Did Jesus really die by crucifixion? Yes, otherwise how can you resurrect yourself during this Last Judgment?
>
> Dear Jagbir,
>
> i have a basic question to ask.
>
> i wonder if Jesus really died (completely dead) on the cross or
> whether He laid down His life in Samadhi, and took it up again,
> because He had the power to do so. After all, if anyone had this
> power, Jesus had this power over life and death.
>
> i have never ever understood the Christian concept of Shri Jesus
> having to be 'slaughtered like a sheep', in order for us to be able
> to ascend to the Kingdom of God.
>
> i believe that Shri Mataji said that it was not the killing of
> Jesus which horrible people did to Him, but the Work that Jesus
> Himself did in opening the Agnya Centre within Human Beings that
> paved the way for people to enter the Kingdom of Heaven within.
>
> However, i would like confirmation on this, if possible.
>
> In any case, Jesus was seen alive in his physical body after He was
> supposedly killed. Does that not prove that He actually did not die
> completely, but must have gone into some other Spiritual State....
> Samadhi perhaps?
>
> Also, in the Bible Jesus is purported to have said that 'i lay down
> my life and i have the power to take it up again'...
>
Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
“The Message of His life is not the Cross but the Resurrection. He
was resurrected. That was one of the things He did so that now you
can be resurrected. Every Incarnation is something unique. But the end of it was the Resurrection. He did it because He had to die. Otherwise how can you resurrect yourself?
There are lots of things which look difficult but which are not. There are some who say that Christ never resurrected Himself.”
Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
Children, Money & Responsibility, Christmas Puja,
India — December 25, 1993
Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
“I am happy to know so many of you have come here and I feel this is
a very important Puja, not only for Australia but for the whole
world, because it has the greatest Message which we have actualized
now in Sahaja Yoga. We have to understand the Message of Christ. There are many people in this world who try to show off that they are very great rationalists and they have a right to pass any remark they like about Christ. I was reading the newspapers today. I was surprised where they are all saying one by one that," I reject this part of Christ that He was born with Immaculate Conception. I reject that He was resurrected. I reject this and I reject that.”
Who are you? Because you can write, because you have a flair, how can you say such things? Just without finding out, you are a scholar, maybe you are very well read, maybe that you think you are capable of saying whatever you like about any subject, but subject of spirituality cannot be dealt by people who are not even Self- Realized.”
Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
Resurrection; Helping Each Other, Easter Puja Talk
Sydney, Australia, April 3, 1994
The Resurrection of Christ, a central doctrine of Christianity
The Resurrection of Christ, a central doctrine of Christianity, is based on the belief that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead on the third day after his Crucifixion and that through his conquering of death all believers will subsequently share in his victory over"sin, death, and the devil.”The celebration of this event, called Easter, or the Festival of the Resurrection, is the major feast day of the church. The accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus are found in the four Gospels — Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — and various theological expressions of the early church's universal conviction and consensus that Christ rose from the dead are found throughout the rest of the New Testament. (Britannica Online)
Jesus in Jewish eyes
The province of Judea in the time of Jesus was a seething cauldron of discontent. Deeply divided in religious matters and resentful of Roman occupation, it was a society that spawned a number or religious and quasi-religious"prophets," who gathered followers about them and walked from town to town proclaiming their particular message. Some of these were cranks, some crooks, and a few were genuine — even inspired — religious figures who ardently desired the restoration of Israel's political and religious integrity.
In the eyes of the Jewish religious leaders of the time, Jesus must have seemed an incautious and even misguided example of these prophets. They would probably have acknowledged that Jesus was a successful healer and a good moral teacher, but condemned his attacks on contemporary religious practice and teaching as being exaggerated. These religious leaders would also have argued that Jesus brought about his own downfall as a result of his insensitive approach to the delicate relationship that they had to maintain with the Roman authorities; and, finally, tales of his miraculous resurrection from the dead were simply fabricated by his followers in an attempt to keep his movement alive. (Dr. Peter B. Clarke, The World's Religions)
The Biblical account
The primary accounts of the resurrection are in the Gospels: the last chapter of Matthew, of Mark, and of Luke, as well as the last two chapters of John. However, there are two extant endings to Mark, neither of which is probably the original (see Mark 16).
