"After my departure there will arise the ignorant and the crafty, and many things will they ascribe unto Me that I never spake, and many things which I did speak will they withhold, but the day will come when the clouds shall be rolled away, and the Sun of Righteousness shall shine forth with healing in his wings"  ~Jesus; The Gospel of the Holy Twelve

~ The Sacred and Apocryphal Texts ~

This message was for the ears of man alone, they who walk between the worlds of earth and heaven. And unto the ears of man was whispered this message... ~The Essene Gospel of Peace

• The Apocryphal Texts The excluded and suppressed books of the Bible. In the process of determining the Biblical canon, a large number of texts were excluded from the New Testament, many of which were vigorously suppressed or destroyed. Some survive only as fragments.
• The Gospel of the Holy Twelve  The most ancient and complete early Christian fragment. Written in Aramaic, the text includes the complete life and teachings of Jesus. The lections of this ancient Gospel set forth a much higher moral and spiritual understanding than is currently taught by the Christian church.
• The Essene Gospels of Peace Liberated from the secret archives of the Vatican, these sacred scrolls are testaments to the eternal and living truth.
• The Nag Hammadi Library a collection of thirteen ancient codices containing over fifty texts. Discovered in upper Egypt in 1945, this immensely important discovery includes a large number of primary Gnostic scriptures, texts once thought to have been entirely destroyed during the early Christian struggle to define "orthodoxy"  
• The Gospel of Thomas These are the secret sayings which the living Jesus spoke and which Didymos Judas Thomas wrote down. Complete with usurps from the New Testament Gospels.
• The Greek New Testament The entire 1881 Westcott-Hort  New Testament in ancient Greek. Variant readings are also given within the text of this translation. (The Greek "symbol" font is required for viewing this text.)
• The Gospel of Q A collection of Jesus' sayings which forms the two-source hypothesis and the most widely accepted solution to the synoptic problem which posits that Matthew and Luke drew on two written sources, as shown by textual correspondences between their works. The Gospel of Mark forms one source, and Q the other.

• The Sophia (Wisdom) of Jesus Christ A revelation discourse describing the celestial regions beyond the visible world. Given by the risen Christ in response to questions by his disciples.

• The Book of Enoch Once considered scripture, the Book of Enoch contains many key concepts used by Jesus. Over a hundred phrases in the New Testament find precedents in this ancient text. Many Aramaic fragments of Enoch have been recovered from the Qumran caves, showing the importance of Enoch to the Essene community.

• From Enoch to the Dead Sea Scrolls From the remote ages of antiquity this remarkable teaching has existed which is universal in its application and ageless in its wisdom.
• The Dead Sea Scrolls Their discovery, interpretations and publication. A collection of 850 documents which were discovered between 1947 and 1956 at eleven caves near Qumran, a fortress northwest of the Dead Sea. They were written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, sometime between the 2nd century BC and the 1st century AD. 
• Christ in Islâm Traditional sayings and stories attributed to Jesus taken from Islamic literature. Islam has always considered Jesus to be one of the greatest of prophets. Highly recommended to anyone interested in comparative religion or alternative views of Jesus.
• The Kybalion The study of the Hermetic philosophy of ancient Egypt and Greece. These teachings cannot be accredited to any one person or human source, for these teachings represent the workings of Creation Itself.
• The Book of Wisdom One of the forgotten books of the Apocrypha; It is a 1st century  BCE Greek work originating in Alexandrian Egypt. The work relates early Nazorite and Essene understandings of the feminine principle of God at work in the ancient Hebrew tradition.
• Clothed With The Sun The Book of the Illuminations of Anna Bonus Kingsford. A contemporary of Rev. Ouseley, this remarkable text explains the interpretations of mystical scripture and the spiritual mysteries of the kingdoms of God.
• The Book of the Mysteries of God Anciently called "The Greater Mysteries" as containing knowledges which for their interiorness were reserved for initiates of high degree.
• The Perfect Way or The Finding of Christ The Perfect Way represents a discovery to ascertain the nature and method of existence. It also represents a recovery because the system propounded has proved to be that which constituted the basic and secret doctrines of all the great religions of antiquity, including Christianity, – the doctrine commonly called the Gnosis, and variously entitled Hermetic and Kabbalistic.
• The Inner Sanctum Scriptorium and archives for advanced Essenic studies.
• The Essene Book Store Suggestions and resources for expanding your own Essenic library or scriptorium.
• Textual Analysis of Biblical Literature The scholarly approach of studying, evaluating and critically assessing the Bible as literature in order to better understand its origins and the original intentions of its authors.

