1,200-year-old Egyptian text describes a shape-shifting Jesus [NBC News]

[Gary_Sheldrake]

I’ll post a more in-depth answer later, but for the moment I will say this. The idea of Jesus being able to change His form at will (or at least, look different to different people) is an idea found among some early Christians.

The idea was common among Gnostics. Of course, it’s possible to perceive the whole of the universe as God shape shifting. Perhaps it doesn 't require any greater stretch of the imagination than our very existence.

 

[Indifferently]

It sounds like something Muslims would have agreed with, since their God is said to be a deceiver who put somebody else up on the Cross.

 

[patrick457]

It sounds like something Muslims would have agreed with, since their God is said to be a deceiver who put somebody else up on the Cross.

But it is something that Pseudo-Cyril disagreed with, since his Jesus still chooses to die despite being able to shapeshift at will.

 

[patrick457]

The idea was common among Gnostics. Of course, it’s possible to perceive the whole of the universe as God shape shifting. Perhaps it doesn 't require any greater stretch of the imagination than our very existence.

Yes. Please read posts 33-39.

 

[Gary_Sheldrake]

Yes. Please read posts 33-39.

I did, and thank you for posting them. I have also read the Nag Hammadi library. I thought they were interesting.

 

[sjorsvanhens]

Pretty interesting stuff in this thread.

I’m surprised nobody mentioned Luke yet, that part where Jesus walks with two men and the men don’t recognize him.

As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him (24:15-16).

Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight (24:31).

 

[sjorsvanhens]

One cannot help but note the connection with the grego-roman belief that gods visited men in disguise, as in Plato (Sophist 206a-206b)

Socrates. Is he not rather a god, Theodorus, who comes to us in the disguise of a stranger? For Homer says that all the gods, and especially the god of strangers, are companions of the meek and just, and visit the good and evil among men. And may not your companion be one of those higher powers, a cross-examining deity, who has come to spy out our weakness in argument, and to cross-examine us?

I think this is relevant, since paganism in embedded in gnosticism (assuming the text is gnostic).

 

[JustaServant]

One cannot help but note the connection with the grego-roman belief that gods visited men in disguise, as in Plato (Sophist 206a-206b)

I think this is relevant, since paganism in embedded in gnosticism (assuming the text is gnostic).

Most Gnostic texts were pretty fanciful. But the secular media have no clue what a “Gnostic” is, so it’ll probably show up on the “History” channel next month.

 

[patrick457]

One cannot help but note the connection with the grego-roman belief that gods visited men in disguise, as in Plato (Sophist 206a-206b)

I think this is relevant, since paganism in embedded in gnosticism (assuming the text is gnostic).

The only ‘gnostic’ part in pseudo-Cyril is the bit where Jesus turns into a column of fire before the disciples, and even then it seems to have been interpolated from a different work. Otherwise the work is orthodox or ‘monophysite’ (miaphysite?).