Inhoudsopgave

Preface

Introduction

The Cross of Light

Daniq235ul van Egmond

Module Spiritual Easter

Sunday before Easter The passage

Reflection

Sunday before Easter The passage

Narrative

The last entry into Jerusalem

Chapter 67 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Reflection

Reflection

Monday before Easter Going through the gate

Narrative

The Christ within the resurrection and the life

Chapter 69 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Tuesday before Easter

Reflection

Tuesday before Easter The mystery of life and death

Narrative

The cleansing of the temple

Chapter 71 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Wednesday before Easter

Reflection

Wednesday before Easter The cleansing of the inner temple

Narrative

The last supper and the washing of feet

Chapters 75 and 76 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Thursday before Easter

Reflection

Thursday before Easter Surrender to your inner master

Narrative

The garden of gethsemane and the betrayal by judas

Chapters 77 and 78 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

The Betrayal

Friday before Easter

Reflection

Friday before Easter Showing new inner strength

Narrative

Friday before Easter The roman trial, the crucifixion and the burial

Chapters 81, 82 and 83 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

The Crucifixion

The Burial of Jesus

Saturday before Easter

Reflection

Saturday before Easter The crucial victory over yourself

Narrative

Saturday before Easter The resurrection and the meeting with Mary Magdalene; The appearance to two disciples at Emmaus

Chapters 84 and 85 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Jesus Appears to two disciples at Emmaus

Easter Sunday

Reflection

Easter sunday The liberation of the inner being

Narrative

Easter sunday Jesus appears in the temple and to the twelve

Chapters 86 and 87 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Jesus Appears to the Twelve

Module Spiritual Pentecost

Reflection

Sunday before Pentecost Letting spirit, soul and body become one

Narrative

Sunday before Pentecost Love of Jesus for all creatures

Chapter 34 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Monday before Pentecost

Reflection

Monday before Pentecost Love for everything and everyone

Narrative

Monday before Pentecost The regeneration of the soul

Chapter 37 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Tuesday before Pentecost

Reflection

Tuesday before Pentecost Partaking of eternity

Narrative

Tuesday before Pentecost The transfiguration on the mount

Chapter 46 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Reflection

Wednesday before Pentecost Beholding the transfiguration

Narrative

Wednesday before Pentecost Christ the light of the world

Chapter 50 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Thursday before Pentecost

Reflection

Thursday before Pentecost Following and becoming the light of the world

Narrative

Thursday before Pentecost The raising of Lazarus

Chapter 56 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Friday before Pentecost

Reflection

Friday before Pentecost Self-initiation based on self-authority

Narrative

Friday before Pentecost The ascension of Christ

Chapter 95 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Saturday before Pentecost

Reflection

Saturday before Pentecost Being lifted into another realm

Narrative

Saturday before Pentecost The pouring out of the Spirit

Chapter 96 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Pentecost Sunday

Reflection

Pentecost sunday Being filled with the holy spirit

Narrative

Pentecost sunday What is truth?

Chapter 90 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

Editions of Spiritual Texts Academy

Spiritual Christmas q8211u Guiding hand for inner reflection and inspiration in the Christmas season

Spiritual Easter and Pentecost

Guidance for contemplation and inspiration

concerning the resurrection of the Inner Man

André de Boer

Tanja Rozema

Rozekruis Pers

www.rozekruispers.com

Colofon

ISBN papieren versie 9789067324649

ISBN electronische versie 9789067326896

© Rozekruis Pers – Haarlem, 2017

Rozekruis Pers

Bakenessergracht 5

2011 JS Haarlem

(023) 532 38 52

info@rozekruispers.com

www.rozekruispers.com

Preface

This book which elaborates on the inner meaning of Easter and Pentecost is the sequel to the book Spiritual Christmas. The books were compiled in response to the wish of many to provide the online programmes Spiritual Christmas, Spiritual Easter and Spiritual Pentecost as printed book as well. Together both books provide a clear gnostic vision on how to become a true human being as seen from the perspective of a living spiritual tradition and based on stories about the life of Jesus. Christmas, Easter and Pentecost can not only be seen as commemorations of events that took place 2,000 years ago, but also as three milestones on the spiritual path that we as humans can travel any time, all year round. These highly spiritual events are indicated as the light birth in the heart of man, the resurrection of the inner man and the restoration of the link with the Spirit.