All these accounts agree that Jesus was killed by crucifixion and placed in a tomb (belonging to Joseph of Arimathea). After observing the Sabbath, some of Jesus' female followers returned to the tomb, to complete the burial rites. When they arrived they discovered that the body was gone, and they returned with some of the male disciples.
Jesus then makes a series of appearances to the disciples, with the most notable being to Thomas and the other disciples in the upper room (Luke 20:26-31), along the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-32), and beside the Sea of Galilee to reinstate Peter (John 21:1-23). His final appearance is reported as being forty days after the resurrection when he ascended into heaven (Luke 24:44-49).
However, when compared, the accounts give different details and are difficult to reconcile into a single sequence of events. For example, Michael Ramsey (the former Archbishop of Canterbury) stated: "That we should expect to be able to weave the stories into a chronological and geographical plan seems inconceivable" (The Resurrection of Christ 1946). These discrepancies have therefore been used to question the authenticity of the biblical account of the resurrection. Christians have answered by noting that multiple eyewitnesses to any event tend to give conflicting accounts, and that unanimous agreement would be indication of contrivance, not authenticity. There are also various suggested ways in which the accounts could be reconciled. These arguments are further discussed below.
As the resurrection of Jesus is one of the most important events for Christianity, there are many references to it in the rest of the New Testament. Both Peter (Acts 2:22-32) and Paul (1 Corinthians 15:19) argue that this event was the cornerstone of Christianity, and may be seen to some extent as providing witness to the resurrection independent of the Gospel accounts. Indeed, nearly every New Testament book speaks of Jesus' death and resurrection, a telling fact in that many were written independent of each other both geographically and socially.
The historicity of the resurrection
As with all historical events before the past few hundred years, the issue of historicity is an important aspect of any person's belief in the actual occurrence of the resurrection. In contrast with scientific phenomena for which reproducibility and falsifiability are essential, historical phenomena depend on different criteria, such as uniqueness of occurrence, plausibility of circumstances, and testimony of witnesses.
Arguments defending the resurrection's historicity
Christians who defend the resurrection's historicity cite the following, among other evidence:
● Multiple eyewitness accounts - different people, different times, different situations, all seeing the resurrected Jesus, eating with him, talking with him.
● Eyewitnesses died for their testimonies, which limits the range of potentially false motives for their testimonies. The most prominent are the first twelve apostles, all of whom were martyred except John, who was merely exiled.
● Conservative Bible scholars argue that the resurrection shows indications of being physical/historical event. For example, Dr. Norman Geisler cites the gospel records indicating that Jesus is reported to have flesh and bones(Luke 24:39). Dr. Geisler also points out that the Apostle Peter is reported to say that Christ's"flesh did not see corruption" (Acts 2:31). In addition Dr. Geisler cites other Bible versus and very early church father testimony regarding the physicality of the claim of the resurrection. [1] Dr. Gary Habermas and Dr. William Craig argue that the hallucination and vision explanations for the resurrection are not plausible [2] [3].
● The Gospels state that the early witnesses to the empty tomb and the resurrected Jesus were women, whose testimony was not regarded as credible in the patriarchal Judaism of that period. If the resurrection stories were invented, one would not expect this: a hoax or conspiracy would have used men as these early witnesses. An honest account, on the other hand, would have described what was true, however inconvenient it was.
● Various arguments having been put forth by legal scholars such as Simon Greenleaf and John Warwick Montgomery and others claiming that Western legal standards argue for the historicity of the resurrection of Christ. [4][5][6] In addition, the former Chief Justices of England Lord Darling and Lord Caldecote claimed there was overwhelming amount of evidence for the resurrection of Christ.[7]
● Lack of protests against the empty tomb which is admitedly an appeal to silence. There is no record of the Jewish and Roman authorities disproving the belief by publicly presenting the real corpse of Jesus. However, historian David Hackett Fischer states among other criteria that appeals to silence in historical investigations are not valid (David Hackett Fischer, Historians' Fallacies: Toward a Logic of Historical Thought (New York: Harper, 1970), p. 62-63). At the same time, we do have the New Testament writers describing that the tomb was found empty. Historian Michael Grant stated that historians cannot justifiably deny the empty tomb and that the historical evidence necessitates the determination that the tomb was found empty[8]
● Bible scholar Dr. Gary Habermas argues that there are eight pieces of evidence showing that 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, which proclaims Jesus's death and resurrection, was an early creed of the Christian church [9][10].
