Come Closer

By Frank James Unger

Seldom does a writer venture into the human mind of Jesus Christ. For sure, there are some who have speculated on just how and if Jesus reasoned like the rest of us. But this book is more than an imagination exercise. It is a daring exploration into the uncharted territory of Gods human mind. The purpose is far greater than to satisfy curiosity by guessing how the mind of Jesus worked. It is to creatively share his memory in order to emulate his attributes then to examine his deeds on his journey back home.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Feb 12, 2016
• ISBN: 9781514431238

Frank James Unger

Frank James Unger was born and raised in Chicago. He attended Quigley Preparatory Seminary into his fourth year and later graduated from St. Joseph’s College with a degree in English/journalism. He is the father of seven children and married to the same woman for sixty years. As president of his own video production company, Frank authored scripts for media presentations and produced and served as host of a series of radio programs for a leading corporate sponsor. Frank has written three books on salesmanship for the private business sector and self-published eight fictional books.

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Copyright © 2016 by Frank James Unger.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Cover photo used under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike v4.0 International License:

License: Wikipedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-4.0

Author: Daniel Schwen / 27 January 2008

Source: Own Work

Alterations: Image cropped from original

The Sacred Bible: Catholic Public Domain version. Original Edition. Ronald L. Conte, Jr., translator and Editor

Rev. date: 02/12/2016

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Contents

Introduction

The Physicality Of Jesus

Marriage Feast At Cana

Capernaum

The Sermon On The Mount

Calming The Sea

Best Friends

The Loaves, The Fish, And The Silent One

Anger Justified

More Healing

Jesus, The Dreamer

Forgiveness

Choosing More Apostles

Changing Clothes

Flashback

Tara And Thomas

Satan

Intermezzo

Dining With Friends

The Apostles Creed

Holy Mary

The Holy Family

Questions Of Divinity

The Shepherds

Nearing The End

The Last Words

Resurrection

Ascension

He was a rather quiet sort. Didn’t smile a lot.

Because he bore the weight of the world.

Jesus Christ. The man and the God.

Come closer. And listen carefully. For you will learn much. About me, personally. About the gifts of my Father. And especially, about my human mind and heart. Such knowledge will help you arrive with me at the same place, in my Father’s heavenly kingdom. For all time!

Jesus Christ

Introduction

Seldom does a writer venture into the human mind of Jesus Christ, the proclaimed Son of God. Really, is there any value in learning of his mental acuity and cognizance? And what about the risk? Imagine, trying to assess the sphere of thought in the mind of a human Deity, a contradiction in and of itself.

For sure, there are some who have speculated on just how and if Jesus reasoned like the rest of us. Like, what was on his mind before, during and after he acted on the commands of his Father? And what were his private thoughts as the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity?

As written, God the Father, the first person of the Trinity, sent his Son to save mankind, unarguably a daunting task, perhaps even greater than the role of the Creator. The Holy Spirit had what seemed an easy assignment: to lead moral intelligence and wisdom toward a heavenly conclusion.

In that alignment, Jesus surely drew the short straw. Saving an earthly rabble from damnation? Suffering pain and death? Why me? he might have asked.

The following pages are more than an imagination exercise. They are, rather, a daring exploration into the uncharted territory of God’s human mind. Whatever is concluded, no one can dispute it. Because the biblical words explain, Jesus was like us in all things except sin. Further, he was human not just in body, but in perception, anxiety, fear and feelings.

So the purpose here is greater than to satisfy curiosity by guessing how the mind of Jesus worked. It is to creatively share his memory in order to emulate his attributes; then, to examine his deeds on his journey back to his Father.

In short, the goal here is to better grasp the Son and his relationship with the Father by drawing nearer to The Holy Trinity, the greatest spiritual mystery of Christianity: three persons in one God, a triumvirate, separate, yet one.

It is reasonable to assume that Jesus Christ had a pretty fair memory, a flawless one. And an equally fertile imagination. If he wanted to, he could easily recall every single moment of his life, from gentle times with his Blessed Mother to unpleasant details of his human death. And everything in-between.

The following pages appeal to that reality. The time Jesus spent on earth is rooted in scripture. But the opinions and conclusions are speculative insights and delights, creative exploits into the workings of the mind of the God/Man.

So, this is a blend of fact and fiction. Conjecture is a friend, an ally, the generator of disciplined imagery rather than High Theology. But at the same time, ideas are based on eye-witness accounts of those who followed Jesus as he roamed the countryside making a name for himself. In short, this is an original effort to guess the thoughts of a man who refined his divine destiny through human inspiration and experience.

