Saturday 12 September 2015

Did He, or Didn't He......Exist?

          Now I am aware that in some ways I am the new kid on the block, having been blogging only since April of 2013. Nevertheless, I have never found it so difficult to construct a post as I am currently finding it. Having decided to try to investigate the historical Jesus, because I wanted to know something about him, as well as the Christ experience, I launched into my task with fervour and gusto. Oh dear! I opened up such a can of worms - well that's not really fair - a wealth of knowledge (presumed) and opinion that has almost overwhelmed me. Very high on the agenda came the question as to whether the historical Jesus ever actually existed. But there are other points to make before I get to that.
          The more I studied the Bible New Testament the more I discovered a person that I really didn't want to know. That was a pity really as the whole point of the exercise was to get to know him, insofar as that was possible. What I have discovered is the image of a man who was prone to judgemental behaviour, radical extremism and......well that's enough to be getting along with, except that he never criticised the Essenes. That was a significant finding.
          Students of such subjects as astrotheology, religion, and in particular Christianity are keen to show the strong links between Jesus and Osiris, Odin and many others, thus reducing Jesus to the status of idiot fiction. Now let me say that I am no lover of religion in any shape or form, and that includes dogmatic science. And yes, I fear science also has its high priests who are crossed and angered at your peril, if you want project funding. But I digress. Now it isn't a big jump, from linking Jesus with characters from world mythologies, to saying the presumed existence of Jesus is a fiction. After all, there is little if anything in the histories written about that period of Jesus; the New Testament is a shambles of unbelievable events (if taken literally I must add) written by people we know not what of; and there are no statues etc. of him. We will, at this point, gloss over the fact that creating images was forbidden by the Jewish religious hierarchy.
          Unfortunately for those who point to this dearth of hard information, it is also a fact (apparently) that no-one can be certain of much of the lives of famous Greek philosophers. Presumably, we are entitled to draw the conclusion that they didn't exist either, except that the Greeks were permitted to create statues. So did Jesus exist, or not? If he did, who was he?  
          There were a number of itinerant preachers doing the rounds in the holy land when Jesus was thought to be alive. It would have required very little effort for the Essenes for example, to pick an appropriate candidate, one of their own perhaps but not particularly worthy of the likes of Josephus and others writing an academic treatise on his life and times, and loading onto him a vast body of esoteric, knowledge gained from astrotheology. It didn't even really matter what his birth name was. I think it highly likely that Jesus knew the Kabbalah inside out, which would have been of great benefit. Now I do not know whether Jesus was an Essene, but I am more than a little certain that he followed their ways, and taught their teachings. Even if he wasn't a card-carrying member of that movement, he appears certainly to hold their teachings in his heart.
          I would accept that this is all mere speculation, but can also so much that has been written about this man, whether he existed or not, and his role - probably mythological - if he did live. I now find myself ready let the matter drop, regain my energies, and see where I go from here. It would seem that once again I have gone full circle in my thinking, only to arrive at a beginning, a new beginning I hope. And all the while, like a bright sun shining throught a mist, hangs the question that I still cannot formulate, a question which lies far beyond all the writings, the speculations and opinions that seem to be the sum total of so much theological endeavour.
          Down the centuries there have been many men and women who have entered the way of inner pilgrimage, sometimes outside and sometimes within the bounds of their religions. Also, I cannot discount my own psycho-spiritual experiences. And now I must draw this post to a close. If it has come across as jumbled and haphazard, I'm sorry. It most certainly isn't a literary masterpiece. I can only say that that is probably an accurate reflection of my inner state at present.

18 comments:

  1. Over the years some of the very best historical fiction I've read has been about, or has included a historical Jesus.
    The first, King Jesus by Robert Graves portrays Jesus as a literal prince, a successor to Herod, literally King of the Jews. It is well worth a read.
    The second The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan proposes that not only was Jesus a historical character, but fathered a bloodline with Mary Magdalene.
    It gives me pause to consider that little done by anyone else living two thousand years ago has had an effect upon modern life. If Jesus didn't actually exist, it seems necessary that he be invented.

