The Shepherd, September 2006
PERHAPS the thought comes into the head of some of us: Why is it that God grants some people riches and happiness in this life, and others live in penury and have to bear all kinds of necessity and misfortune? As a response to this we offer the following tale from ancient times, from which it is evident that the Lord knows better than we do what is profitable, and He sends to each what he can bear.
There was a certain simple souled countryman, who lived by the work of his hands but he earned very little, hardly enough for him to feed himself and his family. Once he went down to the shore of the sea, settled down on a rock, and watched how continuously large ships laden with rich goods approached, and how they then unloaded these goods and went into the town to sell them.
Thereupon the thought came into his head: “Why does the Lord send some people riches and every kind of sufficiency, and others are left to live in poverty?” And he began to grumble about his own wretched lot. Moreover the midday sun beat strongly down, and the poor man began to grow drowsy, and he dropped off to sleep. Then it appeared to him that he was standing at the foot of a high mountain, then there came down to him a revered Elder with a long beard, who said to him, “Follow me!” He was obedient and followed him. They went on for a long time and, eventually, came to some place, where there lay numbers of crosses, of every kind and varying degrees of magnificence. Here there were crosses great and small, of gold and silver, of copper and iron, stone ones and wooden ones. And the Elder said unto him: “Do you see how many crosses there are here? Choose one that pleases you for yourself and carry it to the very summit of that mountain, which you see before you.”
Our simple soul looked at a gold cross; it was so beautiful particularly glistening in the sun’s rays. He took a fancy to this cross, and he wanted to take it upon his shoulders, but however must he struggled he could not even take up that cross, nor could he move it from its place.
“No,” the Elder told him, “it is clear that you cannot carry that cross up the mountain. Take this other one, the silver one. Maybe that will be more to your strength.”
The simple soul took hold of the silver one. This one, it is true, was lighter than the gold one, but all the same he could do nothing with it. The same happened with a copper one, and with an iron, and even with a stone cross.
“There is nothing to be done,” the Elder said to him, “take one of the wooden crosses.”
Then our simple soul took the very smallest of the wooden crosses, and easily and quickly he took it off up that mountain. He was heartened that at last he had found one cross that was in accordance with his strength, and he asked his companion, “And what reward will be mine for this?”
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