The Shroud of Turin at a glance

The Shroud of Turin. The name brings countless questions to mind. It is arguably the most sacred of all Christian relics, yet its authenticity is hotly debated. The origins of the shroud are clouded in mystery. Some believe that it first appeared in Edessa. Edessa, in the Fertile Crescent of the upper Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and the Euphrates, was a major city on the Silk Road and undoubtedly one of the earliest Christian communities. There is a strong tradition that Thomas and Thaddeus Jude went to Edessa as early as 33 CE. There is a legend that they carried with them a cloth bearing an image of Jesus. In 544 CE, a cloth, with an image believed to be Jesus, was found above one of Edessa's gates in the walls of the city, a cloth that Gregory of Constantinople would describe with a full length image and bloodstains. There is evidence that the Edessa cloth is in fact the Shroud of Turin. How could any artist, by accident or design, have produced an image so convincingly photographic, when seen in negative, at least five hundred years before there would be an opportunity to evaluate his work? To my knowledge, no art scholar has come forward to identify the Shroud with a particular artist and period. The fabric of the Shroud is a fine, tightly woven herringbone weave that has been possibly connected to Palestinian or Egyptian origin. It also relates to traditional burial customs of the period. Cadavers of the priestly caste were buried with their hands across the loins, not by their side, say in the case of Egyptian Pharaoh’s. The visible body appears to be that of a thirty to forty five year old man, naked, with beard, mustache and hair falling to the shoulder. The goniometry shows marks consistent with the biblical depiction of the crucifixion. For example, a group of injuries all over the back of the body are seen to be more than a hundred dumbbell shaped marks that can only be attributed to severe whipping from a Roman flag rum. The back of the head features eight or more downward flowing rivulets, similar to what the crown of thorns would inflict. On the “mans” left wrist there can be seen two separately angled blood flows. The right wrist is obscured by the left. In order for the blood to flow in the manner depicted on the body, the man of the Shroud’s arms must have been at an angle of sixty five degrees from the vertical- clearly a crucifixion position. There are blood stains on the feet and one indicated by an elliptical wound 4.4 centimeters wide on the right side of the body, immediately above the sixth rib. Hence the location where the legendary Spear of Longinus pierced Christs side. It would have penetrated the heart. Plenty of artist have depicted Jesus’ severe wound, but not one has ever tried to think out a pattern as complex as the one of Christ’s wounds layed out on the Shroud. The gravitational logic of the scourge thongs alone is amazing. If this is a forgery, then the forger has taken the care to calculate exactly which way the whipmaster swung. In 1988, carbon 14 testing was done, debunking the Shrouds authenticity. However, in 2005 it was proven that the 1988 testing was flawed and that the Shroud could very well be two thousand years old. We may never know if the Shroud truly is the burial cloth of Yeshua. It will always be intriguing, mysterious and immortal. Appropriate to one who promised, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world………”

Source:
"The Mysterious Shroud" by Ian Wilson(1986)

Was Moses really Akhenaten?

