Mary Magdalene and the Synagogue Where Jesus May Have Preached: New Excavation Most Important in Half a Century

A Catholic priest and archaeologists in Israel are excavating an ancient synagogue and a site that may have been the home of Mary Magdalene, who has been called Jesus' most beloved disciple. Archaeologists say Jesus could have preached in the temple as he is said in the Gospels to have preached at synagogues in the Galilee and no other synagogue from his lifetime has been found.

Six years ago Juan Solana, a Catholic priest, bought some property in the ancient town of Magdala and was required to do exploratory excavations under Israeli law. By chance he found the ruins of a 1st century AD synagogue.

“Historians believe Jesus may have once walked the cobbled streets,” says a CNN story that was published on WDAM.com “This may have been home to one of the most important figures of the Bible, Mary Magdalene. The first recorded witness of the resurrection. 'This is a holy site. I am sure of that,' said Father Juan Solana.”

Smithsonian.com says that for centuries Mary Magdalene was “the most obsessively revered of saints, this woman became the embodiment of Christian devotion, which was defined as repentance.” The article says it is almost certainly untrue that she was a repentant prostitute. St. Gregory the Great in the 6th century AD was the first to call Mary Magdalene a sinner, according to the book All Saints by Robert Ellsberg. She is identified in the gospels of Mark and Luke as “a woman from whom seven demons had gone out.” Ellsberg writes that the statement about the demons can be interpreted variously.

In the dramatic 20th chapter of the Gospel of John, Mary encounters Jesus after his resurrection on Easter Sunday morning but does not recognize him at first:

He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Because Mary Magdalene was the first to tell the Apostles about Jesus' resurrection, she has been called the Apostle to the Apostles.

Solana bought the land in Magdala to build a Christian retreat. The synagogue dates to the first century AD. The New Testament says Jesus preached in synagogues in the Galilee, and this is the only one that dates to Jesus' lifetime that has been excavated in the area.

The synagogue is ornate with frescoes and mosaic floors. It has an altar, called a bimah in Hebrew, in the center. People call this the Magdala stone. It has on it a rare menorah carved into the stone.

"It is not for me. This is for millions of people that will come see this will enjoy this as I did and hopefully will be able to discover our common roots,” Solana said.

Archaeologists say that the synagogue in Magdala is one of the more important discoveries in Israel in 50 years:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/history-archaeology/archaeologists-excavate-possible-home-mary-magdalene-and-synagogue-020472

ISIS Member Converts to Christianity after Jesus Appears in Dreams Saying: You are killing my people

""An ISIS fighter who reveled in killing Christians now follows Jesus Christ after a “man in white” repeatedly appeared to him in dreams and said, “You are killing my people,” according to a missionary leader.

A worker with the international evangelical group Youth With a Mission, or YWAM, came in contact earlier this year with the ISIS fighter, who, though understandably guarded, confided that he had become a Christian.

He confessed he once had “actually enjoyed” killing Christians, according to Gina Fadely, international director of frontier missions for YWAM.

Fadely revealed the story in an interview May 29 on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio Network, the Christian Post reported.

The ISIS fighter, she said, “told this YWAM leader that he had begun having dreams of this man in white who came to him and said, ‘You are killing my people.”

“And he started to feel really sick and uneasy about what he was doing,” Fadely said.

“The fighter said that just before he killed one Christian, the man said, ‘I know you will kill me, but I give to you my Bible.’” Fadely recounted. “The Christian was killed and this ISIS fighter actually took the Bible and began to read it.”

She said that in another dream, Jesus asked the ISIS fighter to follow him, and the ISIS fighter “was now asking to become a follower of Christ and to be discipled.”

Fadely recalled the story in the biblical book of Acts of Saul of Tarsus, a persecutor of Christians who had a dramatic encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Damascus and became known as the Apostle Paul.

“So, who knows? Perhaps this man will be like Saul in the Bible,” she said.

In an interview with WND, VOM spokesman Todd Nettleton, who conducted the radio interview, said that what makes the development “so rare is that this ISIS fighter reached out to another Christian and shared his story.”

“I believe there are secret Christians within ISIS,” Nettleton said. “Maybe the Christians they are persecuting had a chance to share with them. There are secret Christians within ISIS.”

Kevin Sutter, a YWAM director who joined Fadley in the radio interview, said an Arab leader had told him that there is a “spiritual hunger” that is “unprecedented” among Muslims.

