The Mysteries of Initiation

The Mysteries of Initiation
Author: Rudolf Steiner
Publisher: Rudolf Steiner Press
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2021-10-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1855845911

In a concise study, Rudolf Steiner presents an inspirational sketch of the evolution of the Mysteries – from ancient Persia through Egypt and Greece, to the Christian era and the present day. He traces the line of initiates from Egyptian divinities Isis and Osiris to Moses, King Arthur’s Round Table and the Holy Grail in the twelfth century. Steiner focuses on the process of initiation as a historical topic: how initiation worked in ancient Egypt and in the late Middle Ages. But his presentation is also inspirational, leading to the question: How can we advance to initiation now? He underscores the potential for achieving enlightenment today without a teacher in the flesh, and explains the four stages of the process towards initiation. He also highlights the need for strenuous efforts to overcome the subtle power of evil – in the form of Lucifer and Ahriman – through selfless work. The four lectures collected here form an important landmark in Rudolf Steiner’s biography: the first being delivered on 3 February 1913 – the very day that the Anthroposophical Society was founded. First published in English under the title The Mysteries of the East and of Christianity and unavailable for many years, this edition has been re-edited by Professor Frederick Amrine and features appendices, an index as well as an introduction by Robert McDermott.

The Mysteries of Mithras

The Mysteries of Mithras
Author: Payam Nabarz
Publisher: Inner Traditions / Bear & Co
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2005-06-09
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 9781594770272

The Mysteries of Mithras presents a revival of this ancient Roman mystery religion, popular from the late second century B.C. Payam Nabarz reveals the history and tenets of Mithraism, its connections to Christianity, Islam, and Freemasonry, and the modern neo-pagan practice of Mithraism today. Included are seven of its initiatory rituals.

The Mysteries of Jesus

The Mysteries of Jesus
Author: Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood
Publisher: Muslim Academic Trust
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2000
Genre: Bible
ISBN: 9780953805662

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail
Author: Rudolf Steiner
Publisher: Rudolf Steiner Press
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2013-05-16
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 185584303X

From the ancient British tales of King Arthur and his knights through the medieval Central European sagas of Parzival, right up to modern-day blockbuster novels and films, the Grail has long maintained its enigmatic presence in western culture. It is said to be many things: a lost and priceless treasure, the chalice cup of the Last Supper, the cup that caught Jesus Christ's blood from the cross on Golgotha, or even a secret royal bloodline...Basing his presentations on far-reaching spiritual research, Rudolf Steiner gave profoundly esoteric, multifaceted insights into the mysteries of the Holy Grail. Collected together for the first time in a single volume, together with commentary and notes, these passages offer vivid tableaux with a multiplicity of meanings: a story that speaks to the human soul with a depth and complexity that intellectual interpretations alone cannot begin to fathom. Just as Parzival had to encounter and engage with veils of illusion and valleys of shadow and doubt, Rudolf Steiner presents us with a similarly challenging path. This book is more than a treasure of thought and insight: it invites us to embark on a personal quest to develop the abilities and vision required for grasping the elusive Grail itself. As editor Matthew Barton writes: "The vessel of the Grail gradually descends towards us and comes into focus as we raise ourselves individually to it by piercing through the illusions of materialism, acknowledging that we ourselves can ultimately become true vessels for the spirit."

Esoteric Christianity

Esoteric Christianity
Author: Annie Besant
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2020-07-30
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 3752374160

Reproduction of the original: Esoteric Christianity by Annie Besant

Mysteries of Faith

Mysteries of Faith
Author: Mark Allen McIntosh
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2000
Genre: Theology, Doctrinal
ISBN: 1561011754

In this volume of The New Church's Teaching Series, Mark McIntosh introduces the great mysteries of the Christian faith: the doctrines of creation, revelation, incarnation, salvation, and eschatology, which are all held together by the doctrine of the Trinity. To explain these beliefs for Christians today, particularly the Trinity, McIntosh begins with what we know: the language of relationship and mutuality, of friendship and family ties. The central theme of the book is our relationship with Jesus and our relationship with our neighbor, for such mutuality lies at the heart of every doctrine. McIntosh's starting point is the fact that every one of us is a theologian, for we are all drawn to approach the mysteries of faith with attention and love. By drawing on our common experiences as members of a community of faith, particularly through the sacraments of baptism and eucharist, he helps us to explore these mysteries for ourselves and to see how we might live them in our daily lives. As with each book in The New Church's Teaching Series, recommended resources for further reading and questions for discussion are included.

Mysteries of the East and of Christianity

Mysteries of the East and of Christianity
Author: Rudolf Steiner
Publisher: Garber Communications
Total Pages: 88
Release: 1989-01-01
Genre: Anthroposophy
ISBN: 9780893450595

Steiner gives a sketch of the evolution of the Mysteries from ancient Persia, through Egypt and Greece, to the Christian era and the present day with the modern initiation of the Holy Grail.

Jesus the Magician

Jesus the Magician
Author: Smith, Morton
Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2014-08-27
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 157174715X

"A twentieth-century classic, uncannily smart, incredibly learned."--from the foreword by Bart Ehrman This book challenges traditional Christian teaching about Jesus. While his followers may have seen him as a man from heaven, preaching the good news and working miracles, Smith asserts that the truth about Jesus is more interesting and rather unsettling. The real Jesus, only barely glimpsed because of a campaign of disinformation, obfuscation, and censorship by religious authorities, was not Jesus the Son of God. In actuality he was Jesus the Magician. Smith marshals all the available evidence including, but not limited to, the Gospels. He succeeds in describing just what was said of Jesus by "outsiders," those who did not believe him. He deals in fascinating detail with the inevitable questions. What was the nature of magic? What did people at that time mean by the term "magician"? Who were the other magicians, and how did their magic compare with Jesus' works? What facts led to the general assumption that Jesus practiced magic? And, most important, was that assumption correct? The ramifications of Jesus the Magician give new meaning to the word controversial. This book recovers a vision of Jesus that two thousand years of suppression and polemic could not erase. And--what may be the central point of the debate--Jesus the Magician strips away the myths and legends that have obscured Jesus, the man who lived.

Encountering the Mystery

Encountering the Mystery
Author: Bartholomew I (Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople)
Publisher: Image
Total Pages: 303
Release: 2008
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0385518137

The spiritual leader of Orthodox Christianity chronicles the history, culture, traditions, and tenets of his faith in a volume that traces the two-thousand-year evolution of the faith, the schisms that led to its split with Western Christianity, its doctrine and liturgy, its ties to the traditions of the early Christian church, and its enduring teachings and theology. 15,000 first printing.