"There are also many things which Jesus did, that if they should be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain all the books that would be written." ~St. John (A.V.)

~ The Forgotten Teachings ~

Due to lack of knowledge, my people shall perish ~Hosea 4:6
Whoever finds the interpretation of these words will not experience death ~Jesus, The Gospel of Thomas

• The Essene Holy Communions Originated by Enoch, and again brought forth by Moses on the two stone tablets he first brought down from Mount Sinai.
• The Ten Commandments (or "The Lesser Mysteries") "To thy people of little faith, who did sin against the Creator, even whilst thou stood on holy ground before thy God, -I will give another Law. It shall be a stem law, yea, it shall bind them, for they know not yet the Kingdom of Light."  
• Thou Shalt Not Kill  The exact Hebrew of this biblical phrase is "lo tirtzack" which accurately translates as "any kind of killing whatsoever." 
•  Biblical Vegetarianism  "They cannot be righteous, nor can they touch holy things, whose hands are stained with blood, or whose mouths are defiled with flesh."
• The Transfiguration The law once given through Moses "by the ministry of angels," is now given through Jesus as the more perfect Law -the Law of Christ.
• The Beatitudes of Christ A beatitude is a declaration of happiness or promised blessing resulting from an individuals virtue or good deeds. They describe the qualities of perfection and the promise of future blessings rather than current material or physical rewards.
• The Lords Prayer Biblical scholars disagree about Jesus' meaning in the Lord's Prayer. Some view it as "existential," referring to man's present experience on earth, while others interpret it as "eschatological," referring to the coming Kingdom of God. The prayer itself lends to both interpretations.
• The Sermon On The Mount "When Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished. For he taught them as one appealing to the reason and the heart, and not as the scribes who taught rather by authority."
• The Lections of Compassion The teachings of compassion and the condemning of all forms of cruelty.
• Fasting and Sobriety  The penitential practice of fasting is observed for the purposes of purification, for heightening states of awareness, and for atonement of sins and wrongdoing.
• The Art of Meditation Meditation is closely akin to prayer and worship, wherein the practitioner turns spiritual thoughts over in the mind and engages the brain in a higher thinking processes. The goal is the receipt of spiritual insights and new understanding. 
• Materialism and Simple Living  The teachings of the Christ dedicated to freeing mankind from the slavish pursuits of material "Mammon."
• God and Mammon The selling of God and the false glamour of riches. The teachings of materialism according to the Gospels.
• The Ascetic Sayings of Jesus  The practice of asceticism and the relinquishment of all material attachments were regarded by the Christ as necessary and required prerequisites for salvation.
• Regeneration of the Soul  "Blessed are they who suffer many experiences, for they shall be made perfect: They shall be as the angels in Heaven and shall die no more, and neither shall they be reborn, for death and birth will no longer have dominion over them."
• Resurrection and Ascension The crucial initiation for humanity to understand at this time is that only when we have mastered the significance of service and sacrifice can the fact of immortality and its true meaning be revealed to us.
• The Key to Overcoming Death The key to the overcoming of death and to the processes of realizing the meaning and nature of eternity and the continuity of life can with safety be revealed only when love holds sway over the human consciousness, and where the good of the whole, and not the selfish good of the individual, comes to be the supreme regard.  

"The lips of wisdom are closed, except to the ears of Understanding" ~The Kybalion

He shall be called a Nazarene. ~Matt 2:23
We have found this man to be the leader of the sect of Nazarenes. ~Acts.24:5

