Jeremiah Benton’s Dream
Sister Carolyn asked her class, “I want you all to come up with a question concerning God, and let’s work on understanding it better, and together.” And she looked at Jeremiah Benton, who had his hand up, “Ok,” she said, “you go first, Jeremiah…:”
“Why does God send his prophets, instead of him coming in person…” asked Jeremiah Benton, to Sister Carolyn, and his classmates, at St. Louis Ecole, Elementary School, a little French Catholic school, built in 1888, in the center of downtown, St. Paul, Minnesota, in the winter of 1957.
“That’s a good question,” said the nun, “I really don’t know, do you?”
“Oh yes,” replied the ten-year old boy.
“Well then,” said Sister Carolyn, “what is the answer?”
“He’s scary!” said the boy.
“Oh, but that will not do,” said the nun, “how would a little boy like you know he’s scary in the first place?” asked the nun.
“I had a dream last night; and God; He took me back and showed me the whole thing.” Said the boy, seriously.
“You aren’t lying, are you Jeremiah?” asked the nun.
“Oh no, I’m not kidding, it’s true.” Said Jeremiah, “cross my heart,” and the boy did just that, he made a sign across his heart.
“Well,” said the nun, “fine, then come up here in front of the class and tell us all of your marvelous dream, the very one God revealed to you concerning why He sends prophets instead of coming himself in person.”
The boy hesitated, then said to himself, ‘Oh well, I suppose,’ and stood up, walking up the isle, around a few desks, centered himself in the middle of the class, the teacher by her desk, her two hands, palms backwards leaning on the large wooden desk, and her sitting on the edge of it, the blackboard to her side.
“Go ahead” said the sister, “we’re all waiting.”
The class was stone-still, and Jeremiah was standing trying to figure out how to start his story, he hadn’t planed on sharing it, but here he was nonetheless, then he said with an outburst,
“Once…upon a time:
“As God was taking me in his boat, while in my dream, taking me to some far-off land, he called ‘The City of Adam,’ he said ‘A prophet is a person that gives my people warnings, things I points out that anger me, Elijah was one of those people, I even stopped the rain for him to prove a point to the people he brought my message to.’ Next I asked God: why don’t you just do it yourself, and nobody will get confused on your orders. He gave me a ‘hum…’ one of those things, not sure what it meant at the time, and then said, ‘I don’t want people to get confused, but there is only one God you know.’ And I said, I know that, but people get confused. And He did a ‘hum…mm,’ on that also, a second time.
“I asked him: when did all this secret stuff start, by sending the prophets do his job!” (The nun looked at Jeremiah and frowned at that statement; then a classmate yelled ‘Abraham, he was the first prophet. ‘No’’ said another student, it was ‘Adam’ he was the first one.’)
“Anyhow,” continued the boy, “I was in the boat with God, and he went to this city called “The City of Adam,” by the Jordan River, and He said to me ‘It happened here Jeremiah, in those far-off days, prior to the Great Flood, I came down to talk to my people…”
(Jeremiah now tells the story in his own words, while his classmates are double focused on him, not one peep, or noise in the whole classroom, and even the nun, is anxiously waiting, almost holding her breath):
“God said He was his own first prophet, but when He came to talk to his people, when He spoke, and when people saw him, He shook the earth, as if it was an egg on the head of a needle, and people got scared, and his voice echoed from one side of the earth, through the earth to the other side, people ran and hid, thinking there was going to be an earthquake, it made the earth tremble, and when God’s face showed in the sky, it blocked out the sun, and it was all you could see, and the people dug holes in ground to hide, they trembled in fear. And God said, ‘It is just Me, your creator, why do you tremble?’ And the people yelled, ‘Because you are too awesome for us to behold,’ and some even died of a heart attacks, then God said, ‘I will promise you, I’ll send my prophets in my place, so I do not scare you.’ And the people were pleased.”
Sister Carolyn now looked at young Jeremiah—spellbound, “What a dream,” she said, adding, “You must tell us of your next one.”
