ON LOVE; PART CDLXXXVIII
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•Α
GoodWill IS Love in Action
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•Α
The Gospel of Thomas
These are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke. And Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down.
(109) Jesus says: “The kingdom is like a person who has a hidden treasure in his field, (of which) he knows nothing. And [after] he had died, he left it to his [son]. (But) the son did not know (about it either). He took over that field (and) sold [it]. And the one who had bought it came, and while he was ploughing [he found] the treasure. He began to lend money at interest to whom he wished.“
(110) Jesus says: “The one who has found the world (and) has become wealthy should renounce the world.“
(111) Jesus says: “The heavens will roll up before you, and the earth. And whoever is living from the living one will not see death.” Does not Jesus say: “Whoever has found himself, of him the world is not worthy“?
(112) Jesus says: “Woe to the flesh that depends on the soul. Woe to the soul that depends on the flesh.“
(113) His disciples said to him: “The kingdom – on what day will it come?” “It will not come by watching (and waiting for) it. They will not say: ‘Look, here!’ or ‘Look, there!’ Rather, the kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it.“
(114) Simon Peter said to them: “Let Mary go away from us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said: “Look, I will draw her in so as to make her male, so that she too may become a living male spirit, similar to you.” (But I say to you): “Every woman who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven.” 14
In the last essay we finished our discussion on the one hundred thirteenth saying from the Gospel of Thomas as it relates to the Kingdom of God and to our most important realizations regarding the Kingdom from the Gospel of Luke and another saying, the third, from the Gospel of Thomas. One of the most basic realities of our journey to the Kingdom is in the understanding that it IS NOT a place but rather a state of being and a state in which we find the greater realization of the God Within and the Christ Within. Men ARE, ALL of them, born in this same way…with the Kingdom of the Father Within and this reality IS perhaps intended for the the man in Jesus day nearly 2000 years ago as the parabolic way of explaining the reality of the God Within. This is of course rejected by the mainstream church who CAN NOT see how this idea of the Kingdom could possibly be withing the non-christian, or the heathen or the Pharisee as we read in commentary. It IS only in the understadning of the Truth that there IS NO special dispensation for the man who proclaims that he is a Christian, this reality IS reserved for the man who keeps His words, the man who does the Will of God, and this we read in clearly stated words from the Master saying: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).
This IS the reality and the Truth and the companion saying for this IS our saying from Luke which IS repeated by Thomas above and in the third saying as we read:
- “And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21).
- “His disciples said to him: “The kingdom – on what day will it come?” “It will not come by watching (and waiting for) it. They will not say: ‘Look, here!’ or ‘Look, there!’ Rather, the kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it“” (Thomas 113).
- “Jesus says: “If those who lead you say to you: ‘Look, the kingdom is in the sky!’ then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you: ‘It is in the sea,’ then the fishes will precede you. Rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and outside of you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will be known, and you will realize that you are the children of the living Father. But if you do not come to know yourselves, then you exist in poverty, and you are poverty” (Thomas 3).
In ALL these words we come to see clearly that the Kingdom IS here and it IS now; that the Kingdom IS NOT a place where one goes as a Soul after the death of the physical body and this reality IS found in many of the Master’s sayings albeit cloaked in parable. And He tells us of this parabolic cloaking as He says to His disciples that “Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see , and hearing they might not understand” (Luke 8:10). Can we understand the point here; that these ideas are intentionally hidden from the view of the man who does not hear the Truth of the Master’s message? Or, as we can say in this modern day and this modern world, those who refuse to hear the Truth. And this IS not the Truth about understanding sayings such as this, this IS the Truth of the overall teaching of the Master and most importantly His teaching on Love. It IS in keeping His words that these Truths are revealed and it IS in keeping His words that the True meanings are realized. In many of His sayings we find mention of the Kingdom as that state that one should seek and as that place where ALL can meet; we read of the good news that the Kingdom is at hand and that is can be taken by force. We read even in His words to the Pharisees that the Kingdom is come unto them even nigh unto those who CAN NOT see it. And let us not forget about the parables which show how the Kingdom grows, those that liken the Kingdom to the mustard tree and to the leaven; or those that show the value of finding the Kingdom in the pearl and in the treasure in the field. ALL of these ideas can show us that the Kingdom IS here and it IS now and that this IS NOT just some future place.
