The Last Supper and fraudulent revelation

Discussion about the New Testament, apocrypha, gnostics, church fathers, Christian origins, historical Jesus or otherwise, etc.
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drg55
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2014 6:28 am

The Last Supper and fraudulent revelation

Post by drg55 »

Continuing on from previous posts, I demonstrated that Paul invented the sacrament of the eucharist, with the statement " I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you" (1 Corinthians 11:23)

And in the search for the Truth, here is a little more supporting evidence to the argument so far. http://tinyurl.com/kjgjxc4

In Luke 22:19-20 the same phrase occurs about the bread and wine, however the New Oxford Annotated Bible states that some ancient manuscripts lack the key elements of 19b-20.

Matthew and Mark give identical accounts at Matthew 26:26-30 and Mark 14: 22-26. However there is a strange oddity, it ends with them singing a hymn. This is the sort of thing monks might do but I do not recall any mention in the Gospels of Jesus singing hymns with people. Consequently it appears that either Mark used Paul as a source or the verses were inserted at an early stage of the Church, which is possibly suggested by Luke.

The verses do not appear in John beyond Jesus giving a piece of bread to Judas after indicating that this would identify the betrayer John 13: 21-30. This is an odd story as it ends with the Disciples unaware after an apparently shattering statement by Jesus. It does not mention the "new covenant".

The final argument on this is Acts. I scanned over Acts through to chapter 13 (ie to where the narrative shifts from Peter to Paul), there was no mention of such a sacramental service. There were a few references to breaking bread Acts 2:46 "they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people." Some manuscripts say they broke bread from "house to house". Acts 6: 1-6 shows the distribution of food was a charitable action and the Disciples said "It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables" and selected seven men for the task.

What we DO see in Acts is constant reference to Baptism following conversion. In fact in Acts 9:18 Paul is baptised following his conversion. Here we have another anomaly, in the following verse Paul spends time with the Disciples in Damascus and then begins proclaiming Jesus in Synagogues. Whereas in Paul's letter Galatians 1:16-17 he says " I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia" (by which is apparently meant Jordan).

Thus we have Paul as our most important early source on Christianity, a vain and argumentative man who preached selflessness. A man who transformed Christianity into something else as shown by his lack of interest in the earthly Jesus but his own "revelations". And while it generally follows that the earlier the source the more factual and less mythologised, we can see the baptism ritual as the genuine link to the original Christian experience.
Charles Wilson
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Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2014 8:13 am

Re: The Last Supper and fraudulent revelation

Post by Charles Wilson »

drg55 wrote:Acts 6: 1-6 shows the distribution of food was a charitable action and the Disciples said "It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables" and selected seven men for the task.
Please see Hyam Maccoby, The Mythmaker, for a detailed Analysis of "Paul" and his creation of the Eucharist.

The passage concerning the Disciples and the ludicrous statement that they should not lower themselves to wait on tables is a pointer to the real subject of Acts: the Legions minister the word for Caesar, who is in charge of the Food Supply. The seven stalwarts are the 7 Caesars after JC (Hi, ghost!) in an inverted list - the name "Nikolas, Hero of Antioch" is the Clue. Octavian, aka "Caesar Augustus", was the champion of Antioch. As to the last stalwart on the list, "Stephen Martyr": "Who was Caesar for 4 days after Galba?"

CW
drg55
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2014 6:28 am

Re: The Last Supper and fraudulent revelation

Post by drg55 »

Thanks for the reference, I've ordered the book. I have been considering if it is the gnostic aspect of "Christ" that gives Christianity its power, however I haven't finished my research on that, I have Elaine Pagels "The Gnostic Gospels" on my reading list.

I'm not anti Paul by the way, just endeavouring to clarify matters, and of course really interested to get to the bottom if we can of the original message.
Charles Wilson
Posts: 2107
Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2014 8:13 am

Re: The Last Supper and fraudulent revelation

Post by Charles Wilson »

Hyam Maccoby, The Mythmaker, ISBN 0-76070-787-1, pp. 112 - 113:

"The earliest assertion of this [[that Jesus instituted the Eucharist Rite]] is to be found in Paul's Epistles, and this is indeed the earliest reference to the Eucharistic idea too, i.e. to the idea that there is salvific power in the body and blood of Jesus:

1 Corinthians 11: 23 - 30 (RSV):

[23] For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,
[24] and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me."
[25] In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."
[26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
[27] Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord.
[28] Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
[29] For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.
[30] That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.

"From this passage, it is abundantly clear that Paul himself was the inventor and creator of the Eucharist, both as the idea and as a Church institution. For Paul says quite plainly that the Eucharist was founded on a revelation which he himself received: 'For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you'."

CW
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