BrAPeterson

Widow's Son,

First allow me to make a request. Please give me a name to use in conversation. I find it hard to converse with someone who uses an impersonal Tag Line such as Widow's Son. It is nothing personal, just a preference on my part.

Now, what you are asking me to explain may take quite a bit of words to accomplish. Therefore, please excuse this post if it runs on a bit.

Before one can understand where I am getting my thoughts on Jesus, one must understand a little of my religio-philisophical state of mind.

It is my belief that all of us are imbued, at birth, with a spark of divinity. As the Divine encompasses all things, this divine spark manefests itself in everyway. The divine can be compassionate as well as cruel, so we have compassionate as well as cruel people, the divine can be constructive as well as destructive, so we have the same in people. There are an infinite number of possibilities here with corresponding aspects in mankind. These are what some know as earthly passions. In reality they are only passions when out of balance. Then one trait becomes dominant, and can worsen ones spiritual evolution. Hence we endeavor to subdue them. The more out of balance they are the more difficult it is to bring them back into balance.

Now on rare occasions one is born who, either by learning or natural ability, is in a natural state of balance. All divine forces within them are at a perfect balance. The result is inner peace. These individuals can be easily spotted because, having found peace, they advocate it.

In my opinion Jesus Christ was one such individual. In his teachings he preaches peace above all else. He does not teach to condemn anyone for anything. He states that the way to our father is through him. He never says he is him. Our father is the great divine. It is everything in perfect balance.
It is by moving ourselves to emulate such balance that we can become one with it.

This can be seen as the true teachings of Christ by the historical record of pre-constantine Christians. They did not kill others for not believing them, they died instead, because of what they believed. They did not knock door-to-door selling their faith, people flocked to them because of it. They did not condemn you because you believed something else. They sought to emulate Christ!

They also did not have a bible! They had the accounts of the apostles handed down orally from generation to generation. Eventually they would even be put to parchment by someone, but who knows who for sure?

If Jesus wanted his teachings in writing, why wouldn't he have put them there himself? He was a Rabbi which is to say he had the knowledge of writing. He also had access to scribes. I personally feel that it is because what he taught could only be learned correctly directly from master to apprentice. One can not find balance in a book. He must be taught from someone else who has accomplished it directly.

Now that is my view of Jesus. It is the same view I have about others like Buddha, Ghandi, etc. Men with a spirit in perfect balance who dispite persecution, maintained and advocated peace.

Now what Emperor Constantine created was a faith that was part Christianity, part Pagan, and designed to subdue a populace. The growing Christian movement represented a large populace that had previously been neglected by the empire. Therefore we see no loyalty between them and their Emperor's

Now if Constantine could find a way to embrace the Christians without disaffecting the various Pagan faiths, he would have the Empire entirely under his thumb. So, we have the Council of Nicea.

A bible and religion is created which while containing the written accounts of Jesus Christ (modified and censored of anything that would make him less of a deity) and also honors the cherished rites of the Pagans.



I hope that sheds some light on your question.



Fraternally,

Bro. Arthur Peterson

These are my views and mine alone. They represent no collective opinion of any Masonic organisation. You are welcome to diagree, agree, or remain indifferent.