The Hijacking of Jesus the Christ by Andras M Nagy

This topic is not discussed much in detail anymore. We are more money oriented, fighting creatures – consumed with day-to-day survival and selfish reasons to realize the importance of this matter. This is however the larges con man committed against one of the greatest esoteric Teachers the Universe has given Man.

Luckily Don Brown’s novel pushed this subject back into the Human Consciousness in the recent days. The libraries are filled with Da Vinci Code books and assorted follow-up books written on secret societies or in attempts to refute Browns work by the church.

It must be noted that while Brown’s book is a fiction it is based on some factual historical events.

Constantine did give monopoly to the Christian churches for political reasons and while his wife was very sympathetic to the early Christian teaching not void of the original mysticism and spark Jesus taught, Constantine himself was never a Christian. He was only baptized on his deathbed.

While numerous early Christians taught the original message of Jesus their Teachings and writings would be soon on the endangered list.

Arius (256-336 A.D.) was a Christian priest, based in Egypt, who was purported to be responsible for a massive division in early Christian thought. Arius had asserted that Jesus Christ was not divine, as the Christian church had heretofore taught. Followers of Arius subscribed to this belief, thus forming the first challenge to existing church doctrine, which taught that God existed as a Trinity – The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. The divide in the church that resulted from the different viewpoints of Arianism and Trinitarianism came in the early fourth century and culminated in the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.

First Council of Nicaea

First Alterations of the original teachings. The controversy created by the divide between the followers of Arianism and Trinitarianism became too profound for Constantine to ignore. In 325 A.D., Constantine took steps to resolve the matter by calling the First Council of Nicaea. This conference was the first time leaders of the Christian Church gathered to define and dictate doctrine. Unfortunately for Arianus, more than ninety nine percent of the attendees voted against him and he was declared a heretic, excommunicated, and exiled, along with his followers. Additionally, all of his writings were burned.

The Council of Nicea was important for several reasons. Beside bringing together church leaders, the council was the first time that church and state had melded. Constantine, via his position as head of the council, was the first to assert political power over the Christian Church. And, many church laws were formed at the Council. Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code discusses the council as the time at which Jesus was declared more than just a charismatic prophet.

During the Council, church leaders made decisions regarding the alteration of the Gospels. Clarification of doctrine takes place in all religious organizations and the early Christian Church was no exception. The reasons for these alterations were primarily political. Church leaders were given the opportunity to edit the gospels to form what they believed to be a more accurate and acceptable religious testament. Mary Magdalene was, at this time, declared to be an undesirable. Many historians believe that this was more a grievous error than an intentional slight. Jesus Christ was declared the immortal son of God. The dates of important Christian celebrations were changed to align with current pagan holidays. And the all-important observance of Easter was formally separated from the Jewish observance of Passover. These changes undeniably changed the Church.

This Creed of Nicea not only clarified the position of Jesus Christ in the church. By changing the dates of Christian celebrations to those of pagan holidays, the Church facilitated the conversion of pagans to worshippers of Christ. Additionally, Constantine viewed the Jews as the murders of Christ, therefore the separating of Easter from Passover was of special importance to him. There is no doubt that the Creed of Nicea and the First Council of Nicaea was wrought with politics and political motives.

Inventing the personal God.

Much of ancient Roman customs and religious practices were in fact not inferior to the new, and altered, version of organized Christianity, as neither have monopoly on the Truth. What Christianity did accomplish was to invent the concept of the personal God. People who have a finite existence and finite mind cannot comprehend Infinity and matters that are transcendental in nature. This personal God can answer prayers 24/7 and listens to six billion people. He also gets angry and upset just like Uncle Leo, whom you know to be very sensitive.

This new God however, did not have the imagination and appeal that the existing pagan religions had. Constantine understood the political importance of a state sponsored, unifying religion. Creating the personal God, and meshing pagan holidays with Christian ones, enabled Constantine and Christianity to take hold in the minds of the public. Constantine was not the only one to continue to worship his pagan gods. Christianity continued to encounter resistance for some time. More than a cursory glance at Christianity gives way to its pagan origins.

The New Dark Ages

Any ground that Constantine gained through his political visions was soon lost as Rome fell to the barbarians. The practice of inquisitions, witch-hunts, and genocides of pagans and non-conformists became the norm. Christian leaders were responsible for identifying, prosecuting, and sentencing suspected heretics. Often, these heretics were simply freethinking individuals who dared to question the state religion or politics. Church leaders, who then possessed almost as much political clout as the leading political party (sometimes more, as political leaders were often “advised” by biased church liaisons), achieved prosecution of heretics by bloody and brutal means. Continuing Constantine’s practice of quickly and brutally quelling any uprising, church leaders put an end to any dissention amongst the public. The church remembered well the divide created by Arianism, and thought it best to avoid a repeat of that ordeal. By papal decree, any dissenters were to be dealt with swiftly. The Da Vinci Code makes frequent reference to the witch-hunts and systematic elimination of pagans and non-conformists, and the subsequent need for secret societies that maintained historical secrets while appearing to conform to what were the current religious and political standards.

During this time, many historical facts were obscured by legend, making the truth that much more difficult for historians to uncover and making the truth difficult for citizens of the time to discern. At the time of Constantine, the major source of the Truth was cultivated by Gnostic teachings and studies. Gnosticism, by its very definition [ ], would be classified as heresy during the period of persecution that followed Constantine’s rule.

Gnosticism finds its roots in Egypt and is primarily dualistic in nature. Promoting the war of powers that are polar opposites, i.e., good vs. evil, divine power vs. Satan, etc., Gnosticism created a hell where there were once only deceased souls. Valentinian Gnosticism however, as one of the more philosophical of the Gnostic schools of the time, was primarily monistic[ ]. This school of thought (not without its own editorial controversies), drew attention away from the eternal battle of good vs. evil and directed the philosophical mind toward the possibility that behavior and thought are intrinsically motivated and not necessarily church-directed. Evil, according to Gnostic thought is not a parallel force to the divine good. Instead, evil is inferior to divine goodness. There are no parallels, but instead, there are levels of self-knowledge that bring one closer to the divine.

The doctrines of certain pre-Christian pagan, Jewish, and early Christian sects that valued the revealed knowledge of God and of the origin and end of the human race as a means to attain redemption for the spiritual element in humans and that distinguished the Demiurge from the unknowable Divine Being. Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth EditionCopyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company

The doctrine that mind and matter are formed from, or reducible to, the same ultimate substance or principle of being. Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth EditionCopyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company

About The Author

Andras is a freelance writer and publisher of out-of-print, esoteric books. He had spend considerable time in corporate IT where he consulted with fortune 500 companies, wrote technical documentation and in general partook the rat race most people in corporate America engage in. Chasing the almighty dollar. He now does what he loves works in a Casino part-time and writes and publishes.

http://www.andras-nagy.com