It is very rare in current times to find a historical text of early Christianity that hasn’t been altered or changed in some way to fit to the narrative shaped by the Roman Catholic church. However, what if I told you that there is a text from early to middle part of the first century that escaped institutional church and was never redacted or changed or edited? It came in its pure, original form. This text was originally brought from Alexandria to the Languedoc (which was Roman Gual), originally written in Greek and translated to Occitan during the early part of the 12th century. It was preserved by many families and spiritual communities and guarded to not reach the Roman Empire. We have to remember how dangerous it was to keep any texts in those times that didn’t align with the Canonical version of the Bible. But amazingly this text was preserved in its entirety and finally translated in 2010 into English. Astonishingly, it wasn’t popularized as much and is still relatively unknown, especially when compared to the Nag Hammadi Library. However, it adds a completely different perspective, a fresh look into the times of Jesus from the eyes of the beloved and it’s written in a simple way. No complicated style of the Apostle Paul, no miracles, no message of going to heaven and being raptured. Just simple. When reading this you can instantly feel this is the truth. Whether it adds another perspective, replaces any other dogmas, or is completely rejected by those who prefer the familiar story of the dogmatic church, the texts don’t try hard to convince you. It just presents simple version of Jesus and His teachings and it’s up to the reader to draw conclusions. It’s simply beautiful and refreshing. And most importantly, it feels like finding a diamond that not many have found just yet, because it’s not popular. Once something becomes popular and mainstream, it is usually tarnished by the number of different opinions and skepticism, however with it’s exclusivity, it feels very undiscovered.
As the title suggests, this is The Gospel of the Beloved Companion – the complete gospel of Mary Magdalene. When I got this book, I initially thought it would be focusing on the gospel of Mary that was found in Egypt, however this is actually Gospel that almost mirrors the Gospel of John, which could suggest that the Gospel of John was either basing its story on that Gospel or it was a copy and the church later made some alterations. This also confirms my pervious statement, where in my previous post I claimed that Mary Magdalene was an author of the Gospel of John. With this Gospel it is clear that she was an author without a doubt, and this text must have come straight after the resurrection of Jesus, making it the first Gospel before Mark, Luke, Matthew and then John. This is actually quite remarkable when you think about it, untouched and unchanged texts from the first century written by Mary who witnessed and experienced everything and written as it was still very fresh in her mind.
This Gospel contains also events written in the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Thomas, making it almost a document where all those gospels were basing their structure on. The amazing part is that it’s written in one text and all you have to know about the events of Jesus’ ministry, His message, His words and events post resurrection. It is still mind boggling that it’s been preserved and unchanged. However, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene at the end of the book differs from the Gospel of Mary Magdalene from the gnostic texts of Nag Hammadi library. First of all it’s a complete text and written slightly differently, making the Gospel of Mary Magdalene that was found in Egypt more of an extended copy of this text.
In discoveries of Nag Hammadi library texts found in 1945, we didn’t have the Gospel of Mary Magdalene. It was actually discovered in 1896 in Egypt as part of the Berlin Codex, purchased by Carl Reinhardt, but it wasn’t widely published until 1955. For nearly 60 years that Gospel wasn’t published or examined, as opposed to the Nag Hammadi texts that were published much earlier when found. The texts from Nag Hammadi were not found in its completion but rather sold piece by piece on the antiquities market. However, once the library was complete, scholars could investigate them properly, examine and then texts were published. The reason of delaying the publishing the Gospel of Mary was different. It was initially suppressed by patriarchal church leaders for its pro-feminist message, elevating women and featuring Mary Magdalene as a spiritual leader, which was contrasting with Orthodox Christianity, and therefore it needed extensive scholarly translation and vetting before public release. Finally, it was published with significant number of pages missing.
How were those pages destroyed? It is not known who specifically destroyed or removed the missing pages, however the damage likely occurred over centuries due to the fragile nature of the papyrus manuscript and the general suppression of non-canonical texts by the early Church. It is possible that the text, when found, was in its entirety, however later destroyed by church so it wouldn’t be fully understood. Bear in mind that any Christian text had to go through the filtering gates of the Vatican. It is of course now widely known and understood that there has been a deliberate attempt by the Roman Catholic Church to hide or distort the true basis of Christianity by denying Mary Magdalene her rightful place in the history. Therefore, the conclusion that Mary’s Gospel could have been hindered by the church doesn’t shock anymore.
The Gospel of Mary was associated with the gnostic texts, however when examining, it doesn’t actually fully align with Gnosticism, but more with spirituality. Gnosticism is a specific, often dualistic form of spirituality focused on achieving “gnosis” (secret, intuitive knowledge) to escape a flawed material world created by a lesser deity, making it different from broader spirituality which seeks connection with the divine. While the Gospel of Mary also champions intuitive knowledge, however it doesn’t teach to escape, but rather to become a complete human being. This message parallels with the message of Jesus that was presented in the texts like The Gospel of Thomas or The Gospel of Philip from the Nag Hammadi library.
However, The Gospel of the Beloved Companion is a completely different text, a complete version that gives a clear, in my view, message of the teachings of Jesus. As I mentioned, it mirrors the Gospel of John and that is why I wanted to focus on the differences of the events presented in those two Gospels, before jumping into more complicated Gospel of Mary.
From the start, we can draw those differences between the Gospels, which I will examine and expand one by one:
- The statement that Jesus was “the Word” is missing, but rather that He was the “Son of Humanity”.
- John the Baptist didn’t say “Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”, but gave a different statement, which changes the meaning of Jesus’ role
- The marriage feast in Cana was Jesus’ and Mary’s wedding, therefore they were married
- The Holy Spirit is a She
- “Who believes in His words will have eternal life” – emphasis on the words and teachings of Jesus as opposed to His name and faith
- Focus on the Prince of this World as the one who creates illusions, fears, insecurities, distractions, constructs of our mind and surface level pleasures
- The Kingdom of God is within you as opposed to externally
- The story of Lazarus was different – no tomb, he was asleep and story was much simpler.
