A/N: Yeah, this was a school project, but I'm quite proud of it, so I'm posting. There's lots of symbolic stuff, but I think you can either find the meaning in the footnotes, or figure it out yourself. Please R/R!
The Gospel According to Allee
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him, to show his servants what must happen soon. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant Allee, who gives witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ by reporting what she saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud and blessed are those who listen to this prophetic message and heed what is written in it, for the appointed time is near.[1]
The phoenix died in a burst of flame, agony on its face, but it rose again from the ashes, and flew away into the sky.[2] It will come to earth again to repeat the cycle, and after its second death, it will rise again to a different world ruled over by the King of the Birds that has flame in its eyes.[3]
When the phoenix returns to earth for its birth, there will be a nest of dirty ashes. All will be ashes.[4] However, there will be one, a white pigeon, who will lay a divine egg in the midst of the ashes.[5] The girl's name will be bitter on the tongue.[6] The pigeon will know nothing of what will happen, but the winged beings[7] that come to her from above will tell her that the egg carries the Prince of the Birds.[8] She will put her life in their hands trusting that the birdlike king that sends them will protect her. And so she will raise her voice in sweet birdsong, praising the King of the Birds for the egg in her nest of ashes.[9]
A hawk will see the pigeon and the egg, and will call to them, that they might come to his meadow and join all the other ash-covered birds, that the hawk might know who lives in the world.[10] In the meadow there will be seagulls and peacocks, robins, geese, quetzals, parrots, pheasants, hummingbirds, vultures, finches, ostriches, and owls.[11] They will occupy all the trees and none have the heart to move for the fragile egg and the white pigeon.[12] At last they will find refuge on a tiny branch. There the egg will hatch in its nest of ashes, covered in flame. From it will arise the Prince of the Birds, his tail feathers a brilliant white.
Above him will shine a star, alone in a black sky. Where once there were numerous stars, and the shining one was the brightest among them, there will now be only one. The birds have blotted out all the others with their ashes.[13] But above the Prince of the Birds will be a star, beautiful and alien.
Three birds of gold will fly up to the star to see its alien beauty, and see below it the white Prince. They will land on the small branch and each will pluck off one of their golden feathers, which they will present to the white pigeon. When they leave, the hawk will see the birds of gold and will try to question them about the Prince of the Birds, but the golden birds will fly away to the ends of the earth to spread news elsewhere.[14]
Thus the Prince of the Birds will be born again on the surface of the earth, surrounded by but not covered in ashes. The phoenix will see the ashes and cry.[15] Even so, he will remain on the earth.[16]
Now the phoenix will leave its home on the small branch, and the white pigeon will lead him to the place of light where the birds who wish to free themselves of the ashes congregate. This place will be like another nest to the Prince of the Birds, for the fire burning in the hearts of those birds who wish to free themselves of the ashes surrounds him with its flames. He will stay in this second nest for days to learn the secrets of the King of the Birds. The phoenix will see the ashes and cry. Even so, he will remain on earth. The white pigeon will worry about him, but she will forgive him.[17]
Having learned more about the King of the Birds, the Prince will go to the river, where he will look at his reflection in the water. Ashes will cluster around him, though they cannot touch him. It will not be needed, for he is not stained, but the bird of fire will call on his cousin the eagle and ask that he pour the water over his feathers to clean them.[18] The water will cleanse him, but it will not kill the flame that lives inside of him. Indeed, the flame simply will grow stronger, and it will meet with the flame of the King of the Birds, which will fall from the heavens. And so the Prince of the Birds will discover who he is, and soar to his destiny.
In the desert he will go, without food or water. For forty days will the sun bake his wings under its heat, until the Prince of the Birds can no longer fly. Then, from beneath the sands of the desert, a dragon will rise. Its eyes will be the color of blood; its scales will be black. Its great batlike wings will spread across the sky, blotting out the sun, and its body will be like a great serpent.[19] It will feed on ashes.
"O Prince of the Birds," it will mock, "why are you suffering on the sands beneath the sun, when you might live in glory with your Father the King of the Birds?"
"It is time that I return," the Prince will reply. "And I suffer because I must. I suffer so that I might keep the souls of the other birds from your clutches."
"But look! Look at the ashes that these birds live in! They are not worthy of your sacrifice!"
"Some have repented; others will do so on the Judgment Day."
"And how soon will it be, O Prince?"
"No one knows exactly when," the phoenix replied, "but it will be very soon. My time is at hand."
The dragon will laugh. "You are pitiful, O Prince. Leave the desert, return to the glory that is the King of the Birds' home. Forget these birds."
The phoenix will shake his head no, too weak to say anything else.
