 10. Animal Sacrifice |
Along with a general movement away from the shamanistic culture of blood-sacrifice, modern societies have also traveled a long distance in the direction of Spiritual blindness (or the simultaneous abandonment of both Spiritual Enlightenment and archaic - or, otherwise, superstitious - beliefs and techniques), in the self defensive and anxious quest for ordinary (body-based) knowledge and both mental and technical (or physical) superiority and power over the natural world. Therefore, a little recovery of real Spiritual understanding will also (necessarily) re-Awaken something of the higher (or, otherwise, deeper) dimension of the human faculties that were (or are) activated by the ancient and traditional shamanistic (and otherwise mystical) mind.
Indeed, apparently (according to the traditional reports) Jesus himself actually Taught a Way that represents both a higher development of the shamanistic point of view and a denial of both the validity and the necessity of any kind of blood-sacrifice. As reported in the fourth chapter of the "Gospel of John," Jesus said: "The time is coming - indeed, it is already here - when all true worshippers will worship the Father (or God) In Spirit (or Spiritually) and In Truth (or without falsehood and deception), for such are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God Is Spirit - and therefore, those who worship the Father must do so In Spirit and In Truth (or As Truth requires), Jesus Taught that God Is Spirit (or "Mana") and that true worship of God is identical to prayer (and, specifically, prayer In Spirit). That is to say, true worship is always associated with the prayer of Divine Communion (or Communion with Real God, As Spirit, by Means of Spirit), and such prayer is, necessarily, a Spiritual exercise.
The ancient word for "spirit" (in the common Greek language of Jesus' day) is "pneuma," which means "breath-energy." Therefore, in true (or esoteric) prayer, the individual breathes (and, Ultimately, is Absorbed In) the Divine Spirit ("Pneuma," or "Mana") - and if there is correct Spirit-breathing (or psycho-physical Absorption In the Divine Spirit-Power), prayer is inherently effective.
Jesus apparently Taught esoteric (or inherently effective, and, necessarily, Spiritual) prayer. He Taught the basic esoteric fourth stage breath-prayer of heart-reception of the descending "Pneuma," or Spirit-Power, or "Mana," or Truth-Blessing of the cosmically evident Divine - and, apparently, he also Taught the esoteric fourth-to-fifth stage prayer of mystical ascent. And such (esoteric, or Spiritual) prayer is the sign of a cultural point of view based on Spirit-religion - or advanced (or esoteric) shamanism, rather than lower shamanistic (or exoteric, and even "pagan") blood-sacrifices. Therefore, according to tradition, Jesus himself Taught a Way that specifically denies both the necessity and the value of blood-sacrifices.
How then, can a church be rightly established in the name of Jesus, if it bases itself on the idea that Jesus is the ultimate blood-sacrifice? Jesus Taught an esoteric Way that has not been understood and accepted by his own (exoteric) church - and exoteric Christianity has, also, not understood (or had forgotten) the true (or esoteric) significance of its Resurrection and Ascension myths.
Jesus proclaimed a Way for all that required no blood-sacrifice (not even his own), but only the true "Mana" of Spiritually Inspired prayer (or devotional and mystical Communion with the All-Pervading and Eternally Living Divine Spirit). Jesus' alleged crucifixion (with whatever bodily result) was either murder or misfortune, but is was not a cosmically significant ritual blood-sacrifice. Indeed, the only reason Christianity ever became associated with the myth (or tradition) of blood-sacrifice (and the ritual ingestion of ritually sacrificed flesh and blood) was that (apparently) the stark reality (and circumstance) of Jesus' death required some kind of religiously archetypal (or otherwise symbolically and psychically significant) justification. However, by his own reported Teaching during life, Jesus effectively denied such significance to his death. Therefore, he stands together with all other true Spirit-Masters, affirming that it is not the death-sacrifice of any Spirit-Master that is necessary for (or that is, in any sense, useful to) mankind.
