Shebna

From Wiki Maria Valtorta
The prophet conveys to Shebna the sentence of God (Isaiah 22:15-19), after ChatGPT

Shebna[1] is presented in Isaiah as the sōkēn (steward or master of the palace) of King Hezekiah of Judah[2], (end of the 8th century BCE). He controlled access to the king and held immense political and administrative power. It was a position of high responsibility in the royal household, equivalent to a prime minister or chief of domestic affairs. The passage from Isaiah 22:15-25 is one of the rare prophetic oracles explicitly directed against a named high official, underscoring its theological importance. In this passage, the prophet Isaiah, commissioned by the Lord, harshly rebukes Shebna for his arrogance, pride, and abuse of power. Amid an imminent crisis (Assyrian invasion threatening Jerusalem), the people and their leaders behave recklessly, feigning celebration ("Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die").

Though named only twice in the works of Maria Valtorta, Shebna gains significance by the context in which he is cited:

  1. In a commentary from June 30, 1945 on the dark periods of the Church.
  2. In the dictation of December 23, 1948, 11 a.m. in which God the Father warns Pius XII about deviations of high Church officials.

In the June 30, 1945 commentary[edit | edit source]

Following the parable of the sower, Jesus is led to explain why He speaks this way, as reported by the Gospel[3] and by Maria Valtorta[4]. In Maria Valtorta's account, Jesus prophesies to Peter the infallibility of the papal office and its dogmas. A sentence alerts Father Romualdo Migliorini, who questions its appropriateness with Maria Valtorta.
"Later the light will come upon you, not for a moment, but for an indissoluble marriage of the Eternal Spirit with yours, which will render your teaching infallible concerning the Kingdom of God. And as it will be for you, so it will be for your successors if they live by God as by a single bread.[4]"
Since she was not empowered to justify what she had heard and transcribed, she turned to Jesus who explained the meaning of the statement in accordance with Catholic faith as reported in the article dealing with this episode. Shebna appears there as one of the "prophetic allusions" to the "Ages of Darkness" that punctuate the history of the Church.

Symbolic significance of Shebna in our time[edit | edit source]

If "the gates of hell shall not prevail against her[5]" and if infallibility in faith is not dependent on the holiness of the Supreme Pontiff, it remains true that the papacy went through dark periods[6] as the Church[7] also did. It is legitimate to question the relevance of this warning in a period (2025) where the Western Church has been marked for decades by both the desertion of churches, the decline in vocations[8], and sexual scandals. The following text seems to corroborate this connection and applies partly to the case of Maria Valtorta.

In the dictation of December 23, 1948, 11 a.m.[edit | edit source]

This text, attributed to God the Father and addressed to Pius XII who actually received it[9], speaks in Ramah (Judean) terms about the turbulent times the Church is traversing[7]. It is to be related to the vision that Leo XIII had on the "century of Satan"[10]" or Paul VI's speech about the "smoke of Satan"[11]. It presents Maria Valtorta's work, then threatened with destruction by the Holy Office, as an antidote to these dark times.
"...Hell shall not prevail, provided that the Church[7] is holy, as her eternal Pontiff commands her.

Look at past centuries: the times of spiritual decay, particularly among its teaching members, correspond to party separations, or the death of taught members[12].

Hell more or less prevails as long as the Church loses her holiness, which diminishes God's assistance. It is always prevailing, even if not destroying. Yet, never in all its secular life has the Church known such a moment of weakening – when not outright corruption, triple corruption – and never such an assault of hell.

Reread the Apocalypse of John. Who are the stars whose third of the highest Heavens, the Heaven of the Church, Satan manages to cast down?[13]

Who are they, if not those who, for having faithfully witnessed me, are killed by the Beast that rose from the abyss[14]? And those who, raised to the rank of luminaries in the Church, have become extinguished lights? Or those shepherds turned into idols by their overestimation of themselves? What is this, if not the Salt turned into poison for the little ones, who realize it and withdraw with disgust, weaken, or perish?[15]?

Too many shepherds are idols as Baruch describes in his chapter 6[16]. Many stars of the Church are overthrown[8].

Some, the first – and they are the best – are by the rage of antichrists; they are glorious marTyrs in my Kingdom[17]. Satan’s flatteries have caused an even greater number to fall. And the new Jerusalem becomes Babylon, so that she will meet Babylon’s fate.

Oh! Spirit of my Christ, perfect Spirit of the most perfect Shepherd, true life of his Church, how he has been sidelined and silenced by the will of men, in whom the law of the flesh is stronger than the Spirit’s, vainly infused by God with the fullness of his gifts!

Take and read, invoking my Spirit. Reread the prophets. Reread chapters 8, 9, and 16 of Ezekiel[18], as well as Isaiah 19. Whoever can no longer be Jerusalem, Church, holiness, becomes Egypt. And read, read, reread, meditate on Isaiah chapter 22[19].