Throughout these stories, suppositions are logical. Sprinkled within historical events, they reference the stresses of a challenging life. But how did Jesus handle it? Did he sleep well? Or was his assignment so enormous that he was vulnerable to physical exhaustion and mental depression? These and other such musings are the subject of this writing, modest efforts to Come Closer, to mystically touch the fibers in the heart of Jesus Christ.

Contemplation is the word St. Ignatius used to describe the type of prayer he recommended to grow in intimacy with Jesus. He invited all to enter the scene, to let it reveal our Lord, and to passionately search for the complete God/Man.

The idea of all this is to virtually draw within reach of Jesus Christ, then to come even closer, to assess his behavior and behold his human and Godly sensitivities. In the end, the original effort is gently morphed into an intense conclusion, one that manifests not only the fibers of the heart of Jesus, but also … the fibers of his soul!

The Physicality Of Jesus

Picture Jesus! Now picture Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln is a lot easier, right! Because we’ve all seen the face of Lincoln many times before … in photographs, drawings, on currency, etc. But there’s been no such imagery for Jesus. Nothing! Maybe the shroud of Turin, but even that has been scrutinized and analyzed with no conclusion for centuries.

In an effort for all of us to start this book on the same page, let us establish a common human image that enclosed the Godly soul of the Savior of mankind.

Unfortunately, there is no description of the physical Jesus in the New Testament or in any contemporary source. Yet, in hundreds of icons, paintings, even coins, there is a common quality that enables us to identify Jesus in such works of art. Starting in the sixth century, artistic depictions seem inspired or copied from a single source.

Though many have conceived a fixed mental image drawn from the artistic endeavors, the images often conform to stereotypes which are not grounded in any serious research on the historical Jesus but are based on second- or third-hand interpretations by spurious sources.

For clarification, we turn to judicious studies of ancient elements. The following appears as part of The Nazarene Way of Essenic Studies. As such, it is recognized as one of the many Christian traditions that seeks a clear likeness of the Son of God. The descriptions represent the oldest views and literary data on the external appearance of Jesus the Nazarene.

Excerpts from a reprinting of a letter from Pontius Pilate to Tiberius Caesar describing the physical appearance of Jesus. Copies are in the Congressional Library in Washington, D.C.

TO TIBERIUS CAESAR:

A young man appeared in Galilee preaching a new law in the Name of the God that sent Him. At first, I was concerned that His design was to stir up the people against the Romans, but my fears were soon dispelled. Jesus of Nazareth spoke rather as a friend of the Romans than of the Jews.

One day I observed in the midst of a group of people a young man who was leaning against a tree, calmly addressing the multitude. I was told it was Jesus. This I could easily have suspected so great was the difference between Him and those who were listening to Him. His golden colored hair and beard gave to his appearance a celestial aspect. He appeared to be about 30 years of age.

Never have I seen a sweeter or more serene countenance. What a contrast between Him and His bearers with their black beards and tawny complexions! Unwilling to interrupt Him by my presence, I continued my walk but signified to my secretary to join the group and to listen.

Later, my secretary reported that never had he seen in the works of all the philosophers anything that compared to the teachings of Jesus. He told me that Jesus was neither seditious nor rebellious, so we extended to Him our protection. He was at liberty to act, speak, assemble and address the people. This unlimited freedom provoked the rich and powerful Jews.

Later, I wrote to Jesus requesting an interview with Him at the Praetorium. He came. When the Nazarene made His appearance, I was having my morning walk and as I faced Him my feet seemed fastened with an iron hand to the marble pavement and I trembled in every limb as a guilty culprit.

For some time I stood admiring this extraordinary man. There was nothing in Him that was repelling, nor in His character, yet I felt awed in His presence. I told Him that there was a magnetic simplicity about Him and His personality that elevated Him far above the philosophers and teachers of His day.

Now, Noble Sovereign, these are the facts concerning Jesus of Nazareth and I have taken the time to write to you in detail concerning these matters. I say that such a man who could convert water into wine, change death into life, disease into health, calm the stormy seas, is not guilty of any criminal offense and as others have said, we must agree – truly, this is the Son of God.

