When the King Was Carpenter

by Maria Augusta von Trapp

Out of a life well-lived, the story of one family's adventures from the majestic beauty of Austria across the Atlantic to American freedom.

Immortalized on film in "The Sound of Music," Maria here allows the reader to really know who she was. The flight from danger to a new life in a new land helped anchor Maria's staunch faith in God.

This book presents years of research into the life of Christ. Weaving her own experiences with a rich understanding of the God who broke through time and space to save us, Maria von Trapp helps us see that our Savior never changes.

Genres: Religion

142 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1976

About the author

Baroness Maria Augusta von Trapp was the stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers. Her story served as the inspiration for a 1956 German film that in turn inspired the Broadway musical The Sound of Music.—Source

Reviews

[Julie Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered this poking around in the Kindle resources after seeing a book by Maria von Trapp was used by CatholicCulture.org for their Catholic living resources.

What a treasure this little book is. Unable to answer questions from her children about what Jesus ate for breakfast, von Trapp began asking priests and collecting books to find out about daily life for the Holy Family. She then wrote this account which, although simple, I find strangely riveting.

It is just brushed slightly with the fiction brush, being largely a historical "you are there" book to bring us into what life was like for a faithful Jewish family back then. Von Trapp doesn't dwell on Jesus' future as Messiah and these tend to read a bit more like the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. In fact, I was so engrossed reading about 6 year old Jesus that it struck me like a blow when she was talking about the family's annual trip to Jerusalem for Passover and ended by saying:

As a little boy He had greatly enjoyed spending part of the day roaming around with cousins and friends through the fabulous bazaars of Jerusalem, but as He grew older, He no longer felt drawn to these childish pastimes. He wanted to "dwell in the courts of the Lord," as had His ancestor David.

More and more, too, He saw that their Feast of the Passover had a twofold meaning. It was a memorial of the great things God had done for His people in the past, but it was also a symbol of things to come when, in a much greater Passover than the ones they were then celebrating, He would redeem His people from their sins."

There used to be many books of this sort written in the 1950s or so telling us about what life was like in those days. I wish some of them would either be reprinted or a new tradition would arise to write some today. In the meantime, this is a fine start. I'm looking forward to searching for the books in the bibliography listed in the back of the book.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting compilation and speculation of Jesus’ childhood. I remember elements of this research in another one of Maria Von Trapp’s books. I did find some of it confusing though, and some things didn’t seem to align with scripture as far as I understand. Nevertheless, it was interesting to learn about the day to day life and culture in this region at the time.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a sweet and charming little book about what Jesus' childhood would have been like in historical, geographical, and cultural context. Maria apparently started collecting information when one of her children, opposed to eating her oatmeal, asked, "What did the child Jesus eat for breakfast?" Maria began to ask various priests questions about Jesus' childhood, but she didn't get much other than "I don't know" from them. So she hit the books and dug up as much information as she could to create a picture of his childhood for her own children. The food he likely would of eaten, what he would of slept on, the clothes he wore, his daily routine as dictated by his Jewish culture, how his family prepared for and lived the Sabbath day, the journeys to Jerusalem for important religious feasts, his daily prayers, the expectations that his family and society had on him as a Jewish boy, etc. For me, the most touching thing was the absolute beauty in the simplicity of their lives. Truly; every moment, every action, every breath, was offered in praise to God. Their worship of God was the center of their lives in every possible way. The pure simplicity of their lives made this possible, as they were not distracted by unnecessary noise. This becomes all the more beautiful when you realize that Mary and Joseph are the Church's greatest saints. They quietly and humbly set to their ordinary, daily tasks and offered them all for the glory of God.

It is a quick and easy read filled with a lot of OT Scripture, and she provides a bibliography in the back.

[Scott Hayden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to classify this book. Maria Von Trapp (yes, the same Maria as Sound of Music) set upon this study one day when one of her daughters asked if Jesus would have to eat oatmeal. Since then, Maria gathered studies and put together an account of what Jesus' life might have been like as a boy. Drawing from various sources and Catholic tradition she walks through toddlerhood, boyhood, and young manhood weaving together probable typical Jewish lifestyle with Jesus' atypical identity and future mission. The Catholicism comes through mildly in many references to Mary's perfect composure through all happenings, and in the assigning of "cousin" to the characters Jude and James.

As a hope-for-read aloud, the book was disappointing. Chapters ranged from readable narrative to lengthy recitations of Jewish prayers; from explanations of Old Testament Messianic prophecy to devotionals. While much of this is useful for reference, it doesn't make for good read aloud. Maybe I'll read excerpts.

I like this from Chapter 13: "The Hidden Life".
"The hidden life of Jesus at Nazareth was full of hidden suffering, but it was also filled with that one great hidden joy: to do the will of the Father! For this Jesus came into the world, and this is what he had to preach, first, through thirty years of silent example."

[Jeff Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good.

Mix in some solid history of the customs of the Jewish people at the time of Jesus and apply them to the hidden years of Jesus and in this case you get an excellent meditation. I've read other things that have attempted this, but none that were better.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short novel about the life and times of Jesus Christ as a child. Mostly non-fiction, with a blush of historical fiction. Maria's writing is personable and conversational. This was an easy and fast read.

I just recently discovered that Maria von Trapp (from Sound of Music fame) was a prodigious writer. I found several of her books and this is the first one I've read. It is so cool to think about her as an actual person and author!

Maria began gathering historical information on the childhood of Christ after one of the children (Martina) asked what Jesus ate for breakfast. She didn't know. But she began extensive research, including trips to the Holy Land and conversations with biblical scholars. The end result was this book, which covers Jesus's childhood - breakfast and all.

Much like the use of nativity scenes (first created by St. Francis after a trip to the Holy Land), reading this book brought me closer to the earthy and relatable Holy Family. I learned a lot about Jewish life and culture at the time of Jesus's childhood.

I initially struggled with whether this was non-fiction or historical fiction. There were so many specific facts (like Mary's favorite songs); how could anyone know that? Eventually I just went with it and accepted that it might not be 100% accurate, but it still brought me closer to understanding the Holy Family.

A few things that jumped out at me as possibly being inaccurate. I'm not a biblical scholar, so
I could be wrong, but this contradicts what I grew up believing.
- There are a few passages that seem to imply Mary/Joseph/Jesus didn't know Jesus would be the Messiah. Later it becomes clear that they do know. But there were a few grey areas that felt weird.
- This says Mary was born from a high family and served as a temple virgin before marrying Joseph. I know she was from the line of David, but this seemed to imply she came from a wealthy family (and was allowed to be educated beyond most women of the age and thereby serve as a temple virgin). I always thought her family was poor and she left her family's home at a young age to marry Joseph.
- This states that Joseph was a young man in his marriage to Mary. I always understood that he was a least ten years older as was the custom of the time.

[Wallis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prompted by her young daughter about what Jesus' everyday life was like before he began his ministry, von Trapp researched for many years to find the answer. The result is this highly readable, and inspiring book about life in Biblical Nazareth and Israel. What each day would be like for the Holy Family, what they did, what they ate, what their house looked like, and on and on. Equal parts fascinating, informative, and thoughtful.

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkable story of Jesus’ childhood. It was told through historical sources which gave it authenticity rather than pure imaginary fiction.