The Lost Books of the Bible, PT. 2

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James Bean

jamesbean

 

THE LOST BOOKS OF THE BIBLE, PART TWO

 

By James Bean

 

Copywrite March 1997

 

EXAMPLES OF DELETED SCRIPTURES

 

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Many years ago when I was

reading the New Testament book

of Jude I discovered an amazing

quote -- a quote which opened me

up to the 'other' books of the

Bible. Jude, in verse 14 of this

short book preserved in the New

Testament, quoted from the book

of First Enoch 1:9. He also

quoted another apocryphal book

called the Testament of the Twelve

Patriarchs. I was amazed to find

out about the existence of these

other books and decided that if

Jude, during the 1st century,

had access to them, then I

wanted to check them out myself!

So I started to collect

apocryphal writings once

considered to be scripture long ago.

 

The term " apocryphal books " has

three basic definitions: 1)

secret or hidden writings of an

esoteric spiritual nature; 2) books not

considered inspired by the

church but are, nonetheless

uplifting/o.k. to read; or 3)

fictitious writings or fantastic

stories. In existence are

hundreds of apocryphal books

representing all three

categories. I've tried to

collect all of the available

apocryphal writings and have

found a number of important

books amongst them that contain

absolutely essential spiritual

wisdom and instruction, the spiritual

discourses of saints and masters who

once lived in the west.

 

The Books of Enoch were found in

some Ethiopian Bibles and amongst

the Dead Sea Scrolls. They

describe the heavenly journeys

of Enoch the prophet, through

the Seven Heavens! Like Hermes

Trismegistus of Egypt and the

great Medieval mystic Kabir from

India, the prophet Enoch

described his visions of ascent

through the higher planes.

 

THE ODES OF SOLOMON -- NEW TESTAMENT PSALMS

 

Out of all the apocryphal

writings I've collected, I think

the Odes of Solomon is the most

beautiful. It is the would-be

book of New Testament psalms!

The Book of the Odes has been

described as the first known

hymn-book of early Christianity.

One scholar said of the Odes,

" Here are some of the most

beautiful songs of peace and joy

that the world possesses. "

Bentley Layton in The Gnostic

Scriptures says that the Odes

were considered to be inspired

scripture and were chanted by

Christians who lived in Syria

and Mesopotamia about 2,000

years ago. A follower of the Unity

School of Christianity published an

edition of the Odes a few years

back and created daily

affirmations based on this

ancient book. These ecstatic

hymns remind me of Rumi or Sufi

love poetry in the tradition of

" the lover and the Beloved. " They

also remind me of the Sikh scriptures

of India. Many have adopted the practice of

meditating upon the Odes and

report being brought to a deeper

level of devotion (bhakti);

being caught up in a love-affair

with God, the Ocean of Love.

That's also been my experience.

 

THE ODES:

 

There is no hard way where there is a simple heart,

 

Good thought finds no wounds,

 

Nor is there any storm in the depths of illuminated thought.

 

Surrounded on every side by the beauty of the open country,

 

one is free of doubt.

 

Below

 

is like above. (from Ode 34)

 

 

Open your ears, and I shall speak to you;

 

Give me yourself, so that I too may give you myself. " (Ode 9)

 

 

He filled me with words of truth

 

that I may speak the same.

 

Like the flow of waters truth flows from my mouth,

 

and my lips reveal its harvest,

 

and it gives me the gold of knowledge

 

for the mouth of the Lord is the true Word

 

and the Door of His Light.

 

And the highest one gave the Word to His worlds,

 

which interpret His own beauty,

 

recite His praise,

 

confess His thought,

 

are heralds of His mind,

 

are instructors of His works.

 

For the swiftness of the Word is ineffable

 

and like His statement are Its swiftness and sharpness.

 

Its course knows no end,

 

It never fails, it stands.

 

Its descent and Its way are incomprehensible.

 

Like His work is Its end

 

for It is the Light and the dawn of thought,

 

and through It worlds converse...

 

The mouth of the highest one spoke to them

 

and he was made clear by His Word.

 

The dwelling place of the Word is man

 

and Its truth is love. " (Ode 12)

 

The Book of Odes even contains some passages which describe a

feminine aspect of the Godhead, like: " I rested on the Spirit of

the Lord and She lifted me up to heaven. "

 

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARY MAGDALENE

 

A few copies of the Gospel of Mary

have been found in Egypt. The

preeminence of Mary Magdalene in

this Gospel gives one excellent example of

the leadership roles of women in

early Christianity. Mary is described

as an apostle, equal in every way to

the twelve apostles and part of the

inner circle of Jesus. But more than

that, Mary was a kind of

spiritual successor to Christ,

taking over His role as the

spiritual teacher of the other

disciples. In every way, the

text affirms that her leadership

of the other disciples is based

upon superior spiritual understanding.

 

As a recipient of the secret

teachings of the resurrected

Christ, Mary, in her Gospel

teaches the other disciples

spiritual knowledge and gives

detailed accounts of her visions

and travels through the higher

planes or heavens accompanied by

the Radiant Form of her Master,

the resurrected Christ. She

relays to the other disciples the

spiritual instructions, the

words of Christ that she heard

during these encounters, which

probably took place during times

of deep prayer -- long periods

of meditation.

 

THE ACTS OF PAUL AND THECLA

 

Speaking of women apostles and

saints in early Christianity:

The Acts of Paul and Thecla, is

the record of the life and times

of Thecla, an initiate of Saint

Paul, the apostle. This book is

brimming with accounts of many

supernatural and miraculous

events during the life of

Thecla, very much calling to

mind the Desert Fathers and

Mothers of Egypt. This book

describes Thecla as " an apostle

of God, " who, sometimes traveled

and at other times lived a

monastic life in a cave. She was

also a spiritual leader and

teacher who instructed people

" in the oracles of God " . The

text records that " many of them

abandoned this world, and lead a

monastic life with her. " She was

so highly esteemed that a temple

was erected and dedicated to

her! A copy of the acts of Paul and

Thecla can be found in, " The Lost Books

of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of

Eden. " The best translation of the gospel

of Mary is included in, " The Complete Gospels, "

Robert J. Miller, Polebridge Press.

 

THE LOST BOOKS OF THE BIBLE, PART TWO///

 

Part Three will explore " The Books of Pistis

Sophia " (Faith-Wisdom) and other mystical

Resurrection Gospels of the Gnostics.

 

James

 

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