¶ Door Number Thirty-One
¶ The Lost Years of Jesus Christ
¶ “Jesus said: ‘And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me so that you also may be where I am.’”
Jesus (PBUH) loved his companions so much that he gave up his life for them. He would never abandon his friends. Most people only know that Jesus (PBUH) visited his disciples a number of times over the forty days after the Crucifixion. Little do people know that Jesus (PBUH) visited his disciples many more times and, as he previously promised, wished to take them with him. Jesus (PBUH) told them before:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me (so) that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”
That is exactly what Jesus (PBUH) did. He continued to visit them and teach them. He tried to take them with him, but they did not want to go with him. At least most of them. In the Gnostic Gospel The Secret Book of James it recounts the matter:
James writes to you. Peace be with you from Peace, love from Love, grace from Grace, faith from Faith, life from Holy Life! Since you asked me to send you a secret book which was revealed to me and Peter by the Lord, I could neither refuse you nor speak directly to you, but I have written it in Hebrew letters and have sent it to you - and to you alone. But inasmuch as you are a minister of the salvation of the saints, endeavor earnestly and take care not to recount this book to many - this which the Savior did not desire to recount to all of us, his twelve disciples. But blessed are those who will be saved through faith in this discourse. Now I sent you ten months ago another secret book which the Savior revealed to me. But that one you are to regard in this manner, as revealed to me, James. Now the twelve disciples were sitting all together at the same time, and, remembering what the Savior had said to each one of them, whether secretly or openly, they were setting it down in books. And I was writing what was in my book - lo, the Savior appeared, after he had departed from us while we gazed at him. And five hundred and fifty days after he arose from the dead, we said to him: “Have you gone and departed from us?” And Jesus said: “No, but I shall go to the place from which I have come. If you desire to come with me, come.” They all answered and said: “If you bid us, we’ll come.” He said: “Truly I say to you, no one ever will enter the Kingdom of Heaven if I bid him, but rather because you yourselves are full. Let me have James and Peter, in order that I may fill them.” And when he called these two, he took them aside, and commanded the rest to busy themselves with that with which they had been busy.
The Savior said; “You have received mercy....
(7 lines missing)
Do you not desire, then, to be filled? And is your heart drunk? Do you not desire, then, to be sober? Therefore, be ashamed! And now, waking or sleeping, remember that you have seen the Son of Man, and with him you have spoken, and to him you have listened. Woe to those who have seen the Son of Man! Blessed are those who have not seen the Man, and who have not consorted with him, and who have not spoken with him, and who have not listened to anything from him. Yours is life! Know, therefore, that he healed you when you were ill, in order that you might reign. Woe to those who have rested from their illness, because they will relapse again into illness! Blessed are those who have not been ill, and have known rest before they became ill. Yours is the Kingdom of God! Therefore I say to you, become full and leave no place within you empty, since the Coming One is able to mock you.” Then Peter answered: “Lord, three times you have said to us ‘Become full’, but we are full.” The Lord answered and said: “Therefore I say unto you, become full, in order that you may not be diminished. Those who are diminished, however, will not be saved. For fullness is good and diminution is bad. Therefore, just as it is good for you to be diminished and, on the other hand, bad for you to be filled, so also the one who is full is diminished; and the one who is diminished is not filled as the one who is diminished is filled, and the one who is full, for his part, brings his sufficiency to completion. Therefore, it is fitting to be diminished while you can still be filled, and to be filled while it is still possible to be diminished, in order that you can fill yourselves the more. Therefore become full of the spirit but be diminished of reason. For reason is of the soul; and it is soul.” And I answered, and said to him: “Lord, we can obey you if you wish. For we have forsaken our forefathers and our mothers and our villages and have followed you. Grant us, therefore, not to be tempted by the wicked devil.” The Lord answered and said: “What is your merit when you do the will of the Father if it is not given to you by him as a gift, while you are tempted by Satan? But if you are oppressed by Satan and are persecuted and you do the Father’s will, I say that he will love you and will make you equal with me and will consider that you have become beloved through his providence according to your free choice. Will you not cease, then, being lovers of the flesh and being afraid of sufferings? Or do you not know that you have not yet been mistreated and have not yet been accused unjustly, nor have you yet been shut up in prison, nor have you yet been condemned lawlessly, nor have you yet been crucified without reason, nor have you yet been buried shamefully, as was I myself, by the evil one? Do you dare to spare the flesh, you for whom the spirit is an encircling wall? If you contemplate the world, how long it is before you and also how long it is after you, you will find that your life is one single day and your sufferings, one single hour. For the good will not enter the world. Scorn death, therefore, and take concern for life. Remember my cross and my death and you will live.” And I answered and said to him: “Lord, do not mention to us the cross and the death, for they are far from you.” The Lord answered and said: “Truly I say to you, none will be saved unless they believe in my cross. But those who have believed in my cross, theirs is the Kingdom of God. Therefore, become seekers for death, just as the dead who seek for life, for that which they seek is revealed to them. And what is there to concern them? When you turn yourselves towards death, it will make known to you election. In truth I say to you, none of those who are afraid of death will be saved. For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who have put themselves to death. Become better than I; make yourselves like the son of the Holy Spirit.” Then I questioned him: “Lord how may we prophesy to those who ask us to prophesy to them? For there are many who ask us and who look to us to hear an oracle from us.” The Lord answered and said: “Do you not know that the head of prophecy was cut off with John?” And I said: “Lord, it is not possible to remove the head of prophecy, is it?” The Lord said to me: “When you come to know what ‘head’ is, and that prophecy issues from the head, then understand what is the meaning of ‘Its head was removed.’ I first spoke with you in parables, and you did not understand. Now, in turn, I speak with you openly, and you do not perceive. But it is you who were to me a parable in parables and what is apparent in what are open. Be zealous to be saved without being urged. Rather, be ready on your own and, if possible, go before me. For thus the Father will love you. Become haters of hypocrisy and evil thought. For it is thought which gives birth to hypocrisy, but hypocrisy is far from the truth. Let not the Kingdom of Heaven wither away. For it is like a date palm shoot whose fruits poured down around it. It put forth leaves and, when they budded, they caused the productivity of the date palm to dry up. Thus it is also with the fruit which came from this single root; when the fruit was picked, fruits were collected by many harvesters. It would indeed be good if it were possible to produce these new plants now; for then you would find the Kingdom. Since I have been glorified in this manner before this time, why do you all restrain me when I am eager to go? You have constrained me to remain with you eighteen more days for the sake of the parables. It sufficed for some persons to pay attention to the teaching and understand ‘The Shepherds’ and ‘The Seed’ and ‘The Building’ and ‘The Lamps of the Virgins’ and ‘The Wage of the Workers’ and ‘The Double Drachma’ and ‘The Woman.’ Become zealous about the Word. For the Word’s first condition is faith; the second is love; the third is works. Now from these comes life. For the Word is like a grain of wheat. When someone sowed it, he believed in it; and when it sprouted, he loved it, because he looked forward to many grains in the place of one; and when he worked it, he was saved, because he prepared it for food. Again he left some grains to sow. Thus it is also possible for you all to receive the Kingdom of Heaven: unless you receive it through knowledge, you will not be able to find it. Therefore I say to you, be sober. Do not go astray. And many times I have said to you all together - and also to you alone, James, I have said - ‘Be saved!’ And I have commanded you to follow me, and I have taught you the response in the presence of the rulers. Observe that I have descended, and I have spoken, and I have troubled myself, and I have received my crown, when I saved you. For I have descended to dwell with you in order that you also may dwell with me. And when I found that your houses had no ceilings over them, I dwelt in houses which would be able to receive me when I descended. Therefore, obey me, my brothers. Understand what the great light is. The Father does not need me. For a father does not need a son, but it is the son who needs the father. To him I am going, for the Father of the Son is not in need of you. Pay attention to the Word. Understand Knowledge. Love Life. And no one will persecute you, nor will anyone oppress you, other than you yourselves. O you wretched! O you unfortunates! O you dissemblers of the truth! O you falsifiers of knowledge! O you sinners against the spirit! Do you even now dare to listen, when it behooved you to speak from the beginning? Do you even now dare to sleep, when it behooved you to be awake from the beginning, in order that the Kingdom of Heaven might receive you? In truth I say to you, it is easier for a holy one to sink into defilement, and for a man of light to sink into darkness, than for you to reign - or even not to reign! I have remembered your tears and your grief and your sorrow. They are far from us. Now, then, you who are outside the inheritance of the Father, weep where it behooves you and grieve and proclaim that which is good, since the Son is ascending appropriately. In truth I say to you, had it been to those who would listen to me that I was sent, and had it been with them that I was to speak, I would have never descended upon the earth. And now, then, be ashamed on account of them. Behold, I shall depart from you. I am going and I do not desire to remain with you any longer - just as you yourselves have not desired. Now, then, follow me quickly. Therefore I say to you, for your sake I have descended. You are the beloved; you are those who will become a cause of life for many. Beseech the Father. Implore God often, and he will give to you. Blessed is the one who has seen you with him when he is proclaimed among the angels and glorified among the saints. Yours is life! Rejoice and be glad as children of God. Keep his will in order that you may be saved. Take reproof from me and save yourselves. I intercede on your behalf with the Father, and he will forgive you much.” And when we heard these things, we became elated, for we had been depressed on account of what we had said earlier. Now when he saw our rejoicing, he said: “Woe to you who are in want of an advocate! Woe to you who are in need of grace! Blessed are those who have spoken freely and have produced grace for themselves. Make yourselves like strangers; of what sort are they in the estimation of your city? Why are you troubled when you oust yourselves of your own accord and depart from your city? Why do you abandon your dwelling place of your own accord, readying it for those who desire to dwell in it? O you exiles and fugitives! Woe to you, because you will be caught! Or perhaps you imagine that the Father is a lover of humanity? Or that he is persuaded by prayers? Or that he is gracious to one on behalf of another? Or that he bears with one who seeks? For he knows the desire and also that which the flesh needs. Because it is not the flesh which yearns for the soul. For without the soul the body does not sin, just as the soul is not saved without the Spirit. But if the soul is saved when it is without evil, and if the spirit also is saved, then the body becomes sinless. For it is the spirit which animates the soul, but it is the body which kills it - that is, it is the soul which kills itself. Truly I say to you, the Father will not forgive the sin of the soul at all, nor the