DCHindley

I've never been able to shake the suspicion that Jesus practiced some sort of mystical ascents (similar to throne mysticism).

In later times (around 500 CE +) this trance state was accomplished by means of controlled breathing and repeating countless variations of biblical passages as a means to stumble upon the password that will allow the angels to permit passage through the heavens. Sort of like picking a lock by systematically trying progressions of numbers.

However, 4 Ezra (I mean the Latin Apocalypse) has a strange story in which Ezra sets out with 5 of his disciples to a lonely place. There he consumes a bowl of "something like water but with the color of fire". Then he is caught up and ends up dictating to his disciples all the books of the lost text of all the books associated with the Hebrew scriptures, and more, much more.

Wondering what liquid might have been alluded to by the author, I came across R Gordon Wasson's Soma: Divine Mushroom of Immortality (or via: amazon.co.uk) (or something like that, it is packed away at the moment), which makes the case that the Soma of the Rig Veda, a substance consuled to allow interaction with divinities and which also played a key role in Zoroastrian worship as Hoama, was the juice of Amanita Muscaria mushrooms. It makes one wonder whether the use of such a substance survived in some mystical circles even into Jesus' time.

No wonder the transcripts of the attending disciples have so many bizarre details. Read the account of the Transfiguration for an equally bizarre picture. Brrrrr.

Of course, this whole idea of Jesus using drugs infuriates many critics. Any thread on the subject in academic lists is instantly tagged as trouble and the thread closed. There may be a wee-tad truth to speculation that such use survived into Allegro's day ... <g>

DCH

Amedeo

It seems that the Greek writers invariably use "Christos" [= the anointed]. Non-Greeks who knew some Greek, UPON HEARING "christos" as an appellative, most likely assimilated the term to a common word they knew, namely "Chrestos" [= useful, advantageous, fitting], which in Latin became "chrestus."

I just realized that the Greeks did not have a word that could translate "messiah" [a leader sent by God, etc.]; so, they may have picked "christos" to mean "appointed," "commissioned" (by unction), in contradiction to Jesus who was king by blood.

Most of the teachings about Jesus to the other Gentiles would be of him as the savior (Soter). So, the frequent term Christos Soter woul essentially mean "the sacred saviour." Those who heard "Chrestos Soter" would have understood "the fitting (or advantageous) saviour."

In the Middle Ages, "christos" or "christus" was anyway understood as the anointed (king); "basileys" or "rex" was seldom used by the Church or the people -- then or even now. So, the templars proudly called themselves "ordo militum Christi" -- the Order [Organization] of the Soldiers of Christ. After all, the Jesus who died on the cross died as the KING of the Judaeans, not as the messiah to Israel.

Toto

etymology of cretin

aa5874

But are these 'Christians' or 'Chrestians' followers of the phantom or some other mythical form of 'Chrestus/Christus? It is already shown by Irenaeus that there were many versions of Christos/Chrestus, so even if the spelling were to be resolved, we may still never know what or who was Christos/Chrestus.

youngalexander

From Ante-Pacem pg219
INSCRIPTION
Location: Callixtus, Rome

Edited Text:

Pasto[r et T]itiana /dove with leaf/ e[t] Marciana et /leaf/
Chr[e]st[e Mar]ciano filio benemerenti
X (in Ieso Christo), d n, ...

Translation:

Pastor and Titiana and Marciana and
Chreste, for son Marcianus well deserving
in Jesus Christ our Lord

Snyder comments,

The presence of "Chreste" in the inscription also indicates a growing interest in names with a Christian or biblical nature.
...
As the Roman culture gradually became Christian, the names would gradually become biblical or Christian in nature. Not only did the family of this inscription live in a church context where baptism of young people was encouraged, but another child in the family had a divine name, Chrestus.

also pg260 Chrestianis in graffiti at St Peter's

Lucretius

While that inscription is interesting Snyder's comments actually manage to avoid the fact that Chrestus existed as a name before Christianity even existed ,so in my opinion this incription does not really prove anything .