● Bible scholar FF Bruce states that the presence of hostile witnesses during the time of early Christianity served as a historical check that lends further credence to the historicity of Christianity.[11] In addition, Bruce states that it would not have been easy"to invent words and deeds of Jesus in those early years, when so many of His disciples were about, who could remember what had and had not happened.” (Bruce, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?, pp. 45-46). This argument, however, leans on the assumption that accounts of masses of witnesses to the event are, in fact, truthful.
● Who could find a whole group of people willing to concoct a wild lie, be tortured and killed for it, and not have one of them tell the truth to escape death? Charles Colson argues in his book Loving God that as a former Watergate conspirator he believes that conspiracies are hard to maintain especially in the face of persecution and argues that Apostles were telling the truth regarding the resurrection of Jesus.
● The morality of Jesus and his disciples. Historian William Lecky stated," He [Jesus]...has been not only the highest pattern of virtue, but the strongest incentive to its practice.”It is unclear, however, how this is relevant to the question of Jesus' resurrection, save as a response to the claim that the Apostles lied.
● The relatively poor educational level of the disciples (most were fishermen), which would make the devising of an elaborate cover- up difficult.
● The radical change of Saul of Tarsus to the Apostle Paul.
● The birth and rapid spread of the early church, all from people who were originally hiding in fear.
● The Bible says that over 500 people were witnesses of the resurrected Jesus, many still alive at the time. This open declaration was in the face of non-Christians who could respond to the charge. To be fair, this is an argument from silence.
● The Jewish Scriptures contain many statements that Christians have interpreted as saying that God would take a body, die for sins and rise again. However, a skeptic could point out that this argument is inaccurate.
● The early dates for most of the New Testament.
● The testimony of the early church fathers regarding the life, death, and resurrection of Christ - some of whom were martyred for their faith and claim to have met or been disciples of the Apostles. For example, Polycarp, Ignatius, Papias, Irenaeus, and Justin Martyr. Bible scholar and archaeologist Bernard Ramm wrote regarding some skeptics: "Unbelief has to deny all the testimony of the Fathers .... It must assume that these men either did not have the motivation or the historical standards to really investigate the resurrection of Christ. They are deemed trustworthy for data about apostolic or near- apostolic theology, yet in matters of fact they are not granted a shred of evidential testimony.”But this must be, or unbelief cannot make its case stick.”
● Jesus fulfilled many Old Testament prophecies (see: Bible prophecy). The probability of the fulfillment of all of them by chance is presumed to be extremely small and best accounted for as a miracle. [12] [13] This ought to prompt us to take more seriously the possibility of a second miracle, the resurrection.
● The experiences of millions of Christians worldwide today, who claim to have met Jesus personally and experience the Spirit which he promised would come.
● Negative accounts of Jesus' disciples in the New Testament resurrection stories. Jesus' disciples became the leaders of Christianity after Jesus' death, and yet the resurrection stories speak poorly of their belief and understanding when Jesus met with them after rising. If the stories were concocted, why would they include such negative portrayals of themselves?
● The uniqueness of the New Testament descriptions of the resurrection as thoroughly bodily and physical. Most, if not all, resurrection stories of antiquity emphasize the immortality of their hero's soul. This is indicative of a general philosophical culture that looked harshly on physicality and emphasized the value of the soul/spirit over body.
● A general acceptance by a majority of biblical scholars and historians that Jesus' disciples at least thought they met Jesus after he died (although scholars still disagree as to if they actually saw a physical Jesus, a poser, a vision, or"something" else).