- Mary anoints Jesus’ head as opposed to feet and is not painted as a sinful woman
- The sinful woman is not Mary Magdalene
- No walking on water or calming the storm but rather – calming disciple’s spirits
- Jesus appoints Mary as the one who shall carry on His teachings and no story of making Peter the rock
- The High Priest of the Pharisees comes with an idea that Jesus would die for the nation – therefore this idea comes from Pharisees, therefore Paul then popularizes it, making Paul as possibly still working for Pharisees rather than being truly changed
- The last supper has Mary sitting next to Jesus and there is nothing about the new covenant, nothing about eating His flesh or drinking His blood
- During the crucifixion it is clear that Jesus directs his words to Mary Magdalene
- After crucifixion there is a clear burial ritual that was missing in the Bible
- Resurrection only occurs to Mary, she is not running to get Peter as he is out of town, and all other disciples believe her as opposed to how it was presented in the Bible
1. The statement that Jesus was “the Word” is missing, but rather that He was the “Son of Humanity”.
The Gospel of John famously starts with:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” John 1:1-3
The Gospel of the Beloved Companion starts with a statement: “This is the testimony of the Son of Humanity once called Yeshua. All that I say here is true, of His words, His deeds, His life and His death. You will know my words are true because others have testified of the same, and their words are the same, and where two testify together the Law says that it is true. I am with Him in the beginning, and I am with Him in the end, and I know His testimony is true. ” (1:1)
This immediately gives you a message that this is what Jesus wanted to share with people. It is also clear who the author is and that the author was with Him from the beginning. We can be sure that the message will be from someone reliable that actually spent time with Jesus and who gives true testimony of the events. Yeshua was called “the Son of Humanity” throughout the gospel and He was putting emphasis on this that He was there to teach us how to become perfect humans. This gives such a different message as opposed to some gnostic texts that talk about escaping this world, that this world has been made by mistake or that it’s a trap. But more a gentle message that the focus is on how to become a perfect human and make the most of being this perfected human here on earth. In my view it’s much more pleasing message. The Gospel continues:
“In him was life, and that life was the light of humanity, the light that shines against the darkness, and never has the darkness overcome it”. (2:1)
“He was in the world and through Him the world would be born anew, but the world did not recognize Him” “(2:2)
This also straight away gives us a message that this “birth” would be nothing physical, but spiritual, a different perspective, however people wouldn’t recognize it or perceive it in that way. Those times were rich and diverse in spirituality, however we have to remember that 2 millennials ago, people’s consciousness wasn’t as expanded as we have now. People had great ideas, deep spiritual truths, however they were in the process of trying to understand all this. There was a lot of illiteracy, people weren’t educated as we are now and flow of information was much slower. The level of literacy was as little as 3% or lower, therefore a lot of people didn’t understand the message that Jesus wanted to give. It was as if Jesus was too advanced for those times. When Jesus was discussing with Nicodemus that “you have to be born again”, Nicodemus straight away compared it to going back to the mother’s womb. However, Jesus was talking about inner transformation and being “born out of spirit”, which would give a new perspective through the eyes of the spirit on already existing world. The message wasn’t about this world is wrong, it was a mistake or that God somehow made a mistake, but more about you are looking at this world from a wrong lens. It was more about correcting their eyesight and their understanding.
2. John the Baptist didn’t say “Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”, but gave a different statement, which changes the meaning of Jesus’ role
The Gospel of John also famously states that John the Baptist confirms the role of Jesus by calling Him “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”, however in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion we don’t have anything like this. First, John sees Jesus walking with Miryam of Bethany (Mary) and upon seeing them he calls:
“Behold! the Son of Humanity, who will put right the wrong in the world!” (4:1)
First of all, there is nothing about the sin or taking away the sin but more pointing out on the wrong in the world and showing how to make it right in the world. There is also emphasis on the “Son of Humanity”, as opposed to the “Son of God” that is in the Gospel of John. Jesus is this one and only perfect human who we should copy and follow to also be fulfilled and complete human beings. For me, this gives me a completely different meaning of that quote. It takes away the focus from Jesus being a superman who takes away sin of the world but rather puts an emphasis on every single person to make an effort and accountability of their actions. As we know, there are a lot of sceptics in the world who don’t believe that Jesus took away sin with his death, since the sin still exists. Well, this would explain why, Jesus was never meant to take away the sin but show the light and shine it. However, it would be up to us to change our behavior to match his.
3. The marriage feast in Cana was Jesus’ and Mary’s wedding, which is explicitly said
The conspiracies around whether Jesus was married or not were circulating for centuries. However it turns out it was widely known that they were actually married. This was of course suppressed by the church in order to create a system that has been thriving for nearly two thousand years. I really want you to think about this deeply – the foundation upon which the church is built is a lie. Billions of people follow an illusion, a construct of Empire’s minds rather than the truth. If you are one of those people that would prefer to stick to the familiar rather than exploring the truth, then you are only hurting your own spiritual life and your soul. It would be in your soul’s interest to really examine this for yourself on both sides of the coin and come to conclusions. If God created Adam and Eve and from the start it was about male and a female, then it would make sense Jesus would have a wife.
Going back to the wedding, it is very clear that this was their wedding because it says:
“This beginning of His signs Yeshua did at His wedding feast at a place near Hyrcana in the land of Yehuda, and revealed His glory; and His disciples believed Him.” (6:9)
“He came to the Bride and Bridegroom and said to Yeshua ‘Everyone serves good wine first, and when the guests have drunk freely, then that which is worse. You have kept the good wine until now!”