• What is a Nazarene? Nazarene is the title by which Jesus and his followers were referred to. The word 'Christian' was never used by Jesus or used to describe those who followed him.
• Nazarene or Nazareth? A people erased from existence and the city that never was. The disassociation of Jesus from the holiest of peoples.
• Yeshua or Jesus? The word "Jesus" is actually a mis-transliteration of a Greek mis-transliteration. In Hebrew Yeshua means Salvation while the name Jesus has no actual intrinsic meaning in English whatsoever.
• Geography and History of Mount Carmel A sacred mountain ridge in Palestine, usually called in the Hebrew Bible Hakkarmel  or "the garden" or "the garden-land." In the fourth century B.C. the neo-Platonic philosopher Iamblicus, speaks of Mt. Carmel as "sacred above all mountains and forbidden of access to the vulgar"
• The Date of Birth and Death of Jesus Due to a mistaken calculation based on the Roman Calendar by Dionysius Exiguus in 525, it was long held that Jesus was born in the year 1 BC making the following year, AD 1, the first throughout which he was alive. Many chronologists today conclude that the year 6 BC is the most likely year of Jesus' birth.
• Immaculate Conception and Virgin Birth Many people, even Catholics, believe Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of Jesus, but it is actually a Catholic dogma that asserts that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was preserved by God from the stain of original sin at the time of her conception.
• The Infancy of Christ "As to the day, month or year of the nativity it is certain that they can never be recovered; they were absolutely unknown to the early fathers, and there is scarcely one month of the year which has not been fixed upon as probable by modern critics."
• The Physical Descriptions of Jesus The Oldest Views and Literary Data on the External Appearance of Jesus. Pontius Pilate, Publius Lentullus of Rome, The "Archko Volume," and Josephus all describe the physical appearance of Jesus the Nazarene.
• The Names and Titles of Jesus In the Gospels, Jesus has many titles: Messiah, Prophet, Lord, son of man, and son of God. Some historians argue that when used in other Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the time, these titles have other meanings, and therefore may have other meanings when used in the Gospels as well.
• The Life and Teachings of Jesus The Life and Teachings of Jesus according to the New Testament.
• The Historical Jesus This section provides a historical view of Jesus, based largely on textual evidence from the 1st and 2nd centuries.
• The Top Ten Discoveries of the Historical Jesus Each item on this list is significant because of accumulation and combination. One example or one category alone is not as important as the relationship of all the data when studied collectively.
• The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah An incredibly thorough and detailed account of the childhood and life of Jesus.
• Academic Historians and Religious Texts The historicity of Jesus. Debates concerning Jesus as a historical figure center on two issues: the role of God in natural and human history, and the veracity of the New Testament as a historical source.

Map of Ancient Palestine at the Time of Christ

Biblical Units of Weights and Measures

~ The Descendants and Bloodline of Christ ~

"Neither Sylvester nor any of the thirty-two popes before him, nor those succeeding him, ever emphasized that there were at least three well-known and authentic lines of legitimate blood descent from Jesus' own family..." ~Malachi Martin

• The Genealogy of Jesus and the Holy Bloodline of Seth From Seth's descendants were born every prophet and mystic of the bible which eventually led to and produced the Christ.
• Desposyni; The Direct Descendants of Christ The Desposyni (from Greek (desposunos) meaning "of or belonging to the master or lord" was a sacred name reserved for Jesus' blood relatives.
• The Holy Bloodline of Jesus The Holy Bloodline of Jesus is the theory that Jesus Christ had a natural child with Mary Magdalene which was then taken to France, either during Magdalene's pregnancy or as a young child, and whose blood descendants in later centuries founded the Merovingian dynasty of the early kings of France.
• Rex Deus; The King God Bloodline The Rex Deus (Latin for "King God") bloodline is, the European branch of the descendants of both high priest Aaron and king David of ancient Israel. The bloodline includes Jesus, Mary Magdalene and the Desposyni, and may have been the progenitor of the Merovingian dynasty.
• James the Brother of Jesus "James was the brother of Christ according to the flesh... and one appointed Bishop of Jerusalem by the Lord Himself."
• The Ossuary of James The 20 Aramaic letters etched on a side of the newly revealed ossuary reads "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." The immense significance of this discovery could rival even that of the Dead Sea Scrolls.  
• Unlocking the Codes of the Bible In the early part of the first century, Philo of Alexandria developed a set of "guidelines" for the allegorical interpretation of scripture. It is now thought that Luke used these guidelines to construct his stories and that these same guidelines can be used to recover the coded messages.

"The Roman Catholic Church tried to kill off all remnants of the Desposyni and their guardians, the Cathars and the Templars, during the Inquisition, in order to maintain power through the apostolic succession of Peter instead of the hereditary succession of Mary Magdalene." ~The Rise and Fall of the Catholic Church

~ Pharisees, Sadducees, Therapeutae and Essenes ~

• History and the Essenes  Three historians from the first century AD describe the Essenes—Pliny, Josephus and Philo.
• The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes An advanced examination of these distinctive sects.
• Essene Comparisons and Parallels A list of theological comparisons and parallels of Essene doctrines and teachings compiled from ancient and contemporary sources.
• The Essenes And Their Teaching Thou hast made known unto me Thy deep, mysterious things. All things exist by Thee and there is none beside Thee. By Thy Law Thou hast directed my path and I walk where Thy presence is.
• Essene and Christian Parallels and Commonalties Essenism and Christianity are strikingly alike in their fundamental teachings. Essene theology is much older than Christianity and contains nearly every essential doctrine and precept of the Christian religion.
• The Therapeutae of Ancient Egypt This selection describes the pre-Christian Essene ascetics of Egypt. It is important because it shows that asceticism was common in the deserts of Egypt long before the Christian monastics.
• The Christian Monastics of Alexandria The connection between the Therapeutae monasteries of Alexandria and the subsequent Christian monasteries of ancient Egypt.
• The Therapeutae and the Miracles of Jesus According to the canonical Gospels, Jesus worked many miracles in the course of his ministry. The bulk of His miracles were healings or various cures.
• The Hypothetica Fragments of lost works by Philo of Alexandria. Includes writings on the ancient Essenes. These fragments appear in Eusebius' "Preparation of the Gospel."

