Children's Legends (Grimm)
Short summary
Medieval Germany, fairy-tale times. A mother sent her youngest daughter into the forest hoping she would get lost. The girl found St. Joseph's hut, shared her food generously with him, and received a bag of gold. Her two sisters visited him next - the middle sister shared partly and got less gold, while the eldest refused to share and got a second nose stuck to her face as punishment.
Twelve poor brothers sought bread three hundred years before Christ's birth. Each wandered into a forest where an angel led them to a golden cavern with twelve cradles. They slept for three hundred years and awoke as the twelve apostles. A poor peasant boy entered a church believing it was heaven and stayed there, sharing his food daily with a wooden statue of Mary and Jesus. The statue grew strong from his offerings.
Next Sunday thou shalt go with me to the wedding...he fell down and died, and was at the eternal wedding.
A hermit who judged a sinner carried a dry branch as penance until three green twigs sprouted. He converted three robbers, and upon his death, the twigs bloomed. An old woman lost all her family and blamed God. In church, she saw a vision of her dead sons - one would have been hanged, another broken on the wheel had they lived. She thanked God and died peacefully three days later.
Detailed summary
St. Joseph in the Forest
A mother with three daughters favored her eldest, wicked child while despising her youngest, pious daughter. She repeatedly sent the good girl into the forest, hoping she would become lost forever.
The guardian-angel which every good child has, did not forsake her, but always brought her into the right path again.
One day, however, the youngest daughter became truly lost and found a small hut where an elderly man with a snow-white beard welcomed her kindly. This was St. Joseph.
He offered her roots for soup, and she shared her bread and pancake with him. When he offered his bed, she insisted he keep it while she slept on straw. The next morning, St. Joseph had vanished, leaving behind a heavy bag of money for the generous child.
The second daughter followed the same path and received a smaller bag of money after showing moderate kindness. The eldest daughter, however, was selfish and greedy, eating nearly all the soup and refusing to share properly with St. Joseph.
The Twelve Apostles
Three hundred years before Christ's birth, a poor mother with twelve sons prayed that they might live to see the promised Redeemer. When poverty forced her to send them into the world, the eldest son Peter became lost in a great forest.
A beautiful angel child led Peter to a golden cavern with twelve cradles, where he and his brothers slept for three hundred years until Christ's birth, awakening as the twelve apostles.
The Rose
A poor girl gathering wood met a strong child who helped her and gave her a rose, promising to return when it bloomed. When the rose reached full bloom, the girl died peacefully in her bed.
Poverty and Humility Lead to Heaven
A king's son, troubled and seeking heaven, met a poor gray-haired man who advised him on the path to salvation.
By poverty and humility. Put on my ragged clothes, wander about the world for seven years, and get to know what misery is...in this way thou wilt reach heaven.
The prince exchanged his fine clothes for beggar's rags and wandered seven years in poverty. Returning home unrecognized, he lived under the palace stairs until his death, when roses and lilies grew on his grave, revealing his identity and salvation.
Gods Food
Two sisters lived in contrasting circumstances - one rich but childless, the other a poor widow with five children. When the poor sister begged for bread, the rich sister refused harshly.
When he made the first cut into the loaf, out flowed red blood...For earthly food have we no longer any desire. God has already satisfied the hunger of three of us.
The rich sister's husband found the widow praying with her dead children, and she and her remaining two children died, having found spiritual nourishment instead of earthly food.
The Three Green Twigs
A pious hermit carried water up a mountain daily to serve God and refresh wild creatures. When he saw a sinner being led to execution, he carelessly remarked that the man was getting his deserved punishment.
His guardian angel abandoned him for this harsh judgment. A speaking bird revealed his sin, and an angel appeared with a dry branch, commanding him to carry it until three green twigs sprouted from it.
Thou hast done injustice, in that thou hast condemned a poor sinner...He alone sits in judgement. However, if thou wilt do penance and repent thy sins, he will forgive thee.
The hermit wandered as a beggar, eventually finding shelter with an old woman and three robber sons. His story of divine punishment for judging others moved the robbers to repentance.
The robbers were so powerfully touched in their hearts by this story, that they were shocked with their life...and began with hearty repentance to do penance for it.
The next morning, they found the hermit dead, and three green twigs had grown from the dry branch beneath his head, showing God's forgiveness.
Our Ladys Little Glass
When a wagoner's cart stuck fast, Our Lady appeared as a thirsty traveler requesting wine. Using a field bindweed flower as a cup, she drank and freed his cart, giving the flower its name.
The Aged Mother
An old woman who had lost her husband, children, and all relatives sat alone in grief, blaming God for her losses. At church, she encountered her dead relatives who showed her a vision of her sons' fates.
Behold, so would it have been with them if they had lived...the good God had not taken them to himself when they were innocent children.
Understanding God's mercy in taking her children before they could sin, she thanked Him and died peacefully three days later.
The Heavenly Wedding
A poor peasant boy, hearing that one must go straight onward to reach heaven, walked until he found a magnificent church which he believed was heaven itself. The priest allowed him to stay and work there.
Daily, the boy shared his dinner with a wooden image of the Virgin Mary and Christ child, speaking to it lovingly.
Dear God, how thin you are! The people must certainly let you starve; but every day I will give you half my dinner.
The image began to grow larger and stronger from his offerings. When the boy fell ill, the image promised to take him to a wedding. After receiving communion, the boy died and joined the eternal wedding.
The Hazel-Branch
While the Christ-child slept, his mother went to gather strawberries in the wood. When an adder threatened her, she hid behind a hazel-bush until it departed. In gratitude, she declared that hazel branches would forever protect people from serpents and crawling creatures.