PAUL BEARER

PAUL BEARER

Modern Bible Scholars tell us that Paul (St. Paul) actually only wrote seven authentic Epistles (letters). The Roman Church attributes thirteen to him. So, which is it then? Critical Bible Scholarship using Truth seeking investigations inform us that six of these Epistles are simply counterfeit. Deliberately anti-Gnostic, and purposefully written by the Roman Church scribes to refute Paul's mystical and non-historical Gnostic Gospels. These were the writings of early Christians 200 years or more before the formation and rise of Orthodox Roman Christianity.

In the original seven Epistles, he writes allegorically and mystically about spiritual mysteries “hidden from the foundation of the world” that affect the Soul of man and it's sojourn here in the Physical world of matter ... Earth, in form/body. Paul speaks of the “indwelling Christ” which is the Divine Spark of God - the Christ Soul - within EVERY human being. Like a pearl within an oyster. Never does Paul refer to an outside Christ, or a historical-Literal Christ in these seven authentic Gospels. This, was for very good reason.

Paul was speaking of the Gnostic Cosmic Christ, relating to the universe or cosmos, especially as distinct from the Earth. “Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the Kingdom, but to them it is not given” ... because these teachings were hidden and veiled among myth and parables ... allegories and metaphors. They were held for worthy initiates into the Inner Mysteries. The “mystery” of the indwelling Christ (Christos), was intended to awaken all of humanity to the incarnated God WITHIN them ... not without them.

And what exactly was this mystery? Before the rise of Roman Christianity, it had been taught for more than two centuries: 

“the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now made MANIFEST (phanerou/φανερόω in Greek) to his saints: to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the gentiles; which is ... CHRIST IN YOU - the hope of glory.” 

~Colossians 1:26-27 

Now let's look more specifically at the word "Phanerou" from the Greek (φανερόω):

"to make MANIFEST or visible or known what has been hidden or unknown, to manifest, whether by words, or deeds, or in any other way"

Note now that the Greek word “phanerou” means to make appear and manifest something from within itself not apparent to the senses. Something not apparent to others who may be simply looking at you. This is the root word we get for the English word "Phantasm." Also, "Phaneros" from the Greek meaning “shining forth ... becoming luminous.”

On the Road to Damascus, Paul had such a spiritual awakening. He changed drastically after that experience of awakening. He came to the realization that the coming of Christ occurs IN men, not TO men:

“Awake though that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” 

~Ephesians 5:14

In other words, awaken from the coma of physical Life, and become one with the Spirit of God dwelling within all of creation. Study the early Gnostics, and Kabbalah, and you will find the Bible to be a guide veiled by allegory for the spiritual journey of what takes place within mankind. Paul was a Gnostic, and the church did it's best to rid the world of Gnostics ... but then came the discovery of the Nag Hammadi Library, and many other ancient texts that had not been destroyed by the church even though it tried its best, and the new findings in the last 200 years have set the Spiritual World on its ear. Research everything you've been told. You owe it to yourself to find the Truth. Knock, and the door shall be opened.

Just a thought ...

Justin Taylor, ORDM. 

WHEN YOU MAKE THE TWO INTO ONE

WHEN YOU MAKE THE TWO INTO ONE

The great Neville Goddard once said "our thoughts and emotions do not recede into the past, but rather they advance into the future to confront us there as our world. Our thoughts, or lack of them amongst everyone else, cause our worlds." Discovering that this process is underway awakens us to the prospect of the Divine, and when the process works, we have found God to be our own wonderful human imaginations. Our imaginations, because God is imagination, and he has become us. We, are made in the "image of God." 

The world naturally mirrors our own thoughts and emotions whether they be good, un-good, or indifferent. We can control the thoughts and emotions to be reflected. Neville used various mental devices to get the Mind to imagine a scene so real and complete and full of emotion that it would become manifest in the future. If we can get this down, then collectively, the world will reflect it.

