ON LOVE; PART CCCLXIII

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GoodWill IS Love in Action

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The Gospel of Thomas

These are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke. And Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down.

(11) Jesus says: “This heaven will pass away, and the (heaven) above it will pass away. And the dead are not alive, and the living will not die. In the days when you consumed what was dead, you made it alive. When you are in the light, what will you do? On the day when you were one, you became two. But when you become two, what will you do?“

(12) The disciples said to Jesus: “We know that you will depart from us. Who (then) will rule [lit., ‘be great’] over us?”  Jesus said to them: “No matter where you came from, you should go to James the Just, for whose sake heaven and earth came into being“

(13) Jesus said to his disciples: “Compare me, and tell me whom I am like.” Simon Peter said to him: “You are like a just messenger.” Matthew said to him: “You are like an (especially) wise philosopher.” Thomas said to him: “Teacher, my mouth will not bear at all to say whom you are like.”  Jesus said: “I am not your teacher. For you have drunk, you have become intoxicated at the bubbling spring that I have measured out.” And he took him, (and) withdrew, (and) he said three words to him.  But when Thomas came back to his companions, they asked him: “What did Jesus say to you?”  Thomas said to them: “If I tell you one of the words he said to me, you will pick up stones and throw them at me, and fire will come out of the stones (and) burn you up.”

In the last essay we finished our look at the twelfth saying from this Gospel of Matthew. Again, we found some semblance of order in it as we pursued the idea that there must be some, that the outward saying was not the True intent of the Master in our view and that it had little or no meaning when compared to the reality that we find in the words from the accepted gospels. Now perhaps the Gnostics can see more in this than we do but if these are to be seen as the words of Jesus then they must conform somewhat to what He we have recorded as His sayings and this in a way that makes some rational sense. That our view of the Master’s words is a departure from the accepted doctrinal interpretations and uses of His words should and does make our task easier as there is likely no way to match any sayings about the deeper ideas of Life to doctrine, not even the words from the four gospels and the epistles. And while this may seem like a serious indictment of the church over the last 2000 years, there is a separate reality in their doctrines that may be a necessary part in the Life of the average man, perhaps this is the only way to keep the many who follow closer to the Lord. We however have outgrown this doctrinal approach as have many in the world today and it is for their sake and for our own that we continue in the trend that we have started in this blog as we expound what we KNOW as the greater Truth; a Truth of unity and of Love.

Our final view of the twelfth saying is that the Master is referring them parabolically to their own Souls, to the Inner man and to what the Apostle John refers to as the Anointing that each man has as his own; the apostle tells us: “ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things….the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him” (1 John 2:20, 27) The Greek word for this Anointing is Chrisma and this same word is rendered as unction as well and we should try to see here that this word and Christos, which is rendered as the Anointed or as Christ, are kindred words with both having the same root. Vincent tells us here that: An unction (χρίσμα); The word means that with which the anointing is performed – the unguent or ointment. In the New Testament only here and 1 John 2:27. Rev., an anointing. The root of this word and of Χριστός , Christ, is the same. See on Matthew 1:1. The anointing is from the Anointed ⁴. In the reference to Matthew we find this among the many words that Vincent offers: Christ (Χριστός); Properly an adjective, not a noun, and meaning anointed ( Χρίω , to anoint). It is a translation of the Hebrew Messiah, the king and spiritual ruler from David’s race, promised under that name in the Old Testament. Hence Andrew says to Simon, “We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, Christ. To us “Christ “has become a proper name, and is therefore written without the definite article; but, in the body of the gospel narratives, since the identity of Jesus with the promised Messiah is still in question with the people, the article is habitually used, and the name should therefore be translated “the Christ.” After the resurrection, when the recognition of Jesus as Messiah has become general, we find the word beginning to be used as a proper name, with or without the article. In this passage it omits the article, because it occurs in the heading of the chapter, and expresses the evangelist’s own faith in Jesus as the Messiah ⁴.