And there IS so much more in His words that tell us that it IS what we do here and now that brings us into the realization of the Kingdom and these ideas ARE, ALL of them, covered by parables and parabolic speech. Nowhere do we read that one goes to heaven or to the Kingdom of God at death but we do see the idea that it IS for the man who IS “born again” to see the Kingdom as the Master tells us “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Here we should understand that in seeing we have that realization of the Kingdom and that one must be born and not die to find it. These things are hidden in parables and while many from whom they are hidden may believe that they are among those who CAN see, it is apparent that they CAN NOT; and we mean no disparagement here we only mean to get the point across that it IS in keeping His words that we realize the Kingdom of God and this by degree which grows as does the mustard tree and the lump that is leavened. This IS the meaning of the sayings from Luke’s Gospel and from Thomas’; that it is the realization of the Kingdom Within for which we strive and in the third saying above from Thomas’ Gospel we get the greater feel for this as we read also that it IS in “When you come to know yourselves, then you will be known, and you will realize that you are the children of the living Father” and that the “living Father” IS alive Within His Kingdom here and now. As we say at the beginning here, this IS our most important realization regarding the Kingdom and the Truth of being accounted worthy.
Our next saying is the last one in the Gospel of Thomas. This one hundred fourteenth saying is perhaps the most obscure of ALL that we have discussed as it makes statements that are alien to our thinking and to what we understand and KNOW about the Kingdom of God, the Soul and Life itself. We have again a saying where the translation read can effect the ideas that we may have about this saying and with this in mind we list our seven translations”
- Simon Peter said to them: “Let Mariham go out from among us, for women are not worthy of the life. Jesus said: Look, I will lead her that I may make her male, in order that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every woman who makes herself male will enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Blatz).
- Simon Peter said to them, “Mary should leave us, for females are not worthy of life.” Jesus said, “See, I am going to attract her to make her male so that she too might become a living spirit that resembles you males. For every female (element) that makes itself male will enter the kingdom of heaven” (Layton).
- Simon Peter says to them: “Let Mary go out from our midst, for women are not worthy of life!” Jesus says: “See, I will draw her so as to make her male so that she also may become a living spirit like you males. For every woman who has become male will enter the Kingdom of heaven” (Doresse).
- Simon Peter said to them, “Let Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said, “I myself shall lead her, in order to make her male, so that she, too, may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every woman who will make herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven” (Lambdin).
- Simon Peter said to them: “Let Mary go away from us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said: “Look, I will draw her in so as to make her male, so that she too may become a living male spirit, similar to you.” (But I say to you): “Every woman who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Patterson and Robinson).
- Simon Peter said to them, “Make Mary leave us, for females don’t deserve life.”Jesus said, “Look, I will guide her to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every female who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of Heaven” (Patterson and Meyer).
- Said-Simon-Peter to-them this: “Let-Mariam come out from-us, for (the)women b e-worthy not o f(The)Life. * Said-JS102 this: Behold, I, ()will-lead her, so-that I-might-make-her male, so she-might-come-to-be also-her(self) a-spirit ()living, ()resembling -you(pl) male(s), > for woman -any ()making-her(self) male, she-will-go in to-the-kingdom-of(the)heaven(s)” (Interlinear Version, original).
We note here that while the idea of the Life is apparently NOT in the original manuscript, several translations insert this word as we see in the Interlinear; others which do not include this the give the impression that Peter is saying that the women is not worthy of Life as we know it. This of course is an absurd idea and hence the addition by some of the. There IS an extra character in the Coptic which is rendered here as the parenthetical the with Life and this same thing is done in one hundred first saying as well as the fifty eighth and the fourth; all sayings where Life is included as a noun. In this light, we would see the inclusion of the as the right rendering and because the saying makes sense from the perspective perhaps of the Life of a disciple; here we can see yet today the reluctance by many to accord women a higher spiritual role. In the idea of lead we should also find the better rendering as the ideas of attract and draw are not in the reality of the Master’s way. This Coptic word is rendered as lead in the third and the thirty fourth sayings where the context makes sense and lead is rendered by most all while in the eighth saying it is rendered as draw when speaking about the net full of fishes. In the third saying Doresse renders this as ‘seek to attract‘ which can be compared to the version of the third saying above. Here lead seems to be the better choice as does guide as we see above in Patterson and Meyer but this is not rendered as guide in other places; the other words of attract and draw leave one with a sense of a personal relationship between the woman and the Master.