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    1. Hullo Halle; I have seen it written that because the old philosophers realised that humanity wasn't up to living a decent life, they were obliged to invent someone like Jesus - and his mythological aka's - (or the other way round) together with the threat of eternal damnation to 'persuade' people to behave decently. That appears to have been a resounding failure!

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  2. I saw a thing on Facebook the other day that said an ancient bible had been discovered that contained a Gospel of Barnabas stating that Jesus was not crucified and was not the son of God. Supposedly the Vatican has declared this a hoax (as one would expect them to.)

    Looking for this just now, I ran across this passage: "Believers think that the question of God is beyond logic and science, and is transcendental. Non-believers think that God, religion and rituals are irrational and are an industry set up by the priestly class for exploitation and to serve its own selfish interests."

    I can remember arguing with a minister in my sophomoric college days about the existence of God. His response was "you just have to have faith." That didn't do it for me.

    I have wrestled with this belief/disbelief all my adult life and have come down to this: it just doesn't matter to me.

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    1. Hullo Bruce; I tend to agree with your point that belief in God doesn't do it for me either. I would add, however, that certain experiences in life can lead one to the conclusion that there is more to this than meets the eye. In that case, and I recall being gently laughed at when I first stated my position on this matter, I would say that there is that to which I choose to name 'God'. That does not require, indeed cannot result in, a definition of God since such experiences are internal and not of the material world.

      I well understand your conclusion that it doesn't matter to you. Because it does matter to me, I want to understand my inner, meditational experiences, I continue my search for knowledge or gnosis. It seems to be a path that has opened before me, as it has done for others. That does not mean it is a path for everyone. Perhaps we each make what contributions we can. Thank you for your input to a subject that appears to have aroused such interest.

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  3. "So did Jesus exist, or not? If he did, who was he?" Since he wrote no personal account but deputed that work to disciples, we may assume Jesus was fictional, modest or perhaps illiterate. I sense a deliberate vagueness there because he was probably none of those things --nor was he king of the Jews. When I studied Christianity, I read a lot of work by Paul Tillich, who called Jesus "Christ-the-encounter-with- the sacrament-of-God" and that is a station rooted in parts of the human mind that are not entirely conscious. Theism and Atheism both require leaps of faith of which I find myself incapable, but I can recognize a historical Jesus. A remarkable teacher of peace and compassion whose goal was to create an idea, a persona, a guide to conscience that would dwell in the collective unconscious, inform conscious emotion and never let human thought alone, not ever. He did it with a well-used minimum of tricks and tools --if not a Christ, then certainly a genius-- and if that isn't a Second Advent I give up on what is.

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    1. Hullo Geo; I fear you have left me nothing to say in response, except that I agree. But wait a moment; I love that expression "Christ-the-encounter-with-the-sacrament-of-God." That is a beautiful expression which deserves some meditation time. My thanks.

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  4. Have you ever heard of Appolonius of Tyana? According to the ever fascinating Esoterx, an applied anthropologist who masquerades as a computational linguist and software engineer besides his career as a blogger, said Appolonius made a very strong contender for Messiah in those troubled times. Even though you're tired of searching for the historical Jesus you might find this story as interesting as I did.

    In the long run I think all we can do is to accept the essence of wisdom in the teachings - the mystical heart of all religions - and go from there.

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    1. Hullo Susan; Appolonius of Tyana has until now slipped under my radar. As with Paul Tillich (see Geo above) Appolonius has been bookmarked for future reading (as soon as our packing and travelling is out of the way).

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  5. Without a historical record, there can be no historical Jesus. Simple tautology. Unless . . .

    . . . unless you believe in the Akashic Records, which would be very credulous since the concept wasn't invented till the nineteenth century.