Our point here is that the very idea of the Name of Christ is misunderstood by most and when we can see the Master as Jesus the Anointed, it then can become easier to see ourselves in the same way which IS what the Master is saying in this verse from Thomas’ Gospel…that the apostles and disciples should look to their own Anointing, their own Christ Within which IS the Soul. In interpreting John’s words into this idea we should find the greater understanding that one needs no leader, he needs none greater to teach him because he has the same Anointing as does the Master,  “an unction from the Holy One” and the difference among us ALL is our realization of these Truths. Then, in His parabolic way the Master tells His disciples this Truth; referring to Jacob or even James, who IS likely not yet KNOWN as James the Just, with the reality of the deeper meaning left to “he who hath ears to hear“. This IS His way and in the contrary nature of these words as regards the other things that He told them about Peter and about the Truth that there IS NO one greater save in service, the Master IS forcing them to ponder His words and arrive at a Truth and this same idea can be found throughout the gospels and there is no more a confounding than the Master’s saying: “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you” (John 6:53). There is no reference here to the Lord’s Supper as many believe but in the obscurity of this saying we should see the idea of eating and consuming  from the eleventh saying and the idea of eating the lion from the seventh; none of these is to actually consume save what is represented and here, in this saying from John we find this idea from Vincent which should help in our understanding: Eat the flesh; Appropriate the life….Drink His blood; Appropriate the saving merit of His death ⁴. Looking past the doctrinal import here we should try to see Vincent’s understanding in the idea of appropriate.

In relation to these ideas of the Soul, the Christ Within, the Inner man and the Anointing, we can see the similar reality in these words from Lord Tennyson that we have been carrying as our Quote of the Day now for several days. While the reference here is to Spirit, we should understand this in the same way as Soul as Spirit and Soul are ever ONE and ARE our link to the Greater Reality of God. Here we see that we speak to Him, to and through our own Spirit and Soul, and we should see this reality as well in the words of the Master from Thomas’ Gospel above as the Master tells them to go to Jacob who we KNOW as Israel and which name means that which has the power between God and man….one’s own Soul.

Speak to Him, thou, for He hears, and Spirit with Spirit can meet

Closer is He than breathing, and nearer than hands and feet.

(Alfred, Lord Tennyson 1809–1892)

From the poem The Higher Pantheism which puts forth the authors spiritual belief. Whether we agree with him or not, the quote if spiritually perfect for all of Christianity as well as any other world religion.

We move on now to the thirteenth saying which bears some relationship to a similar part of the accepted gospels and includes some of the more personal revelations from the Apostle Thomas that we have so far seen. It is unfortunate that there is no chronological key between these sayings and the sayings from the accepted gospels so that we can not tell at what point during Jesus ministry these words are uttered. We do KNOW that there is a steady growth of the disciples understanding in the accepted gospels and, KNOWING the point in this evolving understanding that some of these things are said would greatly help us to understand their relative meaning. In the last saying we wondered if Thomas recollection of the question on greatness was the same as, or before, of after the three occasions in the synoptics and here we must wonder if this exchange is the same as that in the synoptics but from Thomas’ perspective or if this is a separate occasion. The idea that the twelve would not understand the words that the Master says privately to Thomas would lead us to speculate that this IS early on and perhaps in this point in time Thomas has had more revelation than the others. The commentaries here are rather meaningless but we post three so that we can get a better feel for what others see in these words:

• J. P. Meier writes: “An intriguing point here is that in the one work of ‘the school of St. Thomas’ that clearly dates from the 2d century, namely, the Coptic Gospel of Thomas, Thomas is actually a peripheral figure who hardly belongs to the traditional material in the book. He is introduced as the author of the work in the clearly redactional opening sentence, but figures prominently in only one other logion, the lengthy saying 13, where Simon Peter and Matthew are also mentioned but Thomas is exalted as the possessor of the secret knowledge of Jesus’ nature. This logion stands in tension with the rival logion just before it, saying 12, where James the Just (the brother of Jesus) is exalted as the leader of the disciples after Jesus departs. On this tension, see Gilles Quispel, ‘”The Gospel of Thomas” and the “Gospel of the Hebrews,”‘ NTS 12 (1965-66) 371-82, esp. 380. Hence the Gospel of Thomas, the earliest apocryphal and gnosticizing work that was put under the name of Thomas, does not present a tradition really rooted in that person and does not clearly inculcate the idea that Thomas is Jesus’ twin brother.” (A Marginal Jew, v. 3, pp. 255-256, n. 17).
• Robert M. Grant and David Noel Freedman write: “In the synoptics, various erroneous interpretations precede the correct one. Jesus is John the Baptist, or Elijah, Jeremiah, or some other prophet risen again. So in Thomas, Simon Peter wrongly compares Jesus with an angel (a belief widespread in early Jewish Christianity) and Matthew wrongly compares him with a wise philosopher. Thomas rightly says that to compare Jesus with anything is impossible; but as he does so, he addresses him as ‘Master.’ Thomas, like the man in Mark 10:17 (cf., Luke 18:18) who calls Jesus ‘Good Master,’ is rebuked because of the title he uses. Because he is a disciple of Jesus, he is not a slave but a friend, for Jesus has made known everything which he heard from his Father (John 15:15). The idea expressed in Thomas is quite similar to that found in John. Jesus is not Thomas’s master because Thomas has drunk from the bubbling spring which Jesus has distributed. This thought too is Johannine in origin. ‘The water which I will give him will become in him a spring of water bubbling up to eternal life’ (John 4:14; cf., 7:37-38).” (The Secret Sayings of Jesus, pp. 132-133).
• Marvin Meyer writes: “These three sayings or words are unknown, but presumably they are powerful and provocative sayings, since stoning (mentioned by Thomas) was the Jewish punishment for blasphemy. Worth noting are the following examples of three words or sayings: Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies 5.8.4, cites the three words Kaulakau, Saulasau, Zeesar, derived from the Hebrew of Isaiah 28:10, 13; Pistis Sophia 136 mentions Yao Yao Yao, the Greek version (with three letters, given three times) of the ineffable name of God; the Gospel of Bartholomew and the Secret Book of John provide statements of identification with the father, the mother (or the holy spirit), and the son. Acts of Thomas 47 and Manichaean Kephalaia I 5,26-34 also refer to the three sayings or words but do not disclose precisely what they were.” (The Gospel of Thomas: The Hidden Sayings of Jesus, pp. 74-75)

