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5. Jesus the pious
boy.
Joseph, Jesus' foster
father, and Mary, as righteous Israelites, went to Jerusalem every year
for the Easter festival. When Jesus reached his twelfth year, his mother
took him to the feast for the first time. He was entrusted to a good
hand: a good mother's hand leads her children early to godliness and to
church, where God is honoured and his word is taught. But when they set
off on their journey home again, the boy Jesus was nowhere to be found.
His mother was not worried about this at first. She thought he would be
with his friends and acquaintances who had left Jerusalem a little
earlier, as children often prefer to go with their relatives rather than
their parents. So she hoped that she would find him at the inn that
evening with these relatives or others. For she knew that he was a pious
and sensible child. An intelligent child does not put himself in danger.
The mother was allowed to let him out of her sight from time to time.
But when they arrived at the inn that evening, already a day's journey
from Jerusalem, his friends and acquaintances knew nothing about him. -
Suddenly the Promised One was lost again. - The Promised One can never
be lost.The Promised One can never be lost. His parents made their way
back to Jerusalem to look for him. All the way there was no sign of any
lost child. They searched for him for a whole day in Jerusalem. He was
nowhere to be found. On the third day, when they went into the temple,
as if to pray that God would give them back their child, he was sitting
cheerfully in the temple among the teachers, listening to them and
asking them questions; and many people were gathered around him,
marvelling at his speech and answers, even when the teachers asked him
questions. Now when his parents saw him like this and now had him again,
they were frightened with joy, and his mother said to him, ‘My son, why
have you done this to us? Look, your father and I were looking for you
with pain.’ Jesus answered her: - ‘Why is it that you sought me? Do you
not know that I must be in that which is my Father's?’ But they did not
understand the word.
So now he went back with them to Nazareth and was subject to them,
increasing in age, wisdom and favour with God and with men. This is the
only known incident from Jesus' youth. From the twelfth year to the
thirtieth year of his life nothing is known of him.
Note: One does not usually hear much about well-behaved and well-behaved
children in their youth except that they are submissive to their parents,
that they increase in wisdom and kindness towards God and man, and that
they enjoy going to church and school, where there is much good to hear
and learn. - There is seldom much good to be learnt from anyone else in
one's youth. With God's help, I want to become more understanding and
pious every day. I want to be subject to my parents. I want to be where
God is honoured and good things are taught, so that I please God and
become like the most pious boy, Jesus. People should not have much to
say about me.
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