February 2019 – Following Philo

The Baker’s Tomb, Rome, Italy, Constructed circa 74 CE

The journey that leads to the historical “Jesus and Mary Magdalene” begins at Genesis Chapter 40. Joseph the Nazar, princely son of Rachel and Jacob, also known as “Israel,” is sold into slavery in Egypt where he oversees the first crucifixion. Rarely noted is the fact that the first person in the Bible to be crucified is “The Baker.” Philo’s Rules identify enigmas that reveal a great secret: “The Baker” was Rachel, whose name is translated “Spirit of God” and/or “Spirit of Goddess.”

Circa, 41 CE, a member of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty commissioned a cameo that was given the title

Triumph of Joseph at the Court of the Pharaoh

The Cameo depicts the historical people involved in keeping the story of Rachel and Joseph the Nazar alive and celebrated. They wrote, directed, and starred in annual productions of “The Baker, Goddess the Mother” and her Son, “YaH-Zeus the Nazarene” who took her place on the cross. She possessed secret sacred knowledge of the healing properties of herbs and spices and saved the life of her beloved Son. (It was a myth performed for the people!)

“Mother Mary” and “Son of God” both lived on to inspire their subjects.

The moral of the myth is that YaH-Zeus believed women are as valuable as men. In fact, His actions seem to suggest that He believed His Mother’s life was more valuable than His own.

Paul and patriarchal priests and bishops rejected this original version of the Crucifixion and fabricated their own myth which they claimed was factual and historical. They preserved the Scapegoat superstition popular with imperfect men, and they gave YaH-Zeus the Nazarene a new hometown, “Nazareth.” They lied, and their reason was to keep women subservient to men!

Legacy of the First Christian Heretic

Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson can be aptly labeled “Christian Heretics.” They admired and praised “Jesus” but rejected Orthodox Christian doctrines. Paine wrote, “I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of.” Regarding the bible, he mused, “…it would be more consistent that we call it the word of a demon than the word of God.”

Jefferson held special disdain for Paul, writing, “…Paul was the great Coryphaeus, and first corrupter of the doctrines of Jesus. These palpable interpolations and falsifications of his doctrines led me to try to sift them apart.”–Thomas Jefferson to William Short, Monticello, 13 April 1820.

Both, of course, rejected the nonsensical doctrine of vicarious atonement.

However, these Founding Fathers are just two in a long line that stretches back to the First Christian Heretic, Philo of Alexandria (circa 10 BCE to 74 CE). And it is Philo the Heretic who holds the key to solving the mystery of the historical Jesus: Was he Man, Myth, or like Christopher Reeve and Superman, both?

Philo, in “Every Good Man is Free,” alludes to a unique feature of the Biblical Hebrew used by the authors of the Tanakh: {Tanakh, also known as the Old Testament, is a collection of popular legends that were compiled, edited, and expanded during the Babylonian Captivity. At least two generations of Judean priests and scribes were confined and controlled by Cyrus the Great and his descendants. When Ezra returned to Jerusalem circa 458 BCE, he delivered the first known Tanakh. One shared text carried two very different messages, one for the uneducated, the other for the initiated. This was most likely King cyrus’ effort to peacefully unite two perpetually warring tribes.}

The Tanakh is written in consonants only, all caps. Vowels, spaces, and punctuation are determined by scribes, and they have more than one choice:

“Then one [Essene] takes up the holy volume [Tanakh] and reads it, and another of the men of the greatest experience comes forward and explains what is not very intelligible, for a great many precepts are delivered in enigmatical modes of expression, and allegorically, as the old fashion was.”

Here”s an example of what Philo’s words reveal: Gen 1:1 opens with this string of consonants: BRSTBRLHM. Judean scribes add vowels and spaces that result in BaReSiT BaRa Elohim, translated word-for-word, “In the Beginning created God…” Philo and the Essenes were aware, however, that this translation is incorrect. LHM, rendered Elohim, is the plural of Eloah, “God.” When translated correctly, Elohim is “Gods.”

What Philo and the Essenes knew that we haven’t known is that LHM can be correctly rendered, eLa Ha eM, Hebrew words translated “Goddess the Mother.” She is introduced in the opening words of Genesis where, using all the same consonants in the same order, BRSTBRLHM, Essenes “…of the greatest experience…” find other equally valid words:

BaR iS, eT aB oR, eLa Ha eM, “Son of Man, Father Light, Goddess the Mother.” She, as LHM, is found throughout the Tanakh. This was the Essene-Nazarene Holy Trinity, borrowed by the Church Fathers but corrupted to eliminate equal respect for feminine attributes. A Goddess might suggest that women are as valuable as men, God forbid!

Judean priests did not agree that the Tanakh could be translated in more than one way, and the Early Church Fathers agreed. Irenaeus of Smyrna (circa 130 to circa 200 CE) defined and codified Orthodox Christianity. And, he exposed what he considered to be heresies, especially the Nazarene Heresy.

His signature work, “On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis,” is better known as “Adversus Haereses.” He attacks his opponents as blasphemers – not just people with different opinions, but Heretics. Irenaeus is critical and dismissive and describes a particular opponent’s teachings as “farce” and “falsehood,” as he denigrates it:

“…collecting a set of expressions and names scattered here and there, they twist them … from a natural sense [his version] to a non-natural sense [Essene version].”

Philo knew of this method, adopted it, and shared it; furthermore, Philo venerates it:

“I admire the Lover of Wisdom…collecting and thinking it fit to weave together many things, though different, and proceeding from different sources, into the same web…he has put together in one most admirably arranged work, combining great learning of one kind with great learning of another kind.”