"If you do not go to the King, then come to me," the dragon will say. "I will provide for you." It will blow a stream of flame across the desert, and all manner of delicious foods will appear.
The phoenix will smell the food, but turn its head away, and flame will burn in his eyes. "Leave me, Dragon," he will say. "I have no need to speak with you, nor do I want to speak with you."
"You will not have to, when I have taken the ash-covered birds into my realm," the dragon will reply, and then it will dive back beneath the sands of the desert.
The phoenix, very weak, but now stronger for having defeated the dragon, will return to its forest. There, twelve kingfishers will see the bird of fire, and follow him. The phoenix will be pleased. "The Prince of the Birds has returned," he will tell them, but they will not understand yet.
He will fly to the forests called Nain, followed by the twelve kingfishers and other birds. When he reaches the city, he will find a bird that has fallen from the sky and lays crumpled upon the earth, never to open his eyes again. His mother will stand nearby weeping, and the Prince of the Birds will take pity. "Rise, Bird, and spread your wings," the phoenix shall say. At once, the dead bird will do as the Prince asks, and he will flutter over to his mother. Everybody will be amazed.[20]
"Behold, children, soon all shall rise again to be separated into those worthy of glory and those worthy of ashes. Repent; be ready for the Judgment Day," will say the phoenix.
Later, the twelve kingfishers will ask the Prince of the Birds what he meant when he said those words. The phoenix will reply with a story. "You have heard that story passed down through the generations, that story about the ten young hens invited to a marriage. Five were prepared, bringing enough birdseed to eat while they waited for the groom, but the other five brought none. The ten fell asleep for a while, tucking their heads beneath their wings, and when they awoke, all of them were hungry. The five with birdseed began to eat, but the five without any could only watch the others while pangs of hunger tore at their stomachs. They went to the fields to find more seed, but while they did so, the groom of the wedding returned and allowed the five hens present to enter the wedding. However, the five who were not prepared later returned, and though they beat on the doors to enter in, they were unsuccessful."[21] The phoenix looked at each of the kingfishers. "Do you understand now? The groom has returned, and soon he will lock the doors. All of you will rise again like the bird I raised earlier today, but if you have not repented and are not ready, then you will be locked out of the celebration. Do you understand?"
The twelve kingfishers will not understand. The phoenix will sigh, and attempt to explain once more. "In the past you have prayed well," he will say, "for you have prayed in the way that I taught you many years ago. But now I change that prayer because it is no longer accurate. From now on, you will say:
"Our King, who is in paradise:
Your sacred name is honored.
You Kingdom will come soon,
And Your will shall be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
You have given us today our birdseed and water,
But we must ask forgiveness for our sins.
We also ask that we might pardon those of our fellows.
You have tested us before,
And now we ask that you keep us from the jaws of the dragon."[22]
Do you understand now?" the phoenix will ask. "I am the Prince of the Birds, and soon will be the day I judge you. You must repent!"[23]
The twelve kingfishers will nod, though they still will not fully understand.
After the phoenix has said this to them, one of the kingfishers will leave the group and find the followers of the hawk that governs the world. "Come," the kingfisher will say, "for I know how you can catch the phoenix." They will discuss the phoenix's capture, and then the kingfisher will return to the group until the appointed time.
The phoenix will have set the table with birdseed and sweet nectar, that he and the twelve kingfishers might feast. Before they eat, however, the phoenix will fill a birdbath, and he will ask that each kingfisher wash himself in the phoenix's birdbath. They need to wash the ashes from their feathers. After they have done so, the phoenix will pass out the birdseed. He will say, "This is my body, which has been given up for you, and soon it will raise you to glory." Then, he will pass around the goblet holding the nectar. He will say, "This is my blood, which has been shed for you, and soon it will raise you to glory." All the kingfishers eat and drink of the body and blood, but the Prince of the Birds knows which kingfisher betrayed him.
After they have eaten, they will fly to the mountain forest, and the Prince of the Birds will pray, his tears streaming from his eyes. His time of death will be at hand. The followers of the hawk will appear, and the kingfisher that betrayed him will identify which one is the phoenix. The followers of the hawk will seize him.
On trial, the other birds will condemn him, saying he is false. They will sentence him to death.
The kingfishers and the white pigeon will watch, tears streaming from their eyes, but they will not be able to do anything as the phoenix is tied to a tree and stakes are driven through his wings and feet. The next few hours will be long.
At last, the phoenix will be so weak that he can barely hold his head up. "O King," he will whisper, "I entrust my spirit to your wings." With those words, having come into maturity, his tail feathers will change to the red of innocent blood. An instant later, a flame will burst forth from inside the phoenix, burning him completely but this time leaving no ashes. The fire will spread from the phoenix, burning everything in its wake. It will not be very long until it has covered the earth. All that will remain will be the ashes, but even those will have lost the potency by the blood of the phoenix. Then, not even the ashes will remain anymore. The earth will crumble away into dust.