● The early 19th century British historian and churchman Thomas Arnold believed the resurrection of Jesus did occur and it that it was"proved by better and fuller evidence of every sort"to the"fair inquirer.”[14]
● In regard to the historicity of the resurrection, the historian A. N. Sherwin-White stated that"Herodotus enables us to test the tempo of myth-making, [showing that] even two generations are too short a span to allow the mythical tendency to prevail over the hard historic core.” [15] Michael Grant in his work Jesus: An Historian's Review of the Gospels states: "Judaism was a milieu to which doctrines of the deaths and rebirths, of mythical gods seemed so entirely foreign that the emergence of such a fabrication from its midst is very hard to credit.”[16].
● According to the book of Acts Jesus showed himself to the Apostles with many"Infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3) and the book of Acts also gives an account of post resurrection appearance with Jesus speaking to the Apostles in the opening chapter. A. N. Sherwin-White stated regarding the book of Acts, that"The confirmation of historicity is overwhelming. Any attempt to reject its basic historicity, even in matters of detail, must now appear absurd. Roman historians have long taken it for granted.”[17]. However, the skeptic might point out that the writing of Acts is attributed to Luke [18], who never met Jesus and clearly noted that his writings were mere compilations of the accounts of others [Luke 1:1-3].
● Using the work of the University of Dublin physiologist Samuel Houghton, M.D., Bible commentator Frederick Charles Cook and author Josh McDowell argue that the crucifixion narrative in the gospel of John could never have been invented as it displays medical knowledge not available at the time. Houghton wrote concerning the flow of"blood and water"recorded in the gospel of John after the soldier is recorded to have pieced Jesus' side with a spear that it was extremely unusual. Houghton wrote: .”...With the foregoing cases most anatomists who have devoted their attention to this subject are familiar; but the two following cases, although readily explicable on physiological principles, are not recorded in the books (except by St. John). Nor have I been fortunate enough to meet with them.”[19] [20](for further details see: Josh McDowell, New Evidence that Demands a Verdict, pages 223-225). Medical authorities W. D. Edwards, W. J. Gabel and F. E. Hosmer appear to offer a different analysis in regard to the New Testament Greek and the medical data, however. [21] [22] (the latter footnote is the whole JAMA article in a PDF file format). Alexander Metherall, M.D., P.H.D. concurs that based on the gospel accounts that Jesus was dead when removed from the cross.[23] (PDF format) In summary, all the aforementioned medical authorities cited are in agreement that given the account in the New Testament Jesus was dead when removed from the cross. However, the skeptic could point out that expert opinions on the mortal injury described in the tales do not constitute proof of a later resurrection.
● Bible commentators John Wenham, Dr. Gleason Archer and others have offered exegesis of the Biblical text in respect to the gospels arguing among other things that omissions are not contradictions and that alleged contradictions are often due to poor Bible exegesis/cultural differences (culteral context). [24][25][26] According to historian David Hackett Fischer the following historical methodology is sound: The meaning of any historical evidence is dependent upon the context from which it is obtained. [27] This of course would include cultural context. This may be accepted as a general methodological statement; however, a skeptic might claim it does not speak to any specific alleged inconsistency or contradiction, nor to the question of whether the Resurrection actually took place—only to the means through which we should evaluate evidence.
● Roman guards could be punished by death if ever they allow a crucified man to live. The Roman guards even pierced Jesus on the side with a spear; his body bled and released water, a sign of death from asphyxia.
● Roman guards could be punished by death if they allowed a condemned man's remains be stolen, especially because of the importance of Jesus.
● In Matthew 28:11-15, there is a reference made to an attempt to refute Christianity be saying that the disciples stole the body. Christians believe there are a number of problems with the stolen body hypothesis.[28][29][30].