This guiding hand consists of stories and reflections with which we can connect time after time to become receptive to the spiritual light that renews spirit, soul and body. This light unifies the three in order to enable human beings as well as humanity as a whole to again participate in the joyous divine life. The authors of Spiritual Easter and Pentecost mainly base their reflections on The Gospel of the Holy Twelve by Jasper Gideon Ouseley, published in English for the first time in 1901. They chose this writing because almost every page bears witness to a great inner understanding and his book testifies of the attitude to life of the Sermon on the Mount, which is the attitude of life of any human being who strives for a life based on the inner man, the new soul.

Ouseley did not consider The Gospel of the Holy Twelve as his personal creation. He had passed it on as he had received it “in dreams and in visions in the night.” An English edition exists in which Ouseley is not mentioned as the writer but as the ‘translator’ of this gospel.

An important starting point of The Gospel of the Holy Twelve is that God includes and is present in everything and all manifestation. That inner knowledge is expressed in the writings in the form of, for example, love for all creatures, equality between man and woman and the view that everyone is entitled to his or her own truth. In the fragments from The Gospel of the Holy Twelve we followed the original text from 1901 while making minor modernizations, where the archaic wording might be an obstacle for understanding.

Again Daniel van Egmond has written an introduction, for which we are particularly grateful.

All texts of Spiritual Christmas, Easter and Pentecost are also available as audio files. We wholeheartedly recommend those interested to sign up for our free online programs on: www.spiritualtexts.academy.

Rozekruis Pers

Doride Zelle

Introduction

The Cross of Light

Daniël van Egmond

Easter should actually be celebrated around the spring equinox. Between 21 and 23 March, the light of the day is exactly in balance with the darkness of the night. But because the determination of the exact day of this festival is based on the lunar calendar of the pre-Christian Jewish tradition – the first Sunday on or after the equinox on which it is full moon – Easter is often celebrated many days after the equinox. Nevertheless, its spiritual meaning is closely linked to the symbolism of this balance between day and night. The night symbolizes our daily life: as long as the light of our soul has not yet dawned in us, we live as an outwardly focused human being – the personality – in a deep, spiritual darkness. Unfortunately, most people do not notice this darkness; they believe that the natural light of the human mind has already dissipated all darkness. The subtle light that shines through the world of the soul can therefore not penetrate into the personality. What is light for the personality is darkness for the soul and what is light for the soul remains darkness for the personality.

Because of the fact that during the spring and autumn equinox light and darkness are in balance with each other, symbolically speaking heaven and earth – the world of the soul and the world of personality – touch each other at that occasion. The gate that connects both worlds is opened wide during this period of equilibrium. From the personality’s perspective it is then possible to enter the kingdom of Heaven, provided it is willing to leave all earthly things behind.

The personality must gradually diminish; he must become less so that the soul can become the cen of life instead of all ego aspects that usually determine life. This requires a fundamental reversal from an egocentric man into a human being who allows his or her soul to guide him through the darkness into the Light. This is one of the meanings of the Paschal mystery.

In the Jewish tradition, Easter is associated with the exodus from Egypt where the chosen people live in slavery. Symbolically speaking, everyone in whom there is something from the light of the soul belongs to this chosen people. Egypt represents the world of darkness in which the outer man is enslaved to all earthly pleasures, so that the soul cannot develop. Only a god can bring salvation here. Thanks to the influence of angels and prophets, many people awaken from their deep sleep and begin to realize how deep the darkness they are in. Finally, they are willing to follow the inner voice of their soul that yearns after liberation from slavery. And eventually a separation between those who stay behind in Egypt and those who are willing to go the difficult and dangerous way of death (the desert) and resurrection (the promised land) comes about. Again we see a reversal between a life in which the personality is central and a life that is dedicated to the birth and the development of the soul.