From the perspective of the ancient Essenes, every human on the earth is an initiate in the Mystery School that we call Life. Whether they are conscious of it or not, every human will experience in the presence of others, mirrors of themselves in that moment. If we have the Wisdom to recognize those mirrors, we may accelerate the evolution of emotion and understanding. We come to realize that it is emotion that proves the power and, when coupled with logic, true magic and miracles will happen. 

The Lost Gospel of Thomas saying 106 tells us: 

"When you make the two one, you will become the sons of man, and when you say, 'Mountain, move away,' it will move away." And verse 48 tells us: "If two make peace with each other in this one house, they shall say to the mountain, 'Be moved,' and it shall be moved."

As Author and Geologist Gregg Braden has presented, the two are the thoughts and the emotions of our imagination. When they become one in our heart it is as if our prayer has already been answered. Braden also talks about John 16: 34 as translated from the ancient Aramaic which escaped the "Christian" editing for the Bible. In the original it states, "All things that you ask straightly, directly from inside my name (nature, imagination), you will be given. So far you have not done this (we've been asking incorrectly). Ask without hidden motive and be surrounded by your answer. Be enveloped in what you desire, that your gladness may be full."

Neville said we must make our future dream our present fact by assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled - to come FROM the place where it is already happened. We must feel the feeling as if it has already manifested ... already taken place. This is the language of the universe ... the Field of consciousness that understands in feeling and in magnetic resonance more so than with spoken words. Make your thoughts and emotional feelings one in your heart. See and feel it as if it were already done. "Ask and you shall receive." But not just spoken repetitive prayer, but FEEL it ... feel the feeling of that which you desire. The feeling IS the prayer. 

Feeling-based prayer is a form of prayer that transcends any single religion or doctrine, and goes directly to the natural ability within each of us to participate in the events of Life, healing, and peace directly, responsibly and effectively. To implement this mode of prayer, we are invited to simply focus the feeling in our hearts as if our prayers are already answered. 

Further ancient Essene studies by Mr. Braden have shown that he lost mode of prayer is a form of prayer that has no words, no outward expression, and is based simply in feeling. Specifically, this mode of prayer invites us to feel the appreciation and gratitude in our heart, as if our prayers have already been answered, even if the events in the world appear to show us otherwise. Science and Physics agree that our world and our bodies mirror what we think and feel. We must be very clear that our prayers originate from our hearts, rather than in our heads. The logic of our brain works in polarity left brain/right brain, light/dark, good/bad, right/wrong, etc. Praying for something creates a strong feeling of what should or should not be. The physics of our world require that when something is created with a charge in one polarity, the opposite must be created as well, to balance that charge. 

Our hearts, on the other hand, have no polarity. In the indigenous traditions, there is even a word that describes the non-polar objectiveness of the heart, the heart that sees what is, rather than judges what should be. The word is Shante Ishta (the single eye of the heart). When we choose peace or healing from our heart, there is no polarity created to balance our choice, as there is no left and right heart. From our heart, the FEELING ... IS the prayer. Studies have shown that this quality of gratitude and appreciation for the peace that already exists, creates a field effect in the presence of peace, all that can happen is peace. 

Studies into the effects of this type of prayer offer new credibility to ancient propositions suggesting that we may actually "do something" about the negative events in the world, both present and future. These studies add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that focused and feeling prayers and heart-felt emotions, especially those offered on a large scale, have a predictable and measurable effect on the quality of Life during the time of the prayer. This has been measured using numerous experiments, even during the 911 tragedy. 

Mother Theresa was once asked to attend an "Anti-War Rally." She declined attending, adding that when there was a Peace Rally, she would attend. She understood that by rallying against war, it would only manifest MORE war. An even deeper view would suggest that by even mentioning that the world needed peace, would be an admission that there was in fact NO peace in the world. A tricky conundrum. Choosing our words, our feelings, and our emotions precisely and carefully we can co-create new and better realities for ourselves and for others. By matching the feeling (prayer) of our inner world with like conditions in our outer world, we are able to manifest our desires. 

Once we allow the qualities of peace in our Mind, and fuel our prayer through feelings of peace in our body, we state that the outcome has already happened. Set your intent, have a pure motive, and FEEL it as if it has already taken place. This is the power of conscious manifestation. 

