FOUR HITHERTO UNPUBLISHED GOSPELS



that He knew too well the meaning of His words
when He said that a man's foes should be they
of His own household. For thus did Nazareth
and His family rej ect Him when He first
came home. And that was why He left home
forever, and made his residence in Capernaum.
  Rumours continually came to us of the great
work He was doing, but we were incredulous.
At length there came a day when we four
brothers of His persuaded Mary our mother
that it was our duty to go to Capernaum and
bring Him home and place Him in a mad-house.
For we verily believed that He had gone insane.
We could not gain entrance to the house where
He was speaking, so we sent word to H-im; but
He knew why we had come, and He refused to
come out. Nay, it breaks my heart to remem.-
ber that we drove Him to the necessity of
repudiating us publicly. He declared that He
had no brothers and no mother except those who
did the will of God. Mary, my mother, went
back to Nazareth weeping when she heard this,
and we her sons were ashamed that we had ex-
posed her to this rebuke; but still we did not
love Him, nor believe in Him.
  After a while we heard that the crowds had
left Him, and that He was shunning the society
of people. He had withdrawn with His dis-
ciples, and was keeping out of popular sight.
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