The very material of space-time will rip away, and through the hole will descend a throne surrounded by light. In it will be the King of the Birds. He will look at the destruction of the earth and cry. And from his tears, a new earth will form, new and perfect.[24] From behind the throne will enter the spirits of millions of birds, and they will surround him in a circle. Then, from behind the line of spirits, another bird will majestically soar through the hole in space-time and take its place at the right side of the King. It will be the phoenix, born again, his tail feathers once again white. He will smile at the spirits. Somehow, the Prince and the King will suddenly become one, and flame will burn inside of them. After this has happened, the judgments will begin. Almost all the spirits will pass joyfully by the phoenix, gaining a body once again, but the body will be perfect. Those birds will be the birds who repented.
However, there will be some to whom this does not happen. Those who shun the King and the Prince and the Flame, even as they gaze at them in their full glory, will be cast down and away. From the hole in space-time the dragon will spring and snatch the bird-spirits in its jaws, and the spirits once again becomes flesh, but deformed and unable to function. Their screams echo across the universe as the dragon carries them back through time-space and into eternal separation from the King and the Prince and the Flame.
Yet most will go to earth in joyful perfection. May those of you who read this be one of those birds. Repent, I tell you, so that you will be ready when the day I have spoken of comes. It will be soon, but one never knows exactly when. Stay ready, that the dragon cannot have you, and you will instead stay in paradise with the Phoenix.
Works Cited
The Gospel of John
The Gospel of Luke.
The Gospel of Mark.
The Gospel of Matthew.
Lansky, Bruce. The Very Best Baby Name Book. New York: Meadowbrook Press, 1990.
Nigg, Joe. Wonder Beasts: Tales and Lore of the Phoenix, the Griffin, the Unicorn, and the Dragon. Englewood: Libraries Unlimited, Inc., 1995.
Revelation.
[1] This first paragraph is the same as the first three verses of Revelation; only the name of the servant is changed.
[2] In the past, the phoenix has traditionally been a symbol of Christ because of its death and rebirth. Here, it figuratively tells of how Christ died in pain, but rose again in glory, eventually ascending to the Father.
[3] The different world is the Kingdom of Heaven, and the king of the birds is the Father. However, because the king of the birds is, according to myth, the phoenix, the passage shows that the Father and the Son are the same being, and as a creature of flame, the Holy Spirit lives in Him.
[4] The ashes refer to humanity. At the end of time, sin will be rampant in the world, and people will be worthless, like ashes. Only Jesus can save them.
[5] The white pigeon refers to the Mother of God. Pigeons are generally considered to be dirty, and so that will show her as a human, but her white color shows that she is sinless.
[6] Mary, in Hebrew, means bitter.
[7] The angels, like birds, have bird wings, thereby showing that both are originally good. Though the humans are stained with sin, they still have good imprinted on their hearts because they are created in the image of God.
[8] The phoenix being the prince of the birds in this passage alludes to the fact that it is the Son of the Father, the king.
[9] This refers to the Magnificat.
[10] The hawk, with its amazing eyesight, is like Caesar Augustus who wished to take a census of the people in his kingdom.
[11] Each type of bird represents a type of person.
[12] The sinners cannot open their hearts to Jesus.
[13] Here the ashes refer to the sin of polluting the earth.
[14] This is the story of the Three Kings.
[15] The tears of a phoenix heal wounds, and so Jesus' tears take away the sins of the world.
[16] The entire gospel up to this point was the birth narrative.
[17] This is the story about how Jesus is lost in the temple. Here, he is lost in the church.
[18] In mythology, the phoenix is related to the eagle, as Jesus was related to John the Baptist.
[19] The dragon represents the devil coming to tempt Jesus in the desert. Like the birds and angels, it has wings, but the dragon's are those of bats rather than birds, and therefore evil. The dragon also blocks out the sun, which, although good for the phoenix in the short term, is bad overall, for the sun is the object that makes life possible. The serpentine body is an allusion to the snake in the Old Testament. In the past, as phoenixes have been associated with Christ, dragons have been associated with the devil and evilness.
[20] This is the miracle story of my gospel, the story of raising the widow's son found in Luke 7:11-17.
[21] This is the parable I use, the story of the ten virgins from Matthew 25:1-13.
[22] This is the Our Father, with some changes, which is my liturgical formula.
[23] Here is the catechetical instruction I use. People must repent for their sins.
[24] Revelation speaks of a new heaven and a new earth. This passage describes both. The passage before it describes how the previous earth passed away.