Just a thought ... 

Justin Taylor, ORDM.

REAL STORY OF ESOTERIC CHRISTIANITY

REAL STORY OF ESOTERIC CHRISTIANITY

After the "death" of Jesus, there arose many different splinter groups that claimed to follow his teachings. There was the continuation of Gnosticism, the apocryphal verses, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Nag Hammadi Library, and many other groups and texts, all of which PREDATE the highly structured, organized, and dogmatic Church of today, and many of which are rooted in esoteric and hidden Inner Mystery teachings regarding Christianity.

Many of these early esoteric Christian groups would now be considered heretical. Keep in mind most were considered heretical even back then. They drew influence from non-Christian philosophies like Neoplatonism, Hermeticism, and other ancient schools of thought that had existed long before "Christianity" was created. In fact, the influence of these philosophies such as Neoplatonism on Christianity is undeniable. 

Much as Christianity would hate to admit it, the teachings of the man from Galilee were not specifically new; he simply taught old lessons in a revolutionary new way. Whereas the Wisdom of the ancients was usually reserved for a select and privileged few, this Jesus - taught anyone who would listen. Though there were indeed a select few who were taught the deeper meaning behind Jesus' parables, allegories, and teachings.

The biggest influence that Neoplatonism (Plato) and Hermeticism (named for Hermes) had on Christianity was the idea of spiritual rebirth into a higher consciousness. This is the central message of most "religions," but it is much easier said than done to actually raise oneself from the slumber of ignorance to the awakened state of knowing (Gnosis). This requires dedication, time, and patience, attributes that the masses as a whole do not possess. It is because of this reality that "religion" has replaced "spirituality." Spirituality can be said to be more of an esoteric, personal connection to the Creator/Source, whereas religion is an exoteric, watered-down, "one size fits all" exoteric version of a higher reality. Among the ancients, initiates took many years to learn the Inner Mysteries from the great Mystery Schools in those times.  

Jesus' teachings (not "Christianity") were simply part of an ancient system of knowledge and Wisdom. When we study the history of the Bible, and the history of the Church system, it becomes clear to us that the present version of Christianity is a Roman patristic corruption of what Jesus is credited with having taught. It is a disappointment to the legacy and depth of these great teachings. Modern "Christianity" is a revised and edited form of a great system of ancient knowledge and Wisdom.

Jesus did not claim to be the one and only son of God. It may appear that way superficially, due to the editing of the Bible after the death of Jesus and the influence of the first ecumenical Council at Nicaea, but when one examines the teachings more closely, it becomes evident that Jesus' main lesson was that we are ALL the children of God. Go to the original Greek and you will read "A son of God" ... not "THE son of God." We all have the potential to become Christlike. We all have the Divinity of the Creator within.

"Christ" was originally a title that comes from the Greek word Christos, meaning "anointed" or "anointed one." Later on it was used specifically in reference to Jesus of Nazareth ... which should have been Jesus the Nazarene since the Nozrim (Nazarenes) were a Jewish sect and the place called Nazareth hadn't existed yet. 

Jesus spoke in esoteric parables to try to get his followers to understand the higher Truths of Life, but unfortunately, most did not comprehend the deep insight and meaning of the many parables which Jesus spoke. These were allegories and metaphors with deeper Truths hidden beneath the surface story. The literal story itself many times was insignificant and was designed to reveal a much deeper message ... For “those who had eyes to see and ears to hear.”

There were, however, a few individuals who did indeed understand the "hidden" aspects of the teachings. The Gnostic groups were among those who DID understand. "Gnostic" comes from the Greek word "gnosis," which means knowledge. The various Gnostic groups looked beyond the teachings of Jesus to gain a more comprehensive view of the ancient school of knowledge to which Jesus' teachings belonged. They realized that Jesus was a great teacher out of the many who had appeared ... or perhaps an anthropomorphic representative of the school of ancient thought. 