Moreover, this story shows a second important meaning of the Paschal mystery: we cannot be redeemed from this darkness on our own strength, based on our personality’s features. We need help from the world of the soul. But this help can only save us if we are willing to die with regard to the world of Egypt, that is, if we allow ourselves to no longer be led by our daily thoughts, feelings and desires. Yes, this means that we have to be prepared to go through a process of ‘dying daily’ because only that process allows the light of the world of the soul to penetrate more and imbue us with light and spirit. In other words, we must be willing to sacrifice ourselves for the sake of the life of the soul.

That this is almost an impossible task, becomes evident from the fear of death that overtakes Jesus in the Court of Gethsemane:

“Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground”

Luke 22: 42–44 King James Bible

These words clearly reveal that Jesus is not able to accomplish this path of ‘dying daily’ from his own personal strength and that he also receives heavenly help that gives him the strength to make the greatest sacrifice of all: the sacrifice of the self.

According to the Christian-theosophical tradition which is expressed, among other things, by the works of Jacob Boehme and the Rosicrucians, this sacrifice of the Son has made it possible for the gate between this world of darkness and the world of the soul, to be existentially and permanently opened to us, provided we are prepared to go this path. The Paschal mystery is not bound to a specific time in the year; ‘transgressing the border’ is an event which is taking place in the eternal now. Nevertheless, it is essential that the outer man is reminded of this possibility by means of the annually recurring Easter festival.

During the “dark night of the soul,” an angel appears to Jesus to bestowed upon him the inner power to endure this ordeal. An angel is a theophany, that is, a special manifestation of the divine that manifests itself in the mirror of our heart. The way and form in which that divine power can unfold itself to us depends on various factors. Firstly, the decisive factor is the extent to which our hearts are susceptible to influences of the world of the soul. During our life our heart has developed a certain quality, whether we are conscious or not. If our heart is usually fed by that what is good, beautiful and true, the divine can appear to us in one of the many forms of an angel. However, if the quality of our hearts is determined primarily by negative qualities, rigorous or even demonic forms will manifest themselves to us.

Secondly, the culture in which we grew up also determines the form in which the divine can appear. A convinced Catholic will rather see the Virgin Mary appear and the Buddhist will see Kwan Yin, although both are expressions of more or less the same divine qualities. Female mystics often saw Jesus as their beloved in their visions, while with many of the Boehme pupils it was usually Sophia who came to them.

Everyone’s relationship with the divine is unique and thus the divine will appear to each of us in a unique way to guide us on our inner path. This is emphasized in virtually all esoteric traditions and also in early Christianity we find numerous testimonies.

In the Acts of Peter, an “apocryphal” – that is, esoteric – writing from the beginning of our era, the following is written:

And behold certain widows, of the aged, unknown to Peter, which sat there, being blind and not believing, cried out, saying unto Peter: We sit together here, O Peter, hoping and believing in Christ Jesus: as therefore thou hast made one of us to see, we entreat thee, lord Peter, grant unto us also his mercy and pity. But Peter said to them: If there be in you the faith that is in Christ, if it be firm in you, then perceive in your mind that which ye see not with your eyes, and though your ears are closed, yet let them be open in your mind within you. These eyes shall again be shut, seeing nought but men and oxen and dumb beasts and stones and sticks; but not every eye seeth Jesus Christ. Yet now, Lord, let thy sweet and holy name succour these persons; do thou touch their eyes; for thou art able -that these may see with their eyes.

