to add to the
Valtorta enigma file...

Antioch today and mount Silpius

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A beautiful panorama in the centre of Judea
Jesus and His friends are approaching a village, on their
way to Ascalon from Bether, for the first apostolic journey, just
after the Passover in 27 AD...
“The place is very mountainous, but its vegetation is still very
rich in conifer woods, or rather, pine trees. The air is redolent
with the balsamic and invigorating aroma of resin. And Jesus
walks with His friends through the lush greenery of these
mountains, with His back to the Orient (...) ‘When we reach
the top of that mountain, I will show you all the regions that
interest you from up there’ ”215.1.
About one kilometer away, south-east of Beth Jimmal, a
hill rising to a height of 410 metres towers over its
surroundings, offering an exceptional panorama.
“We have reached the top of the mountain. A wide panorama
opens up here and in the shade of the leafy trees crowning the
summit, a beautiful vista appears in a tangle of mountain
ranges, varied and sun-drenched, stretching in all directions,
like the petrified waves of an ocean battered by violent gales
and then, as in a calm bay, everything quietens down in a
limitless splendour of light before a vast plain, where a little
mountain rises, like a solitary lighthouse at the entrance to a
harbour...”215.2.
The only possible place that corresponds to this little
mountain in the Philistine plain is the Tell as-Safi, as we
shall soon see...
“This country, stretching out over the crest, as if to fully enjoy
the sunshine, and where we will stay, is like the pivotal point of
a range of historical places110. Come here. There’s Gerimoth
110
We learn further on that that it is the village of Betginna.

- 99 -
(in the north). Do you remember Joshua? And the defeat of the
kings who tried to attack the Israeli camp, strengthened by the
alliance with the Gabonites”
Jerimoth or Jarmouth, or Yarmouth111, is situated
nearby, north-west of where they are on the mountain.
Joshua’s victory over Piram is mentioned in Joshua 10, 1–
5. Recent archaeological digs have found vestiges of
fortifications at Khirbit el Yarmuk. Yet, in Maria
Valtorta’s lifetime, Jerimoth was thought to be located 3
km further east112 !
“And nearby Bethshemesh, the priestly city of Judah, where the
Philistines returned the Ark of God with the golden votive
offerings, imposed on the people by the soothsayers and priests,
in order to be released from the scourges that tormented the
guilty Philistines”.
Beth Shemesh113 is abundantly mentioned in the Bible.
This episode, “recalled by Jesus”, comes from 1 Samuel
6, 10–15.
“And over there, in the sunshine, is Saraa, Samson’s
birthplace”.
Sar’a, or Tzora, on the north bank of the al Saar Wadi, the
biblical Sorec valley and the town of the tribe of Dan, the
homeland of Manue, father of Samson and the birthplace
of Samson (Judges 13, 2)
Eusebius places it 10 miles from Eleutheropolis, towards
Nicopolis not far from Kaphar-Sorec. Fortified by
Roboam, Saraa was once again inhabited by the children
of the tribe of Judah on their return from captivity. (Joshua,

111
The town still existed in the time of Eusebius, who calls it Iermoxous.
112
See, for example, the Osty Bible, p.463.
113
31° 45' 5" N / 34° 58' 35" E.

- 100 -
 19, 41). The Saraites (1 Chronicles 2, 53) are probably the
inhabitants of Saraa.
“And slightly more eastward, is Timnata, where he took a wife,
performed great feats and did many foolish things”.
Historians are more inclined to place Timnatah, or
Tibney, 3 or 4 kilometres away, west-south-west of Beth
Shemesh, but without decisive proof. Will the future bear
Maria Valtorta out, as was the case for Jerimoth,
mentioned above? (Judges 14, 1)
“And there you see Azeco and Soco, a Philistine camp then”.
Soko : a town of the low country of Judah. As the Israelites
always lived in the mountains and the Philistines on the
coastal plain, the low country between the two was always
a bone of contention between them. (Joshua, 15, 35). The
fight between David and Goliath took place between Soko
and Azeco. During the reign of King Achaz, the town fell
to the Philistines (2 Chronicles 28, 18). In the time of
Eusebius, it was called Socchoth.
Azeco : This is where Joshua vanquished the Canaan
kings. (Joshua 10, 10-11). It was a town of the low country
of Judah (Joshua 15, 35), occupied by the Philistines,
fortified by Roboam, Solomon’s successor (2 Chronicles
11, 9), the town suffered a siege by order of
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, circa 590 B.C. (Jeremy
34, 7). It would later be occupied once again by the
Judeans returning from exile circa 530 B.C. (Nehemiah
11, 30). The site is today known as Tell Zachariah.
“lower down, that’s Szanoe, one of the cities of Judea ».
This is modern-day Zenoah, north-east of Azeco and
Soko, about 2 km from the point in the panorama where
Jesus and His friends are.

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“Now, turn around and here’s the Terebinth Valley, where
David defeated Goliath”
The Valley of Terebinth (1 Chronicles 11, 13; 2 Samuel
23, 9) from east to west, then in the north-west is the
modern-day Wadi es Sant. It is just south-west of their
vantage point. So they do indeed have to turn around to see
it, as it is in the opposite direction from Zenoah!
“And there’s Maceda, where Joshua defeated the
Amorrheans”.
Makkeda, or Maqqeda, mentioned in Joshua (10, 10-51).
This is a memorable place in the annals of the Canaan
conquest, as it is where Joshua executed the five kings of
the coalition, who had hidden in the caves. The exact
location has only recently been discovered114.
“Turn around again. Do you see that solitary mountain in the
middle of the plain which used to belong to the Philistines?
There‘s Get, the birthplace of Goliath and the place where
David, fleeing from Saul’s mad fury, took refuge with Achis and
where the wise king pretended to be mad, because the world
defends the mad against the wise”.
David twice took refuge there with king Achis, to escape
from Saul. Following its destruction in about the middle of
the 8th century B.C., the location of this site was lost
through the centuries.
Most archaeologists today identify Geth or Gath 115 with
Tell es-Safi, “the white mound”.

114
D. A. Dorsey, Location of the biblical Makkedah, Tel Aviv 1980.
115
Gath was surrounded by walls (2 Chronicles 26, 6) and was not conquered by Joshua. Although
many wars broke out between the Israelites and the Philistines, it seems that it did not fall before the
time of David (1 Chronicles 18, 1). It acquired fame through the presence of Goliath (1 Samuel 17, 4)
and other giants (2 Samuel 21, 18-22). It was from here that the Ashodites took the Ark during the
leprosy epidemic. (1 Samuel 5, 8-9).

- 102 -
 The Tell es-Safi, and the ruins of Gath (seen from Azekah).

The site was identified in 1887, but only the recent

excavations of 2001 confirmed the previous hypotheses.
This hill, the only one in this sector, corresponds in every
way to Maria Valtorta’s description of it in 1945!
“These are the plains of the fertile land of the Philistines in
this open horizon. We will go there, as far as Ramleh”.
Ramleh, or Ramla116 : According to History, the city was
completely built circa 705-715 A.D. by the Caliph
Suleyman ibn Abed al Malik. The fact that Jesus mentions
this name would therefore tend to suggest that it existed
before 705 A.D.
“Let’s go into Betginna now”.
Beth Jimmal, or Beit Gemal : this is where the relics of
St. Stephen, Nicodemus, Gamaliel and his son Abibas
were found, circa 415/417.The site was then known as
116
Situated at 31° 55’ 38” N / 34¨52’ 30” E, Ramla is sometimes presented as the only city in Palestine
founded by the Arabs.

- 103 -
 Kfar Gamla. A byzantine monastery was built there in the
6th century. The site today bears its original name and the
monastery has become a pilgrimage site.
A detailed topographical study of this region is necessary
to observe that only from the hill situated one kilometre south-
west of Beth Jimal can we see all the places described here. And
only after positioning all the places mentioned in this short
paragraph on a map can we appreciate the amazing quality of

this description.
Commentaries :
1/ If only in order to confirm the validity of the fifteen or so
details given here, we need a minutely detailed map of the
region and a certain amount of time to devote to these relatively
complex verifications.

- 104 -
2/ Maria Valtorta very often writes down proper names with
approximate, even phonetic, spelling. This, in itself, is a strong
indication that she neither read nor checked these names in any
hypothetical documents that in all probability, she did not even
possess in the first place.
3/ She does not hesitate to transmit this information in
contradiction with the affirmations or hypotheses of her
contemporaries, assuming that she was, in fact, aware of them.
(Jerimoth, Timmatah, Ramla ...) at least one of which, following
recent discoveries, has turned out to be true today (Jerimoth).
The exact locations of Timmatah and Ramla were still not
“proven” in 2010.
4/ She even provides information that was practically unknown,
or else contested, in her time and that Archaeology or History
have since confirmed (Gath, Makkedah...)
How did Maria Valtorta do this?

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The Arbela gorges and the Horns of Hattin
Almost a year after He chose His first disciples, Jesus
gathered the Twelve for a retreat in an isolated place, behind
Tiberias. Maria Valtorta gives a long description of the place
where the twelve Apostles were chosen117 : “Jesus, His back to
the lake, is walking, going unhesitatingly towards a gorge
between the hills stretching from the lake towards the west in
almost parallel lines, I would say. Between two rocky, rugged
hills, with a steep drop like a fjord, a foaming little stream
tumbles down noisily and, above it is the steep slope of the wild
mountain with plants that have grown everywhere, as best they
could, in the crevices between the stones”164.3, then a little
further on, “There are caves here that men used to use (...) Here,
the waters are cool and plentiful, although the land is dry”164.4.
Then Maria Valtorta describes Jesus coming down “because
His is the highest cave. And, going from one cave to
another”165.3. The description is so explicit that it is not very
difficult to locate these caves before discovering, a thousand
pages later, that this is the site of “the Caves of Arbela”360.6. The
valley of the Arbela Gorges, and their many caves, was a refuge
in the times of the Maccabees, two centuries before Christ, and
again during the Jewish revolt in the time of Herod118, in 39 B.C.
The waters mentioned are those of the Wady el-Hamam.

117
Matthew 10, 1-4; Mark 3, 13-19; Luke 6, 13-16.
118
Flavius Josephus relates that soldiers were lowered in cages suspended from the top of the cliff and
that the caves were smoked out.

- 106 -
 “The valley with its steep, wild slopes”241.15 with the caves of Arbela halfway down
the slope. The Horns of Hattin are on the horizon, on the left.

“Let us go. Let us go and meet the others, the crowds who
are waiting for Me. Then I’ll go to Tiberias for a few hours,
while you go to the foot of the mountain on the direct road from
Tiberias to the sea. Speak publicly of Me, and wait for Me there.
I will come and I will climb up higher to preach”165.10.
Jesus gives His Apostles an appointment at the foot of the
place today called the Horns of Hattin. There, Simon the Zealot
starts to preach. “You see, what we glimpse here looks like the
aqueduct (...) The arcade would not exist if its base were not on
the road”165.5. The presence of an aqueduct in this place was
unknown until 1989, when the discovery of vestiges119 proved
119
Amit, Y. Hirschfeld, and J. Patrich, The Aqueducts of Ancient Palestine, 1989; Zalman S.
Winogradov, The Ancient Aqueduct of Tiberias, 2004.
(continued on following page...)

- 107 -
its existence near Kafr Sabt 120 exactly in the place of the scene
described by Maria Valtorta more than 40 years before this find!
So the abundant waters of the Wady Fidjdjas were carried in
Ancient times to Tiberias via this aqueduct, whose very
existence seems to have been forgotten by History and
Archaeology. Jesus meets His Apostles as arranged “towards a
mountain rising up near the main road and going west from the
lake”. An important Roman road, the via Maris, going from
Maritime Caesarea to Tiberias, did, in fact, pass nearby, “the
mountain rises more steeply up to the peak, then goes down,
then up again, forming a second peak, like the first one, and
together they form a sort of saddle”169.1. It is the mountain of
the Sermon on the Mount, (165. to 174.) described in minute detail:
“the valley between two summits”170.1. “The top of the hill that
looks like a yoke, or rather like a camel’s hump (...) is a natural
amphitheatre, where the voice resounds clearly”174.11. “We
were higher up, where the summit appears to be forked, like a
great two-pronged pitchfork, about to skewer the clouds”244.2-
4… “from this summit the saddle of the mount of the Beatitudes
can be seen. At its foot is the main road going from the
Mediterranean to Tiberias”276.1 etc. All of this perfectly
describes and unambiguously designates the place known since
the Crusades as The Horns of Hattin121.
Commentary: In describing the site of The Horns of Hattin as the
place of the Sermon on the Mount, Maria Valtorta appears to be totally
unaware of the fact that the official place of the Mount of the Beatitudes is
situated far from there, about three kilometres away, inland from
Capernaum. But this allegedly official site seems to have been chosen
essentially for motives of tourism and has never really been unanimously

120
Situated 10.5 km south-west of Tiberias.
121
This is where, on July 4th 1187, Saladin’s troops routed Guy of Lusignan’s crusaders.
(continued on following page...)

- 108 -
agreed upon, far from it122 ! The isolated site of the Horns of Hattin turns
out to be more probable123, combining both Matthew’s mountain (5, 1) and
Luke’s plateau (6, 17).

The mountain or the plateau of the Beatitudes “At its foot is the main road that goes from
the Mediterranean to Tiberias”276.1
Maria Valtorta’s description of these sites, completely
forgotten in her time, is stupefying today, now that they can be
compared with the photographs taken by tourists.

And so many, so many other forgotten sites...

The mention, or description by Maria Valtorta of numerous
places in Palestine, known in 1944 to only a few rare, erudite
scholars, was one of the surprises of the eminent specialist
Father François Paul Dreyfus, already mentioned at the
beginning of this book. Here are some of the data that provoked
this astonishment:

122
S. Munk, Palestine, 1845, describes the Horns of Hattin and adds on p. 5: “Christians call it the
Mountain of the Beatitudes, because, according to tradition, that is where Jesus gave His speech, known
as the Sermon on the Mount”. And Baedeker, Palestine and Syria, 1898, p 247 even adds that this
tradition (the Hattin site as the site of the Beatitudes) goes back to the end of the crusades.
123
This localisation is attested by Brocardus (or Burchardus), Descriptio Terrae Sanctae, 1283, caput
4. It is also the place that members of a Napoleonic expedition chose to situate the Sermon on the Mount.
(continued on following page...)

- 109 -
 Jotapate315.1 (present-day Tel Yodfat) is perfectly located
and described by Maria Valtorta, whereas the site was only
“rediscovered” by archaeologists124 in 1992-1994.
Magdalgad “this little place on the hill”220.1 is mentioned
only once in the Bible125. In Maria Valtorta’s time, its location
was still controversial.126. Now identified with modern Al-
Majdal, approximately 4.8 km north-east of Ascalon, (and
conforming perfectly to Maria Valtorta’s description!), the site
today is part of the suburbs of Ascalon.
Lesendam : Laishem Dan, the city of Laish, is only
mentioned once by this name in the Bible 127 . Maria Valtorta
mentions Jesus passing nearby (330.1 and 331.8). Yet, the ancient
town of Tel Dan (Tell el Qadi), the modern name of ancient
Laish, was only rediscovered in 1966, thanks to Israeli
excavations.
Rohob : The ancient capital of the Aramean Kingdom a
city hostile to David. The Bible128 places it in the Laish region,
but the exact location remains unknown to this day. Some think
that it might be present-day Hunin, about 10 km west of Banias
129
, which corresponds closely to the context described by Maria
Valtorta “I let my flocks graze between Rohob and Lesendam,
just on the frontier road between here and Nephtali”330.5.
Doco : Here is a city that has completely disappeared and
is totally forgotten today. And yet Maria Valtorta mentions it
about fifteen times in her work as a meeting point, or a point of

124
Israel Antiquities Authority and the University of Rochester, New York directed by M. Aviam and
W. S. Green.
125
Joshua 15, 37.
126
See for example The Catholic Encyclopaedia 1913, which suggests two sites: El-Mejdel, near
Ascalon, or El-Mejeleh, south of Beit Jibrin.
127
Joshua 19, 47.
128
Judges 18, 28.
129
A. Lemaire, The Journal of the American Oriental Society, 7/1/1999.
(continued on following page...)

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passage for people who walk along the river Jordan from north
to south, cross Judea from Bethel to Jericho, or go towards the
Decapolis on their way from Jerusalem. It is, beyond doubt, Aim
Duk, situated at the north-west base of the Jebel Karantal130. In
the time of Jesus, there was a fortress there, that the Romans
called Docus, where Simon Maccabeus was invited to a banquet
by his son-in-law Ptolemy, then massacred there in 135 B.C. (1
M 16, 11-17).

Ramot: Ramoth in Galaad or Ramoth-Gilead was one of

the three towns of refuge in Transjordan given to the Levites
(along with Betser and Golan). Very often mentioned in the
Bible, the exact location of this city has always been disputed...
Three main sites have been proposed: Tell er-Rumeith,
excavated in the 1960s and containing vestiges of the Iron Age.
There are, however, those who think that the site is too small to
correspond to the Biblical description. Another possible site is
Tell el-Husn, but a Muslim cemetery above it precludes
excavation. The third likely site is Ar-Ramtha, but here again,
excavation is impossible because of the modern town built over
it.
In Maria Valtorta’s work, Jesus stops at Ramoth on His
way to Gerasa from Jericho. “Can you see that country,
Woman? It is Ramot. We will stop there.”286.2 Judging from her
description of it287.1, and from the adjoining sketch, Maria
Valtorta situated Ramoth in the place of present-day Es Salt131,
exactly halfway between Jericho and Gerasa, dividing this
journey into two long stretches of 33 km each. This is even more
remarkable when we discover that Es Salt has lately been

130
The mount of Temptation 31° 54’ N/ 35° 24’ 30” E, 7 or 8 km north-west of Jericho, at the entrance to the Accor
Valley.
131
32° 02' 21'' N / 35° 43' 38'' E / Altitude + 758m

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recognised by archaeologists as the most likely site of Ramoth!
I could, of course, provide a multitude of such examples, but
there are still so many other astonishing subjects in this work,
that we must move on from these geographical examples.
Suffice it to say that Maria Valtorta mentions by name over
three hundred localities, mounts, rivers, regions and other
geographical data, locating them with a precision that is, in
itself, remarkable. A more complete analysis of all the
geographical data would fill a voluminous book
Here is one last example. Jesus, referring to John of
Endor’s departure: “I will never send you to Bithynia or to
Mysia132 on the desolate heights where you lived as a galley
slave (...) to the lead mines and the marble quarries”312.4. It is
rigorously correct that Anatolia was already famous at that time
for its white marble (in Dokimeion) as well as for its silver-
bearing lead mines (in Gümüshane and Karasu).
I would now like to repeat a specificity of Maria Valtorta’s
revelations. As she did not receive all her revelations in strictly
chronological order, in some chapters she recognises some
places that she has already seen in visions and that will later fit
neatly into her account. So it is, for example, in the very first
pages, describing the Presentation of the Virgin Mary in the
Temple. The attentive reader might well be surprised when
Maria Valtorta makes this strange remark: “I don’t know
whether I have ever mentioned it, the Temple is not on the same
level, but goes up higher and higher in successive stages”6.3.
Note that this vision was received on August 28th 1944 after
many other scenes unfolding within the Temple boundaries.

132
Jesus even explains for Maria Valtorta, “simple and humble people will understand
Anatolia better than Bithynia or Mysia”312.14.

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 When Jesus first visited Emmaus, Maria Valtorta writes:
“I recognise the house that the two men from Emmaus went into
with the Risen Jesus.”140.1, because she had the vision on April
5th 1945, two weeks before this one, received on April 18th 1945!
Another typical example is when she says: “I recognise Jacob
the peasant, the Jacob of Mathias and Mary, the two orphans in
the vision of the month of August, I think”110.4, and when she
remembers “the place with the well and the oven at the back,
and the apple tree to one side, and here’s the kitchen door, wide
open”110.5. Maria Valtorta in fact recognises places seen in a
vision on August 20th 1944, but only described much further in
the chapter298.2.
Yet again, in a vision on February 15th 1946, when Jesus
draws near the ferryman Solomon’s house for the first time,
Maria Valtorta makes this quite unexpected remark:
“Solomon’s little house, the one that I saw in March 1944,
without knowing who it belonged to, in the vision of the raising
of Lazarus”348.1.
Even more surprising for French readers is this remark that
Maria Valtorta makes the first time that Jesus goes to Jutta: “I
recognise the place. It’s impossible not to, it is the one in the
vision of Jesus and the children that I had last spring”76.8,
(vision of January 12th 1945). She alludes here to a vision
received on February 7th 1944, given in chapter 396 of the Italian
version of 2004, but not included in the French version of 1985!
There is an abundance of such examples in the work, strong
indications of the authenticity of these visions. I, personally,
have never come across a similar situation in any other book that
I have ever read.
But, before closing this chapter on geography in The
Gospel as Revealed to me, I would like to draw my readers’

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attention to something that is, in my opinion, even more
unexpected. A closer study of the text reveals very many other
insignificant, overlooked places, whose names Maria Valtorta
does not even know. These places, unknown to Biblical
encyclopaedias, simply because of their anonymity, cannot
therefore appear in any research based on simple text
indexation... And yet, these anonymous places turn out to be
absolutely correct each time that our modern knowledge enables
their identification, be they rivers, Roman roads, mounts, the
humblest of little hills, or the tiniest of little villages. Maria
Valtorta very often adds a sketch to her manuscript133 when she
cannot quite find the words to describe what she sees. These
sketches, although technically quite clumsy, are nonetheless
extremely helpful to clarify and flesh out some far too
rudimentary descriptions. Maria Valtorta thus attains a general
degree of precision and accuracy that I, for one, have never
found in the books of the many authors of travel accounts of
visitors to the Holy Land that I consulted during this study134.
Here, then, are a few examples to illustrate these statements.

133
These sketches, which do not appear in the 1985 French edition, have been included in the 3rd Italian edition of
2004.
134
K. Baedeker, J.T. Bannister, L. de Bazelaire, Beauvau, Burckhardt, A. Egron, V. Guérin, T. H. Horne, E. Isambert,
J. W. McGarvey, S. Munch, R. Pococke, E. Robinson, Louis Segond, F. de Saulcy, to name but a few .

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Distant view of Jerusalem and the Temple
In the spring of the second year, Jesus and His friends are
going on a pilgrimage to the Temple for Marjiam’s Bar Mitzvah
and the Passover. They are approaching Bethel, on their way
from Sichem. “Here’s a new, much steeper, slope. The group of
Apostles, leaving the dusty, overcrowded main road, has taken
this shortcut through the woods. When they arrive at the top, a
sea of light shines in the distance giving a clear bird’s eye view
of a white town, perhaps with whitewashed houses”194.2. Then
Jesus says to Marjiam: “Do you see that dot shining like gold?
It’s the House of the Lord. That is where you will swear to obey
the law”. As they are still 25 km from Jerusalem, we might find
this remark surprising. But, according to the accounts of several
pilgrims of bygone centuries, Jerusalem, (and consequently the
Temple) was visible from very far away to those coming from
the north. However, Leonie de Bazelaire’s testimony135 leaves
no room for doubt. In fact, on her way from Naplouse, she says
that she saw Jerusalem in the distance, “a whitish mass in the
distance” from a hill before Bethel136, exactly coinciding with
the description transmitted by Maria Valtorta. As for the
“shining dot”, one need only read Flavius Josephus137 : to be
convinced: “Covered all over with pure gold plate, the Temple
shone”.
On the Way to Sycaminon
Jesus is walking westward along the Esdrelon Plain from
Bethlehem, going towards Sycaminon with the Apostles and a
few female disciples. Halfway through, He suggests a stop on a

135
Léonie de Bazelaire, Chevauchée en Palestine, 1899, p 93.
136
7 km north east of Bethel (31° 59’ 57” N; 35° 15’ 57” E) a 950 metre high mount is the highest
summit in the region. It is situated 25 km from Jerusalem as the bird flies.
137
Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews 5, 6, 222.

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hill where “we’re going to find a sea breeze”249.1. Maria
Valtorta depicts “the summit or rather a ledge of the summit
jutting out as if it were trying to run towards the pleasant blue
of the limitless sea. (...) on this charming, airy mountain crest,
opening onto the nearby coast, opposite the majestic Mount
Carmel range”249.5. There is, in fact, a high point (105 m.), the
only one on this plain138 2 km east of modern-day Qiryat
Motzkin. However, this can only be verified on recent maps of
Israel, and even then, only the most precise ones! How could
Maria Valtorta have known this, other than through her
revelations?
The hot springs of Hamat Gader
On another occasion, Jesus and His friends disembark at
the south-east point of Lake Tiberias, to go to the town of
Gadara. “You know the shortest way to Gadara, don’t you? Do
you remember? Jesus asks. “I should just think so! When we
reach the hot springs above Yarmoc, all we have to do is follow
the road”, replies Peter.”356.1. This is the Yarmoc, these
buildings are the Roman Spas and further along, there is a very
good paved road leading to Gadara”365.2.

The Yarmoc: In fact the

Yarmouk is an “insignificant”
affluent of the left bank of the
River Jordan, 6 km south of Lake
Tiberias, barely 80 km long. Its
name does not even appear in the
Bible, but is found only in the
Talmud. Several hot springs,
(sometimes over 50° C), are situated in the Yarmouk valley. The

138
32°48'18" N and 35°08'22" E, 10 km from Bethlehem and 15 km from Sycaminon.

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ancient Greek name for the site is preserved in Arabic: Tel
Hammi. This is, in fact, the Arabic corruption of the word bath
in Greek. The vestiges of Hamat Gader were partially excavated
and investigated in 1932, but it was only from 1979 that several
years of excavations revealed the entire site139.

It is today a
very popular tourist
site for the Israelis.
Maria Valtorta even
smells “the
unpleasant odours
of the sulphurous
waters”356.3,
exactly as modern
tourist guides
describe this particularity of these waters. But this fact was
totally unknown in 1945! The ancient, little-known name of the
site140 is even
mentioned later in a
short dialogue: “The
Lake had become
hotter than the
Hamatha
waters”450.2.
So it is really
not at all surprising when the apostolic group goes along “a
beautiful road with very large cobblestones and leading to the

139
Source: Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry.
140
Eusebius Onomasticon (Aemath Gadara) and the Talmud of Jerusalem (Kiddouschuin 3, 14,
mention Hamtha, near Gadara. Christoph Cellarius (1638-1707) in Geographia Antiqua Liber III,
chapter 13 (quoting St. Jerome), indicates: “Est et alia villa in vicinia Gadarae nomine Amatha, ubi
calidae aquae erumpunt”

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superb town at the top of the hill, surrounded by walls”356.3, as
the Roman road leading to Gadara is, in fact, superb, with its
large paving stones, just as the town perched on the hill must
have been and which the many photographs of the
archaeological site of Gadara today attest!
Photo above, a view of the Gadara Cardo Magnus, “a beautiful road with very large
cobblestones”

Jesus and His apostles enter the town and Maria Valtorta
adds this detail: “The road becomes a thoroughfare, decorated
with porticos and fountains. There are ornate squares, each
more beautiful than the other. It cuts across a similar
thoroughfare and there is probably an amphitheatre
below”356.7. The ruins of Gadara (modern-day Umm Qais) do,
in fact, show a flourishing Greek city, with three basalt theatres,
Roman baths, a temple, cobbled roads, shops etc...

“A considerable city, the capital of Perea”,according to the historian Flavius Josephus.

There are still scores of other sites that I could mention, all
perfectly described by Maria Valtorta, but not designated by
name, such as that “creek between two low hills” into which
flows “a capricious little stream”94.2, to describe the Korazim
mountain stream, the Wady Kerazeh, which flows into Lake
Tiberias, or this road “that goes alongside the stream towards
the north-east, in a cultivated and wonderfully fertile

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region”287.4, when Jesus is on His way to Gerasa. The river that
does go down north-east to south-west from Gerasa is the
Chrysorrhoas, the golden river, its name indicating the role that
this river has always played in the exceptional fertility of this
valley. Or again, this other river (the Wadi Amud, between
Capernaum and Gennesaret) beside which Jesus and His friends
break their journey from Capernaum to Magdala: “There’s a
stream, we’ll eat there...”182.6 & 183.1
And who would leave out “this tiny little village, a few
houses, a hamlet as we would call it today. It is higher than
Nazareth, which we can see down below, a few kilometres
away.”106.5. Jesus finds refuge there after the Nazarenes try to
throw him off a high embankment (Luke 4, 29). He passes there
again in the opposite direction, coming this time from Cana:
“the cool shortcut that leads to Nazareth... When we reach the
top of a hill”244.1, Mary recalls: “I came to this little place
halfway up the hill with my nephews when Jesus was chased out
of Nazareth”244.2.
Halfway between Cana and Nazareth is Mount Har Yona
(a hill 550 metres high)141 and 4.5 km north-east of Nazareth. It
is the only point that is higher than Nazareth in the region, as
Maria Valtorta remarks! And yet, this indication appeared on no
maps in 1945!

Then too, there is the Wady Nimrim Shu’eib that Maria

Valtorta describes as follows: “a mountain torrent that
probably goes to the Jordan River, an abundant flow of water
coming down from I know not what summit”286.1 when Jesus is
on His way to Ramoth from Jericho. Today, this Wady Nimrim
Shu’eib is classed (along with the Zarqa and the Yarmouk) as

141
32° 43’ 35” N/ 35° 20’ 28” E, west of the modern village of Ein Mahil

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one of Jordan’s main fresh water sources. The etymological
meaning of the present-day name of this torrent is precisely
“abundant waters”! Could Maria Valtorta have been inspired
by chance?

On another occasion, when Jesus is waiting for the apostles

near Achzib, Maria Valtorta gives a precise description of the
surroundings, adding: “On the highest peak of a small mountain
upon which there is also a village”325.1, one can but note that it
is precisely there that the ruins of a very ancient village have
recently been discovered: the village of Khirbat Humsin (at Tell
Hammoudout)142 which was completely unknown at the time
that Maria Valtorta wrote these lines.

So we can say today, backed up by cast-iron proof, that the

geographical descriptions that Maria Valtorta gives in her work
are in no way the fruit of her poetical imagination, but most truly
the meticulous and methodical description of real places which,
by a phenomenon that science cannot explain, she appears to
have truly seen.

These few examples will, I hope, enable us to understand the

wonder of those readers with excellent knowledge of the Holy
Land and this remark made by Jesus to Maria: “A few days ago
you said that you were going to die without having satisfied your
yearning to see the Holy Places. You are seeing them, and what
is more, you are seeing them as they were when I sanctified them
by My presence. Now, after twenty centuries of profanations
perpetrated through hatred or through love, they are no longer
as they were then. So, at present, you see them and those who

142
33°3' 0" N / 35° 9' 0" E.

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go to Palestine do not see them”. (The 1944 notebooks, March
3rd).

Geographers and archaeologists will, of course, note that the

information given in Maria Valtorta’s work corresponds to the
most recent archaeological observations, discoveries and
reconstructions. Therefore, the accuracy of these details will
clearly reinforce the credibility of the whole. In addition, there
is little doubt that Maria Valtorta’s work may even give rise to
new archaeological discoveries, when the specialists in this field
become more fully aware of the relevance and richness of these
descriptions.

Note: The attentive reader will have noticed that the

descriptions are very meticulous in the first volumes, becoming
somewhat more sober in the last ones, in accordance with these
words of Jesus to Maria: “I authorise you to omit the
descriptions of places. We have given so much to curious
researchers. And they will always be ‘curious researchers’.
Nothing else. That is enough now. Your strength is going. Save
it for the Word. Just as I noted that much of my fatigue was
unnecessary, I note that much of yours is unnecessary. And so I
tell you: ‘Keep yourself for the Word’ ”297.5

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AND JESUS MADE HIS WAY THROUGH TOWNS AND
VILLAGES

“Teaching in their synagogues” Matthew 9, 35

“He made His way through towns and villages preaching and proclaiming the good
news”... Luke 8, 1
“Let us go elsewhere, to the neighbouring country towns... And He went all
through Galilee”... Mark 1, 38
“He went back again to the far side of the Jordan”... John 10, 40

The unanimous testimony of the four evangelists informs

us that during the three years of His public life, Jesus and His
friends went from town to town throughout Palestine, but also
in Phoenicia, Decapolis, Perea and the entire Philippi tetrarchy.
We have already seen that in Maria Valtorta’s work, the
whole evangelical message as it appears in the four canonical
Gospels can be resituated in time, more often than not, to the
precise day. As Maria Valtorta informs us of where every event
takes place; it seems theoretically easy to reconstruct the
comings and goings of Jesus and His friends throughout the
Holy Land, especially as in almost every case, she also gives the
times of departure and arrival, as well as descriptions of the
halts.
Overland Travel.
But how can the coherence of these movements be
analysed today, when motorways have covered paths and
Roman roads, when cars have replaced horses and bullock carts
and towns have invaded previously deserted countrysides?
Trying to reconstruct these movements today by going to the
Holy Land is not a convincing exercise. But fortunately, we
have a mass of historical information on the movements of
troops in Antiquity, thanks to Herodotus, Xenophon, Caesar,
Tacitus or Seneca, to name only the best-known among them.

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 In addition, innumerable travellers throughout the
centuries, especially the nineteenth century, have written
minutely detailed accounts of their pilgrimages to the Holy
Land. In France alone, the data provided by François-René de
Chateaubriand, Albert de Luynes, Léon de Laborde, Félicien de
Saulcy, Victor Guérin, Melchior de Vogüé, Charles Clermont-
Ganneau and so many others, provide important details. Finally,
there are the modern-day testimonies of pilgrims to Santiago de
Compostela to complete this data.
Based on the synthesis of all these elements, it can be
established that a journey on foot of 20 to 25 km per day was
the norm in the time of Jesus and travellers were sure to reach
the halts (mansiones) or the inns (mutationes). Seasons
permitting, it was not a rare occurrence for a healthy traveller to
do 200 stadiums per day, (35km)143, or even 40 km if necessary.
Philip even accustomed his troops to 55km marches per day,
carrying arms and baggage144.
With a four-wheeled combat wagon (carrus) the normal
daily distance was 30 km for merchandise and 50 to 60 km for
the transport of people (covered wagons in which 8 to 10 people
could travel and sleep). The cursus publicus, the imperial postal
service, did 70 to 100 km in a day, changing horses four times.
A troop of Roman horsemen could normally travel 50 km per
day145, and Julius Caesar even covered an average of 150 km per
day to go from Rome with his escort on horseback and by horse-
drawn wagon.

143
Herodotus, Histories, Book V, 53.
144
Reported by Victor Duruy, Histoire des Grecs, 31,2.
145
René Rebuffat, Au-delà des camps romains d'Afrique mineure, ANRW, II 10.2, 1982, p 486.

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Travel by water.
Paradoxically, it is almost easier to have a clear idea of the
average distances covered by water in Antiquity, given the
amount of data on the subject. It seems to be an accepted fact 146
that in excellent conditions, a sailboat could cover a maximum
of 2,000 stadiums, or 360 km per 24 hours. But covering 1,000
to 1,300 stadiums, or 225 km, per day was good navigation.
Herodotus gives these details: A boat covers 700 stadiums a day
and 600 a night, or 1,300 per 24 hours147, whereas Aristide
prefers a figure between 1,000 and 1,200 stadiums 148. As for
navigation in a fishing boat on the lake, it could hardly have
been more than 4 to 5 km per hour rowing and 7 to 9 km per
hour with the help of a sail. The precision of these figures is
more than enough to undertake the verification of Maria
Valtorta’s text.

A few details on the method used.

In order to analyse each journey, I used a voluminous table
in which each line represents one day. The columns indicate
successively: the Gregorian date; the date in the Hebrew
calendar; the day of the week; the lunar phase corresponding to
that date; the participants in the journey; then a column for each
two-hour period, a total of twelve columns for the whole day.
According to the season and the date, the boxes corresponding
to night hours are in grey. In the box corresponding to the time
of departure, I indicate the place of departure. The same is done
for the time and place of arrival at the destination, with the
kilometres covered. The boxes corresponding to walking
periods are in green, those corresponding to navigation periods,
146
Data supplied by Polybius, Strabo, Eratosthenes, Pliny, etc.
147
Hérodotus, Histories, book IV, 83.
148
Aelius Aristides (117-189), Orationes. XLVIII, (by Samuel Jebb, Oxford 1722, p. 360).

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in blue; those indicating rest periods in red and the uncertain
ones (not described by Maria Valtorta) in orange. This
compilation is user-friendly and when the 1,250 lines of the
table (corresponding to the three years and more of the public
life) are filled in, according to Maria Valtorta’s descriptions, it
is a simple matter to analyse all the journeys undertaken by
Jesus and His followers...

A totally unexpected result.

I might as well say it at once: the result of this analysis
surpassed everything I expected. First of all, every journey
without exception is plausible, as much from the point of view
of its duration as from that of the distance covered. Of itself, this
result is already exceptional, especially in view of the fact that
in 1944 Maria Valtorta could not possibly have had access to a
map of Palestine precise enough for her to imagine itineraries
such as the ones she describes. A quick glance at the whole table
shows very few days in orange, i.e. not mentioned by Maria
Valtorta. These are, more often than not, days of rest at home or
with disciple friends, at the end of a long journey.
But a closer analysis of these journeys reveals that other
things are also perfectly taken into account, such as the
difficulties attributable to the seasons, like the state of the roads,
flooded rivers, rain, wind, excessive heat or cold, etc. For
example, the stages are never longer than 20 to 22 km in bad
atmospheric conditions, as is often the case in autumn and
winter. The same goes for the daily amount of sunshine and the
presence or absence of the moon in the night skies, both of
which influence the course of the journey and are effortlessly
incorporated into the story. Naturally, the greatest distance
covered, (by day or by night, according to the phases of the
moon) is in spring. In summer, owing to the excessive heat,

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journeys become rare. These occur almost exclusively by night,
avoiding the new moon phases.
The long journeys149 almost always start on the day after
the Sabbath or even just at the end of the Sabbath when the
moon is favourable to a nocturnal departure. Jesus, an
indefatigable pilgrim, does not often spare His apostles,
regularly imposing stages of over thirty kilometres on them.
But, when women disciples accompany them, the daily distance
covered will then only exceptionally exceed twenty kilometres.
So, each trip takes the participants (men, women, or children)
into account, as well as their ages and the state of their health.
The slightest detail in all these journeys screams
authenticity: the halts in the shade of the trees during the hottest
hours of the day; the clothes, damp with sweat; the dusty, tired
feet bathed in a river; the days of rest that they allow themselves
after two or three particularly trying stages; the hurrying to
reach shelter before a storm breaks or before nightfall... The
exigencies of the Sabbath are also taken into account and woven
into the story in fine detail. I will come back to this later.
I have closely examined over eight hundred stages
describing the journeys of Jesus and His disciples during the
three years of His public life. To my great astonishment, I have
found absolutely nothing impossible, anachronistic or
incoherent, even in the most complex situations, in which, for
example, different groups of disciples are entrusted with
different missions. They then undertake different trips of
unequal lengths before arriving at the convened meeting-point.
As in previous chapters, here are a few examples now, gleaned
here and there, to illustrate these assertions.

149
More precisely, all those of 100 km or more.

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Transportation of the dying Jonas on his pallet.
This brief sequence clearly shows how unforeseen
difficulties are taken into account. When Jesus comes to
Esdrelon to extricate poor Jonas from the claws of Doras on
September 19th, 27AD, it is a dying man that they must transport
to Nazareth on his pallet. The stage is short: barely 12 to 15 km,
and yet, having left just after 12 noon and passed “along the
great road” (the famous via Maris), “the little cortege arrives
in Nazareth, almost deserted, at nightfall”109.15. Maria Valtorta
had made this remark: “They can’t go very fast with their pitiful
burden”109.13. As night fell at 6.15 p.m. on that day, they must
have walked for over five hours, an average slightly below 3 km
per hour, a totally credible figure under those conditions.

On the way from Bethsaida to Cana.

This journey illustrates to what extent each journey can be
reconstructed in minute detail from Maria Valtorta’s text. The
announcement of their departure is made in Capernaum on
Tuesday June 6th, 28 AD, barely a week after Mary Magdalene’s
conversion: “we shall all go together through Galilee and we
shall accompany our sisters to the safest road150. So, Porphyria,
Susanna, your wives and daughters, Philip and Bartholomew
will meet them” (…) “Where shall we go first, Master?” “To
Bethsaida. Afterwards, we shall go to Nazareth, via Magdala,
Tiberias and Cana. From there, we shall proceed to Bethlehem
in Galilee, via Japhia and Shimron, and then to Sycaminon and
Caesarea151 (…) At Caesarea you will find your wagon. That is
the instruction I gave the servant”239.3.

150
The road from Caesarea to Jerusalem, used daily by Roman patrols was definitely “the safest road”
to go on to Jerusalem and Bethany.
151
The itinerary is perfectly coherent, including villages that are more or less forgotten today

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 The next morning, Wednesday 7th, “as dawn is breaking”
they go to Bethsaida by boat: “They are sailing towards
Bethsaida. A short voyage... (barely 5 to 7 km)... We are staying
only until sunset”240.1.
On Thursday 8th they are “sailing along the coast from
Capernaum to Magdala”241.1 early in the morning “with the
rising sun opposite and mount Arbela. They cross the whole
town of Magdala”241.6, where Jesus tells the parable of the lost
drachma (Luke 15, 8-10). Then they cross Tiberias and “the
west part of the town (...) Beyond it, there is the dusty road that
leads to Cana”242.7. There, Jesus orders a midday stop near a
well. “While we are resting, let us have something to eat” then
He responds to what the old epicurean Crispus is waiting for:
“to find the Truth, you must join intellect to love (...) He who
loves will always find a path leading to the Truth”242.8. “This
evening we will go to Cana”242.11. And they do indeed arrive 152
“in the redness of the sunset”243.1. They go to Susanna’s house
to rest and she accompanies them on the rest of the journey. In
the evening, Jesus thanks Susanna for her hospitality and they
talk for a moment “in the serene, but still moonless153night” 243.6.
They are going to spend the week in Cana before going to
Nazareth, 8 km from there, on Friday June 16th.

152
After finishing the remaining 16 km, a 4 to 5 hour walk.
153
Yet another of those details that might seem superfluous but turns out to be absolutely accurate, as
on June 8th, the moon is in its last quarter and rises at about 2 a.m.!

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Voyage from Nazareth to Maritime Caesarea
Let us now take a closer look during the rest of this journey
at how Jesus spares his female disciples as much as He can.
They left just after the Sabbath, on Sunday June 18th very early
in the morning, in order to have a whole week, and start with
what we would call today a little leg-stretching stage of about
fifteen kilometres. Jesus says, moreover, “We, the men, could
have walked further, but we have female disciples with us”247.1.
“They have reached, crossed and passed the town of Japhia”154,
and make a stop during the hottest hours “on the mountain that
overlooks Meraba 155247.1 “The hours go by in the rustling shade
of the airy wood”247.3. “It is evening when they arrive in
Bethlehem in Galilee”248.1. The next day, Monday 19th, they
continue their journey: “The calm, sunny morning helps the
apostolic group to climb some hills stretching westward, that is
to say, towards the sea. We were right to reach the hills early in
the morning. We could not have stayed on the plain in this heat.
But here it’s cool and shady”249.1 Matthew remarks. As on the
previous day they rest during the hottest hours after a 10
kilometre walk, on “the charming, airy mountain crest, opening
on to the nearby coast, opposite the majestic Mount Carmel
range”249.5. At the end of the afternoon they walk the other
dozen kilometres to Sycaminon156 where they meet a group of
disciples.
The female disciples stay in the fishermen’s huts to rest for
two days, while Jesus and His apostles make a quick return trip

154
Japhia or Yâfâ, about 3 km south west of Nazareth, today a suburb of Nazareth
155
Read Merala or Marala, then Mahaloul, a town of Zebulon, 6 km SW of Nazareth. The description
of the panorama seen from the top of Meraba hill is rigorously correct. Today, Meraba hill is still covered
with oaks and the panorama appears on Google Earth.
156
Sycaminos, modern Tel Siqmonia. The archaeological site was authenticated by excavations in
1964-1965, then again in 2003.
(continued on following page...)

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to Sidon by boat. On Wednesday 21st they all meet on the beach
at Sycaminon in the evening.
Then on Thursday 22nd, just before dawn157, “Light, in the
transition from night to day, has faded, because the moon has
set, but day has not yet dawned… it is a short twilight
interlude”253.7.This is the departure for the longest stage of the
journey: 25 km up to Dora, then another 13 or 14 to reach
Caesarea, so a very long stage of almost 40 km. Jesus explains:
“We shall arrive in Dora before the heat of the day and leave at
sunset”253.7. We understand that they left before dawn, at about
2.30 or 3 a.m., so as to be in Dora at about 8.30 or 9 a.m., before
the heat set in. They left Dora at 5 - 6 p.m., reaching Caesarea
just before nightfall, as Maria Valtorta describes in the
following chapter! And, addressing the female disciples, Jesus
concludes: “Sisters, your wearying journey will end tomorrow,
in Caesarea.”253.7. So, this impressive 40 km stage was done in
two reasonable stages of 20 km each, separated by a long, eight-
hour rest period.