Mr. Meier, in the first comment above is clearly of the school that these sayings from the Gospel of Thomas are heretical and Gnostic as though that means wrong or evil. It is also very clear that his opinions are doctrinal and based in the literal reading of the words. Mr. Meier notes that Thomas only speaks of himself in the opening verse and in this thirteenth as though this has some bearing on authenticity which he has already decided is of the second century and therefore cannot be the work of the apostle. This attitude generally pervades most all of the comments that we have read and this is unfortunate as many are driven away from the possibility that this IS the apostle’s work and the synergy that we are discovering between these words and the accepted New Testament. These other commentaries are similar with Mr. Grant asserting that the Master rebukes Thomas and with both he and Mr. Meyer looking at this is a strictly literal fashion; Mr. Meyer and some of the unposted others as well speculate on these three words are and of course we DO NOT KNOW.

For our work, we will break this down into smaller but contiguous parts. The question posed by the Master is one of comparison which IS NOT like the question in the synoptics where it is framed as “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” and then, upon this answer Jesus asks: “But whom say ye that I am?” (Matthew 16:11-21). We KNOW from the accepted gospels that there is a degree of desire for greatness among the disciples and apostles of the Master and we KNOW from our discussion on the last saying from Thomas Gospel that the Master ever tried to diffuse this and that up to the time of the Supper, they do not understand. With this in mind, we can see here a part of the contention by the commentators on this verse that Thomas may be lifting himself and, although we do not agree, we leave this idea out there for later use. Here the disciples, and we do not KNOW if this is the Twelve or if this is a larger group nor do we KNOW the when, are asked for a comparison and not the ‘who’ of the synoptics and the replies are varied as each disciple sees Jesus from his own perspective. The Apostle Peter answers that “You are like a righteous angel” or, as this is rendered in our version above: “You are like a just messenger” and we should understand that these ideas are essentially the same except as we put forth in our comments on the last saying, that righteous is more the Way of Life from the Soul and just is more the activity of righteousness in the world. From our perspective the word angel serves better purpose in scripture and, while we have briefly discussed angels in the past, we should understand that these beings are mysterious and hidden from our common view. This being said, there is enough in the Master’s words that can lead us to see that we ARE the angels from the perspective of the Soul who is ever in the Kingdom of God and although the Soul gives his conscious Life to the human form and personality, he yet remains in his unaltered state. These are difficult ideas to express in our limited language but we can try to see this as that the Spirit and the Soul are ever ONE, inseparable, and that while the Aspect we call the Soul is living in and trying to express through the Life in form, the Aspect that we call the Spirit IS at this same time the self-aware entity, the angel if you will, fixed in the Kingdom of God. And we read this idea from the Master about angels as well as we discussed in relation to the fourth saying; here, speaking of children the Master says: “That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 18:10). While many may try to see the fanciful idea of the guardian angel in these words, we can see the deeper meaning and one appropriate to the words of Peter above, that the Master IS “like a righteous angel”….ever one with God.