And when all had prayed, the hall wherein they were shone as when it lighteneth, even with such a light as cometh in the clouds, yet not such a light as that of the daytime, but unspeakable, invisible, such as no man can describe, even such that we were beside ourselves with bewilderment, calling on the Lord and saying: Have mercy, Lord, upon us thy servants: what we are able to bear, that, Lord, give thou us; for this we can neither see nor endure. And as we lay there, only those widows stood up which were blind; and the bright light which appeared unto us entered into their eyes and made them to see. Unto whom Peter said: Tell us what ye saw. And they said: We saw an old man of such comeliness as we are not able to declare to thee; but others said: We saw a young man; and others: We saw a boy touching our eyes delicately, and so were our eyes opened.

Acts of Peter, 20–21

The also apocryphal Acts of John tells us:

For when he had chosen Peter and Andrew, which were brethren, he cometh unto me and James my brother, saying: I have need of you, come unto me. And my brother hearing that, said: John, what would this child have that is upon the sea-shore and called us? And I said: What child? And he said to me again: That which beckoneth to us. And I answered: Because of our long watch we have kept at sea, thou seest not aright, my brother James; but seest thou not the man that standeth there, comely and fair and of a cheerful countenance? But he said to me: Him I see not, brother; but let us go forth and we shall see what he would have.

Acts of John 88

And when he was crucified on the Friday, at the sixth hour of the day, darkness came upon all the earth. And my Lord standing in the midst of the cave and enlightening it, said: John, unto the multitude below in Jerusalem I am being crucified and pierced with lances and reeds, and gall and vinegar is given me to drink. But unto thee I speak, and what I speak hear thou. I put it into thy mind to come up into this mountain, that thou mightest hear those things which it behoveth a disciple to learn from his teacher and a man from his God. And having thus spoken, he showed me a cross of light fixed and about the cross a great multitude, not having one form: and in it was one form and one likeness. And the Lord himself I beheld above the cross, not having any shape, but only a voice: and a voice not such as was familiar to us, but one sweet and kind and truly of God, saying unto me: John, it is needful that one should hear these things from me, for I have need of one that will hear. This cross of light is sometimes called the word by me for your sakes, sometimes mind, sometimes Jesus, sometimes Christ, sometimes door, sometimes a way, sometimes bread, sometimes seed, sometimes resurrection, sometimes Son, sometimes Father, sometimes Spirit, sometimes life, sometimes truth, sometimes faith, sometimes grace.

And by these names it is called as toward men: but that which it is in truth, as conceived of in itself and as spoken of unto you, it is the marking-off of all things, and the firm uplifting of things fixed out of things unstable, and the harmony of wisdom, and indeed wisdom in harmony. There are of the right hand and the left, powers also, authorities, lordships and demons, workings, threatenings, wraths, devils, Satan, and the lower root whence the nature of the things that come into being proceeded.

This cross, then, is that which joined all things unto itself by the word, and separates off the things from birth and things below it, and then also, being one, streamed forth into all things. But this is not the cross of wood which thou wilt see when thou goest down hence: neither am I he that is on the cross, whom now thou seest not, but only hearest his voice.

Acts of John 97-99

This Cross of Light is the gateway between darkness and light, between this world and the world of the soul. As soon as the perishable personality is willing to let him- or herself be attached to this cross, the immortal soul within us will resurrect in the light of the heavenly realm. The condition of our heart determines how the port will make itself known to us and how the angel that will guide us on the path of the ‘dying-daily’ and the resurrection can take shape before our inner eye.

Time after time the Easter festival confronts us with the necessity of the purification of our heart. Only purification enables the heart to become the place in which the crucifixion of the personality and the resurrection of the soul can take place.

And they, who preceded us on this path, are awaiting us and stand there to accompany us on our way through this Easter Mystery. Each one of us has such a guiding force that beckons us to head for the spiritual Easter.

