Mary Magdalene: A Novel (11 page)

Nathan shrugged. “Perhaps the interest in this new rabbi will wane and they will return.”

Zebedee paused, a small bunch of grapes in his hand. “That is my hope. I pray each day to the Most High, blessed be his name, they may tire of wandering the countryside. May he hear my prayers.”

“May he hear your prayers indeed.”

When the meal was over, Nathan stood, and despite Zebedee’s expected urging to stay longer and eat more, he thanked his host for his hospitality. He needed to go. Daniel had remained respectfully silent throughout the meal, listening eagerly to the older men’s conversation, and now rose quickly and waited for Nathan. He was eager to find out more of this rabbi who healed people. Perhaps Nathan would take him to hear Jesus.

Daniel’s eyes lit up when Nathan turned to their host and asked, “Can you tell me where I would find this Jesus?”

Zebedee frowned and eyed him suspiciously. “Do you wish to follow him also?”

“No, but I would see what it is about him that causes sons to leave their father’s business.”

“He is sometimes found out on the hills. Many people come to hear him speak and that is the only place where there is room for the multitudes. Ask anyone in the marketplace. They can tell you where he is.”

Nathan walked toward the marketplace with Daniel hurrying beside him, eagerly anticipating the prospect of adventure.

N
athan transferred some of Zebedee’s final payment to a small leather pouch in the front of his waistband. He tucked the larger bag of coins out of sight in his belt lest it be a temptation for thieves as he and Daniel strolled through the crowded marketplace. He paused, wistfully admiring a beautiful blue silk mantle. He considered buying it, but shocked himself when in his mind he saw how attractive it would be on—Keturah, not Mary. He hurried Daniel on to the next stall. Doves cooed in cages, their sounds almost mournful. Did they know they were destined for the Temple for a sacrifice? Nathan shook his head to clear away his foolish thoughts.

He purchased a cloak for Daniel, for the air was cooling and they would have to pass the night somewhere. He also purchased some dates and figs, which he shared with his young friend, who, like any twelve-year-old boy, seemed forever hungry.

The fruit merchant appraised him quietly. “You are a stranger here in Capernaum?”

“Not totally. I’ve just delivered a fishing boat to someone here.”

The man smiled then, showing two missing teeth. “Ah, a builder of boats.”

The man seemed amenable and Nathan decided to make an inquiry.

“I’ve heard news of a rabbi traveling around here preaching and healing people. Would you know of him?”

The man looked around and, with an air of conspiracy, sidled closer. “He is a sorcerer. No ordinary man could do the things he does.”

Overwhelmed by the waft of garlic from the man’s breath, Nathan casually stepped back, not wishing to offend his informant. “What if he is a man of God?”

The merchant shrugged. “See for yourself. He was here, but I hear he has left for Bethsaida.”

“Many thanks for your kindness, my friend, I shall enjoy the fruit.” With a tilt of his head, Nathan indicated to Daniel that they should move on.

Bethsaida. He would have to hire a boat. At least it was across the narrower part on the upper end of the Sea. The voyage would not take long. He contemplated what funds he could spare and decided he could chance the passage and still get back to Magdala in a short time. He sighed. Only the Most High, blessed be his name, knew what Zerah was up to in his absence. Sober, Zerah was a shrewd businessman, drunk, he was prone to rages, and Nathan prayed all was calm at the boatyard.

When they returned to the docks, they inquired about transportation to Bethsaida. A friendly fisherman, by the name of Puah, agreed to take Nathan and Daniel across to Bethsaida.

As they left the harbor of Capernaum, the conversation turned to the traveling rabbi. “His name is Jesus of Nazareth.” Puah’s face lit up. “He healed my daughter who had been sick with a fever. He had only to touch her and she was well.” He shook his head slowly. “I saw him heal a lame man who threw away his cane and walked and leaped for joy.”

“Do you think it was a trick?”

Puah’s eyes bored into Nathan’s. “When you see him, you will know who he is and what he is. No one speaks like this man.”

Nathan was thoughtful. “Did you see any other healings when you were there?”

“Dozens. He healed everyone who was brought to him. He cast out demons and only had to touch the eyes of the blind and they could see. I would still be there, but I have to feed my family so I returned to my boat. You came at a good time. I’ve had a good catch, enough to take care of my family for this week. I would go with you to hear the teacher again, but I must return home to Capernaum.”

Jesus casts out demons? A flutter of hope rose in Nathan’s chest. Is it possible? Was this man the answer to his quest?