Unfortunately, the Gnostic groups and other early Christians were persecuted and declared heretics after the first Council at at Emperor Constantine's Council of Nicaea. In 325 AD, due to disputes over what "Christianity" should be, a religious council was assembled in Nicaea (present day Turkey) to try to settle the disputes and establish an "official" version of Christianity. Overseeing this council was the Roman Emperor Constantine, who ultimately decided what exactly this new "Universal" ("Catholic" in Greek) Church would include. 

At Nicaea, it was established that a man named Jesus was "of the same substance" as God. It was declared that Jesus was the Divine "son" of God and that mankind could only be saved through him. It was established that salvation could only be reached through one's belief in the Crucifixion and Resurrection. In other words, it was made a dogmatic law that one could only be “saved” if one believed that Jesus died for the sins of mankind. This is a completely false rendering of the original teachings, which taught that humanity could only be “saved” (awakened from ignorance and doing the right things) by and through humanity itself. Furthermore, subsequent councils further established the many dogmatic laws still followed today by most Christians. The Bible has been changed countless times. The Oldest known Bible in existence is the Sinai Bible (in the British Museum) dated to the 1100's. 500 years later came the King James. There are over 18,000 discrepancies in the two versions. Hardly inerrant. 

During his rule, Constantine saw the power of an organized state religion. The Roman Empire at that time was full of "Pagans," and Constantine knew that it would be beneficial to his empire to squash all forms of "Paganism" and adopt the new form of Christianity established at Nicaea. In about 397 AD, the Bible was canonized and made "official" as well. Countless verses were changed to fit the needs of the new Christian Church. Countless books were left out, most notably those that portrayed Jesus in a more human light and those that spoke of the real path to salvation -- knowingness. These apocryphal texts are still used in some denominations of Christianity, especially the older ones like the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Egyptian Coptic Church. The ancient scrolls found at Nag Hammadi in Egypt and the Dead Sea Scrolls found in Palestine contain many apocryphal chapters not found in the Catholic or Protestant Bibles of today, and they reveal philosophies that, if made available to the masses of Christians, would almost completely negate and refute the accepted dogmas of modern Christianity.

Unfortunately, these apocryphal doctrines will probably never be made entirely public. Tthe Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammadi scrolls are indeed available, but they are not accepted as relevant to Christianity today, and the Church has done a great job hiding these texts from most of their followers. When one reads these apocryphal scriptures, it is evident why the Church has worked so hard to hide, or at least to refute them. They are empowering writings that can radically change a person within, and without. 

When a person understands that knowledge is the key to salvation, it then becomes difficult to control that person. They become, as I said above, empowered. When a person believes that the key to salvation is the belief in the Son of God dying for the "sins" of humanity, it is far easier to control that person. Why? Because that person then believes that he or she is inherently evil and a sinner and in need of salvation from his or her "sins." That person then believes that in order to be "saved," he or she must follow the dogmas of Christianity. Unfortunately, these dogmas are not Jesus' laws. These dogmas are the creations of men whose only interest was/is in power and control. In reality, the only real sin is ignorance. And the “Truth ... will make you free.”

Read these verses from the Gospel of Thomas, one of the apocryphal texts left out of the Bible:

"When you know yourselves, then you will be known, and you will understand that you are children of the living Father. But if you do not know yourselves, then you live in poverty, and you are the poverty."

“Jesus’ followers asked him, “When will the kingdom come?” He answered, “It will not come by watching for it. It will not be said, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘Look, there it is.’ Rather, the father’s kingdom is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it.”

“The kingdom of Heaven is within you, and whosoever knoweth himself shall find it.”

Much has been hidden from us. The ancient Wisdom of previous civilizations freely shared in open forums. Only God/Source knows what will one day be discovered in the 66 miles of shelving underground in the Vatican Archives. 

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”

Matthew 7:7

Just a thought … 

Justin Taylor, ORDM. 

ATHEIST OR AGNOSTIC

ATHEIST OR AGNOSTIC

We begin this topic with a quote from Charles Darwin:

"If man cannot begin to make a human eye, how could anyone in his right mind think that eyes formed by mere chance? In fact, man cannot make anything from nothing. We don't know how to do it. We can recreate, reform, develop ... but we cannot create even one grain of sand from nothing. Yet, the eye is only a small part of the most sophisticated part of creation - The human body.”

