The Broken Mirror in the Pool's Reflection : The Bible as Myth and the Gospels as Mystic Magic

"The eyes of my soul were opened, and I beheld the plenitude of God, whereby I did comprehend the whole world, both here and beyond the sea, and the abyss and all things else; and therein I beheld naught save the Divine Power in a manner assuredly indescribable, so that through excess of marvelling the soul cried with a loud voice saying, 'This world is full of God'."
(Angela of Foligno : 13th Century)

The bible suggests that there was a period in history, i.e. that of the Old Testament, where God, like an actor in a play, put in the occasional dramatic appearance. If God could appear in those times why does he not make an appearance in the century we live in. It would seem that God has died. Many people think God is dead, but this cannot be possible for the whole point of God is that he never dies, he is immortal. When men expire God lives forever. It would seem the God the Old Testament prophets were writing about was not in fact a literally 'real' figure, but simply a construct in their fables and myths to instruct their flocks. I cannot imagine why the established Church today can take these myths and fables and interpret them as literal fact. It is against all sensible thinking. The prophets of yore were well-intentioned and good at heart, and in relating for example the Sodom and Gomorrah story, sought to warn a weak public about the harm profligate sodomy could bring about. It would lead to corruption, all sorts of associated perversions, and ultimately, murder. The thinking men of the Old Testament sought to instruct simpler and unlearned men in the moral ways of their 'God'. It was a God of vengeance but a God of Justice too. To believe in God then, meant to live a good and moral life, free from corruption and hatred. God wanted you to marry, propagate the species, and live happily as man and wife. When Christ, the Son of God appeared, he continued the tradition but was a man of love and understanding more than a God preoccupied with absolute morality, spitting venom at the corrupt. When the apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John wrote the four Gospels of the New Testament, they gave the people a personal God. The story became more in harmony with a person's life; they could identify with the baby Jesus and try to emulate his perfect life. The gospels were mystic magic because now mystics could fix on a personal human being to achieve union with the Divine. The Divine was given human form and in the nativity story mystics could know that in this story of poverty and sacrifice they were following all the Christian principles of suffering overcome and ultimate triumph.

Bernard of Clairvaux and Francis of Assisi were two important mystics; who could be more Christian than either, especially Francis with his pure love of birds and bees and flowers. The Christian Francis of Assisi had a perfect model in the life of Jesus Christ to follow and identify with. For him the gospels were mystic magic. The miracles of Jesus were amazing in any century. The liking of any biblical writer for the sensational and incredible is axiomatic. If the tales were amazing wouldn't they be so much more persuasive as tools of reform and conversion ? Wouldn't they make people want to follow this outstanding and very special man ? Jesus was a superman. Surely he would get an army of adoring fans like footballers or pop stars of today. And he did, for two thousand years. The gospels were mystic magic. The Old Testament God so many feared was now a lovable and extremely human man. God made man was a sensational story. The gospel writers knew how to make the most of this subject. They took a very gifted individual, possibly embroidered some of the very special facts about him, and made him a leader non pareil. He became a man a whole caucus of the world would want to follow. Given human form, mystics of the world could focus on Jesus. They could fuse their spirits with the essence of a beautiful man. This was mystic magic. When the Old Testament God was rather nebulous and difficult to pin down the very human and loving Christ was immediate, almost touchable, quintessentially human, a personal God to fully know and love. God had reached something of an apotheosis. He was a perfect man, who talked of brotherly love, generosity and endless kindness. If one did good the rewards would be wonderful. This man was promising riches of a heavenly kingdom. The kingdom of God was a wonderful thing - it was mystic magic.

Should we take the bible then as a whole as an allegory or metaphor ? Certainly some uphold this view. It is the concepts that matter - the principles of Christianity that are right in the bible. It is a good and wise book, but as for taking it literally that is surely naive, even folly. If we see the bible as instruction written by the learned for the less learned we are near the truth. But the world has moved on, the public can take the literal truth, and may in fact soon demand it. They do not need metaphors to explain hard to grasp ideas and concepts. Today men can take the truth. They need absolute truths and a sense of deep reality. It is surely time to sweep away the myths and then be left with eternal Truths, eternal Rights, eternal Love.

"When the whirlwind passes by the wicked is no more. But the righteous has an everlasting foundation." (Proverbs 10 v.25)

"Receive my instruction, and not silver,
And knowledge, rather than choice gold;
For wisdom is better than rubies
And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her."
(Proverbs 8 v.10,11)