“Many people are now following Jesus, but they keep it quiet,” Sutter said. “They haven’t gone public about it.”

He said many “even have church in their own home” and will “serve communion to one another as they’re watching TV.”

Convert, be taxed or die

ISIS has declared the creation of a caliphate in portions of Syria and Iraq, and garnered pledges of allegiance from Sunni jihadists across North Africa and in other parts of the world.

ISIS kills all Shiite Muslims in territory it conquers as well as other ethnic minorities such as the Yazidis, whose women and children are being sold into slavery.ISIS fighters have targeted anyone who does not embrace the militant Sunni Wahhabi form of Islam that originated 200 years ago in Saudi Arabia, which secretly continues to help finance ISIS.

ISIS generally does give Christians the choice of converting to Sunni Islam, paying a tax called a jizya or being killed.

ISIS also is known to have killed other Sunni Muslims whom its fighters believe are not devout enough.

In February, ISIS beheaded 21 Coptic Christians in Libya and then in April released a propaganda video showing the beheadings of 30 Egyptian Christians, all of whom opted not to convert or pay the tax.

And now, a U.S. defense official has confirmed ISIS fighters have captured 88 Eritrean Christian refugees in Libya. A spokesman for an Eritrean refugee group said the ISIS jihadists stopped the truck and demanded the Muslims on board identify themselves. Those who claimed adherence to Islam were then asked questions about the Quran.

Nettleton said Christians should not “write off” ISIS fighters “as being out of reach of God’s grace and out of reach of God’s spirit.”

In the case of the unidentified ISIS fighter, Nettleton said he “reached out, thereby potentially blowing his cover and getting himself killed.”

“He would be told return (to Islam) or be killed,” Nettleton said. “The fact he reached out shows a great deal of courage.”

ISIS generally, however, has not accepted such repentance and has been known to kill those who may have sought to return to Islam, believing they are not faithful enough.

Muslims refer to such conversions as apostasy, which they see as a conscious abandonment of Islamic law, or Shariah, in word and deed.

Apostasy

Notable instances of “apostasy” include Rifqa Bary who in 2009 ran away from her Muslim family in Ohio, saying that they had threatened to kill her for converting to Christianity.

Today, she lives in Ohio and has written a book about her ordeal called “Hiding in the Light.”

Bary, a native of Sri Lanka, said that God’s love touched her “in such a way where I had to give myself and I couldn’t hold back and I had to leave.”

She said that when her family moved to Ohio, she was still a Muslim, but when she was introduced to Christianity, she said she found herself drawn to it because she was able to worship God in a more personal way, not by force, and in a language she was able to understand,” she told Fox News.

“When I was 13, I sought another way and did the really ‘despicable’ thing, which was praying to another God,” she said. “I was desperate just to be able to be free to worship Jesus, so I would sneak out sometimes to go to prayer meetings or I would stay up late and read the Bible in the bathroom or find any possible way.""

http://www.wnd.com/2015/06/isis-fighter-follows-jesus-after-encounter-in-dream/

Ancient “Cloth of the World" - Hereford Mappa Mundi - Tales of Cities, Beasts and Stories

Secreted away beneath the floor of an English cathedral was a large calfskin canvas featuring what, at first glance, appeared to be a map of the world. Once recovered and repaired, the map was found to date to 1285. While a myriad of cities and towns are depicted on the medieval Mappa Mundi, more than 500 ink drawings illustrate biblical events, exotic plants and animals, wild and strange creatures, and classical myths. More than just a map, the “Cloth of the World” remains one of the greatest surviving artworks of the Middle Ages.

Known as the Hereford Mappa Mundi, medieval artwork showcasing history, religion, and mythology is depicted in intricate detail on a single sheet of vellum, or preserved calfskin. The skin stretches five feet high by four feet across, and is attached to an oak frame. The remarkable artifact remains the largest medieval map still known to exist.

The tangled ink illustrations of black, gold, green and blue, reflect a medieval European understanding of the known world at the time—and also the unknown world of the supernatural— highlighting not just the human world of men, cities and seas, but entire bestiaries of horrifying mythical creatures and the strange cultures of distant lands. It was not for use as a navigational tool, but instead was an artistic compendium of people, parables, and places.

Towns and Cities

Most obvious is the cartography of the Mappa Mundi. East is found at the top of the map, as this orientation represented the rising of the sun and the second coming of the Christ. The world is laid out in a circle, and because of its Christian framework, Jerusalem sits at its center, a common theme in medieval mapmaking.  At the very middle of the map a small hole has been pierced where a compass-like instrument was used to create a perfect circle which became an image of a fortified wall with eight towers.

