Origin of
a Bad Race
Initiation and Antisemitism
From: holderlin66
Date: Fri Mar 19, 2004 12:34 pm
Subject: Initiation and Antisemitism
holderlin66 wrote:
Bradford comments;
Initiation and Antisemitism is stunning when
we compare Shakespeare's Plays, his vision of each Individual
and the inner moral play of events, as Shakespeare was on a path
of Initiation to view objectively what makes up the guts of Mankind;
and compare Steiner as an Initiate outlining the full Initiation
path of the I AM all the way up to Karma and Reincarnation of
Individuals.
That means that we look carefully on the substance
of Observation. Steiner, we have established, covers the gamut
of I AM history, back to the core of Ancient Saturn - The Mid-point
of Earth Evolution Christ Event - to Future unfolding conditions.
Shakespeare does not reach as high as Steiner, but we curse Steiner
for his vision into the depths of humanity. This means that souls
fear Initiation Science and the power of Shakespeare, because
they both called it as they saw it.
Now, we shall have to say by the measure of
Peter S. that Shakespeare was an Antisemite. Look at what he
wrote in the "Merchant of Venice". But looking more
carefully into the depth of vision that Shakespeare was working
with and the depth of vision that Steiner was working with, we
see a richness that cannot be limited to such brittle and Politically
Correct Ideas, such as AntiSemitism.
The fault lies not with Initiation into the
vision of Races, Atlantis and the full unfolding of the vision
of the I AM, even to how it wraps itself in flesh, from incarnation
to incarnation, because there we begin to see, through the advanced
psychological vistas of Initiation Science, the details of Karmic
choice and karmic wisdom.
Shakespeare ends his career with "The
Tempest". Here the control of a portion of the Elements,
the vision of how the Christ I AM was able to enter not only
the Atomic Table, but how Christ had command over the Atomic
Table, is foreshadowed in the character of Prospero. What breaks
through vision in "The Tempest", is not only how a
storm has an EYE; or that Sylph spirits incorporate in these
storms, but rather, Shakespeare breaking into the higher capacities
of vision that await the I AM in Spirit Self, Life Spirit and
Spirit Man, gains, through his Poetic Consciousness Soul Initiation,
a grasp of future conditions. The entire body of Shakespeare's
work allows him to come to such a vision in the "The Tempest".
For the Christ, leaving humanity free to develop
and grow in I AM forces, reveals that Christ is not only in control
of the elements, but the mastery of the Atomic Table of matter
itself that will be given to the higher education of the I AM
as it progresses is his as well. All the Keys to all the Worlds.
So, looking again
at Antisemitism and the free vision of the I AM, neither Shakespeare
or Steiner narrowed our vision of all that the Individual Human
Being wrestles with, in emotion, in politics, in nature and science,
but WHY each individual wrestles with what they wrestle with.
Christ as Lord of Karma, gives opportunity for humanity to grow
into their higher selves and reveals that our individual lessons
cannot be given a standard, bar code out of a "Blade Runner"
concept. Each individual must gain the depth to see and win it
themselves and we must develop the depth to see how each person
weighs up and measures up. To this, Critics fear that Steiner
could see and Steiner gave the Michael School the new capacity
to learn how to see.
"Scholars have debated
about the nature of the "merry bond" between Shylock
and Antonio. Some have suggested Shylock meant to circumcise
Antonio, others think he meant to make Antonio take over his
place. The fact that Shylock accepts a Christian condition of
taking no interest is supposedly offset by the fact that if Shylock
wins, Antonio must act Jewish.
Another interesting interpretation
deals with why Antonio must stand trial at all. In the Bible
Paul said that Jewishness is an internal condition, not external.
This implies that Shylock is Jewish not because he was born that
way, but because he acts that way. Thus Antonio's mistreatment
of Shylock violates this explanation of Jewishness by despising
Shylock because of his external features. It is this sin for
which Antonio is judged.
Throughout this play there
is also the concept of the scapegoat. The scapegoat was used
as a way of purging a town of its sins by heaping them onto the
unfortunate animal instead. The town would drive one goat out
of town and sacrifice another. Both men fit this description
in The Merchant of Venice, with Shylock clearly driven out of
society and Antonio representing the goat about to be sacrificed.