Philo devised a method for identifying and solving enigmas in scripture, both Old and New Testaments; it consists of twenty-one “rules.” I am an avowed heretic who fell in love with Philo, so I decided to test Philo’s rules. What I found in the Old Testament destroys the foundation on which Orhtodox Christianity was built:

Yahweh (translated LORD, all caps) is the name that Judean Kings co-opted from their invented deity of the same name. These Kings, like their imagined deity, were authoritative and misogynistic and used threats and violence to control the members of their tribes, the Judeans. Instilling fear through violence was their method of controlling and exploiting people. Old Testament stories about YHWH are about the Kings, not the deity.

Eloah and eLa Ha eM are the names that Israelite Kings and Queens co-opted from their invented deities of the same names, aBa eL and eLa Ha eM, “Father God and Goddess the Mother.” The Essene-Nazarenes were a small remnant of the Israelite tribe after it split in two. A magic trick on Mt. Carmel, a chemical that ignited wood when water was poured on it, convinced most of the Israelites to abandon Father-Mother (Ba’al-Asherah) and follow YHWH (1 Kings 18:20-40).

Like their imagined deities, these Kings and Queens viewed members of their tribes as innocent children. Love and compassion were their methd of encouraging, educating, and persuading people to emulate these qualities. Jesus knew Father-Mother well; he called to them before and during the Crucfixion, “Abba, Abba” (Mk 14:36); “Ela, Ela” (Mk 15:34).

The first-century Julio-Claudians ruled a vast, prosperous Roman Empire; however, one religious sect remained hostile and combative. The Judeans would never abandon YHWH in favor of any Roman God and Goddess. So, a wise Julio-Claudian devised a plan. YHWH and Zeus became “YH-Zeus the Nazarene,” which evolved into “Jesus.” His father was “Joseph,” a descendant of “Joseph the Nazar,” introduced at Gen 49:26 where he is “blessed” by a deity “with breasts and womb.”

Oh, but wait! “Jesus” wasn’t called “The Nazarene” because his ancestor was “Joseph the Nazar.” Jesus was called “The Nazarene” because he came from Nazareth (Mt 2:23). Or is this an interpolation devised to separate “Jesus the Nazarene” from “Joseph the Nazar”? Why would anyone want to do that?!

Let’s take a closer look. Joseph the Nazar’s mother was Rachel, derived from oRaK eLa, “Spirit of Goddess.” Rachel “died” in the place named BTLHM, (Gen 35:19). The Judean translation of BTLHM is BeT LeHeM (“house of bread”); the Essene translation is BeTuLaH eM, “Virgin Mother” and BaT eLa Ha eM, “Daughter, Goddess the Mother.” The enigma in BTLHM reveals that Rachel “died” in order to become “Daughter, Goddess the Mother,” aka, “Virgin Mother.”

As LHM, She is later found with Joseph the Nazar, born a Prince but held in slavery at Pharaoh’s court in Egypt. Pharaoh has worrisome dreams that no one can interpret. He turns to Joseph and Joseph turns to LHM. She helps him interpret Pharaoh’s dreams as a warning of a coming drought. Her wigHer wisdom, transmitted to Pharaoh by her son, leads Pharaoh to store some of the grain produced in years of rain to feed people during years of drought. Grateful, Pharaoh sets them free and makes Joseph the Vizier over Egypt. The freeing of Joseph and LHM was Joseph’s Triumph at the Court of the Pharaoh (Gen 41:1-45).

The first crucifixion in the Bible (Gen 40:19-22) was carried out right here in Pharaoh’s court two years before Joseph’s Triumph. The “Chief Baker” had done something to anger Pharaoh (we aren’t told what). The climax of the Judean version of the first crucifixion is,

We eT SaR Ha oPiM TaLaH KaSaR PaTaR LHM YSP.

“…but the chief baker he impaled, just as Joseph had interpreted to them.”

The Essene-Nazarene version using the same consonants but with different vowels and spaces reveals something else:

We eT iSha oRaH oPiM eT eLaH, KiSaR PeTer eLa Ha eM, YoSeP.

“But the Woman of Light, ‘Baker,’ is Elah, Kisar’s firstling, Ela the Mother of Joseph.”

{“Kisar” is the Sumerian-Babylonian “First Mother.” Ki means “Earth, ” Sar means “princess.” Kisar is a candidate for the etymology of Rome’s “Caesar” and Germany’s “Kaisar.”}

Some time around 41 CE, concurrent with Claudius becoming Rome’s Emperor, a Julio-Claudian commissioned two cameos. The first can be dated by the child in the middle row, left side, identified as future Emperor Nero, born in 37 CE. He appears to be about four or five years old.

This cameo was among three dozen or so artifacts purchased by Louis IX from Baldwin II, Latin emperor at Constantinople. They are listed in documents as “Relics of Christ.” In fact, the Sainte-Chappel (“Holy Chapel”) was built to house Louis IX’s collection of Relics of Christ. These Relics of Christ arrived in Paris in August 1239. When no one could figure out why the cameo was called “Triumph of Joseph at the Court of the Pharaoh,” the name was changed to “Great Cameo of France.” Apparently, “Relics of Christ” didn’t ring any bells. Or maybe it did.

The Cameo depicts four generations of Julio-Claudians. In the heavens (left to right): Mark Antony holding the Shield of Mars; Emperor Augustus holding the Spear of Mars; Cleopatra holding the Orb of Ra; Julius Caesar riding Pegasus.