Continents included are Asia, Africa, Europe and the Mediterranean.

Approximately 420 towns and cities of the day are represented on the map, such as Rome and Paris (and Hereford), as well as oceans and important landmarks. 

Myths and Legends

Eight classical legends are included on the elaborate map.

The Golden Fleece as quested for by Jason and the Argonauts is found drawn on the coast of the Black Sea.

The Cretan Labyrinth which bound the mythical Minotaur is depicted on the vellum. It was a recognizable symbol in the Middle Ages, as labyrinths were laid out on floor paving of cathedrals. These winding pathways acted as spiritual pilgrimages for the faithful.

In classical myth, the Columns of Hercules represented the western edge of the known inhabited world. This is marked on the Mappa Mundi at the Strait of Gibraltar.

Even the camp of Alexander the Great is illustrated on the map. Legends of the deeds and successes of the heroic leader were popular with scholars at the time. Alexander’s camp is shown as many tall tents, and a strong wall runs along his camp, which Alexander was thought to have built to repel and imprison the “destructive evil of the Sons of Cain.” The area below this is attributed to the “Scythian races”, and as knowledge of this region was limited, the area is decorated with dramatic and wild images.

Bible Stories

Jesus is found at the very top of the map, highlighting his significance and importance in the Christian faith. Along his right, people travel from death into heaven, and on his left, the damned are chained and dragged off to Hell, represented by a beast’s gaping maw, including sharp teeth and glaring eyes.

15 bible stories are illustrated on the Mappa Mundi. The Garden of Eden, including Adam, a serpent, and Eve, is found near the top. Eden is surrounded by a ring of fire, signifying that it is off limits to humanity.

A boat filled with creatures and a bearded man represents the tale of Noah’s Ark.

The largest building on the map is the five-story city of Babylon. The topmost structure is labelled the “Tower of Babel.” The sheer size of the elaborate drawing, as well as the details of the text on the map, emphasize the arrogance and pride of the people who were said to build a tower so high that it might challenge god. In the biblical legend, God’s punishment ultimately caused humanity to speak in different languages.

On the map a long, curving line cuts a path through a red-ink Red Sea, depicting the travel route of the Israelites in the story of Exodus.

Bestiary

Many natural and unnatural creatures abound on the Hereford Mappa Mundi. Animals less well-known to medieval Europeans, such as camels or elephants, were drawn with some success on the map. A camel with two humps is located south of the Memarnau Mountains. Bestiaries (books of beasts) of the time described camels as living for one hundred years, and being only able to drink muddy water.

Elephants are drawn wearing constructed wooden towers, as the large animals were fitted with these fighting platforms for use in warfare by Indian and Persian soldiers. It was believed even then that elephants fear mice

A winged salamander seems to fly its way across the Hereford Mappa Mundi. Gianni D'Anna/Flickr

The legendary unicorn is depicted on the map, with a single, long horn. Named Monoceros, the unicorn was often linked to Jesus. It was reputed to be strong enough to battle elephants, but could be tamed by innocent and virtuous young women.

33 different animals, exotic plants and birds are described in ink on the Mappa Mundi.

Monstrous Strangers

Various strange and wonderful people are represented on the map, both real and unreal. Likely due to exaggerated traveler tales of dangerous foreign cultures, 32 images include outrageous people, such as the Blemmye; a war-like race of people with no heads, and with facial features in their chests.

http://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-other-artifacts/hereford-mappa-mundi-legendary-cities-monstrous-races-beasts020328

Vatican Pope of Idols and Gold Worshiping Gives 2nd Address Warning of World War III

""At a time when Christians worldwide are facing persecutions of historic nature, Pope Francis, in his homily delivered Sunday at Mass in the Santa Marta residence in Vatican City, expressed concern that “World War II is upon us” and urged Christians to proclaim their faith fearlessly, without concern for the consequences.

“The path of the Church is openness, to speak frankly, with liberty,” Pope Francis said, reading from New Testament scriptures of the days after the Resurrection of Jesus, when the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles and gave them the courage to go forth and proclaim their faith without fear.

Pope Francis based his homily from the Acts of the Apostles, recalling the words of Saint Peter and Saint John expressing the courage they felt after the Resurrection when the Holy Spirit had descended upon them, urging them to shed their fear of reprisals, going forth openly into the world to proclaim, “We can speak openly now of what we have seen and heard Jesus do.”

