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The Lost Religion of Jesus: A discussion course based on the book of the same name by Keith Akers, Lantern

Press, 2000. Additional bibliography may be found at: Essene and Gnostic Studies; Studies in Animal Ethics.
Submitted by Audrey Haschemeyer, Ph.D. Discussion Syllabus

Meeting 1: Who Are the Essenes?


Quotations from the Dead Sea Scrolls: I. They shall practice truth, unity, and humility, righteousness and justice and loyal love, and walk humbly in all their ways... II. ...and prayer rightly offered shall be as an acceptable fragrance of righteousness, and perfection of way as a delectable free-will offering. III. I will render to no one a recompense of evil; I will pursue them with goodness. For judgment of all the living is with God and God will render to them their recompense.

Questions: 1. How do you understand the concepts in Quote I? Can these ideas be reconciled with our lives today? 2. What are some ways to understand "prayer rightly offered" in Quote II? What about "perfection of way?" 3. Quote III indicates an active return of good to someone who has caused hurt or injury ("evil" includes any affliction, adversity, etc). How would this apply to 9-11 or any other example you can think of? [Note that the "I" is a free agent, able to "pursue" with goodness or take other action].

Meeting 2: Jesus the Essene?


I. If your mind is predisposed to what is good, others will live at peace with you... Your good mind does not let you speak with two tongues, but it has a single disposition only, simple and pure, that says the same thing to everyone. (Essene movement: Testament of Benjamin) II. If you love only those who love you, what reward have you?... If you greet only those who are your friends, how have you done more than others? (Matthew 5:46-48) III. You know that national rulers lord it over the people, and high officials are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you, for whoever wishes to be great will be your servant. (Matthew 20:25-26)

Questions: 1. In Quotation I how would you understand speaking "with two tongues" compared with having a "single disposition?" What would be some examples? 2. How does the saying of Jesus in Quotation II about "outreach" to those outside one's inner circle relate to the Essene "single disposition?" Does the honesty and genuineness there seem like a good starting point? 3. In Quotation III Jesus puts the emphasis on serving, as opposed to overpowering others. Do you see a connection to the simplicity of life and absence of pretense of the person in Quotation I? Can one serve and still hold a decision-making position?

Meeting 3: The Gospel of Simple Living


I. If you do not fast as regards the world, you will not find the realm of God. (Gospel of Thomas, Logion 27) II. No one can serve two masters. You will either hate one and love the other or cling to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. [Aramaic mamona = money] (Matthew 6:24) III. Do not hoard your treasures on earth where moth and earthworm consume them... But store your treasures in heaven..., for your treasure is where your heart will also be. (Matthew 6:19-21) 1. In Quotation I fasting applies not only to eating habits but to breaking any habitual and unexamined patterns of thought and behavior.. Can you think of some things you would like to try fasting from? 2. Quotation II contrasts relationship with God with submission to worldly power structures, whether based on wealth or other mechanisms of control. If you have decided not to serve "mammon," what are some things you can do about it? 3. In Quotation III true treasures are contrasted with objects valued in the world. What would be true treasures of the heart for you? Does the "gospel of simple living" make sense in relation to storing true treasures?

Meeting 4: The Gospel of Nonviolence


I. I will not envy in a spirit of wickedness, my soul shall not desire the riches of violence. (Dead Sea Scrolls: The Community Rule) II. If two make peace with each other in this one house, they will say to the mountain, "Move away," and it will move away. (Gospel of Thomas 48) III. I have come to do away with the sacrifices. And if you do not stop making sacrifice, God's wrath will not cease from you. (Gospel of the Ebionites)

Questions: 1. Quotation I brings up "envy" or wanting what is not yours as a preamble for overpowering others (violence). What are some of the "riches" humans obtain by violence, including that against the environment? In what ways do you feel you participate, and how can you change that? 2. Conflicts in "this one house" (Quotation II) might be between thinking and feeling, spirit and will, "male" and "female." What "two" within you need to find balance or peace? How does imbalance within relate to violence in the world outside? 3. The Judaeo-Christian Ebionites (Quotation III) rejected the mentality of sacrifice (as well as all animal killing) and the ideas of sin, guilt and blaming on which it is based, in favor of a living "perfection of way" (see Meeting 1, Quotations from the Dead Sea Scrolls). Does the "gospel of nonviolence" suggest ways to restore balance for both individuals and communities?

