One day, the disciples attended a car boot sale near Pontypool. They found a tent where foods and drinks were
being sold, and one man had a whole table full of meringues that he was selling. The sight of the colourful, sweet meringues
lured them over to the man’s table. After
each disciple purchased several meringues, the man’s table was nearly empty. The disciples realised that the meringues
would not last on a warm, sunny day, and they were hungry, so they ate them all
at once. The meringues were wonderfully
sweet, airy, and light, and the disciples licked their fingers from the sugar
as they finished the treats.
When he arrived at the tent, their master saw them licking their
fingers and noticed the nearly empty table of meringues. ‘Tell me,’ said the Master, ‘Why are you
licking yourselves?’ ‘We have just eaten
some meringues, and the sugar has stuck to our fingers,’ one of them
replied. ‘Did the meringues fill you up,
since it is lunchtime?’ ‘No,’ they
replied. ‘Are the meringues healthy
food?’ ‘No, they are made from egg white
and sugar mostly,’ one of them answered. ‘Do you still have money to buy lunch?’
asked the master. ‘It seems we have
spent all our money on the meringues,’ replied a disciple. ‘Did you like the meringues?’ ‘Oh, yes!’ they all said at once, ‘they are
delightful!’
Then the master called them to sit with him under a tree. ‘Beware of the meringues of today's culture. It is a colourful and sweet
sounding message, but it has no substance.
It is not filling, for it does not satisfy the needs of your souls. Nor is it good for you, even though you may
find it delightful. Rather, it is a
message that encourages you to indulge yourselves with the desires of your
flesh. Rather buy from me the bread of life
and be well fed on healthy food for your souls. But the person who proclaims to you nothing
more than the message of your own culture is like the man who sells meringues.’
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