The topic of this book is the dating and attribution of the canonical Gospels, whose historicity, which implies the historical truth of the events narrated, was openly questioned in the 19th century.
In particular, it was questioned whether they were written by eyewitnesses to the events narrated and whether they dated to the first decades after the crucifixion of Jesus, despite the many historical documents discovered, including very ancient papyrus fragments that may date back to shortly after the Council of Jerusalem in the year 49.
Maria Valtorta’s writings can help us in this exegetical effort. And beyond the wealth of historical information, reading her pages truly “raises the mind to God, nourishes the soul, and fosters the interior life.”
Perhaps one of the greatest contributions of this research is the scholarly study of The Gospel as Revealed to Me (EMV), a work by Maria Valtorta that astonishes for the quantity of historical and verifiable data it contains, encompassing so many dimensions that it has given rise, over the last decade, to a surprising series of multidisciplinary investigations.
The results obtained concern the historical figure of Jesus, the history of the Gospels, and the origins of Christianity. It is striking that the same information about the Gospels and evangelists found in these writings is also found in the texts of the Church Fathers.
Contrary to any rationalist prejudice that considers private revelations incapable of providing reliable knowledge for history or exegesis, Valtorta’s writings are not only inexplicable in themselves, but can also illuminate current exegesis, allowing it to progress with hope and fruitfulness toward the future. The authors themselves maintain that the search for truth through reason is one of the paths that lead to faith. And this is precisely the path that the book proposes to the reader.