Again, the steward of the feast came to Jesus and complemented on his wine, it is very clear that Jesus was the Bridegroom and Mary was the Bride. This was changed in the Gospel of John making it unclear who’s wedding this was and why Mary, Jesus’ mother would instruct the servants on someone else’s wedding, unless she was the mother of the couple. Here is it clear why she was instructing and both Bride and the Bridegroom are named. This was another proof of the propaganda done by the church, that changed the text and then created a doctrine that the church, which is all the believers, are “the bride” that Jesus will marry. First of all, Jesus is already married and second of all, this would keep people tied to the church and to the institution with the hope that one day hey will be married to Jesus. Another illusion and a lie created by the church.
4. The Holy Spirit is a She
During the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, the church created a doctrine of Trinity, that consist of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and all three are male heads of God, however even though they are separate, they are one. This has caused a lot of confusion, and some Christian denominations are not subscribing to this doctrine. The church made Jesus into the Father, justifying all worship to Jesus, because He was the Father. The Holy Spirit is a male spirit that is part of God but also separate. The doctrine of Trinity till this day is making people confused and made people believe that Jesus, since He is the Father, He was creator of the world, even though Jesus was praying to the Father. However, the Father would be forgotten and not worshiped. This idea of Trinity would actually break the first commandment of the Law by worshiping someone else than God the Father, but the explanation was given that they are all the same person. This is a typical doctrine that asks you to put all the logic behind and just go with the idea. However, Jesus never asked to be worshiped and in fact He was emphasizing to focus on His words and His teachings only.
The Gospel of the Beloved Companion very clearly distinguishes all three as completely separate. God the Father, the creator of the heavens and earth, Holy Spirit the Mother, female side of the divine and Yeshua, the Son that comes from that union.
“And Yohanan (John) testified saying ‘In a vision I have seen the spirit descending like a dove out of the sky, and She remained upon him'” (4:2)
“And Yeshua therefore answered them ‘Do not murmur amongst yourselves. No one can enter the Kingdom unless they are born of the spirit. You speak well when you say that my mother gave me birth but, only from the truth I tell you, it was my true mother who gave me life” (18:3)
Therefore, as we can see, we have a Holy Spirit that Jesus calls a Mother. Now, I would like you to pause and think, why church not only wanted to suppress women but also changed the gender of the Spirit by saying it’s a He? Why was it so important to them to suppress this divine feminine energy completely? Now, let’s remind ourselves what God said in the garden:
“And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;” Genesis 3:15
If church hates women so much, it can only mean it’s a seed of a serpent. Only by suppressing women and trying to silence them, remove them or, like in the case of the Holy Spirit, change its gender, just so that people would not worship feminine at all, they are fulfilling God’s words and acting as serpent’s seed that would hate women.
5. “Who believes in His words will have eternal life” – emphasis on the words and teachings of Jesus as opposed to His name and faith
In the Canonical Gospel the focus was always on the name of Jesus Christ. This has been popularized by the Apostle Paul, who in his letters claimed that you only need to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved. However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion we have a different story. On many occasions Jesus is putting emphasis on His words and His teachings only. He even says that you don’t have to believe in Him but believe in His words and His teachings that are coming from the Spirit. His words and His teachings should transform you and your life into eternal life.
“Whosoever understands and believes my teachings will not perish, but have eternal life.” (9:4)
Whosoever believes in my words is not judged. Those who do not believe have been judged already for not believing”. (9:4)
“One who believes in His words will have eternal life.” (10:4)
“Whosoever understands my words, that one will not taste death.” (17:5)
“My words are the bread of life. Whosoever comes to me and hears my words will not be hungry, and whosoever believes in what I say, that one will never be thirsty.” (17:8)
“I am the living bread that came from the spirit. Whosoever eats of this bread, only from the truth I tell you, that one will live forever.” (18:6)
“Whosoever eats of my teachings and drinks my words has eternal life and will never die.” (18:8)
This is a clear message to pay attention to the words and teachings rather than the name of Jesus Christ. It’s His words that give eternal life, not blood or eating His flesh. Therefore, on that basis Apostle Paul is false, because he is not putting any emphasis on Jesus’ words, but only on His name. Paul couldn’t quote anything from Jesus’ words because he never met Jesus in the flesh, therefore he didn’t know any of Jesus’ words. Paul’s letters came before Canonical Bible and only then we find out what Jesus actually said, which is why when you examine what Pul said and what Jesus was teaching about, it contradicts each other.
6. Focus on the Prince of this World as the one who creates illusions, fears, insecurities, distractions, constructs of our mind and surface level pleasures
In the Gospel of the Beloved Companion (GBC), Yeshua was also highlighting the Prince of this World or the ruler of this world. As much as our soul development and expansion of our consciousness is an individual process, we must not forget that we have those obstacles in the world that is ruled by the Prince of lies. This ruler, which in this Gospel is not named as Satan, but just as Prince of the World, as someone who stands behind all those systems of the world, politics, religion, entertainment, superficial pleasures of the world, materialism. He is the creator of all illusions, fears, insecurities, distractions and constructs of our mind. Yeshua is not avoidant of his devices:
“Be on guard against the Prince of this World, for he is darkness and the father of it, and would have you live in the bondage of your own fear.”
This is interesting quote because of the “bondage of your own fear” is the construct of our mind. We know that this world and all worldly systems are created to impose fear on us constantly. Fear in politics, fear of losing salvation in the church, fear of losing close ones, fear of missing out, fear of being exposed. All this is a result of the attachment to the false identity, attachment to labels, to outcomes and people. This false bondage is really what keeps people stuck. Even Jesus said: “be passersby”, meaning don’t attach yourself too much to the things you have no control over. However, in today’s world we see a lot of people being attached to the material world, lifestyles they have created, belongings and statuses, that losing all this means losing their identity for a lot of people. However, when you know who you are, that no achievements will make you less or more, it is easier to not attach yourself to the specific outcomes. But the ruler of this world wants you to be attached and wants you to be in constant fear and competition with others.
“If you choose this world, then you are the bondservant of its ruler” (25:3)
If you choose this rat race, if you choose this false identity, then it will be hard for you to have no attachment and be a “passerby”.