guilt of the flesh. For none of those who have worn the flesh will be saved. For do you imagine that many have found the Kingdom of Heaven? Blessed is the one who has seen himself as a fourth one in Heaven.” When we heard these things, we became distressed. Now when he saw that we were distressed, he said: “This is why I say this to you, that you may know yourselves. For the Kingdom of Heaven is like an ear of grain which sprouted in a field. And when it ripened, it scattered its fruit and, in turn, filled the field with ears of grain for another year. You also: be zealous to reap for yourselves an ear of life, in order that you may be filled with the Kingdom. As long as I am with you, give heed to me and obey me. But when I am to depart from you, remember me. And remember me because I was with you without your knowing me. Blessed are those who have known me. Woe to those who have heard and have not believed! Blessed are those who have not seen but have had faith! And once again I persuade you. For I am revealed to you building a house which is very valuable to you, since you take shelter under it; in the same way it will be able to support the house of your neighbors when theirs is in danger of falling. In truth I say to you, woe to those on behalf of whom I was sent down to this place! Blessed are those who are to ascend to the Father. Again I reprove you. You who are, make yourselves like those who are not, in order that you may come to be with those who are not. Let not the Kingdom of Heaven become desolate among you. Do not become arrogant on account of the light which illumines. Rather, become to yourselves in this manner, as I am to you. For I have placed myself under the curse, in order that you may be saved.” And Peter answered to this and said: “Sometimes you urge us on to the Kingdom of Heaven, and other times you turn us away, Lord. Sometimes you persuade us and impel us to faith and promise us life, and other times you expel us from the Kingdom of Heaven.” And the Lord answered and said to us: “I have given you faith many times. Moreover, I have revealed myself to you, James, and you have not known me. Again, now I see you rejoicing many times. And when you are elated over the promise of life, are you nevertheless glum? And are you distressed when you are taught about the Kingdom? But you through faith and knowledge have received life. Therefore, scorn rejection when you hear it, but, when you hear the promise, be the more glad. In truth I say to you, the one who will receive life and believe in the Kingdom will never leave it - not even if the Father desires to banish him! These things I shall say to you for the present. But now I shall ascend to the place from which I have come. But you, when I was eager to go, have driven me out, and, instead of your accompanying me, you have pursued me. But give heed to the glory which awaits me, and, having opened your hearts, listen to the hymns which await me up in heaven. For today I am obliged to take (my place) at the right hand of my Father. Now I have said my last word to you. I shall part from you. For a chariot of wind has taken me up, and from now on I shall strip myself in order that I may clothe myself. But give heed: blessed are those who have preached the Son before he descended, in order that, when I have come, I may ascend. Thrice-blessed are those who were proclaimed by the Son before they came into being, in order that you may have a portion with them.” When he said these things, he went away. And we knelt down, I and Peter, and gave thanks, and sent our hearts up to heaven. We heard with our ears and saw with our eyes the sound of wars and a trumpet call and a great commotion. And when we passed beyond that place, we sent our minds up further. And we saw with our eyes and heard with our ears hymns and angelic praises and angelic jubilation. And heavenly majesties were hymning, and we ourselves were jubilant. After this, we also desired to send our spirits above to the Majesty. And when we ascended, we were permitted neither to see nor to hear anything. For the rest of the disciples called to us and questioned us: “What is it that you have heard from the Master?” And, “What has he said to you?” And, “Where has he gone?” And we answered them: “He has ascended.” And, “He has given us a pledge and has promised us all life and disclosed to us children who are to come after us, since he has bid us to love them, inasmuch as we will be saved for their sake.” And when they heard, they believed the revelation, but were angry about those who would be born. Then I, not desiring to entice them to scandal, sent each one to another place. But I myself went up to Jerusalem, praying that I may obtain a portion with the beloved who are to be revealed. And I pray that the beginning may come from you, for thus I can be saved. Because they will be enlightened through me, through my faith and through another’s which is better than mine, for I desire that mine become the lesser. Endeavor earnestly, therefore, to make yourself like them, and pray that you may obtain a portion with them. For apart from what I have recounted, the Savior did not disclose revelation to us. For their sake we proclaim, indeed, a portion with those for whom it was proclaimed, those whom the Lord has made his children.
Indeed, five hundred and fifty days, about one year and a half after the Crucifixion, Jesus (PBUH) had returned to take his disciples with him to the place he went, as he promised. However, the disciples were too afraid of death and loved life. They thought Jesus (PBUH) spoke to them about going with him to death, and they responded to him, telling Jesus (PBUH), we will go if we must. Jesus (PBUH) said to them that no one goes into paradise by being commanded to. Jesus (PBUH) in this discourse is visibly angry and disappointed with his disciples and their actions, reprimanding them saying,
“Many times I have told you to be saved, or to believe in me and follow me.”
He calls them unfortunates and sinners, amongst many other things. Jesus (PBUH) finally leaves his disciples and sends them on their ways.
The disciples afterwards all separate from one another and travel to the four corners of the Earth preaching the Gospels. Simon Peter preached in Rome, Andrew preached to the Asiatic nations and Greece, James remained in Jerusalem, John and Philip went to Greece, Thomas and Bartholomew went to India, Matthew to Ethiopia and James to Egypt, Simon the Zealot to Persia, and Jude to Syria. Judas Iscariot died by way of suicide. Those are the twelve disciples.
