Chapter Five - Part One (18,875 words)

I spent a year in misery. A year without speaking, only wailing and screaming with agony. My father gave up on me. He had tried to bring priests to me to see if they could cast out the demons but as there were no demons they were unsuccessful. I would lie on my blanket and stare at the wall for hours. I do not know where my mind was in those days but I do know it was not there with me.

It was while I was in this state that I heard about Yeshua and his miracles. My father lived under the incorrect assumption that I was unaware of what was going on around me. I was very aware, I just chose not to acknowledge what was going on around me. I discovered that my father spoke freely around me now because of this belief. I learned many things this way and never let on that I knew what was going on. One night, my father had guests. He had prepared a feast for them as they were regular customers of his. I knew their names, Rishon and Seff. They have finished their meal and were lounging drinking wine and babbling the way men do when the topic turned to Yeshua, but they did not know his name.

“I have heard great tales lately,” Rishon began.

“Ah! Don’t start with your children’s tales! We are men! We have men’s tales to tell!” Seff bellowed back. Seff was already drunk on wine.

“What are these tales?” my father asked Rishon.

“They are tales of miracles!”

“Rishon! You speak nonsense!” Seff shouted. He seemed quite certain to not allow Rishon to tell his story.

“Oh be quiet, Seff! You are drunk!” Rishon scolded him, “I will tell you the tale Dov but I ask of you to keep an open mind.”

I had rolled over to face into the room so that I could see what was happening as well as hear. I saw my father nod in agreement and with that certainty, Rishon began his story.

“When I first heard this it was just something being whispered between women but as time when on, more and more people came to believe it. I believe it was because more people were seeing the truth for themselves.”

“They’re all full of shit!” Seff yelled.

My father and Rishon both hushed him. I could see that my father was interested in hearing what Rishon had to say and for the first time since the death of my family and Akiva, I did too. At last Seff settled down and seemed to go to sleep in the corner. Rishon was able to continue his tale.

“The whisperings were about a man from Nazareth. It seems that he has the ability to heal the sick. People are saying that he is going through all of Galilee preaching in the synagogues and healing the sick. Some people are even saying that he is the Messiah.”