Almznoshinoo
This devoted and favorite Apostle initiated by Jesus Christ Himself was called ‘Judas.’… Judas was not only the most faithful and devoted of all the near followers of Jesus Christ, but also, only thanks to his Reason and presence of mind all the acts of this Sacred Individual could form that result [of being] the source of nourishment and inspiration for the majority of them in their desolate existence and made it at least a little endurable.
[When at the Last Supper it was realized that more time was required to fulfill the sacred sacrament Almznoshinoo] Judas, now a Saint, leaped from his place and hurriedly said:
“I shall go and do everything in such a way that you should have the possibility of fulfilling this sacred preparation without hindrance, and meanwhile set to work at once.”
Having said this, he approached Jesus Christ and having confidently spoken with Him a little and received His blessing, hurriedly left.
Gurdjieff
Given the choice between John’s gospel of love and Gurdjieff’s personal lengthy and cruel vision of Beelzebub’s Tales to his Grandson (and here there is a clear choice), I’ll cleave to the beloved disciple who listened to the beating heart of the Master:
[52] The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
[53] Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
[54] Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
[55] For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
[56] He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
[57] As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
[58] This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
[59] These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
[60] Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
[61] When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?
[62] What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
[63] It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
[64] But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.
[65] And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
[66] From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
[67] Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
[68] Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
[69] And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
[70] Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
[71] He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
Gospel of John, book VI.
Hi Jeremy, thank you for your thoughts on this and the wonderful passages from John’s gospel, however I don’t agree this is about a ‘clear choice’, I think it’s a lot more complicated than that. It might be helpful if I provide some context behind my reasons for posting Gurdjieff’s passage and the extract from the Gospel of Judas.
First of all, Gurdjieff, like Crowley – albeit to a lesser extent – is one of the occult authors I’ve tended to shy away from and I’ve never read any of his work in depth, albeit I know something about his life, principles and methods of his work. Suffice it to say that we can call him a ‘one off’.
However, I AM engaged in a course of study which has required me to invite Christ and his disciples into an inner meditation space – as such, this threw up questions about what to do with Judas. One the one hand, as you point out, and as is deeply ingrained into the minds and hearts of Christians, we are presented with the fact of Judas as betrayer, but on the other hand we are instructed to have faith in universal salvation and the remission of sin through the blood of Jesus Christ. In certain schools of thought this redemption extends to the character even of Lucifer and as such would encompass Judas.
Our great teacher Valentin Tomberg is relatively sympathetic towards Judas and explains his ‘tragedy’ in Christ and Sophia and possibly also MoTT, I don’t recall the precise reference right now. At any rate, there is food for thought.
At the same time as I was engaged with this particular phase of my meditation a good friend of mine came round and started speaking of the course that SHE is doing, which is under the tutelage of a committed Gurdjieff pupil. Up until speaking with her a few weeks ago I was convinced that Gurdjieff was a Sufi, but she told me that he was an orthodox Christian and, having looked into it, I was (pleasantly) surprised to discover she was right.
In the course of this research I alighted instantly on the passage I quoted above, which struck me forcibly given my difficulty with ‘placing’ Judas around the table and also put me in mind again of the Gospel of Judas, discovered a few decades after Gurdjieff wrote his very unusual story. Gurdjieff was undoubtedly an initiate of some kind and his clairvoyance with respect to Judas seems to me significant, although I can’t pretend to know exactly why. I had hoped that by posting the passage on here someone might be able to reveal more to me, as it is very strange indeed in my opinion.
Further, having re-read the Gospel of Judas I was immensely intrigued to discover the information given about the archangels Gabriel and Michael in relation to the human soul, which spoke to the very heart of a matter I believe I have previously discussed with you and that I’ve never found written anywhere else. I also learned of the notion that Judas committed his act of betrayal – spoken of as the ‘mystery of betrayal’ in no small part to allow Jesus some time to complete a particularly advanced form of initiation on behalf of the disciples, that is also connected with this soul work of Gabriel.
Now, I have no real idea of the ‘truth’ or ‘non truth’ in either Gurdjieff or the Gospel of Judas, I simply find them highly intriguing, as there is no smoke without fire and the problem of Judas has been a matter of contemplation for Christians throughout history.
I eagerly await further enlightenment!
Blessings to you brother Jeremy 🙂
Hello dear Charlotte. Thank you for providing context to this difficult problem. I could have been clearer with my intended meaning. I believe the Unknown Author expresses in the MoTT the belief that all will be saved, as the Master promised, and that Hell will in fact be found empty at the last judgement. I know that some believe that Lucifer has already been saved; I can’t speak to this assertion but certainly marvel at the thought. In any event, I think we should hope and pray for all of our salvation for all of our sins. Judas would necessarily be included, and in a way this speaks to the mystery of the Fall and of God’s love.
We know that Jesus chose Judas, and that Jesus knew ahead of time of Judas’ disposition. Still, does this imply that the horror that Jesus endured was necessary or pre-ordained, or that Judas’ betrayal had to find success? Could the world could have welcomed our Lord and Savior as he had hoped, without violence, humiliation, and torture? I really don’t know, but I suppose it must have been a possibility and one would believe the greatest hope, however remote.
The passage from John I don’t think refutes the possibility of Judas’ salvation, but it does clearly recognize his identity and character, and it is far from saintly (to me, this passage from John also identifies who is first to reject the sacrament). So I wonder why Judas would be elevated by some people to such status? This is “clear choice” in my opinion.
I admit I’m highly suspicious of Gurdjieff and especially his methods. This is not to say he is wrong or bad, or not offering some especially interesting genuine insights.
I too am awaiting further enlightenment! Thanks as always for the stimulating post. I hope the new year finds you very well.