    However it is an intriguing concept and one of its most intriguing fruits is The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, which was “transcribed” by an American preacher in the latter years of that century, by means familiar to the spiritualists of that era.

    It’s an extraordinary book, a kind of novel in the format of the Gospels, broken into chapters & verses and in a flowing prose style that could be seventeenth-century English or modern, sonorous for reading out loud, and not really illuminating about the character or personality of Jesus beyond what we already have from the Bible, though there is some interest in his journeying to the East and talking with Great Masters there.

    Perhaps, though, this is the "astrotheology" to which you refer.

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    1. Hullo Vincent; Oh no! I refuse to get into a debate about historicity; we'd be here all day, and then some. A little too legalistic (?) and semantic for me. I do take your point though. As with previous references (see Susan and Geo) this is something I have bookmarked for future reference. And yes, this is part of the subject of astrotheology.

      Incidentally, doesn't everyone believe in the Akashic Records??? And what's a few centuries between friends?

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  6. Hi Tom –an interesting question that had dogged me from early days leading me to the conclusion there are fleeting references outside the gospels to establish his existence. The NT is also a history, notwithstanding its primacy to revert to a mythos/ metaphorical literary style. By way of example Jesus is portrayed as a continuum of prior liberators such as Moses; an example being in the metaphor entailing the feeding of the 5000. This leads one into the idea of the Jewish messianic end of world view that is behind a lot of the gospel writings and sayings attributed to Jesus.
    Bear in mind it was then a common place practice to attribute sayings of others to particular prominent figures where they were supportive. Hence I wouldn’t be too worried about other figures mirroring Jesus, or vice versa, but rather if there was no such obvious similarities. I also very much doubt Jesus was judgmental, except by way of later additions to the NT to suit the evolving position to authorize meanings. Rather I see more evidence for mostly the exact opposite.
    The salient point to all of this I think is he must remain unknown to us in the ego/ moral sense of a past man, just as he was to his disciples. But spiritually he became the “Christ” who can only become known to us inwardly as in the ethic of love it seems to me was the focal point of his ministry. Best wishes

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    1. Hi Lindsay; As I pointed out in my post, there have been many people down the centuries who, travelling the path of the inner pilgrimage, have experienced that which no amount of debate can ever take away, and that experience of that essential Presence is also part of my life. When all is said and done, there remains that past that beckons like a nostalgia from the future. And I cannot turn back!

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  7. I keep a "commonplace book" full of jottings over the years and this one seems apposite, Tom. It's called "Anonymous" and oddly it seems to be anonymous since I have never found the author - even Google cannot help (if anyone knows the author I would be interested):

    "The Jesus who keeps saying
    "I am Jesus, look on me"
    Is an imposter. Do not trust
    The Christian cult of personality.
    I came to turn you on
    And not to turn you off.
    To set you free
    And not to tie you up.
    My yoke was easy and my burden light
    Until they made salvation copyright.
    - And all in the name of Jesus.
    So forget my name was ever Jesus.
    Henceforward I will be - anonymous."

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    1. Hullo Avus; When I wrote this post I felt as if I were struggling under a load of information and disinformation. I have struggled to find.....what? Yet all the time there has been that surety within me that has remained, yet temporarily overlooked. I have been too much 'up in my head.'

      The comments here have been interesting, uplifting and supportive. And now your comment has somehow made things so simple. And for that I am truly thankful.

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    2. Hi Avus. I think I've found a resource for you in an blog from ten years ago. The author of anonymous is Sydney Carter.
      Thanks for quoting it. So perfect.
      http://smoyle.blogspot.ca/2005/10/back-to-my-musical-roots.html

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  8. For Halle (with your permission, Tom)
    Thank you so much for troubling to find the source of that poem for me.I wrote it down many years ago and have been trying to find the author, on and off, since then. Sidney Carter! It fits well with his other work.

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    1. Permission always granted if people wish to communicate, in right spirit, with each other via Gwynt.

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