Middle row, left to right: Julia Minor (holding Nero); Germanicus and wife Agrippina Major; Emperor Tiberius and Empress Livia; Claudius and wife Agrippina Minor. Sitting with head bowed in shame is the “assassinated” Emperor, “Caligula.”

The cameo supports what Philo reveals elsewhere: stories of assassinations and early deaths among this Royal Dynasty, posing as Gods and Goddesses, may not be literally true. Like Rachel, Caligula “died,” but he emergd as another personality who became quite prominent in his own right. Here’s a clue: Caligula was raised by his aunt Agrippina and uncle Germanicus (also “deceased” before the cameo was created). In his new role, Caligula assumed the name of his biological father, “Lucius Aemilius Paullus.”

The bottom row is most intriguing. Here we find the secret identities of the Julio-Claudians, the mythological characters they portrayed in annual festivals that celebrated “Gods and Goddesses.” Depicted underground are Jesus the Nazarene, Mary the Magdalene, Joseph the Nazar, Mother Mary and Baby Jesus.

Evidence hidden in the Essene-Nazarene rendering of Old Testament legends reveals that the original first-century Crucifixion was a dramatization of Joseph’s Triumph at the Court of the Pharaoh, the freeing of Goddess Mother and her Son. The moral message in these stories of a freedman and a freedwoman is that no one should ever be enslaved because everyone has unknown royal ancestors. All are created equal in spite of outward appearances or circumstances. Didn’t “Jesus” suggest the same?

The Julio-Claudian Crucifixion Myth must have gone something like this:

Judean Kings believed a woman who claimed to be a Goddess was a heretic; therefore, Goddess the Mother is sentenced to be crucified. YH-Zeus loves his Mother and values her so much that he offers his life in place of hers; YH-Zeus is strapped to the cross while eLa Ha eM and BaT eLa Ha eM mourn and pray at his feet. Fortunately, Mother knows the healing properties of herbs and spices; she concocts an elixir which she and Mary Magdalene take to the tomb. The three emerge victorious over death. Goddess the Mother and her Son YH-Zeus are more powerful than YHWH alone. Praise Goddess!

Oh, but not so fast! The patriarchal Judean priests refused to accept the Goddess, and some Judeans were too fearful of YHWH to accept Mother and Son. So for them, YH-Zeus was turned into the popular Scapegoat, and the Judean Crucifixion Myth became a vicarious atonement. Tolerance was the key to success as the newly fabricated deities offered something for everyone. The golden Age of Rome and the New Jerusalem were ushered in side-by-side.

Unfortunately, this relative peace lasted less than three hundred years – until the conversion of Emperor Constantine and the convening of the Council of Nicea in 325. Prior to this time, Roman Emperors allowed both versions of YH-Zeus to coexist. However, a few decades after that contentious and fateful Council, Emperors, Popes and Bishops resolved to prohibit all religions except their Nicene approved version of Christianity. Tolerance of other religions ceased to exist, leading to the unspeakable slaughter in the name of competing concepts of God and Gods, all imagined into existence by mortal men.

Bishop Epiphanius of Salamis (circa 315 to circa 403) composed the Panarion, a compilation of all the heresies known to him. His quotations are the only surviving fragments of many suppressed and destroyed texts; for this we owe him a debt of gratitude. Perhaps this offsets some of the damage he caused by adding support ot Irenaeus’ lies about why Jesus is called “The Nazarene.”

Epiphanius’ contemporaries, the equally intolerant Emperors Theodosius and his son Honorius, set about to destroy all evidence of all religions except their Nicene-Christianity. Temples to Gods and Goddesses throughout the Roman Empire were destroyed; heretics who refused to convert were tried, convicted, tortured, and executed.

One of the most notable destructions was the Baker’s Tomb on the east side of Rome. For some reason, perhaps superstition, rather than tearing it down, as they did other temples and monuments, Honorius buried the Tomb and Claudius’ Porta Maggiore under a massive structure which he also named Porta Maggiore. No one would ever have a reason to question the fate of Claudius’ Porta Maggiore. The Porta Maggiore remained, but in name only.

Honorius’ Porta Maggiore
Vasi Plate No. 7 [2]

Giuseppe Vasi preserved an image of Honorius’ Porta Maggiore as it appeared circa 1748. Plate No. 7 is one of several plates described as “Vasi’s Roman views.” These plates were the photographs of that era.

The second cameo commissioned circa 41 CE depicts the man and woman (left) who played the roles of “Jesus and Mary Magdalene.” Yes! We have images! and busts!

The couple on the right is their daughter and their son-in-law, Emperor Claudius (the men were also half brothers.).

Gemma Claudio Cameo [3]
Commissioned circa 41 CE

The historical couple called “YH-Zeus and Mary Magdalene” died in 74 CE. At the time of their deaths, he was known as Polemon and she was Atonia Caenis, Emperor Vespasian’s powerful freedwoman and co-ruler. Caenis is the name of a Greek Goddess whom the God Poseidon transformed into a man. Their remains were placed in the Baker’s Tomb, correctly identified as a monument to honor The Baker. However, rather than a freed-man and his wife, they are a freed-woman and her husband. And in spite of evidence that contradicts the claim, the Baker’s Tomb is often dated to the first century BCE. {Two sources challenge the first century BCE dating preferred by the Church: (1) John Henry Parker, The Archaeology of Rome, Part IX, “Tombs in and Near Rome” (Oxford: James Parker and Co; London: John Murray, Albemarle Street, 1877), 34-5. (2) Second century historian Pliny the Younger wrote letters that describe a monument to claudius’ freedman Pallas that was constructed on the east side of Rome, the exact location of the Baker’s Tomb (Loeb, VII. 29 and VI to Montanus, n.d. LCL 59:12-13).}

In 1838, twenty-two years before the American Civil War, Pope Gregory XVI, the anti-slavery Pope, ordered that Honorius’ massive structure be dismantled. After nearly fourteen hundred years, the heavily-damaged Baker’s Tomb and Claudius’ Porta Maggiore were exposed to the light once again.