This is an interesting hypothesis that I came across recently. A theory that Moses (of Old Testament fame)and the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten were the same person. It implies that Moses/Akhenaten was brought up by Israelite relatives, that his mother was the daughter of the OT prophet Joseph, that he ruled Egypt for seventeen years, enraged the Egyptian people by replacing Egyptian deities with one god(monotheism), and was forced to give up his throne. He moved to Sinai with his Israelite and Egyptian followers and came back years later to try(unsuccessfully) to regain the throne of Egypt.One intersting point was the last mention of Moses in the OT. In II Kings, 18:3-4 it states, "And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,according to all that David his father did. He removed the high places and brake the images, and cut down the groves, AND BRAKE IN PIECES THE BRAZEN SERPENT THAT MOSES HAD MADE; for unto these days the children of Israel did burn incense to it". This reference is eye catching(which is why I used upper case letters to emphasize it) because a staff topped by a bronze serpent was the symbol of Pharaoh's authority. Another interesting point was his name. Moses' name in Hebrew is written "Moshe". The Hebrew word m sh a does not mean what the biblical editor said that it did. In order for the name to mean,"one who is drawn out of the water",his name should have been "Moshui". A final point is the letter S at the end of the name Moses is drawn from the Greek translation. After Akhenaten fell from power, his name was forbidden to be spoken. It is supposed that the Israelite/Egyptian followers called him "Mos", meaning "the son", to indicate that he was the legitimate son of Amenhotep III(not his coregent Semenkhkare,who BTW was also murdered), and the rightful heir to his fathers throne. Akhenaten adapted the Heliopolitan solar form of the Egyptian temple- the same form used by Moses in the desert- to be used as the place of worship. Akhenaten also established animal sacrifice to his new God, just like Moses did. Moses introduced the ark to hold the Pentateuch scrolls in Exodus 25:10. This again was an Egyptian practice. Instead of cherubs at the top, it was usually a statue of the Egyptian god Anubis instead. Another curious topic was when the ten commandments came up. They are eerily similar to text in the Egyptian Book of the dead. The commandments are said to be a positive form of the Egyptian Negative Confession. It appears as though Akhenaten turned the moral code according to which the Egyptians believed their dead would be judged into a code of behavior for his followers in everyday life. Unlike other Egyptian deities, Moses/Akhenaten preached about a god who had no visible image. At any rate, true or not, it definitely got my gears turning and was a great read. I recommend reading the book to further your own investigation. It makes you wonder though.........


Source- Moses and Akhenaten:The secret history of Egypt at the time of the Exodus

The impact of the Norsemen

Vikings. “The Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin immediately comes to mind when I hear that word or maybe even the 13th Warrior. The Norsemen have been given a bad rap over the course of time and labeled “Barbarians”. These people made cultural landmarks in addition to being magnificent warriors. Most of the worlds major ports were settled by Vikings. Newfoundland in Canada, The British Isles are a legendary point of conquest for the Norsemen not to mention integrating themselves into the English monarchy when William the Conqueror took over England in 1066. He held the formal title of Duke of Normandy but he clearly came in and kicked everyone’s teeth in and said ,”Hey I’m the boss now”. Russia and France were other countries that still exude Viking influence. They also attacked Constantinople three different times. I think by now everyone is familiar with Leif Ericsson, in my opinion the true discoverer of North America, not that rogue Chris Columbus that seems to be so celebrated here in the United States. The Norsemen clearly made monumental steps in international trade and naval navigation. Now we come to the real deal… Viking warfare. Short of the Roman Legions, I don’t think that there has ever been a more fierce band of killers. Forget the horned helmets and other mythological imagery, nothing is more menacing than a man raging toward you with a battle axe or sword in hand and you know that he means business. These men were huge too. In the countries that they were from, gardening was not always plausible, so they ate a lot of meat. For anyone that knows anything about bodybuilding and nutrition, you know that consuming massive amounts of protein and lifting heaving swords and shields and handling ship oars will make you a strapping lad indeed. They were experts in the art of war. Archery was a vital part of combat, with crossbows being mentioned in the seven Viking romances. Throwing spears were utilized The spear heads were designed to break off or bend upon impact so that the enemy cant throw them back at you. Their swords were made of high carbon steel blades as evidenced by over 2,000 swords having been found in Scandinavian lakes. Then we come to the battle axe. The hallmark of Viking weaponry. It was a very common weapon and was given its own name and decoration making each individual axe a Vikings own. It is mentioned extensively in “Sagas of the Norse Kings”. It was designed for heavy blows and was a very uncompromising weapon. The Vikings also very adept at “Saga Warfare” which was small scale blood feud stuff. Things like dueling and hall burning. What is now known as “Royal Household Action” was also utilized. Really, this is just the king kicking a little ass to keep the people in line. Lets not forget the cinematic favorite, to “go a Viking”(read: freelance plundering conducted by Norsemen on land and sea). Bottom line, they strongly used strategic mobility to concentrate their Berserkers against thrown together amateur troops and in the process decimated them. I firmly believe that during their time they set the standard of what others have since followed and they should be given the proper respect accorded them.