7. The Kingdom of God is within you as opposed to externally
From the Canonical Gospel, especially Synoptic Gospel of Mark, Luke and Matthew, we find out that the only way to eternal life is to believe in Jesus and through faith we will be living eternally. This was especially the message popularized by the Apostle Paul and his gospel of grace. However, it turns out the message of Jesus was actually completely different.
In the Gospel of the Beloved Companion, we have a conversation of Jesus with His disciples about the Kingdom of God and how to attain it. Jesus, when asked what the Kingdom of God is like, says:
“The Kingdom of God is like a man who had a treasure hidden in his field but did not know it”. Signifying that the Kingdom of God is withing you. We also have verses where Jesus explicitly said “Rather, the Kingdom is within you and outside you”.
This is completely different message that the one popularized by the Apostle Paul, who was saying that we will be taken on the cloud to heaven and changed “in the twinkling of an eye”. This was a typical message to tickle the ears of people, nice and easy, hopeful and magical. This would put people in a state of complacency, waiting and wanting to escape but not putting any work into the current state to better the world. But rather, the world is messy, therefore I just want to escape and not take any accountability in contributing to its mess. We witnessed this in 2025 actually, where the false prophecy of a South African prophet came out saying the rapture will happen in September and thousands of people came out to the woods and hills and waiting to be raptured. People were devastated when this didn’t happen. It was a clear sign of religious psychosis.
However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion it’s clear. The Kingdom of God is within. The disciples ask more questions.
How to find it?
“If you do not fast from the world, you will not find the kingdom”
“Unless you overcome the ruler of the world, you will never know the spirit and discover that which lies within you”
The emphasis is on fasting from the world, separating from the world and living in the world but not being of the world. Is this non attachment to the worldly systems, religious systems, politics, entertainment, achievements, labels and the works of the ego. Because only by separating from this rat race you can really see what lies within you. This is very clear spiritual message of non attachment and non materialistic living. However, it’s not about escaping completely, but using the world as a tool to a soul discovery. It’s knowing when to stop, when to withdraw and when to let go.
When will it come?
“It will not come by watching for it, it will not be said “Look here!” or “Look there”. Rather, the Kingdom is spread out upon the earth, and people do not see it”.
“If your leaders say to you “Look, the Kingdom is in the sky, then the birds of the sky will proceed you. If they say to you “It’s in the sea”, then the fish will proceed you. Rather, the Kingdom is withing you and outside of you.”
Two very clear messages to not look for the Kingdom in the sky or in the see – here used as a metaphor, but place to focus on within. It’s all about perspective and the mind. Jesus in the GBC said to “know yourself” and to realize that we are “the children of the living spirit”. It’s a path of remembrance to who we truly are. By knowing that not only you are coming from God, but the Kingdom of God is also within you and that you just need to discover this, believe this and live this. This will truly change your perspective about yourself and will make you put more respect towards your body and soul. You will want to take care of it, know it and nurture it. Other sayings of Jesus:
“If you do not know yourselves, then you live in poverty and you are poverty”
How true this saying is. Very often low self-esteem, low value of yourself and no appreciation leads to many addictions, diseases, feeling unworthy and developing many mental health diseases. However, knowing who you are, that you are a “child of a living spirit” and a “child of light”, then that shifts your perspective into the state of I am worthy and I am special.
“If you bring forth what is within you, what you have within you will save you. If you do not find that within you that is from the spirit, what you do not find within you will be your death.”
This is all about the inner strength, emotional regulation, emotional intelligence and self-control. This is all that is a gift from the spirit. However, the lack of awareness that you actually possess that, will make you fall into different addictions and different mental health spirals. However, if you find it in the most difficult times, then that which is within you will save you. Very often we find strength is the most difficult times of our lives and this is when we get to know ourselves even more. It’s not about avoiding those times but more going with the knowledge of inner strength and light.
“There is light within a person of light, and it shines on the whole world.”
Remember, one person can light up the world, so keep shining!
How to attain the Kingdom?
“Unless you change and become as little children, you will not gain the Kingdom.”
I made a separate post about this quote before, essentially if you do not humble yourself, unlearn what you have learnt about religion, and open your mind, it will be difficult for you to grasp that knowledge of the Kingdom. Only someone who is already conditioned by the religious dogma and unable to change their perspective will simply not see it. Jesus compared it to little children, because children are open to knowledge, open to correction, they don’t claim they know everything and they do not attach themselves to the outcomes. It’s easier for them to accept the truth as it is, rather than having specific expectations of the outcomes through conditioned mind. Only open and tolerant mind will be able to shift this perspective.
“When you make the two into one and when you make the outer like the inner, and the upper like the lower, and when you make male and female into a single one, so that male will not be male nor the female be female.”
This is a clear message of equality between male and female. Remember, Jesus was preaching about humanity, about being a human beyond genders, skin colours and nationalities. About treating everyone with respect, dignity and not looking if someone is different skin colour or different gender. Treating all as yourself. “When you make the two into one” is a message with many meanings. It’s about matter and spirit, body and soul, masculine and feminine energy. It’s being aware of this and combining it into one. It’s not only about the body or only about the soul, but about balance and integration. “When you make the outer like the inner” is a reminder to not only focus on the exterior but on the interior too. In the same way, if you make the exterior beautiful, also make the interior beautiful. This can apply to ourselves but also to the world. It’s about collective transformation and making the world around us as beautiful as ourselves. Transformation starts at an individual level but must be carried out collectively into the outer world. One person won’t change the world, but it starts with one and continues as a collective process.
