The Historical Christ by Fred. C. Conybeare: Journey into historical and biblical scholarship with Fred. C. Conybeare's examination of the historical context surrounding Jesus Christ. "The Historical Christ" offers a critical analysis of the evidence and accounts related to Jesus, shedding light on the complexities of historical and religious studies. Key Aspects of the Book "The Historical Christ": Historical Inquiry: Conybeare's work engages in historical research to understand the life and times of Jesus Christ. Biblical Analysis: The book scrutinizes biblical texts and their historical accuracy to explore the figure of Jesus in a critical manner. Interdisciplinary Perspective: "The Historical Christ" draws upon historical, archaeological, and religious studies to present a multifaceted examination of Jesus' life. Fred. C. Conybeare was a British scholar and theologian who specialized in ancient religious texts and biblical studies. Born in 1856, Conybeare's research focused on early Christianity and the historical context of biblical figures. "The Historical Christ" reflects his academic rigor and his commitment to exploring the intersection of history and religious tradition.

The Historical Christ by F. C. Conybeare is about Conybeare's examination of earlier writings of Christianity. He evaluates essays by J. M. Robertson, Dr. A. Drews, and Professor W. B. Smith. Contents: "I. HISTORICAL METHOD 1 II. PAGAN MYSTERY PLAYS III. THE ARGUMENT FROM SILENCE IV. THE EPISTLES OF PAUL V. EXTERNAL EVIDENCE VI. THE ART OF CRITICISM VII. DR. JENSEN EPILOGUE."

Explore the depths of historical scholarship with The Historical Christ by Fred. C. Conybeare. This thought-provoking investigation delves into the differing perspectives of prominent thinkers like Mr. J. M. Robertson, Dr. A. Drew, and Prof. W. B. Smith on the figure of Christ. Conybeare offers an insightful analysis of their views, uncovering the complexities of historical and theological discourse. As Conybeare examines the varied interpretations of Christ’s life, you’ll be drawn into a deeper understanding of the historical context in which these views emerged. This work provides a comprehensive exploration of the intersection between history and theology.But here’s the real question: How do the perspectives of these scholars shape our understanding of Christ’s historical significance? Are we ready to confront the varying interpretations that challenge traditional beliefs? The Historical Christ invites readers to critically examine the evolving views of one of history’s most influential figures. By exploring the writings of these esteemed scholars, Conybeare provides a rich analysis that encourages readers to rethink what they know about Christ’s place in history. Are you prepared to dive into an intellectual exploration that questions and challenges historical narratives?If you have an interest in theology, history, and the complex ways in which Christ’s life has been interpreted, this book offers a stimulating read. Conybeare’s thoughtful analysis opens the door to new perspectives on a figure who has had a profound impact on the world. Don’t miss this chance to explore the various scholarly views on the historical Christ. Purchase The Historical Christ now and deepen your understanding of one of history’s most debated figures.

The key to mystery of Jesus is hidden in the paronomasia of Chrēstos and Christos. Still the learned Egyptologist passes over in silence the real and profound meaning of the two appellations. The Talmud and the Masters of Wisdom affirm that Jesus ben Pandira was the historical Christ, who had lived a century earlier, in the fourth year of the reign of Alexander Jannaeus, King of Judea. An Initiate, who had succeeded in merging his spiritual being into the glorious state of Buddhi-Manas, may be regarded as a Christos after his last and supreme initiation, just as he was called Chrēstos before that. Carnalising the Christ-principle is an absurdity and a blasphemy. Theosophists will never accept a “Christ made Flesh,” or an anthropomorphic God, still less a “Shepherd” in the person of a Pope. However, a man of flesh assuming the Christ-condition temporarily is a matter-of-fact on the plane of matter, and a subjective reality in the spiritual realm, which is the proper habitat of he divine soul. We fully agree with our esteemed friend that the suppression and perversion of esoteric facts in the gospels is not so mischievously done as to prevent the Occultist from reading between the lines.