In 1839, the year after uncovering the long-buried tomb of former slaves, Pope Gregory XVI gave pro-slavery churches an unsolicited gift: tens of thousands of new members. He wrote an apostolic letter forbidding Catholics to participate in the Atlantic Slave Trade: “We warn and adjure earnestly in the Lord faithful Christians of every condition that no one in the future dare to … reduce to servitude, or lend aid and favor to those who give themselves up to these practices, or exercise that inhuman traffic by which the Blacks, as if they were not men but rather animals, having been brought into servitude, in no matter what way, are, without any distinction, in contempt of the rights of justice and humanity…”

Claudius’ powerful freedman Antonius Pallas and Vespasian’s powerful freedwoman Antonia Caenis were/was one and the same person. She is better known as Philo of Alexandria, the “First Christian Heretic” and the creator of the keys to finding Her Story.

Pope Gregory knew, as all Popes have known, that the remains placed in the Baker’s Tomb were the historical couple called “Jesus and Mary Magdalene.” And they also know that the Julio-Claudian Crucifixion Myth predates their own. Now who are the true heretics?

PAXAMOLUX!

[1] Image from Wikimedia: Copyright, http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Great_Cameo_of_France_CdM_Paris_Bab264_white_background.jpg

[2] Image from “Rome Art Lover”: copyright: https://www.romeartlover.it/Vasi07.jpg

[3] Image from Ancient Rome Website: http://ancientrome.ru/art/artwork/glyptics/cameos/c0253.jpg

This article is a brief synopsis of information reported in three books by P.J. Gott and Logan Licht:

Following Philo to the Early /Church Fathers, The Cox Ukkers Who Rejected Jesus’ Feminism, Embraced Paul’s Misogyny, and Fabricated Christianity on a Foundation of Lies (Published March 2019).

Following Philo from Ba’al and Asherah to Jesus and Mary Magdalene (Published 2017).

Following Philo in Search of The Magdalene, The Virgin, The Men Called Jesus (Published 2015).

Pythagoras of Samos

Pythagoras: Architect of the Old Testament

(circa 575 to circa 495 BCE)

Nothing has caused more wars, torture, and violent deaths than disagreements over religion. Today’s major conflicts are, at their core, caused and perpetuated by intolerance of religious differences. Human rights violations are the result of differing opinions over who is more valuable, who should be served, and who should do the serving. Many argue that the answers to these disputes can be found in a sacred text – their sacred text, of course.

Throughout history, some of the more benevolent rulers attempted to put an end to this deity-based hatred and violence. Obviously, all attempts have failed.

The most notable attempt was initiated by the Babylonian King who ruled from c. 605 to c. 562 BCE, Nabuchadnezzar, which literally means, “O god Nabu, preserve/defend my firstborn son.” The Book of Daniel describes Nabuchadnezzar as the King who took Daniel to Babylon to be trained in “the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans,” i.e., Biblical Aramaic.[1][2]

Archaeological evidence suggests that not all Judeans were relocated to Babylonia. Some escaped and fled to Egypt. It can be surmised, however, that rigid, belligerent Judean priests and scribes were among those escorted to Babylonia for rehabilitation, reeducation, and reprogramming.[3]

The Captivity ended officially under Cyrus the Great c. 539 BCE.[4] By this time, more than two generations of priests and scribes had been subjected to Babylonian philosophy and religion. Their return to Jerusalem was gradual, and many chose to remain with their captors.[5] Those who stayed would have been encouraged to embrace Nabu and Inanna/Ishtar, the Goddess associated with the planet Venus whose symbols are the lion and the eight-pointed star. Julius Caesar claimed descent from Venus; Emperor Octavian’s name is a salute to Venus; octo is Latin for “eight”; his sister was Octavia.

How likely is it that no effort would have been made to bring the Judean concept of their deity closer to the Babylonian concept of their deities? Why hold them for forty-plus years only to release them with their preexisting opinions that led to their confinement in the first place? This is a question that has been largely ignored, but one that needs to be answered.

Biblical texts produced during the Babylonian Captivity include: Book of Jeremiah; 2 Kings; 2 Chronicles; Ezra; Daniel; Susanna, Bel and the Dragon; Story of Three Youths; 1 Esdras; Tobit; Book of Judith; Book of Lamentations.[6] Not all of these made the final cut and into today’s Old Testament.