8. The story of Lazarus was different – no tomb, he was asleep and story was much more simple
The story of Lazarus was only presented in the Gospel of John. This was a pre-shadow of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we know from the Gospel of John, similarly here in the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple, Lazarus gets ill and Jesus is told about his condition. However, there are few differences. First of all, in the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple, it is clear that Mary from Bethany is Mary Magdalene. In this Gospel she is just called Mary or Miryam, which is a Greek name for Mary. She lives in Bethany with her sister Martha and brother Lazarus. Jesus actually spends quite a lot of time in their house, as he is married to Mary. Similarly here, Martha first meets Jesus and is distressed about the condition of her brother. But the differences are that Lazarus is not actually dead but “as dead”, he is asleep, which suggests a coma.
“Rabbi, behold, he whom you have great affection is sick. But when Yeshua heard it, he said ‘This sickness is not to death'” (28:1)
“When Yeshua came, He found that he had been as dead four days already” (28:9)
“Only from the truth I tell you, your brother is not dead but sleeping. Do you believe this?”
Once Jesus said those words to Martha, she replied:
“Yes Rabbi. I have come to believe that you are the Anointed one, he who comes to bring light to the world.” (28:12)
The difference is in the statement that Jesus makes in the Gospel of John saying:
“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” John 11:25
Quite of a difference, where Jesus puts an emphasis on believing in Him to have an eternal life, whereas here as I have presented, Jesus only puts emphasis on His teachings. You can of course draw your own conclusions from this.
Further, when Mary approaches Jesus, she says:
“Rabbouni, if you would have been here, my brother would not have fallen ill with this pestilence”
This again signifies that Lazarus was ill as opposed to being dead. Then Jesus goes to where he was laid, but there is no tomb, no linen cloths, no dramatic resurrection, but Jesus wakes him up from the coma.
“Yeshua closed his eyes and was still. Then He raised his right hand and Eleazar stirred and immediately sat up.” (28:16)
This is of course still a miracle, I am not trying to take this away, however it is more believable that this was an illness, a deep coma and Jesus heals him rather than waking him up from the dead. Then Jesus says:
“If any one amongst you believes in my words, though they be as dead, so too shall they live.”
9. Mary anoints Jesus’ head as opposed to feet
In the Canonical Gospel we see this mysterious figure that anoints Jesus’ feet, first cleaning them with her tears and wiping with her hair and then using expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet. For centuries this was a topic of many debates whether this was Mary Magdalene or perhaps someone different. We were told that yes, this was Mary Magdalene and she was linked to the sinful woman, which then further developed to the label of a prostitute. However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple we have completely different story.
First of all, Mary anoints Jesus’ head as opposed to his feet. This is more fitting to the Old Testament stories where King David was anointed on his head, making him “the anointed one”, the same as Jesus is called in this Gospel by Martha. In contrast, Mary is not weeping but confidently proceeds with the task to anoint Jesus’ head:
“Then Miryam, the Beloved Companion, took a jar of oil of pure and expensive spikenard and poured it upon the head of Jeshua and anointed him. And the house was full of sweet fragrance of the ointment.” (32:2)
then Jesus says:
“She has anointed me for what I am come to do, and done what she is appointed to do.”
Not only we find out that Mary somehow knew this was her role, to anoint Jesus’ head. In my previous post I pointed out that only God could select people to anoint others, therefore Mary was not an ordinary disciple. Jesus then continues:
“Only from the truth I tell you, whenever they speak of me, what she has done will also be told in memory of her. You do not know or understand what she has done. I tell you this: when all have abandoned me, only she shall stand beside me like a tower. A tower built on a high hill and fortified cannot fall, nor can it be hidden. From this day forth, she shall be known as Migdalah, for she shall be as a tower to my flock, and the time will soon come when her tower shall stand alone by mine.” (32:4)
This statement is huge, not only this is when Jesus gives Mary a new name – Migdalah. Therefore, her name is not because of the town, but because of her strength. In reality she never lived in Magdala town as suggested by scholars, she always lived in Bethany. This is also when Jesus is entrusting her to carry on with His ministry and to be “the tower to his flock.” This is a confirmation that Mary, not Peter or certainly not Paul, was supposed to continue with Jesus’ teachings.
10. The sinful woman is not Mary
As I mentioned above, for centuries Mary was identified with a sinful woman that Jesus redeems at the Mount of Olives. This has developed into a label of a prostitute and that stain on her name has stayed till this day. It all started with the sermon of Pope Gregory I (Gregory the Great) who labeled Mary Magdalene a prostitute in a 591 sermon by conflating her with the unnamed “sinner” committing adultery. This was later developed as prostitution, and this is how it stayed with her for centuries. However, in the GBD we see that Jesus spent time at the house of Mary in Bethany, and the next day, as they lived next to the Mount of Olives, he went to the temple when the woman was brought to him.
“Everyone went to his own house, but Yeshua went back to Bethany to the house of the Beloved Companion near the Mount of Olives. At early dawn, he came again into the Temple and all the people came to him. He sat down and taught them. The Scribes and Pharisees brought a woman taken in adultery. Having set her in the midst, they told him “Rabbi, we found this woman in adultery, in the very act. Now in our Law, Moshe commanded us to stone such. What then do you say about her?”
The story of course ends with Jesus asking them to throw a stone if they are without the sin, therefore no one throws and he is left with her in the middle of the Temple. It is therefore clear that this wasn’t Mary, otherwise she would be named or called the Beloved Companion, but it was just an unnamed woman, just like the blind man that Jesus healed and was not named.
11. No walking on water or calming the storm but rather – calming disciple’s spirits
From the Canonical Gospels, we know the story of the storm that not only Jesus calms and the weather obeys him, but also Jesus walks on the water. This is one of the major miracles that Jesus performs, denying the laws of nature. This is also as confirmation that he is divine and therefore cannot be fully human to perform those things. However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple we have a different story. There is also a storm and disciples are scared, but Jesus’ response is different:
“Why do you fear? I am with you” Upon hearing His words, their hearts were turned to the good and their fear was stilled.” (16:3)
No calming the storm, no walking on water, but calming their spirits. They still have to go through the storm but they are calm and reassured. This story is much more believable and much more fulfilling. For me personally, I would rather know how to calm myself in the most difficult situations than know that Jesus walked on water. You can of course draw your own conclusions from this and choose the version that is closest to your heart.
