The Bishop’s Candlesticks (MP3 Audio) – Today’s resource is courtesy of our sister site, HomeschoolRadioShows.com. In this great episode from Hugo’s classic novel, Les Miserables, Jean ValJean has spent 19 years in the galley for stealing a loaf of bread for his sister’s children. Five years for burglary and 14 years for attempting to escape. With a yellow passport that marked his criminal past, Jean has roamed from town to town looking for work, only to have doors shut in his face. We hear the rumors as the gossip grows in Digne that labels Jean a thief, then a madman and finally blossoms into a murderer.

However, the Bishop of Digne has no lock on his door. Though he is warned by his friends that he should secure his door against Jean, the bishop says, “This is not my house, but the house of the Lord…” When Jean comes, the Bishop greets him and welcomes him into his home. Jean is taken aback. He distrusts everyone because of their cruel treatment of him. The Bishop offers Jean a seat at his table (upon which sits two valuable silver candlesticks), and a good night’s rest in his own room. But that night as he lays upon his bed, Jean struggles with thoughts of his own poverty, and determines to steal the candlesticks for himself. What happens next is an example of pure grace. A wonderful dramatization of one of the pivotal parts Les Miserables that your family will long remember.

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