In regards to eating meat

[Monica]

:exclamation: Great quotes!

The Essenes were a certain reclusive sect of Christianity that was still very much steeped in the dualistic thinking of Zoroastrianism ("wickedness" and "righteousness") and the absolutism of the Jainists ("always" and "never"). This makes the text more than a little suspect to me about these being the true words of Jesus. I think he was probably a little more evolved than that?

Yeah who knows? The 'accepted' gospels are quite suspect too.

Who knows what he really said?

Though I see your point... this is actually the first I have read of Jesus advocating for vegetarianism...

I'm not into the Bible (anymore) so I'm not looking for validation in it, but if anyone is interested, here is an excellent analysis of Bible quotes concerning this question:

Thou Shalt Not Kill (Gnostic)

Four Soul Killers (Gnostic)

For the record, I don't agree with everything in the The Four Soul Killers. I really don't think a glass of wine destroys the soul! (YIKES! If so then I'm a goner!)

But, for those who are interested in validating either eating animals or being vegetarian, with the Bible, then this is a must-read! The points made, and the backing up of points with Biblical scripture, is very compelling!

So eat always from the table of God: the fruits of the trees, the grain and grasses of the field, the milk of beasts, and the honey of bees.

... but apparently not veganism.

Right. I personally think the rigid rule of 'no animal products EVER' is baseless. I see nothing wrong with raw, organic goat's milk, or even cow's milk if the cows were treated well. I see nothing wrong with free-range eggs. And honey...if the bees were treated well.

I'm not into rigid veganism.

So killing worms (which are animals) does not appear to violate the Law. Whew! That's a relief! I thought perhaps I should allow worms to grow in my digestive tract, so as not to harm them or cut their lives short.

Whew! Thankfully!

Wow! I guess Jesus was also a raw foodist!

If the Essene Gospel is authentic, then yeah pretty much.

]
Shucks I guess gluten-sensitive people will never get to see the Kingdom of God... and Jesus' advice for the diet is to eat more wheat?! Hasn't it been scientifically demonstrated that a grain-based diet contributes to all manner of health problems?

Well the wheat commonly eaten bears very little resemblance to the wheat of our ancestors.

Really? Abominable? According to Leviticus, homosexuality is also an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. This text appears to be taking a similar tone.

The abominable term plus all the references to satan can be translated into more acceptable terminology, or disregarded. It is a bible after all. :-/

I guess Jesus would be against juicing as well? :-/ Quick! Somebody tell Joe Cross he has been "raging endless war" in his body by mixing his juices together!

Yikes! You mean I can't use my VitaMix!!!???

Nah, I like to read this stuff for the concepts, not for any rigid docrtrine.

Looks like we need to slap a Q'uo disclaimer at the beginning of this text so that way we can just cherry-pick the parts which suit our beliefs, and discard the rest.

Yeah pretty much.

Or... maybe Jesus was a seeker just like the rest of us?

Exactly. He was just a Wanderer. A very special Wanderer, with a very special and important purpose, but a Wanderer nonetheless.