Apocrypha--the Gospel of Judas

[Seeker1]

I have recently undergone a conversion to Christianity. I read the Book of Matthew and was simply overcome. It's kinda hard to explain, but it was real. Point is this;
I'm a 52 year old man who has always been a practicing agnostic. The day I moved out of my parents house was the last time I attended any kind of church. I was brought up in the Church of Christ, BTW.
My problem is this. Even as a child I couldn't help but be struck by the extreme cruelty shown by God, particularly in the first books of the old testament. When I read an article about the gospel (epistle?) of Judas. I saw an answer. In short, I find that the Gnostics came closest to a belief I could embrace. I would love to hear some feedback on the subject.
Thanks in advance;
Kurt

 

[Acim]

I think implications and assertions of Gospel of Judas are fascinating. Almost in vein of, "finally we can learn about Jesus for real. What really was going on with crucifixion."

Which I understand, partly from other sources, that Jesus was teaching humanity that betrayal is impossible.

But that is overarching with what could all be discussed, so I throw it back to you Seeker, and am very interested in your thoughts on the material.

 

[Seeker1]

I think implications and assertions of Gospel of Judas are fascinating. Almost in vein of, "finally we can learn about Jesus for real. What really was going on with crucifixion."

Which I understand, partly from other sources, that Jesus was teaching humanity that betrayal is impossible.

But that is overarching with what could all be discussed, so I throw it back to you Seeker, and am very interested in your thoughts on the material.

I believe that the True God has no use for sacrifice of any kind, be it animal or human. He abhors violence. I believe Jesus's crucifixion was necessary to appease the Lesser Gods who had, at that time, dominion over the earth. We are now under the aegis of the True God. And any evil perpetrated since then is , for the most part, on us.

 

[QuestJan]

Seeker1,​

Thanks for sharing. Sacred texts sometime make very clear statements. But there are also so many that under careful examination bloom before our very eyes into perspectives, like optical illusions. These are great fodder for spiritual seekers

My spiritual seeking also has convinced me that "the True God has no use for sacrifice of any kind." IMHO He certainly does abhor violence as unjust. I, too, believe Jesus's crucifixion was necessary. But I am looking at it through a different lens.

Jesus-incarnate demonstrates his commitment, compassion, and love of humanity by walking many miles in our shoes through situations that resonate through millennia of changes to today. And I have come to suspect that what Jesus Christ desired to emphasize in His Crucifixion is that the obstacles on the Big Blue Marble (on which we are at spinning 1K/mph while blindfolded) is so unjust, that even the perfect, sinless Jesus Christ was convicted and put to death separated, groaning "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"

The Crucifixion was a terrible tragedy severing our Earthly bonds and causing us to look inside ourselves where we find the Kingdom of Heaven and realize

Jesus Christ does not come to save us from our enemies. Jesus Christ comes to save us from our self. Just like our role-model, Jesus, we will persevere. We are all purified and resurrected. We walk past, unseeing, the errors of our brothers, and embrace them with love. We are triumphant over injustice.

At that resurrection-epiphany, we get up out of bed. Put one foot in front of the other. And go out to save the world, one kindness at a time.

 

[libre]

Seeker1,​

Thanks for sharing. Sacred texts sometime make very clear statements. But there are also so many that under careful examination bloom before our very eyes into perspectives, like optical illusions. These are great fodder for spiritual seekers

My spiritual seeking also has convinced me that "the True God has no use for sacrifice of any kind." IMHO He certainly does abhor violence as unjust. I, too, believe Jesus's crucifixion was necessary. But I am looking at it through a different lens.

Jesus-incarnate demonstrates his commitment, compassion, and love of humanity by walking many miles in our shoes through situations that resonate through millennia of changes to today. And I have come to suspect that what Jesus Christ desired to emphasize in His Crucifixion is that the obstacles on the Big Blue Marble (on which we are at spinning 1K/mph while blindfolded) is so unjust, that even the perfect, sinless Jesus Christ was convicted and put to death separated, groaning "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"

The Crucifixion was a terrible tragedy severing our Earthly bonds and causing us to look inside ourselves where we find the Kingdom of Heaven and realize

Jesus Christ does not come to save us from our enemies. Jesus Christ comes to save us from our self. Just like our role-model, Jesus, we will persevere. We are all purified and resurrected. We walk past, unseeing, the errors of our brothers, and embrace them with love. We are triumphant over injustice.

At that resurrection-epiphany, we get up out of bed. Put one foot in front of the other. And go out to save the world, one kindness at a time

Welcome to the forum.

Just in case you didn't see, the poster you are responding to has been offline for 13 years, so you may be waiting some time for a reply.

 

[QuestJan]

Welcome to the forum.

Just in case you didn't see, the poster you are responding to has been offline for 13 years, so you may be waiting some time for a reply.

acim does not believe in time hahaha! But thanks for the heads up, libre