One of the great ironies of
this play is where Shylock calls Portia, "A Daniel come
to judgment, yea, a Daniel!" (4.1.218). Daniel was the biblical
judge of Susanna, a woman accused of inchastity by the Elders.
The story is famous because Daniel rules in Susanna's favor,
thus rescuing her. In addition to freeing her, he then further
convicts the Elders. Shylock's mistake is that he is premature
in calling Portia a Daniel, because he is the one who represents
the Elders, and Antonio signifies Susanna. This inversion comes
only a few lines later, when Portia not only frees Antonio, but
convicts Shylock of attempted murder."
http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/merchantvenice/act4analysis.html
PORTIA:
Soft!
The Jew shall have all justice; soft! no haste:
He shall have nothing but the penalty.
GRATIANO:
O Jew! an upright judge, a learned judge!
PORTIA:
Therefore prepare thee to cut off the flesh.
Shed thou no blood, nor cut thou less nor more
But just a pound of flesh: if thou cut'st more
Or less than a just pound, be it but so much
As makes it light or heavy in the substance,
Or the division of the twentieth part
Of one poor scruple, nay, if the scale do turn
But in the estimation of a hair,
Thou diest and all thy goods are confiscate.
GRATIANO:
A second Daniel, a Daniel, Jew!
Now, infidel, I have you on the hip.
PORTIA:
Why doth the Jew pause? take thy forfeiture.
SHYLOCK:
Give me my principal, and let me go.
BASSANIO:
I have it ready for thee; here it is.
PORTIA:
He hath refused it in the open court:
He shall have merely justice and his bond.
GRATIANO:
A Daniel, still say I, a second Daniel!
I thank thee, Jew, for teaching me that word.
SHYLOCK:
Shall I not have barely my principal?
PORTIA:
Thou shalt have nothing but the forfeiture,
To be so taken at thy peril, Jew.
SHYLOCK:
Why, then the devil give him good of it!
I'll stay no longer question.
PORTIA:
Tarry, Jew:
The law hath yet another hold on you.
It is enacted in the laws of Venice,
If it be proved against an alien
That by direct or indirect attempts
He seek the life of any citizen,
The party 'gainst the which he doth contrive
Shall seize one half his goods; the other half
Comes to the privy coffer of the state;
And the offender's life lies in the mercy
Of the duke only, 'gainst all other voice.
In which predicament, I say, thou stand'st;
For it appears, by manifest proceeding,
That indirectly and directly too
Thou hast contrived against the very life
Of the defendant; and thou hast incurr'd
The danger formerly by me rehearsed.
Down therefore and beg mercy of the duke.
Retardation
and Human thinking
...................................................................................................................................
From: zapdingo
Date: Fri Mar 19, 2004 1:35 pm
Subject: Re: Initiation and Antisemitism
Bradford,
After reading your message I was suddenly
reminded me of this song, which I had forgotten completely over
the years. How dry is a life that denies even as a mere possibility
the wonders of the spiritual realm which the artistic sensitivity
of Shakespeare was able to evoke in such a brilliant manner.
Primitive Painters
(Felt)
I just wish my life could
be as strange as a conspiracy
I hold out but there's no way of being what I want to be
Dragons blow fire angels fly spirits wither in the air
I'm just me I can't deny I'm neither here, there nor anywhere
Oh you should see my trail
of disgrace,
it's enough to scare the whole human race
Oh you should see my trail of disgrace,
it's enough to scare the whole human race
I don't care about this life,
they say there'll be another one
defeatist attitude I know will you be sorry when I've gone
Primitive painters are ships floating on an empty sea
gathering in galleries were stallions of imagery
Bryan
...................................................................................................................................
From: holderlin66
Date: Sat Mar 20, 2004 8:03 am
Subject: Initiation and Antisemitism/Enigma
zapdingo wrote:
I just wish my life could
be as strange as a conspiracy
I hold out but there's no way of being what I want to be
Dragons blow fire angels fly spirits wither in the air
I'm just me I can't deny I'm neither here, there nor anywhere
Bryan
Rudolf Steiner -
"Now let us consider
how karma works through the different incarnations. When human
beings come into the world, their powers and capacities must,
after all, be regarded as the effects of causes they themselves
engendered in earlier incarnations. If this idea is led to its
consistent conclusion, all human beings must be treated as if
they were a kind of enigma, as beings hovering in the dark foundations
of their earlier incarnations. If this idea of karma is put earnestly
into effect a significant change will be brought about, not in
methods of education only, but in the whole of life. If that
were achieved, the idea of karma, instead of merely being an
anthroposophical idea, would be transformed into something that
takes hold of practical life itself, would become a really potent
factor in life."