A cruise along the Phoenician and Syrian coasts

At the beginning of this chapter, we mentioned the average
speed of sailboats in the early first century AD. We will now
analyse how this data is taken into account in The Gospel as
revealed to me.
The apostles go along the Mediterranean coast twice in this
work. The first time, Jesus accompanies them, and a little
flotilla158 of “five boats that left at dawn”252.3 leaves Sycaminon

157
The very precise description is rigorously correct, for that day alone!
158
Jesus and the twelve apostles, plus “the four pilots, followed by the other apostles or disciples who
were with them”252.4. In all, about 30 people, 5 or 6 to a boat.
(continued on following page...)

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one beautiful June morning for Sidon, 90 km159 further north.
The next day, on the way back, they are approaching Tyre
“early in the morning”251.1, at about 9 o’clock (35 km at a speed
of about 10 km per hour). “There are two harbours, one on each
side of the isthmus: one, to the north, is wider and full of small
boats; in the other, to the south, which is more sheltered, there
are large ships arriving or departing”251.1. Maria Valtorta gives
a detailed and perfectly correct description160 : of Tyre: “I can
see that the isthmus is artificial, a sort of Cyclopean dyke,
linking the island to the mainland.”251.1.
They stop in a creek, silted up today, where Jesus speaks
of “The Book of Kings”, and “How the Lord ordered Elijah to
go to Zarephath of Sidon”251.3. (1 Kings 17). Then hoisting the
sail in mid-afternoon, “evening is falling”251.2, they do the
remaining 55 km in 4 to 5 hours “the five boats sailing fast (...)
as a light northern breeze fills the sails161 and is thus
favourable”252.3, reaching Sycaminon at nightfall.

So everything, absolutely everything in the description of

this brief boat trip is perfectly credible and coherent! Let us now
take a look at the second journey along the coast.

From Ptolemais to Antioch

The second time, it is a long voyage that takes a few apostles to
Seleucia and Antioch to accompany John of Endor and
Syntyche. It is at the end of December, one “dull winter’s

159
90 km or 500 stadiums, totally compatible with the 700 stadiums mentioned by Herodotus for
commercial ships! (See the beginning of this chapter).
160
The vestiges of the initial Egyptian port, situated in the south of the peninsula, were explored by the
Institut Français d’Archaeologie du Moyen-Orient. The immense, 60 metre long dyke, was built to the
order of Alexander the Great. Today this site is silted up and completely transformed.
161
The wind statistics on the Lebanese and Israeli coasts show that this is, in fact, a frequent direction
of the wind in June today. (Source: http://www.windfinder.com)

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morning”366.7, that the little group of eight people embarks at
Ptolemais in “dead calm”318.1. “Sails are useless today. You will
have to row”318.3. So Peter “sits on the first bench at the prow,
with his back to the bows and Andrew sits beside him. James
and John of Zebedee are sitting in front of them and are rowing
with strong, regular strokes”318.4. At about 12 noon, half way
through the journey, they pass the cape (Roch Hanikra) with
some difficulty. “We can’t disembark here. There’s no
bottom”318.5 grumbles Peter. We need only look at the
photograph of this coast (below, seen from the top of the cape)
to understand!

Fortunately for them after all these efforts, Andrew

observes: “There is a good wind now and we’ll go faster”. They
finally arrive “in Tyre at night (…) while the sea is illuminated
by placid moonlight”318.6, at the end of this first 45 km stage,
logically done in 10 to 12 hours, half by oar, half by sail. In Tyre
the next day, at the end of the morning, they embark as planned
on a Cretan merchant ship bound for Antioch. “They lift anchor
before the sixth hour”319.2.
But the sea is not good: “Yesterday it was too calm, today
too rough”319.2 Peter remarks. With a contrary and “violent

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wind”162, the boat hardly moves all day. They have only done
half the daily journey (80 – 90 km) in twenty-odd hours. We
will come across them again, in the middle of a storm, off
Beirut. “But where are we now, exactly? In the Cyprus
Channel?” « I wish we were! I would sail to the island and wait
for the elements to calm down. We are just off Colonia Julius or
Beritus, if you prefer. Now we will get the worst of it. Those are
the Lebanese mountains”. “Could you not go there, where the
village is?” “It’s not a good port. Reefs and rocks. It’s not
possible!”320.2. All this information is correct163. The port of
Beirut, small and shallow, always had a bad reputation in
Antiquity. Finally, after a day of anguished prayer, the storm
calms down. They see an island: “Yes, it’s Cyprus... And the sea
is even calmer in its canal”320.6. From then on, a “moderate
wind, favourable to navigation”320.7 will enable them, after
another, final day of navigation164, to reach their goal. “The town
of Seleucia appears in a beautiful sunset”321.1
Let us recap this long, 400-kilometre voyage from
Nazareth to Antioch to appreciate its coherence. Having left
Nazareth just after the end of the Sabbath “We will leave this
evening, halfway through the first watch”313.8, they stop at a
friendly farm near Sephoris. The next day, despite the bad
weather, they travel 22 km “we absolutely must reach Jiphtael
before dusk”313.8. By Monday evening, they are in Ptolemais
(another 20 km of muddy roads) and reach Tyre on the Tuesday
evening, from where they embark at noon on the Wednesday for
Seleucia. They are delayed by contrary winds and they finally
162
A north wind that Maria Valtorta calls mistral (maestrale) and translates by tramontane in the French
version.
163
The urban development works undertaken by Agrippa I and Agrippa II in the 1st century slowly
made Beirut into one of the most important cities of Phoenicia. But in the time of Christ, it was still only
a simple and insignificant transit port.
164
They still have 170 stadiums to do in 24 hours, which is well “within the norm”.
(continued on following page...)

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pass in front of Beirut on the Thursday morning. The storm is
raging and only calms down in the evening, with the Cyprus
coasts in view. Finally, the ship docks at its destination, in the
port of Seleucia on the Friday evening, after 370 kilometres 165
of navigation.
Roman bridges, milestones, farriers
Because she describes all the journeys of Jesus and His
friends across Judaea and Galilee in minute detail, Maria
Valtorta’s work provides us with innumerable indications on the
road network in early first century Palestine. I have already
mentioned the work of Hans J. Hopfen on this subject. He was
able to place on a detailed map the different communication
routes, as they appear from the descriptions in The Gospel as
revealed to me. Comparing this network with the most recent
research and discoveries in this field, and in particular the recent
work of the specialist in this field, Israel Roll166 it really does
seem as if Maria Valtorta saw and travelled along these ancient
roads! As for example, when she describes “The road coming
from Phoenicia towards Ptolemais is a lovely road which cuts
straight across the plain between the sea and the mountains.
Because it is well kept, it is very busy. There are various
junctions with secondary roads running from inland towns to
coastal ones, and at the numerous crossroads there is generally
a house, a well and a rudimentary forge for quadrupeds that
might need shoes... without Rome, they would not have that
bridge and when the torrent is in flood I do not know how they
would be able to cross it”327.1.

165
That is, some 2,000 stadiums travelled in 60 hours, at a credible average of 800 stadiums per day, if
we are to believe the testimonies of the time.
166
Israel Roll, The Roman Road System in Judaea 1983; A Map of Roman Imperial Roads in the Land
of Israel 1995. See also on the site of l'Institut biblique franciscain de Jérusalem:
http://198.62.75.1/www1/ofm/mad/articles/RollRoads.html.

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 Such farriers were placed every 10 km or so by the
Romans and served as relays (mutationes).
Matthew remarks: “Almost all the farriers
along the roads are Romans. Soldiers who
remained here when they finished their service.
And they earn a lot of money... Nothing ever
stops them from curing animals… and a donkey
could lose a shoe before sunset on a Sabbath, or
at the time of the Dedication…”327.2.
In the southern suburbs of Nazareth, will
we one day find that military “milestone on the opposite sides
of which is inscribed: Japhia167 Simonia168 Bethlehem169
Carmel” to the west, and “Xalot170 -Naim Syctopolis-
Engannim” to the east”478.1 and near which Jesus meets His
cousins, Joseph and Simon? In any case, archaeologists have
found the Roman road going from Nazareth to Simonia! The
military milestones along the Roman roads, apart from the
indication of the number of thousands of steps (1,482 metres),
are often dedicated to the reigning emperor. We read on some
milestones indications of multiple distances, for different
destinations, as for example, the one that Maria Valtorta
observes near Sephoris: “The consular milestone bears the
triple indication: Ptolemais, Sycaminon, Jotapate” 315.4.
Bridges are often mentioned too, as they were often
passages showing the road to take. Note this remark in sight of
Jutta: “We’re going to cross the torrent. There is a ford that can
be used in summer, rather than going to the bridge. It would

167
Now Yafa an-Naseriyye 32° 41' 27'' N / 35° 16' 28'' E.
168
Now Tel Shimron ou Semeron, 32° 42' 15'' N / 35° 12' 54'' E.
169
It is, of course, Bethlehem in Galilee, Beit Lechem Haglilit, 32° 44' 9" N / 35° 11' 33'' E.
170
It is Caslot, a village near Mount Tabor. Flavius Josephus briefly mentions “the town of Xaloth,
situated on the great plain” (Jewish Wars 3.3.1).

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have been shorter to come from Hebron”76.1. This is still true
today. The modern road from Hebron to Jutta does, in fact, cross
this torrent over a bridge 2 km south-west of the ford mentioned
here. Only a few vestiges of the innumerable Roman bridges
remain, but modern bridges are very often built in the same
places or very near them.
Leaving Doras’s lands on their way to Mageddo, just
before the Passover of the year 28, Jesus and His apostles had
to cross the Kison. “Pierre comes running up and says: ‘The
bridge is further upstream, where the Ptolemais-Engannim road
passes’. Jesus docilely turns back and crosses the river over a
strong brick bridge”192.2. There is no doubt that such a bridge
existed on this strategic axis between Mageddo and Naim, just
as the existence of the one on the river Nahr el Zerka “halfway
between the hills and the sea (...) an arched bridge across a little
river (...) the bridge, with one very high arch”254.2 is proved. Its
vestiges, that have disappeared today, were still visible in
1880171.
The same goes for the one across the Jordan that they
crossed several times, just south of Lake Merom, on the direct
Damascus - Ptolemais road. It was the only known bridge at that
time between Lake Tiberias and Lake Merom. And, sure
enough, when the apostolic group goes from Bethsaida to
Korazim, as there was no bridge there, they cross by boat and
Jesus asks Peter to “Go as far up as you can and moor on the
other side”179.9.
The same is true again in the southern part of Lake
Tiberias, near Tarichea, where the vestiges of Roman bridges on
the Jordan and the Yarmouk are known to archaeologists. Jesus

171
J.W. McGarvey mentions the vestiges of this bridge, 1.5 km from the mouth of the river in Lands of
the Bible 1881 chapter IV.

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and Chouza pass there “at the end of the bridge, a covered
wagon is already waiting”464.1 at the secret meeting with the
notables who wanted to elect Jesus king.
The vestiges of a Roman bridge, south of the Lake,
between Tarichea and Bethseam, are still visible today, near
Gesher (see the photo below).

A total of no fewer than seven roman bridges are identified

on the River Jordan between the lake and the Dead Sea172, and
in the work, Jésus and His friends cross several of them... It is
even possible that He may once or twice have crossed the one
in the photograph above, situated a few kilometers south of Lake
Tiberias!

172
According to the Jordan River Foundation: http://www.jordanriver.jo/articles/pdf.pdf and
unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0015/001500/150032e.pdf

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Jesus’s movements in Palestine
It is thus possible to reconstruct Jesus’s movements all
over Palestine on a map, to date them on a daily basis, as we
have already seen, and to situate everything that the four
evangelists reported! Here, for example, month by month, is the
total of His movements during the first year of His public life:
Jannuary Departure from Nazareth; the Valley of the Jordan;
Baptism in the Betharaba ford; Fasting in the desert of
Judea.
February Fasting in the desert of Judea.

March Betharaba, the meeting with the first disciples ;

the Valley of the Jordan; Tarichea; Capernaum;
Bethsaida, Capernaum; departure for Jerusalem for the
Passover with the first disciples; Gethsemane.

April The Passover in Jerusalem, (merchants chased

away from the temple); Gethsemane (meeting with
Simon, Thomas, Judas); Docco; Return to Nazareth
via the Jordan Valley; stay in Nazareth with Mary;
Capernaum.

May Teaching in Galilee around Capernaum; curing of

Peter’s mother-in-law in Capernaum; Miraculous
catch of fish; Korazim; Merom; Jesus leaves alone for
Jerusalem for Pentecost.

June Jerusalem, (John comes to join Jesus);

Gethsemane; Pilgrimage to Bethlehem with John,
Simon and Judas; Hebron; meeting with the
shepherds; Jutta; Hebron; Kerioth; Jerusalem; Eschol
Valley; Jericho, Mount of Temptation; three days in

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 the desert; oasis north of the Dead Sea; Jericho (sale
of Aglae’s jewelry); return to Jerusalem; Bethpage.

July Bethany (first visit to Lazarus); Jerusalem;

Jericho; Docco; return to Galilee; Esdrelon Plain;
(meeting with Jonas the shepherd); Nazareth;
(Instruction to the apostles); Capernaum; Korazim
(healing of the Korazim Beauty); Capernaum;
Bethsaida; Capernaum.

August Tiberias; Capernaum; Cana; Nazareth; Tiberias;

Naim; Nazareth; Cana; Tiberias, Lebanon Plain,
Hermon; Teaching in Upper Galilee; Nazareth.

September Nazareth; Ptolemais; Nazareth; (death of

Alpheus); Tiberias; Nazareth; Tiberias; Capernaum;
Lake Merom (grape harvest); Nazareth; Esdrelon
Plain; Nazareth (death of Jonas); Capernaum; Lake
Merom; Tiberias; Departure by wagon for Jerusalem
(Tabernacles); Jabok; Jordan ford; Jericho; Bethany;
Gethsemane; Jerusalem.

October Bethany; Arimathea; Teaching in Judea around

Jerusalem.

November Gethsemane; Bethany; The Clear Water Refuge,

north of Jericho; Teaching at the Clear Water.

December Teaching at the Clear Water; Docco; Bethany;

Encenies (feast of Dedication, or Hanukkah, festival
of light) at the home of Lazarus; Return to the Clear
Water.
*

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 We now know that in the public life of Jesus, Maria
Valtorta’s work answers the questions Where? and When? Let
us now see whether it also answers the question Who?

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 THE EYE WITNESSES
“The Apostles were twelve in number; the disciples, the first Gospel ministers,
numbered seventy two, but the other disciples, or primary witnesses, were innumerable!”
Nicephorus Callistus, Ecclesiastical History I, II c. 45.
“People from every town [were] finding their way to Him...” Luke 8, 4

Even the most superficial reader cannot escape the

impression of life that emanates from Maria Valtorta’s work
throughout its six thousand pages. This is partly due to the
multitude of characters that Jesus met during his innumerable
journeys, these crowds to whom the Evangelists continually
bear witness.
The work describes over five hundred principal
characters, designated nominally, whose words and actions are
detailed enough to establish the psychological profile, as we
would say today, of each one. To these main roles, must still be
added some two or three hundred secondary characters,
designated simply by their names or their statuses, such as the
mother-in-law, a neighbour, a peasant, an old woman, the
servant, a blind man, etc. This crowd of eye witnesses to the life
of Jesus on earth has been analysed in minute detail by History
and Tradition. A systematic study has enabled me to identify
over two hundred people, the memory of whom has come down
to us through age-old testimonies. Not only does Maria Valtorta
bring them to life in their historical context, but for each of them
she describes the circumstances that determined their decisive
choices for or against Jesus, leading some to martyrdom, others
to deicide. Once again, it is of course impossible to give an
exhaustive view here of all these destinies173. As in previous
chapters, I will limit these to a few examples, taken here and
there.

173
This study is the object of the Dictionary of the New Testament characters, a work in collaboration
with F-M Debroise and Mgr R. Laurentin, 2012 Ed. Salvator.

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The twelve Apostles
The apostolic college, made up of the first twelve disciples
of Jesus, is known to us through several evangelical
testimonies174. “Here are the names of the twelve Apostles. The
first, Simon, known as Peter, and Andrew, his brother; Philip
and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax-collector;
James, son of Alpheus and Thaddeus; Simon the Zealot (or the
Canaanite), and Judas Iscariot, who was also His betrayer”175.
There are, however, a few variants in the different texts
that mention the Apostles, which have given rise to diverse
hypotheses and debates over the centuries. In Maria Valtorta’s
work, the group of the Twelve is perfectly defined, without the
least ambiguity and the details that she gives reconcile the
different New Testament texts easily and naturally:
Simon-Peter and his brother, Andrew are the sons of
Jonah. James and his brother John are the sons of Zebedee and
Mary Salome. James and his brother Judas are the sons of
Alpheus and Mary of Cleophas. They are first cousins, brothers
of Jesus. Matthew, the son of Levi; Philip; Nathanael, son of
Tholmai (hence his other designation Bar Tholmai:
Bartholomew); Thomas Didymus (who has a twin sister);
Simon called the Zealot or the Canaanite, (which distinguishes
him from Simon Peter); and finally, Judas of Kerioth, complete
the group.
Among these first twelve privileged witnesses there are
two in particular on whom Maria Valtorta’s account sheds some
very convincing light: Judas and Simon.

174
Particularly Matthew 10, 1-4; Mark 3, 13-19; Luke 6, 12-16; Acts 1, 13
175
Matthew 10, 1-4; Mark 3, 13-19; Luke 6, 12-16; Acts 1, 13.
(continued on following page...)

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 As this is Simon the Zealot, some people, following the
example of Hegesippus176, identified him as the brother of James
(Christ’s cousin). Maria Valtorta totally debunks this dubious
hypothesis177, showing him as the leper178 healed by Jesus at the
very beginning of His public life. He owned a house in
Bethany179, and was the one who introduced Jesus to Lazarus.
Neither is he to be confused with Simon, the Pharisee of
Capernaum (Luke 7, 36-50), as others also thought, apparently
confusing the anointing by Mary Magdalene, the repentant
sinner, at the house of Simon the Pharisee of Capernaum and
that of Mary Magdalene, by then the disciple, anointing Jesus
again at the house of Simon the Zealot, in Bethany (John 12, 1-
8, and cf. Matthew, Mark and John).
As for Judas, some translations refer to him as the son of
James, interpreting the expression Iudas Iacobi, used by Saint
Jerome when he wrote the Vulgate. But this expression can also
be translated as Judas, the one of James, or literally, Judas of
James180. This precision, joined to Judas’s name, distinguishes
him from Judas of Kerioth. Indeed, to name him simply Judas,
would have been to risk confusion with Judas the traitor, which
is perhaps also the reason why, elsewhere, Judas is designated
by his nicknames Thaddeus (Mark 3, 16-19; Matthew 10, 2-4)
or Lebbeus, as indicated in some ancient Greek manuscripts. In
addition, John also stipulates: “Judas, not the Iscariot” (John
14, 22) and Judas himself says in his work: “And let us

176
Quoted by Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History III, 2.
177
Simon the Apostle must have been born about the year 20 BC, as he participated in the revolt against
Judas the Gaulonite, in 6 AD, earning himself the nickname “Zealot”. The other Simon, cousin of Jesus,
succeeded his brother James as Bishop of Jerusalem and died at the very end of the first century.
178
Simon even says that what he had was in fact hereditary serpigo.
179
See Matthew 26, 3; Mark 14, 3.
180
This is the translation adopted by the Osty Bible, or the Chouraki Bible, according to the Greek
version of the Codex Bezae Cantabrigensis (καὶ Ἰούδαν Ἰακώβου).

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remember my namesake only as one who is in need of
prayer”203.4.

“Then the Lord designated seventy two others”

Luke 10, 1

“Everyone is perfectly aware of the names of the Saviour’s

Apostles according to the Gospel. As for the list of the seventy
disciples, it does not exist anywhere”. This is what Eusebius of
Caesarea wrote in Book 1, 12 of his Ecclesiastical History. It
should not then come as a surprise to us to read the impressive
list of first-century saints counted among the seventy two
disciples181 by diverse hagiographers, starting with Dorothea of
Tyre, each one attempting to fill in this blank. It does seem
impossible today to prove the historical authenticity of one list
or another. But, whether through the indications of the Gospels,
the Acts of the Apostles, or other first-century authors, many are
the eye-witnesses to the life of Jesus on earth whose names have
come down to us, names that Tradition unanimously places
within the ranks of the seventy two disciples.
So, for example, Luke (Acts 6, 1-16) nominally designates
the first seven deacons chosen shortly after the Resurrection. Of
these seven, Maria Valtorta brings at least four to life for us:
Stephen, Philip, Timoneus and Nicolaus. St. Stephen, the first
martyr is well-known, but this is not the case for the three others.
Yet, what she says of them is in line with the most ancient
traditions...

181
Or seventy, according to the manuscripts of the tradition of Alexandria (cf. the Sinai Codex) and the
tradition of Caesarea.

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Timoneus, head of the synagogue in the Jordan valley
We learn from Catholic, Orthodox, Coptic and Greek
Orthodox182 traditions that Timoneus the deacon evangelised the
Corinth region, where he was martyred. Saint Dimitri of Rostov
says that he was thrust into a blazing oven, came out unscathed,
then died. He is said to have evangelised Cyprus, Phoenicia and
Arabia. He was successively, Bishop of Tyre, then of Bosra,
where he baptised many Greeks and Jews. In The Gospel as
revealed to me, he discovers the teachings of Jesus at the Clear
Water, at the end of the first year of the public life. As the young
head of the synagogue183, he refused to give in to pressure from
the Scribes and Pharisees, who had come to have Aglae, a
repentant sinner, cursed and stoned. He is then dismissed from
his post by the Sanhedrin and becomes a disciple of Jesus. He
returns for a while to his “mother, who comes from Aera, where
she has a little house”138.3. The fact that Aera is less than 40 km
from Bosra, where Timoneus was bishop, reinforces the
plausibility of these indications! And when Jesus praises him in
this way: “Timoneus, a wise head of the synagogue of the old
Law, who is now most wise because he renews it in the light of
the new Law”297.1, it becomes clear why the Apostles later
retained him as one of the seven deacons.
Philip, the bad son, who became an evangeliser
Philip the deacon must be distinguished from Philip the
Apostle. Catholics celebrate his feast day on June 6th, Orthodox
Christians on October 11th. He was married and the father of
four virgins, who were prophets. He died around 70 AD, on the
8th day of the ides of July, according to St. Jerome, who adds

182
Who celebrate Timon’s feast day respectively on April 19th, November 5th and on July 28th and
December 30th.
183
Perhaps in the village of Naarath, near the Clear Water, 10 km north of Jericho.

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that three of his daughters are buried with him and the fourth is
buried in Ephesus. He is said to have evangelised Samaria
(hence his nickname, The Evangelist). He is also believed to
have converted Simon the Magician and an Ethiopian eunuch of
Queen Candace at Gaza on the road to Jerusalem. In about 58
AD Paul of Tarsus and Luke the Evangelist stayed at his home,
where the incident with Agabus (Agapè) took place (Acts 21,
10-14). A later tradition designates him as bishop of Lydia, in
Tralles (modern-day Aydin). He is thought to have translated
the Hebrew or Aramaic version of the Gospel according to
Matthew. In Maria Valtorta’s account, his mother comes to beg
Jesus to help her, as he was then a cruel son. He converted and
became one of the seventy two disciples. Fara, the proprietor of
the Bozrah hotel, praises the zeal of the new disciple: “If this
region ever becomes holy, Philip, son of Jacob will have the
merit of having sanctified it. And if there is anyone who believes
in You in Bozrah, it is thanks to him.”292.4 Jesus stays at his
house in Arbela for five days: “Bless the rain! It also helped to
keep You in my house for five days”296.1 he says happily.
Nicolaus, Deacon of Antioch rehabilitated?
Nicolaus, a Greek convert from Antioch (Acts 6, 5) is a
controversial figure. According to Eusebius of Caesarea184 “He
practised asceticism, considering bodily desires as unimportant
and preached community life”, which is quite a favourable
remark. It seems, however, that his disciples, the Nicolaitans,
used the prestige of his name to pervert his ideas. Apocalypse 2,
6 declares: “You loathe, as I do, the way the Nicolaitans are
behaving”. Irenaeus of Lyons185 also denounces the
licentiousness and loose morals of the Nicolaitans. They
184
Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3, 3, 29, quoting Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 3, 4, 25 f.
185
Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.26.3 ; 3.10.6.
(continued on following page...)

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promoted the marriage of priests186 , became heretics and are
thought to have originated a Gnostic branch, the Arcontes. In
1054, Cardinal Humbert da Silva Candida, in a letter addressed
to an Oriental monk, Nicetas, reproaches him for promoting the
marriage of priests. He accuses Nicolaus personally, but not the
Nicolaitans: “The accursed deacon Nicolaus, the prince of this
heresy, came straight out of hell”.
In Maria Valtorta’s work, the first contact with Nicolaus
occurs during a journey with the Apostles to Antioch: “Nicolaus
is a Nazirite”323.7, which is exactly what Eusebius says of him.
He comes to meet Jesus in Capernaum, just when many people,
scandalized by the speech about the Bread of Life, are leaving
Him, which earns him this praise from Jesus: “A man who
becomes a disciple because he knows that My human cause is
already lost, can only be a righteous spirit”. He adds, for John’s
sake: “I solemnly tell you that the Apostle Judas of Simon, an
Israelite and Judean, will never go as far as Nicolaus, a disciple
and proselyte”355.8. Can we read into this statement a
rehabilitation of the deacon Nicolaus, a misunderstood ascetic,
betrayed by his disciples?

They drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias
Acts 1, 26
Matthias, designated by lot to replace Judas as an Apostle,
followed Jesus from the first days, as Peter says in the Acts (1,
21):“He is one of those who have been with us the whole time
that the Lord Jesus was living with us”. Clement of
Alexandria187 presents him as a preacher of penitence waging
war against the flesh, and quotes him: “Develop your soul by
faith and reason”. Origen mentions a Gospel written by
186
Epiphanius of Salamis (3rd century), Panarion cap 25.
187
Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 3, 4.
(continued on following page...)

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Matthias188 as well as Eusebius of Caesarea189 but Pope Innocent
I condemned this text as apocryphal. It seems that Matthias
followed Jesus from the day of His baptism by John the Baptist.
According to The Golden Legend by Jacques de Voragine,
(circa 1260) Matthias, who came from a tribe of Juda, was born
in Bethlehem. “He quickly learned the science of the Law and
the Prophets and led a virtuous life”. The renowned Dr. Sepp190
states that “Matthias, born in Bethlehem, was one of the young
shepherds who witnessed the Nativity”, but does not give his
sources. According to Nicephorus Callistus191, when the
Apostles dispersed to go and preach the Gospel, Matthias went
to Egypt, then to Ethiopia, where he remained for almost thirty
three years. He came back to Jerusalem and was denounced to
the High Priest Ananias, who had him stoned and beheaded in
front of the Temple in 63 or 64 AD192.
Once again, Maria Valtorta’s text is perfectly coherent
with all these traditions. The young shepherd, Tobias, aged
about fifteen193, lives in Bethlehem and was there for the birth of
Jesus30.9. The meeting with Jesus as an adult takes place in June,
in the year 27 AD “Tobias, who now wants to be called Matthias
in memory of his father”75.4. Jesus is quick to praise his qualities:
“You are right, Matthias, Wisdom is with you”127.3. Before he
died, John the Baptist, to whom he remained faithful to the end,
said to Jesus: “Matthias really possesses Wisdom”148.2. From
then on, the Apostles were often with Matthias. They thought so

188
Origen, Sermon to Luke, I.
189
Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History, 3, 25.
190
Dr. J.N. Sepp, Vie de N.S. Jésus, Flatau, 1866 (vol 1, p. 179).
191
A monk and Byzantine historian (circa 1350), Ecclesiastical History, 2, 40.
192
If these figures are correct, this would indicate that he left Judea in 30 AD, which would be yet
another argument against the theory of those who date the Crucifixion in 33 AD.
193
Martyred in 63 AD, so aged about 80, which is plausible.

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highly of him that they made him a candidate to fill the vacant
place left by the death of Judas.

Marjiam, the Evangeliser of Aquitaine.

Among the many disciples of Jesus that Maria Valtorta
brings to life for us, who can forget the lovable figure of young
Jabez (Yabesh)? Shortly before his twelfth birthday, all the
members of his family have died tragically and he tries to
survive for a whole winter hidden in the woods. Taken in by
Jesus at the beginning of the year 28, he slowly regains
confidence, becomes the adopted son of Peter and Porphyria and
is given the name Marjiam by Mary at his Bar Mitzvah, when
he becomes a Son of the Law. Jesus already prophesies his
destiny: “When you are big, you will be a holy man of God, like
a doctor, you will preach Jesus, Who has given you a new
mother here and Who will open the gates of heaven to your dead
mother and to your father and will open them also to you, when
your hour comes. You will not even need to climb the long
ladder of Heaven when you die, because you will have climbed
it during your lifetime by being a good disciple”194.2. Very
receptive to the teachings of Jesus, he is even one of the first to
whom Jesus reveals his future Passion so that he will not be
revolted: - “Let me die in Your place...” “You are to preach
Me all over the world. That is settled. But listen. I will die happy
because I know that you love Me. Then I will rise from the dead
(...) And I will come to you at once and I will say to you: ‘Little
Marjiam, your tears quenched My thirst. Your love kept Me
company in the Sepulchre. I have now come to say to you: Be
my Priest’ ”291.5. He quickly becomes an example to all, and
Jesus declares: “You are the head of the boy disciples. When you
are a man, remember that you were as good a disciple as men,
and so open your arms to all the children who come to you

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seeking Me and saying: ‘I want to be a disciple of Christ’ ”308.5.
As Marjiam encourages the new disciple Anastasica, Jesus
makes this new prediction, difficult to grasp fully at the time:
“Marjiam is good company for anybody. It is a difficult
virtue and so necessary for his future mission. I am taking care
to foster this happy disposition in him, because it will be very
useful to him”366.2. But only at the end of the work do these
words become clear, several thousand pages later, when the
Risen Christ entrusts this mission to him: “And you, Marjiam,
My child, from now on you will be called Martial... and may this
name, Oh Martial, show you your future destiny: be the apostle
in barbarian countries and conquer them to your Lord”638.20.
Some of the numerous details that Maria Valtorta gives on the
future Saint Martial deserve a closer look.
His place of birth
Maria Valtorta locates Marjiam’s birthplace between Siloh
and Bethel, in the north of the territory of Benjamin194.1-2. This
is exactly what is indicated in Fortunat’s194, Ode to Saint
Martial, very ancient manuscripts195, three of which still exist.
In the sixteenth century, A. Thévet 196 Chaplain to Catherine of
Medicis, even indicates that three leagues from Rama197, in the
village of Arouha, there was an old church, restored by order of
Charlemagne in 810, in honour of St. Martial, “a native of this
place”. How could Maria Valtorta have had any knowledge of
this information, which appears only in ancient and extremely
rare French documents?

194
Venance Fortunat (530 – 609), Bishop of Poitiers circa 600..
195
Apart from the fact that it confirms Martial as a contemporary of Peter’s, the text says “Benjamita
tribus te gessit” (The tribe of Benjamin saw your birth).
196
Brother André Thévet (1516 – 1690) Cosmographie Universelle 1575 (Book VI Chap. VII, page
169)
197
Three leagues: about 15 km, which situates the village halfway between Siloh and Bethel.

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His strange name of Marjiam
This curious name, given to little Jabez by the Virgin
Mary, gives rise to some comments in the work: “Yes, Jabez
wants a name meaning that I have saved him. You will find one
for him, Mother. A name of love and of salvation”.
Mary is pensive... then she says: Marjiam (Maarhgziam).
You are the little drop in the sea 198 of those saved by Jesus. Do
you like it? This name of Salvation will also remind you of Me.”
“It is beautiful”, says the boy joyfully. “But, isn’t it a woman’s
name?” asks Bartholomew. “With an L at the end instead of an
M, when this tiny drop of mankind grows up, you can change
his name into a man’s name. For the time being, he has the name
that his Mother has given him. Isn’t that so?”198.8
Then, further on: “What’s your name?” “Marjiam”. “Of
course! But my Blessed Mary could have given you an easier
name!” “It’s almost Hers!” exclaims Salome. “Yes, but Hers is
simpler. There aren’t all those consonants in the middle of it....
There are too many of them...” The Iscariot, who has just come
in, says: “She chose the precise name, for what it means,
according to the ancient language”199.2
These conversations should surely be studied by linguists.
It seems that Mariam is the Aramaic variant of the Hebrew
Myriam, whereas Mar-yam would appear to be the Chaldean
variant199? But, I confess, I am out of my depth here!
Peter’s adopted son
It seems that there are no traditions mentioning Martial as
Peter’s adopted son. However, the fact that he was a
contemporary of Peter’s and that he followed him from
198
This etymological explanation by the Hebrew mar yam = drop from the sea, “affirmed” by this
dialogue, is still considered by certain people as “purely poetical”
199
See, for example, Dr. Sepp, Jésus-Christ, Etudes sur sa vie et sa doctrine, 1866, page 19.
(continued on following page...)

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Jerusalem to Antioch, then to Rome is now historically
attested200.
The young boy at the Multiplication of the Loaves
Adémar de Chabannes, a monk at the St. Martial Abbey in
Limoges (Vita prolixior in the 9th century) identifies him with
the young boy who gave the loaves and the fish to Jesus for their
multiplication. Maria Valtorta’s text confirms this tradition,
even showing that Martial was the first person to believe in the
miracle: “Oh! How heavy it is!” says Marjiam, lifting his basket
and going straight towards his little friends. He walks as if he
were carrying a heavy burden. The Apostles, the disciples and
Manaen, the scribe, watch him go and do not know what to
think”273.4.
His mission as an Evangeliser
In L'Eglise métropolitaine primatiale St André de
Bordeaux201, the Canon Hierosme Lopès indicates that the
young Martial followed St. Peter and went with him to Antioch,
then to Rome. From Rome, Peter sent him to Gaul to preach.
Mgr. Cirot de la Ville was even able to establish a map of Saint
Martial’s itinerary: Rome, Ravenne, Marseille, Bourges, Tours,
Limoges, Angoulême, Saintes, Noviomagus (capital of the
Médoc region). Declared Apostle of Aquitaine by Pierre Roger
of Limoges202 (1291-1352) Martial was considered in the Middle

200
See in particular the highly documented studies by the Abbé Arbellot, Dissertation sur l’apostolat
de Saint Martial 1855; by Mgr Cirot de la Ville, Origines chrétiennes de Bordeaux 1867; by the Abbé
Gordière Recherches sur la prédication de l’Evangile dans les Gaules au premier siècle, 1867,
particularly pages 14 and 15; or those by the Abbé Corblet, Dissertation sur les origines de la foi
chrétienne dans les Gaules which, in 16 pages, (published by les Petits Bollandistes) summarises the
situation very well.
201
New edition by the Abbé Gallen, published by Feret et fils, 1882 (p. 109), from the original book,
published by Lacourt in 1668.
202
Later Pope Clement VI (1342-1352). His papal bull “Piam Sanctorum memoriam recolendam”
praises St. Martial, mentions his particular devotion to the Apostle and orders his feast day to be placed
in the rank of the doubles, like those of the other apostles, and celebrated throughout Aquitaine.
(continued on following page...)

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Ages as the first evangeliser of Limoges203, Toulouse and
Bordeaux204. He was the founder of the Saint-Etienne cathedral,
and the first bishop of Toulouse. Immemorial tradition dates this
cathedral and the corresponding bishopric from apostolic times.
In this evangelisation, he is intimately associated with Saint
Veronica and Zacheus (St. Amadour).

A certain Joseph, known as The Just

Joseph, known as The Just, is a disciple of whom the
Scriptures reveal only his name and the fact that he was
presented to the Apostles, with Matthias, as a candidate to
succeed Judas. “Joseph, called Barsabbas205, known as Justus”
(Acts of the Apostles 1, 23). We learn from Eusebius206 that he
was one of the seventy two disciples mentioned by Luke. He
adds207 that Papias, informed by the daughters of the Apostle
Philip, affirmed that “The Just, known as Barsabbas, drank a
mortal poison and, by the grace of the Lord, was not harmed by
it”. Persecuted by the Jews for his faith in Christ, he is said to
have had a glorious death. Saint Adon, a Benedictine monk and
Bishop of Vienna, listed him in his martyrology. His feast day
is on July 20th.
Maria Valtorta tells us much more about this little-known
disciple: he escaped death as a newborn during the massacre of
203
It was only from the 17th century that Canon Descordes, Jean de Launoy (1603-1678), (designated
by Pope Benedict XIV as “an impudent liar and a contemptible writer”), and a few other “brilliant
minds” attacked the traditions, affirming that the main churches of France did not go back further than
the second half of the 3rd century. Although it was never proved – far from it – this hypothesis became
widely accepted in so-called intellectual circles of the time
204
The discovery in 1955 of 2nd century “Christian symbols” (l’ascia: the axe) on tombs near the
church dedicated to Saint Stephen in Bordeaux archaeologically confirms the antiquity of this place of
worship.
205
Re: a possible confusion between Barsabbas and Barnabas, see the chapter “These words remained
hidden from them”
206
Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History, I, 12.
207
Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History, III, 39.

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the Holy Innocents, thanks to his father’s sacrifice. Jesus meets
him at the very beginning of His public life. He is the only
disciple who received the same instruction given to the Apostles
in Nazareth: “I am keeping this son (pointing to Joseph)
because I will delegate to him the task of spreading My words
to his companions, so that a strong nucleus will be formed there.
They will announce Me, not only by saying that I exist, but also
by the most essential characteristics of My doctrine.”91.1. The
Apostles, as well as the disciples, are struck by his wisdom and
intelligence. Thaddeus says: “Joseph. You know that this is a
very promising young man? Yes, Isaac is an angel but his
strength is wholly spiritual. But Joseph is strong, even
physically so. He is our age208. And he learns easily. Did you
hear what Hermas said? If he had been educated, he would have
been a Rabbi as well as a just man. And Hermas knows what
he’s talking about”334.2. He is injured in the Cedron gorge with
Elijah (a premise of future persecutions). “It is glorious for me
to shed my blood for You, as my father shed his long ago. I bless
you for having made me worthy of this!”418.5 Jesus heals him.

208
According to the information in the work, he is then about thirty, and Judas barely two or three years
older.

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Full house at the Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin or great council was the high court of
justice, the supreme tribunal of the Jews. Its name209, its role and
its organization are known to us through the Bible210 and through
many Talmudic or historical texts211. There were theoretically
71 members in the Sanhedrin, including the president. There
were three more or less defined groups: the Chief of the priests,
the Scribes and the Elders. Each group was made up of 23
members (69 in all), in addition to the president (nasi) and his
deputy (ab bet din).
- The Chamber of the Priests was in charge of the administration of
sacrifices… The majority of its members were Sadducees, more or
less Herodian allies. They did not believe in resurrection and
rigorously applied Mosaic Law.
- The Chamber of the Scribes, or sages, or doctors of the Law, was
made up of teachers, mostly Pharisees. Their main accusation against
Jesus was that no teacher can teach by his own authority. As jurists,
they were to quote at least one authority to justify the laws.
- The Chamber of the Elders, or councillors, was comprised of the
richest town worthies and influential people. Many of these were
Pharisees, but some disapproved of the rigour of the Scribes. They
had no judiciary power.
At the beginning of the first century AD, the Sanhedrin set
up preliminary lawsuit enquiries and passed sentences, but only
the Roman Procurator212 could pronounce the death penalty.
This is quite well known and Maria Valtorta’s readers will
209
From the Greek syn (with) and hedra (seat).
210
Numbers 11, 16-17; Proverbs 22, 10; 31, 23; Matthew 26, 57-59; Mark 14, 53; Luke 22, 66; John
11, 47; Acts 5, 21; 6, 12, etc.
211
Mainly Mishna, Sanhedrin and Makkoth; Flavius Josephus.
212
The emperor Augustus took away this right (le jus gladii) from the Sanhedrin after the destitution
of Archelaus, and the nomination of Coponius as Procurator circa 7 AD. (Flavius Josephus, Antiquities
17, Chap 13, 1-5, and Talmud, Sanhedrin folio 24). Tacitus even added: The Romans keep the right of
the glaive and neglect the rest. The Sanhedrin still retained the power to excommunicate, to imprison,
to scourge; but they no longer had the right to pronounce the death penalty.

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hardly be surprised to see that they are part of the story, as
witness this discussion with Pilate during the Passion: “He is
liable to death according to our law.” “And since when has the
“jus gladii et sanguinis” been given back to you?” (...)”We are
aware that we do not have that right. We are loyal subjects of
Rome...”604.20. But if it is relatively simple to understand the role
and the organisation of the Sanhedrin at the time of Jesus, it is
quite a different matter to discover the list of its members.
The most detailed study on this question, as I have already
mentioned, is undoubtedly the one published by the Lemann
brothers, Augustine and Joseph, in 1877. It is highly improbable
that Maria Valtorta could have known this in 1944, and yet, any
attentive reader will find innumerable clues, sprinkled
throughout the work, enabling the piecemeal reconstruction of
the Sanhedrin membership in the year 30 AD. The names of all
the former and future high priests who were contemporaries of
Jesus can also be found in the work, along with those of many
other members, some of whose names only appear once or twice
in the whole of the Talmudic literature. Several of these names
are phonetically transcribed by Maria Valtorta, which further
complicates their identification. So it is when we read: “this
other one is Callascebona the Elder”123.6, who is clearly the
wealthy Jerusalem notable, ben Calba Scheboua, whose
daughter, Rachel, later became the wife of the famous Rabbi
Akiba. Also when Maria Valtorta hears “And over there, Doro
the Elder and Trison”378.3, the diminutive of Dorothea ben
Nathanael is recognisable, in the company of Tryphon ben
Theudion213. Similarly, when Jesus puts the question (cf. Luke
14, 1-6) “Is it lawful to cure on a Sabbath?” to the old Scribe

213
They were sent by the Jerusalem Jews as deputies to the Emperor Claudius in 44 – 45 AD under the
governor Cuspius Fadus. (Flavius Josephus, Antiquities XX, 1, 1, 2.) Elsewhere in the work, Maria
Valtorta correctly calls him Trifon

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Chanania”335.13, the person that He addresses is incontestably
the renowned Scribe Chanania ben Chiskia.
As for “Giocana, the Pharisee, a relative of Doras”109.2,
with whom Jesus exchanges some heated words, he is
Yokhanan ben Zakkaï, considered as one of the masters of the
Talmud214.
Of the twenty members of the Chamber of Priests, known
to us through diverse traditions, Maria Valtorta names sixteen,
but she also mentions three additional, hitherto unmentioned,
others. So, twenty three out of twenty four possible members are
now identified.
Maria Valtorta names twelve of the fourteen known
members of the Chamber of Scribes, but she mentions ten other
names that are not yet identified by other sources, so completing
the list of the twenty four members of this Chamber (including
the president).

Finally, she mentions eleven of the fourteen known

members of the Chamber of Elders, to which she adds 7 new
names, bringing the list of this Chamber to twenty one identified
members.
If we take into account the information provided by Maria
Valtorta, there are no fewer than 68 of the members of the
Sanhedrin in the year 30 AD who can be designated by their
names today, out of 71 possible members!
This result is even more unexpected as the different
members of the Sanhedrin appear at random here and there in
the work, during different events and often very discreetly, to

214
A prestigious synagogue in the old town of Jerusalem bears his name.
(continued on following page...)

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the point that only a systematic and meticulous study can
establish an inventory of them all215.

The Female Roman notables

Among the crowds of those who make friends with Jesus,
the case of the female Roman notables deserves particular
attention. Whether it be Claudia Procula , Plautina, Valeria or
the two Domitillas (Albula, the mother and her daughter Flavia),
or even Livia (the only one whose historicity I am still
researching), each one played a role within the first Christian
communities, as History and Tradition mention or attest in some
ancient documents.

“Have nothing to do with that Just Man.”

Mt 27, 19

Matthew is the only Evangelist who mentions Pilate’s

wife, in a simple verse, without even naming her. Is she the same
Claudia that St. Paul mentions in his epistle to Timothy (2 Tm
4, 21) when he writes: “Eubule, Pudens, Lin et Claudia te
saluent”? There is nothing else on Pilate’s wife in the Holy
Scriptures.
However, in The Gospel as Revealed to Me, Pilate’s wife
plays a major role and often intervenes. Maria Valtorta shows
her as present at the miraculous healing of a leper, listening
intently to the words of the “wise Galilean”, then taking this
“great philosopher” under her wing. Little by little, she grows
in faith, to the point that she declares after the Crucifixion: “It
is better to be persecuted by men than by the Most High, whose
Messiah was the Master”630.13. Throughout the story, the reader

215
There is a synthesis of this study on internet at this address: http://www.maria-
valtorta.org/Personnages/Sanhedrin.htm.

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slowly discovers this “beautiful woman about thirty years old
(...) proud to belong to the Claudi family”154.7. The centurion
Publius informs Jesus: “Claudia speaks of You as of a great
philosopher and this is good for You because... she is Claudia
the Proconsul”192.5. When she meets Jesus later, she kneels,
saying: “And with me, Rome prostrates itself at Your feet”370.19.
At the banquet at the house of Joanna, wife of Chouza, she
confirms the power that she wields to Judas: “I belong to the
Claudi family. I have greater power than all the great men of
Israel, because Rome is behind me”371.3. She witnesses several
miracles, but her faith in Jesus, shaken for a time by the
widespread calumny and malicious gossip, only becomes
definitively firm when Jesus restores a tongue to Callistus, her
mutilated slave, so curing him of his dumbness: “So you really
are the Just Man I foresaw563.5 (...) no one, that is, only You, can
raise the dead and restore sight to the blind”563.6. And from that
day on, her faith is unshakeable.