However, one prominent disciple seemingly goes missing from history, Mary Magdalene. Where did she go? The truth is that while the disciples had all but rejected going with Jesus, it was Mary who would be the one to accompany Jesus until the end. During Jesus’ life, a Syrian king by the name of Abgar wrote a letter to Jesus and it is as follows:
Abgar, ruler of Edessa, to Jesus the good physician who has appeared in the country of Jerusalem, greeting. I have heard the reports of you and of your cures as performed by you without medicines or herbs. For it is said that you make the blind to see and the lame to walk, that you cleanse lepers and cast out impure spirits and demons, and that you heal those afflicted with lingering disease, and raise the dead. And having heard all these things concerning you, I have concluded that one of two things must be true: either you are God, and having come down from heaven you do these things, or else you, who does these things, are the son of God. I have therefore written to you to ask you if you would take the trouble to come to me and heal all the ill which I suffer. For I have heard that the Jews are murmuring against you and are plotting to injure you. But I have a very small yet noble city which is great enough for us both.
Jesus (PBUH) responded back with a letter to Abgar which stated:
Blessed are you who hast believed in me without having seen me. For it is written concerning me, that they who have seen me will not believe in me, and that they who have not seen me will believe and be saved. But in regard to what you have written me, that I should come to you, it is necessary for me to fulfill all things here for which I have been sent, and after I have fulfilled them thus to be taken up again to him that sent me. But after I have been taken up I will send to you one of my disciples, that he may heal your disease and give life to you and yours.
King Abgar V was from Edessa, also known as Osroene. Most of the population and rulers of Edessa during that time were of Arab origin. This was the beginning of the Arabs accepting Jesus where the Jews rejected him. As Jesus (PBUH) had stated, he was a Prophet of God and he would be rejected by the Jews and accepted elsewhere. In Matthew, Chapter 13, it states:
Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.” And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
So, while Jesus (PBUH) stopped working many miracles with the Jews, due to their lack of faith, he promises an Arab king a visitor from him who will work miracles. This represents the beginning of the transfer of the Covenant from the Children of Israel with the Mosaic Covenant to a Jesuit Covenant with the Arabs. Here is an account of the events which took place when the stranger arrived to Abgar:
After the ascension of Jesus, Judas, who was also called Thomas, sent to him Thaddeus, an apostle, one of the Seventy. When he had come, he lodged with Tobias, the son of Tobias. When the report of him got abroad, it was told Abgarus that an apostle of Jesus had come, as he had written him. Thaddeus began then in the power of God to heal every disease and infirmity, insomuch that all wondered. And when Abgarus heard of the great and wonderful things which he did and of the cures which he performed, he began to suspect that he was the one of whom Jesus had written him, saying, “After I have been taken up I will send to you one of my disciples who will heal you.” Therefore, summoning Tobias, with whom Thaddeus lodged, he said, “I have heard that a certain man of power has come and is lodging in your house. Bring him to me.” And Tobias coming to Thaddeus said to him, “The ruler Abgarus summoned me and told me to bring you to him that you might heal him.” And Thaddeus said, “I will go, for I have been sent to him with power.” Tobias therefore arose early on the following day, and taking Thaddeus came to Abgarus. And when he came, the nobles were present and stood about Abgarus. And immediately upon his entrance a great vision appeared to Abgarus in the countenance of the apostle Thaddeus. When Abgarus saw it he prostrated himself before Thaddeus, while all those who stood about were astonished; for they did not see the vision, which appeared to Abgarus alone. He then asked Thaddeus if he were in truth a disciple of Jesus the Son of God, who had said to him, “I will send you one of my disciples, who shall heal you and give you life.” And Thaddeus said, “Because you have mightily believed in him that sent me, therefore have I been sent unto you. And still further, if you believe in him, the petitions of your heart shall be granted you as you believe.” And Abgarus said to him, “So much have I believed in him that I wished to take an army and destroy those Jews who crucified him, had I not been deterred from it by reason of the dominion of the Romans.” And Thaddeus said, “Our Lord has fulfilled the will of his Father, and having fulfilled it has been taken up to his Father.” And Abgarus said to him, “I too have believed in him and in his Father.” And Thaddeus said to him, “Therefore I place my hand upon you in his name.” And when he had done it, immediately Abgarus was cured of the disease and of the suffering which he had. And Abgarus marveled, that as he had heard concerning Jesus, so he had received in very deed through his disciple Thaddeus, who healed him without medicines and herbs, and not only him, but also Abdus the son of Abdus, who was afflicted with the gout; for he too came to him and fell at his feet, and having received a benediction by the imposition of his hands, he was healed. The same Thaddeus cured also many other inhabitants of the city, and did wonders and marvelous works, and preached the word of God. And afterward Abgarus said, “You, O Thaddeus, do these things with the power of God, and we marvel. But, in addition to these things, I pray you to inform me in regard to the coming of Jesus, how he was born; and in regard to his power, by what power he performed those deeds of which I have heard.” And Thaddeus said, “Now indeed will I keep silence, since I have been sent to proclaim the word publicly. But tomorrow assemble for me all your citizens, and I will preach in their presence and sow among them the word of God, concerning the coming of Jesus, how he was born; and concerning his mission, for what purpose he was sent by the Father; and concerning the power of his works, and the mysteries which he proclaimed in the world, and by what power he did these things; and concerning his new preaching, and his abasement and humiliation, and how he humbled himself, and died and debased his divinity and was crucified, and descended into Hades, and burst the bars which from eternity had not been broken, and raised the dead; for he descended alone, but rose with many, and thus ascended to his Father.” Abgarus therefore commanded the citizens to assemble early in the morning to hear the preaching of Thaddeus, and afterward he ordered gold and silver to be given to him. But he refused to take it, saying, “If we have forsaken that which was our own, how shall we take that which is another’s?” These things were done in the three hundred and fortieth year.