Additionally the overall tone of the Interlinear phrase that “so that I might make her male, so she might-come-to-be also-her(self) a spirit ()living, ()resembling you(pl) male(s)“, is much different than the tone that the others present where the Master says that He will ‘make her male‘. Patterson and Meyer approaches this more correctly saying that it IS in the leading, in the guidance, that she can become male. Patterson and Robinson’s saying that she can be made a male Spirit is plainly wrong as there IS NO sex in the spiritual realm. Also, we should see the idea of resembling as the better choice than making like and the idea here is that this resemblance is spiritual and in our understanding is not a thing that needs to be done. We should try to see that some of this answer is to the statement by Peter, along those same unnecessary lines of male and female. There is much commentary on this saying which includes:
- Gerd Ludemann writes: “The logion contrasts with 22.5. For that speaks of the dissolution of sexuality, whereas this logion speaks of a transformation of the female into the male, of a kind that occurs in numerous Gnostic ascetic texts. Perhaps Logion 114 was added to the Gospel of Thomas only at a relatively late stage. In the framework of the version of the Gospel of Thomas which has been preserved, Logion 114 is principally to be read as a polemic against procreation and the world (cf. 79.3; 27.1, etc.).” (Jesus After 2000 Years, p. 644).
- Helmut Koester writes: “But the ideal of the itinerant man, who is independent of all social and family bonds, also seems to imply that women engaged in the pursuit of common values and social conventions likewise are not fit for this role unless they accept the ideal of the ascetic man: [114].” (Ancient Christian Gospels, p. 128).
- Funk and Hoover write: “In v. 3 Jesus is not suggesting a sex-change operation, but is using ‘male’ and ‘female’ metaphorically to refer ot the higher and lower aspects of human nature. Mary is thus to undergo a spiritual transformation from her earthly, material, passionate nature (which the evangelist equates with the female) to a heavenly, spiritual, intellectual nature (which the evangelist equates with the male). This transformation may possibly have involved ritual acts or ascetic practices.” (The Five Gospels, p. 532).
- F. F. Bruce writes: “This is not the only place in Gnostic literature where Peter expresses impatience at the presence of Mary Magdalene in their entourage. [In Pistis Sophia, when Mary has expounded the ‘mystery of repentance’ in a Gnostic sense and been congratulated by Jesus for her insight, Peter protests: ‘My Lord, we are not able to bear with this woman, speaking instead of us; she has not let any of us speak but often speaks herself’ (54b). In the John Rylands University Library of Manchester there is an early third-century Greek papyrus fragment (P. Ryl. 463) of a Gospel according to Mary (Magdalene), in which the disciples discuss revelations which the Saviour is said to have given exclusively to Mary. Peter is unwilling to believe that the Saviour would have committed privately to a woman truths which he did not impart to his male disciples, but Levi rebukes him and defends Mary. (Part of the same work survives in a Coptic version in the Berlin papyrus 8502.) For Mary cf. Saying 21 (p. 122).] The general rabbinic idea that women were incapable of appreciating religious doctrine – compare the disciples’ astonishment at Jacob’s well when they found Jesus ‘talking with a woman’ (John 4.27) – was reinforced in Gnostic anthropology, where woman was a secondary and defective being. Yet none could deny Mary’s fidelity: to an objective observer, it surpassed that of the male disciples. Jesus’s promise that she will become a man, so as to gain admittance to the kingdom of heaven, envisages the reintegration of the original order, when Adam was created male and female (Genesis 1.27). Adam was ‘the man’ as much before the removal of Eve from his side as after (Genesis 2.18-25). Therefore, when the primal unity is restored and death is abolished, man will still be man (albeit more perfectly so), but woman will no longer be woman; she will be reabsorbed into man. [This is the point of the mystery of the bridal chamber (cf. Saying 75, p. 141); it was a form of initiation calculated to reverse the process by which death entered. ‘When Eve was in Adam, there was no death; but when she was separated from him, death came into being’ (Gospel of Philip 71).” (Jesus and Christian Origins Outside the New Testament, pp. 153-154).
- John S. Kloppenborg, Marvin W. Meyer, Stephen J. Patterson, and Michael G. Steinhauser state: “Now, as is obvious, this saying does not really free itself from the mistaken notions of its day about the relative worth of men and women. Nonetheless, what it says, in its own ‘back-handed’ way, is very important for the history of early Christianity. First, it probably indicates that not all were in agreement on whether women should be allowed to participate fully in the Jesus movement. The opposition to women voiced by Peter in this saying is not isolated, but reminds one of later evidence of a similar dispute in the Gospel of Mary (BG 8502 17,7 – 18,15) and Pistis Sophia (I, 36; II, 72). This dispute was likely one which would be carried on within early Christianity for many years to come. The Gospel of Thomas, of course, comes down here in favor of women’s participation, provided they engage in the same sort of regimen required of the men in the group. What is more, Mary (it is not clear which Mary is intended here) is taken as the predecessor of all women who would become disciples. This stands in contrast to the more traditional feminine roles assigned to Mary in the synoptic and Johannine traditions (whether one speaks of Mary the mother of Jesus or of Mary Magdalene). In Thomas, Mary is presented as the first female disciple of Jesus. Thus, Paul may well have had good precedent, even from out of the sayings tradition, for including both women and men in the organization of the Christian communities he founded.” (Q-Thomas Reader, pp. 111-112).
