19-Gospel of Thomas – Act 4

19-Gospel of Thomas – Act 4

In the 4th Act of Thomas, the narrative continues on from the 3rd Act. Thomas has completed his business in the country with the dragon and the slain young man, and is now traveling toward the city. Coming from the opposite direction, an ass’ colt approaches him and SPEAKS to him. The donkey says he has been sent to carry the Apostle into the city. At first Thomas refuses, but the donkey persuades him. Thomas rides the donkey to the gates of the city, and, when he dismounts, the donkey dies right there in the road.

Today we will discuss two main points that are suggested to me by this story; they concern:

1. the general idea and significance of miracles, and
2. the resonance, in the collective unconscious, of certain archetypal symbologies, in this case, "Donkeys".

 So let's get into the text and see how some of this reads.

Now, even in New York, a talking donkey on the street might raise an eyebrow; so when the donkey first speaks, Thomas is understandably amazed; but he immediately recognizes the activity of the Holy Spirit being expressed through the donkey, and thus entreats the donkey to speak words from God:

“And Judas said: It is not without the direction of God that this colt has come hither. But to thee I say, O colt that by the grace of our Lord there shall be given to thee speech before these multitudes who are standing here; and do thou say whatsoever thou wilt, that they may believe in the God of truth whom we preach.”

And thus the donkey spoke:

“Thou twin of Christ, apostle of the Most High and initiate in the hidden word of Christ who receivest his secret oracles, fellow worker with the Son of God, who being free hast become a bondman, and being sold hast brought many into liberty. Thou kinsman of the great race that hath condemned the enemy and redeemed his own, that hast become an occasion of life unto man in the land of the Indians; for thou hast come, against thy will, unto men that were in error, and by thy appearing and thy divine words they are now turning unto the God of truth which sent thee: mount and sit upon me and repose thyself until thou enter into the city.”

 
This first speech of the donkey sounds a lot like many of the messianic sermons that came out of the mouth of Jesus. Clearly we are NOT meant to assume that the donkey is the messiah; and yet, we may witness the Christ Impulse speaking words of truth out of the mouth of a donkey. Clearly, we have here an example of the Holy Spirit, which possessed the body of Jesus and came through Him to the rest the world, coming also through the mouth of a lower animal. Thus may the same spirit, this Holy Ghost, come through anyone who is willing to make of himself an open channel.

Thomas' next big speech, in the Act, is a prayer of praise; runs thus:

"O Jesu Christ (Son) that understandest the perfect mercy! O tranquillity and quiet that now art speakest,  by  brute beasts! O hidden rest, that art manifested by thy working, Saviour of us and nourisher, keeping us and resting in alien bodies! O Saviour of our souls! spring that is sweet and unfailing; fountain secure and clear and never polluted; defender and helper in the fight of thine own servants, turning away and scaring the enemy from us, that fightest in many battles for us and makest us conquerors in all; our true and undefeated champion; our holy and victorious captain: glorious and giving unto thine own a joy that never passeth away, and a relief wherein is none affliction; good shepherd that givest thyself for thine own sheep, and hast vanquished the wolf and redeemed thine own lambs and led them into a good pasture: we glorify and praise thee and thine invisible Father and thine holy spirit and the mother of all creation."

This next part is really fun:

“And the apostle stood a long time as it were astonished, and looked up into heaven and said to the colt: Of whom art thou and to whom belongest thou? for marvelous are the things that are shown forth by thy mouth, and amazing and such as are hidden from the many. And the colt answered and said: I am of that stock that served Balaam, and thy lord also and teacher sat upon one that appertained unto me by race.”

Notice that when Jesus asks the colt where he comes from, the donkey refers to his lineage of the house of Balaam, and the story in Numbers of the donkey who was similarly possessed, and also SPOKE in the service of God.