Daniël van Egmond

Module Spiritual Easter

Sunday before Easter
The passage

Reflection

Sunday before Easter
The passage

During the next eight days we will undertake an exploration of the inner processes related to the esoteric meaning of Easter. The narratives on which we base this come from The Gospel of the Holy Twelve by Gideon Jasper Ouseley.

During sleep, our ‘night consciousness’ can lift itself into the domain of the soul, the invisible realm of the primordial ideas from which the sacred scriptures of humanity originate.

We therefore recommend that you read the indicated text from The Gospel of the Holy Twelve at night before sleeping and open your consciousness to its inner value. The hours of sleep thus become a good preparation for the reflection that you can read or listen to in the morning. On the basis of the narratives, the reflections illuminate the essence of the gnostic path for which humanity is now ripe.

The inner Christianity of the ‘kingdom of the soul’ has been announced and described by Rudolf Steiner, Max Heindel, Jan van Rijckenborgh and Catharose de Petri, among others. They walked that inner path and transmitted the elevated reality of it in their writings. The reflections in this online module are inspired mainly by their writings.

The mystery of Easter indicates a spiritual event that can take place within the human being: the resurrection of the inner human being. The road to the Resurrection, also called ‘the Path’, is a process of transformation. The narratives and reflections of this online module may contribute to deepening an understanding of the Path.

The subject of the ‘inner human being’ confronts us immediately with our duality. This state of being can be experienced quite intensely because on the one hand we are the outer person with our own character, our pleasures and our habits; but on the other hand we are also the Other-One-within-us, the inner being who longs for a higher and purer life.

The feast of Easter is closely related to the Pesach, the Jewish Passover celebration that commemorates the exodus from slavery in Egypt through the desert to the promised land. The original concept of ‘Passover’ means ‘to pass over the threshold.’

A human being setting out to cross the threshold to celebrate his inner Passover becomes increasingly aware of the fact that he is participating in two completely different worlds: the spatiotemporal world and the world of the soul.

The Christian Easter is the commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ following his crucifixion and is celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon in spring. In a symbolic and universal sense, both the Jewish and the Christian Passover (Easter) refer to processes of renewal, transformation and inner liberation. The arrival in the promised land and the realisation of resurrection both indicate a higher destiny that the inner man can reach in order to regain part of his original pure life.

Living through these processes is referred to as a ‘journey’, as a departure or exodus from the bondage of material existence. Through this journey, something immortal develops within the mortal man: the inner man. The most important symbol of the Passover, the egg, is a universal symbol for rebirth.

For many centuries the inner Easter celebration has been compared with the metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly. The caterpillar withdraws at a specific time and forms itself into a chrysalis, into something that resembles an egg.

Seemingly nothing at all happens. But in reality, all the material of which the caterpillar consists is being transformed into a totally new being.

The caterpillar does not ‘change’ but is completely dissolved and rebuilt into a totally new creature inside the chrysalis. And from this pupa arises a colourful butterfly that is no longer bound to the earth, but can soar in a completely new domain of life: the air.

According to inner Christianity, also known as esoteric Christianity or gnostic Christianity, each human being is called to realise the higher life within himself or herself through transformation and transfiguration.

Although our human physical body is a very particular and specialised organism with latent spiritual faculties, it has until now been attuned only to life in the material world. It has far greater capabilities however. It has been called into being for a specific purpose: to provide fertile soil in which the body of resurrection can germinate and grow.

The body of resurrection is the immaterial vehicle through which the Other-One-within-us can express itself in its own domain, the non-material ‘kingdom of the soul.’ In our material world, the soul cannot breathe and is therefore as ‘nearly dead.’ But the voice of the soul resounds in us as a desire for unity, freedom and love.

The universal symbolism of the egg expresses the universal knowledge of ‘transformation into immortal life’, of crossing the threshold. The annual Easter celebration is thus an outer form of a universal spiritual process not linked to a specific person or time but able to occur in each human being.