Bradford comments;
Van Gogh as a painter never sold a painting,
except when his brother helped him. Van Gogh, what an enigma
and what failure. One of his paintings now sell for 7 million
dollars. A lot of good it did him. But even as I wander to the
significant signature of Van Gogh cutting off his ear, it reminds
me of how Christ put the ear back on when Peter sliced it off.
Oh that Peter. Oh that Van Gogh.
Another painter, Arnold Bocklin- now Bocklin
came in to incarnation with Wagner and bore some of the same
karmic memories that Wagner brought with him. In Bocklin we have
an interesting enigma. Bocklin was one of those who Steiner described
as being able to sit by the crashing seas of Tintagel, the Castle
of the Arthurian Knights and with atavistic clairvoyance, see
the elemental beings. These appear vividly in Bocklin's paintings.
In the surge of the sea, they could feel and gain Earth courage
insight into Astral and occult deeds.
Well Bocklin is such an enigma. Another enigma
we wander around by the Salad Bar of Spiritual Science hoping
to find something to our taste. Bocklin's paintings and his karma
linked him to Wagner and when we try to go further with Bocklin
we appear to be led to Tennyson's Poem, where Arthur demands
of his last living knight to throw Excalibur into the Lake. Sir
Bedevere is the related character of the enigma of Bocklin and
how reluctant Bocklin was to throw away the treasures of the
Arthurian past. Same as Wagner.
"EXCALIBUR Loe Pool has
long been renowned as a possible location for the final resting
place of King Arthur's great sword Excalibur, and the home of
the Lady of the Lake. The story of Arthur's wounding at the fateful
Battle of Camlann and his command to his last surviving knight
Sir Bedevere that he should fling the fabled sword into the lake
was immortalised by Tennyson's great poem Morte d'Arthur. Although
doubts remain as to whether Loe Pool is really the place where
Excalibur was thrown, it was probably where Tennyson imagined
the scene taking place."
http://www.time-scapes.co.uk/Arthur%20in%20the%20Southwest/land%27send.html
The above link gets you to one of the stations
along the karmic trail of the Michael School that we have written
about. From the Last Supper, to ARthur and the Grail families,
to the Michael School, Chartres etc... The Cognition of the Michael
School has moved along with the current of karma and time. When
we speak of Wagner's contributions, we are looking at an Enigma
and this looking at Enigmas are not for the immature and Politically
Correct. Enigmas are for those who study the path of Initiation.
King Arthur: Now, we are about
to attempt to cross...the Bridge of Death! The
gate-keeper of the Bridge
will ask any who attempt to cross five
questions--
Sir Bedevere: Three, sire.
Arthur: (pause) Oh, yes, three.
He who successfully answers these five
questions--
Bedevere: Three, sire!
Arthur: (slightly longer pause)
Ah, three, then...er, may pass in safety.
However, anyone who fails
to correctly answer all five questions--
Bedevere: THREE, sire!
Arthur: I KNOW IT'S BLOODY
THR--ahem, yes, of course, three. (black look at
Bedevere)...will be cast into
the Gorge of Eternal Peril!!!
(dramatic music)
Arthur: (continuing) Sir Robin,
why don't you go?
Sir Robin: Er...I've got an
idea! Why doesn't Sir Lancelot go?
Sir Lancelot: Yes, I'll take
him, sire. (about to draw sword) I'll make a feint
to the North-East, and then--
Arthur: No, no, just answer
the questions, Sir Lancelot.
Lancelot: But I'd really like
a feint to the North-East, sire...
Arthur: No, Sir Lancelot.
We'll all be right behind you, listening...
Lancelot: (sheathing sword)
I...understand, sire.
Arthur: Our prayers go with
you, Sir Lancelot.
(Lancelot approaches the bridge.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, the BRIDGEKEEPER
appears.)
Bedevere: (whispering) It's
the old man from Scene 24!!
Bridgekeeper: STOP!