It’s important to know that the Hebrew script utilized in the Babylonian and post-exilic period differs from the script found in earlier Biblical texts.
This is also known as the Persian Period, when the final redaction of the Five Books of Moses is generally dated.[11] Jan Joosten notes, “In the late books of the Bible – Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah, Ester – an archaic form of Hebrew is reused in a way that indicates it was ‘lifted’ from the earlier text and revivified on the basis of exegesis.”[7] “Some words took on different meanings. The authors’ conscientious choice to continue writing in Hebrew set it apart almost as a sacred language.”[8]

Dated by his own writings and snippets of information from historians’ accounts, Pythagoras lived from c. 575 to c. 495 BCE.[9] His biographer, Iamblichus, writes,

“In Egypt he frequented all the temples with the greatest diligence, and most studious research, during which time he won the esteem and admiration of all the priests and prophets with whom he associated. Having most solicitously familiarized himself with every detail, he did not, nevertheless, neglect any contemporary celebrity, whether sage renowned for wisdom, or peculiarly performed mystery; he did not fail to visit any place where he thought he might discover something worthwhile. That is how he visited all of the Egyptian priests, acquiring all the wisdom each possessed. He thus passed twenty-two years in the sanctuaries of temples, studying astronomy and geometry, and being initiated in no casual or superficial manner in all the mysteries of the Gods. At length, however, he was taken captive by the soldiers of Cambyses, and carried off to Babylon. Here he was overjoyed to associate with the Magi, who instructed him in their venerable knowledge, and in the most perfect worship of the Gods. Through their assistance, likewise, he studied and completed arithmetic, music, and all the other sciences. After twelve years, about the fifty-sixth year of his age, he returned to Samos.[10] (Emphasis added.)

Pythagoras was taken to Babylon c. 525 BCE, which falls within the post-exilic period (c. 537 to c. 430 BCE). He would have encountered Jewish priests, scribes, and sages who lingered there. Ezra did not return to Jerusalem from the Babylonian Exile with the Tanakh until “…the seventh year of King Artaxerxes” (Ezra 7:7). Artaxerxes I was King from c. 465 to c. 424 BCE, dating the return of the Tanakh to Jerusalem c. 458 BCE.

Therefore, the first Tanakh was conceived, and produced, during the reigns and under the influence of Cyrus the Great (c. 560 to c. 530 BCE);[12] his elder son Cambyses II (c. 525 to c. 522 BCE); Cyrus’ younger son Bardiya (c. 522 BCE); Cyrus’ son-in-law, Darius (married Cyrus’ daughter Atossa; ruled c. 522 to c. 486 BCE); Darius and Atossa’s on Xerxes I (c. 519 to c. 465 BCE); Xerxes’ third son Artaxerxe I (c. 465 to c. 424 BCE).[13]

Examined carefully and without preconceived notions, it can be seen that the Tanakh was compiled, edited, and written by an unidentified word-genius in Babylon who created a new unique version of Hebrew that few scholars have been willing to acknowledge: One text carries two different messages.

The version people revere, the one used to translate modern Christian versions of the Tanakh, was composed for citizens who were more likely to respond to fear and superstition; YHWH served this purpose quite well and was adopted by the YH-udean Kings for their tribe, the Judeans.

The other version was for subjects more likely to respond to reason and logic; BL and LHM, “Father El and Goddess the Mother,” also known as Isha Ora (“Woman Light”), served this purpose and were adopted by the Israelite Kings and Queens for their tribe, the Isha Ora lites . The dual-purpose language of the Tanakh was designed to peacefully unite perpetually warring tribes by placing two “Sacred Texts” into one “Sacred Gook” for all to share under one roof in one Temple.

The stories of the interactions that pit Ba’al and Asherah (“Father God” and “Woman Light”) against their arch-enemy, King YHWH, can be found in both versions but with different outcomes, all produced during and after the time Pythagoras was in Babylon.

The genius of the Tanakh comes from the fact that it is written in consonants only. Vowels, spaces, and punctuation were determined by scribes, and they were given more than one choice. Philo of Alexandria refers to this unique characteristic when writing of the Essenes:

“Then one [Essene] takes up the holy volume [Tanakh] and reads it, and another of the men of the greatest experience comes forward and explains what is not very intelligible, for a great many precepts are delivered in enigmatical modes of expression, and allegorically, as the old fashion was.”[14] (Emphasis added.)

Josephus, an important first century Jewish historian, ties Essenes to Pythagoreans: “The Essenes also, as we call a sect of ours … live the same kind of life as do those whom the Greeks call Pythagoreans.” (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 1999 (15.10.4 (371), 521. Emphasis added.)

The first century Greek historian Plutarch writes of Pythagoras and uses some of Philo’s key terminology :

“Pythagoras greatly admired the Egyptian priests and copying their symbolism and secret teachings incorporated his doctrines in enigmas.” And, “If you listen to the stories about the gods in this way…you may avoid superstition which is no less an evil than atheism.” [15]

Here’s an example in the Old Testament of “precepts…delivered in enigmatical modes of expression” and “secret teachings incorporated” in a “doctrine” written in “enigmas“:

Gen 1:1 opens with the Hebrew letters BRSTBRLHM, traditionally rendered BaReSiT BaRa eLoHiM and translated word-for-word, “In the beginning…created…Gods…” This is always translated incorrectly as “In the beginning God created…” This is incorrect because the im suffix creates the plural of Eloah, the Hebrew word for the singular “God.” Elohim is plural: “Gods.”

Christian apologists argue that “Gods” refer to the Christian Holy Trinity, “Father, Son, Holy Spirit,” the three-in-one deity. And to a certain extent, they are right – almost; they just don’t know it. And, here’s where the genius of the Babylonian influence can be seen:

The same consonants in the same order, BRSTBRLHM, can be correctly rendered BaR iS, eT aB oR, eLa Ha eM, “Son of Man, Father Light, Goddess the Mother,” the Essene’s Holy Trinity. This rendition solves the problem of the mysterious “Son of Man” sayings in the New Testament; furthermore, it identifies the Holy Trinity that includes “Goddess the Mother,” suggesting that women are as valuable as men, God forbid!