This process as described in the Christian tradition – in the four Gospels of the New Testament for example – is specifically applicable to the period in which we now live. For most people the story of the life of Jesus is an historical account or a mythical story, and for others it no longer has any value.

But the basic pattern of the Gospels stems from the realm of the soul, and with the right keys it reveals itself through highly accurate descriptions of the process of constructing the body of resurrection.

The story of Jesus is the story of the earthly life that begins with the birth in Bethlehem and ends with the death on Golgotha. After a threefold process, symbolised by three days, the resurrection in a new, radiant body follows.

The solar spirit that incarnated on earth around the beginning of our era in the mortal man Jesus had the task, as the first entity, to accomplish the entire process of building the body of resurrection within a mortal body. Only in this way could a completely new path of liberation be opened for humanity, namely the possibility for any mortal human being to build a soul body in direct bonding with the Christ-power, without depending on priests or masters.

The human being who enters the Christian gnostic path is therefore in a spiritual sense a follower of Jesus, someone who undertakes within himself the journey from Bethlehem to Golgotha. A deep desire for a true human life and recognition of one’s own duality are conditions for searching for ‘new life.’ Willingness to go the path can be brought about only on this basis of deep longing.

The preparation for going the path is intense. It takes place in our daily lives, even if we are not aware of it.

The spiritual path actually begins with a reversal that is symbolised by the baptism in water: the consciously chosen initial connection with the liberating power. For it is only through making a conscious choice for the inner life that the path can be entered.

Through baptism by water Jesus, the inner man, becomes connected with a high spiritual power, the Christ power. From that moment on he is Jesus the Christ.

Immediately after the baptism by water, every pupil of the soul is placed before the obstructive tendencies of mortal humanity: possessiveness, lust for power and ambition. This struggle, which is an inevitable stage on the path, is reflected in the story of the temptations in the desert.

After the victory over these forces the process continues. Jesus, the new inner force, travels around and selects disciples. Then, on top of a mountain, he pronounces the so-called Sermon on the Mount in which he conveys directions for a higher spiritual life to our consciousness. Jesus continues to teach, tell parables and heal the sick. Finally, he travels to Jerusalem, where initially he is received with cheers.

Then follow the cleansing of the temple, the Last Supper, the arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, the trial, the crucifixion, the burial and finally the resurrection.

A very special aspect is the betrayal by Judas Iscariot, the betrayal that had to take place in order to make the purpose of the journey – the resurrection – possible.

The week from Palm Sunday to Easter is known in the Christian tradition as the Silent Week, the Holy Week and the Good Week. The next eight days provide an opportunity to delve into the esoteric meaning of these narratives, which are revelations of the Christian initiation mystery. Jesus spoke about this process in parables to the multitudes, but openly to his disciples.

In The Gospel of the Holy Twelve we read:

And the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to the multitude in parables?” He replied: “Because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven, but to them it is not given.

Therefore, I speak to them in parables because they, seeing, do not see, and hearing, they do not hear, neither do they understand.

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear, and your hearts, for they understand.

The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 40: 1, 3, 5

Blessed be the Kingdom of our ancestor David,

and blessed is he who comes in the name of the Highest.

The Gospel of the Holy Twelve 67:5

Narrative

Sunday before Easter

The last entry into Jerusalem

Chapter 67 of the gospel of the Holy Twelve

On the first day of the week they came near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany by the Mount of Olives. He sent out two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village that lies before you, and there you will find tied up a donkey, one on which no one has sat; untie him and bring him here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing that?’ then say that the Lord needs him, and they will send him with you directly.”

They went their way and found the donkey tied up at the intersection of two roads. They freed him. Several men who were standing there asked them, “What are you doing with the young donkey, are you freeing him?” When they answered them as Jesus had instructed, they let them go. They brought the donkey to Jesus and laid their garments on the animal, and then he sat upon it. Many people spread their garments down along the road, and others cut branches down from the trees and cast them before him.