Occult philosophy is the key to all divine obscurities, and the absolute queen of society in those ages when it was reserved exclusively for the education of priests and kings. The multitude never conspires except against real powers; it possesses not the knowledge of what is true, but it has the instinct of what is strong. Emperor Julian was the Don Quixote of Roman Chivalry. Julian and Socrates were put to death for the same crime. Why do priests and potentates tremble? What secret power threatens tiaras and crowns? Magic, as a science, is the knowledge of the metaphysical principles, and of the way by which the omniscience and omnipotence of the spirit and its control over nature’s forces may be acquired by the individual while still in the body. Magic, as an art, is the application of this knowledge in practice. True Magic is the intimate knowledge of nature within the sanctuaries known as the “worship of the Light” and diligent research into those occult laws, which constitute the ultimate essence of every element. True Magic, being divine and spiritual wisdom, it can only be exercised by the pure in heart. Occultism is vastly different from “magic,” a term often confounded the occult sciences, including the “black arts,” and the “worship of Darkness.” The Sphinx is the living palladium of humanity and the imagination lighting up our blind senses. She is the eternal enigma of the vulgar, the granite pedestal of Divine Wisdom, the voracious and silent monster whose invariable form expresses the one dogma of the great universal mystery. By lifting the veil of Isis and balancing the twin opposing powers — spirituality and animalism — ever reacting upon each other, the Kabbalah affirms the eternal struggle of being, reconciles reason with faith, power with liberty, and science with mystery. The seeker of Truth must be fearless and forgiving, brave dangers, dishonour, and give up all expectation. Divine knowledge must be conquered by defiant intensity and virtue, before she opens the portals of her secret chambers. Unsullied by the hand of matter, she shows her treasures only to the Eye of Spirit. What is faith except the audacity of a will, which does not tarry in darkness, but moves on towards the light in spite of all ordeals, surmounting all obstacles? It is action that proves life and establishes will, therefore, we must act in order to be. Mysteries are disdained by modern science. Their primary benefit is that they forestall absolute brutality among men. Miracles are natural phenomena from occult causes. Admission of miracles implies ignorance of their causes. By providential law, the true alchemist can only exercise omnipotence in inverse proportion to his material interests: the more resigned is he to privations, and the more he esteems that poverty which protects the secrets of the magnum opus, the more gold he makes. He must be cool, dispassionate, and utterly unconcerned with self, yet ever ready to sacrifice himself for the welfare of others. He has no right to use his magnetic power to lessen his personal suffering, as long as there is a single creature that suffers and whose physical or mental pain he can lessen, if not heal. Passion forcibly projects the astral light and impresses unforeseen and uncontrollable movements on the universal agent. The more we restrain ourselves for an idea, the greater is the strength we acquire within the scope of that idea. Indolence and forgetfulness are the enemies of will, and for this reason all religions have multiplied their observances and made their worship minute and difficult. In order to do a thing we must believe in the possibility of our doing it, and this confidence must forthwith be translated into acts. Faith does not even try; it begins with the certitude of completing and proceeds calmly, as if omnipotence were at its disposal and eternity before it. True magicians are normally found in rural areas, often uninstructed folks and simple shepherds. Those who live in harmony with nature are wiser than doctors, whose spiritual perception is trammelled by the sophistries of their schools. While poverty has no natural tendency to bring forth selfishness, wealth requires it. Hardship and poverty are so favourable to spiritual progress that the greatest masters have preferred it, even when the wealth of the world was at their disposal. In poverty is benevolence assayed, and in the moment of anger is a man’s truthfulness displayed. By truth alone is man’s mind purified, and by the right discipline it does become inspired. We should always remember that we are dethroned sovereigns who consent to existence in order to reconquer our crowns. Therefore, we must avoid hideous objects and uncomely persons, must decline eating with those whom we do not esteem, and must be mild and considerate to all. The disciple, by following his inner light, will never be found judging, and far less condemning those weaker than himself. The lamp of truth guides his learning, the mantle which enwraps him is his discretion, the staff is the emblem of his strength and daring. Let us then learn diligently; and when we know, let us have the will to act in unison with the Cosmic Will. He who has silenced lusts and fears is a king among