[Sidebar: The following are comments on, and interpretations of, the story of Balaam, taken from Wikipedia. To begin with, about Balaam the Sorcerer it is said:

"Though other sources describe the apparently positive blessings he delivers upon the Israelites, he is reviled as a "wicked man" in the major story concerning him. Balaam refused to speak what God didn't speak and would not curse the Israelites, even though King Balak of Moab offered him money to do so. (Numbers 22–24). But Balaam's error and the source of his wickedness came from sabotaging the Israelites as they entered the Promised Land. According to Numbers 31:16 and Revelation 2:14, Balaam returned to King Balak and informed the king on how to get the Israelites to curse themselves by enticing them with prostitutes and unclean food sacrificed to idols. The Israelites fell into transgression due to these traps and God sent a deadly plague to them as a result (Numbers 31:16).

The main story of Balaam occurs during the sojourn of the Israelites in the plains of Moab, east of the Jordan River, at the close of forty years of wandering, shortly before the death of Moses, and the crossing of the Jordan. The Israelites have already defeated two kings on this side of the Jordan: Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan.

Balak is the king of the Moabites and he’s feeling threatened by the Hebrew people who have come out of Egypt and are heading for his land. So he calls on Balaam, who is a shaman, to put a curse on the Hebrews. God tells Balaam not to do this, but he heads out to do it anyway. That’s when the Lord sends an angel to interfere, and this story ensues:

Balaam sends back word that he can only do what YHWH commands, and God has, via a nocturnal dream, told him not to go. Moab consequently sends higher-ranking priests and offers Balaam honours; Balaam, in his covetousness, continues to press God, and God finally gives him over to his greed and permits him to go but with instructions to say only what He commands."

[Sidebar: In the Gospel of Thomas we have already seen several examples, (and will soon see several more examples), of desperate deal-making. In this scene, Balaam is playing "Let's Make a Deal" with God, and he is soon to pay for his impertinence. We are reminded of the kind of deal-making that many of us engage in all the time. It is natural, when you want something from someone, that you should try to offer something in return (as if any one of us had anything that God didn't have already!). One of Kubler-Ross' five stages of death is: "bargaining"; if I'm good, give me more life (or something like that); spare me and I will work overtime at the rehab center, etc. So Balaam works out a deal with God, they come up with an agreement--but because it was a compromise, outside the perfect will of God, the result was flawed. The prizes you get on "Let's Make a Deal" are always smaller than they look.

Going on with Wikipedia:]

"Balaam thus, without being asked again, sets out in the morning with the princes of Moab and God becomes angry that he went, and the Angel of the Lord (Numbers 22:22) is sent to prevent him.

At first the angel is seen only by the donkey Balaam is riding, which tries to avoid the otherwise invisible angel. After Balaam starts punishing the donkey for refusing to move, it is miraculously given the power to speak to Balaam (Numbers 22:28), and it complains about Balaam's treatment.

At this point, Balaam is allowed to see the angel, who informs him that the donkey is the only reason the angel did not kill Balaam. Balaam immediately repents, but is told to go on."]

Here is the text from Numbers:

Numbers 22:22-35 


"22 But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him.
23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road.
24 Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides. 25 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.
26 Then the angel of the Lord moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left.
27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff. 
28 Then the LORD opened the donkey's mouth, and she said to Balaam, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?"
29 Balaam answered the donkey, "You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now."
30 The donkey said to Balaam, "Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" "No," he said.
31 Then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.
32 The angel of the LORD asked him, "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.
33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared her."
34 Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, "I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back." 35 The angel of the LORD said to Balaam, "Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you." So Balaam went with the princes of Balak."

Back to Wikipedia:

"First of all we have to admit that this is one of the most entertaining stories in all of Scripture. The comic element is delightful with the proud prophet and the poor dumb donkey. No doubt this story would have been told with great hilarity amongst the Hebrews.

As such it is a folk tale. It is no doubt based on a historical story of a Gentile shaman who had a misbehaving donkey. The tale was passed down from one generation to another in oral form. In this process did one of the storytellers, for extra color, add in the bit about the donkey actually talking? Could be. Funny stories about wise talking animals are pretty commonplace. In the folk tales, like Aesop’s fables, the animals talk and make a point the humans can’t otherwise see. Same in this story.