The tradition according to which she converted is attested

from the 2nd century AD216. Everything that we find here and
there about Claudia Procula from Maria Valtorta’s text is in total
harmony, not only with the ancient traditions, but also with the
most recent historical hypotheses. The apocryphal Gospel said
to be according to Nicodemus (circa 4th century?); a 1619 text,
attributed to Lucius Flavius Dexter217, the Greek Menologies
and several other ancient authors do, in fact, name her Claudia
Procula. The fact that she belonged to the Claudi family gave
rise to several hypotheses. The one which seems to be the most
plausible today is that she was the illegitimate daughter of Julia.

216
Cf. Origene, Sermons – Matthew XXXV.
217
Chronicae. An. 34 n° 2.
(continued on following page...)

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This Julia218 was married to Tiberius in 11 BC, at the command
of Augustus, her father. Because of her life of debauchery, she
was condemned to exile in 2 BC, following her affair with Julius
Antonius219. A putative adulterine birth with such a father was
politically bound to secrecy, but is not at all implausible220.

According to this hypothesis, Claudia could have been

born in 2 or 1 BC, which is fully concordant with Maria
Valtorta, who says that she is about thirty years of age in 27 AD.
She was sent by her mother to Tiberius, who is thought to have
adopted her as his own daughter. By his marriage, Pilate would,
in fact, have acquired support in very high places, which could
explain his exceptional longevity in his post in Judaea. Note too
that only high-ranking women accompanied their husbands on
missions at that time221.

Who was Plautina?

Let us now examine the personality of Plautina, a Patrician
Roman lady, an “intimate friend” and “probably a relative of
Claudia’s”158.4. Maria Valtorta is impressed by her noble
bearing: “She reminds me of certain very beautiful statues of
Roman Empresses”. She adds, when she sees the other Roman
ladies: “I think that these ladies are inferior in rank to
Plautina”167.3. A number of clues disseminated throughout the
work (but too numerous to mention in this brief article) enable
her immediate identification as the wife of Aulus Plautius (or
218
The historical testimonies about Julia are many (Dion Cassius Roman History, LV, 10; Velleius
Paterculus, Roman Histories, II, 100; Tacitus, Annals IV, 44; Macrobe, Saturnales 2, 5; etc.).
219
The last living son of Mark Anthony, Julius was put to death for this reason.
220
This was the opinion of Giovani Rosadi, Il Proceso di Gesù, 1908.
221
The ancient Oppia law forbade proconsuls to take their wives into the provinces that they governed.
Although mitigated by a senates-consult, in the 1st century BC, it remained theoretically in force.
Magistrates sometimes obtained derogations, but they had to take full responsibility for any
misdemeanours that their wives might commit
(continued on following page...)

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Plautinus), one of the leading figures of the Empire at that time,
and the future conqueror of Great Britain between 43 and 47
AD. The historical testimonies concerning her are many and
particularly concordant222, unlike those referring to Claudia.
Plautina, (also known as “Plautiana” or “Plautilla”) belonged
to the Julio-Claudia family, (so she was, in fact, a relative of
Claudia Procula’s!) and was called Pomponia Græcina before
her marriage. She was the daughter of the consul Gaius
Pomponius Græcinus223. Her uncle, the consul Lucius
Pomponius Flaccus224 was also the governor of Syria in 35 AD.
Converted to Christianity
The life that she led in Rome from the year 43, was “an
austere and worthy existence” that she “officially” explained
away as mourning for her cousin Julia, daughter of Drusus,
executed because of Messalina’s jealousy. After fourteen years
of a life of retirement, she was accused of “foreign superstition”
and “unauthorised religious occupations”. At that time, this
almost exclusively meant “conversion to Christianity”, as the
Jewish faith was tolerated in Rome, and the pagan rites of Egypt
or Syria were not compatible with Plautina’s way of life. Given
her husband’s rank, he himself had to decide her fate, according
to Roman law and she was acquitted225.

222
Dion Cassius, Roman History LX 19-21, 30; Suetonius, Life of the Caesars (Claudius24 and
Vespasian 4); Tacitus, Agricola 14; Annals 13, 32.
223
Suffect Consul in 16 AD.
224
Dom Guéranger, Sainte Cécile et la Société romaine aux deux premiers siècles 1879, chap. 4, p. 87
even puts forward the hypothesis that his son Flaccus is the young man who wanted to marry Flavia
Petronilla (Saint Petronilla), Plautina’s protégée!
225
Note in passing that Henryk Sienkiewicz, in his historical novel Quo Vadis? 1895, makes Plautina
the adoptive mother of his heroine, Ligia.
(continued on following page...)

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Plautina and Saint Lucina
Paul Allard226 wondered whether “Pomponia Græcina
should not be identified with the great lady, whom we know only
by her agnomen, probably symbolic and baptismal: Lucina”.
The illustrious archaeologist Giovanni Battista de Rossi, and
later Dom Guéranger came to the same conclusion, and
identified Pomponia Græcina Plautiana with Saint Lucina, a
donator who opened one of the most ancient Christian
hypogeums, (underground burial vaults) in a property on the Via
Apia, situated under land that had once belonged to the
Pomponias. Saint Lucina is associated with the martyrs
Processus and Martinian, two Roman officers, guards at the
Mamertine prison, who were converted by their prisoner, Saint
Peter (according to an attested 6th century legend). She is said
to have visited them in prison and buried them after their
execution in one of her properties on the Via Aurelia227. She is
also thought to have buried the body of Saint Paul. Her feast day
is on June 30th. The Greek Orthodox Church did not canonise
her but considers her “a pious woman and one of the first Roman
noblewomen Christian converts”. In The 1944 notebooks (on
February 29th), Maria Valtorta gives us a version that is slightly
different, but not necessarily incompatible. She mentions the
martyrdom of one Lucina, “the daughter of Faustus and
Cecilia. She was not yet fourteen years old”, while Plautina
supports the first Roman martyrs along with Paul. It is not
inconceivable that she took the name of Lucina228, at that time
in memory of the young saint whose martyrdom had touched

226
Paul Allard, Histoire des persécutions pendant les deux premiers siècles 1884, chap. 2.
227
Source: Catholic Encyclopaedia, 1904.
228
Dom Guéranger, op. cit. Ch 5, p.103, is categorical. Pomponia Plautina, wife of Plautius, did in fact
take a baptismal cognomen: “The noblewoman bore a name before which, in her eyes, that of the
Pomponii was eliminated: she was called Lucina”.
(continued on following page...)

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her so deeply. However that may be, after assisting the faithful
with her possessions, it would really seem to be Plautina who
visited the Christian prisoners, and undertook the burial of the
martyrs. She died a very old woman. Tacitus229 states that she
lived 40 years after the death of Julia in 37 AD. So she probably
died in about 77 AD. Maria Valtorta also illustrates throughout
her work, that a Roman Patrician Lady, brought up in luxury
and opulence, was the eye witness of the miracles of Christ. And
History teaches that it had such a profound effect on her that she
dedicated her life and her fortune in support of the budding
Church in Rome.
A mother called Albula and her daughter Flavia
Albula, “a buxom matron about fifty years old”370.19 is
Claudia’s confidante. Claudia says this to Judas about her:
“Always ask for Albula Domitilla. That is another name that I
use”371.3. But for this fleeting remark, it is highly probable that
“Claudia’s freed woman”604.34 would have entirely escaped our
notice in the work. But when we discover that her daughter’s
name is Flavia, that same Flavia who takes notes for her
mistress: “Flavia has written what you said. Claudia wants to
know. Have you written everything? ‘I have written everything
most accurately’, replies the woman, handing over the wax-
covered tablets”204.9, then we sit up and pay attention. Could
there be any connection with Saint Domitille, whose property in
Rome concealed the famous catacombs? Thanks to Suetonius230
we can reconstruct the story of the “Domitillas”:
Albula Domitilla, whom Suetonius simply calls Domitilla,
“was not a Roman citizen” and was married to Flavius Liberalis,

229
Tacitus, Annals 13, 32.
230
See Suetonius, Life of Vespasian.

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“a simple questor’s clerk of the X Ferentis legion”. (Precisely
the legion in charge of Syria and Palestine!)
Their daughter, Flavia Domitilla, at her father’s request, was declared
born free and a citizen of Rome by judgement of the Recuperators (a
tribunal ruling on questions of property rights and civil status). She married
Vespasian in 39/40. She was the mother of Titus, Domitian and Domitilla.
She died in 69 AD. She is the person who appears beside Claudia and
Plautina, taking notes on tablets 231.

Their granddaughter, Flavia Domitilla also died in 69 AD after giving

birth to a daughter who was her namesake.

Their great-granddaughter, Flavia Domitilla (so, the granddaughter

of the Emperor Vespasian) married Flavius Clemens, a consul. In 95 AD in
the reign of Domitian, they were both accused of atheism, because they
were Christians. Clemens was condemned to death and Domitilla exiled.
She is venerated as Saint Domitilla.
So, Albula Domitilla was the mother-in-law of the
Emperor Vespasian and the great-great-grandmother of Saint
Domitilla. Her daughter Flavia’s future husband, Vespasian 232
(aged 19 in 28 AD) fought in Brittany under the orders of Aulus
Plautius, Plautina’s husband! Flavia and Vespasian had three
children: Titus, Domitian and Domitilla. Titus233 the eldest,
married Plautilla, daughter of Plautius and Plautina! So Flavia’s
presence beside Plautina and Claudia in Maria Valtorta’s work
is totally supported by historical data. Also, to find them
portrayed in the work as attentive disciples of Jesus sheds some
light on the considerable support that these women brought to
the early Church in Rome. Moreover, as Dom Guéranger 234
already underlined in his time: “The new archaeological
231
She is even thought to be the person who took the message to Pontius Pilate from Claudia, asking
him to release Jesus. Does she take notes for Claudia because she was taught by her father, a clerk?
232
Titus Flavius Vespasianus.
233
Titus Flavius Sabinus.
234
Dom Guéranger op. cit. Introduction, page X.

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discoveries show clearly and beyond doubt that, from its
beginnings in Rome, Christianity counted the elite of Polite
Society within its ranks”.

The Jewish friends of Jesus

The Evangelists transmitted the names of some influential
friends who supported Jesus during His brief public life: Joseph
of Arimathea, Nicodemus, Joanna wife of Chouza, Lazarus,
Manaen, Martha, and Mary Magdalene. These names are
relatively familiar to us, but we must admit that we really know
very few facts about them, that is, if we just confine ourselves
to those provided in the Gospels. Maria Valtorta fills in these
blanks admirably. Through their words and actions, we often see
them working in favour of Jesus, listening to His teachings,
asking His advice... So numerous are these occasions that I
cannot condense them all here, under pain of giving too
simplistic a view. I will therefore limit myself to a very brief
account.

Joanna, Princess of Bether

Joanna is a young Jewish princess, the wife of Chouza,
Herod’s steward. Miraculously cured of consumption by Jesus
235
, she shows herself to be a grateful disciple, zealous and
faithful. “Do as You please, Lord. I leave everything to You: my
past, my present and my future. I owe You everything and I give
You everything. Give Your servant what You know is best”102.7.
It is Joanna who introduces the notable Roman ladies to Jesus.
“When I lost my child and I was ill, they were very good to me,
although I did not seek them. And afterwards, we remained
friends. But if You tell me that it is wrong, I will put an end to
235
Luke (8, 3) simply indicates “and who had been cured of their illnesses”, referring to Joanna and
Suzanna.

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it”158.3. Her indefectible support of the Lord (Jesus said that
“she never tires of being good”309.4) earns her the right to be one
of the first witnesses of the Resurrection
Joseph the Elder
Joseph of Arimathea, “Counsellor of the Sanhedrin”74.9, is
a friend of Nicodemus, but also of Lazarus (despite the
misconduct of his sister). A very early disciple, he testifies: “He
who works miracles has God with Him. He who has God cannot
be in sin. Indeed, He can only be one who is loved by God”113.3
A prudent man, he decides, with Nicodemus, not to show
himself openly as a disciple of Jesus, not out of cowardice, but
in order to inform the Master of the threats coming from the
Sanhedrin: “It is better that way. If they know that we are His
disciples, they will keep us in the dark about their thoughts and
decisions, and will be able to harm Him and us. If instead they
think that we are only enquiring into His life, they will not resort
to subterfuges with us”116.5. True to his convictions, he boldly
stands up to the enemies of Christ, when most of the others shy
away: “in a meeting, Joseph spoke heatedly to the Sanhedrin,
calling them murderers because they wanted to kill an innocent,
and he said: ‘Everything is illegal in here. He is right when He
says that there is abomination in the house of the Lord. This
altar is to be destroyed because it has been profaned’. They did
not stone him, because he is Joseph. But since then, they have
kept him in the dark about everything”602.7. Even at the
Crucifixion, his courage does not fail him: “Those who side with
murderers are murderers, Eleazar of Annas. I have lived as a
just man. And now, I am old and close to death. I do not want to
become unjust now that Heaven is already descending upon me,
and with it, the eternal Judge”609.16.

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Nicodemus, Prince of the Jews
We know from Saint John that Nicodemus was a Pharisee,
a Master in Israel and a member of the Sanhedrin. According to
the Gospel and the Talmud236 he possessed a great fortune. He it
was who used about a hundred pounds of myrrh and aloe at the
burial of Jesus Christ, which earned him this disdainful reply:
“And you too, are you a Galilean?”237. A disciple he certainly
was, but in secret, like his friend, Joseph the Elder: “I am not
acting entirely out of cowardice. It is also prudence and the
desire to be of greater assistance to You than if I belonged to
You openly. You have many enemies. I am one of the few here
who admire You”116.4. Just before the Ascension, Jesus thanks
His disciples: “You, Joseph, and you, Nicodemus, who took pity
on the Christ when to do so might have been very
dangerous”638.19
After the Passion, Nicodemus proposes: “Then, with
regard to the Shrouds, since I am no longer a Hebrew and
consequently no longer subject to the prohibition of
Deuteronomy concerning carved images and castings, I was
thinking of making a statue of Jesus crucified as best I can – I
will use one of my gigantic cedars of Lebanon – and of
concealing one of the Shrouds inside it, the first one, if You,
Mother, will give it back to us”644.6.

236
Talmud of Babylon, Gitlin treaty or treaty of Divorces, chap. V, 56.
237
John 3, 1-21 ; 7, 45-52 ; 19, 39-42.

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 These words take on a whole new meaning for pilgrims
who have visited Lucca in
Tuscany. In the San Martino
cathedral a crucifix, the Volto
Santo (or the Holy Visage), the
image of Christ, said to have been
sculpted by Nicodemus at Ramla,
is venerated238. This cathedral has
been a place of pilgrimage for over
a thousand years, and the fame of
the Volto Santo was immense.
Saint Gemma Galgani herself often visited this relic during her
lifetime. The crucifix, sculpted in a cedar, is thought to have
arrived in Lucca in 742.

Manaen, a Herodian Notable

Manaen, a foster-brother of Herod Antipas, is summarily
known to us through Saint Luke239 and Flavius Josephus 240. We
learn from the latter that his father was an Essenian who earned
the favour of Herod the Great for having predicted that he would
be king. He is even thought to have been president of the
Sanhedrin for a certain time before Hillel. He later left the
Essenians to become a Herodian and Herod had his son raised
with his own son, Antipas. We later learn from History that
Manaen went to Antioch. According to Baronius, he is said to
have consecrated and subsequently sent St. Paul and Barnaby
on their first missionary voyages (circa 45 AD). Some241 think

238
See for exemple Victor Guérin, Terre Sainte 1850, t2, page 217.
239
Luke 8, 3; Acts 13, 1.
240
Flavius Josephus, Jewish Antiquities XV, 10, 5.
241
See the Catholic Encyclopaedia in particular.
(continued on following page...)

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that he is also the person who gave Luke242 many details about
Herod’s family. This would also explain why Luke spoke to
Chouza and to Joanna. The Roman martyrology indicates that
Manaen died in Antioch. He is celebrated on May 24th as a Saint
Confessor. In Maria Valtorta’s work, the first encounter
between Manaen and Jesus was at the Clear Water. Jesus
reassures his uneasy Apostles: “Can a relative of Herod not
thirst for the true God? Are you afraid for Me? No, do not be
afraid. Have faith in My word. That man has come with honest
intentions.” - “Why did he not make himself known then?” ask
the Apostles. -“Precisely because he comes as a ‘soul’ and not
as Herod’s foster-brother. He has kept silence because he
thinks that the relationship with a king is nothing before the
word of God... We shall respect his silence.” – “How does he
know about You?” – “Through my cousin John himself. Do you
think that he did not preach about Me when he was in jail? But
he also knows Me through Chouza, through the voice of the
crowds, and even through the hatred of the Pharisees”121.3.
From then on, he is ready to do anything for Jesus: “I would
defy the whole world for You! I would do anything!” [And to
Judas, who doubts this, he retorts:] “No, man, these are not just
‘words’. I ask the Master to put my sincerity to the test!”364.4.
He proves it at the Passion, when all by himself, braving the
Temple guards, he tries a desperate manoeuvre to save the
Master: “Stand back! he shouts. This Man... Let me see Him.
Stand aside, or I will call the guards...” The people, because of
the hail of blows with the flat of the sword, the shying of the
horse and the threats of the rider, stand aside and Manaen can
reach the group of the Temple guards who are holding Jesus.
‘Let me through! The Tetrarch is more important than you...
Stand back! I want to speak to Him’ ” And he succeeds,

242
Luke 3, 1, 19, 20; 8, 3; 9, 7-9; 13, 31, 32; 23, 8-12; Acts 12.

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charging the most ruthless jailer with his sword drawn.
Master!”604.18. Despite a wounded arm, he is the first to go to
Mary to offer his help: “There was nothing to be done, that is
true, but at least we should have given Him the comfort of seeing
us. I... I greeted Him at the Sixtus243 and then, I was no longer
able to, because... but enough of that. That too, was willed by
Satan. Now I am free and I have come to place myself at Your
service. Give me your orders, Lady.” 614.2. He deserves this last
homage from Christ: “You, Manaen, who despised the sordid
favours of an unclean man to follow Me on My way”638.19.
Lazarus, the faithful and devoted friend
Lazarus, the brother of Mary of Magdala and Martha, has
an important and well-deserved place in this work. One of the
wealthiest men in Jerusalem, “powerfully rich. A great part of
the town belongs to him, as well as extensive lands in
Palestine”116.6, he was forced to leave for Bethany because of
the intransigence of the Pharisees, as Doras informs Jesus:
“Lazarus is Your friend? But You mustn’t! Don’t You know that
he is anathema because his sister Mary is a prostitute?”109.9. In
Jesus, Lazarus immediately sees the Messiah that Israel was
expecting: “Whoever does God’s work must be a Man of God.
And You do it, in such a way that it proclaims You a Man of
God”84.3. An erudite man, he asks Jesus about his interest in
profane readings. Jesus replies: “continue to read... it will help
you to understand the pagan world... Continue. You may
continue. There is no ferment of evil or of spiritual gangrene in
you, so you may read without fear. The true love that you bear
your God neutralises the profane germs that such reading might
instil in you. In everything that men do, there is the possibility

243
The Xyste is a large place with columns in Jerusalem. It is mentioned by Flavius Josephus (Jewish
Antiquities XX, 8. 11). It was situated between the Temple and Herod’s palace, near Sion.

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of good or evil, depending on how it is done. Love is not sinful
if one loves in a holy way. Work is not sinful, if one works when
it is the right time to work. Earning money is not sinful, if one is
satisfied with honest wages. Educating oneself is not sinful,
providing the education does not kill the idea of God in us.”84.6.
It is not surprising that Lazarus should have asked Jesus this
question when we read in the Talmud (Bara Kama f 82 b): “He
who teaches his son the science of the Greeks is like a man who
raises pigs”. Similarly, the Menachoth treaty (fol. 90) reports
that when Ben Domah asked his uncle, Rabbi Ishmael, whether
he could study Greek science after he had finished studying the
Law, Ishmael answered: “You will meditate on the Law day and
night. Find me an hour which belongs neither to the day nor to
the night and I will allow you to use it to study Greek science”.
When the conversion of his sister, Mary Magdalene, is slow in
coming, and sadness submerges Lazarus, Jesus comforts him
with the parable of the Prodigal Son, then tells him: “This is how
it will be with the beloved soul that you are waiting for,
Lazarus... God’s mercy surpasses all measure”205.7. To those
who are astonished to see Jesus frequent the wealthy Lazarus,
Jesus replies: “Lazarus is an exception among the wealthy.
Lazarus has attained that virtue that is very difficult to find on
earth and even more difficult to practice in order to teach it to
others; It is the virtue of freedom with regard to wealth. Lazarus
is righteous”206.10. Some might also wonder why Lazarus, raised
from the dead by Jesus a few weeks before His Passion, is absent
from the Gospels at this crucial time. Could he have abandoned
his Benefactor, as so many others did? On the contrary! Maria
Valtorta says that Jesus, well aware of his ardent zeal, explicitly
forbids him to leave Bethany at the hour of torment, but rather
to offer His disoriented Apostles a place to stay and to comfort
them. “I do not doubt your love for Me. I doubt it so little that
you are the one to whom I entrust my requests… Lazarus,

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faithful friend. I request certain things of you. You have never
refused Me anything. You will stay here and wait” “No. Not that.
Why Mary and Martha and not me?” “Because I do not want
you to be corrupted, like all men. In the coming days, Jerusalem
will be corrupted, like the air around rotting carrion, which
bursts open without warning from the careless nudge of a
passerby’s heel. Infected and spreading infection, its fetid
odours will drive even the least cruel among them mad, even my
disciples. They will run away. And where will they go in their
confusion? To Lazarus. How often, over these last three years,
have they come for bread, a bed, protection, shelter, and the
Master! ... Now, they will come back. Like sheep scattered by
the wolf that has caught the shepherd, they will run back to a
sheepfold. Re-assemble them. Hearten them again. Tell them
that I have forgiven them. I entrust my forgiveness to you for
them. They will know no peace because they ran away. Tell them
not to fall into greater sin by despairing of My
forgiveness”587.2.4.9. These hitherto unknown facts are no less
totally compatible with all the rest of the work. They shed new,
very original and credible light on a page of the history of the
Apostles that has remained obscure until now.
And all the others, known or unknown
I have already briefly mentioned, a few historical
characters at the beginning of this book, mentioned by Maria
Valtorta, more or less unexpectedly: Thusnelda, Marcus
Caecilius Maximus, or Photinai. Here is some complementary
information concerning them.

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The astonishing destiny of Thusnelda, the Barbarian
On different occasions, Maria Valtorta mentions the
presence of a strange freedwoman beside Valeria, the Roman
lady. “The door opens and Valeria, with her slave or
freedwoman, is about to enter... Valeria looks at the two women
wrapped in very simple Jewish cloaks hiding most of their faces
and she takes them for beggars. She orders: Barbara, give them
some money!” A little later, she explains: “My freedwoman
Thusnilde, twice a barbarian, Lord. She comes from the
Teutoburger Wald244. A prey of those rash advances that have
cost so much bloodshed 245. My father gave her to my mother,
who gave her to me as a wedding present. She passed from her
gods to ours and from ours to You, because she does what I do.
She is so good”, says Valeria to Jesus in front of the Synagogue
of the freed slaves that she now attends.”534.1. As the Passion
draws near, Valeria sends her to Bether, with her daughter,
Faustina, to the castle of her friend, Joanna, wife of Chouza. She
mentions her freedwoman one last time: “I will stay here with
Thusnilde. I am free, I am rich, I can do as I please”583.12 (…) I
will send Fausta to Bether with Thusnilde, before the appointed
time. They were to go after the Feast.”583.14. It appears however,
that this Thusnilde is not a simple literary creation, but really
and truly a historical character. Here is more or less what the
historian Tacitus246 says of her. In the year 15, Germanicus
carried out raids against the Germanics, sacking their villages.
They captured Thusnelda, the wife of Arminius, who was
delivered up to them by her own father, Segestes, to avenge
himself on Arminius. In fact, he had promised his daughter to
244
Tacitus, Annals, Book 1, chap 60, writes: “not far from the Teutbourg forest”, today known as the
Teutobourg or Teutoburger.
245
An allusion to the defeat of Varus and his three legions in 9 AD.
246
Tacitus, Annals, Book 1 chap. 58 and following chapters.

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another man, she had run away with Arminius and married him
after the victory of Teutoberg. Segestes and his clan were allies
of Rome and opposed the politics of Arminius, as did Flavus,
brother of Arminius. Thusnelda was taken to Rome to be
exhibited at the triumph of Germanicus247 She never saw her
native land again and disappeared from the pages of History. All
of this is confirmed by Strabo248 : “We saw the triumphant
Germanicus dragging in his wake the most illustrious figures,
men and women, of the Cherusque nation: that is, the chief
Segismund, son of Segeste, with his three-year-old son
Thumelic, and his sister Thusnelda, wife of Arminius”. Gaius
Julius Caesar (known as Germanicus after the victory over the
Germanics) was the son of Drusus and the eldest son of
Claudius. Appointed governor of Syria in the year 17, he was
assassinated in Antioch in the year 19. It is therefore perfectly
plausible that Thusnelda, an enslaved princess, was forced to
accompany him to Antioch. At the death of Germanicus, she
was taken over by a notable249 , from the close circle of the late
governor, which would explain how, a few years later, she came
to be in Palestine, with Valeria, the daughter of this man. What
author, unless he was inspired, could have imagined such a
plausible incursion of this Thusnelda, a little-known historical
character, into his story?
A very strange discovery near Pompeii
As Jesus passes by the garrison at Alexandroscene in
January 29 AD, Maria Valtorta relates this unremarkable
dialogue between two Roman soldiers: “Prochorius is not
coming. He’s sending the triarius Aquila… Well, well! Better
him than Caecilius Maximus himself”329.6. During the fifteen
247
“On the 7th day of the Calendes of June”, in the year 16
248
Strabo, Geography, Book 7, 1 Germania, 4.
249
According to Maria Valtorta’s text, this would be the father of Valeria, wife of Valerian.

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years that followed the writing of this dialogue in November
1945, the existence of this heartily disliked Roman officer could
have seemed to be nothing more than pure invention. Then came
the chance discovery of twenty seven clay tablets during public
works on a motorway near Pompeii in 1959. One of these
tablets250, studied in 1966, reveals, textually: “On the Ides of
July251 Marcus Caecilius Maximus received 3,000 sesterces
from Gaius Sulpicius Faustus for the sale of verdigris. Done in
Puteoli”. Promotions, leaves and transfers in the Roman army
were given mainly at the end of June, every year or two. As
verdigris (or vert de Grèce), a highly sought-after commodity in
Antiquity252, was obtained from copper leaves macerated in
brandy, it was mainly produced in grape-growing zones. So it is
quite plausible that an officer returning from Palestine would
have been tempted to take some back with him to make a little
money on the side! Given the date and the name, it is extremely
likely that this is the same officer mentioned by Maria Valtorta.
“Lord, give me some of that water so that I may never
be thirsty again”.
Jn 4, 15
When St. John relates the episode of the Samaritan at
Jacob’s well (John 4, 4-42), he does not name this woman, who,
to this day, remains almost unknown in the west. So, when
Maria Valtorta transmits this dialogue to us: “What is your
name?” –“Photinai”143.3 this information may seem
insignificant. But, on the very evening of The Last Supper, Jesus
confides to His Apostles: “I am thinking of the woman who will
be revealed only in Heaven... and of Photinai... They found Me
and have never since left My way. To one I pointed out the
250
The Tabulae Pompeianae Sulpiciorum n°66.
251
Or exactly on July 14th of the year 29.
252
The use of verdigris (aerugo) was widespread in the paint powders of the frescoes at Pompeii.

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Father as the true God and the Spirit as a Levite in this
individual adoration. To the other, who did not even know she
had a soul, I said: ‘My name is Saviour, I save whoever has the
goodwill to be saved. I am the One Who looks for those who are
lost, I give Life, Truth and Purity. Those who look for Me will
find Me.’ And they both found God... I bless you, weak Eves,
who have both become stronger than Judith”600.25. Now, we
sit up and take notice. Is there any trace of this Photinai
elsewhere other than in Maris Valtorta’s text? The Greeks253 are
the ones who confirm her name: Photina or Photine. After the
martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul under the Neronian
persecution, she successfully preached the faith in Carthage,
with her son José (or Joseph). She was martyred with her two
sons and her four sisters (or cousins). Her veneration is attested
in 11th century Constantinople and her feast day is on March 20th
in the Catholic Church254 and February 26th in the Orthodox
Church.
*
As I really cannot go into detail concerning the seven or
eight hundred characters mentioned in the books, my only
option is to stop here. But before I close this chapter on the eye
witnesses, here is another surprise for the researcher: it is the
way in which Maria Valtorta, quite unexpectedly, discovers,
recognises or forgets some characters.
1/ “Discovers”. In most cases, Maria does not notice the first
encounter. She describes a passerby, a sick person or a child as
she sees them in a scene, but is unable to name them. More often
than not, she recognises them and learns their names on the
second or third occasion and then designates them by name.

253
Menology of Basil, emperor of Constantinople and the Greek Syntaxaries.
254
Baronius affirms in his notes that she is, in fact, the Samaritan mentioned by John.

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Here is an example of a child encountered in Capernaum: “The
child wriggles away from Jesus and runs to his mother”49.4.
Later, Maria Valtorta sees him again and remembers: “a little
child... one of those that I saw in the first visions of
Capernaum”60.7 but we have to read a few more lines to hear
Jesus call him “James”. On the same day, Jesus heals an
anonymous humpback at this moment: “Save me! Heal your
servant!” ‘I wish you to be healed.’ The man straightens up,
agile and whole”61.3. The following week, we find him at
Korazim: “The man, none other than the poor humpback,
healed and treated kindly by Jesus”63.2. His companion then
names him: “Is it really you, Samuel?”63.3. Towards the end of
the first year of His public life, The fame of Jesus has spread
throughout the region and people flock from far away to beg
Him, as this poor mother does: “Master, a woman, the one who
was in tears, is asking for You. She says that she has to leave
and that she must speak to You”122.13. She finally plucks up the
courage to confide in Jesus in a long, pathetic monologue. Here
are some extracts: “Master, it seems that your words were
spoken for me. You said that Satan is in every illness, physical
or moral... I have a son whose heart is sick... he has got into bad
company and he is... he is exactly as You say... a thief... he likes
fights... he is dominating... Young as he is, he is destroying
himself with lust and gluttony... I... I am his mother and I am
suffering to death. For a mother to say: ‘I have a cruel son!’ is
so painful. And she ends with this insignificant detail: “I have
come from Upper Perea to beg You for him”122.3. Who could
imagine then that this insignificant detail, as well as the promise
made by Jesus: “One day, I will pass through your region and
you, proud of your boy, will come to meet Me with him” will
enable us to find this son, two books further on, “a young man,
whose name I do not know”282.1 who declares to Jesus: “I looked
for You after my mother’s pardon”. Only much further along is

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the name of this future zealous disciple spoken by the
shopkeeper, Misace: “A disciple himself, he came with Your
disciples and he is waiting for you in Arbela to honour You with
his father and mother. Philip, son of Jacob 255, if ever this region
becomes holy, his will be the merit of having sanctified it”292.4.

2/ “Recognises”. When a character, already encountered in a

previous scene, comes across the Lord again, it frequently
happens that Maria Valtorta says that she recognises him,
exactly as anyone might in everyday life. So this should not
surprise us. There are, however, some reunions that are, to say
the least, astonishing... So it is when the patrician lady, Plautina,
appears for the first time in the work in an episode written on
May 5th, 1945. Maria Valtorta makes this impossible remark for
an author who presumably writes his book day by day:
“Plautina, we already know her”167.3. The fact is that because
she did not receive the visions in their chronological order, she
recognises Plautina from the visions of the Passion that she
received before, like this one, for example, received on February
10th, 1944, but that the reader will, of course, only find at the
end of the work601! This particularity, as I have already
explained, in the chapter on geography, seems to me to be
specific to Maria Valtorta’s visions and occurs on many
occasions. For example, the first encounter with Mary
Magdalene in the work occurs when Peter’s boat draws near to
hers on the lake in August 27 AD. And yet, Maria Valtorta
immediately recognises her and says, perfectly naturally: “I see
that the Magdalene has stood up (...) she turns her beautiful eyes
towards the serene face of Jesus, Whose mind is so far
away”98.3. For, in fact, she has already appeared to her in visions

255
See the paragraph: “Philip, the bad son who became an Evangeliser”

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received before this one on February 5th, 1945, but that the
reader will, once again, only discover many pages later!
In a vision on January 31st, 1946, she writes: “a woman who
seems to be very like the one called Nike, who wiped the face of
Jesus on the way to Golgotha and received the Shroud. But these
Palestinian women resemble each other closely and, a few
months after this vision, I might be mistaken”373.4, referring to a
vision of the Passion, received on March 26th, 1945, but reported
at the end of the work, in chapter 608.9. The account of the
Sermon on the Mount also contains this type of disconcerting
remark. When, at that date, Jesus has already assembled the
apostolic college several times, Maria Valtorta, in a vision
received on August 12th, 1944, writes: “I see Peter and Andrew,
John and James and I hear them calling the other two Nathanael
and Philip”174.11. Well, John, James, Peter and Andrew have
already been seen six months before, on February 25th, 1944,
whereas the vision of the encounter with Nathanael and Philip
only came two months later, on October 13th, 1944. Clearly, on
this same day, August 12th 1944, Maria Valtorta does not appear
to recognise Simon the Zealot: “There is another one who may,
or may not belong to the group. Perhaps he is the last to arrive.
They call him Simon”174.11. On closer inspection, this is
perfectly logical, since the vision of the first encounter between
Jesus and Simon took place on October 26th, 1944. In a vision
of September 3rd, 1946, Maria recognises the face of Nicolaus
of Antioch, but seems to have forgotten his name: “new faces,
all of them unknown, except the delicate one of the Greek from
Antioch. He speaks with the others, perhaps Gentiles like
himself”386.1. Yet again, in Maritime Caesarea, the “first time”
that Jesus meets Valeria, Maria Valtorta confides: “The young
Roman lady, unless this is a chance resemblance, is one of those
Romans who were with Joanna, wife of Chouza on the way to

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Calvary. As no-one has spoken her name, I am not sure”155.10
(vision of May 5th, 1945). She did, in fact, see her in the visions
of the Passion in 1944 and on March 26th, 1945. Jesus then
names Valeria (chap. 608), among seven other disciples. I do
not think I need give any more examples of this type... But what
forger of genius could have been so brilliant, meticulous, not to
say a trifle Machiavellian, as to have scrambled his book in this
way? We have here, beyond any doubt, a very strong indication
of the authenticity of Maria Valtorta’s revelations.
3/ “Forgets” I have already said that this work numbers over
750 characters with whom Jesus or His followers have more or
less detailed dialogues. So it is not difficult to understand that,
as the story unfolds, Maria Valtorta confesses, with increasing
regularity, that she vaguely recognises one or the other of these
characters, but that she has forgotten their names or the
circumstances under which she has already seen them. When
Jesus meets many disciples in Sycaminon, Maria Valtorta
names some of them, then adds: “and others, still others, others
that I recognise, but whose names, or the places where I saw
them, I absolutely cannot recall. Familiar faces, and there are
now so many, all of them known to me as the faces of disciples.
And still more others, won over by Isaac, or by the disciples
themselves, that I have just named, who follow the main group,
hoping to find Jesus”250.1. From the third year of the public life
this phenomenon is amplified: “there are many disciples...
among whom are Stephen, Hermas, John the priest and John the
scribe and many others. (What confusion to remember them all
now! There are so many of them)”347.5. In Capernaum, at the
speech about the Bread of Life... “Among those left there are
the Apostles, John the priest and John the scribe, Stephen,
Hermas, Timoneus, Ermasteus, Agapo, Joseph, Solomon, Abel
of Bethlehem in Galilee, and Abel the leper of Korazim with his

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friend Samuel, Elias, (the one who did not go back to bury his
father, in order to follow Jesus), Philip of Arbela, Aser and
Ishmael of Nazareth and others whose names I do not know”
354.15. Later, at the Passover, in front of the Temple, she sees
“many more, whose faces are not new to me, but whose names
I cannot remember”354.11. And so it goes on, until the last
meeting with the disciples on Mount Tabor, shortly before the
Ascension: “The Apostles and the disciples form a compact
group with Marjiam, Manaen, Stephen, Nicolaus, John of
Ephesus, Hermas and some of the more faithful disciples, whose
names I do not remember”634.1. And when Jesus calls one of
them to His side: “Elisha of Engedi, come here. I have
something to tell you”, Maria Valtorta confesses: “I had not
recognised the former leper, the son of old Abraham”634.13. All
of these repeated confidential remarks bear the indelible mark
of sincerity and consequently, that of authenticity.
How were people named in Israel?
In ancient times, surnames did not exist as such. At birth,
each child received a first name given by its father and mother.
To designate someone unambiguously, this first name was then
followed by ben (son of... or its Aramaic equivalent, bar) and
the father’s first name (the patronymic). Sometimes the person
was given a nickname by others256. In The Gospel as revealed to
me, the designation of the characters who are natives of
Palestine totally conforms to this rule. So, in accordance with
this principle, many characters are designated either by their
first names, followed or not by the patronymic, or by their
nicknames. Simon is also Simon, son of Jonah, or even Simon-
Peter; Judas is the Iscariot, or the man from Kerioth, or again
Judas, son of Simon; James and John are also the sons of

256
Midrash Rabbah, Commentary on the Ecclesiast 7, 3.

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Zebedee, just as James and Judah are the sons of Alpheus; or
cousins; Lazarus occasionally becomes Lazarus, son of
Theophilus, or simply the son of Theophilus, etc. Here is an
example of a complete appellation, with the first name, the
patronymic and the nickname, which deserves our attention. It
concerns a member of the Sanhedrin: “Be quiet, Joel called
Alamoth, son of Abijah! Only an ill-bred man like you can say
such words”, say the others angrily”525.15. Abijah was the
patronymic of the chief of the 8th class of priests257, and
Alamoth258, which means “in a maiden’s voice”, is a nickname
indicating that Joel had a high-pitched voice, or a somewhat
effeminate appearance... His dignified reply therefore makes
perfect sense: “If Nature has been hostile to my person, that has
not impaired my intellect. Nay, by forbidding me many
pleasures, it has made me a sage. And if you were holy people,
you would not humiliate the man, but you would respect the
sage”525.15. As often happens in similar cases, Maria Valtorta’s
spelling is phonetic, but how could she have invented such a
name and such a credible and pertinent dialogue all by herself?

257
See 1 Chronicles 24, 10; Nehemiah 12, 4; Luke 1.
258
A musical term. (1 Chronicles 15, 20) indicating a psalm (Psalm 46) which should be sung by a
soprano or a female voice.

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The identity of Roman citizens
Roman names are characterized by the use of a system of
three names, first used by the patricians, then by the plebeians,
as they slowly acquired rights under the Republic. The complete
name consists up of the prænomen, (our first name) followed by
the nomen (the name of the gens, generally ending in –us or –
ius), and finally, the cognomen (a nickname, personal at first,
but which came to distinguish a branch of the gens). For
example, Valerian, the licentious husband of Valeria259, known
to History by the name Decimus Valerius Asiaticus, or again
Pilate, whose complete name was Lucius Pontius Pilatus, or
Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, or Caius Sentius Saturninus, all of
them mentioned by Maria Valtorta. In general, Roman women
were designated (on tombs and in literary or historical works)
only by a feminised form of the nomen of the gens. Claudius:
Claudia, Cornelius: Cornelia, etc. Each woman was then
distinguished from her sisters by a qualifier, for example: maior
(the elder) or minor (the younger)
On the correct use of I.T
Finally, to close this chapter, here is one last remark.
Computer research based on the given name of a character gives
an idea of the value of the information concerning him. This
view, however, is only partial, because the same character is not
always referred to by his first name alone. Suppose that we are
looking for everything concerning the character John of Endor
in this work. The first time that he meets Jesus, he tells Him all
about his life, a long series of misfortunes, and begs: “Take me
with You. My name was Felix! What irony!260 But give me
another name, so that my past will really be dead. I will follow
259
See the paragraph further on: Valerius, Valeria a divided Roman couple.
260
Felix, a Latin first name meaning “Happy”

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you like a stray dog that finally finds a master. I will be your
slave, if you wish it. But do not leave me alone.” “Yes, my
friend”. “What name will You give me?” “One that is dear to
Me: John. Because you are grace261 granted by God”188.7. Felix,
John, yes indeed, but later he is also referred to by other names:
the man of Endor; Cyclops or Diogenes; the former pedagogue
of Cintium; the one-eyed man; the former galley-slave. So,
every I.T. request based only on the name John of Endor will
ignore a wealth of pertinent information. Consequently, it is
only by thorough and attentive reading, and not by computer
research alone, that we can really grasp all the information
concerning each character...

261
John, in Hebrew, Johan, does in fact mean “God grants grace”.

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 TWENTY TALENTS TO FREE JOHN THE BAPTIST...
They brought him a man who owed ten thousand talents... Mt 18, 24

If there is a field in which first century historians seem to

flounder, it is certainly that of the value of currencies in the time
of Jesus. There has been a wealth of erudite research throughout
the centuries attempting to clarify the complex system of
weights and currencies used in Antiquity. To try to estimate the
cost of living in times so distant from our present-day criteria is
a perilous exercise, and most of the authors who ventured to do
so ended up with somewhat incoherent results. Yet, in Maria
Valtorta’s work, there are numerous references to currencies
and the uses to which they were put in the time of Jesus. So it
might be interesting to study these references more closely and
to compare them with the first century historical data at our
disposal.
The value of currency in the reign of Tiberius
What exactly do we know about the cost of living in the
early first century? The information is not as rare as might
sometimes be said, whether it be data provided by Tacitus,
Plutarch, Pliny and a few others, of graffiti found at Pompeii, of
various tablets, or of certain indications found in the Gospels,
etc. At the end of the reign of Augustus, a free worker earned 16
aces per day, or 4 sesterces and 1 denier. The basic wage was
thus about 300 deniers a year. A legionary earned between 225
and 300 deniers a year, about one gold piece per month, along
with certain perquisites (perks, as we would say today), such as
food and clothing.
In 14 AD, the legionaries demanded a wage of one denier
a day262. A Praetorian (an élite soldier, charged with the
262
Tacitus, Annals, I, 17.

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protection of the Emperor) earned 400 to 750 deniers a year. A
Centurion earned 950 deniers and a Decurion 1,125. The annual
salary of the first centurion, the primum pilium, was 3,375
deniers, while that of a tribune of the legion was closer to 3,700
deniers.

At that time, a pair of shoes cost about 2 deniers; a coat 25

deniers; a pig 60 deniers; a donkey or mule, 100 to 200 deniers.
To “obtain” a domestic slave of either sex entailed a
disbursement of 500 to 1,500 deniers263, a “particularly pretty”
luxury slave was priced at 1,500 to 2,000 deniers, while the rent
for a “luxury” apartment was about 1,500 deniers.

A little later, in 60 AD, a family of modest means spent

about 8 aces (half a denier) per day and per person on food. In
Pompeii, in the time of Plutarch264, around the year 75 the
purchase of a goblet, a small oil lamp, or a plate cost 1 ace. Still
for 1 ace, one could buy 325 g. of bread or half a litre of ordinary
wine in a tavern (popina); a bowl of soup for 2 aces and a girl
(sic!) for 2 to 8 aces. The price of half a litre of oil, or the same
quantity of quality wine was 4 aces. A tunic was worth 4 deniers,
it cost 1 denier to have it cleaned, and 2 deniers could buy 6 or
7 kg of wheat.

This data is sufficient to give an idea of the cost of living

for the contemporaries of Jesus. If I absolutely had to give an
equivalent, and even though this comparison is not particularly
pertinent today, I would say that the silver denier could have

263
Papinian puts the legal price of a slave at 20 aurei or 500 deniers. (Digest, IV, 31, and XL, 4, 47).
But Plutarch Cato Major, C, 4 and Columella, De re rustica, III, iii, 8, fixed it at 1,500 to 2,000 deniers.
264
See the pricelists found at Pompeii: CIL IV 1678; 4227 and following; 4000; 4888.
(continued on following page...)

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been the equivalent of approximately 5€265 of ours, the sesterce
1.25 €, the ace 0.30€, and a gold piece, the aureus, 125 €.
Judas sells Aglae’s jewellery
“Eleven talents, there you are. That is what I would pay if
I had to buy that gold from someone who was starving. Not a
penny less...You can have it for eleven talents... And I sealed the
bargain at ten and a half”82.3. When Judas tells Jesus what a
good price he obtained for the sale of Aglae’s jewellery, he is
very proud of himself and how he tricked the merchant from
Jericho. As he tells it, we can
estimate that this solid gold
jewellery weighed 1 to 2 kg of
gold, the monetary equivalent of
12 to 25 kg of silver 266.
Celtic solid gold bracelet from the Tayac
treasure (1893): weight 726g

But if Judas obtained 10.5

silver talents, this would mean
that in 27 AD, the word “talent” could designate the value of 1.2
to 2.5 kg of silver. That is, 10 to 20 times less than the generally
accepted “official” value!
Was Maria Valtorta mistaken? Did she not hear correctly,
or should we envisage the fact that the word talent could have
had a particular meaning at that time? This question deserves a
closer look, as it has been the subject of debate among biblical
exegetes for almost two millennia!