- Marvin Meyer writes: “The transformation of the female into the male is discussed extensively in ancient literature (the transformation of the male into the female is also discussed, in the context of the acts of self-castration within the mysteries of the Great Mother and Attis). A few ancient accounts, in authors like Ovid and Phlegon of Tralles, communicate fantastic stories of women sprouting male genitals and thus becoming male, but most of the accounts use the gender categories in a metaphorical sense. Often the transformation of the female into the male involves the transformation of all that is earthly, perishable, passive, and sense-perceptible into what is heavenly, imperishable, active, and rational. In short, what is connected with the earth Mother is to be transformed into what is connected with the sky Father. If this is a correct interpretation of Gospel of Thomas saying 114, then the saying is intended to be a statement of liberation, although the specific use of gender categories may be shocking to modern sensitivities.” (The Gospel of Thomas: The Hidden Sayings of Jesus, p. 109).
In our view these commentators are reading this much like the commentators of the accepted gospels; they ARE NOT seeing the parabolic value in His words and in some cases are relying on an inferior translation. Mr. Bruce, while his ideas from Genesis are rather unique, misses the point and the Truth of the spiritual man, that he IS male and female and, at the same time, neither. Mr Meyer’s ideas on the qualities of the male and the female may be accurate to some degree, that they ARE different IS True, but these qualities can be seen as opposite in the reality of Life while the other carnal points from ancient literature are likely just that, literature. There is definitely a subordinate role for the women in the world in that day and this is carried to today by many cultures including some parts of the Jewish culture. However, these are carnal ideas and carnal separations which DO NOT have a spiritual counterpart as in the long Life of the Soul, in his many incarnations, he has come as a male and as a female. We should note there that there is here a problem with language and with the need for pronouns in English where we refer to ALL as he but we DO NOT refer to ALL as male; here we take the view that we ARE in the image of God and in the context of God as the Father, he seems the right idea to use.
As we find much insight in connecting the one hundred thirteenth saying to the third, we will likely find similar understanding in combining this saying with the twenty second which we repeat here as we close for today:
“Jesus saw infants being suckled. He said to his disciples: ”These little ones being suckled are like those who enter the kingdom.” They said to him: “Then will we enter the kingdom as little ones?” Jesus said to them: “When you make the two into one, and when you make the inside like the outside and the outside like the inside and the above like the below – that is, to make the male and the female into a single one, so that the male will not be male and the female will not be female – and when you make eyes instead of an eye and a hand instead of a hand and a foot instead of a foot, an image instead of an image, then you will enter [the kingdom].“” (Thomas 22).
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.
This is the Prayer of Saint Francis which we repeat again from a previous post as our Quote of the Day. If we were all to accept these ideas as guiding Lights in our lives, we would be expressing the Love and the Faith that the Master teaches. It is attributed to the 13th-century saint Francis of Assisi, although the prayer in its present form cannot be traced back further than 1912*. Regardless of the True authorship, the sentiments revealed in this prayer are genuine and are in keeping the intent of the teachings of the Master and His apostles. We should note here that the dying is not necessarily the death of the body but the death of the carnal man in the world when one is born again. In this context we read this about Saint Francis: Francis was the son of a wealthy foreign cloth merchant in Assisi, and he lived the high-spirited life typical of a wealthy young man, even fighting as a soldier for Assisi. While going off to war in 1204, Francis had a vision that directed him back to Assisi, where he lost his taste for his worldly life**. Here is the antithesis of the rich young man of the gospels. While he may not have authored this prayer, many do attribute it to him and in reading about his Life one can easily see these ideas in his heart.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen
This is a prayer that is Truly in line with the teachings of the Master and the ideals encapsulated in this should be those that govern our lives and our prayer should be that ALL can see Life in this same way. We should try to see the reality of these words in the verses above regarding feeding and visiting the least of His and our brethren; in these words is a deeper meaning, as clearer expression of Love and, we should look at the Master’s words above as an expression of Love and not merely in the terms that He presents as this is the intent of the entirety of His teachings.
Additional background information on Saint Francis of Assisi can be found in a rather lengthy article in the Catholic Encyclopedia; a link to this is provided below.†
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/
- † Link to New Advent http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06221a.htm*
- * Wikipedia contributors. “Prayer of Saint Francis.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 24 Jan. 2013.
- **Wikipedia contributors. “Francis of Assisi.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 24 Jan. 2013.