“Even today, the message of the Church is the message of the openness in the path of Christian courage,” the pope said. “These two apostles, Peter and John, as the Bible says, found they had the courage without having to be told what to do. The Bible conveys this in simple words, translated as ‘courage,’ ‘openness,’ ‘freedom to speak,’ and ‘to not be afraid” to say what they felt. Even in the original, the Bible has so much significance with the simple assurance that all our fears will pass when we find the courage to express our faith in Christ openly.”

The pope’s homily at the Mass in the Santa Marta residence in Vatican City followed a High Mass celebrated in the St. Peter’s Cathedral to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1915 massacre of the Armenians by the Turks, in which the pope caused uproar in Turkey by utilizing the Armenian genocide of a hundred years ago to explain that Christians once again are seeing “heinous crimes committed against Christians daily, in bloody massacres and the madness of destruction.”

“I fear we are already in World War III,” Pope Francis said, explaining that genocides such as happened to the Armenians in World War I and were repeated with the atrocities of Hitler and Stalin in World War II are being repeated today.

“I fear World War III is upon us when we hear daily the muffled cries of our brothers and sisters who are killed in unimaginable violence. These martyrs, simply because they believe in Jesus Christ or because of their ethnicity, are forced to abandon their land or be murdered horribly – decapitated, crucified, and burned alive.”

In reporting on the pope’s homily at Mass in the Santa Marta residence in Vatican City, the Vatican Radio noted the hero of the story is the Holy Spirit.

“The message is not that we should go forth proselytizing our faith as if we were engaged in advertising to get others to join with us in our spiritual society,” Pope Francis said. “No, this will not work, it is not truly Christian.

“What is Christian,” he distinguished, “is to have the courage to proclaim Jesus Christ, as Christ explained in ‘the mysterious dialogue’ with the Pharisee Nicodemus, the courage to be ‘born again,’ through the action of the Holy Spirit. The path of Christian courage is the path of proclaiming our astonishment at the word of Jesus Christ that keeps our faith alive and moving ahead.”

The pope explained that when Jesus speaks of being “born again,” Jesus means for us to understand the Holy Spirit brings upon us, as he did coming upon the Apostles after the Resurrection, the courage to proclaim our faith openly without fear of consequence.

“We hear his voice come upon us as he came upon the Apostles like the wind, descending upon them as they huddled in that room after Christ died, giving them the courage to turn to God and not flee, but instead face their fears squarely and proclaim His Word totally openly, boldly, without fear,” Pope Francis said.

“Only the Holy Spirit has the power to change the history of our lives, to place us in union with Jesus Christ,” he concluded. “That courage of our faith in Jesus Christ must come from the Holy Spirit, because only God has the power to transform without instruction simple men like Peter and John, removing their fear and imparting unto them even the courage to proclaim their final witness to Jesus Christ, even if it meant surrendering their lives in martyrdom.""

http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/pope-again-stokes-world-war-iii-fears/?cat_orig=world

Ormus Modern Alchemy: Books I Recommend for the Modern Day Alchemist & Philosopher - A New Golden Age

Modern Day Philosopher's & Alchemist's Rejoice of a Golden Age

I recently gave my family members the gift of books in alchemy for the Christmas Holiday as well as a dispenser of 12 mineral cell salts along with some Ormus in Hermetic liquid form. Not knowing if they would understand let alone try delving into the mysteries of of the ancient 'occult' literature. Not many humans in the world are aware that 'astrology' before it was banished and ridiculed from the face of the planet by the 'ill' gotten conquering government leaders of our violent radical history was in fact a 'real' modern day science in it's day. Unfortunately not only has it been frowned upon and belittled for the last several hundred years or so, but it's science has been replaced with a convoluted half-assed mock up. Be rest assured and be fruitful inasmuch though, there is still an incredible library's worth of genuine content in a vast array on this divine subject. - SeraphSirius

 I'll leave you with some wonderful books to read in 2015:

 Ormus Modern Day Alchemy: 

Primer of Ormus Collection 

Processes Reference Edition

Chemistry of Essential Oils Made Simple: 

God's Love Manifest in Molecules

Ormus The Secret Alchemy Of Mary Magdalene 

Revealed - Part [A]: Historical & Practical 

Applications Of Essential Alchemical Science

Real Alchemy: A Primer of Practical Alchemy