Another Syrian apocryphal text titled The Acts of Mar Mari the Apostle details how Mari was a disciple of Thaddeus, who accompanied him, and was witness to king Abgar’s healing at the hands of Thaddeus. The manuscript details a second king who ruled over Arzen and who suffered from the exact same disease that Abgar did. This time, Mari healed the king of Arzen. After converting Abgar’s kingdom, as well as the kingdom of Arzen into believers, Thaddeus, accompanied by his disciple Mari, carried on eastwards towards Iraq. Islamic sources and narrations from the Family of Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) record that Jesus (PBUH) traveled to Iraq.
Ibn Abi Yaafor narrates that he went in on Abi Abdullah (PBUH) and he had a group of his companions with him and he said to him:
“O Ibn Abi Yaafor, did you read the Qur’an?” so I said, “Yes, this recitation.” So he said, “It is this one that I asked you about and none other than it.” So I said, “Yes, may I be your ransom, why?” He said, “Because Moses (PBUH) spoke to his people a speech and they could not handle it so they rebelled against him in Egypt and they fought him, and he fought them, and he killed them. And Jesus (PBUH) spoke to his people a speech and they did not handle it and they rebelled against him in Tikrit and so they fought him, and he fought them, and he killed them. And it is the saying of God Almighty, ‘Then a group of the Children of Israel believed while another disbelieved. We then supported the believers against their enemies, so they prevailed.’ And the first Qaim from us, the Ahlul-Bayt, will speak to you a speech that you will not handle and you will go out against him in Rumaila Al-Daskara (Iraq) and you will fight him, and he will fight you, and then he will kill you, and this will be the last time someone rebels.”
¶ Remembering What Really Happened Through the Holy Spirit
In the following dialogue between Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) and myself, I convey how I came to vividly know the missing years of Jesus Christ’s ministry after the Crucifixion. A ministry that proceeded from Syria to Iraq, and ultimately to Persia. The Imam (From Him is Peace) had prophesied that I would be able to see historical events that are not well known, hidden, or not recorded at all, with my own eyes. I narrated the following discovery to the Imam (From Him is Peace) after the Holy Spirit descended upon me.
I said, “My Father, may I inform you about that which I discovered?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Yes my son, go ahead.”
I said, “Mary Magdalene disappeared from history after the Crucifixion even though the disciples all traveled and preached. Mary was the closest to Jesus Christ (PBUH) and all the Gospels including the Gnostic texts and Gospels indicate a very strong relationship between the two and Jesus would indicate that she would always be with him.”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Yes.”
I said, “Jesus (PBUH) went to Iraq and married Mary Magdalene and marriage is the sunnah of Allah (the ways of God) and all of the Prophets and Imams had married. Jesus (PBUH) married Mary Magdalene and they had children and here is the amazing part my Father, the truly amazing part. Jesus (PBUH) had written a letter to a king in Syria. In the letter, Jesus (PBUH) had said that he would send to him someone in the future. From here and after the event of the Crucifixion, there appeared in the city a man who was performing miracles. They said perhaps this man was one of the disciples of Jesus (PBUH) or one of the believers. This man was traveling alongside a person whose name was Mary. This man met with the king and the king prostrated to him and the entire city believed. These two names, the name of the man Thaddeus and his disciple Mari, or Mary, appear once again in some narrations, but this time they appear accompanying a Prophet named Mani! History is corrupted, Jesus (PBUH) married Mary Magdalene and there came from them Mani, and Jesus taught him directly. And then Mani was crucified. The call of Jesus (PBUH) started in Jerusalem and then moved to Syria and ended with Iraq and Persia.”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “You are speaking as if you were present in all these stages and lived it with them with all its details. You are now seeing ages and events and are living it with all its details, O light of my eyes. You have reached a great stage. You are growing at an alarming rate, as I had hoped you would from the very first day that I spoke to you in it, and as I did before I even spoke to you directly. It is the light son, the light which is beginning to shine from inside you. I am proud of you, my son, very proud.”
Thus, in summary, Jesus Christ took Mary Magdalene, and under the identity of Thaddeus and Mari, Jesus and Mary travel to Syria, establishing their Covenant with the Arabs and converting kingdoms into the new religion. They move forward with a group of their disciples to Iraq, where a group of them rebel against Jesus (PBUH) after hearing a speech from Jesus which they find unbearable. Jesus lifts against them the sword and kills the rebellious party. After all, Jesus had said previously in Matthew, Chapter 10:
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.”