Meeting 5: Essene Christianity and Ancient Wisdom


I. Jesus said: Everyone who seeks will find. To everyone who knocks from the inside, it will be opened. (Gospel of Thomas, Logion 94) II. When you hear something with one ear, tell it to another ear, proclaim it from the rooftops. No one lights a lamp to put under a bushel or in a hidden place, but one places it on a lampstand, so that from the inside and from the outside, its light is seen. (Gospel of Thomas, Logion 33) III. This is why I say these things to you, that you may know yourselves. For the realm of Heaven is like an ear of grain sprouted in a field. Be ardent in reaping your ear of life that you may be filled with that realm. (Apocryphon of James)

Questions: 1. Quotation I from the early Judaeo-Christian Gospel of Thomas speaks of a seeking process that comes from the inside instead of an image of being outside trying to get in. Does this change your perspective on what you want to "find" in your life? 2. In Quotation II openness (as opposed to secrecy and intrigue) and spontaneity (letting one's own "light" shine freely) brings benefit to both "inside" and "outside" What are some examples in your experience? (cf., Essene precepts in the quotations of Meetings 1 and 2, e.g., the "good mind...that says the same thing to everyone"). 3. A passionate cultivation of one's own life (Quotation III), bearing in mind the previous teachings, is the secret here to the experience of "Heaven." Another passage tells us not to turn the "realm" in us into a "desert." In what ways are you "reaping your ear of life," and what needs to be improved? (cf., Meetings 3 and 4 discussion).

Meeting 6: Wisdom and Art


I. God's Realm is within you and it is outside of you... If you do not know yourself, you dwell in an empty place, and you are emptiness. (Gospel of Thomas Logion 3) II. His students asked him: Must we fast? How should we pray? What should we give to charity?... Jesus said: Stop the falsehood! That which you do not like, do not do it. (Gospel of Thomas Logion 6) III. The students said to him: Tell us what our end will be. Jesus replied: Have you discovered, then, the beginning, that you are looking for the end? For where the beginning is, there the end will be. (Gospel of Thomas, Logion 18)

Questions: 1. Quotation I compares a life of substance (self-understanding, "God's Realm") with one lived in a vacuum, presumably behind a facade. What kinds of "emptiness" do you think are present in today's ravenous consumer society, for example, and elsewhere in our lives? 2. In Quotation II Jesus addresses the pretense of well-meaning activities that do not come from the heart but are directed by others. What are some ways that we lie to ourselves as we look to authority or tradition to know what to do, or when we simply "go with the flow?" 3. Quotation III directs our attention away from linear time and toward a timeless dimension of meaning or intent for our lives and Creation. Can you imagine a "beginning" that makes sense to you? What might the Divine Source want for us and all beings right now?

Meeting 7: The Gospel of Mary


(texts from the translation by Karen L. King) I. Peace be with you, he said. Acquire my peace within yourselves. Be on your guard so that no one deceives you, saying, Look over here! or Look over there! For the child of true Humanity exists within you. Follow it! Those who search for it will find it. (GMary 4:1-5) II. Do not lay down any rule beyond what I determined for you, nor promulgate law like the lawgiver, or else you might be dominated by it. (GMary 4:9-10) III. Then Mary stood up. She greeted them all, addressing her brothers and sisters, Do not weep and be distressed nor let your hearts be irresolute. For his grace will be with you all and will shelter you. Rather we should praise his greatness, for he has prepared us and made us true Human beings. (GMary 5:4-8)

Questions: 1. In Quotation I Jesus says that the discovery of the divine presence within, one's true self, is entirely possible for those who search for it. Has our course on the "lost religion of Jesus" suggested some practical ways to search for an authentic life in the midst of deceptions? 2. The "rule" or guidance provided by Jesus (Quotation II) can be summed up as love and freedom, based on other texts. What kinds of laws lead to domination? What about laws that provide for equal access or equal enjoyment (e.g., traffic regulations)? 3. In Quotation III Mary returns to the concept of "true humanity" in the face of real emotions and indecision (literally, divided heart). Does Mary's Gospel with its quiet wisdom and gentleness help you to get a feeling for God the Mother and Daughter in addition to God the Father and Son?

Meeting 8: The Healers: What Is Their Message Today?


I. ...And after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. (The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language, 1Kings 19:10) II. Pay attention to the Word. Understand knowledge. Love life. And no one will persecute you, nor will anyone oppress you, other than you yourselves. (Apocryphon of James) III. We should clothe ourselves with the perfect Human, acquire it for ourselves as he commanded us, and announce the good news... The Gospel according to Mary. (GMary 10:11-12,15) Students are asked to reflect upon the above texts and the material of the entire course. [Note: "healers" is thought to be a meaning of the name "Essenes." Material on the modern Essene movement, including holistic health, veganic agriculture and other topics may be found at numerous sites on the Internet.]

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