to your ancestral possession.”
“And what is the Promised Land and Jerusalem to the Jewish people?”
“Their ancestral possession?”
“Yes. And for two thousand years, the Jewish people wandered the earth in exile from their land, from their ancestral possession. It’s the mystery of the Jubilee playing out before the world. As the age wore on, the connection between the Jewish people and the land appeared increasingly weaker, and the idea that there would ever be a return to the land more and more of an impossibility.”
“But in the Jubilee,” I said, “the one who has lost his ancestral land returns to it.”
“Yes,” said the Oracle. “So then what would the mystery ordain?”
“That the Jewish people would return to their ancestral land.”
“Yes, and that is exactly what was prophesied in the Scriptures . . . the Jewish people would return to the land.”
“When was that first prophesied?”
“By Moses in his last words to the people of Israel. After foretelling that they would be scattered to the ends of the earth, he said this:
The LORD your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the LORD your God has scattered you.” 3
“He said that how long ago?”
“Thousands of years ago. It was all there at the beginning of their history. The return of the Jewish people to their ancient land would be the sign of the end times.”
“But for that to happen,” I said, “for a nation to be destroyed, for its people to be scattered to the ends of the earth and then to return to their homeland and come back into history . . . that would be unprecedented.”
“Yes,” said the Oracle, “it would go against all odds and would defy the laws of history. For the Jewish people to return to their ancient land would be the mystery of the Jubilee manifesting on a cosmic scale. And if this was to happen, it would mean the hand of God moving in the events of the modern world. It would mean that behind the events of the modern world was an ancient mystery.”
“And so what happened?”
“I believe that’s where your vision ended.”
“But can’t you . . . ”
“No,” he said, “but from what you’ve been shown, I’m sure there’s more for you to see.”
“Another vision?”
“I would think so.”
“So I have to wait.”
“Yes, but now the stage is set.”
Chapter 7
THE DESERT VISIONS
A FEW DAYS had passed. It was midday. I was outside my tent, sitting on a rock. The sound around me began to fade away as it had in the previous visions. I didn’t notice it at first, because there wasn’t much sound to begin with. But soon enough it became obvious. I was back in the desert on the mountaintop with the old man.”
“Moses.”
“Yes. He had just sounded the ram’s horn and was still holding it in his left hand. The vision was beginning exactly where the last one had ended, except now standing by his side was a ram.”
“Where was it before?”
“I have no idea. But I believe its appearance was connected to the sounding of the horn. Strapped across the ram’s back were sheaves of grain and a cloth bag that hung down on both of its sides. Around its neck was a chain, from which hung a small white object, something of a pendant, on which was a symbol.”
“Of what?”
“The same symbol that was on the first of the seven doors. The old man . . . ”
“Moses.”
“Yes, he placed his hand on the ram’s head and whispered something into its ear. The ram then began descending the mountain into the desert below. I was led to follow it.”
“In the previous vision the plain was surrounded by the landscapes of the world. Was that still the case?”
“No. It was now all desert, as it was at the beginning. I followed the ram through plains and valleys, hills and ravines. And then in the midst of an immense valley the ram stopped and turned its gaze to the left. I turned as well. And I saw a vision.”
“A vision within the vision?”
“Visions within the vision. I saw several of them. The ram would turn its gaze to the right or left, and when I turned as well to see what he was looking at, I would see another vision. Each vision would represent one of the mysteries that was to be revealed.”
“So this was the first.”
“Yes.”
“So what did you see?”
THE JOURNEYER
“I saw a man in a