However, what about animals talking to people? We must remember that this is a very ancient story from a primitive culture. Many primitive cultures have tales of animals communicating with people–especially with shamans. Do they actually talk with the shaman or does he communicate with them in some other extrasensory manner? That’s what they claim–or at least that is what they claim in their ancient folk tales.

Maybe animals communicating with humans is not simply a folk tale. Then again, you could simply say, “Hey. It’s a miracle. Believe it or not. Take it or leave it.” Then again, let me suggest another idea which readers may find even more entertaining and intriguing. It’s the  story of the time a bird spoke to me.

Here’s what happened: I was walking along to church one evening and as I was walking I was praying. I was therefore in a somewhat altered state of consciousness. I was praying about an appointment I had that evening to help with a healing service for a women with a blood disease and I doubted that I could do this. As I walked along a bird hopped along the hedge next to me and it was chirping. As the bird chirped I heard in my head a Bible reference–it had the same rhythm and pitch in my head as the bird chirping. It was as if the bird was saying, “Mark 8:44, Mark 8:44″ When I got to the church I opened the Bible and Mark 8:44 was the verse in which Jesus heals a woman with an issue of blood. The bird didn’t talk to me, but in my mind I heard the bird talk to me and it gave the right message!

So did the donkey talk to Balaam? The story says he was a shaman–so presumably he was familiar with being an an altered state of consciousness. Did he hear the donkey speak to him the way I heard the bird speak to me? If so, the miracle was not in the donkey actually talking, but that Balaam perceived her to be talking.

This opens up a curious way to consider miracles. How much of the miracle is a real physical miracle and how much of it is our perception of the miraculous?"]

As I mentioned at the outset, this kind of story, involving talking animals, automatically invites a discussion of miracles. What truly is a miracle, and what impact does it have on the spiritualism of the devotee? Perhaps we are so convinced and convicted by miracles, because, unlike faith which is the evidence of things unseen, a miracle is when an actual manifestation of spiritual power over matter may be tangibly, materially perceived, vividly seen.

The tragedy is that, somehow, miracles are thought of in the same way myths are are thought of: namely, that they are not real, that there is something far away and sort of made up about them. They are fiction, pretty lies. Worse than that, Jesus' ability to perform miracles has often been made into the primary index of His divinity. I find this to be dumb. MANY saints in history have performed dramatic miracles, and we all, in Christ, have performed little miracles. It is not the miracles of Christ that are important, it is the MESSAGE of Christ. To be sure, the miracles of Jesus are a big apart of the package, but they are not the biggest part, nor are they the main part.

But as you will recall, when I filled out my application for Anchorage Christian School, I told them that the I was not interested in the miracle of "creation in seven days", because my whole life was a constant sequence of little miracles, little events in which heaven reaches down with angelic fingers, and touches the earth.

So getting back to the question of whether Balaam heard the voice of God coming through the donkey with his ears or with his mind. I say, "Who cares?" A big miracle or a little miracle, it's all the same. In fact now that I think about it, you really can't have a little miracle--they are all big. A little miracle would be like a little love.


Returning to the issue of the Thomas' donkey's genetic lineage, remember that, in this church, we have had cause to mention, on many occasions, the issue of bloodlines. Jesus and Mary are of the house of David, certain other races descend from Seth, and so on. Much personal information about an individual, including his personality, propensities, and memories reside in the blood. It has been suggested in certain New Age material that the human DNA might be the gateway of spirit into flesh; therefore the composition of blood is not a trivial consideration. I think it's charming that this text traces the bloodline of a donkey. There must be something to it.

Now, continuing with the story from Thomas. After the donkey mentions his lineage, he continues with the details of his mission:

"And I also have now been sent to give thee rest by thy sitting upon me: and that I may be confirmed in faith, and unto me may be added that portion which now I shall receive by thy service wherewith I serve thee; and when I have ministered unto thee, it shall be taken from me. And the apostle said unto him: He is able who granted thee this gift, to cause it to be fulfilled unto the end in thee and in them that belong unto thee by race: for as to this mystery I am weak and powerless. And he would not sit upon him. But the colt besought and entreated him that he might be blessed of him by ministering unto him. Then the apostle mounted him and sat upon him; and they followed him, some going before and some following after, and all of them ran, desiring to see the end, and how he would dismiss the colt.