~Charles Darwin

Keep in mind, the eye has 40,000,000 nerve endings, the focusing muscles move an estimated 100,000 times a day, and the retina contains 137,000,000 light sensitive cells.

If you are a reasonable person you will have to say that "having limited knowledge" which is what we all have at the present time ... we don't have the absolute proof to say "There is no God". In other words, you actually don't know if God DOESN’T exist, so you are NOT an "Atheist" but rather you are what is called an "Agnostic" (not knowing). Gnostic is Greek … for "knowing."

You are as a man who looks at a building and doesn't know if there was a builder ... or sees a watch, and doesn't know if there was a watchmaker. I have met many Atheists, most of them highly intelligent and knowing more about world religions than those who practice it. The Truth is ... in my personal opinion, it isn't that Atheists don't believe in God ... they just don't agree with you on WHO or WHAT God IS. Bsically, they don't believe in the God they were raised with or taught about. 

There are people who have faith in the existence of a god, and there are people that have NO faith in the existence of a god. These are just two different belief systems ... or blind faith ... both knowing not the actual Truth of each others faith. It is simply a belief. A belief, is formed from a decision you have made. You cannot resort to defending scripture by simply saying "the Bible says" ... because God is Spirit, not flesh/matter and therefore can write no book. The Bible is a book written by men, believing it to be the Divine inspiration that guided their quill. 

According to Wikipedia, there are an estimated 38,000 denominations in the world today that claim the name of Christianity, and 12,000 of them are in the United States alone. Of all the world's religious systems, with all of their doctrines and dogmas, can we assume that only ONE can be right ... if even that one is right at all. Like the classic line from the movie "Highlander" during the epic battle scene ... it concluded with "there can be only one, at the end there will be only one. If that one is good, the world will see a golden age. If that one is evil, the world will fall into anarchy." This is the choice humanity makes every day, with every thought, idea, decision, belief, and action. 

With so many choices on what to believe, how can we make certain that our individual belief system will not fail us at some time in the future. First, we all need to realize that when we take our last breath ... all of these worldly theologies, doctrines and traditions of men labeled as "religion" will end and only the Truth will remain. It is then, that we will find out. But physical death, cannot exist at the same time as physical life. There is either one, or the other. 

“Why should I fear death? If I am, death is not. If death is, I am not. Why should I fear that which can only exist when I do not?"

~Epicurus (341–270 BCE)

Plain and simple ... it is difficult to prove a negative. But we can prove an experience through absolute evidence. For example, I cannot prove there are no black dogs in America. Since I cannot possibly know or see every nook or cranny, alleyway, basement, stairwell, or forest, I cannot logically disprove their non-existence. However, if I set out to PROVE the existence of black dogs in Virginia, the first one that I come across proves that they in fact exist. The search is over.

Other propositions, however, can be disproven - and conclusively. There are two ways to do this. The first is to see if the proposition leads to a logical contradiction; if so, then the proposition must be false. Examples of this would be "a married bachelor exists" or "a square circle exists." Both of these propositions entail logical contradictions - pointing this out is the same as disproving them.

Obviously disproving a god requires an adequate description of what it is and what characteristics it has in order to determine either if there is a logical contradiction, or if any testable implications hold true. Without a substantive explanation of just what this god is, how can there be a substantive claim that this god IS? 

In the end, as my Mentor Rick Pinette once told me concerning our personal spiritual beliefs, one has to ask ... "DID it matter?" or "DOES it matter? Do we ask "DID it happen?" or do we ask "DOES it happen?"

My own personal observation is that there is in fact a universal organism of which we are a part. It is ONE ... and we exist within it. Call this organism God, Source, Universe, Life, All That Is, Creator, The Almighty, Allah, Brahman, Conscoiousness, Energy, etc. There is something much bigger than we are ... and we have barely begun to understand it. 

I will conclude with a couple of my favourite quotes from Karen Armstrong:

"I say that religion isn't about believing things. It's ethical alchemy. It's about behaving in a way that changes you, that gives you intimations of holiness and sacredness."