~ Essenian and Nazarite Theosophy ~

To make the human heart a temple, the soul an alter, and the mind a priest. These were the missions of Jesus the Nazarene. ~Kahlil Gibran

• The One Law  Man lives in a dynamic, constantly changing universe. There is no static point in nature. The Law manifests in perpetual change, and behind this change is a plan of balance and order on a vast scale.

• The Sevenfold Peace Human life can be divided into seven aspects, the physical, mental, emotional, social, cultural, its relationship with nature and its relationship with the cosmos.

• The Essene Tree Of Life Man has appeared to realize, as far back as records exist, that he was surrounded by invisible forces. This mystical symbol which has been imbedded in almost every religion and occult teachings throughout history is called the Tree of Life. 

• Biblical Veganism Veganism is the conviction and practice of compassionate living. It is a way of living which excludes all forms of cruelty and exploitation of the animal kingdom and includes a reverence for life.

• The Modes of Prayer The history, philosophy and practice of communication with God.
  Prayer is an offering of communication or praise to a God or other deities. The actual act of praying can take on many different forms. Most religions have certain forms that they recommend. There are also some specific forms that are forbidden.

• The Sanctity of Nature The first principle of ahimsa is the doctrine of refraining from harming any living thing. It is the understanding that the natural world has been created for all life as a means for the spirit to experience the diversity of the physical.

• What is Truth? Truth is an eternal process. It changes from awareness to awareness and is ever being created. It is the common denominator of all existence, but existence is constantly changing and evolving, and so must Truth.

• The Three Paths of Truth  There are three paths leading to Truth. The first is the path of the consciousness, the second is that of nature, and the third is that of accumulated experience.

• Pairs and Opposites The Principles of Polarity. "Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; all paradoxes may be reconciled."

• The Planes of Correspondence As above, so below; as below, so above. There is a harmony, agreement, and correspondence between the several planes of Manifestation, Life and Being. All that is included in the Universe emanates from the same source, and the same laws, principles, and characteristics apply to each unit, or combination of units, as each manifests its own phenomena upon its own plane.

• Cause and Effect The Principles of Karma. "Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause; everything happens according to Law; Chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law."

• The Eight Deadly Sins The struggle against the eight principal faults. A systematic treatise which details how to grow in virtue and combat vice. "It is not an external enemy whom we have to dread, for the real  foe is within ourselves."

• The Soul, its Origin, Nature, and Potentialities  The soul, being in its nature eternal, passes from one form to another until, in its highest stage, it polarizes sufficiently to receive the spirit. It is in all organized things. Nothing of an organic nature exists without a soul. It is the individual, and it perishes if abandoned of the spirit.

• The Difficulty of the Simplest Rule The sense of responsibility for one's actions grows as one progresses from stage to stage upon the Path of Evolution. In the early stages there is little or no responsibility. There is little or no knowledge, no sense of relationship to God, and very little sense of relationship to humanity.

• Incarnation and Reincarnation An incarnation is the process whereby the non-physical essence of spirit is invested with bodily nature and form. It is a union of the physical plane of existence with the non-physical plane. Reincarnation is the re-cycling of the essence of the spirit into different physical forms in order to grow and extend the self beyond the present state of self. 

• The Holy Streams More than this cannot be told, for the Holy Streams will take you to that place where words are no more, and even the Holy Scrolls cannot record the mysteries.

• The Essene Book Store Suggestions and resources for expanding your own Essenic library or scriptorium.

Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others I speak in parables; for in seeing they do not see, and in hearing they do not understand. ~Luke 8:10

• Introductory Understandings on Mystical Initiation We are in process of passing from one religious age into another. The spiritual trends of today are steadily becoming more defined. The hearts of men have never been more open to spiritual impression than they are at this time, and the door into the very center of reality stands open wide.

• The Mystics of the Coming Kingdom As we grasp the significance of the kingdom of God we begin to understand what is meant by the meaning of the "cloud of witnesses" by which we are so constantly surrounded.