Contrary to orthodox Christian belief, Jesus (PBUH) married Mary Magdalene, and she became pregnant with a son. That son, Mani, would grow up to be taught by Jesus (PBUH) and sent forth as a Messenger from him. Prophet Mani (PBUH) would serve as the authentic link between the Jesuit and Mohammedan Covenants. Thus, this is the true story of the lost years of Jesus Christ (PBUH).
¶ On Knowing the Descendants of Jesus Christ
Mary Magdalene is one of the most mysterious characters of the Bible. She was a disciple of Jesus (PBUH), a witness to the Crucifixion, and the first one to witness him after his Resurrection or return. In the Gnostic Gospels, Mary Magdalene is a woman who had outstanding spiritual understanding and had her eyes focused on the Kingdom of the Heavens. She was also the closest companion to Jesus (PBUH), and the manuscripts allude to an even deeper relationship between the Master Jesus (PBUH) and his disciple.
In the Gospel of Mary Magdalene it states:
“Peter said to Mary, “Sister, we know that the Savior loved you more than all other women. Tell us the words of the Savior that you remember, the things you know that we don’t because we haven’t heard them.” Mary responded, “I will teach you about what is hidden from you.” And she began to speak these words to them.”
Clearly, we can see here that Mary Magdalene was privileged to special knowledge from Jesus (PBUH) that no one else was from the disciples. We also get from this text that Jesus had preferred Mary Magdalene over all other women, and a man prefers the woman he marries over all other women.
The Gospel of Mary Magdalene also records the following conversation between the disciples and Mary Magdalene:
Peter responded, bringing up similar concerns. He questioned them about the Savior, “Did he, then, speak with a woman in private without our knowing about it? Are we to turn around and listen to her? Did he choose her over us?” Then Mary wept and said to Peter, “My brother Peter, what are you imagining? Do you think that I have thought up these things by myself in my heart or that I am telling lies about the Savior?” Levi answered, speaking to Peter, “Peter, you have always been a wrathful person. Now I see you contending against the woman like the adversaries. For if the Savior made her worthy, who are you then for your part to reject her? Assuredly the Savior’s knowledge of her is completely reliable. That is why he loved her more than us “Rather we should be ashamed. We should clothe ourselves with the perfect human, acquire it for ourselves as he commanded us, and announce the good news, not laying down any other rule or law that differs from what the Savior said.” After [he said these] things, they started going out [to] teach and to preach.
This conversation, having taken place after the Crucifixion shows that the disciples knew that Mary Magdalene was Jesus’ favorite amongst them and that he had actually loved her more than the rest of them. In the same fashion that the brothers of Joseph had envied Joseph for being Jacob’s favorite (PBUH), the disciples of Christ had envied Mary Magdalene as well for being his favorite (PBUH). In the Gospel of Thomas, this envy even shows during the life of Jesus (PBUH):
“Simon Peter said to them, “Mary should leave us, for females are not worthy of life.” Jesus said, “Look, I shall guide her to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every female who makes herself male will enter heaven’s kingdom.”
Now pay attention to the fact that Jesus (PBUH) tells the disciples that he shall turn Mary Magdalene into a male, so that she may RESEMBLE you males. This will be important at a later time. But what made Mary Magdalene so special to Jesus, and what was the nature of her relationship with him? Was it simply a teacher/disciple relationship or was there perhaps something more? In the Gospel of Philip it is written:
“Three women always walked with the master: Mary his mother, [his] sister, and Mary of Magdala, who is called his companion. For “Mary” is the name of his sister, his mother, and his companion,”
and at a later part of the same Gospel it states:
“The companion of the [Savior] is Mary of Magdala. The [Savior loved] her more than [all] the disciples, [and he] kissed her often on her [mouth]. The other [disciples] said to him, ‘Why do you love her more than all of us?’ ”
The disciples clearly saw here that Jesus (PBUH) had a romantic relationship with Mary Magdalene and that he had taken her as his wife for she was called his companion, and he often kissed her on the lips. Keep in mind that the laws of Judaism, and the Fourth Covenant, prohibited touching between unmarried men and women let alone kissing on the lips. The disciples still wondered, however, why she was preferred over the rest of them in terms of spiritual rank with Jesus (PBUH). In the Pistis Sophia Gospel Jesus (PBUH) states the reason:
“Blessed Mary, you whom I shall complete with all the mysteries on high, speak openly, for you are one whose heart is set on heaven’s kingdom more than all your brothers.”
There are many other examples, but for the sake of time, we shall not list them all. We have demonstrated now that Mary Magdalene had a secret relationship with Jesus (PBUH) and that he had taken her as a wife. The rest of the disciples envied her, and her absence after the Crucifixion makes sense for she left with Jesus (PBUH). As for the disciples, they had already let down Jesus (PBUH) many times. At the scene of the arrest of Jesus (PBUH), no one had stood to defend Jesus (PBUH) except for Simon Peter (PBUH). All the rest ran away. Even Simon Peter later denies knowing Jesus (PBUH) three times. Even the Qur’an records the fact that the disciples of Jesus (PBUH) were not always firm in faith, in Surah Al-Imran it states:
“But when Jesus became conscious of their disbelief, he cried: Who will be my helpers in the cause of Allah? The disciples said: We will be Allah’s helpers. We believe in Allah, and bear thou witness that we have surrendered (unto Him).”