-Karen Armstrong

“Look into your own heart, discover what it is that gives you pain and then refuse, under any circumstance whatsoever, to inflict that pain on anybody else.”

-Karen Armstrong

“If we don’t manage to implement the Golden Rule globally, so that we treat all peoples, wherever and whoever they may be, as though they were as important as ourselves, I doubt that we’ll have a viable world to hand on to the next generation.”

Just a thought ... 

~Justin Taylor, ORDM.

SOPHIA: SPIRITUALITY OF LIGHT

SOPHIA: SPIRITUALITY OF LIGHT 

In this writing, we talk a bit about Cosmology and the emergence of our Inner Light. This article involves not just a Trinity, but a Quaternity (union of a group or set of four). My granddaughter has been named Sofiah (Sophia) and it pleases me spiritually. You see, this “Sophia” (Greek for Wisdom/feminine) and her Inner Spark provide us with a completion of the original creation of the Trinity. The actual Quaternity, involves Father (God/Source), Divine Mother (Great Emanation) and then paired with the offspring of the two ... the Logos and His consort, Sophia. The Greek Goddess of Wisdom. 

To say the least, Sophia is vastly important in the role of cosmology. We ourselves awaken the Divine Spark of Light within, and join with our Christ consciousness to complete the cycle of base nature animalistic man, to resurrection as the Divine Christ or Higher Self ... Godman. The Light body of Christ ... as Paul wrote ... “we are the body of Christ.”

Consider this: 

The Unknown God or “Agnostos Theos” (Ancient Greek: Ἄγνωστος Θεός) is a god mentioned by the Christian Apostle Paul’s speech in Acts 17:23. The ancient Greeks worshipped a deity they called "Agnostos Theos"; that reference is to the “Unknown God.” Plato wrote of the One who is “neither named … nor known. The Founding Fathers of the Christian Church were fond of quoting Plato in order to show that the philosopher urged pagans to seek out the unknown god. The patristic tradition of the church is nearly unanimous in recognizing Christ as a type of hierophant of Divine Mysteries.

“Christ had left men with no excuse for ignorance, since he was the visible image of the invisible God and the revealer of the divine mystery.”

-Colossians  1:15

Now, consider this:

“In the beginning, there was Source, an unknown God, All That Is. This being was All that there was, as there was no other. This Being had within all that it knew. The crisis of solitude led this Being to let go and allow for what was within him, to express itself outwards, and this happened in a burst of Light.”

This Great Emanation (Ruach/Pneuma/Holy Spirit) that was the burst of Divine Light came from the original unfathomable Godhead. What She would call “Father” and saw the face of the Godhead who would be known as “The Ancient of Days.” In the amazing writings of Manly P. Hall in the book “The Secret Teachings of All Ages” he depicts the relationship between the original Godhead, “Divine Mind” (which released cosmic thought) - the Cosmic Light which in Greek is "Pronoia" (forethought/feminine) used as Divine Maternal Being in Gnostic texts ... the Thought that emerges from Divine Mind. 

From a union of Love, between the Ancient of Days, and the Emanating Spirit (Father/Mother) came the Logos (Word) which is the Christ (Christos) ... Eternal and beyond any religious system. It is this identity incarnated into the physical vehicle (body/soma) of the Christ that brought to us the Wisdom (Sophia) of the Higher Self. From the Gnostic Mass we find “they say Christ came for all, but instead, he came for her who came for all.” This presents us with the Christ Sophia, two aspects of the Logos ... masculine and feminine, using the Christ to bring Her Light from the Pleroma (heavenly realms) to the outer regions of chaos (material world). 

From deep within the ancient Wisdom of multiple civilizations of Mythology comes the creation of the world, man, and the Divine Spark within all that is seen. I will end this writing with a scripture from the Nag Hammadi Library in The Secret Gospel of John:

“I Sophia, am the Light which exists in the Light.

I am the remembrance of the Pronoia. (Divine Thought / Holy Spirit)”

Just a thought ... 

Justin Taylor, ORDM.