• Understanding The Essenic Theorem Esoteric perspectives on the processes of existence on the physical plane.

• Esoteric Christianity Esoteric Christianity refers to the occult study and the mystic living of the esoteric knowledge related to what adherents view as the "inner teachings" of early Christianity. The term is originally associated with the Essenes and later with the Rosicrucians.

• Essenic Theosophy: The Quest for Eternal Truth Theosophy is a body of ideas which holds that all religions are attempts by man to ascertain "the Divine", and as such, each religion has a valid perspective of the truth.

• Becoming Eternal Ascended Masters The transformation of the mortal body into the 'shuddha deham' or the 'perfect body' has been the subject of much discussion with all masters and their disciples throughout the centuries. If we wish for 'moksha,' or the 'becoming,' then it is important for us to understand the principals of the process.

• Perfected Humanity and the Link to God The height of material achievement has perhaps been reached. Now comes the opportunity for that subtle divine Self to manifest through the agency of the experience which we call the "new birth," the secret teaching which Christianity has never taught.

• Individual Reflected Vibrational Makeup The karmic needs or experiences of an individual are reflected in their vibrational makeup. The karmic vibratory power of the individual is determined by their feelings, their thought patterns and processes. The quality of the feelings and the thoughts affect these vibratory rates.

• Theosis: Becoming God In Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic theology, theosis, meaning divinization (or deification or, to become God), is the call to man to become holy and seek union with God, beginning in this life.

• The Order of the Kingdom Instructions and questions concerning the kingdom of God.

• The Founding of the Kingdom When we are ready to make the needed sacrifices and renunciations, then will there be the manifestation of the kingdom of God on earth.

Jesus said, "If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you." ~The Nag Hammadi Library

      They said unto him, "How shall we then, enter the kingdom?" Jesus said unto them, "When you make the two one, and when you make the inside like the outside, and when you make the male and the female one and the same; then will you enter the kingdom." ~The Gospel of Thomas

• The Feminine Aspect of God Judaism and Christianity are both monotheistic religions, strongly connected to a patriarchal God. However, it may surprise many to discover that a goddess was associated with Judaism from its conception

• The Principle of Gender "Gender is in everything and manifests on every plane of phenomena. Gender is in constant operation in the fields of Matter, in the fields of Energy, and in the fields of Force. The word "Gender" is derived from Latin meaning to beget; to produce; to generate; or to create. The dichotomy of two sexes is merely an organic manifestation of Gender on a physical plane."

• Clothed With The Sun The Prophecy of the Kingdom of the Soul, mystically called the Day of the Woman: "The word which shall come to save the world shall be uttered by a woman, for woman shall conceive, and shall bring forth the tidings of salvation. The reign of Adam is at its last hour; and God shall crown all things by the creation of Eve."

• The Legend of Mary Magdalene The life, history and legends of Mary from Magdala.

• The Apostle Mary Magdalene  Referred to in early Christian writings as "the apostle to the apostles," she was the constant companion of Jesus and his disciples. She was present throughout his early ministry, she was at his crucifixion and burial, and went to the tomb to anoint his body. She was the first to see the risen Christ and first to announce his resurrection to the apostles. 

• The Gospel of Mary Magdalene  The Savior's beloved who possessed knowledge and teaching superior to that of the apostolic tradition.

• Scholars taking a new look at Mary Magdalene  Discoveries of new texts have now proven that her reputation as a repentant prostitute is entirely inaccurate. She was indeed an influential figure, a prominent disciple, and a leader of the early Christian movement.

• Expansion of the Mary Magdalene Tradition An overview of Mary Magdalene in the Canon, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Mary as the wife of Jesus and the author of the fourth Gospel.

• The Epistle of Apollos The Prophet  A first century document which describes the appearance of Jesus and Mary Magdalene together after the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem.

• The Way of Perfection by St. Teresa of Avila. A practical guide to prayer setting forth the counsels and directives for the attainment of spiritual perfection. A work of sublime mystical beauty which instructs, exhorts, and inspires all those who are seeking a more perfect way of life.

• The Perfect Way or The Finding of Christ by Anna Kingsford. The Perfect Way represents a discovery to ascertain the nature and method of existence. It also represents a recovery because the system propounded has proved to be that which constituted the basic and secret doctrines of all the great religions of antiquity, including Christianity, – the doctrine commonly called the Gnosis, and variously entitled Hermetic and Kabbalistic.