265
The denier was the basic Roman currency (3.45 g of silver at the time of Jesus). One had to give 25
silver deniers for a “gold denier”, or aureus (7.8g of gold at the time of Augustus or Tiberius). This
“estimation” fixes the aureus (or the stater) at 25x5€ =125€, thus giving 125/7.8 = 15.6€ per gram of
gold. This was almost the legal price of a gram of gold in 2006 – 2007! So, why not?
266
Or a silver / gold ratio of approximately 1 to 12.
(continued on following page...)

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All about talents
The talent was a Greek unit of weight (talanton) for heavy
loads267. It was also a unit of monetary conversion corresponding
in money to the weight of 6,000 Athenian drachmas (or 4.32 g
x 6,000 = 26kg). It was also 6,000 deniers or 24,000 sesterces,
as Seneca the Rhetorician268 confirms. This conversion seems to
be universally accepted. The Romans used the word talent with
some reticence, mainly in treaties and to measure large sums of
money, because the Roman unit of weight was the pound (libra).
The Euboic talent, then the Attic talent corresponded to 80
Roman pounds269. In the reign of Tiberius, one pound of gold
gave 42 Aurei, weighing 7.8 grams apiece270.

But the talent did not consistently designate the value of

26kg of silver throughout the centuries. Many commentators 271
noted that the word talent (literally what one carries) was also
frequently used to designate quite variable weights, ranging
from about 15 grams272 (money carried on one’s person?) to
several dozen kilos.

When we convert the weight in silver of the fortunes of

Roman notables, (knights, prefects, senators, or consuls)

267
Or the burden that a man could carry: 26kg (gold talent) and 33kg (silver talent) according to Th.
Mommsen, History of Roman currency 1868 vol 1, page 28; and Garnier, History of the money of ancient
peoples 1819, vol 1 page 220 onwards..
268
Seneca the Rhetorician, Controversy 34 (called The Prometheus of Parrhasius)
269
Titus Livius, History of Rome, Book 38, chap. 38, v. 13.
270
Instead of 40 pieces, weighing 8.1 g in the reign of Caesar or Augustus, as Pliny confirms Natural
History, Book 33, 13. Concerning the Aurei, numismatic studies prove that they did, in fact, go
progressively from 40 to 45 pieces per pound of gold between the reigns of Augustus and Nero.
271
See Daremberg and Saglio, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, in the Mina and Talentum
rubrics.
272
Julius Pollux, Onomasticon Book 9, chap 6, segm 54, indicates for example that a Macedonian gold
talent was worth 60 deniers, or two gold pieces.
(continued on following page...)

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generally in deniers, and compare them to Herod’s revenue and
expenditure, in talents, (using the conversion 1 talent = 26 kg of
silver), we obtain a lifestyle for Herod by far superior to that of
the wealthiest Roman citizens273 !

And when, at the death of Caesar274 or Augustus275 the

Roman Treasury distributed a very generous bonus to some
250,000 Roman Legionaries (1 triple aureus, or 75 deniers per
soldier, almost 3 months’ wages), how could it be possible that
this fortune, accumulated over several years by the Emperor,
only represented one or two years of Herod’s revenues? Is it
really credible that a vassal could have flaunted, with impunity
and over a period of forty years, a fortune that was such a
provocation for Rome?

An audacious hypothesis
We know that the talent, the 26 kg silver weight standard,
represented 6,000 silver deniers, was the equivalent in value to
240 gold pieces276. These 240 gold pieces (weighing almost 6
Roman pounds) thus represented the value of I talent-weight
converted into gold277. The Greeks and Hebrews may simply

273
At the top of the salary scale (as we would say today), a prefect earned 75,000 deniers annually (260
kg of silver per year). The fortune required to belong to an order of knights (100,000 deniers, or 345 kg
of silver), or to the senatorial class (250,000 deniers, or 860 kg of silver) can be used as references for
large sums. If we consider the talent as 25 kg, we obtain, respectively, 10, 14, and 22 talents, while
Flavius Josephus indicates 1,050 talents as Herod’s annual revenue!
274
Suetonius, The life of the twelve Caesars, Caesar, 83.
275
Tacitus, Annals Book 1, 8 and Suetonius, The life of the twelve Caesars, Augustus, 101.
276
Remember that 1 gold piece (stater or aureus) was worth 25 silver pieces (drachmas or deniers).
277
As early as 1730, Dom Augustin Calmet, the famous Biblicist, put forward this hypothesis,
commenting on the Biblical passage (1 Chronicles 20, 2 and Samuel 12, 13) in which David seized the
golden crown of the Ammonite king, weighing one gold talent, and placed it on his head! In his
Dictionnaire Historique, critique, chronologique, géographique et littéral de la bible, vol III, page 314,
Dom Calmet writes: “We believe that the talent that the Gospels speak of does not mark the weight,
but the value “. Did he hesitate to carry his reasoning further?

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have got into the habit of referring to this set of 240 gold pieces
as a “gold talent”.

240 gold pieces = 1 gold talent (value) = 6,000 silver pieces

Now, if we balance the weight of

this gold talent with an equal weight of
silver pieces, we obtain a set of
approximately 500 silver deniers,
representing the value in silver of the
weight of one gold talent. So, in
everyday language, this sum could
naturally have been called a silver
talent, or even in currency exchanges,
simply a talent.

500 silver pieces = 1 silver talent (value) = 20 gold pieces

This explanation might seem somewhat complicated at

first. But this is what most European countries278 that inherited
the Roman monetary system did, using the word pound for a
weight (400 to 500 g), but also for the monetary value of that
weight in currency (£ Sterling, Livre, Lira, Mark…).
Accordingly, a weight of 6 Roman pounds could have meant, in
everyday language, (referring to currency exchange), either 240
aurei (one gold talent) or 500 silver deniers (one silver talent).
And people had to give 12 of these silver talents (12 x 500 =

278
Particularly England, France, Italy and Germany...
(continued on following page...)

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6,000) in exchange for a gold talent279. Conversely, one of these
silver talents (500 deniers) could be exchanged for 20 gold
pieces280. Note too that throughout the course of History, the
weight in gold has been immutably exchanged for 12 or 15 times
its weight in silver. Let us now look at how this simple
conjecture could fit into some disconcerting historical data of
this period:

Caesar fell into the hands of the soldiers of Sylla at night.

He gave their captain Cornelius, 2 talents, a sum that enabled
him to escape281. According to our hypothesis, Caesar gave him
the value of two silver talents, or 40 gold pieces, which seems a
highly plausible bribe. But, considering that a talent weight was
worth 6,000 deniers, he should have given him 4 kg of gold,
quite difficult to carry around with him!

Taken prisoner on another occasion, he made fun of the

pirates who demanded a ransom of twenty talents and promised
them fifty282. If Caesar thought, again according to our
hypothesis, that he was worth more than 400 gold pieces, and
that he offered 1,000… why not? But if a talent was worth 6,000
deniers here, could Caesar have been such a megalomaniac as
to spontaneously offer 12,000 aurei, (more than his weight in
gold!) when they were already demanding 4,800 (37 kg) of
gold?

279
In everyday language the word talent referred either to a weight (about 26 kg) or a monetary value
500 silver pieces (= 20 gold pieces). And the expression “gold talent” the monetary value in gold of one
talent weight of 26 kg or 240 gold pieces.
280
Is it just by chance that in the Middle Ages a pound (currency) was worth 20 French sous, 20 English
shillings, 20 German schillinge or 20 Italian soldi, or is this an echo of the system inherited from the
Greeks and Romans?
281
Plutarch, Life of Caesar, 1, 8.
282
Plutarch, Life of Caesar, 2, 1; Velleius Paterculus II, 41 -53; Suetonius, Life of the Caesars, Caesar.
(continued on following page...)

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 It appears that in ancient texts, this subtle notion of talents,
familiar to both the Greeks and the Hebrews 283 was not widely
used by the Romans, who had their own system of measurement
and did not particularly favour the one inherited from the
Greeks. For example, when Pliny284 mentions “The Semiramis
chalice, which weighed fifteen talents”, he adds: “now,
according to Varron, the Egyptian talent weighs eighty
pounds”, he is clearly perplexed by a chalice presumably
weighing almost four hundred kilos of pure gold (0.327 x 80 x
15). It seems much more reasonable to me to estimate the worth
of this chalice at 7,500 deniers (15 of my talents at 500 deniers)
or 300 gold pieces. Its weight would then be 2.4 kg of pure
gold...

We know frpm Flavius Josephus that Herod’s annual

revenue was 1,050 talents. This sum of 6,300,000 deniers (1,050
x 6,000) seems highly improbable, whereas 525,000 deniers
(1,050 x 500), although still an enormous sum, becomes more
plausible. Similarly, when Flavius Josephus speaks of the sacred
Temple treasure, amounting to approximately two thousand
talents, it is difficult to believe that it was 50,000 kilos of gold,
rather than 3,750 kilos of gold.

When, in 67 AD, the Jews of Caesarea paid Florus 8 talents

to cease the work that was blocking the access to their
synagogue, 48,000 deniers, (8 x 6,000, enough to pay the annual
salary of 480 workers) seems a totally disproportionate sum for
what was at stake. But 4,000 deniers (8 x 500 according to my
hypothesis), would have been a reasonable, and far from
negligible, “compensation”.

283
Cf. Herodotus, Aristotle, Plutarch, Biblical texts, etc.
284
Pliny, Histories, Book 33, chap 15.

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 The sum of 10,000 talents mentioned by Matthew (18, 24)
would be a gigantic and totally unrealistic sum for the debt of a
slave, even a royal slave, if we estimate it at sixty million
drachmas (10,000 x 6,000)! In contrast, five million drachmas
(1,0000x500), although still a considerable sum, is comparable
to the fortune that Tacitus attributes to Antonia’s very wealthy
freed slaves: Felix, Narcissus or Pallas285. Here is a brief extract
of this parable as it appears in Maria Valtorta’s work: “A king
wanted to draw up the accounts with his servants. He called
them one by one, beginning with those who were in the highest
positions. There was one who owed the king ten thousand
talents. But the servant could not pay back the loan that the king
had given him to build his houses and purchase all kinds of
goods”278.4. Doesn’t the parable, reported like this by Maria
Valtorta, seem to refer to those servants of the king, whose
excesses in the year 28 could already have been known
throughout the empire?

Back to the sale of Aglae’s jewellery

So, as we see, this evaluation of the monetary value of
talents, which comes directly from Maria Valtorta’s account,
makes many surprising historical figures more credible,
whether they come from Roman literature, from Flavius
Josephus, or from the Bible. Unable to explain these figures and
so many others in the same vein, many commentators
interpreted them as errors made by copyists or as literary
hyperbole.

Let us now return to Maria Valtorta’s text. The shepherds

have just told Jesus about the arrest of John the Baptist: “It
would be easy to free him if we had a lot of money. But ... but
285
Three million sesterces or 750,000 deniers.

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although there is a large sum of money given by friends, there’s
still a lot missing… We have even found someone who would let
the Baptist out for a large sum of money.” “And how much does
that person want?” “Twenty silver talents286 and we only have
twelve and a half”81.4 (about ten of which were probably given
by Manaen. That is, 5,000 deniers or 200 gold pieces according
to our reasoning). “This is very beautiful jewellery... Beautiful
and very valuable”. “How much might it be worth?” “Properly
sold, at least... at least six talents”81.5. If Judas estimates the
weight in gold of this jewellery at 1.5 kg, exchanged with a 20%
depreciation, he can hope to get 150 gold pieces for it, or 3,750
deniers, or 7.5 talents... hence his prudent estimate. “The thick,
heavy necklace alone is worth at least three talents”81.5. The
necklace could well weigh some 600 g of gold. With the same
20% depreciation, Judas can hope to obtain 60 gold pieces for
it, or 1,500 deniers, again three of our talents. So Judas had good
reason to boast about the sale of this jewellery “Having sold it
above my estimate”, he specifies. Taking slightly under two
kilos of gold in jewellery to the money changer: “a necklace
more or less like Aglae’s, and then hair pins, rings, bracelets...
all similar to what I had in my bag and the same quantity”82.3.
Today we would say that Judas manages to sell them at the
market price of gold. He obtains 5,250 deniers for them: “I
sealed the bargain at ten and a half talents”82.3 (that is, 18 kg of
silver coins). “I had a pile of coins, but I went to the tax-
collector and said: ‘Take all this small change and give me the
talents that you got from Isaac’ ”. Judas took out “a small sum,
a hundred deniers, for our beds and meals”82.2. A hundred
deniers out of five thousand, barely 2%. There are eight of them;

286
Twenty talents, precisely the ransom demanded 60 years earlier to free Julius Caesar and confirmed
by three authors (see one of the preceding footnotes). Moreover, my estimation (20 talents = 10,000
deniers) represents, according to Plutarch, Columella and Tacitus, the price of 4 to 6 slaves, which is
plausible.

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Jesus, three Apostles and four shepherds. A hundred deniers for
board, lodging and an enclosure for the sheep seems credible.
So the rest was exchanged for 200 to 210 gold pieces, a sum that
is easy to spread out on a table (“My friends, here are ten and a
half talents. Only the hundred deniers that Judas kept back for
our lodging expenses are missing”82.5) and to transport on foot
to Macheronte. The highly detailed account of this sale is
perfectly coherent and could afford us a promising way of re-
reading ancient texts that mention the use of talents.
The adventure of the pigs
Matthew, Mark and Luke287 relate the episode of the
demons chased into a herd of pigs. From the details provided by
Maria Valtorta’s text, here is a curious monetary verification
concerning talents! “a large herd of pigs..., hundreds of
animals... Better two thousand pigs perish than one man”186.6.
Mark also mentions the number of approximately 2,000 pigs,
apparently a maximal estimate288 Seeing their herd drowned, the
Gerasenian swineherds deplore “many289 talents’ worth of
damages”186.7. We know from Tacitus, however, that a pig cost
60 deniers in 14 AD. So the 2,000 pigs that drowned were worth
120,000 deniers. With Maria Valtorta’s talent valued at 500
deniers, that comes up to 240 talents, “molti talenti” indeed. But
with a talent weight of 6,000 deniers, that figure would be about
twenty at most, or even less, if the number of pigs was under
2,000.

287
Matthew 8, 28-32; Mark 4, 35-41; Luke 8, 22-25.
288
With only 5 square meters per pig, this would suppose the herd to be spread over one hectare!
289
The French version translates the original Italian text “molti talenti” by “several talents”.

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The bridal dowry
The cortege of the goldsmith Nathanael’s bride carries
“the value of many gold talents” in its coffers223.3. As it would
seem unthinkable, as much for its value as for its weight, that 20
to 25 kg of gold, a rich dowry, could be transported by donkey
and with no escort, it seems logical, here again, to posit that the
weight of a gold talent was 1.87 kg (the value in gold of 6,000
deniers), and assuredly not the 26 kg of gold put forward by
biblical commentators.

The parable of the talents

The respective sums of five, two and one talent, given by
a master to his servants, that Matthew (25, 15-28) relates are
credible sums. The account of this parable, as transmitted by
Maria Valtorta, is in perfect harmony with everything that has
already been said about talents. But it also sheds new light on a
text that exegetes sometimes have trouble commenting on. Jesus
is at the Temple for the Feast of the Tabernacles. He has just
said that some of His disciples will lose everything that they
have received. A Scribe contests: “What? To whom more has
been given, more will remain”. Jesus then relates this parable:
“To one of them he gave five silver talents, to another two silver
talents, to a third, only one pure gold talent. To each according
to his position and capability” (...) “the one to whom the master
had given the most, a pure gold talent”281.9. Jesus finishes the
parable: “He who has and works with what he has will be given
more and even in excess. But he who has nothing, because he
did not want anything, will also be deprived of what was given
to him”. He then stipulates, for the edification of the Scribe: “As
you see, Rabbi, the one who had the most was left with less,
because he did not deserve to keep the gift of God” (...) “You
will see Gentiles reaching eternal life and Samaritans

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possessing Heaven, and you will see pure Israelites and
followers of Mine losing Heaven and eternal Life”281.9

Silver talent, gold talent: here is an indication that changes

everything for us. But Matthew, a former tax-collector, could
have judged the parable clear enough for him not to deem it
necessary to stipulate the nature of these talents. In the Gospel
according to Luke (19, 11- 27) the talents have become mines
and this is perhaps another clue that mines and talents had
become similar values in the time of Jesus. During the Sermon
on the Mount, Jesus again speaks of gold and talents in His
teaching to the crowds: “When you give your gold to a banker,
why do you do so? So that he will make it grow. You certainly
do not deprive yourselves, of it, even momentarily, for him to
give it back to you as you gave it to him. But for ten talents you
want him to give you back ten plus one, or even more. Then you
are happy and you praise the banker”173.2. If Jesus mentions this
sum of ten talents to His audience, we can now understand that
He was referring to ten silver talents (10 x 500 deniers), received
in exchange for 200 gold pieces, and certainly not to a sum of
60,000 deniers, which would mean little to poor villagers.
Thirty deniers, the price of a common lamb
In The Gospel as revealed to me, on the question of
currencies, talents are not the only monetary unit referred to.
Almost all the currencies in circulation at the time are
mentioned and each time the information could arouse the
jealousy of any amateur numismatist. So it is when an epicurean
comments on his expenses for a coming orgy: “It’s twenty
thousand sesterces, or if you prefer, two hundred gold
pieces”425.4, this monetary conversion is correct, as the sesterce
was worth a quarter of a denier. The stater was the Greek
equivalent of the Roman aureus. It was therefore a gold piece,

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we surmise. So, when Maria Valtorta transmits this dialogue
between Jesus and Peter290, the reader might be surprised to hear
them talking about silver: “Simon of Jonah, go to the river bank
and cast a line with a strong hook as far as you can. And as soon
as a fish bites, draw in the line. It will be a big fish. Open its
mouth on the bank and you will find a stater inside. Take it. Go
to these others and pay for yourself and for Me. (…) Peter
removes the hook from the fleshy lips, thrusts his big finger into
its throat and pulls out a large silver piece... ‘Hey! Tax-
collectors! Take this! It’s worth four drachmas, isn’t it? Two
for the Master and two for me’ ”351.4/6.
However it may seem, this information is absolutely
correct. There were, in fact, silver staters corresponding to four
drachmas (tetradrachma) or to a Jewish shekel. And deniers, the
most usual currency in the Roman Empire, are mentioned
several dozen times in the work, always credibly and coherently.
“James and I had only twenty deniers between us”48.7, John tells
Peter, when he returns to Jerusalem. Drachmas, equal in value
to deniers, were still in circulation throughout the Empire. So
this remark of Peter’s is perfectly plausible: “I’m not going to
touch these ten deniers and seven drachmas that we received
these last four days”64.1, and similarly: “Peter, do you have any
money?” “Master, I have forty deniers... Forty deniers and five
didrachmas”109.11. Again, when Peter has just rented a boat in
Ptolemais: “I am going to give you a hundred drachmas more...
But mind you, it is a pledge and you will give it back to me when
I come back”318.3. A pledge of a hundred deniers for a boat and:
“a coin a day until you come back”319.2 to guard it in the port, is
quite plausible. And how to qualify Judas’ protest when he
claims the price of his betrayal291 : “Thirty silver pieces to kill a
290
Matthew recounts this episode (17, 24-27), but does not indicate the metal.
291
Matthew, 26, 15, confirms the “derisory” price of 30 deniers.

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man and that Man? The price of a common lamb during these
festivities?!”588.9. The scribes justify this derisory sum: “The
price is fixed by the prophet 292 ! Oh! It’s just a formality! A mere
symbol. The rest will come later”. And what a symbol! Jesus,
the Lamb betrayed for the price of a sacrificial lamb...
Hananiah’s shekels
One Sabbath day, while He is the guest of the Pharisee
Ishmael ben Phiabi, Jesus is about to heal a man suffering from
dropsy. He starts to speak to Hananiah ben Chiskia, the scribe
(an episode mentioned in Luke 14, 1 – 6) “You, old scribe (He
addresses the trembling old man who spoke first) tell Me: is it
lawful to heal on a Sabbath?” “It is not lawful to do any work
on the Sabbath.” “Not even to save a man from despair? It is
not manual work.” “The Sabbath is sacred to the Lord.” While
the old scribe remains intransigent, Jesus tells him: “Hananiah,
do you know that your most beautiful wood is on fire at this very
moment and the whole Hermon slope is bright red with the
flames?” The old man jumps, as if bitten by an asp: “Master,
are You telling the truth or are You joking?” “I am telling the
truth. I see and I know.” “Oh, poor wretch that I am! My most
beautiful wood! Thousands of shekels reduced to ashes!”335.13.
This last answer can only be fully appreciated by bearing in
mind that it was distasteful to the Pharisees to mention Roman
currency. The shekel was a silver Hebrew coin worth two
didrachmas. This is the only allusion to this currency in the
whole work, and it is mentioned by a Pharisee!

292
As in Zachariah, 11, 12.

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The tribute to the Temple paid during the month of
Adar
Jesus passes through Capernaum at the beginning of the
third year, precisely on the 18th of Adar according to the
reconstructed day-by-day chronology. This is when the episode
of the tribute to the Temple takes place, as related by Matthew
(17, 24-27).
“What do you want?” “Your Master, only because He is
such, does He, or does He not, pay the two drachmas due to the
Temple?” “Of course He does! Why should He not?” “Well,
because He says that He is the Son of God and...” ‘And so He
is’, retorts Peter roundly, already flushed with indignation. He
adds: ‘But, as He is also a Son of the Law, and the best Son of
the Law, He pays His drachmas, like every Israelite...’ ”351.3.
Could Maria Valtorta have known that, according to eminent
specialists293 this didrachma was, in fact, paid in Palestine on the
15th day of the month of Adar? As is evident from these few
examples, Maria Valtorta’s writings do not only show her
perfect mastery of all the subtleties of first-century Greek,
Roman and even Hebrew currencies, but also seem to offer a
very original solution to the insoluble problem of talents. And
yet, monetary conversion is indeed a subject on which even the
most erudite can too easily make mistakes, as soon becomes
abundantly clear to whoever reads books from past centuries.
*

293
Dr. Sepp, Jésus Christ, Etudes sur Sa vie et sur Sa doctrine, 1866, page 317 & E. Stapfer, La
Palestine au temps de Jésus, 1885.

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 “A LAND OF WHEAT AND BARLEY, OF VINES OF FIGS”
Deuteronomy 8, 8
A land overflowing with milk and honey” Numbers, 13, 28
“I shall make splendid vegetation grow for them” Ezekiel 34, 29

Since Biblical times the land of Israel has been renowned

for its magnificent flora, the abundance and diversity of its
flowers and fruits, as well as for the great variety of its fauna.
Another field in which Maria Valtorta seems to excel is that of
the description of flora and fauna, although here again, the risk
of error stalks the writer at every line. With about fifty sorts of
minerals, around a hundred species of animals and close to a
hundred and fifty species of plants, the flora and fauna in Maria
Valtorta’s work can easily compete with those of the Bible 294
famous as they are! But a closer look at her descriptions clearly
shows that they are in no way a simple plagiary of Biblical
descriptions.
Well-stocked kitchen gardens
It seems to be common knowledge that potatoes, tomatoes,
peanuts, sweet peppers, chocolate, guavas, avocados and
pineapples, all everyday foods today, were unknown in
Palestine at the time of Jesus... And they do not appear in Maria
Valtorta’s text. By these omissions, she avoids the trap of
anachronism! Neither is there any mention of carrots. The carrot
that we eat today is the product of human intervention in the 16th
century, a hybrid of red and white varieties. Another notable
absence is that of corn, which was, in fact, unknown in Palestine
at that time. It originated in the Americas, but was only brought
to Europe in the 16th century.

294
Throughout the Bible, there are approximately 110 names of plants and 140 of animals.

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 Here are a few examples of Maria Valtorta’s horticultural
descriptions: “It is a garden. There are no lettuces, but there are
leeks, garlic, herbs and vegetables. And pumpkins!”384.3.
“Vegetables, and I have some more melons”496.1. “A rope with
bunches of garlic and onions hanging from it”531.8. “They came
for my cucumbers”564.11. Leeks, garlic, onions, melons,
cucumbers did in fact seem to be popular with the Hebrews295.
But we also find fennels, “endives, lettuce, vegetables, young
cucurbit plants”, figs, dates, olives, grapes, apples,
pomegranates, strawberries, raspberries, etc.
A profusion of flowers
In early spring, Palestine was covered with all kinds of
flowers. Maria Valtorta admiringly describes this profusion of
colours and aromas: “At this first appearance of Palestinian
springtime, spreading its clouds of almond trees in full bloom
and laying the pearls of future flowers on pear and apple trees,
on pomegranate and quince trees, all of them, all the richest
and most delightful trees, beautiful with their blossom and their
fruit. (...) The banks... are dotted with golden buttercup buds,
the radiant stars of daisies and, near them... the elegant forget-
me-nots... In this the early spring, the lake has not yet acquired
the opulence of the months to come that will transform it into a
triumphant splendour. It has yet to acquire that
sumptuousness... of thousands upon thousands of rigid or
supple rose bushes, thousands of corymbs of cytisi and acacias
(...) of alignments of tuberous plants in flower, the thousands
and thousands of star-shaped citrus flowers, of all the blending
of colours and of strong, soft, inebriating aromas”158.1. “Smells
of wood, of mint, of violets, of the first lilies of the valley, of
rose bushes in ever-abundant flower, and above all, this fresh,

295
Numbers 11, 5.

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slightly bitter, smell of fruit tree blossoms, covering the grass
everywhere with the snowfall of their petals”348.4. “Quantities
of lilies of the valley and daffodils”174.12. “The clover and
cornflowers, the camomile and bindweed flowers”382.4. “So
many flowers emerging from the land, now bare of wheat,
poppies, cornflowers and daisies”411.1. But also: “lilies and
roses, jasmine and camphor, cinnamon and carnations”300.7. I
could mention dozens of species, so rich and detailed is the flora
that Maria Valtorta never tires of holding up to our admiring
gaze, flowers that the Master and His disciples come across by
chance as they walk through Palestine. Attentive and systematic
verification alone will show (but this is no longer surprising)
that all these descriptions fit perfectly harmoniously into the
chronology, respecting the cycle of the seasons in Palestine, as
well as the climate data.
Lazarus’s beautiful flax fields
Maria Valtorta mentions the flax fields of Judea on several
occasions. “They are going towards magnificent orchards and
flax fields, as tall as a man, ready to be harvested”84.1. Near
Bethany, “Jesus is resting near a flax field in full bloom that
belongs to Lazarus... Although the fully grown flax is very tall,
Jesus emerges a good height above the blue-green sea”204.1.
And again, elsewhere, “Behind the thicket, a flax field, its high
stalks, with their first sky-blue flowers, undulating in the
breeze”575.2. Or on another occasion, “Fluffy tows of linen or
hemp look like loose plaits hanging on the whitewashed
wall”262.2. It is an established fact that flax, a widespread crop
in Egypt, was also grown in Palestine (as was hemp, and perhaps
cotton too) well before the time of Jesus. Gauze, that fine linen
and silk cloth, owes its name to the town of Gaza, where it was

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first made296. The same goes for byssus or byssos297 well known
in Judea. Maria Valtorta often mentions it in her work “Many
small bags of very fine byssus roll out as well... Delicate hues
shine through the diaphanous linen cloth”298 294.3.
Thoughts on rice, oats and rye
Rice has been the staple food in the Orient and Southern
Asia for millennia. However, the Bible makes no mention of
rice, unlike the Talmud, in which it is referred to as orez. There
are no testimonies to its cultivation in first-century Palestine, but
rice has been grown on the Hule plain for several centuries
now299. The absence of the slightest allusion to rice by Maria
Valtorta would tend to lend credit to the authenticity of her
revelations. Nor are rye and oats mentioned in the Bible. So if
she had used the Bible as the inspiration for her work, she would
probably not have mentioned oats several times from the first
pages: “the beautiful pergola that divides the orchard in two, up
to where the fields begin, now harvested of their oats”5.1 and up
to the very last pages: “Can straw suffice? It is not even enough
for the bellies of the beasts of burden and if their master does
not fortify his animals with oats and fresh grass, the animals fed
only straw will waste away and eventually die”635.13. As for rye,
she observes in the Kerioth region: “In quite narrow, but well-
tended fields, diverse cereals grow: barley, rye especially,
and also beautiful vineyards in the sunnier places”78.1. Mischna,
a Talmud text, confirms that rye (schiphon) and oats
(schibboleth schoual) were known and cultivated in Judea in the
296
Dictionnaire technologique ... universel des arts et métiers 1827, Tome X, p118.
297
Byssos was known to most oriental peoples, notably to the Hebrews. Also produced in Greece (in
Elide and Patras, the linnum byssinum was sold at the price of its weight in gold, according to Pliny.
298
Byssos was the material of the Levites’ cloaks. It is mentioned in the Bible: 1 Chronicles 4, 21:15,
27; Esther 1, 6; 8,15; Proverbs 31, 22; Luke16, 19; Apocalypse 18, 12,16; 19, 8, 14.
299
Salomon Munk, Palestine, Description géographique, historique et archéologique, 1845, p. 18.
(continued on following page...)

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first century300, or thereabouts, but it is highly improbable that
this text could have influenced Maria Valtorta!
Agaves
There are several references in this work to the agave, that
astonishing cactus from America that grows
wild in Mediterranean areas. Maria
Valtorta, having observed them closely,
gives this detailed account: “Thirty years of
hope, oh, what a long wait! And now those
years have blossomed like the flower of a
solitary agave”102.3. And further on: “He is
like the agave, which, when it is about to
die, forms the great candelabrum with its
blazing, fragrant, seven-petal flower”127.1.
Then again: “Big, agile white goats and black ones, with long,
curved horns and bright, soft eyes feed on cacti and attack fleshy
agaves, those great paintbrushes of hard, thick leaves, which,
like open artichokes, shoot up
from the centre of their hearts,
their one gigantic seven-
branched stalk, like the
candelabrum of a cathedral,
crowned by a fragrant yellow and
red flower”221.1... “The agave
flower is more beautiful, it is so
majestic and imposing”412.1.
All of these descriptions are correct: after ten or twelve
years, a stalk, that can grow as high as 12 metres, shoots up from
its centre, bearing bunches of flowers that produce an
abundance of fragrant nectar. It only flowers once and the agave
300
See also Constantin François Volney, Voyage en Syrie et en Egypte, 1787, pages 288-289.

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stalk dies shortly afterwards. Do I really have to say that I have
found no mention of the agave in the many biblical dictionaries
that I have consulted? Here, once again, is an additional
indication that the Bible was not Maria Valtorta’s source of
inspiration.
The prickly pears of Sychar
When Jesus passes through Sychar at the beginning of
January 28 AD, Maria Valtorta describes the scene: “Jesus is
walking ahead of the Apostles, alone, close to a hedge of prickly
cactus, with its thick leaves shining in the sun, as if mocking all
the other plants that have lost their leaves. There are still a few
fruits on them that time has turned brick red, or on which the
odd early yellow-cinnabar flower already nods happily”147.1.
This is a perfect description of prickly pears, or Barbary figs,
dark or light crimson, or sometimes yellowish, with red tones.
The flowers of this cactus are yellow and its fruit is harvested
up to December or January. Originally from Goa, it is also called
the Indian fig tree and was well known to Pliny, Theophrastus
and Strabo. (Dictionnaire universel de Trévoux 1738, vol 3, p.
815/816). Once again, we note the spontaneity and quality of
Maria Valtorta’s descriptions: “At last they find a hedge of
Indian figs and there, on the
topmost leaves, bristling with
thorns, are some prickly pears,
just ripening. Anything tastes
good to hungry people, and
pricking their fingers, they pick
the ripest ones”217.4. Or again:
“the cacti on the plain or those
on the lower hillsides are becoming daily more brightly
coloured, the coral ovules, placed by a joyful decorator on top
of the fleshy spatulas, that look like hands forming thorny cases

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as they close, holding up to the sky the fruits that they grew and
ripened”221.1.

The onagers and eagles of the Judean desert

At the beginning of the work, when Jesus speaks to His

Apostles about His fast in the Judean desert, He tells them: “My
servants were the onagers that came to sleep in their caves (...)
in this one where I, too, took refuge”80.2. He speaks about these
wild donkeys again a little further on: “Let your work be
constant, confident, peaceful, without sudden starts and stops,
as onagers do. But no one, unless they are mad, uses them to
travel safely”267.7. Is there anyone who would say that Maria
Valtorta, as she reported these words, knew that this rare animal
from Tibet and Mongolia did, in fact, migrate over millennia
towards Iran and Israel? The wild onager lived in Israel until the
18th century301. Today, wild onagers are being reintroduced into
Israel and out of the 650 onagers still alive in the world, 500 live
in Israel and Iran.

Likewise, the least that can be said is that it was not

common knowledge in 1944 that there were eagles in the
Palestinian sky. And yet, these birds of prey are very often
mentioned in The Gospel as revealed to me as a familiar sight
there. In the Judean desert: “My maidservants were the eagles,
whose harsh cries told me ‘It’s daylight’ when they flew away
to hunt”80.5; but also in Galilee: “I had the pleasure of passing
there to see the beauty of the Gennesaret and Merom lakes, from
high above, as the eagles and the angels of the Lord see
them”160.4; and even on the Phoenician coast: “Some eagles, I
think they are sea-eagles or vultures, are flying in wide circles

301
Dominique Auzias, Patricia Huon, Jean-Paul Labourdette, Le Petit Futé, Israël, 2008, page 209 and
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

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over the hilltops, swooping down now and again in search of
prey. And a duel begins between two vultures that attack and
fight each other, losing feathers in an elegant but ferocious
battle, which ends in the flight of the defeated one. Perhaps it
withdraws to die on a remote mountain top. At least this is the
general opinion, so laborious and exhausted is its flight”249.2;
and to the ends of Samaria: “Look at those eagles over there,
how they soar away in wide flights in search of prey”560.15.
These numerous references to eagles testify to the fact that they
were probably quite a common sight in the mountains of Judea.
Ornithologists still come today from all over the world to
observe the many species of eagles in Israel302.

Crocodiles on the Sharon plain

The reader will perhaps be even more surprised when the
apostolic group, coming from Sycaminon and approaching
Caesarea, notices small, lizard-like creatures. Peter asks: “Oh!
What are they? Leviathans?” “You are right, Simon. In fact,
they are crocodiles. Small ones, it’s true, but capable of
maiming you for a while”. “And what are they doing there?”
“They were brought there for religious rites in the Phoenician
era and they have remained there. They have become smaller,
but no less aggressive and from the temples, they have passed
into the sludge of the river. Now they are big lizards, but with
vicious teeth!” (...) “A large lizard, that’s all it seems to be, but
with the head of a crocodile, is lying across the road, pretending
to be asleep”254.1.2. Crocodiles on the Sharon plain are indeed
astonishing and could even seem to be an anachronism.
However, Pliny, in his Natural History mentions the

302
“Following the eagles is part of our job to preserve and take care of the community of eagles in
Israel”, as Eli Amitai, director of Israel Nature and Natural parks Protection Authority, explained in July
2007.
(continued on following page...)

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Crocodilum flumen here, while Strabo the geographer tells of
the ruins of a town called Krokodeilon polis303. The existence of
these small crocodiles has been confirmed by several pilgrims
throughout the centuries. I might mention Jacques de Vitry
(1230); R. Pococke (1760) or Joseph Fr. Michaud, who
confirmed in 1831: “These are the smallest species of
crocodile”. Victor Guérin reported in 1883: “There are small
crocodiles in this humble river, and one cannot bathe there
without taking precautions. (...) They were small, about 5 or 6
feet long (...) crocodiles are thought to have been transported
long ago from Egypt to Palestine”.
The river and the bridge later described by Maria Valtorta
also exist: the river is called the Nahr ez Zerqa304, and in Lands
of the Bible, (1881) Mc Garvey mentions the remains of an
ancient bridge, 1.5 km from the mouth of this river.
So, this dialogue, following an unexpected meeting, might
be interesting: “I would die of fright if I had to go near one”
says Martha. “Really? But it’s nothing, woman, compared to a
real crocodile. It’s at least three times longer and fatter”. “And
hungry too. That one has had his fill of water snakes and wild
rabbits”. “Mercy! Water snakes too! Wherever have you
brought us, Lord? groans Martha. She is so afraid that everyone
has to laugh”. And to Martha, who wonders: “Perhaps they are
necessary?” “‘Well you’d have to put that question to the One
Who made them. But, rest assured that if He made them, it’s a
sure sign that they are useful, if only for Martha’s heroism to
shine forth’, says Jesus, with an irresistible twinkle in His eyes”.
“Oh, Lord! You’re joking and you’re right, but I am afraid, and
I shall never be able to control it”. “We’ll see about that”254.3.

303
The archaeologist R. Stieglitz found it in 1999.
304
Not to be confused with the Jabbok, which also bears this name, (“the blue river”) but is situated in
Jordan.

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The Nahr al Zarqa, the Crocodile river, “a river that never dries up, even in summer... a little
river with a rather wide bed”254.2

This last remark could easily be overlooked, or seem

enigmatic to all except French readers, but takes on its full
meaning in France for whoever knows the ancient tradition in
Provence of Les Saintes Maries de la Mer. Jacques de Voragine,
in La Légende Dorée, (1255) relates: “Martha, conquering her
fear, rid the inhabitants of the Rhone downstream from Avignon,
of the Tarasque, that long-tailed dragon that devoured men and
beasts”. Many historians think that it was probably a crocodile.
This creature could have reached the Rhone after the shipwreck
of the vessel that was carrying it to some neighbouring
amphitheatre, probably the one in Arles. The Tarasque thus
became the symbol of the town of Tarascon. Jacob of
Voragine305 writes: “Taking off her belt, she tied it around the
monster’s neck, a gesture which instantly made it as gentle as a
lamb. It allowed itself to be led docilely to the town, where the
305
Jacob of Voragine, The Golden Legend, 1902 edition, part 307, the article about Martha.

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inhabitants massacred it”. And the commentators wonder:
“What is all this about a gesture with a belt and what is there
behind it?”

Maria Valtorta’s readers will certainly associate the

mention of this medieval tradition with what Jesus said to
Martha: “Give me this hand that has never sinned, that has been
gentle, merciful, active and pious. It has always made gestures
of love and prayer. It has never become lazy or corrupt. There,
I am holding it in Mine to make it holier still. Raise it against
the devil, and he will not be able to bear it. And take this belt
which belongs to Me. Keep it always and every time you see it,
say to yourself: Even stronger than this belt of Jesus, is the
power of Jesus and with it, everything can be conquered:
demons and monsters. I must not be afraid.”231.7. In her writings,
Maria Valtorta, revealing a curious and little-known historical
fact to us, reinforces the credibility of a legend from Provence!
Is this no more than the simple inspiration of an author?

When there is also a chameleon in the picture

We wonder, and rightly so, about the pertinence of this
remark made by Nicodemus about Judas: “I do not consider it
right that among His disciples there should be someone who
does not know whether he is for or against Him, who is like a
chameleon that takes on the colour and the appearance of its
surroundings”. Or also when Peter asks: “But that scribe said:
"The chameleon is missing from the group". Does the
chameleon not change color any time it wants to?”225.1. Pliny, in
his Natural History306 gives a precise description of the
chameleon, showing that it was well-known to the Romans. And
Plutarch confirms: “It is true that the chameleon also changes
306
Pliny, Natural History, Book 8, 51.
(continued on following page...)

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colour”307. Frequently seen in Egypt, it could undoubtedly have
also wandered around untrammelled and free in Palestine in the
time of Jesus, as it does today308. Moreover, some Biblical
translations (Leviticus 11, 30) do mention it.

Did you say one dog, or two?

The dog is only mentioned with contempt309 in the New
Testament. In first-century Palestine, this animal was not
considered to be the companion and friend of man. “Do not give
dogs what is holy”, says Jesus (Matthew 7, 16) and later “It is
not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to little dogs”
(Matthew 15, 26). So it is not surprising that the dog should be
very seldom mentioned throughout Maria Valtorta’s six
thousand pages.

Accordingly, when she notes in an episode at the Clear

Water at the end of the first year of the public life: “a dog, the
second one that has come in my visions”129.1, the attentive reader
is surprised, because for him, it is the first mention of a dog. Is
Maria Valtorta mistaken? Great patience and a good memory
are required to find the answer to this question. In book 9, during
the Passion, three years later, according to the narration, a dog
crosses the path of the fleeing Judas: “In this blind flight, he is
going to bump into a stray dog, the first dog that I’ve seen since
I’ve been having the visions, a big, hairy grey dog, which moves
aside, snarling, ready to pounce on the person who has
disturbed it”605.3. It all becomes clear when the reader notices
that this vision of the Passion took place on March 31st, 1944,
and the one at the Clear Water on March 13th 1945, a year later!
307
Plutarch, Moral works 978a.
308
As stated on the internet site of the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, in the Nature section.
309
The word “cynical” inherited from the Greek, shows to what extent the contempt for dogs was
widespread in Antiquity.

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This will, of course, lend further credit to the authenticity of
these visions.

Wherever is the cat?

Most of the animals mentioned in the Bible are also
present in one way or another in The Gospel as Revealed to Me.
But among the animals that are familiar to us today, it is
surprising to note that Maria Valtorta makes no mention of any
cats whatsoever. Yet, this animal could have existed, wild or
domesticated, from early Antiquity in Egypt. The mummies
found in Thebes, Egyptian statuettes, and the testimony of
Herodotus310, are all proof of this. Although it was sacred in
ancient Egypt, the cat appears to be unknown in the Bible 311.
Was it then considered to be an impure or accursed animal by
the Israelites? This explanation, given by Jesus, of the terror that
seized Judas after his betrayal, could lead us to suppose so: “You
say that he seemed mad and rabid? He was so through satanic
fury. His terror at the sight of the dog, a rare animal,
particularly in Jerusalem, came from the fact that, from time
immemorial, that form has been attributed to Satan as he
appears to mortals. In books of magic, it is stated that some of
the forms preferred by Satan to appear to men is that of a
mysterious dog, or cat, or ram-goat”605.16.

This subject might perhaps deserve a more in-depth study,

as would the absence of certain domestic birds, such as ducks,
geese, guinea fowl or turkeys in the work...

310
See Herodotus, Histories, Book II, chap. 46 and 47.
311
According to the International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (I.S.B.E.) the word cat is only
mentioned once in the whole of the Bible. (Baruch 6, 21). This is also Osty’s opinion. (See note 21 of
the letter of Jeremy).

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 AN EXHAUSTIVE ARCHITECTURAL INVENTORY

An expert in Jewish, Greek and Roman monuments?

Maria Valtorta, describing an ongoing scene in the Temple
in Jerusalem as best she can, confides:“Were I to see the Temple
a thousand times… because of my ignorance of the correct
terms and my inability to draw a plan, I should always be remiss
in my description of this sumptuous place”115.1. And, sure
enough, while she describes landscapes with astonishing
precision, she sometimes seems to have trouble finding the
appropriate words for architecture… What a contrast, then,
between this sincere confession and the highly professional
description of Greek temples, given a few pages later, one that
Vitruvius312... himself would not have disowned… But it is true
that it is Jesus who is speaking there: “Your really beautiful
sacred buildings, whose only imperfection is that they are
dedicated to Nothingness… Look. Where are they built? The
place is generally spacious, open and elevated… If it is not
elevated, they elevate it by means of a stereobate higher than
the normal three steps used for a temple placed on a natural
elevation. They are generally surrounded by a sacred enclosure,
formed by colonnades and porches, within which are enclosed
the trees sacred to the gods, fountains and altars, statues and
steles, and are usually preceded by a propylaeum, beyond
which is the altar, where prayers are said to the deity. Opposite
it is the place for the sacrifice, because the sacrifice precedes
the prayer. Very often, and particularly in the more magnificent
ones, a peristyle encircles them with a garland of precious sorts
of marble. Inside, there is the front vestibule, outside or inside
the peristyle, the chamber of the deity and the rear vestibule.
Marbles, statues, pediments, acroteria and gables, all polished,
312
Vitruvius (Marcus Vitruvius Pollio) a Roman architect, who lived circa 90 – 20 B.C.