the wandering mass. Fragments of relative truths can be communicated orally by the Sage to the disciple, but not the complete, everlasting Truth. Therefore Sages speak sparingly not to disclose but to lead the pure in heart to discover. Energetic ecclesiastical mediocrity has managed to supplant modest superiority, misunderstood because of its feigned modesty. A man who is truly man can only will that which he should reasonably and justly do; so does he silence lusts and fears, that he may hearken solely to reason. Such a man is a natural king and a shepherd for the wandering multitude. Life is aspiration and respiration. Creation is the assumption of a shadow to serve as a bound to light, of a void to serve as space for the plenitude, of a passive fructified principle to sustain and realise the power of the active generating principle. Movement is the outcome of a preponderance of one over the other force (positive and negative) as determined by the laws of affinity and antipathy. If both forces are absolutely and invariably equal, the world will come to a stand-still. “If the two forces are expanded and remain so long inactive, as to equal one another and so come to a complete rest, the condition is death.” Man can produce two breathings at his pleasure, one warm and the other cold; he can also project either the active or passive light at will. Will is the offspring of Divinity; desire, the motive power of animal life. Miracles are the inexplicable effects of natural causes. They are commonly regarded as contradictions of nature or sudden vagaries of the divine mind — not seeing that a single causeless effect would reduce the universe to chaos. Anthropomorphism is the parent of materialism and author of black magic. God operates by His works in heaven by angels, and on earth by men. But in the “heaven” of human conceptions, it is humanity that creates God, and men think that God has made them in His image because they have made Him in theirs. The man who has come to fear nothing and desire nothing is master of all. Nothing on earth can withstand the power of rational will. Warm breathing attracts, cold repels, for heat is positive electricity; cold, negative electricity. Warm insufflation restores the circulation of the blood, cures rheumatic and gouty pains, restores the balance of the humours, and dispels lassitude. Cold insufflation soothes pains occasioned by congestions and fluidic accumulations. Occult medicine is essentially sympathetic. Good will and reciprocal affection must exist between doctor and patient. Syrups and juleps have little inherent virtue. Rabelais compelled his patients to laugh, and all the remedies he subsequently gave them succeeded better, as a result; he established a magnetic sympathy between himself and them, by means of which he communicated to them his own confidence and good humour; he flattered them in his prefaces, called them his precious, most illustrious patients, and dedicated his books to them. The cause of every bodily disorder can be traced back to a moral disorder. But the power to heal is never possessed by those addicted to vicious indulgences. Only the pure in heart can heal the ills of the body by exercising divine gifts. Such only can give peace to the disturbed spirit of their brothers and sisters, for their power to heal come from no poisonous source.

Peter and Paul are archetypes of two Opposing Powers in Christianity The Secret Doctrine preached by Jesus has been disfigured by the Fathers beyond recognition. What the Fathers fought for was not Truth, but their own interpretations and unwarranted assertions. From the early days of Marcion of Sinope, the primitive Church has been split into two opposing parties: one viewing Christianity as a Hebrew institution and law, a narrow faction and extension of Judaism; the other, striving to replace Mosaic law with universal compassion and true brotherhood. Peter was the representative of the former; Paul, of the latter. The mission of Jesus, according to Marcion, was to abrogate the Jewish “Lord,” who “was opposed to the God and Father of Jesus Christ as Matter is to Spirit, impurity to purity.” The Apostle of Circumcision made his mission to persecute the Apostle of the Gentiles. After denying the very existence of Simon Magus, the Roman Church merged his individuality entirely in that of Paul, whose Epistles were secretly as well as openly calumniated and opposed by Peter, and charged with containing “dysnoëtic learning.” Saul in the flesh was the function and parallel of Chr?stos. Paul freed from earthly obligations, the function and parallel of Jesus Chrestos becoming Christos in spirit. Unlike Jesus Chrestos, Paul revoked openly the Jewish law of circumcision. For Paul, Christ was not a person but an embodied ideal. Paul was a Nazar, a Chaldean Theurgist. He was a Master-Builder, an Adept in a Kabbalistic, Theurgic, and Masonic sense. That is why he was so persecuted and hated by Peter, John, and James. Whoever else might have built the Church of Rome it was not the Apostle of the Circumcision. The assertion that hen-hearted Peter suffered martyrdom at Rome is the greatest of all Patristic frauds. Scared at the accusation of the servant of the high priest, the