The Secret Legacy Of Jesus

Shows how the true teachings of Jesus were passed down through the centuries and shaped the vision of the Founding Fathers • Reveals for the first time the hidden link that connects James the Brother, Islam, the Cathars, the Knights Templar, and Freemasonry • Shows how the Founding Fathers used these teachings enshrined in Masonic principles to build a new nation With the success of Paul’s desire to impose his vision for the Church, the true teachings of Jesus--as preserved by his family and disciples--were forced into hiding. This clandestine movement was evidenced by such early groups as the Nazarenes, Ebionites, and Elkesaites but is generally thought to have died out when the Church of Paul branded these groups as heretics. However, despite the ongoing persecution by the Roman Catholic orthodoxy, this underground Jewish strain of Christianity was able to survive and resist incorporation into its more powerful rival. Jeffrey Bütz, author of The Brother of Jesus and the Lost Teachings of Christianity, reveals for the first time the hidden theological link that connects James the Brother of Jesus and the Ebionites with the religion of Islam, the Cathars, the Knights Templar, and Freemasonry. In The Secret Legacy of Jesus, Bütz demonstrates how this centuries-old underground stream of Christ’s original teachings remained alive and how it surfaced again in Colonial America, where the Founding Fathers used Masonic principles rooted in Jewish Christian teachings to establish what they believed would be a “New Jerusalem.” With the rise of a fundamentalist Christianity, this potent spiritual vision was lost, but Bütz contends it can be recovered and used to bring about the reconciliation of Christians, Jews, and Muslims throughout the world.

Shows how the true teachings of Jesus were passed down through the centuries and shaped the vision of the Founding Fathers • Reveals for the first time the hidden link that connects James the Brother, Islam, the Cathars, the Knights Templar, and Freemasonry • Shows how the Founding Fathers used these teachings enshrined in Masonic principles to build a new nation With the success of Paul’s desire to impose his vision for the Church, the true teachings of Jesus--as preserved by his family and disciples--were forced into hiding. This clandestine movement was evidenced by such early groups as the Nazarenes, Ebionites, and Elkesaites but is generally thought to have died out when the Church of Paul branded these groups as heretics. However, despite the ongoing persecution by the Roman Catholic orthodoxy, this underground Jewish strain of Christianity was able to survive and resist incorporation into its more powerful rival. Jeffrey Bütz, author of The Brother of Jesus and the Lost Teachings of Christianity, reveals for the first time the hidden theological link that connects James the Brother of Jesus and the Ebionites with the religion of Islam, the Cathars, the Knights Templar, and Freemasonry. In The Secret Legacy of Jesus, Bütz demonstrates how this centuries-old underground stream of Christ’s original teachings remained alive and how it surfaced again in Colonial America, where the Founding Fathers used Masonic principles rooted in Jewish Christian teachings to establish what they believed would be a “New Jerusalem.” With the rise of a fundamentalist Christianity, this potent spiritual vision was lost, but Bütz contends it can be recovered and used to bring about the reconciliation of Christians, Jews, and Muslims throughout the world.

Reveals the true role of James, the brother of Jesus, in early Christianity • Uses evidence from the canonical Gospels, apocryphal texts, and the writings of the Church Fathers to reveal the teachings of Jesus as transmitted to his chosen successor: James • Demonstrates how the core message in the teachings of Jesus is an expansion not a repudiation of the Jewish religion • Shows how James can serve as a bridge between Christianity, Judaism, and Islam James has been a subject of controversy since the founding of the Church. Evidence that Jesus had siblings contradicts Church dogma on the virgin birth, and James is also a symbol of Christian teachings that have been obscured. While Peter is traditionally thought of as the leader of the apostles and the “rock” on which Jesus built his church, Jeffrey Bütz shows that it was James who led the disciples after the crucifixion. It was James, not Peter, who guided them through the Church's first major theological crisis--Paul's interpretation of the teachings of Jesus. Using the canonical Gospels, writings of the Church Fathers, and apocryphal texts, Bütz argues that James is the most overlooked figure in the history of the Church. He shows how the core teachings of Jesus are firmly rooted in Hebraic tradition; reveals the bitter battles between James and Paul for ideological supremacy in the early Church; and explains how Paul's interpretations, which became the foundation of the Church, are in many ways its betrayal. Bütz reveals a picture of Christianity and the true meaning of Christ's message that are sometimes at odds with established Christian doctrine and concludes that James can serve as a desperately needed missing link between Christianity, Judaism, and Islam to heal the wounds of centuries of enmity.