He who would cross the Bridge
of Death
Must answer me
These questions three
Ere the other side he see.
Lancelot: Ask me your questions,
Bridgekeeper. I am not afraid.
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
name?
Lancelot: Sir Lancelot of
Camelot.
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
quest?
Lancelot: To seek the Holy
Grail.
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
favorite color?
Lancelot: Blue.
Bridgekeeper: Right, off you
go.
Lancelot: (realizing that
was it) Oh! Well, thank you. Thank you very much.
(and off he goes. The knights
look at each other.)
Robin: That's EASY!!!
(A mad rush for the bridge.
Robin arrives first. The knights cluster behind.
A few sniff and wrinkle their
noses, and the group backs off.)
Bridgekeeper: STOP!
He who would cross the Bridge
of Death
Must answer me
These questions three
Ere the other side he see.
Robin: (excitedly) Ask me
your questions, Bridgekeeper, I am not afraid.
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
name?
Robin: Robin of Camelot.
Bridgekeeper: What...is you
quest?
Robin: I seek the Grail!
Bridgekeeper: What...is the
capital of Assyria?
Robin: (indignant) I don't
know THAT!! (An unseen force whisks him up and over the
side.) AAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHH!!!!!!!
(The knights pause, realizing
this may be a bit tougher than all that.)
Bedevere: What shall we do,
sire?
Arthur: Well, I'm not sure,
but...
Bridgekeeper: (off) What...goes
black, white, black, white, black, white?
Sir Gawain: (off) Uh...er...ah...Babylon?
AAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!
Bridgekeeper: STOP!
He who would cross the Bridge
of Death
Must answer me
These questions three
Ere the other side he see.
Sir Galahad: (swallowing)
Ask me your questions, Bridgekeeper...I am not afraid...
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
name?
Galahad: (nervous) Sir Galahad...
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
quest?
Galahad: (really nervous)
To seek the Grail...
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
favorite color?
Galahad: (relieved) Blue!
(starts across; oops) NO! YELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWW!!!!
(Arthur steps forward)
Bridgekeeper: STOP!
He who would cross the Bridge
of Death
Must answer me
These questions three
Ere the other side he see.
Arthur: Ask me your questions,
Bridgekeeper. I am not afraid.
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
name?
Arthur: King Arthur of the
Britons!
Bridgekeeper: What...is your
quest?
Arthur: I seek the Holy Grail!
Bridgekeeper: What...is the
airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?
Arthur: (brief pause) What
do you mean, an African or a European swallow?
Bridgekeeper: (confused) Well...I
don't know... AAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!!!
Bedevere: (crossing behind
Arthur) How do you know so much about swallows,
sire?
Arthur: Well, you have to
know these sorts of things when you're a king, you know...
(Arthur and Bedevere approach
a gigantic lake. A boat in the shape of a dragon glides slowly towards
them. As they prepare to cross, the
same old man suddenly
appears before them.)
Boat-keeper: STOP!
He who would cross the Sea
of Fate
Must answer me these questions
twenty-eight!
(Arthur and Bedevere look
at each other. They look at the old man. They look back
at each other. They pick the old man up, throw him in the water,
and board the ship.)
...................................................................................................................................
From: holderlin66
Date: Fri Mar 19, 2004 2:49 pm
Subject: Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/false witness
Bradford comments;
Entrapment and bearing false witness, as well
as Character Assassination are subjects that seem to have been
of vital interest to Peter S. Here the false representation of
AnthroSophic Soul and Sophia wisdom targeting Dr. Steiner and
those who wish to approach the new AnthroSophic condition, must
first be accused of sick crimes against human brotherhood. Declaring
that the study of humanity from Ancient Saturn to the current
Sciences is A CULT. Hegel, Darwin and our current fear of the
nuclear bomb must also be cults.
It is easy to destroy reputations but it is
not so easy to enter into the deception of the Soul's mind frame,
main frame, that has given the soul permission to distort, misrepresent
and run away from motives that are almost transparent to anybody
else. Elders and dialectical materialists carry with them certain
unconscious motives that stay in the background.