12. Jesus appoints Mary as the one who shall carry on His teachings and no story of making Peter the rock
This could be quite controversial for some people, especially for those closely tied to the doctrines of the church, however in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion it was Mary who really understood Jesus’ teachings, and she was supposed to carry of Jesus’ ministry, not Peter. Before you throw a tantrum and call it false and heresy, I would like you to really think about it. Through the Gospel we see that disciples didn’t fully understand Jesus’ teachings, their view was very physical, and they didn’t understand many of Jesus’ parables. We see in the text verses like:
“And hearing this, therefore some of the disciples grumbles amongst themselves, saying: ”These are strange and complicated ideas. Can this be true?” And Yeshua knew their hearts and said: “Still you doubt me, even though the spirit through the Son has placed such wonders before you.” (30:14)
“But the disciples did not understand his words.” (32:5)
Even in the Canonical Gospels we see his disciples being often confused by Jesus parables, not understanding why he needed to die, what was Jesus true message to the world. Some disciples presented their fleshly desires by asking if they could sit on Jesus both sides of the throne. Peter, at the mount of transfiguration, when seeing Jesus, Moses and Elijah, wanting to immediately build altars. All suggests very physical thinking. Therefore, did they really understand Jesus?
According to the GBC no they didn’t, and that is why Jesus only appointed one person, who really understood and could carry on his teachings in the true light.
“You do not understand what she has done. I tell you this: when all have abandoned me, only she shall stand beside me like a tower. A tower built on a high hill and fortified cannot fall, nor can it be hidden. From this day forth, she shall be known as Migdalah, for she shall be as a tower to my flock, and the time will soon come when her tower shall stand alone by mine.” (32:4)
“I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen.” (35:5)
Not only Jesus first appointed Mary as a “tower to his flock”, but also Jesus seems to have chosen only one person. Jesus knew the hearts of his disciples, he knew they didn’t fully understand his teachings and were in the process, therefore he wanted to appoint someone who really understood and that was Mary. As we know from history, this didn’t happen. At least not on the scale as it was with Peter being a rock upon which church should be built. The true will of Jesus was Mary, and that was rewritten.
“The disciples said to Yeshua: “When will you depart from us? Who is to be our leader?” And Yeshua said to them: “I will not leave you orphans. When a father goes away, it is the mother who tends the children.” (35:16)
Here Jesus not only confirms the union he had with Mary, but also clearly appoints Mary to be the leader who will “tends the children”. It was Mary that was supposed to be the leader after him.
“Only from the truth I tell you, there is one amongst you who has my commandments, and keeps them. That one is the one who loves me, and that one who loves me is also loved by me, and by spirit. To that one will I reveal myself so that you will know that what I have said to you is true, that I am in the spirit as the spirit is in me. And that same one will the spirit complete in all ways, so that by this sign you may know my words are true.” (35:17)
A clear prophecy from Jesus to appear to Mary upon his resurrection. This would be the sign that not only Mary has been chosen, but also that she would be completed by the spirit, therefore fully capable and ready to continue the teachings of Jesus. It wasn’t about favoritism but about being ready and truly understanding the message.
13. The High Priest of the Pharisees comes with an idea that Jesus would die for the nation – therefore this idea comes from Pharisees, later Paul popularizes it, making Paul as possibly still working for Pharisees rather than being truly changed
Another controversial topic – why Jesus died and who was really responsible for his death.
This is strongly written in the church doctrine as Jesus being sacrificial lamb, through whose death our sins will be forgiven and we will be redeemed. The idea that God the Father wanted to sacrifice his own son and punish him for the sins of the whole world. However, this doesn’t look the same in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion. Another heresy? You have to have an open mind and use logic to this before shouting “heresy”.
First of all, what Jesus was teaching was against Scribes and Pharisees. He came in and disrupted their whole system they have built. Not only that, but people also started to believe Jesus and started to follow his teachings and turning their backs on Pharisees, who imposed difficult to follow rules and regulations. They made the idea of getting to God almost impossible, they made people miserable, created system of sacrifices and made a huge business on this. That’s why when Jesus saw what was happening in the Temple, he overturned the tables. Instead of true repentance there was a system of: oh well, I sinned, let me buy a sheep or a goat, slater its throat and God will forgive me. There was no urgency to improve oneself, to really understand God and what God truly required of them. Pharisees hid this under complicated system and they monetized on this, yet none of them was following their own teachings. That is why they didn’t like what Jesus was doing, he was opening people’s eyes. They were afraid to lose their positions, power and lifestyles. Pharisees were of the world and Jesus said to them:
“Because you cannot hear my word, you are of your father, the Prince of the World, and you want to do the desires of the world”.
“Therefore many of the people who came to Miryam and saw what Yeshua did believed in him. But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things that Yeshua had done. The chief priest therefore and the Pharisees gathered a council and said: “What are we doing? For this man does many signs. If we leave him alone like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation”. (29:1)
As you can see, the real threat for them was losing their positions. They weren’t concerned about people, if they live in the truth, if they really understand the message of God, but they were concerned with material possessions and positions of power.
“But a certain one of them, Caiaphas, being High Priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is advantageous for us that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” (29:2)
“And therefore he prophesied that Yeshua would die for the nation. So from that day forward, they took counsel that they might put him to death” (29:3)
Therefore, Pharisees plotted how to kill Yeshua, instead of loosing a nation to the Romans. They wanted to quiet his talking and his teachings for the people to stop changing and not rebelling against them. They wanted for things to stay as they were, for the systems to function as they were, and any new thought that would disrupt their systems of control and their power, they would rather to kill than to change themselves. I think this is nothing new. Every time someone comes out in the world against the systems of the Roman Catholic church, they are squashed, destroyed, labeled as heretics, blasphemers and against God. They want to keep things as they are, they want to keep power and their billions of dollars while keeping people poor. They want to keep holding secret texts in their 5km library at the Vatican with no one able to access. They want to keep feeding people the narrative that the Pope is a successor of Jesus here on earth and anointed by God. They want for people to tithe to the church, gather money for sacraments, for purgatory, for death yet not helping poor or in need. They want you to continue being blind about their lies and not disturb the system of fear and control they created and any new thought that is against their systems if of the devil. Nothing new here.