Even though their faith was not always firm, and even though Jesus (PBUH) reprimanded them a lot, he still loved them and they loved him. They grew in faith stronger after the Crucifixion and spread the faith all over the world. Jesus (PBUH) forgave them for their shortcomings, and each of them died a martyr for the message of Jesus (PBUH). Mary Magdalene, however, accompanied Jesus (PBUH) during his post-crucifixion ministry. They traveled together to Syria under the guise of Thaddeus and his disciple Mari, who was disguised as a male disciple. Jesus disguised Mary Magdalene as a male in fulfillment of what he had said previously of making her RESEMBLE males. He did so to protect her during the travels but also in order that the people may respect her words, for most people during those times did not consider that a woman may have spiritual knowledge or understanding. There are other reasons, but these are two.
Mary Magdalene had become pregnant by Jesus (PBUH) immediately before the Crucifixion. She immediately disappeared after the Crucifixion from history so that no one would know she was pregnant. It was in Iraq that she gave birth to the son and successor of Jesus Christ, Prophet Mani (PBUH). It is written that Mani was born in Iraq to a woman named Mariam and a man named Pātik. Mariam is the Arabic form of Mary or Mari.
According to Oriental Christian tradition, there were three main disciples called Thomas, Addai (Thaddeus) and Mari who spread the call of Prophet Mani (PBUH). In fact, the three disciples of Mani are mentioned in many diverse traditions, which originated in various places. These three are identified as Mani’s earliest disciples, who spread his message throughout the world. The travels of Mani’s disciples Thomas, Addai, and Mari correspond to the same regions traversed by Jesus’ disciples Thomas, Thaddeus and Mari. It is therefore abundantly clear that history recorded the fact that Mani actually lived a lot closer to the time of Jesus (PBUH) than previously thought. It is also clear that Thaddeus or Addai and Mari or Mary accompanied Mani from his youth onwards.
When Mani turned twelve, Jesus (PBUH) revealed himself to his son and informed him that he was his father and began teaching Mani. Jesus (PBUH) also revealed himself to be the ‘Twin-Spirit’ of Mani, or in other words, the look-alike of Mani or in other words, Mani was the look-alike of Jesus (PBUH). Mani was actually the look-alike who was crucified in place of Jesus (PBUH). He reincarnated back into this world as the son of Jesus (PBUH). At the age of twenty-four, Mani proclaimed himself to be a real Apostle of Jesus Christ and began his mission to go forth and preach the real Gospel of Jesus (PBUH). Eventually, the look-alike, Mani, was arrested once more and crucified in a more horrible way than before. He was skinned alive and crucified, with his skin being filled with straw and hung over the gate of the city.
¶ The Vicegerents of Jesus
The first vicegerent of Jesus Christ (PBUH) was Simon Peter (PBUH). By the time Simon Peter (PBUH) was martyred, the false disciple Paul, who destroyed Christianity, writing lies in the Bible and corrupting its teachings, had succeeded in swaying people away from the real successors and teachings of Jesus (PBUH). Jesus (PBUH) having established a new Covenant with the Arabs, appointed Mani (PBUH) as his new successor. After his death, Mani’s followers named the religion that Mani preached Manichaeism, just as the followers of Christ called the religion of Jesus Christianity, and the followers of Zoroaster called the religion of Zoroaster Zoroastrianism. Just as the case is with most religions, shortly after its launch, Iblis and the hypocrites within the religion, manage to divert people away from the true successor and corrupt the teachings of the religion, just as Abu Bakr and Omar did with Islam, stealing it from the true successor Ali ibn Abi Talib (From Him is Peace). As such did happen with the Manichean religion. However, the true successors of Mani (PBUH) and Jesus (PBUH), although oppressed, continued to spread the true teachings of Monotheism.
Christianity was illegal throughout the Roman Empire; they persecuted Christians, not just in Rome but all over the world. The disciples were all martyred, and their followers were persecuted, killed, and tortured. That is, until the year 313 A.D. when the Roman Emperor Constantine decided to make Christianity the official religion of the Empire. Constantine was not a true believer and wanted to use the religion of Christianity to legitimize his authority. In 325 A.D., he held the Council of Nicaea where he sought to unify Christianity and settle any differences in schools of thought so that he could have total control of the religion.
¶ Arius: A Vicegerent of Christ
Arius (PBUH) was a Cyrenaic man who preached a doctrine that became the primary topic of discussion at the council of Nicaea. He taught that Jesus (PBUH) was a creation of God and that since Jesus (PBUH) was created by the Father, there must have been a time where Jesus (PBUH) was not, and therefore he is a creation and not equal to the Father God. The opponents of Arius argued that Jesus (PBUH) and God were one and the same, therefore elevating Jesus (PBUH) from the status of a Prophet to that of equal to God. Arius (PBUH) considered this to be a great heresy. Arius (PBUH) quoted verses from the scripture such as
“The Father is greater than I”
and
“The firstborn of all creation”
to prove that Jesus was a creature created and not the Almighty God. Arius (PBUH) believed and taught that God was greater than Jesus (PBUH), and that Jesus (PBUH) was under God, and not co-equal or co-eternal with Him. Arius (PBUH) was a true monotheist and was one of the true vicegerents of Jesus (PBUH).