Matthew’s answer is more from the perspective of a man in the world while Peter’s is more heavenly if we can say it this way; Matthew compares the Master to a “wise philosopher” and while there is some variation among translations in these words they are much the same in intent. Here there is again the Truth, as we can see the Master as the angel above we can surely see him as the Wise philosopher here and we would have to note Him as the Wisest of philosophers. There are a few sayings in the Gospels on this matter:

• “The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold , a greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42). In the day when this is spoken Solomon is considered the Wisest of men and here the Master, in one of the few statement on Himself, makes it KNOWN that He is yet Wiser.
• “And when the sabbath day was come , he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished , saying , From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?” (Mark 6:2). This is presumably the saying of the Jews that have heard His words very early in His ministry.

Thomas answer is more obscure and we should remember that the question IS one of comparison; these are some of the renderings of Thomas answer:

• “Teacher, my mouth will not bear at all to say whom you are like” (Patterson-Robinson)
• “Master, my mouth is wholly incapable of saying whom you are like” (Blatz)
• “Teacher, my mouth utterly will not let me say what you resemble” (Layton)
• “Master, my tongue cannot find words to say whom thou art like” (Doresse)

Thomas answer can be seen as ‘I DO NOT KNOW’ or he may be saying ‘I DO NOT KNOW how to express what I see’ and from the perspective of a disciple the latter is likely the Truer picture of this. There is a saying in the Bhagavad~gita where Arjuna sees the reality of the Divine Form of God and tries to express this, saying in part: “Seeing this unimaginably great form of You with its many faces and eyes, o mighty armed one; its many arms, thighs and legs; its many bellies and many dreadful teeth, are all the worlds perturbed just as I am. Seeing this way You touching the sky glowing with many colors, open mouths and wide open shining eyes, I am unsettled within and unable to keep my composure and peace of mind, o Vishnu. Seeing thus Your terrifying teeth and faces like the fire of the end of time, I lose my sense of direction and find myself nailed to the ground; o Lord of Lords, refuge of the worlds, have mercy!” (Bhagavad~gita 11:23-25) If Thomas is seeing clearly, we can see in these words why he can not express what he sees.

We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.

Aspect of God	Potency	Aspect of Man	In Relation to the Great Invocation	In relation to the Christ
GOD, The Father	Will or Power	Spirit or Life	Center where the Will of God IS KNOWN	Life
Son, The Christ	Love and Wisdom	Soul or Christ Within	Heart of God	Truth
Holy Spirit	Light or Activity	Life Within	Mind of God	Way

Note on the Quote of the Day

This daily blog also has a Quote of the Day which may not be in any way related to the essay. Many of these will be from the Bible and some just prayers or meditations that may have an influence on you and are in line with the subject matter of this blog. As the quote will change daily and will not store with the post, it is repeated in this section with the book reference and comment.

Today’s quote of the day is a repeat of the Mantram of Unification which is an affirmation of the Oneness of the human family from the perspective of the disciple and the aspirant and any who hold these ideals as important. In this we find the essence of the two ideas that we have discussed from Values to Live By and that these are firmly grounded in the desire to Love not hate; to serve and not exact due service and to heal and not to hurt. It is Love shown as Truth and justice that is at the heart of this mantram.

Mantram of Unification

The sons of men are one and I am one with them.
I seek to love, not hate;
I seek to serve and not exact due service;
I seek to heal, not hurt.

Let pain bring due reward of light and love.
Let the Soul control the outer form, and life and all events,
And bring to light the love that underlies the happenings of the time.

Let vision come and insight.
Let the future stand revealed.
Let inner union demonstrate and outer cleavages be gone.
Let love prevail.
Let all men love.

The Mantram of Unification is a meditation and a prayer that at first affirms the unity of all men and the Brotherhood of Man based on the Fatherhood of God. The first stanza sets forth several truly Christian ideals in Unity, Love, Service and Healing. The second stanza is a invocation to the Lord and to our own Souls asking that from the pain (if there can truly be any) incurred in focusing on the Spirit and not the world will come Light and Love into our lives and that we begin to function as Souls through our conscious personalities. We ask that the spiritual control of our lives will bring to light for us the Love that underlies world events; a Love that the world oriented man will not see working out behind the scenes and also that the Love that we bring forth, individually and as a world group, can be seen by all and ultimately in all. Finally, in the last stanza we ask for those things that are needed for Love to abound. Vision and insight so that we can direct our attention properly; revelation of the future in the sense that all can see the Power of Love in the world; inner union so that we do not fall back into the world’s ways, that we faint not; and that a sense of separation, the antithesis of brotherhood, ends as we know it today. Let Love Prevail, Let All Men Love.spiritual control of our lives will bring to light for us the Love that underlies world events; a Love that the world oriented man will not see working out behind the scenes.

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!

• ¹⁴ The Gospel of Thomas; Translated by Stephen J. Patterson and James M. Robinson; http://gnosis.org/