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precious and decorated (…) Is it not so?”204.4. Would the
architects Ictinus or Callicrates have described their
masterpiece, the Parthenon, any better? Be that as it may, these
few lines are a masterly presentation of the Greek temple313. On
closer examination, it is clear that all the terms pertaining to
ancient architecture in The Gospel as Revealed to Me come from
dialogues or letters exchanged between the actors and not from
descriptions by the author. When Maria Valtorta describes
Tiberias, she simply writes: “I see the beautiful new city of
Tiberias. Its whole layout indicates that it is new and wealthy
(...) there are beautiful avenues and straight roads (...) wide
squares with large fountains with magnificent marble basins.
Roman-style palaces, their doors already open, with spacious
arcades”99.1, while Syntyche, in her letter, writes precisely:
“They spoke at length about Him, in thermal baths, in triclinia,
or in gilt peristyles”254.5 And, writing from Antioch, she
mentions “Herod’s colonnades, the Nymphaeum”, or “the rich
palaces of the Omphalos”314. But it would be rash judgement of
Maria Valtorta’s work to let it be supposed that architecture was
her Achilles’ heel! Because, as Jesus travels tirelessly through
Palestine, Maria Valtorta, without seeming to do so, gives a full
inventory of the monuments of Palestine...
Jerusalem, its gates, its palaces and its temple
In three years, Jesus stayed for several weeks in Jerusalem
or nearby and His parents and grandparents also went there on
pilgrimages. Consequently, Maria Valtorta mentions the Holy
City on multiple occasions. Altogether, her descriptions of
Jerusalem fill dozens upon dozens of pages. As an exhaustive
view of the information on Jerusalem and the surrounding
313
These few lines tell us almost as much as a whole chapter taken from a reference work, such as
Histoire de l’art Monumental dans l’Antiquité, by L. Batissier, 1860, pages 178 to190..
314
See the paragraph “Did Maria Valtorta visit Antioch?”

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region contained in this work would fill a book, I will simply
indicate a few isolated points, in order to illustrate, once again,
the remarkable level of precision of Maria Valtorta’s
descriptions.

For example, when, on several occasions, she mentions

“Bel Nidrasc” or “Bel Nisdrasc”67.6, 111.3, 243.3, 492.2, it is, beyond
doubt, the house of studies, or Beth Midrasc, this place “situated
in the courtyard of the Gentiles, where the Sanhedrin met on
Sabbaths and on feast days315 ”, very likely the place where
Jesus, at 12, spoke with the Temple doctors and where He later
taught (John 10, 23). The exact location of this place reserved
for teaching is still not proven, but Maria Valtorta’s text seems
to indicate Solomon’s Porch225.5, east of the Gentiles’ square,
these “very large, high porches, crowded with people listening
to the lessons of the Rabbis”281.4, just where Joseph, His cousin,
exhorts Jesus to go: “Go up to the Temple and install Yourself
in Solomon’s Porch – You are of the stock of David and a
prophet, You are entitled to that place, nobody as rightfully so
as You are – and speak”478.5.

One day, to escape the violence unleashed against Him,

Jesus has to flee by “a small, low door, hidden in the wall of the
Porch”. He walks along “a gallery, between the mighty stone
walls, I don’t know their correct architectural name. The stones
are embedded I would say, that is, there are large stones and
smaller ones, and on top of the smaller ones, there are large
ones and vice versa. I do not know whether I have made myself
clear. They are dark and mighty, coarsely chiselled, hardly
visible in the dim light coming from narrow openings placed
high up at regular intervals to let in air and light, so that the
315
See Dr. Sepp, Jesus Christ, étude sur sa vie et sa doctrine, 1866, page 117, who quotes Gemara
Sanhedrin, f 88, 2.

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place will not be totally dark. It is a narrow tunnel, I do not
know what its purpose is, but I am under the
impression that it runs right around the porch
(...) We go down to the cisterns... and we
come out near the Cedron. It is an old way,
not always used for a good purpose”507.12 .

These are almost the identical words

used by commentators to describe the
discovery in 1996 of the Hasmonean tunnel
under the Temple esplanade. But in this
instance, it could be one of the galleries that
have since become inaccessible, different
from the tunnel of Ezekias, explored by
Parker’s clandestine expedition316 in 1909 –
1911. Even the apparently least significant
details turn out to be true: “Jesus... enters the enclosure of the
Temple and ... stops at a place surrounded by porches, near a
large courtyard, paved with multicoloured marble”68.1. This
description corresponds to the square of the Gentiles and the
entrance to the women’s courtyard, in front of the Beautiful
Gate (see also 85.3) and it is almost the verbatim description of
Flavius Josephus: “The whole part that was open was paved
with different stones, of varied colours317”. Still elsewhere,
Maria Valtorta admires “The beautiful Gate of Nicanor, all
sculpted in solid, silver-plated bronze”6.3. The access to the Gate
of Nicanor was from the Women’s Courtyard, sixteen steps up
a stairway. These bronze gates, brought from Alexandria by
Nicanor, were indeed left as they were, as their bronze shone

316
In 1911 R. Savignac (Ecole Biblique de Jérusalem) took photographs of them.
317
Flavius Josephus, Jewish Wars, V, 2, 190.
(continued on following page...)

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like gold318 when all the other temple gates were adorned with
gold and silver319. It does not seem very probable that Maria
Valtorta could have had such incisive knowledge of the text of
Flavius Josephus as to have noted and reported this apparently
insignificant detail. Maria Valtorta’s text also contains, as if
woven into her narrative, precious information on all of the
gates through which Jerusalem could be entered in the time of
Jesus, about ten of which she designates by name. It is highly
likely that an exhaustive study of all this information,
crosschecked with numerous other topographical details, could
add considerably to the existing knowledge in this field.
Rachel’s tomb
On at least two occasions, Jesus passes in front of Rachel’s
tomb. “At the right angle turn of the road, there is a square
building surrounded by a small low dome. It is all closed up, as
if it were abandoned. ‘Here is Rachel’s tomb’... They have
reached the tomb, an ancient, but well-preserved monument,
well whitewashed... Jesus stops to drink at a rustic well
nearby”73.1/2. Then, on another occasion: “They proceed
westward along the cool valley. The road then bends slightly to
the north, close by a hill, and here they reach the road from
Jerusalem to Bethlehem, right next to a cube-shaped building,
surmounted by a small dome, which is Rachel’s tomb. They all
go up to it and pray reverently.”207.2.
It is an established fact in the first book of the Bible
(Genesis 35, 19-20) that Rachel’s tomb is in Bethlehem: “So
Rachel died and was buried on the road to Ephrata, which is

318
Mishnah, Middot 2, 3 (Source: Israël Temple Institute). Also mentioned by Herbert Danby, The
Mishnah, Oxford University Press, 1933.
319
Flavius Josephus, Jewish Wars, V, 2, 3

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Beth Lehem. Jacob built a monument above her tomb; it is the
monument of Rachel’s tomb, which still exists today”.

The location provided by Maria Valtorta, at the entrance

to Bethlehem on the road from Jerusalem, is correct. The
Pilgrim of Bordeaux visited this tomb in 333 and Arculfe320 the
Pilgrim said that “the tomb was devoid of ornaments,
apparently a simple monument”. From the year 333 until the
19th century, several testimonies affirm that the tomb was hewn
out of the rock and covered by a dome, supported by four arches.
Some of these testimonies also mention a cistern in the near
vicinity321.
In 1841, Sir Moses Montefiore obtained the authorisation
to restore the tomb. He added a second room (the one on the left
of the photograph here, dating from this period) to serve as the
entrance and had the space under the dome closed in, so that the
pilgrims could shelter there. So we can easily imagine that
Maria Valtorta described it as it looked at the beginning of the
first century. The site is considered as the third holy place of

320
At the beginning of the Arab period in the 7th century.
321
See Louis Morand, La Terre des Patriarches, 1882, vol. 1, P. 25 – 30.

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Judaism, after the Temple Mount and the Tomb of the Patriarchs
in Hebron.

Jacob’s Well in Sychar

“The disciples leave reluctantly and turn around three or
four times to look at Jesus, Who has sat down on a little wall in
the sun, near the low, broad edge of a well. It is a big well, so
wide that it is almost a cistern. In summer, it must be shaded by
tall trees, which are now bare. The water is not visible, but the
little puddles and ring marks of wet pitchers on the ground near
the well are clear signs that water has been drawn (…) Isn’t this
Jacob’s well?”143.1.
Jacob’s well was
already embellished in the
year 380 by the construction
of a cruciform church,
mentioned by several
pilgrims: Paula,
Theodosius, Arculfe (who
322

wrote: “ecclesiae
quadrifidae in cujus
medietate fons Jacob”) and
in the 6th – 7th century, the
Venerable Bede.
“But, to come back to the well, yes, it is Jacob’s well and
its water is so plentiful and clear that we in Sychar prefer it to
other fountains. But it is very deep”143.2. A modern Naplouse 323
tourist guide does indeed mention this great depth: 32 metres

322
Paul Geyer, Itinera Hierosolymitana 1898, p 270 onwards.
323
See http://www.nablusguide.com, in the section “Places to visit”
(continued on following page...)

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and Léonie de Bazelaire324 notes that the edge of the well was
transported to Rome. Maria Valtorta’s narration in no way
varies from St. John’s.
Solomon’s Pools
Now here is a very ancient site, only mentioned twice in
the Bible (Ecclesiastics 2, 5 – 6; I Chronicles 11, 16 – 19), and
even then not very
explicitly. Jesus
passes here on two
occasions and gives
His Apostles this very
detailed description :

Above, the appearance

of Solomon’s pools in 1870.

“From here to Solomon’s Pools and thence to Bethzur…

There are three large pools hewn out of the rocky mountain, a
really grand work and the surface of the most limpid water
sparkles, as well as the waterfall, coming down from the first
pool into the second, larger, one then into the third one, a real
little lake, from where pipelines convey the water to distant
towns. The whole mountain, from the spring to the pools and
from the pools to the ground, is wonderfully fertile, thanks to
the humidity of the soil in this area. The widest variety of wild
flowers and rare, fragrant plants transform the green slopes into
a delight. (…) This is the place where Solomon’s gardens were,
and they were famous, like his palaces, throughout the world of

324
In Chevauchée en Palestine, 1899, p 89.

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those days. (…) Let us thank Solomon too… The pools that
nourish plants and men surely come from him” 208.1/5.
These ancient, tri-millennial pools are situated south of
Bethlehem, near the road leading to Hebron. Since the year
2000, considerable restoration work has been carried out, but
few Europeans would have been able to describe them so
precisely in 1945.
The tomb of the Maccabees in Modin
On the way to Jerusalem from Azotos, Jesus passes by a
place where the tomb of the Maccabees is: “We are going to
Modin. The night is serene, cool and clear. We shall walk while
there is moonlight, and then sleep until dawn. I will take the two
Judases to venerate the tombs of the Maccabees, whose glorious
name they bear.” “Only the two of us with You!” exclaims the
Iscariot happily. “No, with everybody. But the visit to the tomb
of the Maccabees is for you, that you may imitate them
supernaturally, by struggles and victories in a completely
spiritual field”222.5. The archaeological site, known in Arabic as
Seikh el Ghrabawi and in Hebrew as Khirbet Hagardi, is in fact
situated just west of Modi’in, and Victor Guérin’s excavations
of the site have revealed what could well be the Hasmonean
tomb.
Hillel’s tomb in Meiron
Jesus goes to the tomb for the first time at the end of
January 28 AD, on His way from Gerghesa to Giscala, via
Hatzor. “I am going to Hillel’s tomb... they go ahead, along a
steep road... Hillel is buried over there... They pray near the
closed tomb.”160.5/6

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 They return a year later, at the beginning of February 29
AD, on the way from Korazim. “So, where are we going?” “To
venerate the tombs of the great rabbis and heroes of Israel... I
bow before the tombs of the righteous awaiting redemption 339.6
(…) They find the village of Meiron… In the afternoon we will
leave for Giscala. The great sepulchers are scattered along
these slopes awaiting the glorious resurrection”339.6. “From
Meiron, Jesus and His disciples take a mountainous road that
runs north-west through woods and pastures, always rising.
Perhaps they have already venerated some tombs, because I can
hear them speaking about them”340.1. “Come, the town is close
at hand. We must cross it to reach Hillel’s tomb… Jesus is
praying respectfully near Hillel’s whitewashed tomb”340.6. In the
region of Meiron and Giscala, the tombs of several sages and
Biblical figures325 are still venerated today. The pilgrimage to
Hillel’s tomb326 is very ancient and one of the most ancient
written traces327 of this was attested by Benjamin de Tuleda in
1165
Are the tombs of Israel’s
heroic liberators, General Barac,
and Yaël who killed Sisera,
(Judges 4, 17 – 22; 5, 6. 24 – 27)
near Meiron, as the text suggests? I
am still unable to elucidate this
point.

There are many other cultural references in this work.

Some of them are well known, like the Antonia fortress, Herod’s

325
Internet source: www.travelnet.co.il/ISRAEL/Tiberias/tib20-MERON.htm..
326
At Khirbet Shema, 32° 59' N / 35° 28' E.
327
See E. Robinson, Eli Smith, Biblical researches in Palestine, Re edition. 2009, page 334.
(continued on following page...)

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palace, etc. Others are less famous. Whether it be Xyste328, this
mi-forum, mi-gymnasium square with colonnades, that Maria
Valtorta correctly situates in Jerusalem, but misspells:
“Sixtus”348.3 or “Sistus”368.5, 372.2; or the Hippicus329 : tower: “The
Roman synagogue is exactly opposite the temple, near the
Hippic”534.1; or again the En Rogel fountain and the nearby
King’s gardens. Others seem to have completely disappeared,
or are yet to be discovered, like the vestiges of the “Tower of
David”207.5, situated close to the Nativity grotto in Bethlehem.
The existence of this Tower appears to be historically attested330,
but no known archaeological trace of it remains. The same can
be said of the vestiges of the “Warm Fountain”266.2 in Korazim,
but in this case, we will have to wait for excavations to begin in
the part of this city that goes back to the time of Jesus.
*
I cannot, however, close this chapter on architecture
without mentioning a very surprising archaeological discovery.

An exceptional discovery in Jerusalem

Maria Valtorta describes several times, and in great detail,
the different residences of Lazarus and his sisters in Palestine
and Antioch, indicating that Lazarus possessed a luxurious
home on Mount Sion, where Jesus and His disciples were his
guests on many occasions. As usual, Maria Valtorta gives such

328
Flavius Josephus mentions it at the time of the procurator, Festus (Antiquities XX, 8, 11) on the
occasion of the speech of Agrippa II against the Jewish revolt and about the siege of the city by Titus
(Jewish Wars II, 16, 3).
329
One of the three towers of Herod’s palace, with the Phasael and Marianne towers.
330
F. E. Chassay, Histoire de la Rédemption, 1850 p 130 tells of it: “When David came to the throne,
he had a palace built in Bethlehem. The neighbouring inhabitants later called it Birath-Ârba, or the
king’s old palace. Following the departure of the children of Judah into captivity, it fell into ruins”. And
Dr. Sepp, Vie de Notre Seigneur J.-C, vol 1 page 232, even thought that the Nativity grotto was part of
the ruins of David’s palace.

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a detailed description of this palatial residence that it is easy to
form a precise mental image of it if we remember all the clues
disseminated here and there: “Lazarus’s palace (...) “almost in
the centre of the city, slightly south-west (...) in a beautiful street
leading to the Sixtus, forming a T with it and overlooking the
lower part of the town (...) behind it is Mount Sion, the area to
which it belongs”372.1/4.

These indications,
added to further details
in the work, enabled
Hans J. Hopfen (Indice e
Carta della Palestina
CEV) to place Lazarus’s
palace on a detailed map
of Jerusalem. But let us
visit the palace, thanks to
Maria Valtorta’s
descriptions: “The cornice juts out, whereas the gate is set back
in the thick wall”. It leads to “the marble atrium (...) a square,
completely white, vestibule (...), opening out into a vast, paved
main courtyard. A limpid stream gurgles in its centre”. Beyond
the courtyard “stairs leading to the upper floors and to the
terrace at the top of the house”372.1/4 offer a splendid panorama
of the whole of Jerusalem. “There are many halls and rooms
[around] “the marble atrium”, “square vestibule”375.2, “a vast
reception room, splendid”, “a royal red hall, its archway
supported by twin columns of red porphyry (...) which are
probably for banquets, with sumptuous walls (...) where “about
a hundred people can eat (...) “credenzas all along the walls”.
Then, “a white hall”, and “the adjoining room, which is
perhaps a library”. The reader slowly discovers other details,
such as the existence of “upper rooms” in this palace, whose

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rooms can hold “two hundred people, in groups of twenty”, as
Lazarus explains to Jesus. The narrative could have ended there,
and all these descriptions could have been dismissed as nothing
but the fruit of Maria Valtorta’s imagination. But that would
have been to ignore all the surprises so often contained in this
surprising work, or to dismiss them out of hand.

In 1983 a group of archaeologists from the Hebraic

University of Jerusalem, led by Professor Nahman Avigad 331
announced that they had discovered on the highest point of
Mount Sion, the vestiges of a palace dating from the time of
Herod. The meticulous
excavation that ensued
unearthed numerous objects,
perfectly preserved: small
ovens, tools, earthenware
measuring goblets, a Herodian
oil lamp, an inkwell and a
stone table... Today it is
certain that the earth that
covered this princely
residence for twenty centuries preserved it in the ruined state in
which the legionaries of Titus had left it in the year 70. Because
of the magnificence of this place, it has since been designated
by the name Palatial Residence. This Palatial Mansion has even
become the Wohl Museum of Archaeology of Jerusalem332
today.
It is situated exactly on the highest point of Mount Sion, 757
metres high, the only place from which the panorama described

331
T. Nelson, Discovering Jerusalem, 1983 and Wohl Archaeological Museum, Jerusalem, 1989.
332
See also, for example, the Site of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum :
http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/sbf/escurs/Ger/05escursEn.html.

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by Maria Valtorta can be seen! And it is 30 metres from the
place imagined by H. Hopfen (according to Maria Valtorta’s
indications) ten years prior to this discovery, as can be seen on
this plan333 ! The entrance to this 600m² building opens onto a
square vestibule, with a mosaic floor. This atrium leads to
several halls and a great paved courtyard (8m x 8m) with a
central ritual fountain basin. The great reception hall (11m x
6.5m, is decorated with remarkable Greco-Roman frescoes. On
the other side of the vestibule is a completely red hall... There is
no need to go on. All the details given by Maria Valtorta are
there, exactly as shown on this excavation plan.

Extract from the plan of the palace, according to Nahman Avigad.

333
According to Ch. Saulnier, Jérusalem, Guide historique et culturel, Larousse 1988, page 180.

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 Model of the palace according to Ritmeyer Archaeological Design

But who did this luxurious, early first century palace

belong to? This is the question that has baffled archaeologists
for thirty years. Some of them hazard the guess of the family of
a high priest, but the refined Greco-Roman style of the
decoration hardly evokes the Jewish frescoes of that period. The
question remains unanswered...
The fresco in the red hall

I, for one, immediately recognised

Lazarus’s palace on Mount Sion. And I
think that Maria Valtorta’s readers can
be in no doubt that this princely
residence is none other than the one in
which the risen Lazarus of Bethany,
brother of Mary and Martha, played host
to Jesus and His disciples during the
Passover in 29 AD. How could Maria
Valtorta have seen a monument in 1944
that would only be discovered twenty years after her death?
*

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 DE RE RUSTICA...
“It is indispensable to have one’s own blacksmiths, carpenters and artisans to work
on the barrels and tanks, so that the peasants will not have to leave their everyday work to
go into the town” Palladius Rural Economy 1, 6

If there is a field in which it is easy to commit

anachronisms, it is certainly that of the description of the
techniques, work and human activities of bygone times.
However, several authors, such as Cato, Varron, Pliny, Palladius
or Columella, for example, provide enough data on certain
techniques, such as wine and oil production, farming and even
different artisanal applications, to enable us to verify the truth
of Maria Valtorta’s abundant descriptions on this vast subject.
As the craft industry was closely linked to agriculture in
Antiquity, let us first look at work in the fields.

Ploughing, harvesting and threshing

Immediately after the grape harvest and the Feast of the
Tabernacles, a new agricultural cycle began. “In the fields, there
are a few yokes of oxen ploughing (...) And what upsets me is to
see that in some places it is the men themselves who work as
oxen, pulling the ploughshare with all the strength of their arms
and even with their chests, bracing themselves in the ploughed
soil, toiling like slaves at this hard labour, exhausting even for
robust bulls (...) Other peasants are at the ploughs, or bent
double, weeding all the loose grass from the furrows”109.1.8.

In the time of Christ, the hand plough was normally used

for small lots and the poorest properties (one to three acres, or

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5,000 to 15,000 m²). The biggest of them had a ploughshare, to
which two oxen or two cows334 were yoked.
“We have seen farmers working in
the fields... the soil had already been
turned by the ploughshare and stones,
brambles and couch-grass had been
cleared away by fire and the toil of
men”111.4. Virgil335 confirms this
technique.
Then came the sowing season to
which Jesus refers in the parable of the sower336. “A sower went
out to sow (...) So the man took his sack of seed-corn of the best
quality and began to sow”179.5.
After the Passover, the harvest begins, and Maria Valtorta
depicts this in detail: “Farmers are already busy at their work
(…) They sing as they cut and laugh happily, competing with
one another to cut the fastest with the sickle or to tie the
sheaves… Several groups of well-fed peasants (…) At the edges
of the fields or behind the reapers, there are children, widows,
old people waiting to glean”407.1. Still elsewhere, “Some women
follow the reapers, tying the sheaves”411.1. The sheaves are left
for a while to dry in the sun. “A very fertile country, in which
the corn is taking its final rest in the bright sunshine that ripened
it, lain out in sheaves in the fields”221.1. “The sheaves that are
already tied in the fields”220.7.
Then comes the threshing. “The sheaves from the day before
are already piled up on the threshing-floor”405.1. “Here too, the
reapers are working hard. Nay, they have worked hard, and
334
Pliny, Natural History, XVIII 48, 2.
335
Virgil, The Georgics, 1, 84.
336
Matthew, 13, 3-9; Mark 4, 3-9; Luke 8, 5-8.

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their sickles are now idle, as not a single ear has been left uncut.
(…) Its four threshing-floors are being filled with many sheaves,
laid out in bundles, as soldiers lay out their arms when they stop
at camps”408.1. Page after page, without in the least seeming to
do so, Maria Valtorta, by her meticulous descriptions, recreates
this whole country life for us, a life always at the mercy of the
weather, despite the gentle warmth of the Palestinian climate.

When Jesus repairs a plough

One September evening, when old Jacob has just offered
Him hospitality, Jesus asks His host what he is doing: “I am
working at this plough. But the wood is all broken...” And Jesus
says: “Give Me that hammer. That is not the way to do it. You’re
breaking the wood. Give Me that spike too, but make it red-hot
first. It will be easier to pierce the wood and we will put the peg
in with no trouble. Let Me do it. I was a carpenter (...) And Jesus,
wearing only His tunic, works quickly and skilfully at the split
beam. He drills holes, fastens and bolts it, tests it until He feels
that it is firm. ‘It will still work for a long time, until next year’
”110.6.

This is all totally compatible with what we know from

Virgil337 about the details of plough-making in those days. But
the credibility of this account is truly reinforced when we learn
that St. Justin of Nablus (circa 103 / circa 162) reports that he
was told about the ploughs that Jesus is said to have made in
Palestine. He specifies: “Jesus and Joseph made ploughs for
oxen”338.

337
Virgil, The Georgics 1, 170 – 175.
338
Dialogue with Triphon, reported by the Abbot J. P. Migne in Hommes illustres de la primitive église,
1874, p 48; and R. Aron, En ce temps de la Bible, n° 83.

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An edifying lesson in carpentry
One day, Jesus is instructing Peter on the essential
qualities for goodness: order, patience, constancy, humility,
charity... Peter is astonished to find order in this list. So Jesus
explains to him: “Yes, of course, order, patience, perseverance,
humility, charity... I have often said it!”. “But not order. What’s
order doing here?” “Disorder is never a good quality. I have
explained this to your companions. They’ll tell you. And I
mentioned it first, whereas I mentioned charity last, because
those are the two extremities of the straight line of perfection.
Now, you know that a straight line on a plane has neither
beginning nor end. Each extremity can be the beginning or the
end, while in the case of a spiral, or any other design not
enclosed in itself, there is always a beginning and an end.
Holiness is linear, simple, perfect and has but two extremities,
like a straight line”. “It’s easy to draw a straight line...” “Do
you think so? You are mistaken. In a drawing, even a
complicated one, some imperfections may not be noticed. But in
a straight line, each error is immediately noticeable: either in
inclination or uncertainty. When Joseph taught Me the trade, he
was adamant that the boards be straight, and rightly so. He
would say to Me: ‘See, son? A small imperfection might go
unnoticed in a decoration or in a turned work, because the eye,
unless it be very experienced, watches one point and does not
see another. But if a board is not as straight as it should be, even
the simplest job, such as a poor table for a peasant, will be a
poor job. It will be slanted, or it will wobble. It will only be good
for firewood.’ The same applies to souls. In order to be more
than firewood for hell, that is, in order to win Heaven, we must
be perfect, like a properly planed and squared board. He who
starts his spiritual work in disorder, beginning with useless
things, flitting from one thing to another, like a nervous bird,

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will end up unable to assemble the various parts of his work.
They will not fit together. Therefore, order and charity. Then,
holding these two extremities firm in two vices, so that they
cannot move, you can work at everything else, ornaments or
sculptures. Do you understand?”139.4. This example clearly
shows how Jesus uses his undeniable professional knowledge in
the service of the edification of the soul.

A lesson in painting
Now, here is a methodical lesson in painting given by Jesus to
Simon the Zealot: “Paint makes wood impermeable and
preserves it longer, besides enhancing its beauty. (...) You see,
to obtain paint that is both beautiful and really effective, you
have to see to many things. First of all, you have to choose
carefully everything that you need to make it, that is, a clean
recipient, without dirt or any residue of old paint; good oils, and
good colours, and then mix them patiently, until you obtain a
liquid that is neither too thick nor too runny. Work tirelessly on
it until the last little lump is dissolved. When you have done that,
you need a brush that doesn’t lose its bristles, which must be
neither too hard nor too soft. The brush should be cleaned of all
previous paint and before applying the paint, you have to sand
the wood, scraping off any old paint, or mud, or anything else.
Then, neatly and with a steady hand and great patience, you
spread the paint, always in the same direction. In fact, there are
different resistances on the same board. On knots, for instance,
the paint remains smoother, it is true, but it does not cover them
well, as the wood rejects it. In contrast, on the soft parts of the
wood, the paint adheres immediately, but these parts are
generally not as smooth, so they form blisters or stripes... You
must then remedy this by carefully applying your hand to spread
the colour. Then, in old furniture, there are new parts, like this

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step, for instance. So, in order not to show that the poor stairway
is patched up, but very old, you have to make the new step look
like the old ones. There you are, like this! Jesus, bent over at the
foot of the stairs, is speaking as He works… Thomas, who has
left his burins to come and take a closer look, asks: “Why did
You start from the bottom rather than from the top? Wouldn’t it
have been better to do the opposite?” “It would seem so, but it
is not, because the bottom is more worn out and will continue to
wear out sooner, as it rests on the ground. So, it needs several
coats of paint: a first coat, then a second one and a third, if
necessary… and so as not to stand around idly while the lower
part dries, before you apply the second coat, you paint the top
of the stairs, then the middle”. But, in doing that, you can stain
your clothes and spoil the parts that are already painted.” “If
you are clever and skilful, you neither stain your clothes nor
spoil anything. You see? This is how you do it. You tuck in your
clothes and stand back. Not out of distaste for the paint, but in
order not to smudge the delicate wet paint”434.3/4. Of course, this
very pedagogical and technical lesson that no painter would
disown, does not stop there. Jesus, as usual, then carries it to a
spiritual level, to illustrate the way to treat souls...

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Making and working with purple
The first mention of purple occurs in mid-June 28 AD:
“the fishing season for fish to be salted is over and the fishermen
have gone to Syro-Phoenicia to fish for murices”250.1. Later,
Jesus asks some fishermen that he meets near Tyr: “When does
the murex fishing-season end?” “When the autumn storms
begin. The sea is too rough here at that time.”251.4. So, here is
our first piece of information: Murex fishing was done between
Tyr and Sidon, from June to September339. Then Judas shows the
disciples how he obtained the precious gift: “He shows all the
offerings given to him by the murex fishermen, and especially a
large bundle containing the precious substance. “This is for the
Master. If He does not wear it, who else can?”252.5.
Later, Mary has received this generous present, but does
not know how to use it. She asks Noemi, Mary Magdalene’s
nurse, for advice. “The Virgin Mary shows the precious parcel
of purple, asking how the very short threads can be spun, as they
refuse to be moistened or twisted. “That’s not how it is done,
Donna. They are to be crushed into powder and then used as
any other dye. It’s the secretion of a shellfish, not a hair. Do
You see how it crumbles, now that it is dry? Pound it into a fine
powder and sift it, to remove any long pieces which would stain
the yarn or the cloth. It is better to keep the yarn in skeins. When
You are sure that it is all reduced to fine powder, dissolve it, like
cochineal, or saffron, or indigo powder, or the powder of any
other bark, root or fruit, and use it. The last time You rinse it,
stabilise the dye with strong vinegar”255.6.
The specialists are still unsure of the techniques of purple
production, lost for centuries. It seems that the molluscs were
339
In 1864, Gaillardot, a Frenchman, discovered a hillock near Sidon 6.8m high and 120m long, entirely
made up of Murex. The shells had all been broken exactly where the gland that secretes the purple is.
This hillock of shells confirms the importance of this purple dye industry in Phoenicia in Antiquity.

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broken, in order to extract a little gland that was macerated in a
basin in the sun for about ten days. The dye floated to the surface
and could then be taken off. Inge Boesken Kanold, a specialist
on this subject, says that purple can be used in its natural, liquid
state, without additives or mordant, “because it is insoluble in
its solid state”. This is exactly what Mary said: “it refuses to be
moistened”! Three months later, Mary speaks to Jesus about this
precious gift: “Purple? Who gave it to you?” “Judas of Kerioth.
It was given to him by the Sidon fishermen, I believe. He wants
me to make You a king’s robe...Of course I will make it, but You
do not need purple to be a king”. “Judas is more stubborn than
a mule”, is the only comment on the purple gift... He then asks
His Mother: “And can You make a full garment with what he
gave You?” “Oh, no, Son. It can be used as a fringe on a tunic,
or a mantle, no more.” “Very well. I understand why You are
weaving it into narrow strips. Well... Mother, I like the idea.
Keep those strips for Me and one day I will tell You to use them
for a beautiful tunic. But there is plenty of time for that. Do not
wear Yourself out”303.4.
The fact that Mary could only dye a few fringes with the
gift from the fishermen of Sidon is perfectly credible, as purple
was one of the dearest and most precious products in Antiquity.
And, as the very rich Mary Magdalene herself said, just after the
Crucifixion: “I got the purple for Plautina”612.3, confirming that
this precious merchandise was strictly reserved for the richest
Romans.

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Wine gladdens human hearts
Psalm 104, 15
Since time immemorial, men have been partial to wine,
and more generally, fermented drinks. So it is hardly surprising
that it should often be mentioned in the work. However, a few
conversations deserve closer attention... First of all, that of the
epicurean called Ennius: “And wines. Ah! Sweet, precious wines
from the Roman hills, from my warm shores of Liternum and
from your sunny coasts near Aciri! ... And fragrant wines from
Chios and from the island, with Cintium, its pearl; and
inebriating wines from Iberia, to arouse the senses”425.3.
Although this might go unnoticed, this declaration mentions five
regions among the most renowned for their wines in Antiquity:
- Liternum, a town in northern Naples and the Campania hills, of
which Florus340 said: “It is the most beautiful region in the world,
where Liber (wine) rivals only Ceres” (harvests). And Pliny341 adds:
“this Campania, blessed by the gods. From this gulf the hills begin,
covered in vines and the world-renowned inebriation that their
illustrious nectar gives us”.
- The Acciris is the ancient, forgotten name of a river (the modern
Agri) which flows to the gulf of Taranto. It crosses Calabria, a
southern region of Italy renowned for its wines.
- In the island of Chios, wines from Arvisia and Mesta, also highly
renowned in Antiquity342, were harvested.
- Cintium, which is, of course, Kition (modern day Lanarca), on the
southern coast of Cyprus, whose wines are among the oldest in the
world343.
- In Iberia, Pliny and Strabo praise the Lauro (Llíria) wines in the
region of Valencia.

340
Florus, Epitomae I, 11.
341
Pliny the Elder, Geography of Italy III, 60-61.
342
Athenaeus of Naucratis, The banquet of the Learned, book I, 28 ; Virgil, 5e Eclogue, V, 71 ; Silvius
Italicus, Complete Works, book VII, 210 Firmin Didot 1878, etc.
343
It seems that Hesiod already praised a mythical wine that he called ‘nama’.

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 Here is another example in which Gentiles are talking
about Gamaliel, while waiting for Jesus: “Is it true that he is the
greatest doctor in Israel?” “Yes, but... how pedantic he is! I
listened to him one day, but to digest his science, I had to drink
many goblets of Falernian wine at Titus’s in Bezetha”487.2.
Falerno, a wine from Campania, reputed from Antiquity as the king
of wines, was sung by many poets: Petronius, in the Satyricon,
mentioned the “hundred year old Falerno Opimien... this wine has
lived longer than the frail human!” and Martial’s “immortal
Falerno”, or again, Horace’s “ardens Falernum”.
The same sort of conversation is heard between two
legionaries344 the day after Palm Sunday: “A god riding a
donkey? Ha ha! If He were as drunk as Bacchus, He could be.
But He is not drunk. I don’t think He even drinks mulsum. Don’t
you see how pale and thin He is?”592.2.
Mulsum was a honeyed wine, popular with the Greeks and the
Romans. It was praised by Pliny the Elder345 : “Many are those who
have lived to a very old age with no other nourishment than bread
dipped in Mulsum”. It was made by mixing one measure of honey to
4 or 5 measures of wine346.
The same conversation continues: “And yet, the
Hebrews...” “They do drink, although they pretend not to347 And
inebriated with the strong wines of this land and with their
sicera, they saw a god in a man”592.2

344
One of them, who declares: “I, a peasant from Benevento, did not dare speak to a man Who is said
to be God” later turns out to be the future Saint Vital, husband of Saint Valerie and father of St Protais
and St Gervais, martyred in the reign of Nero.
345
Pliny, Natural History, Book XXII, Chap. 53, 2.
346
According to a recipe by Columella, De Re Rustica Book 15, 41, 1.
347
Several precepts impose in fact “Not to drink wine poured out in libation to idols” (Deuteronomy
32, 38); “You will drink neither wine nor strong drink...” Leviticus 10, 9. And also Numbers 6, 3.
(continued on following page...)

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 The sicera in question here is cider, a drink known to ancient peoples:
the Hebrews348 (chekar), the Egyptians, the Greeks (sikera) and the
Romans (sicera) all drank it.
Let us not forget hydromel, mentioned on several
occasions, as for instance: “They filled their goblets with wine,
or hydromel, for those who prefer it”160.2.
Hydromel, a mixture of wine and water, as its name implies, was
popular with the Greeks. But under the Roman Empire, it appears to
have been considered as an inferior drink. At any rate, Plutarch wrote
that it was drunk by primitive men who ate acorns349.
Resin in wine
One Sabbath day, at the very beginning of the third year of
the public life, Jesus is in Korazim, where He cures the crippled,
bent woman (Luke 13, 10-17). But just before working the
miracle, he gives His listeners an unexpected parable about a
“large block of a blond substance, like finest honey” that a rich
man asks an artisan to “make into an ornate vial”. He clarifies:
“It is a precious resin and one of my friends has a small
amphora in which his wine acquires a precious taste”337.3
This little sentence, lost in the middle of an animated
dialogue, could well go unnoticed, which would be a pity, as it
evokes a custom, well known to the Greeks, of incorporating
resin into wine. Columella, a famous Roman agronomist and
contemporary of Jesus, who had studied wine-making,
described how wines were flavoured with resin at that time 350.
Today, the Greek retsina, a souvenir of ancient wines, is still

348
Saint Jerome, in a letter to Nepotian, reports that apple juice was known to the Hebrews. “The
Hebrew text uses the sicera, which means liqueur that inebriates, be it made of wheat, apples, honey or
dates”.
349
Plutarch Life of Coriolanus, 1, 4
350
See his work De Re Rustica, Book 12, 23, 1: “Pix corticata appellatur”

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obtained by the addition of small pieces of resin from the Alep
pine.
Grape-harvesting on a ladder
As might be expected, there are numerous references to
vineyards in Maris Valtorta’s work, as these were omnipresent
in Palestine. As she describes her scenes, the vine appears in
every stage of its development. In January, “the vines, still all
barren”156.1; in March they are “festoons of vines, still barren,
except at the top of the festoons, where there is more sunshine
and the first little, innocent, surprised, trembling leaves are
beginning to open”14.1. A little later, in April, “it must be
springtime because the bunches of
grapes are quite big, about the size
of vetch grains”21.1. Then in May,
“Grapes in general are swelling,
while a few, favourably placed,
bunches try to show the
transparent topaz and the future
ruby of maturity”221.1. In July,
“under the pergolas laden with
grapes”264.1. Finally, come
November, “a vine pergola, now bare of grapes and leaves.
Only a few yellow leaves
hang”298.2. These remarks are
so numerous in the work that
they should normally expose
the author to some measure of
incoherence. But, needless to
say, it is exactly the opposite
that happens. They are all in perfect harmony with the
chronology established elsewhere, so reinforcing the credibility
of the whole. Put all together into an orderly text, I have no

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doubt that all of these descriptions would produce an opuscule
that would not have been rejected by any of the six main Roman
authors who wrote on this subject, i.e. Cato, Varro, Pliny,
Columella, Martial or Palladius.
Roman mosaics of grape harvesting

When Maria Valtorta writes: “the path is a narrow one,

running between trees tied to one another by vines”256.4, and
then when she describes a grape harvest, it might be surprising:
“Men on high ladders pick the grapes
from pergolas and vines; women, with
baskets balanced on their heads, take
the golden and ruby grapes to the
waiting crushers”108.1. Yet, it is true. In
ancient Rome the normal practice was
to lead the vines on to trees351,
especially olive trees. The Romans
thought that this was a real marriage, in
which the tree transmitted its strength to the vine.
After so much information on wine and vines, dare I say
it: In vino veritas?

Mastery of fire in the first century

The mastery of fire has certainly been one of the greatest
human achievements in history. Today, with gas lighters or
matches, lighting a fire is a simple, everyday gesture.

351
See in particular Pliny the Elder, Natural Histories, Book 17. See also the Hermas’ pastor

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 However, it is the fruit of a slow technological evolution,
which seems to have started by rubbing two sticks together, then
hitting stone against stone352, then iron against iron. The
principle is a simple one: steel hitting flint provokes a spark that
sets fire to tinder. And it is this technique that Maria Valtorta
repeatedly observes: “Joseph
pulls out tinder and flint and
lights a little lamp that he takes
out of the bag slung across his
chest”28.4. This is even the subject
that Peter spontaneously
mentions when Jesus asks him to
teach it: “When wood is dead it
rots and woodworms reduce it to
powder, but it will not catch fire by itself. And yet, if suitably
arranged, and tinder and flint are held close to it, a spark is
produced. If it is then helped to catch fire by blowing on twigs
to increase the flame, then it becomes beautiful and useful and
sets everything on fire, even big logs”260.7. And Jesus, on the day
of His Ascension, makes this comparison: “The contemplation
of God is like a spark that flashes from the friction of steel on
flint and gives fire and light”638.10.
It’s market day
There is so much more to say on the life of peasants... But
before I close this chapter, let me at least mention the market,
this rural activity par excellence. It seems, according to the
specialists353, that as a rule, market days were on the second and
fifth days of the week, Mondays and Thursdays, days on which
the synagogues were open for prayer. Although it was not an
352
This technique, known to man well before Antiquity, was still in use then, as suggested by Aristotle
or Pliny, as well as a few archaeological discoveries.
353
H. Graezt, Histoire des Juifs, Ch. 3 ; E. Stapper, La Palestine au temps de Jésus, Book 2, ch. 6.

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absolute rule, these are, in fact, the two days that are most often
mentioned as market days in Maria Valtorta’s work, along with
Friday mornings, which, it seems, were essential in large towns
like Jericho and Jerusalem. Maria Valtorta excels at
reconstructing the colourful, animated atmosphere: “There is
the dust, noise, dirt and confusion of market days”387.1. “It is full
of people coming and going, doing their shopping, while outside
the main door, in the little square, people are bustling about the
noisy Alexandroscene market, buyers and sellers, with braying
donkeys, bleating sheep and lambs, cackling hens”329.1. “The
square is becoming more and more crowded, the noise ever
louder. There are women shopping, cattle dealers, people
buying oxen for ploughing, or other animals, peasants bent
under the weight of baskets of fruit, all the while praising their
goods, cutlers with all their sharp utensils well displayed on
mats, making an infernal din by striking axes on stumps to show
the hardness of the blade; others are striking scythes suspended
from stands to show the perfection of the blade, still others are
lifting ploughshares with both hands and driving them into the
ground, which bursts open as if wounded, to prove the
robustness of the share, which no ground can resist; and
coppersmiths, with amphorae and buckets, pans and lamps,
striking the sonorous metal to deafening effect, to show that it is
solid, or shouting at the top of their voices, offering oil-lamps
with one or several flames for the approaching festival of
Kislev; and above all this uproar, as monotonous and piercing
as the plaintive lament of the night owl, come the cries of
beggars, disseminated in the strategic points of the market”521.1.

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 IS IT LAWFUL TO HEAL ON THE SABBATH?...
Luke14, 1-11

“This is what the Lord says: Maintain justice and do what is right,
for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed.
Blessed is the one who does this – the person who holds it fast, who keeps the
Sabbath without desecrating it, and keeps their hands from doing any evil”.
Isaiah 56, 1-2

Among the many subjects that have given rise to

questions, astonishment or admiration in Maria Valtorta’s
readership, her knowledge of Judaism, as it appears in her text,
is decidedly not the least. Rare are those born and raised in the
Christian culture who, a priori, have not studied Judaism, and
are yet capable of such a demonstration of erudition. What is
more, this erudition concerns the three fields required of every
faithful Jew: knowledge of the commandments, laws and
precepts, knowledge of the history of the people of Israel, and
knowledge of Wisdom.
Phylacteries, fringes and ziziths
We note, for religious garments, the same particularity as
for architectural terms. Maria Valtorta often seems to be
ignorant of the jargon and appears to discover it with us, in the
dialogues she hears. It is Jesus, not Maria Valtorta, who
declares: “under the tephilim, the fringes and zizith of Jewish
garments and particularly under the wide tephilim and the fluffy
zizith attached to the ample garments of Pharisees and scribes,
to prove their even greater compliance with the Law”461.7. When
Maria Valtorta observes: “He too is wearing a kind of
rectangular veil on his head, secured with a leather band”6.1,
she does not name the talet, which is, however, mentioned
several times in the work, either by Peter “a talet as white as
snow”192.4, or by Mary Magdalene: “I made the belt, the purse
and the talet, embroidering them by night, so as not to be

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seen”612.3. In the practice of Judaism, the talet is a rectangular
cloth, the prayer shawl, with which they cover their heads while
in relation with God354. The ziziths (fringes) are attached to the
four corners of the talet. The talet represents earthly materiality,
whereas the ziziths imply a link with God. Note that there is no
mention in the work of the kippa, which was not in use in the
time of Jesus.
The High Priest’s vestment
When Maria Valtorta sees Simeon ben Boethos, then High
Priest, at the Temple, she gives an admirable and perfect
description of the vestment of this worthy personage. She does
not, however, use any specific vocabulary: “The High Priest…
A stately old man, dressed in very fine linen and wearing over
his linen dress a short linen tunic and on top of it a kind of
chasuble, something multicoloured between a chasuble and a
deacon’s vestment: purple and gold, violet and white alternate
and sparkle like gems in the sun; two real gems shine more
brightly at his shoulders. Perhaps they are buckles with their
precious settings. On his breast there is a large metal plate
shining with gems and held by a gold chain. Pendants and
trimmings gleam on the end of his short tunic and gold shines
on his forehead, on the highest part of his headdress which
reminds me of the mitre that Orthodox priests wear, a dome-
shaped mitre, not pointed, like the Roman Catholic one”8.6.
Only later in the work, as Jesus gives His messages, will the
reader learn the terms ephod, rational and tiara
Maria Valtorta does not seem to have been inspired by
Exodus chapter 28, which describes the Ephod, the noblest
insignia of pontiffs, which covers half of the body, a short tunic
made of a richly embroidered cloth. The shoulders are indeed
354
The Shoulkhan Aroukh (Orah Haïm 91, 3) indicates that they cover their heads as a sign of piety.

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decorated by a strikingly large precious stone. In the front of the
Ephod, the pectoral is placed, held by four gold chains, and
enriched by gold and twelve precious stones upon which appear
the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. During His trial, Jesus
proclaims before Caiaphas: “I alone wear the true Rational, on
which is written: Doctrine and Truth355”604.14.
The law of the orphan heiress and Mary’s marriage
When Mary reaches the age to leave the Temple, the High
Priest Simeon questions Her. Mary places Herself in his hands:
“Priest, please tell me how to behave... I have neither father nor
mother. Please be my guide”11.5
The High Priest then calls possible suitors of the House of
David to the Temple. “Mary, the Virgin married in the Temple
by the High Priest, according to the Law of Israel because She
was an orphan”68.2. This law is, in fact, written in the Talmud:
“He who keeps an orphan in his house is considered the father
of the orphan” (Sanhedrin, 19b). So it is legal for the High Priest
to organize Mary’s wedding, as the Apocryphal Gospel of James
attests (2nd century apocryphal) in chapter VIII.3. And when
Uncle Alpheus later complains about “the law of the orphan
heiress”100.5, he is alluding to the Law of Moses: “If a man dies
without a son, then his daughter becomes the heiress”
(Numbers 27, 8). And “any girl among the tribes of the sons of
Israel who possesses an inheritance must marry within one of
the clans of her father’s tribe” (Numbers 36, 8). This is how we
understand that Mary and Joseph are both descendants of the
House of David, as is repeatedly affirmed in The Gospel as
Revealed to Me.
355
The two Hebrew terms Ourim and Toummim, (according to Exodus 28, 13), that Biblicists
sometimes have difficulty translating. Saint Jerome, in the Letter to Fabiola, wrote: “The two Greek
words delocis and aleteia, the first of which means clarification or doctrine, and the other truth, that
according to some people were written on the rational”.