• The Ascent to the Mount of Vision  by Jane Lead. Sent by God's Eternal Wisdom to reveal more about the internal First Resurrection, the State of Separated Souls, and the Manifestation of the Kingdom of Christ upon the Earth in the Nazarite Sons and Daughters of God.

• The Laws of Paradise  God reveals the requirements for those of the high calling or Nazarites, who shall have access to Paradise while still within their mortal bodies.

• The Enochian Walks with God A prophetic work showing that the Nazarites understood that the renewal of the mind and heart was absolutely necessary to achieve oneness with God, such as Enoch had, and those things that prevent it.

• The Threefold State of Man 'For here I come to open the great Secret that was revealed unto me. Wherein it was given to understand the Way.

• Plutarch's Parable by Paula Gott. 'Luke-Acts was written in coded words and numbers. Explore the shocking stories hidden within the subsurface messages.'

• Ancient Wisdom An outline of theosophical teachings by Annie Besant. Right thought is necessary to right conduct, right understanding to right living, and the Divine Wisdom. Theosophy comes to the world as at once an adequate philosophy and an all-embracing religion and ethic.

There is neither male nor female, slave or free, for ye all are One in Christ  ~Galatians 3:28

• Monasticism; Total Devotion to Spiritual Living Monasticism is the religious practice of renouncing all worldly pursuits in order to fully devote one's life to spiritual living. "He who will not have renounced all that he possesses, cannot be My disciple."
• The Monastic Institutes The Training of a Monk and the Eight Deadly Sins by St. John Cassian. Written between 425 and 430 A.D., this is the acknowledged primary authority on monasticism. A systematic treatise which details how to live as a monk, grow in virtue and combat vice.
• The Imitation of Christ This pastiche of biblical passages, attributed to a humble scribe, remains the most influential of all monastic devotional writings.
• Paradise of the Desert Fathers The wisdom of the desert monks of Egypt, Syria and Palestine. Life giving "words" from the solitudes of monastic life.
• The Conferences of St John Cassian The training of the inner self and the perfection of the heart. "The "Conferences" contain a record of the conversations of Cassian and Germanus with the Egyptian solitaries, the subject being the interior life.
• The Words of Sacred Admonition Of all the writings of St. Francis of Assisi, The Admonitions contain the most stirring and enduring words of inspiration for all who seek to follow in the footsteps of Christ.
•  The Rule of St Francis - 1223 The ideal that St. Francis laid down in his rule is very high; the apostolical life was to be put in practice by his brethren, and indeed we see that St. Francis and his companions lived perfectly according to that standard.
• On The Contemplative Life by Philo of Alexandria 20 BCE - 50 CE.  Describes the pre-Christian ascetics of Egypt. This important text shows that Essenic traditions were common in the deserts of Egypt long before the arrival of the Christian monks.
• Epistle to a Disciple St. Ephraim of Syria, Mesopotamian Christian poet, monastic, and theologian, (IV Century) Advice on the monastic life.
• The Aphorisms and Maxims of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin. His philosophy was founded upon the time-honored propositions that there must be a living Essence behind the manifested universe which is the ground-work of existence, the One in which every man perceives as himself.
• The Essene Holy Rule of the White Robed Monks of Mt. Carmel This contemporary Rule is a unification of two traditions: The ancient Essenes and early Christianity. What the historical Christ and the Essene Brotherhoods taught is experienced collectively within the essence of this text.
• Apostolic Constitutions A 4th century collection, in 8 books, of independent, though closely related, treatises on Christian discipline, worship, and doctrine, intended to serve as a manual of guidance for the clergy, and to some extent for the laity.
• The Liturgical Year The liturgical year consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in some Christian traditions which determines when Fasts, Feasts, Memorials, Commemorations and Solemnities are to be observed and which portions of Scripture are to be read.

They spent much time studying the scriptures and the writings of the prophets, and taking of them only what is most advantageous for their body and soul. ~ Flavius Josephus

• Ascent of Mount Carmel  An incomparable guide to spiritual life. It addresses those who aspire to grow in union with God and it examines every category of spiritual experience. With rare insight into human psychology it not only tells how to become more closely united with God, but spells out in vivid detail the pitfalls to avoid.
• Jesus, the Son of Man His words and deeds as told by seventy-seven of his closest contemporaries, both friends and foes: Syrians, Romans, Greeks and Jews; Persians, Publicans, Priests and Poets.
• The Book of the Secrets of Enoch ^"Hear, Enoch, and take in these my words, for not to My angels have I told my secret, and I have not told them their rise, nor my endless realm, nor have they understood my creating, which I now tell you this day."
• Dark Night of the Soul The ultimate expression for the adept seeker. Explains the spiritual journey from estranged despair to blissful union with the divine.
• The Didache A very ancient first century Christian document. It describes the ethical paths to life and death in general terms, then focuses on spiritual life in an age when evangelists and prophets still roamed the earth.
• Encyclopedia Essenicá Definitions and concepts concerning fundamental Essenic ideas, esoteric functions and Nazarene philosophies.
• The Essenian Book Store Suggestions and resources for expanding your own Essenic library or scriptorium.

