This is a beautiful and necessary reframe. The distinction between the religion built around Jesus and the path Jesus actually taught is the pivot that changes everything. The institutions that claim his name have often done so in ways that betray his message. But the path itself—the purification of the heart, the remembrance of God, the awakening to what is already present—cannot be owned by any institution.
What I find myself sitting with is the warning: "The darkness will come, and it will wear my face." That is the most urgent teaching. Evil rarely introduces itself as evil. It borrows sacred language. It learns to say the right names. It can defend cruelty as righteousness and domination as divine order. The test is not the name. The test is the fruit.
The line that stayed with me is: "The path to God does not end with believing the right things about Jesus. It begins when the heart is transformed into the kind of place where his teaching can live." That is the whole of it. The teaching is not a doctrine to be defended. It is a transformation to be embodied.
I loved reading this. A long time ago, I used to pray something along the lines of "Jesus, come near" I stopped doing that and changed my prayer to, "Jesus, help me to be aware of your presence." The kingdom of God is with us. We just need to recognize it.
Drawn to you and your posts for the boundary-less wisdom found in all mystical sources, the Gnostics, Sufism, Helminski, Quran, etc. And I have read that Jesus traveled and was in-formed by many Eastern teachings and masters. And while reading and feeling the transmission, the thought arises of how little has changed, and how boxes and dogma, righteousness and cruelty have and likely will always be a part of the human experience, all while experiencing internal gratitude for a deeper understanding.
Wonderful!🌹I agree that Jesus was a Sufi master — Rumi & Shams would think so too. Your essay shows a pure connection between original Christianity & Islam.☪️
This is a beautiful and necessary reframe. The distinction between the religion built around Jesus and the path Jesus actually taught is the pivot that changes everything. The institutions that claim his name have often done so in ways that betray his message. But the path itself—the purification of the heart, the remembrance of God, the awakening to what is already present—cannot be owned by any institution.
What I find myself sitting with is the warning: "The darkness will come, and it will wear my face." That is the most urgent teaching. Evil rarely introduces itself as evil. It borrows sacred language. It learns to say the right names. It can defend cruelty as righteousness and domination as divine order. The test is not the name. The test is the fruit.
The line that stayed with me is: "The path to God does not end with believing the right things about Jesus. It begins when the heart is transformed into the kind of place where his teaching can live." That is the whole of it. The teaching is not a doctrine to be defended. It is a transformation to be embodied.
I loved reading this. A long time ago, I used to pray something along the lines of "Jesus, come near" I stopped doing that and changed my prayer to, "Jesus, help me to be aware of your presence." The kingdom of God is with us. We just need to recognize it.
Drawn to you and your posts for the boundary-less wisdom found in all mystical sources, the Gnostics, Sufism, Helminski, Quran, etc. And I have read that Jesus traveled and was in-formed by many Eastern teachings and masters. And while reading and feeling the transmission, the thought arises of how little has changed, and how boxes and dogma, righteousness and cruelty have and likely will always be a part of the human experience, all while experiencing internal gratitude for a deeper understanding.
Wonderful!🌹I agree that Jesus was a Sufi master — Rumi & Shams would think so too. Your essay shows a pure connection between original Christianity & Islam.☪️
Thanks, VMB! A very useful comparison, and words to remember.