When they reached the harbor at Bethsaida, Nathan started to pay the fisherman, but surprisingly, Puah refused.

Putting a hand on Nathan’s shoulder, he smiled. “What he has done for me I cannot repay. So, go, hear him for yourselves. You will never be the same.”

Nathan stood watching the boat sail out of the harbor and thought of what Puah had told them. A man who had only to touch or speak and people were healed. Suddenly he felt he couldn’t find Jesus fast enough.

The air was full of the smell of salted fish. Knowing they might be away in the hills a long time, he stopped at a fishmonger’s stall. He needed to purchase food for the two of them. Who knows where they would find a place to eat later? He bought a couple of salted, dried fish, and in the street of the bread makers, he purchased several fragrant loaves to eat later. He knew Daniel would be hungry before long.

“You are seeking Jesus of Nazareth?” said a voice at his elbow.

He turned to see an older woman staring up at him. He nodded his head. How did she know?

“Come, follow me. I will show you where he is.”

As they walked, Nathan considered that the woman had called Jesus a Nazarene. He knew the saying, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” It was a poor village with little reputation. How could such a man come from Nazareth?

After about half an hour, Nathan and Daniel were well out of the city and following the woman and other townspeople toward the hills. As they drew closer, Nathan heard a man’s voice, speaking clearly. Amazed that the voice carried so well over the crowd, Nathan focused on a figure sitting on a large rock near the top of the hill. The man did not appear tall, he had a finely chiseled face, and his hair curled softly to his shoulders. There was little about him that was more than ordinary, except for a commanding voice that echoed through the crowd. Nathan put a hand on Daniel’s shoulder to keep him close in the throng and began to listen.

As Jesus spoke, Nathan recognized that the rabbi was teaching from the Torah, the words of the Law. He simplified the words for his audience of unlearned townsfolk, but the way he taught captivated Nathan. Here was a man in simple garments, not in the fine clothing of a Jewish leader, speaking from great knowledge and with authority. Nathan urged Daniel forward and they made their way through the crowd to hear Jesus better. Who was this man?

The people hung on the Teacher’s words and time seemed to be of little importance. When Jesus had finished teaching, the people were restless and hungry. Nathan heard one of the teacher’s followers say, “Master, send the crowds away that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.”

Jesus smiled at him and said, “You give them something to eat.”

Nathan raised his eyebrows. How could his disciples feed this vast crowd? There must have been over 5,000 men, not counting women and children.

The disciple’s eyes widened. “Master, two hundred denarii would not buy enough to feed them all.”

Just then Daniel’s stomach growled and Nathan looked down at the boy.

“Are you hungry?”

“Jesus must be hungry too, sir,” Daniel whispered.

“I’m sure he is, Daniel. We need to find a place to eat our fish and bread, but let’s wait a moment longer. I want to see what Jesus will do.”

Daniel was looking straight at Jesus, who was looking right back at him, a smile playing around his lips. Before Nathan realized what Daniel had in mind, the boy had stepped out of the crowd and was approaching the disciple Jesus had spoken to.

He held out the pouch with their dried fish and bread. “Jesus may have our lunch if he is hungry.”

The smile on the Teacher’s face broadened. “What have we here, Andrew?”

“A boy with some loaves and dried fish, Master.”

Jesus beckoned to Daniel. “Come closer.”

Daniel stepped up next to Jesus, who put an arm around the boy. “Your gift is most welcome, Daniel.”

Daniel gasped. “You know my name?”

Jesus nodded. “You are just in time.” He turned to his disciples. “Have the people sit down in companies of fifty.” Then Jesus took the loaves and fishes and held them up as he looked up to heaven. He blessed the loaves and gave them to his disciples to pass out, then did the same with the fish. The disciples put some of the fish and bread in each of several baskets.

Nathan watched in amazement. While he applauded the boy’s honest offer, there was no way it could feed this vast crowd. Before he could move to retrieve his young helper, a basket was passed to him containing fish and bread. People had been reaching in and taking food from the basket, yet it was still full when it reached Nathan. Startled, he took some bread and fish and passed it on. Everyone was reaching into the baskets and all were finding enough fish and bread for their needs. Nathan wanted to weep and laugh at the same time. The miracle was overwhelming. This teacher was no sorcerer. With sudden clarity, Nathan knew Jesus served the Most High God.

