© 1995 Carole Jett
© 1995 International Urantia Association (IUA)
By Carole Jett
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
Zebedee and Salome Zebedee’s goodness, graciousness, and excellent parenting earned them a pivotal role in the bestowal of Christ Michael on Urantia. They were a moderately well-todo couple who opened their hearts, souls and family to our Creator Son. Their home in Bethsaida, a suburb of Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee, became the headquarters of Jesus’ revelation as the Son of Man and the Son of God.
In Jesus’ twenty-seventh year (A.D. 21) after fully preparing his earthly family to care for themselves, with James as the head of the household, Jesus departed never again to be a regular member He first traveled to Tiberias, Magdala and Bethsaida, where he stopped to pay a visit to his father’s friend Zebedee UB 129:1.2. Zebedee and Salome were the parents of seven children, three sons and four daughters. He was a boat builder; his sons were fishermen. Jesus resided with them for more than a year becoming like a son to Zebedee and Salome.
Jesus and Zebedee began to build boats of a very superior type, craft which were far more safe for sailing the lake than were the older types. For several years Zebedee had more work, turning out these new-style boats, than his small establishment could handle; in less than five years practically all the craft on the lake had been built in the shop of Zebedee at Capernaum. UB 129:1.3. He [Jesus] had long worked alone in the world, that is without a father, and greatly enjoyed this period of working with a father-partner. UB 129:1.4.
Salome became a great admirer of Jesus. She loved him as she loved her own sons. James, John and David, while her four daughters looked upon Jesus as their elder brother. UB 129:1.5. When Jesus took leave of the Zebedees to begin his extensive travels, he carried with him to Jerusalem a letter from Salome to an influential relative of hers within the Jewish hierarchy, Annas, a former high priest. This letter introduced Jesus as one, the same as my own son. UB 129:2.7
Jesus exhibited great trust in the Zebedees concerning his personal affairs. When Gonod and Ganid, the wealthy travelers from India, convinced Jesus to accompany them, Jesus took Zebedee filly into his confidence regarding this Mediterranean journey, but he enjoined him to tell no man, not even his own flesh and blood, and Zebedee never did disclose his knowledge of Jesus’ whereabouts during this long period of almost two years UB 129:2.10. Zebedee kept what Jesus had confided in his heart his entire life. During this absence when Jesus’ family would despair on ever seeing him again, Zebedee’s assurances kept hope alive in Mary’s heart. UB 129:2.10. John Zebedee had been asked by Jesus to send money each month to his Nazareth family which he, Jesus, had earned. John, in consultation with his father, carried out this task admirably. Later, during the crucifixion: As Jesus looked down upon this scene, it was noontide, and he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son!” And speaking to John he said, “My son, behold your mother!” UB 187:4.7. And John carried out this responsibility for the rest of Mary’s life. Soon after Pentecost she returned to the home of Salome at Bethsaida. UB 193:6.1
When Jesus left the boatshop at Capernaum, Zebedee employed James. Jesus’ brother, to work in his stead.
In April A.D. 25, Jesus returned from his traveling to Capernaum and he made his home with the Zebedees. UB 134:2.5. With the beginning of his public life, the Zebedee sons, James and John, became apostles. The Zebedee house became the headquarters for the kingdom. This dwelling was situated by the lake shore, and had a lovely garden. Many evenings were spent in the garden with Jesus and his apostles, or Jesus alone communing with his Father. Many walks were taken along the shore of the lake in meditation or instruction by our Creator Son to his apostles. When Jesus would return from one of the public teaching tours with the apostles and numerous disciples, they were welcomed into the home at Bethsaida. Weeks of intensive training were held. The Zebedees even greatly enlarged their residence to accommodate the growing family of Jesus. Oftentimes the Zebedees would move out of their residence to live with David so the work of the kingdom could be carried out undisturbed. The first evangelists’ training camp was maintained by the seaside near the Bethsaida home with David Zebedee at the helm. This seaside camp, occupied by an ever-changing population of truth seekers, healing candidates, and curiosity devotees. numbered from five hundred to fifteen hundred. UB 148:0.1.
The second miracle performed by Jesus, “the healing at sundown”, occurred outside the Zebedee home in Bethsaida. Soon after the setting of the sun, as Jesus and the apostles still lingered about the supper table. Peter’s wife heard voices in the front yard and, on going to the door, saw a large company of sick folks assembling, and that the road from Capernaum was crowded by those who were on their way to seek healing at Jesus’ hands. On seeing this sight, she went at once and informed her husband, who told Jesus.
When the Master stepped out of the front entrance of Zebedee’s house, his eyes met an array of stricken and afflicted humanity. He gazed upon almost one thousand sick and ailing human beings; at least that was the number of persons gathered together before him. Not all present were afflicted; some had come assisting their loved ones in this effort to secure healing. UB 145:3.5-6.