Too many Shebnas are unworthy prefects of the Temple[20]. This prevents God from dwelling there with his Spirit by placing by his presence an indestructible shield, an untouchable breastplate, the defense that does not collapse. On the contrary, God will let Evil advance and purify, by his cruel arrows, those who think themselves gods and worship their own power, their intelligence, their judgment.

Oh, the wretched ones! What are they without me? How do they judge me, how do they judge my will, if they do not know how to judge themselves, repent, and be reborn in the spirit of God?

Read, read, reread, meditate, fear, weep. The time of Shebna threatens. A large part of the Church is already engaged, launched like a bullet into the midst of raging crowds.

For years I have already told this to the spokesperson [Maria Valtorta], so that it be reported to you. But this time, it is to you directly that I speak, you the Vicar of my Christ and my servant. Yes, because I am God, and no one is greater than me. Compared to me, the Lord, all are mere servants, nothing before the divine All that I am.

You at least, avoid being like others, like too many people. Keep your will apart from theirs, so as not to become their accomplice. You are, yourself, my servant, but they are yours, and you are their supreme Chief. Your word binds and commands, it is inferior only to mine. As you serve me in all holiness and love, my word unites with yours, so that it is God who speaks through your mouth as Supreme Pontiff.

You have in your hands the rods[21] and in your mind wisdom. I gave them to you myself when I elected you. Use the power and knowledge as suits you, and do not displease your Lord, who wanted to mark your pontificate with an extraordinary gift: a new proclamation of the Gospel that comes to confirm the ancient one[22], thanks to your help, O Father of Christianity, and thanks to the help of all Christianity, toward which the accursed Dragon advances.

Do not shake your head. Do not allege: “There is no proportion between the gift[23] and the threat,” as some claim and try to make you say. Do not offend me, who begot the Word. For I am Almighty, and I can do all if I will. I am Father, and if one of my children obeys me, I come to his aid, whatever the measure of the threat that assails him.

Do not take into consideration the intermediary [Maria Valtorta, the spokesperson] through whom the gift of the Word comes to the aid of those who believe, who doubt or even do not believe. This intermediary obeyed by serving the Word and obeying the orders received from God. That is why he addresses you, so that you act as God wills. But if you reject him, it is not so much him you strike and it is not against him, who is innocent, that you sin: it is me you strike, and even the admirable Trinity, where we are but one God; therefore you sin against Love.

For Love, our triune Love, wished to entrust to your pontificate the Word of God. And if you resist my loving will, you repeat the gesture of the princes of the high priests, the members of the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees, the Sadducees and the scribes, who did not yield to the evangelizing Love, who persecuted and condemned it even before the prescribed time for its martyrdom.

I tell you: reread John 11. It is written there that, when the Sanhedrin decided to condemn Jesus, he withdrew to Ephraim[24]. When humanity rejects Him, God withdraws. But it was from that moment that the fate of the Temple and the city was sealed, their destruction and the persecution of those who had persecuted the Word. To an act of justice and love correspond love and justice.

So I, the Lord, tell you: “You, and even all of you, need my defense more than your predecessors twenty centuries ago, and more than the shepherds of the flock. For the shepherds will be the first struck, then the flock will be scattered[25].”

Act so that God may be favorable to you. You can. You are the Holy Father, you have no excuse not to do so.

Do not imitate Pilate, otherwise you will have the same fate as him: washing his hands did not justify him. He failed justice as if he condemned without asking others to take over, and even more. Moreover, given that he had the power, he should have silenced the sinful tongues.

Do not disregard the one who speaks to you in the Work. You would be judged for that. And since you know him, serve him by making him known. You will be glorified for that.

Do not disdain this warning, even if it comes to you through a creature. Some of your predecessors listened to my intermediaries. And if the Church is still Roman, it is because a pope yielded to Catherine[26].

Be just, so that the Lord may be your ally against the Antichrist who approaches.”

Symbolic significance of Shebna in the case of Maria Valtorta[edit | edit source]

This solemn call from God the Father to defend the work of Maria Valtorta is related to an event that would occur a month and a half later: the Holy Office had planned to condemn Maria Valtorta’s work. A decision of February 14, 1949 was submitted to Pius XII. The second point stipulated: "That the prohibition of the publication of the work be published because the Ecclesiastical Authority found errors[27] and that there is nothing supernatural in these visions[28]."

On February 17, 1949, Pius XII "judged the publishing of a notification[29] excessive or superfluous". In brief, he rejected it. The Holy Office, which is reflected in this message from God the Father, would have to wait for Pius XII’s death to place Maria Valtorta’s work on the index, which was partially published under his pontificate without reaction or sanctions. The Holy Office’s objection, cause of scandal, did not wait. It was followed by the reformation of the Holy Office into the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, then the abolition of the Index. The prophecy about Shebna was fulfilled.