All these things, we learn from the Initiation
subject matter of Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice"
and Dr. Steiner's depiction of the gigantic scope of of the history
of the I AM and the unfolding of preparation for vessels for
the I AM i.e. preparing bodies for the diverse Planetary forces
of the I AM. The pre-creation of the I AM in the Spiritual World,
before we began to see the unfolding of the Newtonian spectrum
of diverse forms, right up to the individual illumination of
the Karma of humanity and the individual as it carried its own
distinct history and incarnations through time.
(Chapter 13 of the Greek version
of Daniel)
Susanna's Beauty Attracts Two Elders
1 There was a man living in
Babylon whose name was Joakim. 2 He married the daughter of Hilkiah,
named Susanna, a very beautiful woman and one who feared the
Lord. 3 Her parents were righteous, and had trained their daughter
according to the law of Moses. 4 Joakim was very rich, and had
a fine garden adjoining his house; the Jews used to come to him
because he was the most honored of them all.
5 That year two elders from
the people were appointed as judges. Concerning them the Lord
had said: "Wickedness came forth from Babylon, from elders
who were judges, who were supposed to govern the people."
6 These men were frequently at Joakim's house, and all who had
a case to be tried came to them there.
7 When the people left at
noon, Susanna would go into her husband's garden to walk. 8 Every
day the two elders used to see her, going in and walking about,
and they began to lust for her. 9 They suppressed their consciences
and turned away their eyes from looking to Heaven or remembering
their duty to administer justice. 10 Both were overwhelmed with
passion for her, but they did not tell each other of their distress,
11 for they were ashamed to disclose their lustful desire to
seduce her. 12 Day after day they watched eagerly to see her.
13 One day they said to each
other, "Let us go home, for it is time for lunch."
So they both left and parted from each other. 14 But turning
back, they met again; and when each pressed the other for the
reason, they confessed their lust. Then together they arranged
for a time when they could find her alone.
The Elders Attempt to Seduce
Susanna
15 Once, while they were watching
for an opportune day, she went in as before with only two maids,
and wished to bathe in the garden, for it was a hot day. 16 No
one was there except the two elders, who had hidden themselves
and were watching her. 17 She said to her maids, "Bring
me olive oil and ointments, and shut the garden doors so that
I can bathe." 18 They did as she told them: they shut the
doors of the garden and went out by the side doors to bring what
they had been commanded; they did not see the elders, because
they were hiding.
19 When the maids had gone
out, the two elders got up and ran to her. 20 They said, "Look,
the garden doors are shut, and no one can see us. We are burning
with desire for you; so give your consent, and lie with us. 21
If you refuse, we will testify against you that a young man was
with you, and this was why you sent your maids away."
22 Susanna groaned and said,
"I am completely trapped. For if I do this, it will mean
death for me; if I do not, I cannot escape your hands. 23 I choose
not to do it; I will fall into your hands, rather than sin in
the sight of the Lord."
24 Then Susanna cried out
with a loud voice, and the two elders shouted against her. 25
And one of them ran and opened the garden doors. 26 When the
people in the house heard the shouting in the garden, they rushed
in at the side door to see what had happened to her. 27 And when
the elders told their story, the servants felt very much ashamed,
for nothing like this had ever been said about Susanna.
The Elders Testify against
Susanna
28 The next day, when the
people gathered at the house of her husband Joakim, the two elders
came, full of their wicked plot to have Susanna put to death.
In the presence of the people they said, 29 "Send for Susanna
daughter of Hilkiah, the wife of Joakim." 30 So they sent
for her. And she came with her parents, her children, and all
her relatives.
31 Now Susanna was a woman
of great refinement and beautiful in appearance. 32 As she was
veiled, the scoundrels ordered her to be unveiled, so that they
might feast their eyes on her beauty. 33 Those who were with
her and all who saw her were weeping.
34 Then the two elders stood
up before the people and laid their hands on her head. 35 Through
her tears she looked up toward Heaven, for her heart trusted
in the Lord. 36 The elders said, "While we were walking
in the garden alone, this woman came in with two maids, shut
the garden doors, and dismissed the maids. 37 Then a young man,
who was hiding there, came to her and lay with her. 38 We were
in a corner of the garden, and when we saw this wickedness we
ran to them. 39 Although we saw them embracing, we could not
hold the man, because he was stronger than we, and he opened
the doors and got away. 40 We did, however, seize this woman
and asked who the young man was, 41 but she would not tell us.
These things we testify." Because they were elders of the
people and judges, the assembly believed them and condemned her
to death.