● The Toledoth Yeshu a compilation of early Jewish writings, is another source which alludes to stolen body hypothesis. [31][32] Christians see this an acknowledgement that the tomb was empty, and a poor attempt to explain it away. [33] In addition there is a record of a second century debate between a Christian and a Jew, in which a reference is made to the Jews claiming the body was stolen.[34]
● J.N.D. Anderson, dean of the faculty of law at the University of London, and director of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies at the same university said," This [the stolen body theory] would run totally contrary to all we know of them: their ethical teaching, the quality of their lives. Nor would it begin to explain their dramatic transformation from dejected and dispirited escapists into witnesses whom no opposition could muzzle.”[35] Dr. John Warwick Montgomery, author of History and Christianity, said," It passes the bounds of credibility that the early Christians could have manufactured such a tale and then preached it among those who might easily have refuted it simply by producing the body of Jesus.”[36]
● Some skeptics argue that no Roman historians mention any darkness of three hours at the time of Jesus' death. However, Bible scholar FF Bruce argues in his work," The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? that the Samaritan-born historian Thallus alludes to this darkness. Julius Africanus writes regarding Thallus: "Thallus, in the third book of his histories, explains away this darkness as an eclipse of the sun -unreasonably, as it seems to me" (unreasonably, of course, because a solar eclipse could not take place at the time of the full moon, and it was the season of the Paschal full moon that Christ died).”[37] Also, the lack of a Roman historian not mentioning the darkness is an appeal to silence and as noted earlier the historian Fischer states this is not a legitimate historical methodology.
● Some skeptics argue that the only early sources which mention the resurrection are Christian sources. However, Bible scholar, Dr. Gary Habermas writes in his work The Historical Jesus the following," If this brief statement by Thallus refers to Jesus' crucifixion we can ascertain that the Christian gospel, or at least an account of the crucifixion, was known in the Mediterranean region by the middle of the first century AD.” (p. 197). Habermas also writes," the possibility remains that Tacitus may have indirectly referred to the Christians' belief in Jesus' resurrection. (p. 190). Furthermore, Dr. Gary Habermas states that Christ is one of the most mentioned figures in the ancient world and cites a total of 39 ancient extra-biblical sources, including 17 non-Christian sources, that mention Christian from outside the New Testament in regard to over 100 details of Jesus's life and death.[38].
● In regard to early Christian witness, Christians argue that an"Agenda"does not nullify the possibility of accurate historical knowledge. In the Dr. Norman Geisler-Farrell Till debate, Dr. Geisler gave a car accident analogy and stated"Now apart from your eyewitnesses, you don't have a very good case.”That's like four eyewitnesses in court who saw an accident, and then one person came right after the accident, and the defense attorney said," Now apart from those four eyewitnesses you just gave, you know you have only circumstantial evidence.”So it's begging the question to say apart from the New Testament, and I gave the argument that the New Testament was historically reliable. [39] Furthermore, according to historian David Hackett Fischer the following principle is sound: "An historian must not merely provide good evidence, but the best evidence. And the best evidence, all other things being equal, is the evidence which is most nearly immediate to the event itself.”[40].
● The skeptic Dan Barker has argued that there is evidence of progressive supernaturalization in the gospel accounts. However, it has been argued that Mr. Barker's analysis of the gospels is flawed and inconsistent. [41] In addition, as noted earlier the historian Fischer said appeals to silence are illegitimate in historical investigations.
● Some skeptics argue that in the appearances of Jesus that are reported to have occurred initially after he left the tomb, his followers did not immediately recognize him and this raises issues regarding the compellingness of Jesus's appearances. However, the gospels do appear to state that Christ sometimes supernaturally hid himself (Luke 4: 20-30, John 8:37-41,59). Also, there are indications that Christ's appearances had a supernatural element. Luke 24:31 states: "And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.”Bible commentator David Guzak states regarding this verse," As soon as their eyes were opened to who Jesus was, He left miraculously....”[42] This skeptical argument in relation to Jesus's appearances also ignores Acts 1:3 which states he appeared to the apostles with many"Infallible proofs.”
● Some skeptics claim that there are miraculous accounts of the bodily disappearance of pagan divine heroes and say that these accounts lack historical believability and argue that this is an argument against the resurrection of Christ. Christians say this is a faulty line of reasoning and argue merely because some accounts of miraculous bodily disappearance are false that does not mean at all that all miraculous disappearances are false. Historical claims are weighed and are not"Added.” In short, both miraculous and non miraculous accounts should not be casually thrown together by the historian. Similarly, conservative Christians argue that the arguments that Jesus was a"copy cat Christ"stolen from pagan myths are lacking in historical plausibility and poorly constructed.[43].