… the words of the Master had scarcely been uttered when the assembly of celestial personalities serving under the command of Jesus’ Personalized Thought Adjuster was mightily astir. The vast retinue descended into the midst of this motley throng of afflicted mortals, and in a moment of time 683 men, women, and children were made whole, were perfectly healed of all their physical diseases and other material disorders. Such a scene was never witnessed on earth before that day, nor since. And for those of us who were present to behold this creative wave of healing, it was indeed a thrilling spectacle. UB 145:3.10.
“The healing of the paralytic” took place inside the Zebedee home, in the spacious front room. A man was carried down from Capernaum on a small couch to be healed by Jesus. When there was no way for him to enter because of the crowds, the paralytic refused to accept defeat; he directed his friends to procure ladders by which they ascended to the roof of the room in which Jesus was speaking, and after loosening the tiles, they boldly lowered the sick man on his couch by ropes until the afflicted rested on the floor immediately in front of the Master. UB 148:9.2
Even the Zebedee roof was taken apart for the work of the Master.
The women’s evangelistic corps was commissioned at the Bethsaida residence and after Pentecost, Salome Zebedee joined the corps.
Since the Zebedees were mortals, we can be sure that they were not perfect and had their foibles as humans are wont to do. Salome was chastised by Jesus when she approached him in the manner of “an oriental potentate” and asked that “… these my sons shall have honor with you, the one to sit on your right hand and the other to sit on your left hand in you kingdom.” UB 171:0.4. Yet she, who was present at the crucifixion, well remembered the foolish request she had made of Jesus at Pella regarding the honors she so unwisely sought for her apostle sons. UB 171:0.7. James and John were nicknamed by Jesus, the “sons of thunder.” We know they were strong-minded and had a tendency toward intolerance, wanting Jesus to call fire down upon the heads of ignorant and thoughtless unbelievers. Is this the reason why they were given the nickname? Or was the term “son” used in their nickname because father Zebedee displayed similar characteristics?
David had taken it upon his own initiative to operate a messenger service which was vital to the work of the kingdom for believers in all parts of the civilized world. On the morning of May 22, A.D. 29 , because of an arrest warrant by the authority of Herod Antipas, Jesus could no longer regard Bethsaida as a safe haven and had to escape by boat. Following the Master’s boat was another and smaller craft, containing six of David’s messengers, who had instructions to maintain contact with Jesus and his associates and to see that information of their whereabouts and safety was regularly transmitted to the home of Zebedee in Bethsaida… UB 154:7.2
As Jesus’ mortal life was drawing to a close, David Zebedee knew of the plan to arrest and kill Jesus. Of his own accord, he sent a messenger to Bethsaida requesting Salome to bring Mary and Jesus’ entire family from Bethsaida to Jerusalem. And Salome did as her son bid. She was among those present during the vigil of the crucifixion. She accompanied the women who ventured to properly anoint the body of Jesus the morning of the resurrection. And Salome was one of the women who witnessed the first appearance of the morontial Jesus.
The resurrected Jesus’ farewell to his Bethsaida home and headquarters was the fifteenth morontia manifestation. Here he appeared to more than five hundred believers who had assembled to listen to Peter preach. As Peter’s sermon ended, there by his side, in full view of all these people, the Master appeared in morontial form and, speaking to them in familiar accents, said “Peace be upon you, and my peace I leave with you.” When he had thus appeared and had spoken to them, he vanished from their sight. UB 192:4.3
A reflection of Zebedee’s and Salome’s parenting can be viewed through the behavior of their sons, who proved themselves honorable to the end. James lived his life to the full, and when the end came, he bore himself with such grace and fortitude that even his accuser and informer, who attended his trial and execution, was so touched that he rushed away from the scene of James’s death to join himself to the disciples of Jesus. UB 139:3.9. Their youngest son John: This “son of thunder” became the “apostle of love”; and at Ephesus, when the aged bishop was no longer able to stand in the pulpit and preach but had to be carried to church in a chair, and when at the close of the service he was asked to say a few words to the believers. for years his only utterance was, “My little children, love one another.” UB 139:4.6. And David the dependable with his vast organizational skills and trusted messengers bade farewell to Jesus saying: “Master, I have had great joy in my service with you. My brothers are your apostles, but I have delighted to do the lesser things as they should be done, and I shall miss you with all my heart when you are gone.” UB 182:2.10
And so, I feel indebtedness to these two remarkable people. They gave of themselves fully and freely to our Creator, Christ Michael. And someday I hope to consult the morontia registry to pay them a visit feeling confident I will be received graciously.