Notes and references[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Also spelled: Shebna, francized as Sobna in some translations, or Shebnaï (Hebraic form, close to the original). Etymologically "May [God] bring back" or "May [God] return" (a sense of prayer or wish).
  2. ↑ A king of Judah known for his religious reforms and resistance to Assyria (2 Kings 18-20; Isaiah 36-39).
  3. ↑ Matthew 13:13-17.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 EMV 180.5.
  5. ↑ See Matthew 16:18.
  6. ↑ See the recall in the footnote commenting on the passage.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 By "Church" one should understand the society of all Catholic Christians, notes Maria Valtorta.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "There are no precise statistics on the number of priests who have left their ministry. In 2007, the Jesuit magazine La Civiltà Cattolica estimated 69,063 over the period 1964-2004 and 11,213 who returned (1970-2004)." Cited in note in The Virgin of the Last Times, René Laurentin, François-Michel Debroise, Salvator, 2014, p.41.
  9. ↑ A document from the Holy Office confirms this on page 5.
  10. ↑ On October 13, 1884, Leo XIII witnesses a dialogue between God and Satan. The devil boasts of destroying the Church given increased time and power. God grants him a hundred years. The pope then sees the century "enveloped in Darkness and the abyss," then a legion of demons scattered worldwide until Saint Michael the Archangel casts them into the abyss.
  11. ↑ "Given the situation of the Church today, we have the feeling that through some fissure the smoke of Satan has entered the people of God." Paul VI, address of June 29, 1972.
  12. ↑ This observation – linking spiritual decay among teaching members (clergy, hierarchy) to schisms ("party separations") or loss of faithful ("death of taught members") – finds precise echoes in Church history. It highlights how moral and doctrinal corruption among shepherds weakens unity, fostering division or apostasies, as prefigured by Shebna (betrayal) and Eliakim (failure under the façade). Here are the main periods, based on historical Catholic sources. 1. 10th century: The "saeculum obscurum" (dark century): Period of extreme clergy corruption: simony (buying of offices), Nicolaïsm (clerical concubinage), neglect of divine offices, profaned monasteries, bishops sold to princes. Consequences: no massive schism, but loss of faithful due to scandals. 2. Western Schism (1378-1417): After Avignon (1309-1377), contested election of Urban VI (Rome) vs Clement VII (Avignon), then three rival popes. Moral corruption (persistent simony), political ambitions; cardinals divided by nationality. Consequences: Europe divided in obedience between Rome (Italy, Germany) and Avignon (France, Spain). Millions of faithful lost due to confusion over the true pope. 3. Protestant Reformation (16th century): Clerical corruption (abusive indulgences, princely luxury of bishops), secularization. Consequences: massive separations (Lutheranism, Calvinism, Anglicanism) and death of members: millions leave the Church (Germany, England, Scandinavia). End of Western unity; proliferation of sects.
  13. ↑ See Apocalypse 12:4.   
  14. ↑ In his dictation of December 11, 1943, page 548, Jesus defines the Apocalypse Beast as political power.
  15. ↑ A century earlier, the Virgin of La Salette entrusted a similar message to the young seer Mélanie Calvat: "The leaders, the guides of God’s people [the priests] have neglected prayer and penance, and the devil has darkened their mind; they have become those wandering stars whom the old devil will drag with his tail to make them perish" (Michel Corteville, René Laurentin, Discovery of the Secret of La Salette, Fayard, 2002, p. 59/60).   
  16. ↑ In some contemporary editions, chapter 6 of Baruch has been detached and appears independently as Letter of Jeremiah. See notably Baruch 6:24 and following: "These idols were bought at the highest price, and there is no breath of life in them...".
  17. ↑ Commenting on the third secret of Fatima in 2000, Cardinal Ratzinger said: "in the vision, we can recognize the past century (the 20th century) as the century of martyrs, the century of sufferings and persecutions of the Church". (Theological commentary – An attempt to interpret the "secret" of Fatima) The same year John Paul II qualified this century as comparable to the early persecutions of the Church (Ecumenical commemoration of the witnesses of faith of the 20th century, May 7, 2000 in Rome).
  18. ↑ Ezekiel 8: Vision of Jerusalem’s idolatrous sins. Ezekiel 9: Foreshadowing of punishment. Ezekiel 16: Jerusalem, unfaithful bride.
  19. ↑ Isaiah 22: this chapter mentions Shebna.
  20. ↑ By Temple one should understand the active clergy in the churches, notes Maria Valtorta.
  21. ↑ In ancient Rome, the fasces of rods was the instrument of correction and emblem of power (translator's note).   
  22. ↑ God the Father defines here the gift of the work as an "anamnesis" of the eternal Gospel by the Holy Spirit: a recall and an actualization.
  23. ↑ The work of Maria Valtorta.
  24. ↑ John 11:54.
  25. ↑ Zechariah 13:7.
  26. ↑ Obviously, this refers to Saint Catherine of Siena, who convinced Pope Gregory XI to return the papacy from Avignon to Rome.
  27. ↑ The text does not specify which ones, nor their nature. This "imprecision" leaves room for all suppositions and raises questions.
  28. ↑ Pius XII did not pronounce on this point but left the choice to decide "to those who read".
  29. ↑ The notification is an official act of the Dicastery.

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