41 But when he came near to the city gates he dismounted from him, saying: Depart, and be thou kept safe where thou wert. And straightway the colt fell to the ground at the apostle's feet and died. And all they that were present were sorry and said to the apostle: Bring him to life and raise him up. But he answered and said unto them: I indeed am able to raise him by the name of Jesus Christ: but this is not by any means expedient. For He that gave him speech that he might talk was able to cause that he should not die; and I raise him not, not as being unable, but because this is that which is expedient and profitable for him. And he bade them that were present to dig a trench and bury his body and they did as they were commanded."


I love it how Thomas refuses to bring the colt back to life. It's a very cosmic perspective on life and death, a perspective which I welcome.

The answer to my prayers about my death anxiety, has been the instruction to: "Become more spiritual." Well, duh. This directive could mean so many things to so many different people--but, to me, becoming more spiritual means: to fix my conscious attention on higher-vibratory levels of life, more often. I do this all the time already--I do it with my will, and I do it with my imagination. (In this case I do not mean "imagination" in the sense of making something unreal, but the in the sense of "MAKING AN IMAGE FROM NON-MATERIAL ENERGY".) As I say I can do this when I concentrate--but I simply MUST do it more often. "Pray unceasingly", Jesus says. Unceasingly create living thought forms of Heaven, expressing themselves in perceptible, tangible forms.

My favorite line in the Credo (Nicene Creed) is Et incarnatus est. "And was made flesh." These words are often given very eloquent and poignant musical settings. It is easy enough to think of a thought form as an image, an imaginative reality, so it is almost as easy to conclude that: creating spiritual reality is ONLY possible through the imagination--that the thought forms of imagination are our only link to higher dimensions. The answer to my prayer is: "Although I do this all the time, I need to do it more."

Remember Steiner's comment on the Christ impulse:

"The second stream is the Christ stream itself that will lead humanity from intellectuality, by way of aesthetic feeling and insight, to morality."

It is interesting that the Christ impulse is characterized, by Steiner, as leading to RIGHT ACTION by way of aesthetic feeling and insight. I, myself, would tend to summarize the aesthetic response as:

a response to order and sense--to the divine intelligence manifested in divine forms.

My point here is that the creation of an AESTHETICALLY pleasing FORM is as much a part of the resonance of a miracle as its supernatural content; that is to say, like the bird quoting scripture, the IMPLICATIONS of the miracle are as important as the FACT of the miracle. So, taking charge of the form of my thoughts, gives me power to direct those thoughts to higher abstract levels.

The good thing is that: this sort of discipline is much easier in Alaska than in other places, because there are so many fewer distractions here. Indeed, the spirit of the land rises up to meet me whenever I hold out my hand; and we dance along the highway like elves. Becoming more spiritualized means getting beyond and above the material manifestations that obstruct our vision of the true reality.

We arrive, here, at the old, "true knowledge is no knowledge" paradox. We never fail to appreciate the irony of the dumbest being the smartest, the poorest being the richest, etc. In many religions the village idiot is the most sacred man in town. Indeed, it is no accident that the part of "innocent fool savant" is here played by a donkey, because the donkey has long been considered the dumbest of the dumb beasts. The dumb donkey as a symbol of "divine idiocy" is important because the symbolic elements of a parable are sometimes the most active components--having, as they do such a powerful resonance in the unconscious; the unconscious, the experience of which, in dreams and visions, may be the closest we can ever get to a kind of spiritual understanding. Also, consider the idea that "divine idiocy" is not unlike being absorbed into the inarticulate Cloud of Unknowing, where all articulate verbal definitions dissolve into higher mind!

