Gospel

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As He
passed by,
He saw Levi
the son
of Alphaeus
sitting at
the tax
office.
And
He said
to him,
'Follow
Me.'
[Mark 2:14]
********************
Benjamin pulls
another grape off
the cluster in the
finely made bowl,
and tosses it into
his plump, arrogant
mouth. He looks
up at his older brother:
laughing, out loud.)
"I HEARD a funny
STORY TODAY,
Leh'!"

(Pause.)
(Look out the window.)
"And.....
what was THAT?"

(Benjamin smiles
broadly up at his
brother. He grabs
another cluster of
grapes. He is very
hungry; the servants
wouldn't have dinner
ready, for another
hour or so. He continues
munching and nodding,
very lazily.)
"THAT YOU LEFT....
YOUR JOB,
....TODAY!
YOU!"
(Laugh!)
"Can you ...BELIEVE IT?"

(Silence.)
"Where.....did you
HEAR..?"

(Benjamin continues
smiling, and chewing.)
"On the STREET!
ONE of the CLOTH
MERCHANTS: LEONIL!
HE CALLED OUT TO
ME, FROM HIS BOOTH!"

(Silence.)

"I COULDN'T BELIEVE
IT! I TOLD LEONIL...
HE HAD HAD TOO
MUCH SUN, TODAY!
THAT, HE WAS ..meshugu'nah!"

(Look out the window:
a mule is outside pawing
at the ground. It shakes
its head, and neighs. One
of the servants comes
over, and unties its rein:
leading it to water.)

"Is it...TRUE,
LEH'?"

(Pause.)
(Continue staring
out the window.)
"Yes;
yes,
Ben'ni."

(Benjamin puts the
grapes down. He
stops chewing.)
"What are you.....
CRAZY?
INSANE?"

(Silence.)

"HAVE YOU
LOST YOUR MIND?"

"Perhaps."

"But.....WHY?"

(Levi shrugs,
helplessly.)
"I don't KNOW."

"WHAT?"

(Shrug.)
(Turn away from the
window.)
"I don't KNOW,
Ben'ni......
I was SITTING there:
COUNTING my MONEY,
from the MORNING..."

(Benjamin nods:
his mouth is open.
A grape falls out.)
"YES?
And....what HAPPENED:
did you suddenly become..
ILL....or, WHAT?"

(Levi sighs.)
"No.....
NO...."

"WELL........LEONIL
TOLD ME....
that...
you just UP,
and...LEFT!
And....
LEFT..!
ALL your MONEY!
RIGHT THERE!"
(Benjamin gestures
toward the floor.)
"JUST LAYING THERE!
RIGHT ON THE GROUND!"

(Levi nods calmly,
as if he were listening
to his younger brother
gossip about one
of their ridiculous
neighbors.
He says nothing.)

"ALL OVER THE GROUND!
If the SOLDIERS...
hadn't COME ALONG...
IT PROBABLY would
have been....STOLEN!"

(Levi shrugs.
He begins talking,
as if to himself.)
"I was just SITTING..
there......marking
my RECORDS...as I
USUALLY DO...."

(Benjamin sticks his
sandaled feet out
in front of him;
he leans against
one of the plump pillows
behind the table....and,
folds his arms, as if
he were waiting for his
older brother to finish
telling a joke.)
"Yes.......go ON...?"

(Levi shakes his head.)
(He looks at his younger
handsome brother,
and shrugs: a little
embarrassed.)
"That was ALL......"

(Benjamin is beginning
to sweat, a little. If
that LEONIL was RIGHT......
then, HE
might have to start...
WORKING....
for a living...!
NO!
It can't be TRUE!
Benjamin holds in his breath,
and speaks through his
beautiful white teeth.)
"Why....
WHY did you just
STOP COUNTING
your MONEY?
And.....MARKING your
RECORDS?
DID SOMEONE STRIKE
YOU?"

(Levi opens his
eyes, wide.....as if
just awaking out of
a sleep. He glances
at his brother, and
begins nodding,
furiously.)
"Yes.....!
YES!"

"With WHAT:
a ROCK?"

"No.....Ben'ni!
His VOICE!"

(Benjamin continues
to sweat. His heart
has begun to beat
faster, and his handsome
young petulant face is
now very shiny with
dampness.)
"His VOICE......?"

(Levi is now nodding
excitedly. He has a
huge smile on his pale,
well-fed countenance.)
"Yes!
YES!"

(Silence.)

(Levi grabs his younger
brother by the shoulders,
and exclaims, happily.)
"Oh......!
And.....He's COMING
to DINNER TONIGHT!
I can't WAIT....to
INTRODUCE YOU!"
**********************
Now
it happened,
as He was dining
in Levi's house,
that many tax
collectors
and
sinners also sat
together
with Jesus....
for there were
many,
and they
followed
Him.
[Mark 2:15]

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