Pythagoras’ wife Theano[16] was also a philosopher as were their daughters, Damo,[17] Agrinote,[18] and Myia.[19]

The name “Theano” can be translated “Divine” and/or “Goddess.” The famous Cleopatra of Egypt’s full name was Cleopatra Thea-Philo Pater, translated, “Father-loving Goddess.” It is likely that “Thea ano” was derived from “Thea Anna,” which identifies a specific Persian Goddess, Anahita. She was one of the earliest “Great Mother Goddesses,” and she has been associated with Egypt’s Anat and Rome’s Athena.[20] Theano’s Goddess-name suggests she was married to the God-King, not a mere philosopher, circumstantial evidence that her husband was Cyrus the Great and that he was also known as Pythagoras. Like Ishtar, Anahita was associated with the planet Venus.

Throughout the years the Tanakh was being compiled and edited, the rulers were descendants of Cyrus the Great who were blood-and-duty-bound to carry on his legacy. So, what was Cyrus the Great’s legacy?

According to Xenophon in Cyropedia, c. 370 BCE, Cyrus was a unique King who was beloved by his subjects.

“And those who were subject to him, he treated with esteem and regard, as if they were his own children, while his subjects themselves respected Cyrus as their ‘Father’ … What other man but ‘Cyrus,’ after having overturned an empire, ever died with the title of ‘The Father’ from the people whom he had brought under his power? For it is plain fact that this is a name for one that bestows, rather than for one that takes away!”

So, “Father Cyrus,” like aB eL and eLa Ha eM, “Father God and Goddess the Mother,” treated his subjects as if they were his children, and they responded to him with reverence and respect.

King Nabuchadnezzer adopted the name of his deity, Nabu, a common practice in antiquity. Xenophon suggests that King Cyrus may have done the same. The etymology of the name Cyrus is the Greek word Kurios, which is translated “lord.” Plutarch notes, “…the sun … in the Persian language, is called Cyrus.”[21] This is another clue that ties “Pythagoras” to “Cyrus.”:

Queen Cleopatra named her son Helios and her daughter Selene, Greek for “Sun and Moon.” Furthermore, Luke 1:28 introduces the “Virgin Mary” to “Kurios,” just before she conceives “Jesus the Nazarene.” The significance of this introduction, which associates Jesus with King Cyrus, also known as, “Father,” has been overlooked and uninvestigated.

The name Pythagoras, like the name Cyrus, can also be associated with “Light” through Gematria, the ancient method of assigning a numerical value to a Hebrew name, word, or phrase based on its letters. It originated as an Assyro-Babylonian Greek system of alphanumeric code adopted into Jewish culture.[22]

The name Pythagoras has a numerical value of 864; the diameter of the sun is 864,000 miles. John Michell, in The Dimensions of Paradise, writes, “In the language of symbolic number 864 clearly pertains to a centre of radiant energy, the sun in the solar system.” [23]

The Tanakh is filled with numbers that can be associated with Pythagorean Sacred Numbers that demonstrate knowledge of Babylonian astronomy.[24] The key to finding them is recognizing that the Egyptian Royal Cubit is 1.728 feet, the result of converting a 12-in-per-foot measurement to a 10–inch-per-foot measurement: 12 divided by 10 = 1.2. Now, Cube it:

1.2 x 1.2 x 1.2 = 1.728, “Egyptian Royal Cubit (ERC).”

Genesis 6:15: Noah’s Ark measures 300 cubits x 50 cubits x 30 cubits:

1.728 x 300 = 5184 ERC

1.728 x 50 = 864 ERC and “Pythagoras”

1.728 x 30 = 518.4 ERC

Precession of the equinox is 25,920 years x 2 = 51,840 years.

Exodus 25:10: The Ark of the Covenant measures 2.5 cubits x 1.5 cubits x 1.5 cubits:

1.728 x 2.5 = 4.32 x 2 = 8.64 ERC (diameter of sun; “Pythagoras”)

1.728 x 1.5 = 2.592 ERC (precession is 25,920 years)

Most of the measurements in the Tanakh can be found in Babylonian astronomy measurements when the Egyptian Royal Cubit is applied. It was the authors’ way of identifying themselves as Pythagoreans. Furthermore, a 25-hour day consists of 86,400 seconds, and a normal rate of 60 beats per minute is the daily total for the human heart. And, just to self-identify as a Pythagorean, “Luke” inserted six numbers in Chapter 1:

5 x 6 x 6 x 3 x 8 = 4320 x 200 = 864,000, the diameter of the sun.

4320 divided by 2 = 2160, the diameter of the moon.

432 x 432 = 186,624, the speed of light within .0012 miles per second.

Iamblichus notes that Pythagoras spent twenty-two years in Egypt, “…studying astronomy and geometry…” before being taken to Babylon where he associated with the Magi, who, “…instructed him in their venerable knowledge, and …studied and completed arithmetic, music, and all the other sciences” for twelve years. [25] Who can forget the visit from the Magi after the birth of Jesus? (Mt 2:1-2).

In Egypt Pythagoras would have encountered Judeans who took refuge there after the destruction of the Kingdom of Judah in 597 BCE. Iamblichus stresses “…he won the esteem and admiration of all the priests and prophets with whom he associated.” This would include Judean priests and prophets. After twenty-two years, he would have been quite familiar with their legends and texts, as well as legends and texts from other traditions, including Sumerian-Babylonian.