2-17-2009 (written while having lunch at the Wong café, in Lima, Peru)
Sister Carolyn asked her class, “I want you all to come up with a question concerning God, and let’s work on understanding it better, and together.” And she looked at Jeremiah Benton, who had his hand up, “Ok,” she said, “you go first, Jeremiah…:”
“Why does God send his prophets, instead of him coming in person…” asked Jeremiah Benton, to Sister Carolyn, and his classmates, at St. Louis Ecole, Elementary School, a little French Catholic school, built in 1888, in the center of downtown, St. Paul, Minnesota, in the winter of 1957.
“That’s a good question,” said the nun, “I really don’t know, do you?”
“Oh yes,” replied the ten-year old boy.
“Well then,” said Sister Carolyn, “what is the answer?”
“He’s scary!” said the boy.
“Oh, but that will not do,” said the nun, “how would a little boy like you know he’s scary in the first place?” asked the nun.
“I had a dream last night; and God; He took me back and showed me the whole thing.” Said the boy, seriously.
“You aren’t lying, are you Jeremiah?” asked the nun.
“Oh no, I’m not kidding, it’s true.” Said Jeremiah, “cross my heart,” and the boy did just that, he made a sign across his heart.
“Well,” said the nun, “fine, then come up here in front of the class and tell us all of your marvelous dream, the very one God revealed to you concerning why He sends prophets instead of coming himself in person.”
The boy hesitated, then said to himself, ‘Oh well, I suppose,’ and stood up, walking up the isle, around a few desks, centered himself in the middle of the class, the teacher by her desk, her two hands, palms backwards leaning on the large wooden desk, and her sitting on the edge of it, the blackboard to her side.
“Go ahead” said the sister, “we’re all waiting.”
The class was stone-still, and Jeremiah was standing trying to figure out how to start his story, he hadn’t planed on sharing it, but here he was nonetheless, then he said with an outburst,
“Once…upon a time:
“As God was taking me in his boat, while in my dream, taking me to some far-off land, he called ‘The City of Adam,’ he said ‘A prophet is a person that gives my people warnings, things I points out that anger me, Elijah was one of those people, I even stopped the rain for him to prove a point to the people he brought my message to.’ Next I asked God: why don’t you just do it yourself, and nobody will get confused on your orders. He gave me a ‘hum…’ one of those things, not sure what it meant at the time, and then said, ‘I don’t want people to get confused, but there is only one God you know.’ And I said, I know that, but people get confused. And He did a ‘hum…mm,’ on that also, a second time.
“I asked him: when did all this secret stuff start, by sending the prophets do his job!” (The nun looked at Jeremiah and frowned at that statement; then a classmate yelled ‘Abraham, he was the first prophet. ‘No’’ said another student, it was ‘Adam’ he was the first one.’)
“Anyhow,” continued the boy, “I was in the boat with God, and he went to this city called “The City of Adam,” by the Jordan River, and He said to me ‘It happened here Jeremiah, in those far-off days, prior to the Great Flood, I came down to talk to my people…”
(Jeremiah now tells the story in his own words, while his classmates are double focused on him, not one peep, or noise in the whole classroom, and even the nun, is anxiously waiting, almost holding her breath):
“God said He was his own first prophet, but when He came to talk to his people, when He spoke, and when people saw him, He shook the earth, as if it was an egg on the head of a needle, and people got scared, and his voice echoed from one side of the earth, through the earth to the other side, people ran and hid, thinking there was going to be an earthquake, it made the earth tremble, and when God’s face showed in the sky, it blocked out the sun, and it was all you could see, and the people dug holes in ground to hide, they trembled in fear. And God said, ‘It is just Me, your creator, why do you tremble?’ And the people yelled, ‘Because you are too awesome for us to behold,’ and some even died of a heart attacks, then God said, ‘I will promise you, I’ll send my prophets in my place, so I do not scare you.’ And the people were pleased.”
Sister Carolyn now looked at young Jeremiah—spellbound, “What a dream,” she said, adding, “You must tell us of your next one.”
2-17-2009 (written while having lunch at the Wong café, in Lima, Peru)
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