apostle had thrice denied his master. The extraordinary forgeries of the Fathers have been plainly demonstrated by diligent research and the power of informed logic. Did you know that the first fifteen Christian bishops of Jerusalem, commencing with James and including Judas, were all circumcised Jews? Who was the Peter who invented a burning hell and threatened every one with it? Who promised miracles, but worked none? The controversy sparked by the death of Jesus, between the Petrine and the Pauline sects, was deplorable. What one did, the other vowed to undo. His “chair” was not apostolical either: it had been plagiarised from old initiatory rites. There were two chairs of the titular apostle at Rome. But the chair holder was conspicuous by his absence. Why? Because the real “Chair of Peter,” was sacred rather than apostolical: the “Fathers” had plagiarised a chair occupied by the Hierophant during initiations, when showing to the candidate the last revelation set in two tablets of stone. That was how Popes appointed themselves successors to the title of Peter. The Roman Church has attempted to connect the leader of the Apostles with the initiatory stone tablets or Petroma, and appointing him vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope. Thus, Popes have gained the right to call themselves successors to the title of Peter, but hardly successors to the doctrines of Jesus. While the old Aramaic Patar or Peter would connect master and disciple with the Secret Doctrine, any connection of the “Seat of Peter” with Petroma at the Supreme Initiation is far-fetched. Paul is the real founder of Christianity. Peter never had anything to do with the foundation of the Latin Church. Peter the Apostle and Petroma are miles apart. The former, represents matter and spiritual darkness; the latter, the Spirit of Christos within the heart of everyman. Peter never lost an occasion to contradict Paul without naming him, but indicating him so clearly that it was next to impossible to doubt whom he meant. Peter and Paul epitomise the two Opposing Forces of the Universe. It is doubtful whether either of these men were historical figures. This awful and ugly state of Christianity has been cunningly preserved from too close scrutiny by an array of formidable Church penances and anathemas, which kept the curious back under the false pretence of sacrilege and profanation of “divine mysteries”; millions have been butchered in the name of the God of Mercy. Paul had been converted, not to the Jesus of Nazareth, but to the Christos of the Gnostics. In his Epistles, he has been made to fulminate against the heretics but these heretics were actually Peter, James, and the other Apostles. The Christos of Paul is the same Christos who directs our occult movement. One who believes in Paul cannot believe in James, Peter, and John. For, what Paul preached, was preached by every other mystic philosopher. The author of the fourth evangel was not John, the friend and companion of Peter, whom he contradicts point-blank in chapter i, verse 18. Even the Romish monastery and nunnery are servile copies of similar religious houses in Thibet and Mongolia. One legacy of the Roman Church and seed of its own demise was the fabrication of an anthropomorphic god. Another, was the passports to heaven bearing an image of Peter holding the keys to paradise!

Daemons and heroes connect Divinity with man. Daemons are close to the divine nature; heroes to men. By its powerful light, Divinity also possesses whatever daemons possess peculiar to inferior beings. Heroes possess unity, identity, permanency, and virtue, only when under the condition of plurality, motion, and mixture. There are three orders of daemons. Middle order daemons preside over mankind, and the ascents and descents of souls. Daemons are much higher entities than the rational soul. They energise the soul and preside over us till we are brought before the judges of our conduct. While intellect is the governor of the soul, daemon is the inspector and guardian of mankind. He governs the whole of our life. He gives perfection to reason, measures the passions, inspires nature, connects the body, supplies things fortuitous, accomplishes the decrees of fate, and imparts the gifts of providence. In short, our daemon is the king of everything in and about us, and the pilot of the whole of our life. Hence Socrates was most perfect, being governed by such a presiding power, and conducting himself by the will of such a great leader and guardian of his life. The daemon within Socrates did not act upon Socrates externally with passivity; but the daemoniacal inspiration proceeding inwardly through his whole soul, and diffusing itself as far as to the organs of sense, became at last a voice, which was recognized more by consciousness, than by sense. The voice never exhorted, but perpetually recalled Socrates. Motivated from his great readiness to benefit those with whom he conversed, he acted naturally from within without. He needed not promptings from his guardian and benefactor. The voice of his daemon kept recalling Socrates’ consciousness inwardly in order to constrain his association with the multitude and the vulgar, so that his purity remained untainted.