42 Then Susanna cried out
with a loud voice, and said, "O eternal God, you know what
is secret and are aware of all things before they come to be;
43 you know that these men have given false evidence against
me. And now I am to die, though I have done none of the wicked
things that they have charged against me!"
44 The Lord heard her cry.
45 Just as she was being led off to execution, God stirred up
the holy spirit of a young lad named Daniel, 46 and he shouted
with a loud voice, "I want no part in shedding this woman's
blood!"
Daniel Rescues Susanna
47 All the people turned to
him and asked, "What is this you are saying?" 48 Taking
his stand among them he said, "Are you such fools, O Israelites,
as to condemn a daughter of Israel without examination and without
learning the facts? 49 Return to court, for these men have given
false evidence against her."
50 So all the people hurried
back. And the rest of the elders said to him, "Come, sit
among us and inform us, for God has given you the standing of
an elder." 51 Daniel said to them, "Separate them far
from each other, and I will examine them."
52 When they were separated
from each other, he summoned one of them and said to him, "You
old relic of wicked days, your sins have now come home, which
you have committed in the past, 53 pronouncing unjust judgments,
condemning the innocent and acquitting the guilty, though the
Lord said, 'You shall not put an innocent and righteous person
to death.' 54 Now then, if you really saw this woman, tell me
this: Under what tree did you see them being intimate with each
other?" He answered, "Under a mastic tree." 55
And Daniel said, "Very well! This lie has cost you your
head, for the angel of God has received the sentence from God
and will immediately cut you in two."
56 Then, putting him to one
side, he ordered them to bring the other. And he said to him,
"You offspring of Canaan and not of Judah, beauty has beguiled
you and lust has perverted your heart. 57 This is how you have
been treating the daughters of Israel, and they were intimate
with you through fear; but a daughter of Judah would not tolerate
your wickedness. 58 Now then, tell me: Under what tree did you
catch them being intimate with each other?" He answered,
"Under an evergreen oak." 59 Daniel said to him, "Very
well! This lie has cost you also your head, for the angel of
God is waiting with his sword to split you in two, so as to destroy
you both."
60 Then the whole assembly
raised a great shout and blessed God, who saves those who hope
in him. 61 And they took action against the two elders, because
out of their own mouths Daniel had convicted them of bearing
false witness; they did to them as they had wickedly planned
to do to their neighbor. 62 Acting in accordance with the law
of Moses, they put them to death. Thus innocent blood was spared
that day.
63 Hilkiah and his wife praised
God for their daughter Susanna, and so did her husband Joakim
and all her relatives, because she was found innocent of a shameful
deed. 64 And from that day onward Daniel had a great reputation
among the people.
...................................................................................................................................
From: holderlin66
Date: Sat Mar 20, 2004 7:21 am
Subject: Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel
holderlin66 wrote:
Steiner, we have established, covers the
gamut of I AM history, back to the core of Ancient Saturn - The
Mid-point of Earth Evolution Christ Event - to Future unfolding
conditions. Shakespeare does not reach as high as Steiner, but
we curse Steiner for his vision into the depths of humanity.
This means that souls fear Initiation Science and the power of
Shakespeare, because they both called it as they saw it.
Now, we shall have to say by the measure
of Peter S. that Shakespeare was an Antisemite.
[Welcome to Dry Gulch AnthroVille; POP. 0.02;
where the bar stays closed until the local Judge gets back in
town. Judge Staudenmaier. Oh ya, you claim to want rich discussions,
drinks for all, but without your local nemesis, it's a pretty
dry town, AnthroVille. A quiet place, not a soul on the street,
unless the Judge rides in to town. Suddenly, wagons, country
fairs, rodeos, songs and dancing in the street. I guess Cognition
takes a Spring Break and research goes on hiatus when no rubber
band dynamics dominate the soul. Here have a plate full of WORLD.]
Notes on Gibson:
"The modern liberal Christian
or Jew, so attached to secular utopian fantasy, doesn't want
to hear about suffering and redemption. They don't want to see
it. They have no need, after all. For them, Jesus Christ is not
a Redeemer but a utopian-socialist philosopher, urging not just
love for the sinner but love for the sin. This film – Catholic
and Marian, a recreation of the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary
and The Stations of the Cross – shows them the Truth, something
many men fear more than the Lie."
http://www.lewrockwell.com/kirkwood/kirkwood47.html
"The critics dislike
this film for an unspoken reason unrelated to, yet hidden, in
what they have written, that reason having been written into
the film. Its message is this: "I Am The Way, and The Truth
And The Life."