● Occam's Razor: that Jesus really did rise and appear to his disciples is a very simple and complete explanation for the complex events that came later: the actions of the disciples, the unique rise of Christianity as a Jewish sect (many other would-be Messiahs and movements had appeared and quickly disappeared in 1st century Palestine), the continued significance of Christianity, etc. This is also known as the"smoke-and-fire"Argument (Graham Stanton) - where there is smoke there is fire. The"smoke"of events that came after Jesus' life have to be in part explained by a genuine fire - the authenticity of Jesus as Messiah. Note: materialist skeptics may reply that supposing a miracle actually complicates the explanation, since a miracle is inherently incomprehensible by materialist reasoning. This last point also reveals the vast importance of philosophical and theological presuppositions when evaluating the evidence for or against Jesus' resurrection. A materialist philosophy, for instance, automatically rules out the possibility of Jesus actually dying and miraculously rising to life again (although it would allow for resuscitation, meaning that Jesus did not actually die - see"Swooning"Theory below). It also rules out the intervention of a non-physical God (God, by traditional definition (See John 4:24), is completely non-physical). A philosophy which allows for miracles, on the other hand, allows for the possibility of a miraculous or non-miraculous explanation in judging the evidence.
● A new approach has been taken by Anglican scholar N.T. Wright in his 2003 volume The Resurrection of the Son of God where he examines extensively eschatological views and vocabulary of ancient pagans and post-biblical Judaism and analyses the Biblical accounts of the resurrection against this background. (Wikipedia)
Witnessing The Resurrection Of Jesus
On Good Friday, April 1, 1994, on the eve of Lalita's birth, there was a discussion between his father and a friend about the Resurrection of Shri Jesus. Since both were non-Christians their idea about the very foundation of Christianity was vague.
Kash, who was listening nearby, inquired about the meaning of Resurrection and was explained the little that was known. The Sahaja Yogi friend suggested that he should ask Shri Mataji if he could witness this unprecedented event, the very heart and soul of Christianity. It was indeed Jesus Christ's supreme proof to humans that they are not this physical body but the eternal Spirit.
Kash went into the room to meditate and instantly reached the Kingdom of God. He emerged through the spiritual clouds and reached the Divine Dimension within that the ancient Gnostics had revealed centuries ago.
The Everlasting Light shone ever so dazzlingly from above the Eternal Throne as the Great Holy Spirit sat in Bliss and Joy. She greeted him with a smile as Kash bowed deeply to Her.
After the usual exchange of greetings he asked if She could show him exactly how the Resurrection of Lord Jesus took place. On Earth Shri Mataji claimed that it is possible as"everything that was in the past since creation resides dormant in the Collective Subconscious.” If Shri Jesus did actually resurrect His physical body into the Spirit, then this supreme feat would still be accessible through the portals of the Time Dimension.
The Great Mater Sanctissima agreed to take him two millenniums back!
She got down from the Eternal Throne, stood up, extended Her hands with palms facing upwards, and told Her child to put his palms above them. As Kash did so he felt himself being uplifted above the thick, soft carpet of clouds on which they were standing. They started moving and were soon traveling back into the past, at speeds far beyond human comprehension.
At that speed everything became a blur as all familiar celestial landmarks disappeared. The Divine Mother was taking him into a time dimension that the ancients knew existed, and modern scientists acknowledge is possible if one travels faster than time.
Soon they came to the exact spot where Shri Jesus lay buried. About 20-25 Divine Beings were already sitting down on the ground in a circle around it. They were all waiting for the arrival of the Supreme Spirit of God, the Great Adi Shakti.
The Great Divine Mother had taken Kash back into the past to the exact spot and time where one of the most spectacular of God Almighty's Revelation took place. They were just minutes away from Shri Jesus' Resurrection! They had in fact gone back into the past, a possibility still beyond human comprehension or ability, but a common mode of time travel for the Divine Beings.