Going back to the Pharisees, another controversial thought is that Apostle Paul was still working for them while being changed and converted to Jesus’ movement. It was Paul that continued their message that Jesus died for the sins of people and that it was actually good that he died. Because only that way we could be forgiven. Yet this was just an attempt to gaslight people and cover the murder. To turn away any hatred from the Pharisees and point it that Jesus’ death was actually a blessing. Yet nowhere in the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple was written that Jesus was dying for the sins or that God wanted for Jesus to die.
Jesus’ message was clear – the Kingdom of God is within you, to attain the Kingdom you have to become like little children and unlearn, fast from the world, not be part of any worldly systems and that you are children of the light. You don’t need any temples, priests, sacrifices but you need to cleanse your hearts. Simple message yet too controversial for the systems of power that wanted people in the dark and desperately wanted people dependent on their institutions and dogmas.
14. The last supper has Mary sitting next to Jesus and there is nothing about the new covenant, nothing about eating His flesh or drinking His blood
We all know the last supper. This has been recited on every Catholic mass but also on every Easter in Protestant churches. In the Synoptic Gospels of Mark, Luke and Matthew, we have a scene of Jesus sharing the bread with his disciples and saying this is his body and taking a cup of wine and saying this is his blood. All this was a sign of a new covenant, a covenant that according to the Apostle Paul, was ending the Law and the commandments. This is however different in the Gospel of John, which doesn’t say about the new covenant, but rather focuses on cleaning disciples’ feet as a sign of staying humble and following if Jesus’ footsteps, doing as he was doing.
Similarly to the Gospel of John, the Gospel of the Beloved Disciple focuses on the act of cleaning the feet. However, what is different to the Gospel of John is the fact that it’s very clear who sits on the right side of Jesus and leaning on his chest. In the Gospel of John this was this mystery described by the “disciple whom Jesus loved” and many different disciples were given the title including John, James or Lazarus. But here it is very clear:
“The Companion whom Yeshua loved, was at the table, leaning against Yeshua’s breast. Shimon Kefa therefore beckoned to her and said to her: “Tell us who is this whom he speaks.” She leaning back as she was, on Yeshua’s breast, asked him: “Rabbouni, who is it?” Yeshua therefore answered, “it is he to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it.” (35:7)
This was Mary or Miryam the Migdalah, his companion and wife. She was the beloved disciple written in the Gospel of John and that title was always hers, not John’s or James’.
Moreover, there was nothing during the supper about the new covenant, about Jesus’ flesh as the bread and blood as the wine. The whole supper is Jesus teaching his disciples, talking, appointing Mary as the successor of his ministry and disciples asking about the kingdom of God, upon which Jesus explains that the kingdom is within them. Perhaps it was too simple and not as dramatic, so Canonical Gospel decided to spice things up. Again, this is up to the reader to draw conclusions.
15. During the crucifixion it is clear that Jesus directs his words to Mary Magdalene
In the Gospel of John, over the centuries until this day, many people argued who was the beloved disciple that Jesus directed the words to take care of his mother Mary. This was portrayed in many movies as John, therefore many assumed that John was the author of the Gospel of John as the beloved disciple. Similarly many Christian texts debated that this was either John or perhaps James, Jesus’ brother. However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion we see exactly who that was. Not only that, we see that Jesus prophesied that everyone would abandon him and therefore only one of his disciples would stay.
All Canonical Gospels and historical texts agree that only women were present, and all male disciples fled the scene. However, people somehow still like to fit some men there, even though the text is clear, because women at that time were not considered as valid witnesses. It was easier to romanticize about male disciple that mysteriously found himself there in between the women, rather than to accept the truth that only women were there, therefore Jesus directed those words to Mary.
“I tell you this: when all have abandoned me, only she shall stand beside me like a tower. A tower built on a high hill and fortified cannot fall, nor can it be hidden. From this day forth, she shall be known as Migdalah, for she shall be as a tower to my flock, and the time will soon come when her tower shall stand alone by mine.” (32:4)
Jesus prophesied that only Mary would stand beside him “like a tower” and all would abandon him.
“Kefa therefore denied him again, and immediately the roosters crowed; and he, understanding what Yeshua had said, was overcome with grief and remorse, and fled the city and returned onto his own.” (37:7)
Therefore, Simon Peter was gone from the city and others also fled to their own places.
“But there standing by the cross of Yeshua his mother and his mother’s sister Miryam the wife of Clopas, and Miryam the Beloved Companion, also called the Migdalah. Therefore when Yeshua saw his mother and the Companion whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother: “Woman, behold your son!” Then he said to the Companion, “Woman, behold your mother!” From that hour, the Companion took her onto her own”. (39:3)
Very clear, no changing genders, clear names and titles. No confusion here to whom Jesus directed his words. Now, let’s compare this with the Gospel of John.
“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!”Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” John 19: 25-27
As you can see, it starts very similar. The difference is that the explanation who was the disciple whom He loved was taken away and the gender was changed to He. Also, when directing to the disciple, the word “woman” was taken away – “Behold your mother!” as opposed to “Woman, behold your mother!”
Therefore Jesus was saying this to Mary, behold your mother-in-law, as they were married.