This aptly describes the Tanakh. It’s clear that the two creation stories that open Genesis are derived from two different traditions. The first version never mentions YHWH; the second version begins at Gen 2:4 and is all about YHWH and LHM, who was introduced in the opening words of Gen 1:1 as “Goddess the Mother” or “Gods,” which would refer to Eloah and Ela Ha Em. It’s here that the competing deities become One, assumed by Judeans to be male, but known to the Essenes as God and Goddess. This Jewish sect was egalitarian; men and women were equal in value!

The Serpent in the Garden of Eden first appears at Gen 3:1. The Hebrew word translated “serpent” is nachash; the same word is translated elsewhere in the Tanakh as: divination, divined, enchantments, indeed practice divination, indeed uses, interprets omens, practice divination, took as an omen, used divination. [26]

A Hebrew nachash haggan,[27] “Serpent in enclosure,” is a Greek Python in agora. Python+agora becomes Pyth agora, the purveyor of “Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Whomever eats of the fruit of that tree will know right from wrong and respond to deities who are parent-teachers, rather than tyrants. Those who do not eat of that tree require explicit instructions, something like the Ten Commandments accompanied by threats of eternal suffering if the rules are not obeyed. Fear was their driving force.

Pythagoras’ mother’s name was Pythia; according to Iamblichus, the Pythia at the Oracle of Delphi prophesied to her that she would “…give birth to a man supremely beautiful, wise, and beneficial to humankind.” [28]

The Oracle of Delphi was located on Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis. According to legend, the hill was guarded by a giant serpent called Python, who was a follower of the cult of Gaia for hundreds of years. After killing Python, Apollo claimed Delphi as his own sanctuary.[29] The name Pythia is derived from Pytho, the original name of Delphi, the location of the famous Oracle:

“The Pythia was established at the latest in the 8th century BC, and was widely credited for her prophecies inspired by being filled by the spirit of the god (or enthusiasmos), in this case Apollo. The Pythian priestess emerged pre-eminent by the end of 7th century BC and would continue to be consulted until the 4th century AD. During this period the Delphic Oracle was the most prestigious and authoritative oracle among the Greeks, and she was without doubt the most powerful woman of the classical world. The oracle is one of the best-documented religious institutions of the classical Greeks. Authors who mention the oracle include Aeschylus, Aristotle, Clement of Alexandria, Diodorus, Diogenes, Eruripides, Herodotus, Julian, Justin, Livy, Lucan, Nepos, Ovid, Pausanias, Pindar, Plato, Plutarch, Sophocles, Strabo, Thucydides and Xenophon.” [30] (Emphasis added.)

Pythagoras has never been considered as a possible contributor to the Tanakh. After all, he was a Greek philosopher, not a Judean priest or scribe. This preconceived notion might be worthy of scholarly reconsideration. His twenty-two years of study in Egypt, documented by his biographer Iamblichus and repeated by Plutarch, gave him the time needed to perfect the new Hebrew script that he took back to Babylon. It was all he needed to create the dual-text Tanakh to carry a multitude of traditions popular around the known world. Genius, indeed!

Image of Bust of Pythagoras of Samos currently on display at the Capitoline Museums, Rome, Italy. Image downloaded from: Pythagoras – Wikipedia Joost-Gaugier, Christiane L. (2006), Measuring Heaven: Pythagoras and his Influence on Thought and Art in Antiquity and the Middle Ages, Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, ISBN 978-0-8014-7409-5

Footnotes:

[1] Collins, John J. (1999). “Daniel.” In Van Der Toorn, Karel; Becking, Bob, van der Horst, Pieter Willem. Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the bible. Erdmans, p. 219; Wikipedia, “Nebuchadnezzar II”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebuchadnezzar II.

[2] “Aramaic Language.” “Chaldee” or “Chaldean Aramaic” used to be common terms for the Aramaic of the Chaldean dynasty of Babylonia. It was used to describe Biblical Aramaic, which was, however, written in a later style.” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaic_language#Middle_Aramaic. 

[3] Coogan, Michael (2009). A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[4] Encyclopaesia Judaica. 3 (2nd ed.), p. 27.

[5] Stern, Ephraim (November-December 2000). “The Babylonian Gap.” Biblical Archaeology Review.

[6] “Babylonian Captivity,” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonian_captivity#cite_note-Finkelstein-16.

[7] Joosten, Jan (2017). “How Hebrew Became a Holy Language,” Biblical Archaeology Review, January/February 2017 (emphasis added).

[8] “How was the bible Written During and After the Exile?” https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/how-was-the-bible-written-during-and-after-the-exile/. Emphasis added.

[9] William Keith Chambers Guthrie, (1978), A History of Greek Philosophy, Volume 1: The Earlier Pre-Socratics and the Pythagoreans Cambridge University Press, p. 173.

[10] Iamblichus, Life of Pythagoras, Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, trans. (Chapter IV: “Studies in Egypt and Babylonia”), 9. Emphasis added.

[11] Finkelstein, Israel; Silberman, Neil Asher (2001). The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the origin of Its Sacred Texts. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-86912-4

[12] Dandamayev, Muhammad A. “Cyrus III. Cyrus II the Great.” iranicaonline.org. (Encyclopaedia Iranica 1989), p. 71).

[13] Collins, John J.’ Manning, J.G. (2016). Revolt and Resistance in the Ancient Classical World and the Near East: In the Crucible of Empire. BRILL. p. 99.

[14] Yonge (2013): Philo, “Every Good Man is Free” (12.82), 690. Emphasis added.

[15] Plutarch. Isis and Osiris, “introduction,” (Loeb Classical Library, 1914, Babbit trans.), Bill Thayer’s website. Emphasis added.