~ Transcendental  Wisdom ~

Whosoever keepeth the Holy Law, the same shall save their souls, however differently they may see the truths which I have given. In my Father's house are many mansions: I go to prepare a place for you all.  Jesus ~Gospel of the Holy Twelve

• Yin and Yang The ideal state of all things in the physical universe is the state of harmony represented by the balance of Yin and Yang.
• Karma is the physical manifestation of the law of balance and harmony. You are bound karmically to anything that you accept until you understand it. 
• The Four Noble Truths The four noble truths are the most basic expression of the Buddha's teaching. These four truths are best understood, not as beliefs, but as categories of experience.
• The Eightfold Path "The doctrines, which I advised you to penetrate, you should well preserve so that this Holy Life may take its course and continue for ages, for the welfare of the many, as a consolation to the world, and for the happiness of heavenly beings and men"
• The Dhammapada The Buddha's "Path of Wisdom" The instructions explaining the true nature of existence and the knowledge which extricates the roots of all suffering.
• The Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali Yoga means Union and its purpose is to instruct the practitioner on how to achieve Union or Spiritual Absorption into the Supreme Absolute of God. Yoga teaches us that our true self is the soul and that our self identity is an illusion to be overcome.
• Glossary of Pali and Buddhist Terms A glossary which contains many Pali words and technical terms that are found in most Buddhist texts, scrolls and manuscripts.
• The Bhagavad Gita The pantheistic doctrine of the Bhagavad Gita is that God is everything. Its verses celebrate the discovery of the Absolute Spirit beyond creation as being the hidden Essence of all manifestation. 
• The Tao Te Ching The Tao Te Ching describes the Tao or "The Way", as the unity of nature that makes each thing in the universe what it is and determines its behavior.
• The Egyptian Book of the Dead  "And Jesus, after that he had finished his study of The Law, went down again into Egypt that he might learn of the wisdom of the Egyptians, even as Moses did."  
• The Analects of Confucius Confucius has become synonymous with Eastern wisdom: profound and mysterious. The Analects offer sensible advice based on principles of justice and moderation. So timeless was his thinking that even now, after two and a half thousand years, the Analects remains one of the most influential texts ever written.
• Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda. This unusual life-document is one of the most revealing of the depths of the Hindu mind and heart, and of the spiritual wealth of India, ever to be published in the West.

Links and Other Sites of Interest

Suggested Reading

• The Tragedy of Christ In turning our attention to the story of the Crucifixion, it is obvious that there is need to recount the details of it, and yet, it is so well known and so familiar that the words in which it is couched are apt to mean little and often go unrealized.

• What is Holy Week? Commemorating the events that led to the arrest and execution of Jesus the Nazarene. During this week we are reminded to reflect upon the meaning of Jesus' death. An event that took place nearly two millennia ago at a place which still remains the epicenter of religious and political violence today.

• Why was Jesus Arrested? The political and economic reasons for dealing with Jesus. The "conspiracy" against Jesus had been building for at least 3 years, and sources record seven instances of official plotting against him, two efforts at arrest, and three assassination attempts before this time. This intrigue was no spur of the moment idea.

• Details and History of Crucifixion Crucifixion was never performed for ritual or symbolic reasons; it is an ancient method of execution in which the victim was tied or nailed to a large wooden cross (Latin: crux) and left to hang until dead.

• The Physical Suffering of Jesus The word "excruciating" comes from the Latin, excruciatus, or "out of the cross.

• INRI: The Inscription Explained Pilate had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, 'Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.' Many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek.

• The Resurrection of Jesus Most Christians accept the New Testament story as an historical account of an actual event central to their faith. Others generally view the account of the resurrection of Jesus as fictional to varying degrees.

• Why hast thou forsaken me? Aramaic Bible researchers claim that the traditional "forsaken" interpretation is a mistake in the Aramaic scribing that was transferred to later transcriptions. According to modern translations, that rather than a "loss of faith" Christ meant, to say "so this is my destiny."