Of course, secular critics,
whether politically or theologically liberal, don't want to hear
the Truth. Thus, the angst and hatred, the weeping and gnashing
of teeth. Thus, their primal scream, echoing Satan in his Hell
when Christ dies in "The Passion."
Where the Critics Are Wrong
Before addressing "The
Passion's" message, better to dispense with the main objections.
First and foremost is that the film is anti-Semitic because it
depicts Jews as the bloodthirsty caricatures conjured up by Julius
Streicher, the Nazi propagandist.
Poppycock. Only viewers schooled
in anti-Semitic mythology, 99.99 percent of whom aren't, would
draw that conclusion. Indeed, it's hard to see anti-Semitic images
even when looking. They aren't there. No one will walk out of
this film an anti-Semite who didn't walk in one. The principal
villains in the film are the Romans wielding the whips with sadistic
abandon, pushing Our Lord to his death at Golgotha.
And yes, the film conforms
to the Gospels. So seamless is Gibson's tapestry that average
viewers, many undoubtedly enthusiastic Christians but unschooled
in Scripture, won't know what he culled from extra-scriptural
sources. On this point, the critics contradict themselves. They
say Gibson departed from the Gospels (in depicting the savagery
of the scourging, for instance) by consulting those sources.
But then they argue that the Gospels are ahistorical, that Gibson
should have consulted other sources. Whatever. The film depicts
what most viewers, particularly Catholics, remember from their
desultory reading of the Bible. As for "not providing the
context" of the Crucifixion, so what? Even viewers who are
only nominal Christians or atheists, who live in post-Christian
America with everyone else, know the story behind "The Passion."
They don't need "context."
That truth raises another
false criticism: that the film is too violent and does not show
Jesus's important teachings. Again, poppycock. The "violence"
is over-hyped and unlike the typical Hollywood fare. The critics
know that and lie in pretending otherwise. As for the teachings,
flashbacks provide them. They show Jesus preaching the Sermon
on the Mount and telling followers to love their enemies. Without
words, Jesus imparts the lessons of mercy and forgiveness and
condemns hypocrisy when he saves Mary Magdalene: Let him who
is without sin cast the first stone. Jesus teaches his apostles
at The Last Supper, and delivers the invocation every Catholic
hears when he attends Mass: "This is My Body ... this is
My Blood."
Finally, Gibson's Jesus imparts
Christianity's central teaching: "I am the way, and the
truth and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me."
The Real Problem
For Passion critics and haters,
these last words are the genuine problem with the film. It isn't
that the film imparts too few of Jesus's hard teachings. Rather,
it imparts too many. It renders his most important teachings.
It proclaims, unflinchingly, what non-Christians and tepid Christians
do not want to hear: To enter Heaven, we must go through Jesus
Christ.
And with Jesus, comes the
Cross, another teaching too hard for the modern age: He suffered
and died for our sins, and we too must suffer and shoulder His
Cross. After all, our own sins fashioned it. This is Gibson's
point. His sins, our sins, put Christ on the Cross. Our sins
brought down each stripe from the Roman flagellum, crowned Him
with thorns and delivered each agonizing blow of hammer on nail.
Real Christians believe every sin drives another nail into His
hand, another nail into His foot, another lance into His side.
"
...................................................................................................................................
From: ftsmith747
Date: Sun Mar 21, 2004 2:02 pm
Subject: Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel
--- In anthroposophy_tomorrow@yahoogroups.com,
holderlin66 wrote:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/kirkwood/kirkwood47.html
"The critics dislike
this film for an unspoken reason unrelated to, yet hidden, in
what they have written, that reason having been written into
the film. Its message is this: "I Am The Way, and The Truth
And The Life."
Bradford,
Did you see the film? I'd be interested in
your opinion.
Frank
...................................................................................................................................
From: holderlin66
Date: Sun Mar 21, 2004 9:04 pm
Subject: Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel
ftsmith747 wrote:
Bradford,
Did you see the film? I'd be interested
in your opinion.