Remember also, on the subject of archetypal resonance of myth, we have suggested, many times, that the resonance of spiritual energy in history creates what we call "myths". Joseph Campbell has declared that myths are merely:

"Writings that explain the God Power within you. Writings that explain inner spirit with words."

One internet author suggests that there is an equivalence between spirit and electricity; for "spirit" he substitutes the word "photon". There exists, elsewhere, a fairly eclectic theory that: DNA is the entry point for angelic energy to be transposed into physical manifestation. Perhaps the entry of spirit into the physical, transposed from frequency to frequency, through the DNA, happens in the space of a photon:

"Image words must be used, because there are no text words to explain nothingness.

THIS SCRIPTURE SPEAKS OF NOT TALKING
TO THE BRAIN
BUT TALKING TO THE PHOTON
WHICH OPERATES THE BRAIN

1 Corinthians 2:6:
"We speak wisdom among them that are perfect. Not the wisdom of this world. The wisdom of God in a mystery even the hidden wisdom."

TO THEM THAT ARE PERFECT MEANS
TO THEM THAT IN MEDITATION CLOSE DOWN ALL THOUGHTS
WITH NO STAIN OF THOUGHT
THE MIND BECOMES PERFECT

1 Corinthians 2:10:
"God revealed them unto us by his spirit"

BY HIS SPIRIT MEANS
ELECTRICITY, PHOTON

1 Corinthians 2:13:
"not in the words mans wisdom teaches but which the Holy Ghost teaches comparing spiritual things with spiritual"

THE THINGS THAT COME ARE NOT THOSE
YOU WERE TAUGHT
THEY ARE YOURS AND THEY BELONG TO NO ONE ELSE

1 Corinthians 2:14:
"The natural man receives not the things of the spirit of God. They are foolishness. neither can he know them. Because they are spiritually discerned."

Thus, divine truth is articulated through symbols which have become mythologized, imbued with spirit. 

Furthermore, on the symbolic significance of donkeys, specifically, Wikipedia has this to say:

Religion, myth and folklore

"Jesus rode on a donkey in his triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

Due to its widespread domestication and use, the donkey is referred to in myth and folklore around the world. In classical and ancient cultures, donkeys had a part. The donkey was the symbol of the Egyptian sun god Ra.

In Greek myth, Silenus is pictured in Classical Antiquity and during the Renaissance drunken and riding a donkey, and Midas was given the ears of an ass after misjudging a musical competition.

Donkeys (or asses) are mentioned many times in the Bible, beginning in the first book and continuing through both Old and New Testaments, so they became part of Judeo-Christian tradition. They are portrayed as work animals, used for agricultural purposes, transport and as beasts of burden, and terminology is used to differentiate age and gender. In contrast, horses were represented only in the context of war, ridden by cavalry or pulling chariots. Owners were protected by law from loss caused by the death or injury of a donkey, showing their value in that time period. Narrative turning points in the Bible (and other stories) are often marked through the use of donkeys — for instance, leading, saddling, or mounting/dismounting a donkey are used to show a change in focus or a decision having been made. They are used as a measure of wealth in Genesis 30:43, and in Genesis chapter 34, the prince of Shechem (the modern Nablus) is named Hamor ("donkey" in Hebrew).

According to Old Testament prophesy, the Messiah is said to arrive on a donkey: "Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey!" (Zechariah 9:9).

According to the New Testament, this prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on the animal (Matthew 21:4-7, John 12:14-15). Jesus appeared to be secretly aware of this connection (Matthew 21:1-3, John 12:16).

In the Jewish religion, the donkey is not a kosher animal. It is considered avi avot hatuma or the ultimate impure animal, and doubly "impure", as it is both non-ruminant and non-cloven hoofed. However, it is the only impure animal that falls under the mitzvah (commandment) of firstborn ("bechor") consecration that also applies to humans and pure animals. In Jewish Oral Tradition ( Talmud Bavli), the son of David was prophesied as riding on a donkey if the tribes of Israel are undeserving of redemption."