It is a well-known fact that in the late 6th century Pope Gregory shaped the image of the Goddess in the Gospels, Mary Magdalene, into a penitent adulteress and prostitute-labels more recently abandoned in favor of "devoted follower" and even "Apostle to the Apostles." Conversely, Jesus' image and character were refashioned into a divinely born hero archetype and the body of his Gnostic wisdom teachings redacted and corrupted to support the personification of a Messiah and world redeemer who would fulfill an ancient prophesy and proclaim himself "the way" to salvation. If not accurate, then what was Jesus and Mary Magdalene's true legacy? Ariadne Green offers up the image of Divine Complements who married, had children and whose lives and mission together spanned over sixty years. She traces their journey from Judea and Galilee to the Nile Delta in Egypt, after an aborted crucifixion, and then onto Gaul and Great Britain as the carriers of the Grail. The book reveals a secret identity for Jesus, one known by the Knights Templar and a group of Cistercian monks, who hid clues to a legacy of secrets in La Queste Del Saint Graal. We discover Jesus' authentic teachings survived and became the tenets of Valentinian Gnostics who disseminated them in secret and initiated disciples into a profound mystery-the mystery of the 'bridal chamber'.

Secrets is a timeless classic, an unparalleled resource for fueling your devotional prayer life. This book is must reading for anyone wanting fresh momentum in their quiet time with Jesus. It defuses common struggles, equips, and inspires fervency for Jesus. 52 short chapters. This Legacy Edition is rewritten and polished for posterity. Even if you have the first edition, get this one!

In December 1945, two Egyptian fellahin, digging for natural fertilizer in the Nile River valley unearthed a sealed storage jar. The jar proved to hold treasure of an unexpected sort: a collection of some fifty-two ancient manuscripts, most of which reflect the teachings of a mystical religious movement we call Gnosticism (from the Greek word gnosis, "knowledge"). The texts are also, with few exceptions, Christian documents, and thus they provide us with valuable new information about the character of the early church, and about the Gnostic Christians within the church. In this volume, Marvin W. Meyer has produced a new English translation for general readers of four of the most important and revealing of these early Christian texts -- the Secret Book of James, the Gospel of Thomas, the Book of Thomas, and the Secret Book of John.

From the best-selling author of The Bloodline of the Holy Grail and Lost Secrets of the Sacred Ark comes an explosive historical detective story presenting secret archives on the mysterious life of Mary Magdalene, the hidden lineage of Jesus and Mary, and the real two-thousand-year-old conspiracy involving the entire history of Christianity. Mary Magdalene is described in the New Testament as Jesus' close companion -- a woman he loved and his financial sponsor. And yet, in contrast, the Church teaches that she was a prostitute who became repentant. Why the discrepancy between scripture and dogma? Why does Mary appeal so romantically to artists who have painted her throughout the centuries as something much more significant than the Church traditionally portrays? What is the secret of Mary Magdalene and how much do we really know about her relationship with Jesus? Were they married? Did they have children, and if so, who makes up the messianic lineage? Laurence Gardner takes us on a detective trail to piece together the true controversial significance of the Magdalene story and its astonishing implications. These include the real da Vinci connection -- the true meaning behind Leonardo da Vinci's paintings and why the Renaissance Church censored portrayals of the Magdalene -- and information on the sacred marriage of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Plus the truth about the enigmatic Templar society called the Priory of Scion and the underground stream that protected the sacred heritage of the messianic descendents. And much more!

I had a religion professor at Brigham Young University who often asked, What is the best kept secret of The Mormon Church? After declaring all answers amiss he would make this statement; The best kept secret of The Mormon Church is the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Over the years of teaching gospel doctrine I have found his statement to be all too true. Despite their best study efforts and the abundance of scriptural resources, many members do not understand some fundamental and extremely important doctrines. I invite you to feast with me upon the meat of more exalted concepts.