Judea, 25 C.E.
Yochanan
In his dream, Yochanan the son of Zechariah saw a young man come to him full of anger and pain. On a barren, windswept plain not entirely unlike the one Yochanan frequented in the waking world, under a sky slashed with lightening and brooding clouds as full and feathery as the wings of a dove, the man with the wild, curling black hair came to him. In his hands he carried a stone. He held it close to himself, cradling it tenderly, weeping.
Brother, Yochanan addressed him, what ails thee?
I am betrayed, the man cried. I am lost.
Give me thy pain, Yochanan urged him as he reached for the rock.
I cannot. It is too deep within me.
Give me thy anger. It serves only to ruin you.
I cannot. All I have known has proven false. Those in whom I trusted are naught but liars.
Cast this hurt away. I will cleanse thee, and thou shalt be free.
Weeping bitterly, the man with the black curls extended his hands – slowly, like a child presenting a wounded pet to his mother to be nursed back to health. As Yochanan reached for it, prying the man's fingers from it, the stone became a ball of light. It shone with the power of a thousand fires, blinding both of them. When Yochanan wrenched it away, the man doubled over, his face crumpled with rage and hurt. Yochanan knew he must destroy the ball of light, for it represented the man's weakness, his anger and impurity, his sin. Concentrating deeply, he crushed the light in his hands, and it transformed into twelve doves. The doves flew into the air, fluttering in all directions. He knew then that the pain was healed. As the doves disappeared into the sky, the brooding storm dissipated; the darkness softened, the sun broke through, and a gentle, cleansing rain began to fall. Wildflowers, brilliant in their many colors, sprang wherever the rain touched, and in moments the cracked, ragged desert was transformed into a riot of joyous life that spread all around them for many miles.
Arise, my brother, he told the man. For today you are purified with fire and water. Your spirit is purified and made holy, and with this new, holy spirit, you will change the world.
Yochanan lived in the desert of Perea, a place that existed between the natural world and the spiritual. It was here that he communed with the Most High, fasting and praying, living on roots and shrubs and the voice of God. He experienced many visions and battled many demons, sometimes raging at them aloud in the blackness of night, witnessed only by the snakes and scorpions. Hunger sharpened his vision and hearing, made him richly in tune with the ebb and tide of the warfare being waged every moment of every day between the cosmic forces of good and evil. Repentant sinners came to him for insight and purification, and he dunked them in the waters of the River Jordan to cleanse them of their transgressions and make them holy again in the eyes of Adonai Eloheinu, the lord, their god.
At dawn one morning, after Yochanan had spent the night talking with the Most High, the man with the wild, black curls appeared on the horizon. He was, at first, only a speck. But the Almighty explained to Yochanan that this was him, the sinner he would purify, the prophet he would anoint and make even greater than himself. When the man reached him, at last, Yochanan was on his feet, waiting.
"Greetings, master," the man announced, "I am Yehoshua ben Yusuf. I pray you will cleanse me."
He was not weeping as in Yochanan's vision. He stood tall and proud, his eyes full of righteous anger, his jaw set in a grim clench. But the prophet knew the pain was there. It was deep beneath the surface, knotted up within him like the stone, a lump of anger and hatred that would do nothing but cripple the man's connection to the Most High. And so Yochanan nodded vigorously, his thin lips set in a determined line.
"I knew you would come. I have seen your arrival in a vision. It came to me only just nights ago." He placed a hand upon the man's shoulder, gazing at him with intense, solemn eyes, and held up a finger. "I teach that penance is the way to eternal life, but I have seen that you will usher in a new era, with revelations that have not yet been given to me. What I cleanse with water, you will cleanse with fire, a true spirit of holy fire – and this will make you even greater than I!"
Startled by this disclosure, Yehoshua ben Yusuf stared for a moment, and then looked stricken.
"But how can this be, master? I once thought myself blessed, but now all that I know has been taken from me."
"No, my brother. It has yet to be given to you!"
"How do you call me brother, master? I am only a man. I am not worthy!"
"You are indeed worthy. The Most High has told me himself."
Yehoshua's large black eyes widened.
"How can that be? All whom I have trusted have proven … unfaithful. Sinful. Liars. I … I do not even know who I am anymore."
He inclined his head, vulnerable as a boy.
"Then let me tell you, brother." Yochanan took the man by both shoulders. "You are indeed a Son of Man, but you are also a Son of God. So are we all. Now come, young one. Let us now consecrate you now to the Most High, for you are indeed blessed, and through you, he will change the world!"
On the east bank of the river, the weary traveler followed Yochanan into the water until they stood waist deep in the murky current. Yochanan lifted his hands to the sky.
"Barukh atah Adonai Eloheinu, melekh ha'olam. Blessed are you, LORD, our God, King of the universe…"
As he prayed, Yochanan felt the power of the heavens fill his soul. The voice of Adonai Eloheinu filled his spirit and whispered secrets and revelations, as it always did. But today the voice said new things … truths yet to be realized even by the man before him.
The prophet dipped the man backward into the water, then lifted him. Yehoshua raised his hands to the sky, overcome by emotion, and shouted; his voice carried a depth of feeling that made Yochanan wonder, in a brief moment of earthly clarity, exactly what tragedy this man might be running from. As if on cue, the sun broke out from behind the clouds, bathing their section of the shore in a soft blush of golden warmth. Several small, startled white birds took flight out over the water. Yochanan threw his hands in the air.
"It is a sign! The Most High is well pleased in his son."
Yehoshua remained silent for a moment, the water dripping from his face and body.
"Thank you, master," he said quietly. "You have given me … a new life."
"Go, then, brother. Your new life awaits."