Besides Mr. Ed the most famous talking HORSE was Roman de Fauvel; from Wikipedia:

"The Roman de Fauvel is a 14th-century French allegorical poem by the French royal clerk Gervais de Bus and Chaillou de Pesstain. It tells of Fauvel, a curry- or fauve-colored horse who has risen to prominence in the French royal court.

The Roman de Fauvel is laden with allegories and political satire. The antihero's name, which when broken down forms fau-vel, or "veiled lie", also forms an acrostic in which each letter stands for a sin: Flatterie (Flattery), Avarice (Greed), Vilenie (Guile), Variété (inconstancy), Envie (Envy), and Lâcheté (Cowardice).

Fauvel, an ambitious but foolish horse, decides that he is unsatisfied with his residence in the stable and moves into the largest room of his master's house. Upon moving there, he changes it to suit his needs and has a custom hayrack built. Dame Fortune, the goddess of Fate, smiles upon Fauvel and appoints him leader of the house. Subsequently, Church and secular leaders from many places make pilgrimages to see him, and bow to him in servitude, symbolizing Church and state rulers quickly bowing to Sin and corruption.

Upon receiving Dame Fortune's smile, Fauvel travels to Macrocosmos and asks for her hand in marriage. She denies him, but in her stead she proposes he wed Lady Vainglory. Fauvel agrees, and the wedding takes place, with such guests present as Flirtation, Adultery, Carnal Lust, and Venus, in a technique similar to that of the Morality plays of the 15th and 16th centuries.

Finally, Dame Fortune reveals that Fauvel's role in the world is to give birth to more iniquitous rulers like himself, and to be a harbinger of the Antichrist."

Clearly Roman de Fauvel is not a sacred idiot, but he warns us of the dangers of our own stupidity. Not quite as stupid as a donkey, and not quite so innocent.

Another internet commentator offered these reflections on the historical literary donkey: 

"The Ass in the Lion’s Skin is a fable attributed to the Greek slave, Aesop (famous also for the Tortoise and the Hare, the Ant and the Grasshopper, etc). The story is about an ass that dresses in the skin of a lion so that he can go around scaring the other animals. His trick works until he tries to talk to a fox, who, upon hearing him bray (he doesn’t say anything specific) instantly realizes that he’s not a lion but, in fact, an ass dressed in lion’s skin. The moral of the story is that you can never tell a fool by the way they dress, but you always can tell once they open their mouth. So true!

The donkey in the fable was directly alluded to, and given much more of a voice, in the book The Last Battle, the seventh and final book of C. S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, which features the talking donkey, Puzzle. Puzzle is noted for being courageous and humble, but also very naïve. He is tricked by his friend, Shift the Ape, into retrieving a lion’s skin from the frigid Caldron Pool, dressing himself in it, and then using it as a disguise for Aslan the Lion, in a ploy to gain control over Narnia. This pretense is eventually betrayed by Shift himself, but in the end Puzzle is pardoned by the real Aslan.

It is impossible to overstate the sheer beauty and brilliance of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, although many have certainly tried. It is, simply put, a timeless wonder; a phenomenon that has inspired at least one opera, one ballet and five modern films. And it all starts with Bottom (the fool who becomes enchanted by fairies and get himself adorned with an ass' head). After all, it’s Bottom who dreams the dream, or as he calls it, the “most rare vision,” and any high school teacher could tell you the most important role in any Shakespeare comedy is the fool."
 

In summary: the Fourth Act of Thomas provides us with opportunities to contemplate the significance of miracles, and to consider the significance of the sacred symbols expressed in archetypal language. We must remember the story that I've told before about the Russian village idiot who is discovered to be playing his tuba in tune with the Angels. Indeed, if God has so wonderfully blessed the inarticulate tongue of the fool, how much more might He endow our inarticulate sounds with meaning and resonance. Or is it that we are all just fools waiting for the Holy Spirit to animate our minds with the transforming power of spiritual truth? Could it really be that simple?

Let us pray: Jesus we thank you for these messages of encouragement and wonder, and invite you to invade our material bodies with photons of spiritual understanding. Amen.