Source: The Viking art of War by Paddy Griffith

My theory on Jim Morrison

This information was brought to my attention in 1995 by a girl that I used to know. I researched the information myself and found it convincing. First of all, anyone can create a fictitious identity for themselves. People do it everyday. So thirty years down the road after you supposedly died it is just as easy to say “I’m a former Episcopalian minister who is now retired and writes home spun philosophy on my houseboat in Seattle and off the coast of Crete” as it is “I’m the Lizard King, I’m Mojo Risin’ and you wouldn’t take me serious as a poet so I decided to fake my death and come back years later to be finally taken serious as a writer”. Just food for thought. That being said, if you look at pictures of Fulghum you have to bear in mind that Jim Morrison would be geriatric now, not the sinewy, sexy 27 year old “Young Lion” that we all love. So its easy to see Jim/ Robert with short cut white hair wearing cardigan sweaters and befitted with eye glasses. Look at him and draw your own conclusion. Next, his writing style is very similar to Morrison’s writing style. You can put Morrison’s poetry and passages from any one of Fulghum’s philosophy books side by side and they look like they are written by the same person. Ok, that’s not good enough? Try this on for size. If you listen to any audio book that Fulhum has put out, he sounds just like Jim Morrison. As a matter of fact, I will post here a RARE video from You Tube of Robert Fulghum imparting is wisdom. You see, one peculiar thing about a successful writer like Fulghum is that he hardly ever makes public appearances. Most writers who sell a lot of books do signings at Barnes & Noble and places like that. Not him, he’s a recluse. If that’s not enough, here is the proverbial rabbit in the hat. If you yourself go to any book store and pick up one of Fulghum’s books I want you to turn it over to the back cover. You will see the standard synopsis in the middle, the publishers name and so on. Now look lower like down where the bar code is at. Over to the side you will see a logo that is Fulghum’s personal icon that is published on all of his books. It kind of looks like Arabic script. Take the book in you hands holding it straight up and down and turn it 45 degrees and look at that logo. You will clearly see the intertwined letters J D M. James Douglas Morrison. Let me just say that Robert Fulghum has never said that he is/was Jim Morrison. It is an assumption of mine. Morrison never had an autopsy and only three or four people saw his body. Draw your own conclusion.

Analysis of the Garden of Eden

The Garden of Eden. Anyone who has ever been to Sunday school or read a Bible knows the name. The Bible says that the world began here. Just like the Holy Grail, it too is considered a biblical treasure and is sought after by many. It is also the subject of great controversy. First, there is the on going debate of where the garden is located. Genesis 2:8 makes very clear that God “planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there he put the man he has formed”. According to this tale, there were four rivers that ran from this garden. They were the Pishon, Gihon, Tigris and Euphrates. Now I’m sure everyone can remember the Tigris and Euphrates from junior high geography class right? These two are obviously still in existence. Some scholars speculate that its in Iraq or Bahrain or even Jerusalem. If the garden truly existed, it may not have been meant to be found. Who knows if it will ever be found. It is but one of many stories of the creation myth. Actually, the biblical story of creation is very similar to an ancient Sumerian creation myth. Let me just interject here and say that when I use the term “mythology” I don’t mean to imply that I don’t believe, because I do. Legendary comparative mythologist Joseph Campbell put it best. He once said that mythology is simply other people’s religions. So know that if I say mythology that it’s a generic term. Anyway, in the Sumerian seals from 3500 B.C. we see something very similar to our Garden. The proverbial tree, the ever present serpent, the fall and of course the creation of man from clay. The Sumerian/Babylonian mythology does refer to a goddess as the deity instead of a male god. This is actually an abbreviated version of this story. I invite you to read The Masks of God “Oriental Mythology” by Joseph Campbell for a more detailed version and analysis of the story. There are two trees in the Garden. One is known as the tree of the Fall. This tree represents passage from the eternal into the realm of time. The second is the tree of the Return. This tree represents the return from the realm of time to the spiritual. Think about this. When Adam and Eve ate the “forbidden” fruit, they discovered duality for themselves for the first time. They know now the struggle of good versus evil and then what it is like to be exiled from the Garden by Yahweh. Duality and exile are the two major themes prevalent throughout the Bible. If you really read the Bible, you will see underline tones of both. Then there is the serpent. The serpent is another theme that runs rampant throughout the bible. In this case, it represents to some Lucifer aka the Devil. He is never named as the serpent until the book of Revelation. He sweet talked ole Eve into eating the fruit and plunged mankind into perpetual sin. Scholars believe that when this happened man became the devils pawn only to be redeemed by the crucifixion of God’s son. Then again, some scholars also believe that the story of the Garden of Eden is mythological. A metaphor that concerns that which cannot be told any other way and is misunderstood as historical fact. You are in the Garden and the Tree is your only way out. Thinking in terms of opposites- good versus evil and man and woman. It may not be meant to be regarded as historical fact but more a case of what does it mean? The very idea of what happened in the Garden is a tale of seduction. Every religion sets up its own rules that are dictated by ecclesiastical authority. The line of division is drawn in the sand and left for the true believer to decide for oneself.

