Spiritual Contemplation
Spiritual Easter - 05 - The Betrayal by Judas
Spiritual Easter English
THURSDAY - Day 05
THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE AND THE BETRAYAL BY JUDAS
Chapters 77 and 78 of the Gospel of the Holy Twelve
Narrative:
Narrative 5, for the Thursday before Easter: The Garden of Gethsemane and the Betrayal by Judas
Reflection:
Reflection 5, for the Thursday before Easter: Surrender to Your Inner Master
Narrative:
Narrative 5, for the Thursday before Easter: The Garden of Gethsemane and the Betrayal by Judas
Chapters 77 and 78 of The Gospel of the Holy Twelve
As they went to the Mount of Olives, Jesus said to them, “All of you shall be offended because of me this night; for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.’ But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.” Simon answered and said to him, “Though all men shall be offended because of you, yet will I never be offended.” And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon, behold Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith fail not; and when you have been converted, strengthen your brethren.”
He said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you, both into prison and into death.” Jesus said, “I tell you, Simon, the cock shall not crow this night before you shall thrice deny that you know me.” Then came Jesus with them, having crossed the brook Kedron, into the garden called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray yonder.” (Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often rest here with his disciples.) Then he said to them, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death; tarry here, and watch with me.”
He went a little farther and fell on his face and prayed, saying, “O my Father-Mother, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou will.” An angel from heaven appeared to him, strengthening him. He came to the disciples and finding them asleep, said to Peter, “What, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “O my Father-Mother, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, Thy will be done.” Being in an agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was like great drops of blood falling to the ground. He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. He left them and went away again and prayed a third time, saying, “O my Father-Mother, not my will but Thine be done, in earth as it is in heaven.”
Then he came to his disciples and said to them, “Sleep on now, and take your rest; behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; behold, he is at hand that does betray me.”
The Betrayal
While Jesus was still speaking, behold there came a multitude, and Judas that was called Iscariot went before them. Judas, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should happen, went forth and said to them, “Whom seek you?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.”
As soon then as he had said to them, “I am he, ” they went backward and fell to the ground. And when they arose, he asked them again, “Whom seek you?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” And Jesus answered, “I have told you, I am he; if therefore you seek me let these go their way.” Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; hold him fast.” Straightaway he came to Jesus and said, “Hail, Master, ” and kissed him. Jesus said to him. “Friend, why have you come? Is it with a kiss that you betray the Son of man?”
Then Jesus said to the chief priests and captains of the temple and the elders which were come to him, “Why do you come out as against a thief with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the temple, you stretched forth no hands against me; but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus. Simon Peter stretched forth his hand, and drew his sword and struck a servant of the high priest and struck off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword up again into its place; all they that take the sword shall perish by the sword.” And Jesus touched his ear and healed him.
He said to Peter, “Do you think that I cannot now pray to my Parent and He shall soon give me more than twelve legions of angels? But then how would the scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be thus?” Then all the disciples abandoned him and fled. Those who had laid hands on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas, the high priest. But they brought him to Annas first because he was father-in-law to Caiaphas, who was the high priest for that same year. Now Caiaphas was he who gave council to the Jews that it was expedient that one man should die for the sins of the people.
The scribes and the elders were assembled together, but Peter, John, Simon, and Jude followed from a distance to the high priest’s palace, and they went in and sat with the servants to see the end. They had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and when they were seated together, Peter sat down among them and warmed himself, and Simon also sat by him. A certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him and said, “This man was also with him.” And he denied him, saying, “Woman, I know him not.” After a little while, another saw him and said, “You are also of them.” And Simon said, “Man, I am not.” In about the space of one hour another confidently affirmed, saying, “Of a truth this fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth for his speech betrays him.” Simon denied the third time with an oath, saying, “I know not the man.” And immediately, while he still spoke, the cock crowed. The Lord turned and looked upon Simon. And Simon remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the cock crow this day you shall deny me three times.” And Simon went out and wept bitterly.
Reflection:
Reflection 5, for the Thursday before Easter: Surrender to Your Inner Master
It is virtually impossible to go the Gnostic spiritual journey on your own. The development of the inner being requires specific nutrition that the pupil of the soul cannot provide on his or her own. For his spiritual development he is dependent on a resource that is outside himself and is stronger than he is. This is a natural law which applies in all areas of life and is the hallmark of fraternity; for if there is only equality, then development and progress are excluded.
People are self-contained individuals, but at a deeper level they are all connected to each other. Humanity is a unity that also interacts with the mineral kingdom, the plant kingdom, the animal kingdom and with kingdoms ‘above’ us of which we are not aware.
A higher form of life affects subsequent forms of life, including those with no conscious contact. A force that is stronger and comes from the outside always causes a change in something that is less powerful and within its influence. People therefore bear responsibility for the plants, the animals and the people around them. Parents are responsible for their children. Similarly, there is a realm of living souls that takes care of the soul development of the people on earth.
Inner development cannot and should never be enforced. But once the spirit-spark in the heart of man is awakened and that person, on the basis of a deep longing, decides to allow the inner man within to develop, then transformative and helping forces can be provided from the soul field. The force from outside is then the force from within.
In ancient times there were mystery schools in many countries. Founders of such schools were spiritual leaders who followed the path of the mysteries themselves, and they attracted pupils who were ready, on the basis of inner distress, for the same road. The leaders continuously developed themselves and their schools, thus causing the inner being of their pupils to awaken and grow. Without the continuous development of their own strength such a school would soon have crystallised and disintegrated, leaving the pupils shattered.
The forces released within a bona fide mystery school are spiritual energies of an etheric and astral nature. They are referred to as the bread and the wine. The first Christians lived and worked in groups as a mystery school. Yet there are fundamental differences with the mystery schools prior to Christianity, which were always secret and accessible only to those who were mature enough to be ready for it on the basis of inner distress.
