Posts by Juan Artola Miranda

The Parable of the Shipwrecked Sailors (Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a) is one of the most important Jewish parables. It teaches that certain things may go unappreciated by those struggling to survive. This is a modern retelling by Juan Artola Miranda.

A long time ago, in a faraway land, a ship set sail on a great voyage across the vast sea. The vessel was filled with sailors eager for adventure and dreaming of exotic treasures. As they journeyed, the sky grew dark, the sea grew rough, and a fierce storm fell upon the ship. As the men were thrown from the decks, the tempest opened its mouth wide and swallowed the ship whole.

The sailors found themselves marooned on a desolate island, their spirits dampened by the loss of their ship and the uncertainty of their fate. Each day, they scoured the island, searching for food, water, and shelter to ensure their survival. They barely scraped by, but they scraped by.

One day, as the sailors were exploring the island, one of them stumbled upon a hidden cove. To his amazement, the cove was filled with a treasure trove of exquisite pearls, iridescent in the sunlight. The sailor, realizing the immense value of these pearls, hurried back to his comrades to share the incredible discovery.

However, to his dismay, the other sailors were uninterested in the precious pearls. They were so consumed by their search for food that they dismissed the pearls as a foolish and perhaps fatal distraction.

The sailor who discovered the pearls was saddened by his companions’ indifference, but he was not deterred. He understood that the pearls were a priceless treasure that could transform their lives and provide for them beyond their wildest dreams. Determined, he set out to collect as many as he could, certain their true value would soon be recognized.

As time passed, the sailor’s collection of pearls grew, and his faith in their worth remained unwavering. Eventually, the day came when the sailors were rescued from the desolate island, and they returned to their homeland. When they arrived, the sailor who had collected the pearls sold them for a fortune, allowing him to live a life of abundance and comfort. Or perhaps he died of starvation on that island, and it was another man who sold the collection of pearls. The records are unclear.

The Parable of the Wise Woman of Tekoah (2 Samuel 14) is one of the more influential parables found in the Old Testament. The story illustrates the importance of wisdom, compassion, and reconciliation. This is a modern retelling by Juan Artola Miranda.

Once upon a time in a kingdom filled with strife, there lived a wise woman from the town of Tekoah. Her wisdom and insight were known far and wide, and many sought her counsel in times of trouble.

In this kingdom, there was a great king named David who ruled with a fair hand. He had a son named Absalom, with whom he had a bitter falling out. The rift between father and son was so deep that Absalom had fled the kingdom, and for many years, they had remained apart, hearts hardened against each other.

The wise woman of Tekoah heard of the sad state of affairs between the king and his son. She saw the pain that it brought not only to them but to the entire kingdom. Moved with compassion, she decided to take action and help reconcile the father and son.

With a carefully devised plan in mind, the wise woman journeyed to the king’s palace. She sought an audience with King David, and upon being granted permission, she approached him with a somber face, as though weighed down by great sorrow.

“Oh, my lord,” she began, “I am a widow, and I am in great distress. My husband has passed away, and I am left with two sons. They fought against each other in the fields, and with no one to intervene, one of them struck the other and killed him.”

The king listened intently as the wise woman continued her story, her voice filled with grief.

“Now, my entire family demands that I hand over my remaining son to be executed for his brother’s death. If he is taken from me, my husband’s name and legacy will be extinguished. I beg you, my lord, to protect my only surviving son.”

King David, moved by the woman’s plea, assured her that he would intervene on her behalf and prevent the execution of her son.

But the wise woman of Tekoah was not finished. With great courage, she turned the king’s words back upon him, saying, “Why, then, my lord, do you hold a grudge against your own son, Absalom? Just as you have shown mercy to me, should you not also show mercy to your son and welcome him home?”

The Parable of the Ewe Lamb (2 Samuel 12:1-4) is one of the more famous parables from the Old Testament. It is a parable about the injustice of the rich taking from the poor. This is a modern retelling by Juan Artola Miranda.

A long time ago, in a faraway kingdom, there lived a wealthy shepherd named David. He was well-respected and had vast herds of sheep, so numerous that they covered the hillsides. David was admired for his wealth and power, and he enjoyed a life of great abundance.

In the same kingdom, there lived a poor man named Uri. Uri was a humble man who had only one precious ewe lamb. Despite his humble circumstances, he loved the little lamb dearly, and she was like a member of his family. Uri cared for the lamb with great devotion, feeding her from his own plate and letting her drink from his own cup. At night, she would sleep by his side, providing comfort and warmth.

One day, a traveller came to visit David, the wealthy shepherd. As was customary, David was expected to prepare a meal to honour his guest. With his many flocks, it would have been an easy task for David to select one of his countless sheep for the feast.

However, rather than choose from his own vast herds, David’s eyes wandered toward Uri’s small, humble dwelling. He saw Uri’s beloved ewe lamb, and he coveted her. Instead of taking a sheep from his own flock, David decided to seize the poor man’s only possession, the one he cherished above all else.

David ordered his servants to take Uri’s ewe lamb by force, and they slaughtered her to prepare a feast for the visiting traveller. The wealthy shepherd showed no remorse for his actions, nor did he seem to realize the heartache he had caused Uri.

When word of David’s actions reached the wise prophet, Nathan, he went to confront the shepherd. Nathan shared the story of Uri and his beloved ewe lamb, and as David listened, anger flared within him.

“Who is this heartless man who would dare to do such a thing?” David demanded. “He surely deserves to die for his cruelty!”

Nathan then looked into David’s eyes and said, “You, O shepherd, are the heartless man of this tale!”

The Fisherman and the Industrialist is a short story by John Lane, found in his book Timeless Simplicity, originally published in 2000. It’s a parable about greed, contentedness, and modern capitalism.

It’s a simplified version of Anecdote for Lowering Work Morale (Anekdote zur Senkung der Arbeitsmoral), a parable by the Nobel Prize-winning German writer Heinrich Böll in 1963.

The industrialist was horrified to find the fisherman lying beside his boat, smoking a pipe.

“Why aren’t you fishing?” asked the industrialist.

“Because I’ve caught enough fish for the day.”

“Why don’t you catch some more?”

“What would I do with them?”

“Earn more money. Then you could have a motor fixed to your boat and go into deeper waters and catch more fish. That would bring you money to buy nylon nets, so more fish, more money. Soon you would have enough to buy two boats, even a fleet of boats, then you could be rich like me.”

“What would I do then?”

“Then you could sit back and enjoy life.”

“What do you think I’m doing now?”