Your most obedient servant, Pontius Pilate

THE DESCRIPTION OF PUBLIUS LENTULLUS

The following was taken from a manuscript in the possession of Lord Kelly, in his library, and was copied from an original letter of Publius Lentullus at Rome. It being the usual custom of Roman Governors to advertise the Senate and people of such material things as happened in their provinces in the days of Tiberius Caesar, Publius Lentullus, President of Judea, wrote this epistle to the Senate concerning the Nazarene called Jesus.

There appeared in these our days, a man, of the Jewish Nation, of great virtue, named Yeshua [Jesus], who is yet living among us and of the Gentiles is accepted for a Prophet of truth, but His own disciples call Him the Son of God. He raiseth the dead and cureth all manner of diseases.

A man of stature somewhat tall, and comely, with very reverent countenance, such as the beholders may both love and fear, his hair of (the colour of) the chestnut, full ripe, plain to His ears, whence downwards it is more orient and curling and wavering about His shoulders. In the midst of His head is a seam or partition in His hair, after the manner of the Nazarenes. His forehead plain and very delicate; His face without spot or wrinkle, beautified with a lovely red; His nose and mouth so formed as nothing can be reprehended; His beard thickish, in colour like His hair, not very long, but forked; His look innocent and mature; His eyes grey, clear, and quick.

In reproving hypocrisy, He is terrible; in admonishing, courteous and fair spoken; pleasant in conversation, mixed with gravity. It cannot be remembered that any have seen Him laugh, but many have seen Him weep. In proportion of body, most excellent; His hands and arms delicate to behold. In speaking, very temperate, modest, and wise. A man, for His singular beauty, surpassing the children of men.

An emerging composite from these two leaders creates a picture of Jesus to be as such: the average height of a man of his day was 5'5", but Jesus was perceived as tall, so we assume that he was taller than most, perhaps around 5'8".

His diet was primarily fish and bread, so it is logical to assume that he was of average weight, perhaps around 160 pounds; thus, he was thin rather than obese with a body of excellent proportion.

His hair was described as golden colored or between blond and chestnut, parted down the middle, curly and hanging over his shoulders. His beard was short and thick, the color of his hair. He had clear skin that was somewhat red from the sun he faced as he walked the desert. His eyes were grey, clear and quick, rather than dark brown like the average Jewish person.

Harmonizing those physical characteristics into the one man who was the Son of God, we envision someone who stood out from the crowd with majestic simplicity, sublime, peaceful, and with a serene countenance. The overall image of Jesus was thus one that was mitigating to the foes who attacked him.

Marriage Feast At Cana

JESUS CHRIST:

I was never eager to attend weddings! It is wonderful to witness a man and a woman promising their love for a lifetime. But the dancing and eating and noisy celebrating is not a pleasant experience for me. It is usually overdone.

Essentially, I am a rather quiet person. I enjoy working alone in my profession as a carpenter. In social situations, I am uneasy, though I know it is my destiny to become better at that.

In the case of the marriage at Cana, my Mother is attending as a personal friend of the bride’s family. She has invited me to accompany her. She too, like her Son, is not comfortable in crowds. So at her behest, with my disciples also invited, I will reluctantly accompany her to this wedding.

By all standards, it was a wonderful celebration. The music, the dancing, the food and wine. There was a burst of audible joy as Mary glanced quickly at a table where Jesus and his companions had gathered. Jesus had just finished a story and the guests dissolved in laughter. Mary shook her head with a smile. Though her son was slow to begin speaking with strangers, he knew how to captivate with his stories.

The air was thick with the scent of incense and the sound of dulcimer, timbrel and lute. Jesus rose and stood quietly in the shadows, forcing himself to enjoy the surroundings. He preferred to be inconspicuous but was open to new experiences that resulted in learning first-hand about earthly life.

JESUS CHRIST:

My mother was off to one side watching me. We had learned to send smiles without a word spoken. She leaned against several tall, empty water jars standing against a wall. She was beautiful.

But there was a frown on her delicate face. She would tell me later that she had recalled the words of Simeon in the temple many years ago when he told her, This child will be the cause of the fall and rise of many in Israel. And you, dear mother, will have your heart pierced in pain.

She and Joseph had talked of this many times. They knew that I was sent by God and had a serious purpose. But to my Mother, I was still her little boy, the one who had played in the sawdust of the workshop, run through the streets of Nazareth with my friends and learned and studied my scriptures.

We both smiled and nodded our heads in unison as our eyes remained on one another. I was so proud of her beauty and her humble appearance.

Since my father died, I had been her support and companion. We knew each other’s hearts so well. When