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“When He was twelve years old, they went up to the
Temple”
Luke 2, 42

The description of the majority examination as Maria

Valtorta relates it on two occasions, for Jesus and for young
Jabez, deserves particular attention. “All the people were
attentive to the reading of the Law: men, women and all those
old enough to understand” (Nehemiah 8, 3). According to this
text, all those old enough to understand the reading of the Law
are present. So those who were older than twelve were included,
because this was the age at which a male child became a Son of
the Law and assumed all the religious obligations of adult men.
Today, the Jews celebrate the rite of passage to adulthood of
boys of thirteen by a ceremony called the Bar Mitzvah, when
the son becomes responsible for his actions: “The son will not
bear the sins of his father, nor the father the faults of his son”
(Ezekiel 18, 20). After his meeting with John of Endor, Jesus
asks him “Did you not come back to the Temple again?” “Oh
yes, when I was twelve years old and always after that, as long
as … I was able to”197.2. And at this required age, at the Passover
following the age of twelve years, and reaffirmed on several
occasions in the work: “Jesus, Who is now twelve years old,
setting out for Jerusalem (...) a handsome young boy, twelve
years old”39.4. And when Marjiam presents himself at the
Temple: “But who can prove that the child is twelve years old
and was redeemed from the Temple?”201.4.

When she describes Jesus’s coming of age examination,

Maria Valtorta remarks: “Joseph presents Jesus. Prior to this,
they have both made a low bow before ten doctors who, with
great dignity, have taken their seats on low wooden stools”40.2.
Then again, at Marjiam’s coming of age: “Two dour
personages, whose haughtiness subsides only in Joseph’s

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presence. Eight other, less imposing, ones enter from the back.
They sit down, leaving the postulants, Joseph of Arimathea
included, standing”201.4. But could she have known that this
number of ten witnesses, the minyan, is the necessary quorum
at the recital of the most important prayers of any office or
ceremony, such as circumcision, marriage, bereavement, etc356.

The examination is the occasion on which all sorts of

questions are asked, in order to ascertain the maturity of the
child. A doctor of the Law asks Jesus: “If a hen lays an egg on
a Sabbath, or a sheep lambs on a Sabbath, will it be legal to use
the fruit of its womb, or will it be considered an
abomination?”40.5 Some might wonder whether this question is
merely the fruit of Maria Valtorta’s imagination. It is, however,
an established fact that that this subject was, in fact, debated
between the Hillel and Shammai357 schools, as attested by
Maimonides (who answered in the negative). The examination
is also a means to test the postulant’s knowledge of the great
texts of Judaism: “Therefore, since He knows the Law in Itself
and in its three branches of Halascia, Midrasc and Aggada, He
can behave like a man”40.2. Peter later wonders about Marjiam:
“I do not know how much he knows of the Law, of the Halascia,
the Hagadha and of the Midrasciots”197.3. As we see again,
when she transcribes phonetically, Maria Valtorta does her best,
but it is clear that she does not have the necessary
documentation to correct her approximations.
Midrash: the rabbinic interpretation of a verse or a passage from the
Bible and, by extension, the book of the compilation of these
teachings.
Halakha: the rabbinic commentary on the legal parts of the Bible, to
give its profound meaning and provide a rule to live by.

356
Talmud, Meguila treaty, 23b.
357
Talmud, Edujoth treaty, IV, 10.

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 Haggada: the interpretation of the non-legal parts of the Bible, in a
moralising or edifying sense.

“He knows the precepts, the traditions,

the decisions, the customs of the parchments
and the phylacteries”40.2. So the ceremony
can come to an end: “They cut His hair...
Then they tighten His red tunic with a long
band wrapped several times around His
waist. They tie some little strips to His
forehead, arm and mantle. They attach them
with brooches of some sort”40.7, and further
on, the same ceremonial takes place for
Marjiam: “His hair is cut, from shoulder-length to just below
his ears. Peter then opens his little parcel, takes out a beautiful
red woollen belt embroidered in gold-yellow and ties it around
the boy’s waist. Then, while the priests are tying little strips of
leather onto his forehead and arm, Peter is busy attaching the
sacred fringes on to the mantle that Marjiam has handed over
to him”201.5, as prescribed by the Law: “You will tie them as a
symbol on your arm and you will wear them on your forehead
between your eyes” (Exodus 13, 9).

The Law and the 613 precepts

During Jesus’s coming of age examination, a Scribe asks
Him this question: “And what about the six hundred and
thirteen precepts?”40.6. Then when Jesus questions Barnabas,
the new disciple, he too mentions the 613 precepts: “As you are
the disciple of a great Rabbi, you are certainly aware of the
conditions whereby an action becomes a sin.” “Everything,
Lord, is sin. Man sins continuously because the precepts are
more numerous than the moments in a day”. Barnabas clarifies
this: “When it is not an action of the six hundred and thirteen

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precepts, or of the traditions, decisions, customs, blessings and
prayers, besides the ten commandments of the Law, or it does
not comply with the teaching of the scribes, then it is a sin”471.6.
On another occasion, when a scribe mentions a hypothetical
reincarnation, Jesus replies sharply: “There is no reincarnation
of any sort”. “Some believe in it”. “They are wrong”.
“Hellenism has also spread such beliefs among us. And learned
people feed on them and are proud of them as if they were most
noble nourishment”. “An absurd contradiction in those who cry
anathema when one of the minor six hundred and thirteen
precepts is neglected”272.3.
So, what are these 613 precepts? They comprise the list of
the prescriptions contained in the Torah: 365 forbidden things
and 248 commandments. Moses Maimonides (1138 – 1204)
definitively established this count of the 613 mitzvoth,
subdivided into 248 positive prescriptions (one for each member
of the body) and 365 negatives (one for each day of the solar
year). But, as it was inherited directly from Mosaic Law, it
seems plausible that this list was already in force at the time of
Jesus.
The Sabbatical distance
The prescription of the Book of Exodus did not fix a
precise distance. It was authorised to go only from “the Sabbath
square to the place where the food was” in the desert. The Torah
fixed this distance at 12 mil (8 miles)358. When towns were built,
Jerusalem in particular, the sages reduced this distance to 1 mil,
or 2,000 amot359, outside the city walls, considered then as the
Sabbath square (Minchat Chinuch). It was Rabbi Gamaliel who

358
Exodus 16, 29.
359
That is, between 0.48*2,000 m. and 0,575*2,000 m. according to whether it was the natural cubit
or the royal cubit, i.e. between 960m and 1150m.

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definitively fixed this rule. And this is how we hear in the work:
“We walked for a mile and then we stopped, as the Law
prescribes, and we drank some water from a stream”217.3.
But current practice could also very easily express this
distance in stadia, the system of measurement inherited from the
Greeks: “Tomorrow is Parasceve and we can walk only for six
stadia. We are not allowed to go further, because the Sabbath
and its rest have begun”194.4. This distance of six stadia
(1,092m.), mentioned several times in the work, is both coherent
and more convincing than the diverse estimations given by
certain exegetes360. Moreover, it also takes the long Greek
occupation of Palestine into account.
The ban on work on the Sabbath day gave rise to all sorts
of questions. For instance, was it lawful to travel by boat on that
day? Jesus and His Apostles answer in the affirmative, as in this
embittered remark of Peter’s: “We have just disembarked at the
‘Fig tree Well’, coming from Bethsaida, to avoid taking one step
more than is prescribed… He asked me a question and I replied,
adding that we avoided walking to respect the Sabbath”. “They
will say that we worked in the boat”. “They will end up saying
that we worked by breathing! Idiot! It’s the boat, the wind and
the waves that work, not us when we sail in the boat”263.1. And
in fact, travel by boat seems to have been permitted, on
condition that it was exclusively by sail.
Another question was how to exactly define the beginning
and the end of the Sabbath. This question was debated for
centuries. To determine the beginning of the Sabbath, the sages
advised the use of a red thread and a blue one, intertwined and
held in front of the fading light, in order to determine the time
360
The distances mentioned varied between 900 m and 1500m according to the authors: 900 m for the
David Martin Bible in 1744; about 1 km according to the Osty Bible; slightly under 1 km according to
the TOB Bible, for example.

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of the darkness. When the colours could no longer be
distinguished it was the beginning of the Holy Day. The
observation of three average-sized stars was also used to
determine the beginning of the new day361. “The time between
sunset and the moment when the three stars appear, is called
Intra soles. Does this time belong to the end of the day or the
beginning of the night?” However, Maimonides362, who asks
this question, does not dare solve it. So, the explanation given
by the Scribes who meet Jesus one Sabbath evening deserves
close examination by specialists: “And that no one may think
that we have infringed the Sabbath, we inform everybody that
we covered the road in three different periods of time. The first
until the last light of sunset faded, the second, of six stadia, while
the moonlight illuminated the paths, and the third ends now and
has not exceeded the legal measure”472.4.
One day, circumstances force the Sanhedrist, John to
depart from the rules: “John! But... as I know that you are just,
I am surprised to see you before sunset...” “That is true. I have
infringed the Sabbatical Law”409.1. He asks the Master to
forgive this sin: “And from one sin to another, I have come to
the point of infringing the Sabbatical Law. Absolve me,
Master.” Jesus then puts this prescription into its right place:
“The Sabbatical Law! A great and holy Law! And far be it from
Me to consider it unimportant and old-fashioned. But why do
you put it before the First Commandment?”409.3. And the ban,
according to the Shammai School, on even praying for the cure
of a sick person during the Sabbath363 explains why Jesus
questions Chananiah the Pharisee so insistently before curing
the man with dropsy at Ishmael’s house one Sabbath day335.5.13.
361
Berahhoth, fol. 2, 2.
362
Shabbat treaty, Ch. 5.
363
Tossefta, Shabbat 16, 22.

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“You shall be Holy, because I am Holy”
Léviticus 11, 45

This exhortation from Leviticus comes with numerous

indications on the quest for holiness, on the prescriptions for
sacrifices and the laws of purification. As we have now come to
expect from Maria Valtorta’s text, the observance of all these
precepts is perfectly taken into account throughout The Gospel
as Revealed to Me, naturally and discreetly, as a normal part of
the ordinary activities of daily life. When a woman gave birth,
40 days later for a boy and 80 for a girl, the mother had to take
two offerings to the Temple: a sacrificial lamb as an offering of
thanksgiving and a young dove, or a turtledove as an expiatory
sacrifice. So it is for Elizabeth, who “offers the bleating lamb
as a burnt offering and the dove for the forgiveness of sin
(...)The presentation ceremony of the new Israelite and the
purification of the mother is performed with even greater pomp
than Mary’s, as the priests celebrate it solemnly, because John
is the son of a priest”25.2. And when John of Endor remembers
his mother, he relates: “We were proselytes and my mother
brought me here in her arms, just at Passover, because I was
born early in Adar. My mother, who was from Judea, set out as
soon as she could to offer her son to the Lord in good time”197.2.
In Caesarea Philippi, Jesus saves a newborn from death. Dorca,
the young mother364, has just fainted. “When she wakes up, tell
her to call the child Jesai-Tobias. I will see her at the Temple
on the day of her purification”345.5. And, true to His word, forty
days later, Jesus meets Dorca at the Temple, just as she has
completed the purification rite.
Any healed leper had to purify himself for eight days.
When Jesus related a parable in Nazareth, He recalls the
purification process: “The leper recovered his health (...) he had
364
She is probably Dorcas the widow, brought back to life by Peter in Acts 9, 36-41.

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to show himself to the priest, who, after examining him for some
time, had him purified and sacrificed two sparrows. And, after
washing his clothes, not only once, but twice, the man returned
to the priest with the prescribed spotless lambs, the ewe-lamb,
flour and oil. The priest then led him to the door of the
Tabernacle. And the man was then religiously admitted among
the people of Israel”245.5. One Friday, after healing Anastasica,
Jesus decides: “Give her bread and some food. And you,
Matthew, give her a pair of your sandals. I will give her a
mantle. She will then be able to go to a priest after she has eaten.
Give her the money for the purification too, Judas”360.14. And
the following Friday, so indeed eight days later, they are
approaching the Temple: “‘We should also find the woman who
was cured of leprosy’, remarks the Zealot. ‘Yes, she has
complied with the precepts faithfully. But now the time of her
purification must be over’ ”365.10. Whoever touched a dead body
was impure for seven days. “He who touches a dead person,
any human cadaver, will be impure for seven days” (Numbers
19, 11). So, following the death of old Saul in his arms at
Kerioth, Jesus applies the Law scrupulously: “I do not change
the Law. The Law is the Law and an Israelite obeys it. We are
unclean. Between the third and the seventh day, we will purify
ourselves. Until then, we are unclean”78.9.

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The Lunar-Solar calendar and the embolismic year
The months of the year are the lunar months of about
twenty seven and a half days. The years are solar years of three
hundred and sixty five and a quarter days. In a year of twelve
solar months, there is a deficit of almost eleven days over the
solar year. To avoid this difference, which would throw the
feasts and seasons out of synchrony, a thirteenth month is added
on to certain years, so that Pessah always falls in the first month
of spring. “You all remember what a harvest there was in that
thirteen-month year, like this one”114.8, Gamaliel reminisces at
the banquet at Joseph of Arimathea’s house, referring to
embolismic years.
The beginning of the month is designated indifferently in
the work by the Greek-derived word: “for the neomenia of
Nisan”566.4, or by the Latin equivalent: “her husband died at the
calends of Kislev”345.3. But, as Jean Aulagnier so sapiently
remarked, the most decisive indication about calendars is the
one that Syntyche transmits when she announces the death of
John of Endor: “John died on the sixth day before the nones of
June according to the Romans, at about the new moon of
Tammuz for the Hebrews”461.16. This information, although
linguistically incorrect, enables the Julian and Hebraic calendars
to coincide for the whole period of the public life of Jesus.
There are, of course, very frequent allusions to the months
according to the Hebraic calendar in the work. The following
examples give an idea of the pertinence of these remarks: “The
fourteenth day of the month of Abid, that we now call
Nisan”413.6. Nisan is indeed called Aviv or Abid365. Old Joanna’s
remark in Nazareth, “Cursed be the moon of Elul, laden with
evil influences”309.1 takes on its meaning when we note that Elul,
365
Exodus 13, 4 ; 23, 15 ; or 34, 18.

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the last month of the Jewish civil year, (or the 6th of the religious
year) is, according to Cabbalistic tradition, the month of
repentance, during which penitential prayers (selichot) are
recited. It is also the month during which the tombs of loved
ones are visited.
The important Jewish festivals
Three of these were originally agricultural and linked to
the seasonal cycle. Pesach (the Passover), a spring festival,
heralded the beginning of the harvests, while Shavuot (Festival
of Weeks or Pentecost), fifty days later, marked their end. At the
end of summer, Sukkoth (Festival of Tabernacles) celebrated
the grape harvest. These festivals were soon associated with
events in the history of Israel. The Passover commemorated the
departure from Egypt, (Exodus), Shavuot, the gift of the Torah
on Mount Sinai, while the Sukkoth huts, in which the Jews ate
ritually during the seven days of the festival, recalled their tents
in the desert during the exodus towards the Promised Land.
The first pilgrimage feast, Pessac, is also called the feast
of the Unleavened Bread: “And may the Most High, who guided
Israel in the “passage”, guide you too in this Pesac’h, so that
you may follow in the wake of the Lamb”354.3 notes Maria
Valtorta, characteristically misspelling the Hebrew word. And
elsewhere:"in the days of the great Feast of the Unleavened
Bread”373.1. The Torah prescribed one particular day, a month
after Pessac, for those who happened to be unclean during the
feast and/or were unable to go to the Temple to present the
Paschal sacrifice. This day was a second Pessac (Pessac Sheni).
It was on the occasion of this second Passover that Jesus
gathered all those that He had kept away from Jerusalem during
His Passion. Bartholomew says: “The Lord will be here on the
fourteenth day of the second month”636.2. And when Jesus
appears among them, He tells Matthias: “Begin the Passover

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banquet” (…) “And the banquet is celebrated with the same
ritual as the Last Supper: hymns, questions, libations”636.8.9.
When Jesus says this prayer to the Father: “Grant them
that for the feast of praise for the fruitful crops next year, they
may offer You their living sheaf, their first born, a son sacred to
You, Eternal Father”104.4, He is evoking Shavuot, the harvest
feast, Pentecost. And the living sheaf recalls the ceremony of the
offering of the waving sheaf that took place the day after the
Sabbath following the 15th of Nisan. The second pilgrimage to
Jerusalem takes place at Pentecost: “We will come back to
Kerioth from Masada and we will go to Juttah, Hebron, Bethzur,
Bether, and be back in Jerusalem for Pentecost”386.3.
The third pilgrimage feast, Sukkoth, took place after the
grape harvest. When Maria Valtorta is present for the first time
at the preparations for the feast, she does not seem to understand
fully: “There are coarse wool tents, probably waterproof,
stretched over posts driven into the ground, with green branches
tied to the posts offering both decoration and coolness. Other
tents are made of branches fixed to the ground, making little
green galleries”3.2. It is only much later, when she comes back
to the Camp of the Galileans, that she recognizes then: “the
place where, in a faraway vision, I saw Joachim and Anne
camping with Alpheus, who was very little, near other huts made
of branches, at the Tabernacles just before the conception of the
Virgin”297.1 . Joachim’s decision “Tomorrow is the last day of
supplication. All the offerings have already been made, but we
will renew them again tomorrow, solemnly”3.4 evokes the
seventh day of Sukkoth (the 21st of Tishri), called Hoshana
Rabbah, the Great Salvation. This day is indeed one of
particular prayers of supplication during which the people
implore God. Comparing the three great pilgrimages, Maria
Valtorta makes this pertinent remark: “In this festival of the

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Tabernacles, the emigration of entire families is more
noticeable, not because there are more pilgrims than at
Passover and Pentecost, but because, owing to the fact that they
have to live in tents for several days, they have to bring
household furnishings with them, which they avoid doing for
other solemnities”475.3.
Hanukkah (the Dedication) commemorates the liberation
of the Temple by the Maccabees and its new consecration after
it was profaned by the Greek king of Syria, Antiochus IV
Epiphanes. The consecration of the altar has since been joyfully
celebrated each year for an eight-day period, starting from the
25th of Kislev. (1 Mac 52-59). Jesus reminds His Apostles of
this: “We read in the Book of Maccabees that Judas and his
men, after taking over the Temple and the City, with the
protection of the Lord, destroyed the altars and sanctuaries of
the foreign gods and purified the Temple once again. He then
erected another altar, lit a fire with flints, offered sacrifices,
burnt the incense, placed the lights and laid the loaves of the
proposition. Then, prostrating themselves, they begged the Lord
to keep them from all sin and if, because of their weakness, they
should fall into sin again, to be treated with Divine Mercy. And
this occurred on the 25th of Kislev” (December) 132.2.
When Peter remarks that he will not be at home to light the
lamps for the feast, Jesus consoles him: “You are a big baby!
Cheer up! We will light the lamps too, and you will be the one
who lights them”. “Me? Not I, Lord! You are the Head of our
family. You are the one who must light them”. “I am a lamp
that is always lit... and I would like you all to be such. I am the
Eternal Purification, Peter”132.6. It was the school of Hillel that
decided that lamps or candles would be lit gradually, one every
evening, until all eight were lit. It is possible that in the time of
Christ the celebration differed slightly from today’s practice.

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“What is this thing? Sciemanflorasc? What is it?
At the beginning of October 29, returning from a
pilgrimage to Mount Nebo, Jesus passes through Jericho. He is
violently accosted by some Sadducees, who question Him
aggressively: “Answer, You mad Nazarene. Do You know the
sciemanflorasc?”503.9. And, just like Simon Peter, we ask the
same question: What is this sciemanflorasc? Here is a word that
appears in no dictionary and seems to be unknown today... From
context, we can just about suppose that it refers to some magic
incantation. Is it a formula of exorcism, or a secret term of
cabbalistic magic? Fortunately, Reverend Father Bullet366 , in a
rare, ancient book, gives us the beginning of an explanation. It
appears that we should read here the Hebrew expression Schem
Hamphoras, that is, the ineffable name of God that Maria
Valtorta reported with approximate phonetic spelling. At the
beginning of the 19th century, another author 367 explains, for the
edification of Free Masons of the Scottish rite, that Schem
Hammephoras means Nomen explicatum, expansum,
pronuntiatum: “the well-pronounced, well-explained Name”.
This is the name that the High Priest pronounced once a year in
the Temple, on the 10th of Thrisi. Any unauthorised person who
heard it would immediately have been condemned to death. The
High Priest could only transmit it once every seven years, and
orally at that, to his disciples. The cabbalists affirmed that the
name of God was made up of 72 syllables and 216 letters, and
this is what they call the Schem Hamphoras. (The name is said
to have been built from the verses of 72 letters of the original
Hebrew text from the Book of Exodus 14, 19-21). This name

366
Abbé Bullet, Histoire de l'établissement du Christianisme 1764, re-edition of1825, p 140 and
following.
367
F.-H. Stanislas de l'Aulnaye, Thuileur des trente-trois degrés de l'écossisme de rit ancien dit accepté
1813 page 92.

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was later replaced by the Tetragram, the name of 4 letters: Yod,
He, Vau, He (Yahvé).
In 1546, Martin Luther published a violent anti-Judaic
pamphlet entitled Vom Schem Hamephoras. And today, the
schemhamphoras has become an article of magic, a talisman,
sold in shops specializing in magic and esoteric articles. In his
book, Father Bullet mentions some very rare Jewish texts that
affirm precisely that Jesus performed miracles “because He had
discovered the secret name of God”. The question asked by the
doctors of the Law, and the reply given by Jesus to Peter: “They
confuse Truth with Falsehood, God with Satan, and in their
satanic pride they think that God, in order to yield to the will of
men, needs to be implored by means of His
Tetragramaton”503.10, take on their full meaning, and become
very strong arguments in favour of the authenticity of this vision
of Maria Valtorta’s.
It does, in fact, seem that the word sciemanflorasc meant
nothing more to Maria Valtorta than did, in its time, the Virgin
Mary’s answer to Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes, “que soy
era Immaculada Conceptiou”.

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 “ITS MEANING WAS HIDDEN FROM THEM”
Luke 18, 34
God said: “Let there be light.” Genesis 1, 3
“Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us ... and opened the
Scriptures to us?” Luke 24, 32
“In showing you the Gospel, I am making a greater effort to bring men to Me. I no
longer limit Myself to the word... I use vision and explain it to make it clearer and more
attractive” Notebooks, February 4th, 1944

The solution to exegetical problems?

Many are the learned exegetical doctors who have argued
for centuries about the interpretation of one or another of the
passages of the Holy Scriptures. They compare the most ancient
manuscripts in order to improve modern translations, solve
certain ambiguities and transcription errors, or make them more
comprehensible.
Jesus also makes this interesting remark to Maria Valtorta:
“I only wish to point out to you how a sentence omitted, or a
word wrongly copied, can alter everything. And you, My writer,
are alive and can correct the error at once. So think about it and
understand how twenty centuries have deprived the Gospel, the
Apostolic Gospel, of certain parts that did no harm to the
doctrine, but made the Gospel less comprehensible. This
explains many things. If we go back to the origin, we find that it
is once more the work of Disorder, and many others are
attributed to the sons of Disorder. You see how easy it is to make
transcription errors”165.11.
This delicate analytical work requires both very specific
competence and long practice. Consequently, it is not for me to
undertake these analyses, under pain of having the compliment
that I paid the Osservatore Romano addressed in turn to me, and
rightly so... I will accordingly limit myself here to mentioning
some of the solutions that Maria Valtorta’s narrative seem to

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offer quite naturally to innumerable exegetic questions,
regularly raised throughout the centuries, and leave a deeper and
more thorough analysis to the specialists.
This is also one of the aims of this work, according to this
indication given by Jesus in the farewell to the work: “And the
purpose of this Work is also to clarify certain points that
complex circumstances have covered with darkness, so forming
zones of obscurity within the clarity of the evangelical picture,
and points which seem to be ruptures between one episode or
another, but are only points that have become obscure and
undecipherable, which, when clarified, provide the key to the
precise comprehension of certain situations that arose and
certain strong reactions that I was compelled to adopt, a certain
rigidity towards obstinate, unconvertible adversaries, in stark
contrast with My continuous exhortations to forgive, to be meek
and humble”652. IV.
Bis repetita placent...
Horace 368

During the three years of His public life, Jesus sometimes

repeated the same teaching several times, worked the same
miracle all over again, and found Himself in similar situations.
Naturally, the facts are not reported identically by the different
witnesses, and exegetes are hard put to it to decide whether to
distinguish these facts as separate, or merge them into one.
Were the merchants chased away from the Temple once or
twice? Were there two multiplications of bread, or only one?
Was the question about the greatest commandment asked
several times? Was the anointing by the repentant sinner and the
anointing at Bethany the work of two different women, or of one
and the same woman? These are some of the questions raised.
368
“Repeated things are pleasing”. Horace, Poetic Art, v. 365..

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To all these questions, Maria Valtorta’s text provides a clear and
convincing reply and seems, moreover, to reconcile the different
evangelical versions perfectly. Let us take a closer look at this.
The merchants chased away from the Temple
Whereas the synoptic Gospels describe Jesus chasing the
merchants from the Temple shortly before the Passion369, John’s
Gospel places a similar event at the beginning of the public life
(John 2, 13-22).
Jesus arrives at the Temple for the first Passover, with His
disciples: Peter, Andrew, John and James, Philip and
Bartholomew and He is scandalised to see a merchant taking
advantage of a couple of “two little, old, half-blind people”. He
tries to make him repair this injustice. “Jesus turns to the man
with the lambs: ‘Exchange this lamb for these pilgrims. It is
unworthy of the altar, just as it is unworthy of you to take
advantage of two poor old people just because they are weak
and defenceless’ ”53.3. And it is the merchants’ intransigence,
their provocation and even the threats levelled at these
defenceless old people that unleash “His holy anger”. “Who are
You? How dare You do that, upsetting the prescribed
ceremonies? From which school are You? We do not know who
You are”. “I am He Who is Mighty. I can do anything”53.5. This
is how Christ’s first public manifestation begins. And fifty days
later, when He meets Judas at the Temple, Jesus asks him: “Call
the official of the place for Me. I must make Myself known, so
that no one may say that I disregard the customs and lack
respect”. “You did not do that the last time”. “The last time I
was inflamed by zeal for the House of God that was desecrated
by too many things. The last time I was the Son of the Father,
the Heir, Who, in the Name of the Father and for the love of My
369
Matthew 21, 12-13; Mark 11, 15-17; Luke 19, 45-46.

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House, acted in His Majesty, which is superior to officials and
priests. Now, I am the Master of Israel and I teach Israel that
too”68.1.
At the third Passover, Maria Valtorta describes a fact that
is not reported by the Evangelists: “They are now in the Temple
in the unholy swarm of the first courtyards, where the merchants
and money-changers are. Jesus looks and shakes with
indignation. He turns pale and seems to grow taller, such is the
solemnity of His stately, severe deportment. The Iscariot tempts
Him: ‘Why do You not repeat the holy gesture? You see? They
have forgotten and there is desecration once again in the House
of God. Does this not grieve You? Will You not rise up to defend
it?’ ‘This is not the hour. But all of that will be purified, and
forever!’ says Jesus resolutely”364.5
The second intervention against the merchants takes place
after the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, just before the last
Passover. There is a very different motivation for it that Jesus
indicates: “My anger with the desecrators of the Temple is the
logical consequence of My meditation on the forthcoming
misfortunes of Jerusalem”590.9. “The powerful voice of Jesus
thunders: ‘Get out of My Father’s House! It is no place for usury
or markets... It is written: “My house shall be called a house of
prayer”. So why have you made it into a den of thieves, this
house in which the Name of the Lord is invoked? Get out! Purify
My House. Let it not happen that instead of using ropes, I may
strike you with the thunderbolts of heavenly wrath. Get out! Get
out, you thieves, swindlers, lewd people, murderers, impious
persons, idolaters of the worst idolatry, that of the proud ego,
corrupters and liars. Out! Get out! Or the Most High God, so I
warn you, will sweep away this place for good and will wreak
vengeance upon all the people’ ”590.19. And Maria Valtorta adds:
“He does not repeat the lashing of the last time, but seeing that

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the merchants and money-changers are slow to obey, He goes
to the first counter and pushes it over, sending scales and coins
flying to the ground”590.19. All these precise details are food for
thought to whoever might doubt that Jesus chased the merchants
away from the Temple on two occasions.
The two multiplications of bread
Maria Valtorta’s text situates the first multiplication just
after the announcement of the death of John the Baptist. Jesus
leaves Bethsaida by night to be alone with His Apostles south
of the lake near Tarichea370. All four Evangelists mention this
miracle371 and Maria Valtorta’s narrative also shows how this
miracle strengthens the uncertain faith of a scribe: “Jesus looks
long and hard at the scribe, who has always remained near Him
and asks: “Will you give food to the hungry people too?” “I
would like too, but I have none myself”. “Give Mine. You have
My permission”. “But... do You intend to satisfy almost five
thousand men, besides women and children, with those two fish
and the five loaves”? “Absolutely. Do not be incredulous.
Those who believe will see the miracle accomplished”273.3. Note
in passing that John mentions a young boy, who Maria Valtorta
identifies as Marjiam (the future St. Martial), as affirmed by an
ancient tradition from Limoges372. (For further details, see the
chapter The Eye Witnesses.).
The second multiplication is reported only by Matthew
(15, 32-38) and Mark (8, 1-9), and is thought to have occurred
at the lakeside and in Decapolis, which would indicate the
Hippo region, according to the clues provided by Maria
370
Only Luke mentions the region of Bethsaida (9, 10), whereas John (6, 1) says: “Jesus went to the
other side of the Sea of Galilee”
371
Matthew 14, 13-21; Luke 9, 10-17; Mark 6, 35-44; John 6, 1-13.
372
Adémar de Chabannes (989-1034) in Vita prolixior sancti Martialis identifies St Martial with the
young boy who gave the bread and the fish to Jesus for their multiplication.

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Valtorta. “I feel sorry for these people. They have followed Me
for three days. They have no more food supplies and we are far
from any village. I am afraid that the weaker ones would suffer
too much if I sent them away without feeding them.”353.2. Many
exegetes were inclined to think that the similarities with the first
multiplication were sufficient to conclude that Mark and
Matthew gave two accounts of the same miracle373. In The
Gospel as revealed to me, there is no possible ambiguity: they
are, in fact, two different miracles, one in Jewish territory, and
the other in pagan country...
The two questions on the greatest commandment
In the Temple in Jerusalem, during the Feast of the
Tabernacles in the second year of His public life, Jesus has just
told His listeners the parable of the talents (Matthew 25, 14-30
and Luke 19, 11-27). He says this to conclude: “The surprises
of the Lord are endless because the reactions of man are
endless. You will see the Gentiles reaching eternal Life and
Samaritans possessing Heaven, and you will see pure Israelites
and followers of Mine losing Heaven and eternal Life”281.9. “But
a Doctor of the Law who had sat down, listening gravely under
the porch, gets up, comes forward and asks: ‘Master, what must
I do to gain eternal Life? You have replied to others, please
reply to me as well’. ‘Why do you want to tempt Me? Why do
you want to lie? Are you hoping that I may say something
contrary to the Law, because I add more perfect and luminous
ideas to it? What is written in the Law? Answer Me! What is the
first commandment of the Law?’” 281.10. Luke reports this
episode (10, 25-28) just before the parable of the Good
Samaritan. Biblical commentators often compare this passage
from Luke with an episode from Holy Wednesday, reported by

373
See, for example, the note Mark 8, 8 in the Osty Bible.

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Matthew (22, 34-40) and Mark 12, 28-34) when Jesus is asked
the same question, to which He replies by proclaiming the
Schema Israel prayer (Deuteronomy 6, 4): “Listen, Oh Israel:
The Lord our God is the Only Lord. You shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength. That is
the first and greatest commandment. The second resembles it:
“You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There are no
greater commandments than these two. They comprise all the
Law and the prophets.”596.2. As reported by Maria Valtorta, this
clearly shows the two different episodes and the fact that the
question on the greatest commandment was indeed asked twice.
The sinful woman and the two “Marys”
Here is a question that was the object of many an intense
debate among exegetes: were the repentant sinners, Mary of
Bethany and Mary of Magdala, one and the same person, or two,
even three, different people? The Gospels might appear to
distinguish three people. The four Evangelists differ on certain
points but, as these three women have points in common
(notably a fiery temperament), the Church Fathers argued over
whether this was a single saint374. It was finally in the early 7th
century in the West and about the 9th century in the East that an
agreement was reached on the singular status of the woman with
the perfume, giving her the name Magdalene or Mary
374
The eminent Biblicist P. Lagrange examined the way this question was treated by ancient ecclesiastic
writers. Clement of Alexandria concluded that it was one person for the two anointings. Origen, who
thought he saw an allegory, wavered between unity and plurality, while Eusebius is inclined towards
unity. Tertullian merges the scenes into one scene. St Hilary distinguishes 2 women. St Ambrosia, like
Origen, opts for a nuanced solution: 2 women or one sinner turned saint. St. Jerome hesitates between
2 women. Saints Paulin and Cassian opt for one woman. St Augustine wavers for a time on the side of
one woman, and then seems to go in the opposite direction. St Gregory the Great merges the 3 women
into one, and from then on, this will be the Western position, although St. Thomas Aquinas noted
divergences among the Church Fathers who leave exegesis free. The Syrians were inclined to distinguish
the 3 women, like Tatian and St. John Chrysostom.
In Asia Minor, Saint Irenaeus seems to consider Luke’s episode as distinct from others. In short, the
exegetes came to no conclusions, or else distinguished different characters, whereas the preachers
supposed that it was one person, a hypothesis retained by the Church.

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Magdalene. Maria Valtorta leaves no room for uncertainty of
any kind: the repentant sinner is Mary of Magdala, sister of
Lazarus and Martha. She is said to be from Magdala simply
because that is where she took refuge in a property belonging to
her family near Tiberias, in order to give free rein to her
licentious life. Consequently, there is only one person: “Mary of
Magdala, the great sinner of Israel, who had no excuse for her
sin, has come back to the Lord”250.5.
Her conversion is so total that her brother, Lazarus,
wonders: “I... I cannot understand where she finds the wisdom,
the words, the actions that edify the whole household. I look at
her as at a mystery. But how could so much fire, such gems, be
hidden under all that filth, and coexist comfortably with it?
Neither Martha nor I can reach the heights that she reaches.
How can she do this if her wings were broken by vice? I do not
understand...”279.2. “And there is no need for you to understand.
It is enough that I understand. But I tell you that Mary has
turned the powerful energy of her being towards Good. She has
directed her character towards Perfection. And as she has an
absolutely strong temperament, she goes purposefully and
unreservedly along this road. She uses her experience of evil to
be as powerful in goodness as she was in evil and, using the
same method of giving herself up entirely, as she did in evil, she
has given herself up entirely to God. She has understood the law
to “love God with your whole being, with your body, your soul
and all your strength”. If Israel were made of Mary, if the world
were made of Mary, we would have the Kingdom of God on
earth, as it will be in the Highest Heavens”. “Oh! Master!
Master! And it is Mary of Magdala who deserves these
words!”279.3.
These words, like so many others throughout the work,
enable the demystification of certain Gnostic, modernist, or

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sometimes even blasphemous, interpretations of The Gospel of
Mary Magdalene and other apocryphal texts. They also clarify
why the Apostles, and then the Evangelists, out of respect and
admiration for the total conversion of Mary Magdalene, only
referred to her sinful past under cover of anonymity, clearly
naming only Mary the disciple. And it is because “Mary knows
how to love more than everybody”550.3, to love “with seraphic
ardour”377.7 that she was given the privilege of being the first to
see the Risen Lord.
One Joseph Barsabbas and one Joseph Barnabas?
When the decision was made to find someone to replace
Judas, Luke (Acts 1, 21-23) indicates: “Two were presented:
“Joseph called Barsabbas375, known as Justus, and Matthias”.
Then a little further on (Acts 4, 36), he tells of the generous gift
of a disciple: “Joseph also called Barnabas376 by the Apostles –
interpreted as the son of consolation – Cypriot, a Levite by
birth”. The same first name, two almost identical nicknames,
and probably a few unfortunate copyists’ errors were all it took
for this question to arise. Are these two different people, or just
one disciple? Opinions vary among Biblicists, none of whom
has managed to convince the others. There is no question about
this for Maria Valtorta. Matthias’s companion, “one of those
men who accompanied the Apostles during the whole time that
Jesus walked around with them” (according to Acts 1, 21), is
Joseph the shepherd377, whom Jesus especially chose as a
disciple as early as the summer of the year 27, saying: “I am
keeping this son (pointing to Joseph) because I am delegating

375
The Bezae codex and western manuscripts mention Barnabbas, the other manuscripts mention
Barsabbas.
376
From the Hebrew “bar navi”, which means literally “son of the prophet, or “son of consolation” and
becomes Barnabé in French, Barnaby in English.
377
For further details see the chapter “The Eye Witnesses”

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to him the task of spreading My words to his companions, so
that they will become a strong nucleus, that will announce Me
not by simply stating that I exist, but by explaining the most
essential characteristics of My doctrine”91.1. He is more
precisely named “Joseph, son of Joseph of Saba”639.5 when
Matthias was elected. In The Gospel as Revealed to Me, he is
not confused with Joseph Barnaby, the Levite, Gamaliel’s
faithful pupil and St. Paul’s future companion, officially
received as a disciple at the eleventh hour, just before the
Passion: “You, Barnaby, who have left your companions today
to follow Me”592.20.

*
Of course, Maria Valtorta’s text does not simply provide a
solution to these evangelical doubles. There are similar
clarifications in almost every paragraph that sometimes go
unnoticed, so naturally do they blend into the whole. Once
again, I can only make an arbitrary choice of one or two among
the multitude of them. So here are a few examples to illustrate
how The Gospel as Revealed to Me can lead to a clearer
comprehension of some Biblical or evangelical passages.

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A lost Biblical verse...
To begin with, here is a brief subject that might interest
some Biblicists. Relating a speech by Jesus in Capernaum,
Maria Valtorta writes: “Jesus concludes His speech by saying:
Having meditated together on Solomon’s great pronouncement,
“The greatest strength lies in the abundance of justice”, I now
exhort you to possess such abundance, because it is the price of
your entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven”266.1.This great
sentence of Solomon’s figured in the second part of Proverbs
15.5 in the old versions of the Bible, like the one by Louis-
Claude Fillion378 1855 or the great Bible379 of Tours (1866). Yet,
curiously, it seems to have completely disappeared from the
French version380 as from 1870. Why was it removed? It still
figured in the Italian versions in 1940 (with a note indicating its
absence from the Hebrew versions). It was removed after the
Second Vatican Council.
An apparently problematical translation...
Elsewhere, Maria Valtorta reports this dialogue between
Manaen and Jesus: “I would like to have enough true courage to
abandon everything to follow You completely, like the disciples
that You are expecting. But shall I ever succeed? We who are
not of the common people find it more difficult to follow You.
Why?” “Because the tentacles of your poor wealth hold you
back” “To tell You the truth, I also know that some people who
are not exactly rich, but are learned, or on the path to becoming
so, who do not come either”.

378
“In the abundance of justice lies very great strength”
379
“Abundant justice will have great virtue”
380
This sentence is absent from the following Bibles: Darby, 1872; Neufchatel, 1900; Crampon, 1923;
Osty, 1973; The Jerusalem Bible, 1975; Chouraqui 1987; from the TOB. None of these Bibles give the
reason for this “disappearance”

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 “They too are held back by the tentacles of their poor
wealth. Money is not the only wealth. Knowledge is also wealth.
Few people can say like Solomon, “Vanity of vanities. All is
vanity”, taken up again in Qoheleth and amplified, not only in
a material sense, but also in depth. Do you remember it? Human
science is vanity, because to increase human knowledge only
“is anguish and affliction of the spirit and whoever augments
science also augments such anguish”. I solemnly tell you that
it is so. And I also tell you that it would not be so if human
science were supported and consolidated by supernatural
wisdom and the holy love of God”270.2. Expressed this way (by
Jesus) and in context, this quotation (Ecclesiasts 1, 18) is clear
and comprehensible. However, this is not the case when we
examine the concise or even laconic translations of this verse by
some Biblicists:
The Osty Bible: “Much wisdom, much sorrow, the more knowledge,
the more grief”;
The Chouraqui Bible: “Indeed, too much wisdom, too much
irritation; who adds to his understanding adds to his pain”;
The Jerusalem Bible: “Much wisdom, much sorrow; more
knowledge, more pain”;
The Louis Segond Bible: “For with great wisdom, one has great
sorrow, and he who increases his knowledge increases his pain”;
OEcumenical Translation of the Bible (OTB): “For with great
wisdom there is much affliction; he who increases his knowledge
increases the pain”.
How could Maria Valtorta of her own initiative have
interpreted a text which obviously gave the
specialists themselves no little trouble?
381

381
Oddly enough, in a speech on January 17th, 2008, Benedict XVI declared: “Augustine affirmed
reciprocity between “scientia” and “tristitia”: simple knowledge makes for sadness. And consequently,
whoever sees and learns everything that happens in this world and nothing else, ends up by becoming
sad”. This seems to be quite an enlightened commentary of this Biblical verse

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The adulteress and the mysterious signs on the ground
John (8, 1-11) relates this episode: “Master, this woman
was caught in the act of adultery... she is an adulteress and
should be stoned as such. Moses said so... And You, Master,
what do You say?”494.1. In his account, John indicates laconically
that in answer, “Jesus, bending down, wrote with His finger on
the ground”. And what were these signs? Were they simple
scribbles, or some mysterious message? John does not say.
Many commentators interpret this reaction of Jesus’s as a sign
of contempt or disdain towards the Pharisees, adding “doubtless
to indicate that He is taking no part in their tribunal”. Others
think that Jesus “takes on an air of detachment... scribbling
negligently”382, or even that He is acting “like a man who is
bothered and does not want to answer, or who wants time to
think and weigh His answer before replying”. In his Bible, Osty
even affirms that “Jesus did not write down their sins”. I cannot
find a single one, even among the Church Fathers, unless it be
Saint Jerome383, who gives Maria Valtorta’s interpretation.
However, this is the explanation that I, personally, find by far
the most convincing.
Let Maria Valtorta describe this scene to us now: “Jesus
is writing. He writes, then erases with His sandaled foot and
writes further on, turning around slowly to find more room to
write. He looks like a child at play. But what He is writing are
not playful words. He has written successively: “Usurer”,
“False”, “Irreverent Son” “Fornicator”, “Murderer”,
“Desecrator of the Law”, “Thief”, “Libidinous”, “Usurper”,
“Unworthy husband and father”, “Blasphemer”, “Rebellious
to God”, “Adulterer”. He writes and re-writes as new accusers
382
Many of these commentaries can be consulted on Internet
383
Saint Jerome (Contr. Jovin.) imagined that Jesus could have written the sins of the cruel accusers:
“Eorum qui accusabant, peccata descripsit” on the Temple paving.

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speak”. “Well, Master! Your judgement! The woman must be
judged. She cannot be allowed to contaminate the earth with the
weight of her sin. Her breath is poison that upsets hearts.”
“Jesus stands up. Merciful Heavens! What a face! Lightning
bolts fall upon the accusers. He seems even taller with His head
held high. His face stern, all trace of a smile wiped away from
His lips and His eyes, He fixes His gaze on the crowd that backs
off, as if confronted with two sharp blades. He looks fixedly at
them, one by one, with a terrifyingly searching intensity. Those
that He looks at try to back off and merge with the crowd, and
the circle becomes wider and fragmented, as if attacked by an
unseen power”. He finally speaks: “He among you who is
without sin, let him throw the first stone at her.” And His voice
is like thunder, His eyes even more fulgurating. Jesus, His arms
folded, waits like this, as straight as a judge. His eyes hold no
peace: they search, penetrate and accuse”494.2. After such a
brilliant description of this evangelical scene, all further
comments are totally superfluous.
John and the attempt to elect Jesus king
“Jesus, as He realised that they were about to come and take Him by force and
make Him king, fled back to the hills alone” John 6, 15

The Apostle John is the only one who mentions this

attempt to kidnap Jesus to make Him king. Maria Valtorta
relates this event in a particularly enlightening episode that is as
dramatic as it is palpitating. John observed from afar the secret
meeting at Chouza’s house. Jesus escapes, deeply saddened:
“You were crying? What did they do to You, my Lord? Did they
insult You? Did they strike You?” “No, they wanted to make
Me king. A poor King, John! And several of them were in good
faith, acting out of love, with good intentions... The majority ...in
order to denounce Me and get rid of Me”464.15. There follows a
moving dialogue between the Lord and His beloved disciple.