The special feature of Christianity is that Jesus made the Mysteries public, therefore accessible for every person on earth without the intervention of priests, masters or gurus. Through the synthesis and renewal of liberating values from the past, the historical Jesus has founded an entirely new cosmic mystery school.
The energy we call ‘Christ’ has been spread from the world heart, from the spiritual core of the earth ever since the Mystery of Golgotha. This Christ Field spreads around the whole earth as a luminous atmosphere in which the inner man can breathe and live.
All the forces necessary to go the way of transformation and true human genesis have been at the disposal of humanity since the beginning of this era. And everyone who is ready for it, wherever he or she lives, is lovingly admitted to the cosmic mystery school. That is why Jesus says in chapter 75 of The Gospel of the Holy Twelve:
You call me the Christ of God and you say well, for I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Walk in the Way, and you shall find God. Seek the Truth and the Truth shall make you free. Live in the Life, and you shall see no death.
The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 75: 11-12
The power of Christ, the force field of the Christ, is like a bridge between two worlds. It is the way by which every human being on earth can become a living connection between the mortal perishable world in which we live and the imperishable divine nature, God. Through the world heart and the spirit-spark in the human heart, eternity connects with time and the cross is planted in the earth.
Truth is the living inner knowledge, gnosis, resulting from the awakened spirit-spark and the cosmic mystery school. Gnosis does not consist of dogmas or philosophical theories and is not given to man on a silver platter, in articles, books or online modules. The essential truth must be recognised and accepted by the human mind on the basis of inner desire and intense searching.
The essence of a pure life is in us. The Christ Mysteries make it possible to develop this core to an inner field of higher life, a life that we can at most identify with words like light, love, harmony, freedom and eternal genesis.
The growth of this inner life field is described in the Gospels and other Gnostic writings as “the life of Jesus.” Everything that grows, including the inner imperishable being, grows according to natural laws. Seven stages are recognised in the Christian initiation mystery, none of which can be passed over:
The birth and ministry of John the Baptist
The birth of Jesus in the cave or stable in Bethlehem (meaning ‘bread house’)
Jesus’ pilgrimage on earth
The selection of the twelve disciples
The preparation and celebration of the Holy Supper
The Crucifixion on Mount Golgotha (meaning place of the skull)
The Resurrection
John the Baptist symbolises the man who has fathomed the aridity of earthly existence and focuses on the inner life. Therefore Jesus can be born and grow up. Jesus’ pilgrimage, the circulation of the light power in ourselves, is the intense preparation for the work of service to the world and humanity, and ends with the baptism in the Jordan and the temptation in the desert.
In Inner Christianity, the figures in the Gospels are seen mainly as aspects of ourselves. The disciples Peter, John and James represent the will, the feeling and the thinking of the John man. Judas symbolises our natural possessiveness, ambition and lust for power aiming for a kingdom on earth. Jesus constantly emphasises:
My kingdom is not of this world.
The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 75:17
The teachings of Jesus meant for the inner man are ‘food for the soul,‘ and ‘miraculous nourishment.’ Within the mystery school of Jesus, pupils change in spirit, soul and body. The powers of the inner life work in a purifying way, as a transforming power that changes everything.
Then the time approaches to celebrate the Passover with a ritual meal, the feast of the unleavened bread. The Last Supper is not an annual event, but an intense inner process consisting of seven stages. Peter (the will, dynamism of the personality) and John (feeling, the devoted love to the one goal) are sent out to prepare that ‘pure bread.’ And the commencement of the ‘last supper’ symbolises the moment when the primeval golden pranic light, as the entirely pure bread and wine of life, can descend into physical man for the first time to serve the transformation process.
Jesus wishes to have a Passover meal with his disciples for the last time on the evening before the end of his earthly life in order “to institute the commemoration of his sacrifice for the service and salvation of everyone.” The disciples are mystery symbols for twelve guiding elements in the mortal human being, without which neither inner nor outer life is possible.
The bread and wine are inner forces which are spread throughout the entire system of the human being through the disciples. The bread is the unearthly life energy with which the new etheric body, the new flesh of the inner Jesus, will be built. And the wine, the blood of Jesus, is the new astral force which ‘sacrifices’ itself to the blood of the pupil of the soul. Equipped in this way he or she can then continue his way ‘in Christ’ to serve the world and humanity. In that surrender resound the words:
In Wisdom, Love, and Equity Thy Kingdom come to all. Thy holy Will be done always, as in Heaven, so on Earth. Give us day by day to partake of Thy holy Bread, and the fruit of Thy living Vine.
The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 76:20
Then Jesus washes the feet of his disciples. The inner master Jesus cleanses crucial aspects of the personality, symbolised by the disciples, with which the liberating path can be followed on a higher level. Washing other people’s feet was basically slave labour and represents the bond of all those who are part of a mystery school: the inner path can only be followed in service, where the higher serves the lower.
Symbolically allowing one’s feet to be washed shows that one is ready to ‘cross the threshold’ in order to celebrate the inner Easter of the resurrection. Such a person knows that the inner master is stronger than him and so he surrenders voluntarily and with confidence to his leadership.
Sooner or later every pupil of the soul is confronted with this test of willingness. Those who can leave their own earthly will behind and can follow the new inner master will step across the threshold with ‘clean feet’. They will recognise, from the depths of their hearts and with great insight:
As in the natural so in the spiritual. My doctrine and my life shall be meat and drink to you, the Bread of Life and the Wine of Salvation.
As the corn and the grapes are transmuted into flesh and blood, so must your natural minds be changed into spiritual. Seek the transmutation of the natural into the spiritual.
The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 32: 7-8