• Vicarious Atonement The Crucifix is the emblem and symbol of the Son of God, not because Jesus shed his blood upon the cross for the sins of man, but because the Christ is crucified perpetually so long as sin remains. 

And all the creatures, which are under heaven, each according to its nature, serve, know and obey their Creator better than You. And even the demons did not crucify Him, but You together with them have crucified Him and even now you crucify (Him) by delighting in vices and sins. ~St. Francis of Assisi

 Go ye, then, into all the world and take possession of all lands in the name of the Pope. He who will not accept him as the Vicar of Jesus and his Vice-regent on earth, let him be accursed and exterminated.  ~Oath of the Jesuit Order

• The Fallacy of Paul "You must all obey the governing authorities. Since all government comes from God, all civil authorities were appointed by God, and anyone who resists authority is rebelling against God's decision, and such an act is bound by damnation. The State is there to serve God for your benefit." Romans 13:1-6
• Paul And The Disciples Of Jesus "It is amazing," they said, "that your Church can read in the writings extant concerning our relations with Paul the account of the mistrust, suspicion, and disfavour with which we always regarded him, and not see that he was never one with us."
• The Gospels: Second Century Writings The Four Gospels were unknown to the early Christian Fathers. It wasn't until the latter half of the second century, between the time of Justin and Papias, the Four Gospels were written and compiled.
• Acts, Catholic Epistles, and Revelation "As evidences of Christ's historical existence and divinity these writings are of no value. They are all anonymous writings or forgeries, and of very late origin. While they affirm Christ's existence they are almost entirely silent regarding his life and miracles."
• Christianity; The Restatement of Ancient Doctrine Christianity is the restatement of a very old doctrine. It is not new. The Gospel narratives are dependable only because they are integrated with the spiritual revelation of the past, and are being reinterpreted today in the terms of 'Christ.'
• 666: The Number of the Beast Some versions of Christian eschatology holds that the Mark of the Beast is one way in which the antichrist will exercise power over the earth. The literal interpretation is that the number 666 will be imprinted on the skin, but with recent technological developments the possibilities of universal control are limitless.
• Inconsistencies of the New Testament An extensive listing which identifies contradictions within the New Testament which are inherent in a literalist or fundamentalist interpretation.
• Forgery In Christianity A documented record of the foundations of the Christian religion. "To such an extent are the origins of the Christian Religion wrapped in obscurity, due to the labyrinthine confusions, contradictions and forgeries of its early records, that it is quite impossible to extricate, with any degree of confidence, a thread of historic truth from the tangle;"
• The Rise of the Papacy "There are two powers which rule the world, the imperial and pontifical. The sovereign of the human race must bow their neck to those who preside over things divine. The priesthood is the greater of the two powers; it has to render an account in the last day for the acts of kings." 
• Papal Infallibility The Pope and the impossibility of error. In Catholic theology, papal infallibility is the dogma that the Pope, when he solemnly defines a matter of faith or morals, it does not have the possibility of error. This doctrine was defined by the First Vatican Council of 1870. 
• Iconoclasm: The religious or political destruction of sacred images or monuments. In 725 the Emperor Leo III ordered the removal of all religious icons from churches and monasteries. Nearly all ancient images of Jesus were destroyed during the iconoclastic periods of the eighth and ninth centuries.
• Council of Nicaea  The formulation of the Nicene Creed, the earliest dogmatic statement of Christian orthodoxy.
• The Nicene and Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed Referred to by Roman Catholics and Orthodox as the "symbol of faith", its recitation is often part of Christian worship services. In the Catholic Mass, it is also referred to as the "Profession of Faith."
• The Jesuit Order  The complete 'Oath of Extreme Induction'. The power to depose heretical kings, princes, states, commonwealths and governments.
• The Inquisition  Taking control of the human spirit.
• The Reformation The converting of the populace.
• The Burning Times For 300 years, from the fifteenth to the eighteenth century, the Church creates the elaborate concept of devil worship and uses the persecutions to eliminate the dissent, to subordinate the individual to authoritarian control, and to openly denigrate women. 
• The Malleus Maleficarum "The belief that there are such beings as witches is so essential a part of the Catholic faith that obstinately to maintain the opposite opinion manifestly savours of heresy."
• The Third Secret of Fatima Between May and October of 1917, the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to three shepherd children in the fields outside the village of Fatima, Portugal. There she revealed to them three secrets concerning the fate of humanity.
• "The Way" vs. The Church The "Way" as taught by Jesus "the Nazarene", his brother James "the Just", their cousin John "the Baptist", the Essenes, Nazirenes, Ebionites and others.

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