Kash was in Golgotha, outside the walls of Jerusalem, and about to witness and confirm the most profound proof and Truth ever propounded to the human race that they are not this physical body but the Spirit.
This act of supreme sacrifice to provide living proof of spiritual immortality over physical death stands heads and shoulders above any sacrifice of God Almighty's Messengers! For this unsurpassed feat Shri Jesus has been bestowed the title of Shri Mahavishnu in the Kingdom of God, the highest honor among the Divine Unity. Thus no one — no matter what his or her earthly position, penance, or religion — enters the Kingdom of God without His permission. This is the Decree of the Great Adi Shakti Herself!
Kash noticed that the burial place consisted of a"hole in a rock.” The object plugging the entrance to the burial chamber had apparently been removed, exposing a cavity in the knoll. Though he could not see the actual body as it was dark inside, he knew that the Crucified One was within as the entire Divine Unity of God Almighty had encircled it.
The Spirit of the Living God and Her child joined them and sat in the meditative stance.
Suddenly a dazzling ray of Light shone diagonally from the heavens, onto the tomb of Shri Jesus. As they continued sitting in the meditative positions Shri Jesus emerged through the rock tomb in deep meditation. The Universal Savior was a Spirit again just like His Celestial Brethren!
Then all present joined the Resurrected One in meditation and rose higher and higher into the heavens. The Light continued shining all the way as they ascended into His Dominion, still in deep meditation.
After emerging through the celestial clouds everyone stood up as they had reached the dwelling place of Jesus Christ. Tears of Joy streamed down the cheeks of the Heavenly Hosts as the Divine Unity humbled before the Universal Savior, in deep appreciation and immense respect for the highest sacrifice any Incarnation had voluntarily undertaken. Ignorant humans had tortured a member of the Divine Family to death, under the most painful and barbaric conditions. Now His ordeal was finally over and He had triumphed not only over death. But of far more significance is that by resurrecting Himself the Savior has irrefutable proved that all humans are the spirit destined for the eternal Afterlife. No amount of words can ever do justice to a supreme sacrifice performed with matchless humility.
Before leaving Jesus Christ all the Immortal Divine Beings bowed deeply, one after another, in Namaskar before the Son of God Almighty. The whole atmosphere was charged with emotion, and no one spoke a word as they lined up to pay their deepest respects to the greatest Cosmic Warrior ever.
Shri Ganesha, with hands folded in silence, bowed deeply to the Son of God Almighty. Shri Shiva and Parvati, with hands clasped in Namaskar, bowed in obeisance to the Son of the Creator. Shri Radha and Krishna, with hands joined in humility, stooped low in reverence to the Son of Allah. Shri Sita and Rama, with hands held together, bent down in absolute reverence to the Son of Sadashiva. Shri Buddha, with hands embrace together, bowed His head in speechless deference to the Son of the Maker. Shri Mataji and Kash, with hands held together, bent deeply in sheer veneration to the Son of the Supreme Being.
Then slowly everyone dispersed and returned to their own abodes.
Kash, after reaching the Land of eternal Light, asked the Holy Mother for leave and bowed to Her. He then closed his spiritual eyes and slowly began descending from Heaven, back to this decaying world of pedophile priests and murdering mullahs.
Lord Jesus Christ was resurrected by God Almighty — This Revealed Truth is Absolute.
Lord Jesus Christ was resurrected as a Spiritual Being — This Revealed Truth is Absolute.
Lord Jesus' Christ Resurrection was witnessed by the Holy Spirit (Adi Shakti) and the Incarnations — This Revealed Truth is Absolute.
The Resurrection transforms physical humans into eternal spirits — This Revealed Truth is Absolute.
"There is a higher power which enables us to grasp the central spiritual Reality. Man has the faculty of mystic intuition by which he transcends the distinctions of intellect and solves the riddles of reason. By this intuitive realisation, the unheard becomes heard, the unperceived becomes perceived, and the unknown becomes known to the chosen spirits. The knowledge of Reality is attained by the mystics in their intuitive experience as flashes and direct immediate insight. In the mystic experience the soul finds itself in the presence of the highest which includes all other things in it. In this experience the seer belongs to God and is One with Him. This experience is not objective; it is not verifiable by others. Since it is not inferential it cannot be communicated to others.”
