In recent years, we have explored in depth interpretations of Scripture that go far beyond the traditional canon of Catholic theology. Among the many controversial authors, one fascinating figure is certainly Maria Valtorta, a 20th-century Italian mystic best known for her monumental work initially titled “The Poem of the Man-God” and later renamed “The Gospel as Revealed to Me.”
Maria Valtorta (1897-1961), a Franciscan tertiary, spent most of her life immobilized due to a trauma suffered in her youth. It was during these difficult years that she claimed to have received profound revelations about the life of Christ and surprising interpretations of the Old Testament directly from Jesus.
Man and the ape: a critique of evolution
Among the most surprising passages that Jesus is said to have dictated to Maria Valtorta in the 1940s is a direct and unexpected criticism of the evolutionary theory of man’s origin from apes. It is essential to contextualize these revelations historically: we are in 1943 and still in 1946, ten years before Watson and Crick revealed the structure of DNA to the world in 1953.
Jesus himself, through the words reported by the mystic, asks a clear and provocative question:
“If man is descended from apes […] why, in all the years that you have been advocating this theory, have you never succeeded, even with the sophisticated tools and methods available today, in turning an ape into a man?”
The criticism continues with incisive and disarming logic, questioning the effectiveness of artificial selection and genetic experiments, which have never led to the definitive transformation of an animal species into a human one.
Genesis and the hybridization of the Elohim
Even more fascinating is the suggestion to read chapter 6 of Genesis carefully, interpreted in the light of a direct interaction between two distinct genetic lines:
“When men began to multiply on the earth […] the sons of God (Elohim) saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took wives for themselves from among them.”
Maria Valtorta, lacking scientific expertise, does not immediately grasp the profound meaning of these words. Jesus then patiently explains that the Bible clearly describes a phenomenon of genetic hybridization between two lineages: the “sons of Elohim,” that is, the direct descendants of Seth (third son of Adam and representative of the pure genetic line), and the daughters of men, carriers of a different genetic heritage and probably closer to that of animals or in any case “hybrid.”
According to these revelations, the famous “giants,” the powerful men remembered in all ancient mythologies, are nothing more than the concrete result of this genetic encounter. A powerful, strong lineage, but somehow corrupted compared to the original plan of the Elohim.
A revelation consistent with modern genetics?
Perhaps the most shocking part of these revelations is their surprising consistency with modern scientific and genetic insights, which were decades ahead of their time. Maria Valtorta herself, who knew nothing about molecular biology or evolutionary theory, found herself confronted with extremely advanced concepts:
- Genetic hybrids between different species
- Direct manipulation of genetic heritage (now well known as genetic engineering)
- Criticism of the limitations of classical evolutionary theories
Jesus himself emphasizes, through the words dictated to the mystic, how “scientists mistakenly deduce that man derives from monkeys” based on fossil remains that actually testify to the presence of “hybrid” beings, the result of manipulations that Genesis itself clearly suggests.
Why is this information inconvenient?
It is not surprising that these pages were included in the Church’s index of prohibited books until its abolition in 1966. Even the future Pope Benedict XVI, then Cardinal Ratzinger, reiterated in 1985 the spiritual danger of these revelations, believing that they could undermine the faith of the simplest believers.
But today, with greater openness to independent research, these pages take on a fundamental value for those seeking truth beyond dogma. Jesus, through Valtorta, would have said clearly:
“It is no longer time to satisfy the crowds with fairy tales. Beneath the ancient stories there are truths linked to the mysteries of the universe.”
The parallel with the visions of Don Guido Bortoluzzi
A particularly significant parallel emerges when comparing Maria Valtorta’s revelations with those of another Italian priest and mystic, Don Guido Bortoluzzi. Bortoluzzi, who lived in the same historical period, also claimed to receive directly from God an alternative and literal reading of Genesis.
According to Bortoluzzi, as with Valtorta, the origin of man is to be attributed to direct genetic interventions by higher entities, which he explicitly identified with God, who produced Homo sapiens by manipulating pre-existing species. Both mystics therefore highlight the same idea with surprising consistency: man is not the result of simple natural evolution, but the direct result of sophisticated genetic interventions implicitly described in the biblical Genesis.
The historical importance of Maria Valtorta’s revelations
Regardless of one’s personal position on these “divine channelings,” it is indisputable that Maria Valtorta provided, long before official discoveries, an interpretative key consistent with a literal and scientifically plausible reading of the Bible. Her revelations fit perfectly into the framework of those interpretations of Scripture that suggest external interventions in the creation and genetic development of humanity.
Today, while theologians, biologists, and historians continue to debate her writings, the mystery and fascination of Maria Valtorta’s pages remain intact. They are a point of reference for those seeking alternative answers in a field where faith, history, and science meet and clash relentlessly.
