[orgaelin]

This post may upset a number of people, as the story it tells is enough to blow you away. It is about the true plans of Jesus and his forefathers to create a new worldwide Jewish faith. Keep an open mind.

40 years before the Christian Era began, the Jews found themselves with a new king. His name was Herod. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus assures us that Herod was not even Jewish, coming from Idumea in the south, of mixed Semitic race. He also explains how Herod converted to a form of Judaism that suited him, and then tried to enforce that form on everyone else.

Judea was a very poor country, but outside of the homeland there were Jews living in relative luxury. The Jewish living outside of Judea were known as the Diaspora. It was these people who first began to notice the growing interest among Pagan Gentiles in the pure forms of Jewish faith.

Herod was a very strong king, who gained the trust of the Romans by supplying them with troops and money. He stood up to Cleopatra when she attempted to seduce him, and ultimately the Romans looked to him to protect their interests in the East. It is said that, throughout the Diaspora, Jews began to feel a sense of unity and purpose under their new monarch.

In turn, Herod began extensive building projects in Judea. He restored Jerusalem, entirely rebuilt the temple, fortified the harbour at Caesarea, constructed a summer palace down the side of the barren cliff at Masada, and built up an army and fleet.

The big question, of course, is how? All of this would have needed a lot of money. Where did he get it? Consider Jews in the Diaspora, wanting to make some sort of commitment to their faith...

But first another man joins the scene. His name was Hillel the Great, a Babylonian Jew. He taught about personal and ethical renewal which could be expressed through baptism in water. His view was that Old Covenant that belonged to all Jews as a right of birth needed to be supplemented with a New Covenant based on choice. And for this he felt there should be a new Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Diaspora Jews would thus receive their baptism and promise to, “Return to the law of Moses with all their heart”. Many of them had begun to use Greek names, but would all now be given new Jewish names to use at the religious meetings of a New Isreal.

Though these ideas came from Hillel, a more active part was played by a man named Menahem, the Diaspora Essene.

Menahem was a talented man, as founder of the Magians. He was brought in by Herod as an advisor, as Herod had a fondness for him due to a childhood memory when Menahem prophesied that he would one day be king.

The roles of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were thus created, but each role was subordinate to Herod. Isaac/Menahem then sent out missionaries to convert both Jews and Gentiles to this renewed form of Judaism. It was still held, though, that gentile converts would have to submit to circumcision. The plan was nothing less than the creation of a new world Empire of the Jews.

Herod’s association with Menahem and the Essenes meant that he had to take into account their longstanding support of the David family. The former royal family had lost the throne in the fifth century BC, but had a strong party of loyalists formed around them, dreaming of their restoration and a return to the Isreal of old. This was the historical reason for the formation of the Essenes. They intended to restore both the Davids and the high priests of the family of Zadok who had held sway with them. There were still many who believed that only a David could be the true king.

In summary, it was decided that Herod would rule over an Abraham in the centre, with an Isaac in the east, while Rome and the west would come under a Jacob. The Jacob role would belong the reigning David, a man by the name of Heli. Two generations later, Heli would have a grandson: Jesus.

It should be noticed that the two genealogies given for Jesus, in Luke and Matthew’s gospels, seem to disagree on who Joseph’s father was. One calls him Jacob, the other calls him Heli. It can now be seen that they were in fact both correct.

When Jesus said, “Many will come from the East and West and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of Heaven”, he was actually referring to the political plans of the day, rather than some spiritual prediction of the future.


The Ransom for one’s Soul

So back to the question of where all Herod’s money came from. Herod’s plan was immensely successful, and Jews and Gentiles throughout the known world were eager to join up. Meetings were held in secret, in the evenings in private houses. Admission was granted upon presentation of a white stone from the river Jordan. The stones were given to members at their baptism, with their new Jewish names written upon them.

The book of Revelation makes reference to this practice, saying “To him who conquers I will give a white stone, with a new name written on the stone which no one knows except him who receives it.”

The price for this membership was a half-shekel, about a days wages. A small price to pay for salvation, especially as a once-only fee. It was acceptable to make further donations, and eventually this turned into a practice of paying a yearly amount as a ‘peace offering’.

The missionaries would go out to the Diaspora with their leather wallets full of white stones, and return with them filled with money in foreign currencies. Once changed by the money-changers, it was stored in Herod’s vaults to fund his building projects.

Depending on where the converts were from, they were also given badges with an emblem of the particular order they were joining. The various regions were divided into twelve to correspond to the original “twelve tribes” of Israel. Each tribe would bear a different image: one used a sheep, another was a dove, another used an ox, and so on.

Now here’s the clever part. When the missionaries were giving out the memberships in exchange for the fees, it was said that they were “Selling oxen and sheep and doves” and turning religion into a shop.

Seventy years later on in the mission, a certain descendant of the Jacob-David line took objection to this, arguing that salvation should be given freely by the grace of God, not bought like common commodities. Taking a whip, he thus overturned the tables of the moneychangers and those selling oxen, sheep and doves.

The simple message behind the story was the Jesus declared that from that time on there would be no fee for joining the new religious movement.

This was just one of the many acts of Jesus which went against the wishes of the leaders of the movement of which he was a part. Each of Jesus’ seven signs was in fact a rebellion against the rules of the establishment, and it was these rebellions which ultimately led to his death sentence.

I will deal with each of the seven signs in turn, though I’ve already written up the “walking on water” one.