Re-Introducing Yeshua

 

We need to understand another very important and parallel truth about Yeshua—he was also a mystic.

 Lesson 3: The Mysteries

In the past lessons we have seen that not only was Yeshua a seeker and practitioner of wisdom, he became its Master as teacher and transmitter. This is at the heart of a new way of understanding the tradition of Jesus/Yeshua that was almost totally lost or forgotten in the West. This, however, is not all. We need to understand another very important and parallel truth about Yeshua—he was also a mystic. Again, though mysticism is often a difficult word to define, it signifies a breakthrough into enlightenment within the conscious experience of a human being.

Many mystics from around the world and in every age, have described experiences of intense encounter within themselves where, not only does light and insight flood their being, they meet with the Source or Presence of that Light in direct experience. As a result, they become enlightened beings, however that may be described in any particular language or religious tradition.

In the Buddhist tradition, we are aware that the Buddha was said to have been enlightened (or filled with light and insight) while mediating under a Bodhi tree. Something similar also happened to Yeshua when he was baptized in the Jorden River by his older cousin John (a mentor, it seems). It is recorded that at that moment the heavens opened for him and the sacred Spirit descended upon him. He was also said to have been flooded or anointed with light. From that point forward, his life was different. It was directed toward a new task or mission.

As a wisdom teacher and mystic, he became “catalytic” in the lives of many others. His spirit touched them and they were changed.

In three short years, what happened after that was nothing less than astounding. He traveled, taught, gathered students about him, healed many, and invited hundreds (if not thousands) onto the same path he had taken and into the same direct experience with the divine Presence that he knew. As a wisdom teacher and mystic, he became “catalytic” in the lives of many others. His spirit touched them and they were changed. He transmitted what he knew by personal experience into the lives of his students and followers. His counsel, work, and teachings were transformative.

When those who were drawn to him gathered around, it is also said that he taught them the mysteries (musterion)—the same that he himself had come to know. These mysteries were truths not obvious to the rational mind or typical of ordinary religious doctrines. Insights had been revealed to him that he shard with the inner circle of his students and friends. Through his parables, stories and sayings, he taught what we might call “beginner’s truth,” but then for those who were ready to receive them, he taught the extraordinary mysteries which lie below the surface of things. These teachings were about inner relationships with the divine Presence and insights he had come to know through his own direct experience with that Presence.

Keepers of the mysteries

 

This is what mysticism has done in every age and tradition. We know of many folk in the Christian world, for example, who came to know, live and teach similar mysteries. There are actually hundreds of mystics (keepers of the mysteries) that appear in the history of the Christian tradition. Here are a few examples: Julian of Norwich, John of the Cross, Frances of Assisi, Meister Eckhart, Theresa of Avila, Hildegard of Bengen, and Thomas Merton. There was also a long line of others who, in his own Hebrew tradition, were also known as visionary prophets and seers. Yeshua was just such a mystic and seer. We must remember, however, that because Yeshua was a Jew and never a Christian, his mystical insights seem to have come from what is called by some today, the wisdom of first Temple in Jerusalem.

These are, of course, complex topics that involve ancient history, wisdom teaching, mystical tradition, and Hebrew culture. However, the subject of mystical insight is available for study by anyone today, and we are fortunate in our world to have access into this wisdom transmission. What is more important, however, is that for those who are ready to learn Yeshua’s mysteries, this same teaching and experience is available to every human being. Enlightenment (being flooded with light and insight at the level of the heart) is not an exception meant for a few. It is a gift given to all of us as we begin our own deepening journey into the secrets of existence.

Questions for Reflection

Mystical truths and experiences

It is said that in public Yeshua taught the people of his day through parables (Matthew 13:11-17). In private, however, to his close associates and students, he began to teach what he called the mysteries (We might think of these as deeper truths that he could not easily share in public, or until someone was ready to hear them). How do you respond to this idea?

This lesson is a tipping point in this study concerning Yeshua. We are moving from ordinary concepts in history and religion, to mystical truths and experiences. Mystics exist in every tradition and culture. When they write or speak, they are often on the very edge of language. Yeshua was just such a Jewish mystic. This makes more sense of him than many other descriptions like a political revolutionary, a preacher, or even a Rabbi (though that can be translated as teacher but not in the formal sense of a religious scholar). How does this description strike you? Journal your response.

If a mystic is…

…a keeper of the mysteries of existence (which are often hidden from the ordinary eye or mind), then you might want to do an online search and see what you discover about the terms mystic or mysticism, or the phrase “mystical union” (sometimes also called sacred marriage). Do these help clarify who actually Yeshua was? Journal your findings.

If you are inclined, read about Julian of Norwich, John of the Cross, Frances of Assisi, Meister Eckhart, Theresa of Avila, Hildegard of Bengen, or Thomas Merton. You might also read some of their writings. What do you discover?

There are many well known mystics from other traditions like Jalaluddin Rumi in Islam, Baal Shem Tov in Judaism, Vivekananda in Hinduism, and Thich Nhat Hahn in Buddhism. You could also explore one of these more fully and then contrast and compare their experiences and writings to that of Yeshua, and journal your reflections.

John 17

Read John 17 as one of the deepest and most mystical prayers of Yeshua. Write any reflections and responses that come to you. What particularly strikes you about that prayer and what it expresses about his experience of the divine Presence within him (whom he called Abba, a word of personal intimacy in the Middle East).

Using the images below contemplate the many meanings of anointing and enlightenment. What do these tell you about Yeshua’s personal encounter with God in a state of Oneness or Union. What might they tell you about your own experience now or in the future? Write your reflections in your journal.

Yeshua anointing
Yeshua enlightenment