Frank
have not seen it. Not anxious to see it. interested
if huge bricks and as Paulina, Dottie and I discussed earlier,
there seems to be a drift of guilt and jesuit pain and suffering
to force, impose and trap the soul in a bubble of guilt and pain...
However comments from the world as they wrestle
with their own issues regarding the film, interest me. I am fairly
confident that when I see it, I will get an accurate read on
it.
Bradford
...................................................................................................................................
From: engemi
ferreira
Date: Mon Mar 22, 2004 10:51 am
Subject: Re: [anthroposophy_tomorrow] Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel
Hi guys,
Suppose you're talking about the JC film,
no? What interests me is that all over the world people have
become so used to being abused by sex, violence, crime etc in
films, and yet they place very high age restrictions on this
one, Did you perhaps discuss this? It seems that people (viewers)
couldn't take the ammount of severe abuse against the Christ
character shown in the film.
engemi
Gazing
at God from the Gutter
...................................................................................................................................
From: Frank Thomas Smith
Date: Mon Mar 22, 2004 6:10 pm
Subject: RE: [anthroposophy_tomorrow] Re: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel
I haven't seen it either, and don't intend
to (weak stomach). Ntwithstanding that, a non-review of the film,
by me, will appear in the next SCR.
Frank
Bradford,
Did you see the film? I'd be interested
in your opinion.
Frank
[Bradford:]
have not seen it. Not anxious to see it.
interested if huge bricks and as Paulina, Dottie and I discussed
earlier, there seems to be a drift of guilt and jesuit pain and
suffering to force, impose and trap the soul in a bubble of guilt
and pain...
However comments from the world as they
wrestle with their own issues regarding the film, interest me.
I am fairly confident that when I see it, I will get an accurate
read on it.
...................................................................................................................................
From: dottie zold
Date: Tue Mar 23, 2004 6:03 am
Subject: Re: When The Man Comes Around (was: Initiation and Antisemitism/Mel)
Bryan,
Thanks for sharing this great piece by Jonny
Cash. I had no idea he spoke on such things as I don't think
I have ever heard a song of his. But then again I just began
listening to Dylan after all the posts in the past few years
regarding his impact.
I also really enjoyed the Donkey post. Funny
how life is such a bite in the ass at times isn't it?
Love,
d
Bryan:
"The Man Comes Around", the last
cd in the series, has this breathtaking description in its title
song of what exactly happens when, well, The Man Comes Around,
according to Johnny:
And I heard, as it were,
the noise of thunder:
One of the four beasts saying: "Come and see."
And I saw.
And behold, a white horse.
There's a man goin' 'round
takin' names.
An' he decides who to free and who to blame.
Everybody won't be treated all the same.
There'll be a golden ladder reaching down.
When the man comes around.
The hairs on your arm will
stand up.
At the terror in each sip and in each sup.
For you partake of that last offered cup,
Or disappear into the potter's ground.
When the man comes around.
Hear the trumpets, hear
the pipers.
One hundred million angels singin'.
Multitudes are marching to the big kettle drum.
Voices callin', voices cryin'.
Some are born an' some are dyin'.
It's Alpha's and Omega's Kingdom come.
And the whirlwind is in
the thorn tree.
The virgins are all trimming their wicks.
The whirlwind is in the thorn tree.
It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
Till Armageddon, no Shalam,
no Shalom.
Then the father hen will call his chickens home.
The wise men will bow down before the throne.
And at his feet they'll cast their golden crown.
When the man comes around.
Whoever is unjust, let
him be unjust still.
Whoever is righteous, let him be righteous still.
Whoever is filthy, let him be filthy still.
Listen to the words long written down,
When the man comes around.
Hear the trumpets, hear
the pipers.
One hundred million angels singin'.
Multitudes are marchin' to the big kettle drum.
Voices callin', voices cryin'.
Some are born an' some are dyin'.
It's Alpha's and Omega's Kingdom come.
And the whirlwind is in
the thorn tree.
The virgins are all trimming their wicks.
The whirlwind is in the thorn tree.
It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
In measured hundredweight
and penny pound.
When the man comes around.
And I heard a voice
in the midst of the four beasts,
And I looked and behold: a pale horse.
And his name, that sat on him, was Death.
And Hell follwed with him.
Bryan
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