Pritam Singh Gill, The Trinity of Sikhism
"And now an absurd problem came up: 'How could God have permitted that? For this question the deranged reason of the little community found a downright terrifying absurd answer: God gave his Son for forgiveness of sins, as a sacrifice. All at once it was all over with the Gospel! The guilt sacrifice, and that in its most repulsive, barbaric form, the sacrifice of the innocent man for the sins of the guilty! What atrocious paganism! — For Jesus had done away with the concept 'guilt' itself — he had denied any chasm between God and man, he lived this unity of God and man as his 'glad tidings' ... And not as a special prerogative!"
Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols/The Anti-Christ,
Penguin Classics, 1990, p. 165-66.
"In his risen body he passes from the state of death to another life beyond time and space. At Jesus' Resurrection his body is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit...
But no one was an eyewitness to Christ's Resurrection and no evangelist describes it. No one can say how it came about physically. Still less was its innermost essence, his passing over to another life, perceptible to the senses. Although the Resurrection was an historical event that could be verified by the sign of the empty tomb and by the reality of the apostle's encounters with the risen Christ, still it remains at the heart of the mystery of faith as something that transcends and surpasses history.”
J. C. Ratzinger, Catechism of the Catholic Church,
U.S.C.C. Inc., Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, p. 168-9.
"If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.”520 The Resurrection above all constitutes the confirmation of all Christ's works and teachings. All truths, even those most inaccessible to human reason, find their justification if Christ by his Resurrection has given the definitive proof of his divine authority, which he had promised.
Christ's Resurrection is the fulfillment of the promises both of the Old testament and of Jesus himself during his earthly life.521...
The truth of Jesus' divinity is confirmed by his Resurrection. He had said: "When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I am he.”523...
Christ's Resurrection — and the risen Christ himself — is the principle and source of our future resurrection.”
(520. 1 Cor 15:14.) (521. Cf. Mt 28:6; Mk 16:7; Lk 24:6-7, 26-27, 44-48.) (523. Jn 8:28.)
J. C. Ratzinger, Catechism of the Catholic Church,
U.S.C.C. Inc., Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, p. 170-1.
"Given all these testimonies, Christ's Resurrection cannot be interpreted as something outside the physical order, and it is impossible not to acknowledge it as an historical fact. It is clear from the facts that the disciples' faith was drastically put to test by their master's Passion and death on the cross, which he had foretold.502 The shock provoked by Passion was so great that at least some of the disciples did not at once believe in the news of the Resurrection. Far from showing us a community seized by a mystical exaltation, the Gospels present us with disciples demoralized and frightened. For they had not believed the holy women returning from the tomb and had regarded their words as an"Idle tale.”504 When Jesus reveals himself to the Eleven on Easter evening," he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.” "505
(502. Cf. Lk 22:31-32; 504. Lk 24:11, cf. Mk 16:11, 13; 505. Mk 16:14.)
J. C. Ratzinger, Catechism of the Catholic Church,
U.S.C.C. Inc., Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, p. 167-8.
"Christ stands at the heart of this gathering of men into the"family of God.”... But above all in the great Paschal mystery — his death on the cross and his resurrection — he would accomplish the coming of his kingdom.”And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.”Into this union with Christ all men are called.”250
(250. Jn 12:32; cf. LG 3.)
J. C. Ratzinger, Catechism of the Catholic Church,
U.S.C.C. Inc., Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, p. 138.
"God"desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth"29: that is, of Christ Jesus.30 Christ must be proclaimed to all nations and individuals, so that this revelation may reach the ends of the earth:
God graciously arranged that the things he had once revealed for the salvation of all the peoples should remain in their entirety, throughout the ages, and be transmitted to all generations.”31
(29. 1Tim 2:4; 30. Cf. Jn 14:6; 31. DV 7; cf. 2 Cor 1:20, 3:16-4:6.)
J. C. Ratzinger, Catechism of the Catholic Church,
U.S.C.C. Inc., Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, p. 24.
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