The never ending Grail quest

I wanted to address a subject of great controversy in the religious world. The Holy Grail. The name alone brings to mind many things. Many believe that it was the cup used by Yeshua at the Last Supper and was also held by Joseph of Arimathea to catch the blood of Christ at the crucifixion. Allegedly Joseph retained the cup and it was never recovered. It has been rumored that the grail was one of many Christian relics being sought during the Crusades. This cup is supposed to possess supernatural powers that are bestowed upon those who are worthy. Of course, some hypothesize that the grail was no cup, but a human vessel. It is believed to be the literal bloodline of Yeshua descended all the way down from the royal house of David. This is an interesting theory and certainly gets one thinking. I don’t know that it really constitutes being the Holy Grail of legend though. If Yeshua was married to the Magdalene, so what. It was common practice during that time frame for Jewish men, especially one of a rabbinical nature, to be married. Even if he were married and had a child I really don’t think that it would or should affect the credibility of his divinity. If he were to have an existing bloodline today I say again, so what. The only claim that they would be able to make is their legitimate right to the throne of Jerusalem. It doesn’t make them Yahweh’s special grandchildren that entitles them to anything grand. I tend to lean more toward the story and meaning of Parcival by Wolfram von Eschenbach. I firmly believe that the story of Parcival is allegorical for the search for enlightenment. Research has taught me that there are underline themes in this poem that suggest mystery school style initiation. To go into detail about this would be another essay by itself. Look at this way. What if the whole time that you’ve been reading stories about mystical cups they have really been talking about things of a metaphysical nature. Remember, during the time of Christ there was a sect that was well known called the Essenes. Essenes were well versed in spiritual initiations. It has long been rumored that Yeshua and John the Baptist were both Essenes, but there isn’t much proof. These hermetic intiations involve the physical, mental and astral planes and ultimately allows you to see the Akashic record, which is purported to contain all knowledge. So the idea is that the Parcival poem is a veiled handbook if you will to guide you through the steps of initiation. Just like finding the literal Grail(cup), only the worthy are able to receive it. If any of you would like to look further into this, I recommend “The Cup of Destiny” by Trevor Ravenscroft. I’ll leave you with a quote from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade as it was told by Marcus Brody to Indy. “The search for the Grail is the search for the divine in all of us. But if you want facts, Indy, I've none to give you. At my age, I'm prepared to take a few things on faith.” Happy hunting……….

The origins of the name Jesus Christ

Yeshua is believed by some biblical scholars to be the true name of Jesus Christ during his time on earth. It was a very common name during that period and means “Joshua”. The name Jesus is a translation of the word “Iesus” which is Latin. In the Greek language Jewish texts, it is the word that is always used for “Yeshua”. So you see, “Jesus” is an English translation of “Iesus” that is Greek which is a translation of “Yeshua” which is Aramaic. The name Christ is more like a title, not Jesus’ literal surname. It is derived from the Greek word “kristos” which means “anointed”. or “one who is anointed”. He didn’t walk around (at least not in the NT) calling himself “Jesus Christ”. When the Catholic church was arguing Christ’s divinity and it was finally agreed upon, the name was officially recognized. The name Christ was applied to Jesus in the bible, but it was his bloodline, because he was literally regarded as an “anointed king” because he came from the line of King David. Its really just etymology and a matter of opinion to boot. Fundamentally, what is important is what your faith dictates to you anyway.