[16] “Theano (philosopher), ” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theano)_(philosopher).

[17] “Damo (philosopher),” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damo_(philosopher).

[18] “Arignote,” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arignote.

[19] “Myia,” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myia.

[20] “Journeying to the Goddess,” https://journeyingtothegoddess.wordpress.com/2012/03/19/goddess-anahita/

[21] Plutarch, Artoxerxes in “Parallel Lives.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus#cite_note-8

[22] “Gematria,” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gematria.

[23] Michell, John; The Dimensions of Paradise (Kempton, Adventures Unlimited Press, 2001), 170-1.

[24] Wikipedia, “Babylonian Astronomy”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonian_astronomy.

[25] Iamblichus, Life of Pythagoras, Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, trans. (Chapter IV: “Studies in Egypt and Babylonia”), 9 (emphasis added).

[26] Biblehub: “nachash”: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/5172.htm

[27] Biblehub: “haggan”: https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1588.h5m

[28] Riedweg, Christoph (2005) [2002], Pythagoras: His Life, Teachings, and Influence (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press), 62.

[29] “Pythia, the Oracle of Delphi,” Ancient Origins: https://www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends/pythia-oracle-delphi-001641 (emphasis added.)

[30] “Pythia,” Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythia (emphasis added).

Kings and Queens

Yahweh, Abba El; Ela Ha Em, Isha Orah

Philo Judeaus, a first-century Jewish theologian, codified an ancient secret method for identifying and interpreting enigmas and parables written into Scripture. Plutarch alluded to it and identified Pythagoras as one who learned it and took it to Babylon c. 525 BCE.

In 2002, Gott and Licht recognized Philo’s clues to enigmas embedded in Luke’s Gospel and began testing the method on unresolved biblical questions. Philo’s Rules can be used to interpret both the Old and New Testaments.

Philo’s most important revelations turn Old Testament fantastic tales of a rib turned into a woman and a talking serpent into ancient traditions that rational minds, unencumbered by preconceived notions and religious dogma, can interpret and explain.

Philo reveals, for example, that YHWH (translated in the Bible as LORD, all caps) was the name assumed by ancient Judean Kings who represented an imagined deity that was given the same name. The Kings, like their deity, were narcissistic and authoritarian. They used threats and violence to control the members of their tribes, the Judeans. Instilling fear through violence was their philosophy and their method. Notably, early versions of YHWH included a wife; however, she was eliminated when physical strength became valued more than nurturing, wisdom, and compassion. Most experts identify the figurines in the image below as “Great Mother Goddessses.”

Judaean female clay “pillar figurines”. Jerusalem, Beer-Sheva, Tel Erani (8th-6th BCE). Wikimedia / Israel Museum

Additionally, Eloah (translated in the Bible as “God”) and LHM (translated incorrectly as “God” but translated correctly, “Goddess the Mother”) were names assumed by ancient Israelite Kings and Queens. They also represented imagined deities that were given the same names, aB-eL (Ba’al) and eLa Ha eM, “Father God and Goddess the Mother.” Eloah was also known as “Father Light,” Hebrew Ab Or; LHM was also known as “Woman Light,” Hebrew Isha Ora, which evolved into Asherah.; Isha ora Ela became Israel, the name of their tribe. Like their imagined deities, these Kings and Queens treated the members of their tribes as beloved children. Love and compassion were their philosophy and their method.

Claims of Venusian origins permeate the Hebrew Bible and other ancient texts, and archaeology lends circumstantial support. In the Sumerian creation story, the Enuma Elish, the Venusian “Beings” are called Sar and Sara, translated “Lord” and “Lady” and/or “Prince” and “Princess.” Stories in the Hebrew Bible and the Enuma Elish seem to describe these “Beings” manipulating the DNA in Earthlings (Adamah), the humanoid life-form which they found on Earth. They introduced Venusian DNA to produce hybrid humanoid-Venusians that would be supported by Earth’s atmosphere. Those with predominantly Venusian DNA became the Tribe of Isha Orah; they were designed to be “Rulers.” Those with predominantly Earthling DNA became the Tribe of Judah; they were destined to be “Workers.”

These stories may seem far-fetched but for these recent articles: “NASA Looking Toward Manned Mission To Mars ‘Sometime In The 2030s” (https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nasa-looking-toward-manned-mission-to-mars-sometime-in-the-2030s_us_5bfaf0e9e4b0eb6d930fac96

And, “China is at the forefront of manipulating DNA to create a new class of superhumans” https://qz.com/750908/the-future-of-genetic-enhancement-is-in-china-and-india/

Finally, give some thought to these observations about Venus: “Through studies of the present cloud structure and geology of the surface, combined with the fact that the luminosity of the Sun has increased by 25% since around 3.8 billion years ago, it is thought that the early environment of Venus was more like that of Earth with liquid water on the surface. At some point in the evolution of Venus, a runaway greenhouse effect occurred, leading to the current greenhouse-dominated atmosphere. The timing of this transition from Earthlike to Venuslike is not known, but is estimated to have occurred around 4 billion years ago. The runaway greenhouse effect may have been caused by the evaporation of the surface water and the rise of the levels of greenhouse gases that followed. Venus’s atmosphere has therefore received a great deal of attention from those studying climate change on Earth.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Venus).

Month: February 2019

Following Philo to:

Legacy of the First Christian Heretic

Pythagoras of Samos

Kings and Queens

Yahweh, Abba El; Ela Ha Em, Isha Orah