A great debate took place during the council of Nicaea and the Emperor Constantine stood on the side of those who were against Arius (PBUH). He issued the following verdict against Arius and his followers:
In addition, if any writing composed by Arius should be found, it should be handed over to the flames, so that not only will the wickedness of his teaching be obliterated, but nothing will be left even to remind anyone of him. And I hereby make a public order, that if someone should be discovered to have hidden a writing composed by Arius, and not to have immediately brought it forward and destroyed it by fire, his penalty shall be death. As soon as he is discovered in this offense, he shall be submitted for capital punishment....”
Arius (PBUH) was exiled, and the Romans burned all of his writings. He was eventually poisoned and killed.
¶ True Popes vs. False Popes
The truest form of Christianity which exists is Catholicism. Catholicism was the first and most original form of Christianity established officially. That is because other forms of Christianity that came later preach that anyone can understand and interpret scripture, and this has allowed corruptions, distortions, and many forms and sects of Christianity to be born. Protestant Christianity believes that all a Christian needs can be found in the Bible. This is the same ideology of Omar ibn Al-Khattab who at the deathbed of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) rejected that the Prophet name his vicegerents, and said instead,
“The Book of Allah is enough for us”
thus giving birth to Sunni Islam. Catholic Christianity believes in the concept of an infallible guide or vicegerent, like in Shia Islam, who is given the keys to the heavens and the earth as Simon Peter was, and authority to interpret scripture and establish laws and rule.
The problem with both the official state-sanctioned forms of Catholicism and Shiism is that both religions got infiltrated and have appointed vicegerents that are not infallible and not from God but from Satan himself. As we saw, the Catholic Church denied Arius (PBUH) and instead appointed false Popes who taught heresies. As such, the Shiite institutions appointed false Marjas and Imams such as Khomeini and Sistani to lead them and introduced the heretical doctrines of Taqleed (imitation of scholars) and Wilayat Al-Faqih (the rule of the jurisprudent) thus leading most of the people astray. The hypocrisy is clear within Shiite Islam. They are fine with appointing additional Imams and giving them absolute religious and worldly authority, but they deny the Will of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) and deny the authority of the Mahdis, claiming there are no Imams after the twelve Imams (From Them is Peace).
The truth is that the line of vicegerents from Jesus (PBUH) and Mani (PBUH) went to Arius (PBUH) and from Arius (PBUH) to Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) and to the Mahdis (PBUT). The true vicegerent of Jesus Christ (PBUH) and the true Pope, the hidden Pope, is Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace). The young Pope to follow him is his successor and vicegerent, Aba Al-Sadiq Abdullah Hashem who is the reincarnation of Mani (PBUH) son of Jesus Christ (PBUH), who is mentioned by name in the Will of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) as one of his successors.
¶ Sources
- The Holy Bible, Book of John, Chapter 14, Verses 1-4
- The Secret Book of James (The Apocryphon of James), The Nag Hammadi Collection
- Since the First Adamic Covenant, God has given the human being free will, extreme latitude, and the power of choice because God is Free himself and we are created in His image.
- Ecclesiastical History (The History of the Church), Eusebius of Caesarea
- Ecclesiastical History (The History of the Church), Eusebius of Caesarea
- The Holy Bible, Book of Matthew, Chapter 13, Verses 54-58
- Ecclesiastical History (The History of the Church), Eusebius of Caesarea
- The Acts of Mar Mari the Apostle, Amir Harrak (Translator & Editor)
- Bihar Al-Anwar, Allamah Al-Majlisi, Vol. 52, p. 375
- The Holy Bible, Book of Matthew, Chapter 10, Verses 34-36
- The Gospel of Mary, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, p. 743
- The Gospel of Mary, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, pp. 744-745
- The Gospel of Thomas, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, p. 153
- The Gospel of Philip, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, p. 167
- The Gospel of Philip, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, p. 171
- Pistis Sophia: A Gnostic Gospel, Chapter 17
- The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 3 (Al-Imran), Verse 52
- Paul was not one of the original twelve disciples of Jesus (PBUH) and he never met him once during his lifetime. Despite this, out of the 27 books of the New Testament, over a dozen were written by Paul alone.
- The Holy Bible, Book of John, Chapter 14, Verse 28
- The Holy Bible, Book of Colossians, Chapter 1, Verse 15
- Tried by Fire: The Story of Christianity’s First Thousand Years, Bennett, p. 126
- Ibn ‘Abbas narrated: “When Allah’s Apostle was on his deathbed and in the house there were some people among whom was Umar bin Al-Khattab, the Prophet said, ‘Come, let me write for you a statement after which you will not go astray.’ Umar said, ‘The Prophet (PBUH) is seriously ill and you have the Qur’an; so the Book of Allah is enough for us.’ The people present in the house differed and quarreled. Some said, ‘Go near so that the Prophet may write for you a statement after which you will not go astray,’ while the others said as Umar said. When they caused a hue and cry before the Prophet, Allah’s Apostle said, ‘Go away!’ ” ‘Ubaidullah said: “Ibn ‘Abbas used to say, ‘It was very unfortunate that Allah’s Apostle was prevented from writing that statement for them because of their disagreement and noise.’ ” - Sahih Al-Bukhari, Al-Bukhari, Book of Patients, Hadith No. 5669
- Islamic Government: Governance of the Jurist (Velayat-e Faqeeh), Ruhollah Khomeini