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“They wanted to make You king? But they still haven’t
understood that Your kingdom is not of this world?” “They have
not understood!” “Without mentioning names, tell me about it,
Lord…” “But you will not repeat what I tell you?” “If You do
not want me to, Lord, I will not repeat it” “You will not mention
it except when men want to present Me as a common popular
leader. It will happen one day. You will be there and you will
say: “He was not an earthly king because He did not want to be
one. Because His kingdom was not of this world. He was the Son
of God, the Word Incarnate and He could not accept what is
earthly. He wanted to come into the world in the flesh to redeem
bodies and souls and the world, but He rejected the pomp of the
world and sin. There was nothing carnal or worldly in Him. The
Light was not enveloped in darkness; the Infinite did not accept
finite things, but creatures limited by flesh and sin. He made
creatures more like Himself by elevating those who believed in
Him to true royalty, and founding His Kingdom in the hearts of
men, before founding it in Heaven, where it will be complete and
eternal with all those who have been saved. You shall say that,
John, to all those who only see a man in Me, and to those who
only see a spirit in Me, to those who deny that I suffered
temptation... and pain... You will tell men that the Redeemer
wept... and that they were also redeemed by My tears...”464.16.
It seems probable that the exegetes who one day analyse
this chapter as a whole will find in it many clarifications on the
personality and the testimony of St. John. And historians might
also discover some very interesting elements on the political
intrigues that agitated Judea in the early first century.

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The leaven of the Pharisees
Mark the Evangelist (8, 14-21) relates an episode which
would be quite obscure, were it not for Matthew’s more explicit
version (Matthew 16, 5-12). However, when we read Maria
Valtorta’s account, it all becomes crystal clear:
“Do you not understand which leaven I am referring to? I
mean the leaven that ferments against Me in the hearts of the
Pharisees, Sadducees and doctors. It is hatred and heresy. But
you are going towards hatred as if some of the Pharisaic leaven
had entered your hearts. You should not hate even your enemy.
Do not open even a tiny window to anything that is not God.
After the first element, others opposed to God would enter.
Sometimes, by trying to fight enemies with equal weapons, you
end up suffering defeat or even death. And once defeated, you
could absorb their doctrines through contact with them. No. Be
charitable and reserved. You are not yet capable of fighting
such doctrines without becoming infected by them, because
some of their elements are also in you. And rancour towards
them is one of those elements.
I tell you too that they could also change their methods of
seduction to entice you away from Me by a myriad of kindnesses
and courtesies, apparent repentance and readiness to make
peace with you. You must not avoid them, but when they try to
imbue you with their doctrines, you must reject them. That is the
leaven that I was referring to: animosity which is the opposite
of love; and false doctrines. I tell you this: be prudent”343.2.

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Verse 6, 12 from the Song of Songs interpreted?
On the day of the first multiplication of the loaves, just
before the miracle, a Scribe comes to provoke Jesus, telling
Him: “You see? You are running away. But it is useless, because
hatred and love know how to find You. In this case, it is love that
has found You, as in the Song of Songs. And they come to You
as the Shulamite maiden goes to her bridegroom, braving patrol
guards and Amminadib’s quadrigae!”272.2. This last sentence,
perfectly intelligible here, should be of great interest to
exegetes, since it appears to allude to verses 3, 3 and 6, 12 of the
Song of Songs, considered incomprehensible by the majority of
Biblical translators:
Louis Segond: “I do not know, I place myself… chariots of Ammi-
Nadib”
The Jerusalem Bible: “he made of me the chariots of Ammi-nadîb”?
Osty: prefers not to translate and explains why in a long footnote.
OBT: “he makes me shy although I am the daughter of nobles”?
Chouraqui: “I do not know, but my being has put me at the wagons of
my prince people”?
A rather abstruse sentence...
As the apostolic group is crossing Galaad, Thomas makes
a remark that is obscure to us all today, with the exception of a
few Biblicists:
“Hmm ! I would not like this village to avenge itself on us
for the unpleasant surprise they received from Israel!”359.1.
Who knows whether Maria Valtorta herself understood the
allusion to the surprise victory of Judas Maccabeus over the
inhabitants of the Galaad region and their chief Timothy (1
Maccabees 5, 9-55), which was probably very clear to Jesus’s
contemporaries?

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The parable of the lost drachma
This parable was very briefly reported by Saint Luke alone
(15, 8-10). Maria Valtorta gives us two full, superb pages, with
the immediate aim of rehabilitating the recently converted Mary
Magdalene among the inhabitants of Magdala. Here is a brief
glimpse: “Every soul is a treasure and Satan, who hates God,
provokes bad movements to make poor souls fall. There are
some whose fall stops near the purse, that is, they do not go too
far from the Law of God that keeps souls under the protection
of the commandments. And there are those who fall further. That
is, they go further away from God and His Law. Finally, there
are some who roll into the swept-up dirt, the rubbish and the
mud. And there, they would end up dying and being burnt in
eternal fire, like the trash that is burnt in appropriate places.
The Master knows this and tirelessly looks for lost coins. He
looks everywhere for them, with love. They are His treasures
and He never tires, nor does He let anything disgust Him. He
rummages, searches, sifts, sweeps until He finds what He is
looking for. And once He has found it, He washes the recovered
soul and He calls His friends, saying: “Rejoice with Me,
because I have found what was lost and it is now more beautiful
than before, because My forgiveness has made it new”. I tell
you truly that there is much rejoicing in Heaven and that the
angels of God and the good people of the earth rejoice over a
repentant sinner. And I tell you solemnly that there is nothing
more beautiful than tears of repentance and that only demons
cannot rejoice over this conversion, which is a triumph of
God’s. I also tell you that the way a man welcomes the
conversion of a sinner is the measure of his own goodness and
his union with God”241.8.

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 Is this not a new example of the fact that, without changing
one iota of Revelation, the Spirit can give new presentations,
where and when He chooses, especially adapted to times and
places, to enlighten minds?
A somewhat obscure verse from Luke
As He draws near to Jerusalem, the Pharisees try to
dissuade Jesus from going there. And Luke (13, 32-33) relays
Jesus’s answer like this: “Today, tomorrow and the next day I
must continue on My way, because it is not fitting for a prophet
to die outside of Jerusalem”. Here is how Maria Valtorta
transmits this episode. It is in Rama, just before the Passover of
the year 29. “I come expelling demons and healing the sick,
openly. And I do and will do it today, tomorrow and the day
after tomorrow, until My time is over. But I must go on until I
reach the end. And I must enter Jerusalem today and then again,
and again and yet again, because it is impossible for Me to stop
before. And it must end with justice, that is, in Jerusalem”363.9.
This, then, is the prophetic announcement of the Passion, after
this Passover, the Pentecost, the Tabernacles and the last
Passover. Is this not a plausible and illuminating rephrasing of
Luke’s verse?
Capernaum, Korazim, Bethsaida: the accursed triangle
Jesus’s invectives against Capernaum, Korazim and
Bethsaida are reported by Matthew (11, 21-24) and Luke (10,
12-15): “Woe to you, Korazim! Woe to you, Bethsaida!” But the
Evangelists do not say what provoked this sudden and violent
outburst, and exegetes can only wonder...

Here is the context in which Maria Valtorta situates this

episode. Jesus has just learnt that the inhabitants of Korazim
have refused to help a poor widow in their village266.1. Manaen

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and two envoys from the Baptist then arrive and Jesus shows
them the latest beneficiaries of His good works: “The deaf
hear... the dumb speak... the blind see”266.5. Jesus praises John
the Baptist, then laments the fact that neither He nor the Baptist
are recognised for what they are.
Hence Jairus’s intervention: “You have spoken well,
Master, says the head of the synagogue. This is why my
daughter, still innocent, sees you as we cannot. And yet, this
town and the neighbouring towns have seen Your power, Your
wisdom and Your goodness overflowing on to them, and I have
to admit that they only progress in wickedness towards You.
They do not repent and the good that You give them produces a
fermentation of hatred for You. (...) Is this not a transgression
in the eyes of God? And will He not punish all this rancour and
this stubborn continuation in evil? Speak, Master, You Who
know”266.13. And Jesus’s reply fits naturally into this context:
“Yes, it is a transgression and it will be punished, because the
gift of God must never be treated with contempt, nor used for
evil purposes. Woe to you, Korazim, woe to you, Bethsaida, you
who misuse God’s gifts”266.13
Remark: Maria Valtorta indicates that the only disciples present then
were Matthew and Manaen. So it should not come as a surprise that
Matthew mentions it, just after the arrival of the Baptist’s envoys.
But Luke? Could his testimony be linked to Manaen’s presence on
that day? This is a good question. Certain exegetes did, in fact, think
that it was Manaen who provided Luke with many details about
Herod’s family384. So, as one of the rare witnesses of this episode,
why would he not have told Luke about it?

384
Luke 3, 1.19-20; 8, 3; 9, 7-9; 13, 31-32; 23, 8-12; Acts 12.

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“My Yoke is light”
Here is a lesson from Jesus that would surely require a
commentary. Matthew alone mentions these words from the
Master, in a very brief summary. The Gospel as Revealed to Me
gives us four magnificent pages on Charity, which invite us
irresistibly to meditation and would benefit from a thorough
exegetic analysis. Jesus has just spent a week helping a poor
abandoned widow by doing some carpentry work for her. He
explains to His Apostles, who are surprised by His absence: “I
went to Korazim to preach Charity by action”268.4. Some
Apostles are scandalised by the fact that the Master has done
manual work, which they deem unworthy of Him. So, as always,
and with His infinite patience, Jesus teaches: “What have I done
that should not have been done? Have we understood one
another so little as not to understand that hypocrisy is a sin and
that words are only wind if action does not give them its
strength? What have I always told you? “Love one another.
Love is the precept and the secret of glory”. (...) You must be
prepared to do what I have done. No work for the sake of your
neighbour, or to take a soul to God, must be burdensome to you.
No work of any sort is ever humiliating. But base actions,
duplicity, false denunciations, harshness, injustice, usury,
slander and lust are humiliating. That is what mortifies man.
And yet they are done unashamedly, even by those who like to
think that they are perfect and who were very probably
scandalised to see Me work with a saw and a hammer”268.6. As
He so often does, He comes back to past teachings, developing
them in a new way. “Do you remember when I told you that
hope is like the crossbar of the kind yoke supporting Faith and
Charity, and that it is the scaffold of mankind and the throne of
salvation?385” (...) “It is a yoke, because it compels man to lower
385
Jesus alludes here to one of His teachings reported by Maria Valtorta in chapter 256.7.

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his silly pride under the weight of eternal truths, and it is the
scaffold of such pride. The man who hopes in the Lord his God,
unavoidably mortifies his pride that would like to proclaim itself
“god”, acknowledging that he is nothing and that God is
everything, that he can do nothing and God can do everything”
(...) Do not reject God, even in the least things. And to refuse to
help your neighbour because of heathen pride is to reject
God”268.7. “My doctrine is a yoke that bends guilty mankind; it
is a mallet that breaks the hard bark to free its spirit. It is indeed
a yoke and a hammer. And yet, he who accepts it does not feel
the tiredness that comes with other human doctrines and all
other human things”268.8. And Jesus concludes by this luminous
statement: “Take My yoke upon you. It is not a burden, it is a
support. (...) Do not be afraid because My yoke is gentle and its
weight is light, whereas the glory that you will enjoy if you are
faithful to Me is infinitely powerful. Infinite and eternal”268.9.
The perverse and adulterous generation
When Jesus speaks of “this perverse and adulterous
generation”386, is it a simple formula, is it “because they have
betrayed the God of Israel”, or is it “a metaphor taken from
Hosea 1, 2” etc, as we read in certain biblical commentaries?
Let us rather examine the dialogue transmitted to us by Maria
Valtorta: “Why do you say that this generation is adulterous and
perverse? It is not any worse than the others. There are the same
saints in it as there were in the others. The structure of Israel
has not changed. You offend us”. “You offend yourselves by
injuring your souls, because you separate them from Truth and
consequently, from Salvation. But I will answer you nonetheless.
This generation is only holy in its garments and outward
appearances. It is not inwardly holy. In Israel there are the same

386
Matthew 12, 39; 16, 4; Mark 8, 38; Luke 11, 29.

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names to designate the same things, but there is no reality of
things. There are the same customs, garments and rites, but
their spirit is missing. You are adulterers because you have
rejected the spiritual marriage with the Divine Law and, in a
second, adulterous union, you have espoused the law of Satan.
You are circumcised only in a frail member. Your hearts are no
longer circumcised. And you are wicked and perverse because
you have sold yourselves to the Evil One. I have spoken”269.11.
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit
Matthew (12, 31), Mark (3, 33) and Luke (12, 10) attest
this very clear statement made by Jesus. But not one of these
three evangelists provides a commentary. Why, then, will the
sin against the Spirit not be forgiven? Here is the answer,
provided by Maria Valtorta, in conformity with the teaching of
the Church387 : “And I tell you, men will be forgiven everything,
all their sins and all their blasphemy, because God knows that
man is not only spirit, but also flesh and his flesh, when tempted,
is subject to sudden weaknesses. But blasphemy against the
Spirit will not be forgiven. He who has spoken against the Son
of Man will still be forgiven, because the weight of the flesh
enveloping My Person and enveloping the man who speaks
against Me, can still mislead. But he who has spoken against the
Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this life, or in the future
life, because Truth is what it is: clear, holy, undeniable and
manifested in the Spirit in such a way that it cannot mislead, in
the sense that only those who deliberately desire the error
commit it. To deny the Truth spoken by the Holy Spirit is to deny
the Word of God and the Love given by that Word for the love
of men. And the sin against Love is not forgiven”269.8.

387
See the Catechism of the Catholic Church, § 1,864.

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Who is My Mother? Who are My brothers?
Can we still wonder about the meaning of the question
“Who is My Mother? Who are My brothers?388 ” when we read
this sentence: “You are more than relatives to Me because you
are My children and My brothers, not according to the blood
that is mortal, but according to the will of God and the will of
your spirit. I tell you now that I have no closer relative than
those who do My Father’s will”54.8. And when we read Jesus’s
answer to the question: “Isn’t Your Mother the greatest One,
Jesus, for having brought You forth?” “Great is he who does
the will of God, and this is why Mary is great. All other merit
comes from God, but this one is entirely Hers, and blessed may
She be for it”420.11.
To hate one’s father and one’s mother with holiness
When Luke (14, 26) reports these words of Jesus’s: “If
somebody comes to Me and does not hate his father and his
mother… he cannot be My disciple”, certain people might find
the apparently uncharacteristic tone surprising. But Maria
Valtorta sheds new light on these same words and everything
becomes clear: “If someone wants to come to Me and does not
hate with holiness father, mother, wife, children, brothers and
sisters, even his very life, he cannot be My disciple. I said: “hate
with holiness”. In your hearts, you are saying: “Hatred, as He
teaches it, is never holy. So He is contradicting Himself.” No. I
am not contradicting Myself. I say that you must hate the
heaviness of love, the sensual passion of love for your father and
mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters and for your life
itself. But, on the other hand, I order you to love relatives and
life with the light freedom of spirits. Love them in God and for
God, never placing God after them, endeavouring and taking
388
Matthew 12, 46-50; Mark 3, 31-35; Luke 8, 19-21.

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care to lead them to where the disciple has already arrived, that
is, to God the Truth. You will thus love God and your relatives
with holiness, reconciling both loves, transforming family ties
from a burden into wings, from a fault into justice”281.5.
Blessed Gabriel M. Allegra’s Testimony
In Maria Valtorta’s work, many are the evangelical
sentences that acquire their full meaning when placed in
situation within their context. The reader then understands how
difficult their interpretation can be when taken out of context
and why this lack of context gave rise to long exegetical debates
in the past. I have already mentioned the testimony of Father
Allegra389, the reputed Biblicist and theologian. On the subject
of several modern exegetic errors, he declared: “Exegetes today,
even Catholics, take the strangest and most audacious liberties
with the historicity of the Childhood Gospel and the narrations
of the Resurrection...” Then, noting to what extent Maria
Valtorta’s work could clarify so many points, he gave this
advice: “I invite the readers (...) to read the page on the
Resurrection, and the reconstruction of the events that took
place on Easter Sunday, and they will see how harmoniously
linked it all is. This is exactly what so many exegetes, following
the critical historical-theological method, have tried to do, with
only partial success. These pages are not disturbing, but
gladden the hearts of the faithful and reinforce their faith!”

389
See the chapter “The judgement of the Church”, paragraph F.

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Father Roschini’s testimony
It would be unthinkable not to mention Father Roschini’s
testimony again, in this chapter on exegetical questions and their
solutions that The Gospel as Revealed to Me can provide. He
was the founder and the first rector (for fifteen years) of the
Marianum pontifical faculty of theology390. In this work that he
wrote in his twilight years391, and that he considered “as the most
important of his life”, he states: “All the Biblical passages
pertaining to Mary in the Old and New Testaments, from the
Book of Genesis (3, 15) to the Apocalypse (12), are enhanced in
the Valtortian Mariology. The “supposedly anti-marian”
passages are all there, but in the light of this interpretation, they
dissipate all shadows surrounding the luminous figure of
Mary”, i.e. Matthew 12, 46-50; Luke 11,27-28; Luke 2,33; 41-
52 and John 2,2-5. He concludes his analysis392: “We might well
wonder what “anti-marian elements” these four texts contain...
Duly interpreted, they are a veritable hymn of praise to Mary”
The Bible omnipresent in the teachings of Jesus
This work contains innumerable Biblical references,
which have all been verified each time they appeared in the text.
But although there are so many of them, they are sometimes so
discreetly and logically integrated into the text that they can go
quite unnoticed by those who do not possess an excellent level
of Biblical erudition.
They are never servile copies of texts, but rather rephrased
texts, always placed in a coherent context, to illustrate or
reinforce a point... These Biblical mentions are never

390
Pontificia Facoltà Teologica «Marianum». Viale Trenta Aprile, 6. 00153 Roma
391
La Madonna negli scritti di Maria Valtorta Edizioni Pisani 1973.
392
Pages 42 - 47 of the French edition of this book La Vierge Marie dans l'œuvre de Maria Valtorta.

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quotations, taken from any Bible as if recited by heart. On the
contrary, they ring true as verbally formulated improvisations.
For instance when Jesus declares,: “Who will not judge by what
appears to the eyes, but by the secrets of hearts...Who will side
with the humble and judge the poor with righteousness... That
is from Isaiah, is it not?”155.8. Is this not a magnificent rewriting
of Isaiah’s biblical text (11, 3-4)? “He shall not judge by what
his eyes see, or decide by what he hears, but he shall judge the
poor with justice and decide with equity for the meek and
humble”. And it is clear that the Bible is omnipresent in the work
to anyone who re-reads, for instance, a passage of the inspired
praise of the Virgin Mary by Sabea the prophetess: “She stole
the heart of God by only one of her dove-like throbs. The beauty
of her spirit fascinated the Most High and of Her He made His
throne. Miriam of Aaron sinned because sin was in her.
Deborah decided what was to be done, but did not do it with her
own hands. Jahel was brave, but she soiled her hands with
blood. Judith was righteous and feared the Lord, and God was
in her words and allowed her the deed that Israel might be
saved, but for the love of her Motherland, she resorted to a
murderous ruse. But the Woman who engendered Him exceeds
those women, because She is the perfect handmaiden of God and
serves Him without sinning. Totally pure, innocent and
beautiful, She is the beautiful Star of God, from its rising to its
setting. Completely beautiful, resplendent and pure, to be Star
and Moon, Light to men for them to find the Lord. She neither
precedes nor follows the Holy Ark, like Miriam of Aaron,
because She Herself is the Ark. She glides and saves on the
muddy water of the earth, submerged by the deluge of sins,
because whoever communes with Her finds the Lord. Spotless
dove, she goes out and brings the olive branch, the branch of
peace to men, because She is the beautiful Olive. She is silent,
and in Her silence She speaks and Her works surpass

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Deborah’s, Jahel’s and Judith’s. She does not advise fighting,
nor does She encourage massacres; She sheds no other blood
than Her own most chosen blood, with which She made Her Son.
Unhappy Mother! Sublime Mother! Judith feared the Lord, but
her flower had belonged to a man”525.7.
Without reading attentively, who would notice that in
these few lines there are at least ten Biblical references393 ? At
least those are the ones that were the easiest for me to find. But
I have no doubt that Biblicists might find even more in this brief
extract! A study published by Edmea Dusio394 shows that in the
work there are explicit or implicit mentions from 1,166 of the
1,334 chapters of the books that make up the Bible; in other
words, almost the whole Bible! But it is abundantly clear that
this is a subject that would occupy researchers for decades. In
this way, David Amos, a French researcher, after a rigorous
study, found no fewer than 3,133 Biblical mentions in The
Gospel as Revealed to Me. A great part of his work is on the site
www.Maria-Valtorta.org dedicated to the Italian mystic.

It also seems that some American Benedictines, a Belgian team and

an Australian group have been working on this study for some years
now... And, no doubt some independent researchers, as well as a few
members of the Biblical Institute of Jerusalem perhaps.

393
For example: The Song of Songs 4, 1-9 ; Numbers 12 ; Judges 4 et 5 ; Judith 4, 17-23 ; Judith 5, 24-
27 ; Judith 8 à 16 ; Exodus 15, 20 ; Genesis. 8, 6-12; Ecclesiastics 24, 14.
394
Edmea Dusio, Indice biblico dell’opera “Il poema dell’ Uomo-Dio”, Pisani, 1970.

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 IF IT’S NOT TRUE… IT’S CLEVERLY MADE UP
An old Italian adage395
“To wait to know enough to act with full knowledge of the facts is to condemn
oneself to inaction”.
Jean Rostand
“Audacious ideas are like pawns that you move on a chessboard: you risk losing
them, but they might also be the beginnings of a winning strategy”.
Johann Wolfgang Goethe.

When practically everything that can be tested in Maria

Valtorta’s work turns out to be correct, we can reasonably
assume that what is not verifiable today, or is no longer so (for
example the description of a lost monument) is highly likely to
be true... Similarly, when Maria Valtorta offers us unverifiable
situations (for example meetings or dialogues between
characters) but which nevertheless provide a logical explanation
to certain secular enigmas, it would seem legitimate to grant
them a certain amount of credit, or even certain credit. Now,
there are many obscure points in the history of the Christian first
century on which The Gospel as Revealed to Me sheds new and
convincing light, as well as many legends or ancient traditions
that Maria Valtorta confirms, (or, on the contrary, debunks) so
clearly and so naturally that her presentation appears today to
impose itself on our reason as obvious.
Jesus’s family ties
The subject of Jesus’s family (and particularly the identity
of His brothers and His sisters mentioned by the Evangelists)
has been intensely debated throughout the centuries. So much
nonsense has been written on the subject that it was high time
that Providence took a hand in sorting it all out.
How modern this thought of Pascal’s has remained to this
day: “The truth is so obscured in these times and lies so
395
Se non é vero, é ben trovato.

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established, that unless you love truth, you will not be able to
know it396”. Let us simply say that Jesus’s family ties, as they
appear in Maria Valtorta’s text, are in line with the Gospels and
with many of the most ancient traditions. The abundant details
provided form a whole that is plausible enough for us to
reasonably consider this subject as perfectly clarified. As it is
impossible to give an exhaustive view in this book, I will limit
myself to indicating the broad outlines and give some positions
on certain points that have occasionally been the subject of
controversy...
Maria Valtorta confirms that the Virgin Mary, Mother of
Jesus, was born to Joachim, of the house of David, and Anne
of Aaron, his wife. She was entrusted to the Temple at the age
of three, and remained there until She was fourteen. Her parents
are thought to have died two or three years before She left the
Temple397: “I no longer have father nor mother... My parents
were two just people and God spoke to them deep in their hearts
as He speaks to Me. They followed the path of justice and truth.
When I think of them, I see them at rest, with the Patriarchs and
by my sacrifice I hasten the coming of the Messiah who will open
the gates of Heaven for them”10.4. Consequently, and by
applying “the law of the orphan heiress”100.5, as Maria Valtorta
rightly says, it was the High Priest 398 who chose Joseph to be
Her husband.
Joseph, son of Jacob, adoptive father of Jesus, (also of the
house of David, like Mary), a carpenter in Nazareth, was chosen
to be Mary’s husband when he was over thirty. Maria Valtorta

396
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), Pensées LXII
397
Maria Valtorta thus echoes Georges Cedrenus (circa 1050-1100), a Greek monk who affirms in his
Chronicle that Joachim and Anne died when Mary was 12 years old.
398
See the chapter “The law of the orphan heiress and Mary’s wedding”.
(continued on following page...)

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relates the episode of the almond tree branch399 “that had
blossomed in an unusual way”348.11. Joseph died at about sixty
years of age, shortly before Jesus began His public life.
Joseph’s eldest brother was called Alpheus and was married
to Mary of Cleophas (also known as Mary of Alpheus or even
simply Mary). So Mary of Alpheus was Jesus’s aunt and the
sister-in-law of the Virgin Mary (Her sister, in oriental
language). The couple had four sons: Joseph, Simon, James
and Jude. Maria Valtorta designates them quite naturally as
Jesus’s cousins, but in the dialogues, they naturally appear as
brothers of Jesus. This is a point on which a lot of ink covered
many pages, (unnecessarily!) as these cousins were also
sometimes designated as brothers of Jesus in the translations of
the Gospels400 throughout the centuries. Some scholarly minds
saw in this the opportunity to construct all sorts of theories.
Consequently, this requires an explanation.
Jesus, His brothers and His sisters
The word for cousin did not exist in Hebrew or in Aramaic.
In these languages, the words brothers and sisters designated
close relatives401. The oral tradition was first transmitted in
Aramaic, which is why the appellation brothers of Jesus was
fixed as designating His close relatives, before they were written
or translated into Greek, then Latin in the Gospels. In Greek,
there are two main terms to designate blood relationships:

399
According to an ancient tradition recorded by Saint Jerome (circa 400): “they placed 24 almond
branches in the Temple and the next day Joseph the carpenter’s was covered with leaves and blossom”.
The Apocryphal Gospel of James also reports in VIII.3: « Let each one bring a branch and the one to
whom the Lord sends a miracle, to this one, She will become wife”. Mary of Agreda also mentions this
miracle in The Mystical City of God.
400
“That one there, isn’t He the carpenter, the son of Mary, brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon?
And aren’t His sisters here among us?” Mark 6, 3 and Matthew 13, 55 -56.
401
The Aramaic word “aha” meant brother, half-brother or cousin.
(continued on following page...)

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 Adelphos: blood brother, but often extended in a wider sense in
Biblical texts, encompassing cousins among the siblings, (1
Chronicles 23, 22; Tobias 5, 13); or even nephews (Genesis 13.8; 14,
16; Leviticus 10, 4)402.
Anepsios: cousin in classical Greek, but used in a vaguer sense in the
Bible: cousin (Tobias 7, 2); nephew (Col 4, 10) or uncle (Numbers
36, 11).
The Septants also translated from the original Hebrew of the
Old Testament exclusively using the Greek term adelphos
(brother) instead of the more general term anepsios, to designate
family ties403. Clearly, the translators of the books of the Torah
very often used adelphos in the wide sense of brothers, cousins
and nephews. (The same goes for the feminine form adelphê,
sister, which includes the cousin or the sister-in-law).
Hegesippe (circa 180) was one of the very first whose
testimony on Jesus’s relatives has come down to us. He views
Mary of Cleophas not as the sister, but as the sister-in-law of
Mary, the Mother of Jesus and her husband as Joseph’s brother.
He identifies Simon as “the son of an uncle of the Lord’s404”.
After the martyrdom of James, Simon was appointed bishop in
Jerusalem “because he was the Lord’s second cousin”.
The family ties reported by Maria Valtorta are thus perfectly
coherent within this early tradition405. Maria Valtorta also
402
In the Greek New Testament text, the word adelphos occurs over 100 times : 41 times in the sense
of “biological brothers” 42 times as “members of the same community or family” ; 213 times in the
sense of “adepts of the same religion”; 22 times as “close collaborators” (In the epistles of Paul and
Peter).
403
This usage is attested on numerous occasions. For example, Lot, Abraham’s nephew, and Jacob,
Laban’s nephew, are called “their brother” (Genesis 13, 8; 14, 14-16 and Genesis 29, 15).
404
Reported by Eusebius, in Ecclesial History III, 19-22
405
The pseudo tradition of Joseph’s sons and daughters from a previous marriage originated with
Origen and Epiphanes, (based on the Apocryphal Gospel of James, (written around the 2nd century). But
the fact that Epiphanes names four “sons” (James, Joseph, Simon and Jude) and two “daughters”
(Salome and Mary), clearly indicates that they are Joseph’s close relatives, as Maria Valtorta describes
them. It was only the clumsy zeal of a copyist or translator that transformed them into Joseph’s sons and
daughters!

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informs us that the cousin Simon was married to Salome, (a
cousin of Jesus’s by marriage, hence one of the sisters of Jesus),
not to be confused with Mary-Salome, wife of Zebedee and
mother of the Apostles James and John.
The lightning expansion of Christianity in the
Mediterranean area
The Gospel as Revealed to Me, among other things, sheds
new and convincing light on the lightning expansion of the
budding first-century church all around the Mediterranean and
especially in Antioch, in Alexandria, in Ephesus, in Rome, in
Provence and the Rhone valley and in Aquitaine, as well as in
Spain.
The personality of each of the artisans of this expansion
stands out so clearly, that the reader ends up feeling that he
knows each one of them... and that he is a witness to the events
that brought about their conversion forever changing their lives,
like Maximin, Marcelle, Sarah, Zacheus, Nike, Barnabas,
Hermas and so many others, or again Aurea Galla, the future
Saint Christiana: “I feel that I will remain in Israel, to become
better acquainted with this Father of mine... And to be the first
disciple of Gaul, Oh my Lord!” “Your faith will be satisfied,
because it is good”437.7.
*
Let me now mention a few elements that I have as yet been
unable to prove formally and which remain today simple
working hypotheses for me...

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One Publius Quinctillianus
The case of Publius Quinctillianus, the centurion turned
tribune, deserves our attention. This name immediately evokes
the son of the tribune general Publius Quinctilius Varus406 and a
great-niece of Augustus, Claudia Pulchra, married in 14 BC.
The diminutive form Quinctillianus might indicate that on the
death of his father, he was probably adopted by his aunt
Quinctillia, Varus’s sister, according to the current practice of
that time.
We learn from Flavius Josephus that when he was barely
20 years old, young Publius seconded his father in restoring
order in Judea between the years 4 and 6 AD: “the son of Varus
who commanded some of the troops, took Sephoris and had all
the Jews who had dared to resist sold by auction407 ». Tacitus
explains that he was later falsely accused by Domitius Afer, “of
having made an illicit fortune in Syria 408 ». He inherited from
his father and his mother, Claudia Pulchra409 who “died in exile”
in 26 AD. He disappeared from the pages of History in 26/27
AD, except for the mention that Tiberius, “who was a close
relative of his, did nothing to save him”.
Could he simply have been ordered to keep a low profile
for some time in Rome, and discreetly sent to Pilate and Claudia
in Judea on a mission? Be that as it may, the son of Varus was
perfectly familiar with the region, where he had been with his
father from 7 BC to 6 AD. Everything that we learn from Maria

406
Varus was killed in 9 AD in the Teutoburg forest (near Osnabrück) where the three legions under
his command were massacred.
407
Flavius Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 17, 10, 9.
408
Tacitus, Annals, 4, 66-71. Curiously, this same accusation was levelled at his father by Velleius
Paterculus, Roman History, 2.117.
409
Tacitus, Annals, Book IV, 52.

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Valtorta on Publius Quinctillianus seems to support this
hypothesis:
- The date of his presence in Palestine (in 26/27 AD), the same year in
which the son of Varus, Publius Quinctilius, disappeared from
Rome,
- His mission under Pilate: he was Claudia’s bodyguard, “Here is
Claudia. We are escorting her”192.5.
- His approximate age (40-45), compatible with the historical data on
the son of Varus.
- His appointment as centurion of the Italic cohort109.14 in 27/28, that
is, as first centurion (primus pilus), then his nomination, in July 29
AD, as “tribune of Antioch”461.19, which would prove that he
belonged to the equestrian order410.
As both his father and grandfather committed suicide after
a military defeat, it is understandable that he would have omitted
the cognomen Varus (knock-kneed) from his identity. Not very
flattering per se, this nickname would have been very difficult
to bear after the disaster in Germania!
He is even identifiable as “the tribune of the people
Quinctillianus” of whom Tacitus411 says that he received “a light
reprimand” from Tiberius, shortly after the death of Lucius
Calpernius Piso in 32 AD. He might even have been quietly
instrumental then in the implantation of the Church in Rome.

410
Only citizens from families belonging to the knighthood (equester ordo) could become tribunes.
411
Tacitus, Annals, Book VI, 10 – 12.

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Valerius and Valeria, a divided Roman couple
Valerian is presented in the work as a “noble Roman from
the proconsul’s entourage. (...) He is one of the richest and the
most disgusting Romans that we have here. And he is as cruel
as he is disgusting”254.5. Sintica, his slave girl, ran away to
escape the whims of this “master in the art of the orgy”.
The Valerii (or Valeria gens) were one of the most
important Roman families412. The Valerian mentioned in M.
Valtorta’s work could well be Decimus Valerius Asiaticus (5 BC
– 47 AD). Born in Vienne in the Rhone valley, nothing is known
of the beginning of his career. He moved to Rome in the latter
years of the reign of Tiberius, was admitted to the Senate and
appointed consul in 35 AD and in 46 AD. He belonged to the
inner circle of Claude (born in Lyons) and accompanied him in
the campaign of 43 against the Bretons413. His wealth and his
brilliant career enabled him to buy the villa and the gardens
created in Rome circa 60 BC by Lucullus. He was extremely
wealthy, very influential in Rome but also in Vienne. He retired
to his gardens in Rome and “mostly occupied with his pleasure,
he abandoned himself to a voluptuous life and to Epicurean
debauchery 414”. The object of the jealousy of Messalina (who
coveted his luxurious property), he was arrested in Baiae and
condemned to suicide by Claudius415. Like Pilate, he came from
the region of Narbonne and his presence in the year 26 in the
orbit of Pilate and Plautius, as well as his age (29) at the time of
412
There were several consuls in the time of Jesus : Marcus Valerius Messalla Messallinus, consul in
3BC; Lucius Valerius Messalla Volesus, consul in 5 AD; Marcus Valerius Messalla Barbatus
Messalinus (12 BC – 21AD) consul in 20 AD, father of Marcus Valerius Messalla Corvinus and of
Valeria Messalina (20/48); his half-sister was Claudia Pulchra, widow of Varus. Marcus Valerius
Messalla Corvinus, consul en 58 AD, son of the previous one
413
He was a staff officer of Aulus Plautius, who was himself present in Palestine in 26 – 28
414
This unflattering portrait corresponds perfectly to the one given in Maria Valtorta’s text.
415
According to Dion Cassius, Roman History 59, 30, 60 and Tacitus, Annals 9, 1; 13, 43.
(continued on following page...)

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the birth of his daughter Faustina, all coincide. His nickname,
Asiaticus, indicates that he performed great deeds in Asia! We
learn from his young wife, Valeria in September, 28 AD: “He
had himself sent to Antioch to the Consul, and forbade me to
follow him”531.11. History, however, records that Valerian joined
the consul of Syria, Gnaeus Sentius Saturninus the elder, in
Antioch precisely in the year 28! Eutropius416 indicates that the
son of this latter417 was one of the generals who accompanied
Claudius on his conquest of Great Britain, as was Valerius
Asiaticus, but also Aulus Paulus and Vespasian 418 the future
husband of Flavia Domitilla!
As for his young wife, Valeria, who had openly become a
disciple of Jesus after the healing of her little daughter Fausta,
she progressively separated from her husband “a miserable
being, ruled by brutal animalism, licentious, adulterous,
thoughtless, indifferent, mocking the feelings and the dignity of
his wife”531.10 who had only this to say at the birth of his
daughter: “He laughed when they took our daughter to him and
said “I would like to have her laid on the ground. I did not
accept the yoke of marriage to have daughters... Name her
Libitina419, and let her be consecrated to the goddess”531.11.
Left alone with her daughter, Valeria decides: “I will not
leave this place... I will stay here with Tusnilde420. I am free, I

416
Eutropius, Breviarium historiae Romanae 7,13,2.
417
Gnaeus Sentius Saturninus the younger, consul in 41
418
It would seem then, that several of the notables that comprised Pilate’s entourage in Maria Valtorta’s
work, were together ten years later in the service of the Emperor Claudius.
419
The odious nature of this remark takes on its full meaning when we remember that Libitina was the
goddess of death!
420
The fact that the wife of Arminius was left in the care of Valeria’s father at the death of Germanicus,
clearly indicates that Valeria came from a great Roman family!
(continued on following page...)

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am rich, I can do as I please. And doing no wrong, I will do what
I want”583.12.
It does not seem that Roman historians mention this first
wife of Valerian’s, probably “forgotten” in Rome, where she did
not live. On the other hand, is it possible to find a trace of her in
certain rabbinical texts421 ? “A rich woman called Valeria422, who
had slaves” is considered here as “having become a proselyte”.
Resident in Jamnia and Lydda after the fall of Jerusalem, she
discussed the contradictions in the Bible with the grandson of
Gamaliel the Elder and the priest José423. Many clues suggesting
that the Valeria described by Maria Valtorta, whom we see in
the Roman synagogue shortly before the Passion, and who
announces her intention of remaining where her faith was born,
could well be this mysterious Valeria turned proselyte. A young
bride in the year 28, she could thus very well have lived beyond
the decade following the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Ethanim, the seventh or the eighth month?
In Maria Valtorta’s work, the month of Ethanim is
mentioned several times: “Salome who saw you, unknown to
you, in Tiberias last Ethanim”348.3; “I went there when we came
to Auranitide with the Master in the month of Ethanim”356.2: “the
life of her Jesus is like this sky in Ethanim: clouds and rain,
sometimes a storm, but there are also sunny days”504.3; etc. And
according to the chronology of the events described, Ethanim
unambiguously appears as the month immediately following
Tishri, that is, the 8th month of the year since Nisan. It

421
Mekhil, 12, 48. p18 a; Yevamot, 46 a; Gerim, II. 4.
422
That some tried to identify as Beruria, daughter of Rabbi Chanina ben Teradion, but this explanation
does not seem to be well founded.
423
The Talmud of Babylon, Rosh Hashanah, 17 b, even stipulates “between Deuteronomy 10, 17 and
Numbers 6, 26”.
(continued on following page...)

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corresponds to October/November of the Julian calendar or to
Cheshvan (or Marheshvan) of the current Hebraic calendar. Yet,
in the Bible, Ethanim is mentioned as being the 7th month, the
month of the Dedication of the Temple by Solomon. But certain
exegetes424 mention an instance of incoherence there: as the
Temple was finished in the 8th month, it does not seem very
probable that Solomon would have waited for eleven months to
dedicate it! In addition, the etymological meaning of Ethanim is
powerful rivers, a term which is more appropriate for our
present-day months of October/November. It is highly
improbable that the feast of the Tents should be held in the
month of powerful rivers! It should also be underlined that this
single Biblical text, upon which all the others are based to fix
Ethanim and Boul (permanent rivers) “is full of all sorts of
difficulties425 ” and with imprecise indications that have been
noted by the exegetes. So, there are several serious reasons to
credit the original interpretation of Ethanim as it appears in
Maria Valtorta’s text.
The date of the first written Gospels
The question of when the Gospels were written down has
been of primary interest to many researchers for several
centuries. In truth, as far as Faith is concerned, it is a capital
question. If, as some have affirmed, the Gospels are tardy
narrations of a long verbal tradition within the first Christian
communities, then their fidelity to the life and teachings of Jesus
can be called into question at any time, opening the door to
doubt and a possible weakening of the Faith. Many studies

424
See for example the notes of the Osty Bible.
425
Osty Bible, 1, Kings 6, 1: explanatory note.
(continued on following page...)

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published since the eighties426 have now shown that the Gospels
were written very early (between 40 and 60 AD), formally
debunking the hazy theories put forward in the 19th and 20th
centuries, dating them 50 or 100 years later. Moreover, simple
common sense would make it quite absurd, both
psychologically and historically, that of all the numerous
disciples who witnessed the miracles and heard the luminous
words spoken by Jesus, not one of them noted any of it down as
it happened. Curiously enough, those same scholars who dated
the writing of the Gospels at about 100 or 150 AD never
contested the fact that, 450 years previously, Xenophon and
Plato wrote down the words of Socrates immediately427.
Strictly speaking The Gospel as Revealed to Me does not
contain any dated indications as to when the Gospels were
written. But it does contain many plausible allusions as to how
the disciples memorised and recorded the words and deeds of
the Master.
It was Jesus Who first drew John’s attention to this: “John,
when the Veil of the Temple is torn, a great truth will shine over
all Sion”. “What truth, my Lord?” “That the sons of darkness
have been in contact with the Light in vain. Remember that,
John”. “Will I be a son of darkness, Master?” “No, not you, but
remember it to explain the Crime to the world”92.6. Or again:
“John, remember these words for when the time comes to write
them down”116.10. Matthew, for his part, reassures Peter, who has
doubts about his memory: “I want to remember all this. But will

426
See, for example : C. Tresmontant, Le Christ Hébreu 1983; Père J. Carmignac, La naissance des
évangiles synoptiques 1984 ; Robinson, The priority of John 1985 ; Carsten P. Thiede, Les origines de
l’Evangile d’après le texte du papyrus, P 64, 1995.
427
And yet, the most ancient of the 7 existing “manuscripts” of Plato’s texts date from the year 900,
that is, 1,250 years after the original! Whereas there are 24,000 existing fragments of the New
Testament, some of which date from the years 40 to 60! (Source: J. McDowell, Evidence That Demands
a Verdict, 1979).

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I be able to?” says Peter. “Don’t worry, Simon. Tomorrow I will
ask the shepherds to repeat it to me all over again, calmly, in
the orchard... once, twice, three times if necessary. I have a
good memory. I developed it at my tax counter and I will
remember for everybody. I will be able to repeat it all to you
whenever you want”136.11. John of Endor, the former teacher,
takes notes to teach Marjiam, and later, the budding community
in Antioch. “John of Endor stands up too. He was taking
copious notes while Jesus was speaking”250.9. “Sometimes Old
Felix returns with his teacher’s reflexes. I am thinking of
Marjiam. He has his whole life to preach You, but because of
his age, he is not here to listen to Your sermons. I thought of
writing down certain teachings that You gave us that the child
did not hear(...) There is so much wisdom in your words, even
in the least of them! Your familiar conversations are a lesson on
everyday matters precisely, and concern every man (...) I have
written Your short explanations for Marjiam. And this evening,
I wanted to write down Your great teaching. I will leave my work
to the child, for him to remember me, the old teacher, and also
for him to have these teachings which he would not otherwise
have had. Your words. His splendid treasure”250.11.
Syntyche, the future evangeliser of Antioch, also takes
notes: “On original sin, Master. I have written down Your
Mother’s explanation in order to remember it, she adds. John of
Endor also says: “I did so too. I think that this is something on
which we will be asked many questions, if we go among the
Gentiles one day.”307.5. Then when John has departed, Marjiam
picks up the torch: “Now, I am the one who will write them for
You and I will send them to You… won’t I, Master? It is possible,
isn’t it?” “It certainly is. And it will be a great act of charity to
do it”. “I will do it. And when I am away, I will have Simon the
Zealot do it”312.12. From then on, that is what he does: “Master!