16. After crucifixion there is a clear burial ritual that was missing in the Bible
One of the Jewish customs was particular burial ritual, which was very sacred spiritually and socially. In Jewish thought, burying the dead was a sacred duty (mitzvah). Leaving a body unburied was seen as deeply dishonoring and even defiling. Because of this, burial usually happened as quickly as possible, often the same day as death. The burial ritual involved washing, wrapping the body in cloths or a shroud and treating with spices and aromatic substances to counteract odor and decomposition. Preparation was often hurried, especially if death occurred close to the Sabbath or a festival. If time ran out, families might do a minimal burial first, then return later to add spices or complete mourning gestures. This explains why people would return to the tomb with spices after the Sabbath, to complete the burial because doing it properly mattered a lot to them.
In the Canonical Gospels we don’t have any information about this, we only see Mary coming back to the tomb after the Sabbath with spices to finish the burial. However, in the Gospel of the Beloved Companion we have the ritual written in more details. We see that Pilate gave permission to take away Yeshua’s body as it was close to the Sabbath.
“Nicodemus, who at first came to Yeshua by night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred roman pounds” (40:1)
“Then Miryam, the Migdalah and Miryam the mother of Ya’akov, Yosef, and Salome took the body of Yeshua and prepared it and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as the burial custom required. In the place where he was crucified, there was a garden and in the garden a new tomb in which no man had ever yet been laid. Then because of the preparation day, for the tomb was near at hand, they laid Yeshua there.” (40:2)
This is a new information, which explains why there was a rush to burry Jesus and why would Mary possibly come back with spices. There was more explanation to the process and thus making the story to flow without coming up with assumptions.
17. Resurrection only occurs to Mary, she is not running to get Peter as he is out of town, and all other disciples believe her as opposed to how it was presented in the Bible
Resurrection process was actually quite chaotic in the Canonical Bible and one of the reasons I questioned the authenticity and truthfulness of the Gospels. I have presented my analysis in my different post. Essentially the story differed between the Gospels and in one, there were many women, in another only Mary, in another two women. One Gospel was clamming women were afraid and said nothing, another they shared the news but no one believed, in the Gospel of John this was confirmed by Peter. A bit of a mess in the facts and details.
Personally, the Gospel of John always spoke to me the most when comparing to the other Gospels. And as I said before, The Gospel of the Beloved Companion almost mirrors the Gospel of John, making it a possible text upon which the Gospel of John was coping from. Similarly, as in the Gospel of John, Mary goes into the tomb on her own very early in the morning. She notices the stone being rolled away, she stops and looks inside and notices the tomb is empty. However, there is a massive difference between those two Gospels. In the GBD, Mary doesn’t run to the disciples to get Peter, because Peter is outside of town and is not there! Therefore, Mary cannot run to get him as the other Canonical Gospels claimed. This is a massive detail, because this makes only Mary as the witness to resurrection.
Mary is not running back and forth but staying where she was and looking in. She notices the linen cloths being scattered and when she realizes what happened, she starts crying. While she is still weeping, she is confronted by a man that she mistakes for a gardener. She asks the gardener where they took Jesus, but then Jesus asks her why she is crying and she recognizes him. The Jesus says:
“Miryam, do not hold to me, for I am not of the flesh yet neither am I one with the spirit; but rather go to my disciples and tell them you have seen me, so that any who should choose to believe them and keep to my commandments will follow me on their last day.” (40:6)
“Then Migdalah told the disciples that she had seen Yeshua and that he had said those things to her. And they knew the truth of her and were all filled with great joy and believed.” (40:8)
Quite of a contrast to the Canonical Bible, where disciples didn’t believe and constantly were challenging Mary. The matter had to always be examined by males in the Gospels, however here they knew her truth and believed her and were “filled with great joy”. Perhaps this lack of drama and disbelieve was too simple for the Bible or perhaps it was more believable that there would be some skepticism rather than straight believe.
“Then they sent messengers to tell the other disciples what the Migdalah had witnessed. But it was many days before they returned to Bethany, as being in fear of the Priests and Pharisees, all fled the city, each back to his own. In this way, they had fulfilled the prophecy that Yeshua had spoken when he said to them: “Do you now believe? Behold, the time is coming, yes, and has now come, that you will be scattered, everyone onto his own, and you will leave me all alone but one”. (40:9)
Notice that Mary was always either Miryam or the Beloved Companion, however after being given the name Migdalah, she is the Migdalah, signifying her position and her strength. We also have a confirmation that all left Jesus apart from Mary and also, it took disciples few days before they returned. Therefore, the fact that in Canonical Gospels they are either together at the shore or going to the mountains to see Jesus or having a meal – all looks impossible by the sounds of it as they were scattered. The spread of information wasn’t as quick as it is now and also transport wasn’t as quick and straightforward as it is today. We have to take those elements into consideration that perhaps it was days before the disciples knew what actually happened.
As you can see, the Gospel of the Beloved Companion has quite significant differences when compared to the Canonical Gospels. We don’t know which version is true, it’s up to the reader to draw conclusions. I also know that people like to stick to the familiar and to the “tested” versions by the scholars and biblical experts. This is ultimately what your heart is telling you and which version is closer to your heart and understanding. I am not going to tell you which version to believe in, but I know which version is closer to my heart. This version definitely challenges the narrative of Christianity, demands to rethink, questions all the history and also disqualifies church’s claim to power and to be Jesus’ representative on earth. It is clear that Jesus’ message was not religious systems but your own spiritual autonomy. However, somehow people prefer the version of Jesus they can rely on as their Savior. Because it’s easier to worship than to transform. It’s easier to believe in someone else’s divinity than to recognize your own. It’s easier to wait for external salvation than to undergo internal crucifixion. Jesus showed us as an example that it is possible for anyone to reach the same level of consciousness and find the kingdom within themselves, to become what he was rather than merely believing in what he was. That is why Jesus, on many occasions, asked to imitate him and do as he was doing. This is possible for anyone on a psychological and spiritual level. And this is the message Jesus wanted to convey and continue through Mary who also understood, but this was hijacked from Mary by men who wanted to stay in hierarchal system of power and control.
By Dagmara Z.