Parable of the Mustard Seed
The parable of the mustard seed is one of the shortest parables in the Gospel: 2 verses in Matthew, 3 in Mark, 2 in Luke. In Maria Valtorta, it takes up a whole page (EMV 184.8). Exegetes see it as a symbol of the Gospel, others of the Church, and still others of the Kingdom of God. Jean-François Lavère therefore sought to compare the meaning Maria Valtorta gave to these explanations. Here is the result, published elsewhere in the magazine Chrétiens magazine:
"The mustard seed is the common name of the plant whose seeds provide mustard. From the same family as rapeseed, with which it can be confused. According to the varieties (white or black), the height of the plant ranges from 80 cm (Sinapis alba) to almost 2 meters (Brassica nigra). White mustard (Sinapis alba) grows from 0.80 m to 1.50 m.
In Palestine, it seems that the plant can reach about 1.5 meters in height. Goldfinches are very fond of its seeds and often perch in groups on the branches.
What do the Gospels say?[edit | edit source]
A comparative reading of the parable "of the mustard seed" from The Evangelists and Maria Valtorta is quite interesting:
Matthew 13:31-32:
- "... when it has grown, it is larger than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come to dwell in its branches."
- "... when sown, it rises, becomes larger than all the vegetables, and grows large branches."
- "It is like a mustard seed that a man took and cast into his garden; it grows, becomes a tree, and the birds of the sky dwell in its branches."
What does Maria Valtorta say?[edit | edit source]
On Wednesday, February 23, 28 (10 Adar I 3788), Jesus wants to please a hostess who hosted Him and asked for a teaching. Jesus then draws from a heard reflection: "Listen. Here on my lap, I have a boy who spoke very wisely. He said: 'Everything obtained by deception becomes straw.' His mother taught him this truth. This is not a fable. It is an eternal truth. What is done without honesty never succeeds. Indeed, lying in words, in deeds, in Religion is always a sign of a Covenant with Satan, the master of lies. Do not believe that the works that allow one to obtain the Kingdom of Heaven are noisy and ostentatious. They are ordinary, common Actions, but done with a supernatural purpose of love." Then He begins the parable:
"Love is the seed of the plant which, born in you, rises to Heaven and it is in its shade that all other Virtues are born.As can be seen, the version given by Maria Valtorta differs slightly from that delivered by the synoptics. It also seems more "realistic", since the mustard plant is a plant, and does not usually exceed, according to botanists, 1.20 to 1.50 m.I will compare it to a tiny mustard seed. How small it is! One of the smallest among those sown by man. And yet look how the plant, once developed, becomes strong with its thick foliage and how much Fruit it gives. It's not one hundred percent, but one hundred times one. The smallest, but the most active...
It is the same with love. If you enclose within you a seed of love, for your very Holy God and for your Neighbor, and if your Actions are inspired by love, you will fail no precept of the Decalogue. You will not lie to God by false Religion made of practices but without spirituality. You will not lie to the Neighbor by acting like ungrateful children, adulterous spouses, or even just too demanding, like dishonest merchants, liars in relationships, violent toward those hostile to you. Look, at this hour of heat, how many Birds take refuge in the Foliage of this garden.
Soon this mustard plant, still small now, will be a real perch. All the Birds will come to shelter and shade from these plants so bushy and so hospitable. The baby Birds will learn to fly safely in these branches that serve as ladders to climb and nets to prevent falling. Such is love, the foundation of the Kingdom of God (EMV 184.8).
Where The Evangelists say: "becomes a tree" and speak of "branches", Maria Valtorta simply evokes a "perch" and "branches", which better corresponds to the description of this plant.
What does exegesis say?[edit | edit source]
Father Jean Carmignac[1] performed an exegetical analysis of this parable. Noting that the mustard seed can hardly be compared to a tree, he explained (Cambrai Conference 1986) that "having branches", (branches) is said “anaph” in Hebrew, while "becoming a tree" is said “etz”. But if in the word "anaph" the two letters (the “nun” and the “pe”) touch, it becomes a “tsade” (the final letter in etz), so that if the two letters touch it means "becomes a tree", and if the two letters do not touch, it means "produces branches", (branches). So a tight writing on an original Hebrew manuscript would be enough for the Greek translations to have deviated from the original Hebrew meaning.
The fact that Maria Valtorta gives a slightly different version from the Gospel versions already proves that she does not simply "copy" them.
But that this version is coherent with a credible hypothesis formulated by Jean Carmignac 40 years later is an element that can certainly be credited to the authenticity of the revelations received by M. Valtorta!
To go further[edit | edit source]
Notes and references[edit | edit source]
Note: Quotations from the work of Maria Valtorta on this page currently use machine-translated text and will gradually be replaced by the official English translation. Until then, the official translation may be consulted through the reference link provided with each quotation.
- ↑ Abbé Jean Carmignac (1914-1986), a Hebrew scholar, conducted first-rate scientific work on the original texts of the Gospels. See the website of the Jean Carmignac Association.