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Thank You on John’s behalf! I wrote everything down while You
were speaking. I just have to add the miracle now”364.10.
Elsewhere, he adds: “I will give him what I have written”465.6.
Wouldn’t these notes, taken by the future Saint Martial, have
helped the Evangelist Mark to write his Gospel?
Even the great Rabbi Gamaliel, in a conversation with
Jesus, confessed: “Master... some of Your words, spoken at a
banquet, have been relayed to me. I disapproved, because I
discerned insincerity in what was said to me. I fight, or I do not
fight, but I always do it openly. I meditated on these words and
compared them with those that have remained in my memory...
And I have been waiting for You here, to ask You about them...
But first, I wanted to hear You speak... Those others have not
understood. I hope that I will be able to understand. I wrote
down Your words while You were speaking, not to harm You,
but in order to meditate on them,”487.10. The Roman ladies
themselves, through Flavia, the freedwoman, as we have already
seen428, transmit what they have heard and witnessed to Claudia:
“Have you written it down?” “Yes, exactly”, says the woman,
passing the clay tablets to her. “It will remain so that it can be
re-read”, says Plautina. “It is wax, it can be erased. Write it in
your hearts. Those words will never again be erased”204.9. And
finally, here is Mary’s advice to John, shortly before Her
glorious Assumption: “Remember everything, the words and
actions of My Son. Remember His gentle parables and live them,
that is, put them into practice. And write them down so that they
will remain for future generations, until the end of time and
always serve as a guide for men of goodwill to obtain eternal
life and glory. You will probably not be able to repeat all the

428
See the paragraph “A mother called Albulla and her daughter, Flavia”.

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luminous words of the Eternal Word of Life and Truth. But write
down as many of them as you can”649.9.
All these dialogues contribute to our understanding of the
way in which a wealth of notes and memories were built up quite
naturally. These were rapidly put into order by the Apostles, at
least by John and Matthew, to constitute the basis of their
Gospel. Who knows whether one or the other of these
innumerable manuscripts will one day come to light during
some archaeological discovery?
The Birth of Jesus and the death of Herod
Historians specialised in first-century history have always
had great difficulty in establishing a coherent dating of the
events that occurred during this important historical period. Not
because of a lack of data, but rather because the data is scattered
like an immense puzzle, of which only some pieces are still in
their place today. Their difficulties increase when they must
summon the courage to move a piece that was thought by some
to have been put into its correct place. Thus, the date of the birth
of Jesus was generally fixed between 2 and 3 BC during the first
centuries429. Towards 525, Dionysius Exiguus, at the request of
Pope John the first, fixed a new cycle of Easter feast days, which
consequently placed March 753 of Rome in 1 BC. In 1613
Kepler laid the basis of a new theory, fixing the date of the birth
of Jesus Christ on December 25th, 6 BC (or on January 5th, 5
BC), followed by the death of Herod after a partial eclipse of the
moon before the Passover of 4 BC.
Things could have remained unchanged until a new
analysis of all the known facts that preceded and followed the
death of Herod showed that some of the pieces of the puzzle
429
The 41st year of Augustus, according to Irenaeus (or 3 BC); the year 28 of the reign of Caesar-
Augustus according to Clement of Alexandria (or 3 BC); the year 725 of the founding of Rome
according to Hyppolitus of Rome (or 2 BC), etc.

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were not in their right place. Today, the most compatible date
with the dozens of elements known for the period of Herod’s
death seems to be the date corresponding to the total eclipse of
January 9th to 10th in 1 BC430. But we will probably have to wait
many years for this new dating to be unanimously accepted by
the scientific community... Maria Valtorta’s work, which, may
I remind you, gives no dates, strictly speaking, resituates all the
events in a plausible and coherent sequence. In 5 BC the
Annunciation (in Adar), the Census Edict at the end of the year,
the Nativity in December, then in 4 BC the presentation in the
Temple, the adoration of the Magi (in autumn), the flight into
Egypt when Jesus was just one year old and the massacre of the
Holy Innocents. In this chronology, Herod’s death could very
well be situated in January 1 BC and the return of the Holy
Family to Nazareth at the beginning of 2 AD.
The fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius
Just as for the date of Herod’s death, two main (opposing)
theories have been put forward for decades concerning the date
of the Passion and two dates are proposed: Friday, April 17th 33
AD, or Friday, April 7th 30 AD. The main argument of the
historians opting for the year 33 appears to be Luke’s indication,
situating the beginning of the public life of Jesus in “the year 15
of the principate of Tiberius” (Luke 3, 1-3). History has placed
the reign of Tiberius either at the death of Augustus on August
19th, 14 AD, or on the day of his investiture by the Senate on
September 15th, 14 AD, or even on the day that he was
nominated Princeps, on Thursday, October 13th, 14 AD.
Mathematically, his 15th year goes from September 15th, 28 AD
to September 15th, 29 AD. But if we consider the Jewish year,
then the first year of his reign was from Tishri 1st, 13 AD to

430
The main elements of this theory are given in Annex 1.

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Tishri 1st, 14 AD (Gregorian September 11th, 14 AD). Hence,
the 15th year of the principate of Tiberius starts on Tishri 1st, 27
AD and thus goes from October 27 AD to October 28 AD. But
here again, it is possible to reason in another way431: From
August 11th, 11 AD, Tiberius was the de facto colleague of
Augustus, then the triumph of Tiberius, following his victories
in Dalmatia432, was celebrated in October 12 AD. And on April
3rd, 13 AD, the dying Augustus placed his last will and
testimony, with his funeral details, into the hands of the Vestals.
He had a law voted which conferred power equal to his own
(imperium majus) upon Tiberius. Tiberius began to exercise de
facto power before receiving the official investiture: “Although
he did not hesitate to grab power or to exercise it; although he
took a guard, and consequently the might and the trappings of
sovereignty, he refused it for a long time with unparalleled
impudence 433 ». In May 14 AD, during the closing ceremony of
the census, Tiberius is the only one presiding the lustratio on
the Field of March434. Tacitus openly suspects him 435 of having
seized power “even before the death of Augustus”.
The contemporaries of Tiberius, like St. Luke, thus
considered that the government of Tiberius began from the time
that he did, in fact, seize power436, a few months before the death
of Augustus, at the end of the year 12, or the beginning of the
431
According to a hypothesis put forward by Professor Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller, p. 387.
432
See F. De Saulcy, Dictionnaire des Antiquités Bibliques, p. 583.
433
Suetonius, Life of the 12 Caesars, Life of Tiberius, chap. 24.
434
It was in front of Tiberius, the only Prince, that the cortege of animals for ritual sacrifice turned
slowly, thus symbolically closing the century of Augustus.
435
Tacitus, Annals V and VI. He also suspects him of having instigated the murder of Posthumus,
grandson of Augustus.
436
Note too that in numismatics there are coins minted by Pontius Pilate dating from the years 16, 17
and 18 of Tiberius, but none from the year 15. Yet Pilate having taken up his post in Palestine in July
26, he, like all his predecessors, must have begun to mint his first coins in 27 (the first coins should have
indicated the year 15). Could this be another clue that the de facto years of the accession to power by
Tiberius were taken into account at that time?

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year 13. In this case, the 15th year of his government would in
fact begin at the end of 26 AD, which is coherent with the
chronology deduced from Maria Valtorta’s work.
On the Primacy of Peter
There are many passages concerning the primacy of Peter
in The Gospel as Revealed to Me and they all concord perfectly
with the testimony of the Evangelists, as well as the teachings
of the Church. The following extract seems particularly
interesting, as it sheds original light on the specificity of Peter’s
faith, as Matthew testifies 416, 15-19). “And you, who do you
say that I am? Tell me truly, according to your own judgement,
without taking My words or those of others into account. If you
were compelled to judge Me, who would you say that I am?”
“You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” exclaims Peter
falling to his knees, arms held out towards Jesus, Who looks at
him, His face luminous, bends down to raise him up and
embrace him, saying: “Blessed are you, Oh Simon, son of
Jonah! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to
you, but my Father in Heaven. Since the first day that you came
to Me you have been asking yourself that question, and because
you were simple and honest, you were able to understand and
accept the reply that came to you from Heaven. You did not see
the supernatural manifestations like your brother and John and
James. You did not know My holiness as son, workman and
citizen, as My brothers Judas and James did. You received no
miracles, nor did you see Me work any; I showed you no sign of
My power as I did with Philip, Nathanael, Simon the Cananean,
Thomas and Judas. You were not subjugated by My will, like
Matthew the Publican. And yet you exclaimed: “He is the
Christ!” From the first moment that you saw Me, you believed
and your faith was never shaken. (...) And now, from this
moment, you are the head, to whom obedience and respect are

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due, as to another Myself. And I proclaim him such before all of
you”343.5
Blessed Peter who, first among them all, believed without
having seen! Should we not also see in this message a
magnificent exhortation to all generations, the echo of the
reproach addressed to Thomas (John 20, 29): “You have
believed because you have seen Me. Blessed are those who have
not seen and have believed!”

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 THE FOUR GOSPELS IN ONE?
“...the Apostles, in the memoires composed by them and that are
called Gospels...”437
“The Gospel according to Luke is the third... The fourth Gospel is John’s...”438

From the very first centuries the Church has recognised

four Gospels, written by four different authors. Yet the Church
often mentions the Gospel in the singular, because “the four are
only one, as the three Divine Persons are one God”439.
It seems that it was Irenaeus of Lyons (circa 135 – 202)
who was the first to establish that there were four canonical
Gospels. At least it is the most ancient text that attests this.
Faced with heretics who wanted only Scripture, Saint Irenaeus
insisted on Scripture and Tradition: The Church is a Tradition
(i.e. a transmission). He refutes the Gnostics, describing their
doctrines with precision, based on the Scriptures, showing the
criteria of interpretation for an ecclesial reading of the Bible. He
affirmed: “Besides, there cannot be a greater or a smaller
number of Gospels (than 4) (…) it appears that the Word,
Creator of the Universe, who sits upon the Cherubim and
maintains all things, when He manifested Himself to men, gave
us a Gospel in quadruple form, although maintained by a one
and only Spirit440 ».
Irenaeus thus took a stance, probably as a reaction to the
version of Luke’s Gospel published by Marcion, because the
latter affirmed that Luke’s was the only, true Gospel. Irenaeus’s
is also the most ancient testimony affirming that John’s Gospel
437
Justin-martyr, as early as the year 144 repeatedly mentions “the Gospels” in his Apology, then in
167 in his Dialogue with Tryphon, and he specifies “that I say were written by His Apostles (Matthew
and John) and by those who accompanied them” (Mark et Luke).
438
Fragment of a 7th century manuscript, attributed to Muratori, the copy of a Greek text written circa
170 or 180.
439
Quoted by Mgr. R. Laurentin, Nouveau Diatessaron, Fayard 2002.
440
Irenaeus of Lyons, Contre les Hérésies 3.11.8.

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was written by the Apostle John and that Luke’s gospel was
written by Luke, Paul’s companion.
At the same period, in the second half of the 2nd century,
Tatian the Syrian (circa 120 – 173) wrote the Diatessaron
(literally, what is through the four) which constitutes without
doubt the first effort at a harmonious fusion of the four canonical
Gospels into one text. Eusebius informs us in this way: “This
Tatian, having composed, I know not how, a certain
combination of the Gospels, called it by the name of to dia
tessaron”441 ». For three centuries this all-encompassing text
even became the official liturgical Gospel of several local
churches in Syria, until Theodoret, bishop of Cirrus from 423 to
458, put an end to it, apparently because he had noticed the total
absence of any mention of Jesus’s Davidic descent.
The original text of the Diatessaron has almost entirely
disappeared442, but is partially known to us through St. Ephrem
of Nisibis (306 – 373) who made this commentary443 on it: “The
entire Scripture is like a lyre; one chord does not produce a
harmonious sound by itself, but in unison with the others”. The
very existence of a work that merges the four Gospels into one
text sometimes seems to shock some exegetes, for whom the
differences and the specificity of the four Gospels make this
merging into one utopian and unfeasible. This is the opinion of
Irenaeus, who affirmed “Things being as they are, vain and
ignorant, but also very audacious, are all those who would like
to alter this figure of the Gospel and give it more than four faces,
or else fewer444.” However, we cannot but notice that The Gospel
441
Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesial History IV, 29.
442
Unless one Latin harmony of the Gospels, unearthed in 545 by Bishop Victor, turns out to be a later
copy .
443
St. Ephrem of Nisibis, Commentaire de l’Evangile concordant. Cerf 1996.
444
Irenaeus of Lyons, Contre les Hérésies, 3. 11.
(continued on following page...)

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as Revealed to Me, integrating as it does all the texts transmitted
by the four Evangelists into a coherent and harmonious
chronological whole, creates a work that could well have
deserved the title of New Diatessaron. Some years ago the
publisher, E. Pisani, published an interesting work445 which
provides the main correlations between the verses of the
canonical Gospels and Maria Valtorta’s text. Anyone can easily
see that the text of the four Gospels is, in fact, merged into one,
following a chronological order, in The Gospel as Revealed to
Me.
Quintilian’s hexameter
While teaching at the Clear Water, Jesus replies to a
question asked by Cleophas, the old head of the synagogue,
concerning a case of murder: “In order to judge a crime, one
must consider the circumstances that precede, prepare, justify
and explain the crime itself. (...) Who did I strike? What did I
strike? Where did I strike? With what instrument did I strike?
Why did I strike? How did I strike? When did I strike?”126.2
Strangely enough, a few decades later, Quintilian446 in a
famous verse, announced the same principle that has
summarised all criminal investigations since then: “Quis, quid,
ubi, quibus auxiliis, cur, quomodo, quando”447 .
However, if we apply this principle to each fact reported
by the four Evangelists, The Gospel as Revealed to Me answers
these seven permanent questions:
Who, and how many people, were present, actors,
witnesses, spectators? What happened? What did each one do

445
Vangelo unificato sulla traccia dell'opera di Maria Valtorta, CEV 2003.
446
Quintilian, born about 36 AD, could well have received testimonies from the Disciples of Christ!
447
This verse has since been known as the “Mnemonic Hexameter of Quintilian”.

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and say? What was it about: a speech, a miracle, a parable, a
prophecy, a work of mercy, etc? Where did it take place? How?
When? Why? And the place, the circumstances, the time, the
motivations; everything is perfectly presented and each element
is harmoniously and coherently integrated into a homogeneous
and perfectly structured whole!
In order to obtain all these answers (and this is not the only
paradox of this work) there is no need for scholarly knowledge.
All that is required is to be able to read and to do so assiduously,
attentively and completely:
assiduously: to bear in mind images, words, actions
and their sequence from one day to the next;
attentively: to register the slightest detail, because
each one is important;
completely: because it often happens that an
objection or a doubt are dissipated, or the answer to a
question is provided much further on in the work, and
everything becomes limpid and luminous!
But we have already seen that Maria Valtorta’s text does
even more than this:
- It highlights the unity of the Old and New Testaments, of
the Tradition of the Church Fathers, and even many
apocryphal texts. I have given some examples in this book,
but this subject alone deserves a specific study.
- It also treats many exegetical problems and very probably
solves a great number of them. But this is for the exegetes
to demonstrate.

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A true evangelical compendium
Seen up close, The Gospel as revealed to me assembles
and summarises all the knowledge concerning Jesus of
Nazareth’s time on earth: His life, His actions and His teachings.
This is exactly what the specialists of yore called a compendium,
or more simply, a Sum.
So, after the Summa Theologica of Saint Thomas Aquinas,
after Dante’s Divine Comedy, Mediaeval Literary and general
survey of philosophy 448, can we not ask this question: Does The
Gospel as Revealed to Me not deserve to be passed down to
posterity, along with these treasures of world literature, as the
Summa Evangelica of Maria Valtorta?
*

448
Frédéric Ozanam, Dante et la philosophie catholique du XIIIe siècle, 1838.

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 “COME AND SEE…”
John 1, 38-39
“Let him who has found what is true, beautiful and good in his own life, the unique
treasure, the precious pearl, run to share it everywhere, in the family, at work, in every
field of his existence.”
Benedict XVI, Pentecost 2006
“I do not think that it is wise and just to remain indifferent to such treasures.”
Blessed G. Allegra 9th January, 1970

Here we are at the end of this study, the aim of which, I

repeat, was essentially to verify the degree of accuracy and
coherence of the wealth of data in the work transmitted by Maria
Valtorta. We have assembled over 10,000 scattered pieces… A
puzzle of ten thousand pieces in which everything fits together
and each element finds its own, unique place.
Let us imagine The Gospel as Revealed to Me as the box
containing an immense puzzle in which the 10,000 details are
scattered pieces. An archaeologist bends down, fits a few pieces
together and feels the same joy as if he had put some of the
missing tesseras of the Madaba mosaic into their correct place…
Then a historian comes along and what joy is his to publish a
documented monograph on the Roman occupation of Palestine
in the year 30 and onwards. And so it goes, each one,
satisfactorily reconstructing a modest piece of the puzzle in his
own field of expertise… This is, in fact, what a few pioneers
started doing over the last three decades.
“And if it has pleased Me to reconstruct the tableau of My
Divine Charity, like the person who restores a mosaic by
replacing all the broken or missing tesseras to reconstruct the
complete beauty of the mosaic, and if I have chosen to do it in
this century in which Humanity is racing to the Abyss of
darkness and horror, can you forbid Me to do so?”652. VII is
exactly what Jesus says in His Goodbye to the work.

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 The systematic study of this work by scientists, and more
so than any other previous work, would undoubtedly advance
our knowledge of the history, geography, architecture, flora and
fauna, customs and practices… in a word, on Life in the first
two decades of our era in the Mediterranean Basin.
This study would also make it possible to combine History
and Tradition in a dazzling way. It would reveal many questions
that have made exegetical debates sterile for several centuries.
It would shed exceptional light on the motivations, the
unfolding and the chronology of the events which, from the birth
of Christ to the first persecutions of the nascent Church,
indelibly marked the destiny of humanity.
The time for confessions
After about fifteen years of daily research on this
exceptional work, I acquired the certainty, as did several other
researchers before me, that it contains an almost inexhaustible
mine of precise, coherent and verifiable information. There
comes a time when, faced with this mass of verified and credible
information, faith imposes itself again, and reason must bow to
modesty. Why would some rare, unverifiable details (for
example, the description of a monument that no longer exists)
be false, when all the verifiable ones have proved to be true?
So, I logically come to the same conclusion as Jean
Aulagnier449 : “…as I followed the progression of my analysis…
I measured; I felt, with extraordinary intensity, the profound,
total, divine reality of Maria Valtorta’s writings.”
So where does The Valtorta Enigma stand? Have all its
facets been revealed? Certainly not! On the contrary, the subject
has barely been touched upon… The reader will have
449
Jean Aulagnier op. cit. pages 302-303.

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understood that it is totally impossible to give an exhaustive
view of the extraordinary mass of knowledge contained in Maria
Valtorta’s text.
I have simply mentioned a few subjects, but so very many
others would also have deserved to be mentioned, such as the
medical descriptions and treatments (for example, the
composition of Mary’s ointment), the geological data, the
descriptions of Jewish or Roman dwellings. Why was nothing
said about mineralogy, astronomy, clothes, utensils or food? Or
about groups and their beliefs (Pharisees, Sadducees,
Herodians, Essenians…)? It would also have been interesting to
mention the Jewish customs and practices, the celebration of
feasts, the organization of the Roman army in Palestine, the
activity in ports, etc. It was only the fear of never finishing this
first book that constrained me to omit thousands of details every
bit as interesting as those that I finally selected.
Father Gabriel Allegra had noticed it so well: “it is a slice
of life, and Maria Valtorta masters it as if she possessed the
genius of Shakespeare or Manzoni. But, how much study, how
many late nights and thought did these great men put into their
work! In contrast, Maria Valtorta, even though her intelligence
was brilliant, her memory quick and sure, had not even
completed secondary school; she suffered from diverse illnesses
and was bedridden for many long years; she had few books –
they could all fit on to the two shelves of her cupboard – she had
never read any of the great Biblical commentaries, which would
have explained her astonishing scriptural culture; she used a
simple, popular version of the Bible by P. Tintori ofm, and
despite all this she wrote ten volumes of The Gospel as revealed
to me from 1943 to 1947 in only four years!” However, even
with exceptional biblical knowledge and culture, with unlimited
documentation and many long years of preparation, (all of

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which Maria Valtorta clearly did not possess), it is
inconceivable that any human being, whatever his degree of
erudition, could, of his own initiative, write the manuscript that
Maria Valtorta has transmitted to us. And yet, despite these
acknowledged facts that make of The Gospel as Revealed to Me
an absolutely exceptional work, all its readers know perfectly
well that the true value of this work does not lie in this mass of
scientific data.
Many people have already declared that this text is much
more than a simple novel, a beautiful history book, or a sort of
encyclopaedia of the first century. The few pearls unveiled here
and there in this book are “for the astonishment and admiration
of the wise and the learned”. They could thus be qualified as
“cultured pearls”. But we all know full well that The Gospel as
revealed to me also contains real pearls, totally different from
those that I have tried to show you in this book. Jesus repeatedly
declares in the work: “Eternal truths are like pearls”174.20. Why
are we given all these little terrestrial truths, if not to help us to
catch a glimpse of these real pearls too, these eternal truths?
“Do not cast your pearls before swine”
Matthew 7, 6

But, according to the Evangelical Council these holy

pearls of Wisdom must not be given to those who are not
prepared to receive them: “No one has ever seen pearls thrown
before swine, which prefer acorns and foul dishwater to
precious pearls. They would crush them mercilessly and then,
furious at having been deceived, they would attack you to tear
you to pieces. Do not give holy things to dogs. This is for the
present and for the future”174.20. This advice is repeated on
another occasion in the work: “It is not worth throwing pearls
of wisdom to swine”515.1. Finally, was the initial, and totally
unexpected, condemnation of the work not too strict an

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application of this call to prudence by Jesus? Didn’t Cardinal
Ratzinger write in 1985 that this decision had been made “with
the aim of neutralising the damage that such a publication can
cause to the least informed among the faithful”? It is a fact that
the Gospels have been enriched throughout the centuries by
notes making them easier to understand by greater numbers of
people. The text transmitted by Maria Valtorta would certainly
deserve copious notes as well and there are a certain number of
extremely useful notes in the Italian version of 2004. Perhaps a
massive addition of such notes in future versions, while
contributing to a better appreciation of the richness of this text,
would definitively lift any residual reticence still displayed by
certain members of the Church concerning its massive diffusion.
It is certainly not easy to combine the advice of caution
given by the Church, with the desire to make the discovered
treasure known to all. “The greatest charity that we can show to
someone is to lead him from error to the truth450 ». And Jesus
Himself affirms: “If a reward is granted for a piece of bread
given to the languishing body, so that it will not die on that day,
what reward will be given to the one who satisfies a spirit with
eternal truth, giving it eternal life? Do not be miserly with what
you know. It was given to you freely and limitlessly. Give it
generously, because it comes from God, like the water from the
sky. It must be given in the same way that it was given. Do not
be miserly and proud of what you know, but give it with humble
generosity”275.13.

450
Commentary on the De Divinis Nominibus by Dionysius the Areopagite. Book 13, 4, quoted by St.
Thomas Aquinas.

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“He who is capable of understanding, let him
understand”
Matthew 19, 12

On the subject of revelation and truth-seeking, let us

always bear in mind the benediction of Christ: “I bless You,
Father, Lord of Heaven and of earth, for hiding these things
from the wise and the learned, and revealing them to little
children.” (Matthew 11, 25). The Father reveals everything to
little children. So the true pearls are for the reader who first
agrees to become childlike again. “If you do not become like
children again” says Jesus, that is, if we do not retrieve the love,
obedience and confidence that children give to their parents,
“you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 18, 3).
So, the secret of the discovery of the holy pearls of Wisdom in
The Gospel as Revealed to Me, is quite simply the little way of
Saint Theresa of Lisieux, that “disposition of the heart that
makes us humble and little in God’s arms, aware of our
weakness and confident, to the point of audacity, in the
goodness of the Father.”451. And it is a fact that a vast crowd of
humble and little readers have been able, without ado and over
the past fifty years, to quietly discover the infinite riches of this
exceptional text.
Re-reading this praise of Maria of Agreda’s The Mystical
City of God, written in 1715, on the fiftieth anniversary of her
death and fifty five years after the publication of her work452, it
seems that it can today be applied verbatim to The Gospel as
Revealed to Me: “The strong and the weak, the learned and the
ignorant, the rich and the poor, the sick and the well, can all
receive considerable fruits from this work just by reading it,
because the most sublime theology is explained so simply, so
451
Theresa of Lisieux, Novissima Verba, 3rd August, 1897.
452
Maria de Jesús de Agreda, Vie Divine de la Très Sainte Vierge Marie, re-edition Téqui, page 9.

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easily and clearly that it might be said that all that is required
as they read is goodwill and common sense to pierce the
intelligence of the mysteries”.
Beauties and unforgettable instructions are there on every
page of The Gospel as Revealed to Me. These not only convince
the mind, but also light a fire in the heart. The more we re-read
and meditate on these sublime pages, the more we discover in
them the splendour of Truth.
For all those who feel capable of reading them, these pages
will develop the intelligence of the fundamental mystery of the
Christian religion in the soul, that is, the Incarnation of the
Word. At the same time, they will contribute to a deeper, all-
encompassing understanding of the major, eminent role of
Mary, Mother of the Word Incarnate. As they shed divine light
on the mystery of Jesus, “True God and true Man453 ”, the Man-
God, they will reveal all the power of these inspired words:
“Jesus Christ, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom
and knowledge” (Col. 2, 3).
*
In bygone days, God sent prophets to revive the faith and
hope of His people. In the same way, Christ regularly calls upon
humble and pious women, to whom He entrusts the mission of
explaining and revealing the depth and the hidden meaning of
His authentic Words to mankind.
On Easter morning, it was to a woman, Mary Magdalene,
that He made His request to announce His Glorious
Resurrection to the Apostles. Through Saint Juliana of Mount
Cornillon He established the feast of Corpus Christi; through
453
According to the constant teaching of the Church, from Saint Irenaeus (Advesus Haereses, book III,
chap 19) to St. Jean-Paul II (Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio Ineunte § 22), and the councils of Nicaea,
Ephesus, Chalcedon and Constantinople.

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Saint Margaret-Mary, He developed the devotion to the Sacred
Heart; through Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus, He repeated to
the world the inestimable value of the state of spiritual
childhood, through Sister Josefa, His Goodness; and through
Saint Faustina, His infinite Mercy...
We can offer infinite acts of thanksgiving to the Lord for
having deigned to “manifest this hidden treasure” to our times,
as He has continually done throughout human History, very
often through the intermediary of a woman454.
Our thanks also go to Maria Valtorta, who never
considered herself anything more than the “little voice”, the
“pen” or the “instrument”. For as Jesus declared in the Goodbye
to the Work: “I tell you truly once again that to be an instrument
of Mine is not a tranquil joy: it is constant fatigue and effort, it
is pain and sorrow in everything, because the world gives to the
Master’s disciples what it gave to the Master: pain and
sorrow”652.VII.
As that tireless promoter of the work, Father André
Richard455 : wrote so incisively, “The Holy Spirit inspires
writers or prophets to teach us the truths that are useful for our
salvation. They are secretaries, or living interpreters, not mere
“pen-holders” or mechanical phonographs. They each have
their own personality, their sensitivity, their vocabulary, their
tone, their era. The Lord chooses them according to their
aptitudes to transmit the message to all, through them. As Saint
454
We need only mention Saints Angela of Bohemia, Teresa of Avila, Gertrude of Helfta, Maria
Magdalena of Pazzi, Maria de Jesus de Agreda, Bridget of Sweden, Hildegard of Bingen, or, nearer to
home, Anne Catherine Emmerich, or Marie Faustine. We might also mention the case of Louisa
Picarreta (1865-1947) a part of whose work was placed on the Index from 1938 until 1994, at which
date the “Non Obstare” was obtained, and the Cause of her beatification begun....
455
Theologian, philosopher and writer (1899 – 1993). Co-founder, then director, of the journal
l’Homme Nouveau. Co-founder, then director, of the movement Pour l’Unité. President for France of
the international movement The Blue Army of Fatima. This quotation is excerpted from his editorial
published in the journal L’Homme Nouveau on November 7th, 1982.

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Thomas said in an extremely dense formula: ‘God is the main
author of the Scriptures, but man is His instrument’. An
instrument that retains its full human dignity”.

“Peace to you, My little one, My tireless voice. Peace to

you. Peace and blessings.
The Master says: “Thank you”.
The Lord says: “Be blessed”.
Jesus, your Jesus, tells you: ‘I will always be with you,
because it is My delight to be with those who love Me’.”652.
*

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 Epilogue
“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life…”

In a speech at the Vatican on January 17th, 2008, Benedict

XVI affirmed that it was his duty “to invite reason to set out
ever anew in search of what is true and good, in search of God;
to urge reason, in the course of this search, to discern the
illuminating lights that have emerged during the history of the
Christian faith, and thus to recognise Jesus Christ as the Light
that illuminates history and helps us to find the path towards the
future”.

I hope that this book has made a modest contribution to

this wish of the Holy Father’s, by inciting readers to read or re-
read The Gospel as Revealed to Me, this wonderful gift from
heaven given to our times.

Completed on April 25th on the Feast of Saint Mark.

*
Author’s declaration

I have tried to bring the greatest possible care and attention to the writing of this
book. The information contained in it is in good faith and has been meticulously verified.
May I say to all those who helped me in one way or another: I cannot thank you enough here.

Nevertheless, like all human works, this book is naturally imperfect and thus
necessarily contains imprecisions and errors. My thanks in anticipation go to those readers
who will indulgently bring them to my notice. In this way, thanks to their contributions, they
will be corrected. In order to do this, please write to the publisher, with the mention “For
Jean-François Lavère”.

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 ANNEXE 1
Considerations on the date of Herod’s death

Herod’s death in Jericho is established as having taken place in

March, 4 BC by many historians who claim to base their
affirmations on the indications of Flavius Josephus. In fact, the
determination of the date of Herod’s death rests exclusively on
Kepler’s calculations, according to which the Roman year 750
(4 B.C.) is the only one in which a lunar eclipse occurred before
the Passover. This eclipse took place on March 13th and the
Passover fell on April 11th that year, twenty nine days later.
Herod probably died on April 2nd or 3rd, 750. This has been
accepted almost as dogma by the majority of researchers since
then and copied thousands of times without a second thought, as
a well-established fact. “E cio che fa la prima l’altre fanno.
What the first one does, the others also do”, as Dante said in
Purgatory Song III, 82...

And yet, this hypothesis is not absolutely faultless...

The possible period according to Flavius Josephus

Josephus’s chronology contains several “anomalies” which
contribute to considerable uncertainty concerning the dates.
1) Jewish Antiquities XIV 487, 488: Herod took Jerusalem 27
years after Pompey seized it (in 63 BC), which dates this event in
36 BC. (Jewish Antiquities XVI: 190 – 191). Herod died 34 years
later which dates his death as circa 2 BC. But other sources date
the fall of Jerusalem to Herod in 37 BC, and in this case, 34 years
later, Herod could have died in 3 BC. (This is the hypothesis
that certain historians, such as J. Aulagnier retain, eluding the
detail of the eclipse...)
2) Jewish Antiquities XVII. VIII.1, Jewish Wars XXXIII.8:
Herod died 37 years after his enthronment by the Romans (in -

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 40). So, in 3 or 4 BC according to the months of the beginning or
the end and how the year of enthronement is defined. But if
Flavius Josephus counted the reigns of the kings of Judea
according to the Jewish method of the years of accession (a
habitual method for the kings of Judea) then the year of accession
goes from Nisan -39 to Nisan -38 and the 37th year ends in Nisan
-1, or March -1.
3) Jewish Antiquities XVII.148 ; XIV:158. Herod was 15 years
old (corrected to 23 by some!?, to 25 by others!?) when he was
made governor of Galilee (in -59 for some, in -47 for others!) and
he died at the age of seventy, which dates his death in -2 or -1
acording to anniversary dates.

The main difficulty in Flavius Josephus’s chronology is

the fact that it does not refer to a precise calendar, but to the
olympiads; the fact that he sometimes gives contradictory
information about the same event and also that his way of
counting the years of accession is not precisely determined.
From one book to another, he refers to Herod’s enthronement
by the Romans, or to when he effectively took power after the
fall of Jerusalem… So, everyone can find objective arguments
to situate Herod’s death between -4 and -1, and these two
hypotheses have divided historians for several decades.

The facts according to Flavius Josephus

As the historians cannot agree on the dates, we need to examine and
analyse the abundant details given by Flavius Josephus...
Herod was in Jericho, his winter residence, when the Rabbis were
executed. The high priest Matthias (son of Theophilus or of
Margolothus) was deposed on a day of fasting and Herod had him
burned alive.

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Sedition broke out during Herod’s last illness, when the false rumour
of his death was spread and “in that same night, there was a lunar
eclipse , the moon was blood-red and the Rabbis assassinated”
The king’s illness worsened and he died shortly afterwards, as the
Feast of the Passover of that same year drew near.
Commemorative fasting shortly preceded this eclipse.
Herod ate an apple before he died (Jewish Antiquities XVII :183).
Herod died and was buried before a Passover.
Jewish tradition (Megillat Ta’anith 23a, 25) specifies that Herod died
on the 2nd of Shebat.
The hypothesis of the date of January 26th -1 (“Julian calendar”)
1) Of the lunar eclipses of that period, the total eclipse of March 7th -
5 took place too early. The eclipse of March 13th/14th -4 has been
retained since Kepler, although it might have gone totally unnoticed,
as it was a partial eclipse and occurred late at night (from 11 p.m. to
1.30 a.m.). However, the moon only turns red during a total eclipse.
The one on January 9th/10th was total and visible throughout the
evening, from 9 p.m. (Jerusalem time). As it was a total eclipse, the
moon turned red, which probably exercised a more powerful effect
on those who witnessed it at the time than a partial and practically
invisible eclipse. In any case, this is the only one that corresponds to
Flavius Josephus’s description. Let us assume that it is the right one...
2) Jewish tradition fixes fasting on Tammuz 17th, Ab 9th, Tishri 3rd,
and Tebeth 10th (the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of
Jerusalem). (The fast of Adar 13th did not exist in Herod’s day. It was
only in the 12th century that Maimonides indicated that the
commemoration of the fast should precede the feast, which
established the “fast of Esther” on Adar 13th, before the feast of Purim
on Adar 14th and 15th).
The fast of Tebeth 10th or January 5th -1 did, in fact, precede the total
eclipse of Tebeth 14th/15th by a few days, on January 9th/10th -1.

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3) Shebat 2nd, the presumed date of Herod’s death, corresponds to
January 26th, -1, so 16 days after the total, highly visible, eclipse of
January 10th, -1 (Tebeth 15th). This date is situated about two months
before the Passover (April 17th -1), which leaves room for the
numerous events mentioned between Herod’s death and the Passover
(a week of mourning, the funeral, the succession, etc).

4) Apples were picked at the end of August or the beginning of

September in Palestine. The one that was eaten at the end of January,
-1, must have been conserved for 4 to 5 months, which is quite
plausible. However, in March, -4, this becomes somewhat more
problematical, even though it is not an impossible date for later-
maturing varieties.

5) Two dates are indisputably known to historians:

- the date on which Herod took Jerusalem after a five-month

siege, in June 37 BC and seized power.

- the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem on Av 9th, on the

10 day of the Av moon (the Hebrew year 3830 and the Roman
year 823) August 4th, 70.

However, according to Flavius Josephus, the death of Herod the

Great took place shortly before the Passover, 37 years after he was
made king by the Romans, and 34 years after he killed Antigone
(Jewish Antiquities, 17.8.1; Jewish Wars, 1.33.8).

G. Gertoux carried out a detailed analysis of the “clues” provided by

Flavius Josephus. He estimates the “minimal” durations of 18 days
between the fast and Herod’s death, and 24 days between Herod’s
death and the Passover. These are incompatible in 4 BC, and thus lead
to the conclusion that Herod died in 1 BC.

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 Facts Jewish Plausibility in 1 BC
Antiquities
High priest’s testimony on a day of XVII:165 Wednesday 5th January 1
fasting BC
Execution of Matthias then total lunar XVII:167 Monday 10th January, 1
eclipse BC
Journey to Callirrhoé XVII:171 Tuesday/Wednesday
Stay in Callirrhoé (Hot bath) XVII:172 Thursday/Saturday
Return to Jericho XVII:173 Sunday/Monday
Convening of the judges XVII:174 18
Meeting of the Assembly in the XVII:175 19
amphitheatre in Jéricho
Posthumous orders of massacres XVII:178 20
A letter received from Augustus XVII:182
Herod’s failed suicide XVII:184 21
Antipater ‘s rebellion XVII:185
Herod’s new will XVII:188 22
Antipater’s execution XVII:191 24
Herod’s death in his palace in Jericho XVII:192 Wednesday 26thJanuary -1
Herod’s death is kept secret XVII:193
Salome and Alexas free the prisoners XVII:193
Herod’s death is made public XVII:194 Friday 28
Salome and Alexas gather the army XVII:194 Monday, 31st January
Organisation of a grandiose funeral XVII:196
A week of mourning XVII:200 Sunday 6th to Friday 11th
Meeting to organise a revolt XVII:206
Talks with Archelaus’s general XVII:209
Intense negotiations with Archelaus XVII:212
Feast of the Passover XVII:213 7th April, 1 BC

Certain historians object that this date is incompatible with

the duration of the reigns of Herod’s sons, (especially
Archelaus). But it is perfectly possible that his sons had
considered themselves as having “legally” received power three
years previously (as seems established by numismatics: there
are no coins dated from the years 1 to 3 of the reign of these

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three monarchs). They appear to have followed their father’s
example perfectly, based on one of Herod’s wills, made at the
end of Varus’s legation and approved by Augustus (Jewish
Antiquities XVII, 202-210). (Josephus’s precision: “a new will”
indicates that he must have made others previously, contrary to
what these same historians affirm!).

In a well-documented study, Andrew E. Steinmann

(Concordia University, River Forest) provides a wealth of
arguments in favour of January 26th -1 as the date of Herod’s
death.

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 ANNEXE 2
Chronological List
of some authors consulted to verify the pertinence of the data
contained in Maria Valtorta’s work, The Gospel as Revealed to me:
HERODOTUS (-484/-425) Histories.
VARRO (-116/-27) De Re Rustica
VIRGIL (-70/-19) Georgics.
TITUS LIVIUS (59 BC/+17) Roman History
STRABO of Amasya (57 BC /+25) Universal Geography.
SENECA the Rhetorician, Controversy 34 The Prometheus of Parrhasius
(circa 25)
VELLEIUS PATERCULLUS (-19/31) Roman History (circa 30)
PHILO of Alexandria (circa 40) De Vita Mosis.
COLUMELLA De Re Rustica (circa 42)
PLINY THE ELDER (23/79) Natural Histories
FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS Jewish Antiquities (circa +80/90) Jewish Wars
(circa +107).
TACITUS (+55/+120) Annals (circa 106), Histories.
SUETONIUS (circa 105) Life of the 12 Caesars
PLUTARCH (circa 100/110) Lives/Antony, Caesar; Moral Works
CASSIUS DIO Cocceius (ou Cocceianus) (+155/+230) Roman History,
Didache (1st century)
Arabic Childhood Gospel. (Apocryphal, published in 1697, but there exists
a 13th century Provencal translation, one version of which was known to
Origen, to St Irenaeus or to St Cyril)
PAPINIAN (142/212) Quaestionnes
IGNATIUS of Antioch (circa +68/+107) Letters
CLEMENT of Rome (4th Pope from +88/+97) Epistle +96
JUSTIN (+110/+167) Apologies I and II
MARCION (85/165) (whose writings have all disappeared)
QUADRATUS (circa 125?) Apology
IRENAEUS of Lyons (130/203) Contre les hérésies (Advesus Haereses)
ARISTIDES (circa 127) Apology
BASILIDE (120/145) A Gnostic writer who taught in Alexandria at the time
of Hadrian and Antonin the Pious. (His writings have been lost)

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HEGESIPPE (+115/+185) (author of the first History of the Church, now
lost, but quoted by Eusebius)
Gospel according to Jacques Hébreux, or Apocryphal Gospel (a very
ancient apocryphal of which a Greek manuscript survives. This text was
known to Origen, Epiphanes and Gregory of Nyssa.)
Apocryphal Gospel of the Pseudo-Matthew (on Mary’s childhood. The
version that has come down to us is 6th century, but it is a copy of an earlier
version established by St. Jerome.)
TERTULLIAN (+150 or +160/circa +220 or +230) Aux nations :
Apologétique
SEXTUS JULIUS Africanus (circa +160/+240) Chronographiæ (It seems
that he was the first to indicate the birth of Jesus on December 25th)
HERMAS The Book of the Pastor (Before Diocletian’s persecution)
POLYCRATE of Ephesus (130/200) (by the testimony of Eusebius)
CLEMENT of Alexandria (150/220) The Stromata
MELITON (circa 170/175) Apology
APOLLINAIRE Claude (circa 175) (Fragments)
TATIAN (circa 120/173) Apology; The Diatessaron, (He is known through
the work of Athenagoras (circa 177/178) Apology)
ORIGEN (185/254) Commentaries on Matthew
EPIPHANIUS of Salamis (circa 230) Panarion
EUSEBIUS of Cæsarea (260/340) Ecclesiastical History
Jerusalem TALMUD
Babylonian TALMUD
POLLUX Julius, Onomasticon
EPHREM of Nisibis (306/373) Commentary on the Fourfold Gospel. (A
partial original text still exists.)
The Pilgrim of Bordeaux (333)
CYRIL of Jerusalem (315/386) Catechesis
GREGORY of Nicaea (331/394)
THEODOSIUS (380) Edit Canon 3-4
JEROME (circa 400) Commentary on Ezekiel
DEXTER Lucius Flavius (circa 395/444) Chronicles (some of the writings
attributed to him are 16th century apocrypha by Marcus Maximus)
OROSE Paul (circa 382/circa 418) Histories (Spanish priest and apologist)
SPARTIAN (end 4th century). Hist. Augustus
MACROBE Ambrosius (circa 370/430) Saturnalia
MALALAS Jean (490/578) (Chronographia, Corpus Fontium Historiae
Byzantinæ)

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De VORAGINE Jacob La légende dorée 1280
CALLISTUS Nicephorus, Ecclesiastical History 1350
THEVET André Cosmographie Universelle 1575
BARONIUS César (1538/1607) Annales ecclésiastiques
BEAUVAU Relation journalière du Voyage au Levant 1615
CALMET Augustin Dictionnaire historique, critique chronologique... de la
Bible 1730
MURATORI Louis-Antoine (1662/1750) The canon: (6th century
fragment. The original would seem to date from 170/180).
VOLNEY C-F Voyage en Syrie 1787
FELLER François-Xavier Dictionnaire historique 1793)
SAINT-ALLAIN L'Art de vérifier les dates 1818
GARNIER Histoire de la monnaie des peuples anciens 1819
BUCKINGHAM J S Travels in Palestine 1822
CHATEAUBRIAND François René Itinéraire de Paris à Jérusalem 1827
MICHAUD Joseph François Correspondance d'Orient 1830-1831
HORNE Thomas Hartwell Landscape illustrations of the Bible 1836
EGRON André La Terre-Sainte 1837
DUREAU de la MALLE Economie politique des romains 1840
ROBINSON Edward Biblical Researches in Palestine 1841
FRANCK AD La kabbale ou la philosophie religieuse des hébreux 1844
BANNISTER J T A survey of the Holy Land 1844
DRACK Paul Louis (1791/1865) De l'Harmonie entre l'Eglise et la
Synagogue 1844
FORTIA d'Urban Recueil des Itinéraires anciens 1845
MUNK S. Voyage en Palestine 1845
MIGNE Jean-Paul Dictionnaire de la géographie sacrée 1848
BRUNET Gustave Evangiles apocryphes 1848
MIGNE Jean-Paul : Encyclopédie théologique 1850
PETIN Dictionnaire Hagiographique 1850
SEGOND Louis Géographie de la Terre Sainte 1851
LYNCH W F Narrative of the U S' Expedition to River Jordan 1853
ARBELLOT Apostolat de St Martial 1855
LITTRE E Vie de Jésus Examen critique de son Histoire 1856
BATISSIER L Histoire de l'art monumental dans l'Antiquité 1860
SEPP Docteur, La Vie de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ 1861
GUETTEE Réfutation de la prétendue vie de Jésus de Renan 1861
NEWMAN John Philip From Dan to Beersheba 1864
DE CHAMPAGNY Rome et la Judée 1865

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MEMAIN Etudes chronologiques pour l’histoire de Notre Seigneur Jésus-
Christ 1867
CIROT de la VILLE Origines chrétiennes de Bordeaux 1867
GRAËTZ Hirsch Histoire des juifs (1853/1876)
MOMMSEN Théodore Histoire de la monnaie romaine 1868
MAISTRE La grande Christologie prophétique et historique 1869
SMITH William Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities 1870
DAREMBERG Charles Victor Dictionnaire des Antiquités grecques et
romaines 1870
POCKOCKE Richard Voyages en Orient 1872
MAISTRE Vie des personnages illustres de la primitive église 1874
MASPERO G. History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, etc. 1875
McGARVEY J. W. Lands of the Bible 1881
GAUME Biographies évangéliques 1881
ISEMBERT Emile Itinéraire Descriptif Historique et Archéologique de
l'Orient 1881
RICH Anthony Dictionnaire des Antiquités romaines et grecques 1883
GUERIN Victor (1821/1890) Voyage en Terre Sainte 1884
STAPFER Edmond La Palestine au temps de Jésus-Christ 1885
CUNNINGHAM Geikie The Holy Land and the Bible 1887
Dom GUERANGER Sainte Cécile et la société romaine au cours des deux
premiers siècles 1897
BAZELAIRE Léonie de Chevauchée en Palestine 1899
RIE Rush 1902
CHAUVIN Constantin Au Golgotha 1901
Dom H. LECLERC Les Martyrs des 1er et 2eme siècles 1903
FILLION L Cl L'existence historique de Jésus 1909
Encyclopaedia judaica 1906
Catholic Encyclopaedia 1911
BAEDEKER Karl Palestine et Syrie Manuel du voyageur 1912
Biblical Encyclopaedia
LELONG P Terre Sainte 1965
NEGENMAN Jean Univers de la Bible 1971
LOMBARDI Luigi The Holy Land 1975
MINVIELLE Pierre Israël 1989
MILLARD Allan Trésors des temps bibliques 1989
THOMAS Jacques Jérusalem traditionnelle et initiatique 1995
HIRSCHFELD Y. QUMRAN in the second temple period 2002
KAWOLLEK and FALK, The plants of the Bible 2005

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