When he had eaten his share of the fish and bread with Daniel, he waited to see if Jesus would continue teaching. Instead Jesus began to walk through the crowd toward the water and a large fishing boat anchored nearby. He touched children on the head as he passed and people reached out to touch his garment, crying out blessings on him.

The disciples followed their master and Nathan suddenly recognized Zebedee’s sons, James and John. They walked protectively around Jesus, but their faces reflected the awe Nathan himself felt. If he had not been here and observed for himself, he wouldn’t have believed what he had seen. Jesus had fed thousands with a boy’s small offering.

The people, their stomachs filled, began to drift in groups back toward the town. Some grumbled about the lateness of the day as they passed Nathan, so soon forgetting what they had seen and heard.

Nathan and Daniel also sought out the local khan, an inn where lodging was provided for strangers at no cost. At least they would have some straw to bed down on.

As they settled for the night in the cubicle assigned to them, Daniel was asleep at once. Nathan listened to the boy’s steady breathing and thought again of the events of the day. Sleep was impossible, for in his head he still heard the words that had been impressed on his mind as Jesus passed by. They were as clear as if Jesus had spoken aloud.

Bring her to me.

M
ary tossed and turned through the night, calling out for Nathan and her mother, but there was no answer. Then she remembered. Her mother was dead. She would never feel the gentle arms around her and her mother’s voice soothing her. Tears rolled down her cheeks when she remembered she had not even been allowed to follow her mother’s body to the burial site. She had listened to the weeping and wailing of the neighbor women from her room and cried with them.

The voices plagued her again and again as she begged HaShem to stop their torment. In a lucid moment she remembered Keturah and Huldah trying to dress her and how she had fought them. She didn’t want to hurt anyone, but she had no control over some of her actions. Now Nathan had locked her in the room. The forces that ruled her life were strong, and she had beaten herself against the door over and over, but it had remained closed. Her hands were bruised and bloody from pounding on the unyielding barrier.

Eliab had entered cautiously with food for her, but even he had difficulty restraining her. He flung her away when she tried to claw him, and she’d crawled under the table and watched him with wary eyes as he tried to gently speak to her. Finally, he left the bread and fruit and closed the door behind him. She heard the bolt slide into place and whimpered in despair.

Everything she could have used to injure herself had been removed. Even her bed was only a pallet. She had tried to kill herself by placing her own hands on her throat, but it didn’t work. How long was she destined to live in the prison of her mind?

She chewed slowly on a piece of bread, remembering the times she had helped her mother bake bread in the mornings. Heavy wooden bars had been installed on her window after the kidnapping years before, to protect her, but now they only reminded her that she was a prisoner in her own room. She stood at the window looking out at the Sea of Galilee in the distance. She imagined the seagulls crying and the fishing boats along the shore, half of which had been built by her father. Would she ever go down to the sea again?

Then her thoughts turned to Nathan. Beloved Nathan. What kind of wife was she to him now? He refused to divorce her, but every time he tried to come close to her, a voice that didn’t even sound like hers cried out, “Leave me alone! Go away!”

She had seen the sadness on his face, yet his kindness to her had not wavered. Why did he stay? Why did he not leave her? At least, here in her room, she couldn’t hear the snickers and whispers of the neighbors and the words “Mad Mary.”

Nathan had gone somewhere. Eliab told her in a calmer moment when she cried for him. Where had he gone? Had he left her as she had begged him to do so many times?

“He is delivering a boat, mistress. It can take many days.”

Then Eliab had slipped out again.

Hours passed, and as the unease came over her again, she approached the door.

“Eliab, are you there? Let me out, dear Eliab. Please let me out.”

There was no answer, but she knew he was there. He was there—every night and most of the day. He was guarding her. Why did he need to guard her? She was mistress of the house. A sly smile formed on her lips.
No, Keturah is mistress now. She bakes the bread and feeds the household
. Why was it Keturah and not herself?
Because you are mad
, her mind told her and she heard the faint laughter.
Keturah will take care of Nathan
. Mary frowned and shook her fist at the door.
No, I’m his wife, not her.
Keturah had stolen him from her with her soft words. She had a child. Nathan loved children. Now he would have a son to raise. Her lips trembled and the tears began to flow again. No children. She was a barren wife because of her madness. No children for Nathan.

She sank down on her bed, whimpering and letting self-pity run rampant in her mind. What was she good for? Nothing. Nothing at all.

She lay down and pulled the simple rug over her. Mad Mary. Mad Mary. That’s who she was. She lay staring at the ceiling until at last she fell into an exhausted slumber.