~*~ The Essenes Of Mount Carmel ~*~

ESSENES OF MOUNT CARMEL

The purpose of this article is to provide evidence that YAHSHUA~YESHUA (JESUS CHRIST) WAS PRIMARILY ASSOCIATED WITH THE ESSENES OF MOUNT CARMEL IN NORTHERN ISRAEL, not the Essenes of Qumran in Southern Israel. Certainly, Yahshua and the Northern Essenes had ongoing contact with their brethren in the South, but he was not "raised and trained at Qumran" like many in the modern Essene movement believe. This article will clear up that misconception. In the course of doing so, we will touch on various related items, some of them quite fascinating: We will learn of the lifestyle and traditions of the mystical Essenes of Mount Carmel; we will uncover the truth about "Nazareth" and how that word relates to the term "Nazarene"; we will name the likely location where baby Yahshua was taken for protection from Herod; and we will learn esoteric details about the baptism of Yahshua by John. All of the above is related to, and will help support, our central thesis: YAHSHUA (JESUS) WAS RAISED AND TRAINED BY THE ESSENES OF MOUNT CARMEL IN NORTHERN ISRAEL, not the Essenes of Qumran in Southern Israel. But perhaps the very best supporting evidence for our thesis is the map which accompanies this article: I URGE THE READER TO CAREFULLY CONSULT THE MAP WHENEVER IT IS REFERRED TO IN THE COURSE OF THIS ARTICLE.

In both the orthodox New Testament and the Essene New Testament we are offered the following information in regard to the whereabouts of Joseph, Mary and Yahshua:

1. Prior to the birth of Yahshua, Mary and Joseph are said to live in Nazareth, a village in Northern Israel.
   
   
2. At the end of a long journey from Nazareth, in Northern Israel, to Bethlehem, in Southern Israel, (to pay taxes) Mary gave birth to Yahshua in Bethlehem.
   
   
3. Being warned that Herod was going to kill baby Yahshua, Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt.
   
   
4. After the death of Herod, the holy family returned to Nazareth.
   
   
5. Yahshua grew up in Nazareth.
   
   
6. Yahshua launched his public ministry in cities near Nazareth.
   
   
7. As a grown man, for the first time since his youth, Yahshua journeyed to Southern Israel where he was baptized by John the Baptist near Qumran.
   
   
8. After a short stay in Southern Israel after his baptism by John, Yahshua returned to Northern Israel. There, in the vicinity of Lake Galilee (which is near Nazareth and Mount Carmel) Yahshua conducted his ministry.
   
   
9. When Yahshua knew that the climactic moment had come for him to confront the authorities in Jerusalem and die on the cross, he again journeyed to Southern Israel.
   

Again, the above nine facts appear not only in the orthodox New Testament but also in our Essene New Testament (The Gospel of the Holy Twelve). Now, please look at the map which accompanies this article. Find Nazareth on the map. Notice that it is near Mount Carmel and Lake Galilee in Northern Israel. Next, locate Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Qumran on the map; they are in Southern Israel. As you examine the map, notice that it is a very long journey from Lake Galilee to the Dead Sea, nearly the entire length of the nation of Israel. Consider carefully the fact that they had no cars in those days, neither were the roads paved. Consider how hot the climate is. All things considered, you can see that a journey from Northern Israel to Southern Israel was no easy thing two thousand years ago! Thus, the fact that nearly every major event associated with the life of Yahshua -- every event except for his birth in Bethlehem, his baptism by John and his final journey to Jerusalem -- occurred in Northern Israel, is strong evidence that Yahshua lived most of his life in Northern Israel. (We do not deny that Yahshua occasionally made the long, hard journey from Northern Israel to Southern Israel; nor do we deny that he made several other long journeys -- including India. But the fact that nearly all the events associated with his life occurred in Northern Israel near Mount Carmel and Lake Galilee is powerful evidence that he primarily lived there, not in Southern Israel.)

SOME OF THE MAJOR EVENTS OF YAHSHUA'S MINISTRY WHICH OCCURRED IN NORTHERN ISRAEL ARE AS FOLLOWS (I have also marked the location of several of these events on the map): The miraculous feeding of 5,000 people; the Sermon on the Mount; the wedding at Cana where he turned water into wine; the anointing with oil by Mary Magdalene; the calling of Andrew and Peter; the healing of the leper; the healing of the man with palsy; the calling of Matthew; the calling of Phillip; the calling of Nathaniel; the sending forth of the twelve disciples; the sending of the Seventy-two disciples; the giving of 'The Lord's Prayer'; the healing of Jairus' daughter; the dialogue with the Samaritan woman at the well; the miraculous walk on the water; the time he commanded the storm to be calm and it obeyed him; the vast majority of the verbal teachings he gave during his life; etc.

Thus far we have considered much evidence that supports our assertion that Yahshua lived most his life in Northern Israel. We know that he made a couple of important trips to Southern Israel, but spent most his time in the North. But we have not yet specifically linked him with the Essenes of Mount Carmel. We will soon do that. But first we will consider one more important piece of evidence that Yahshua was not a Qumran Essene: THE FACT THAT JOHN THE BAPTIST DID NOT RECOGNIZE HIM. There is near unanimity amongst scholars that John the Baptist was an Essene from Qumran. On the map which accompanies this article, find Qumran. Then notice that the location on the Jordan river where tradition tells us John performed his baptisms is right where the Jordan river connects with the Dead Sea near Qumran! Add to that the fact that John was said to live in the desert southwest of the Jordan -- exactly where Qumran is located -- and that his dress, diet (John was a vegetarian; the 'locust' he ate is a fruit similar to carob, not an insect!) method of baptism (the Qumran Essenes practiced baptism and were often call 'Baptists') and prophetic theology match up exactly with what we know of the Qumran Essenes, and you can understand why THERE IS SOLID CONSENSUS AMONGST SCHOLARS THAT JOHN WAS FROM QUMRAN. The scholars point out that the Qumran Essenes often took in orphans and that the New Testament informs us that after Herod murdered Zachariah, baby John's father, baby John "went to live in the desert." Obviously, a baby could not survive alone in the desert! JOHN WAS RAISED BY THE ESSENES AT QUMRAN! That conclusion becomes even more certain when one considers the following piece of evidence from the Dead Sea Scrolls.

In the 'Community Rule' of the Dead Sea Scrolls the purpose of the Qumran community is described as: "To prepare the way for the Messiah in the desert wilderness... to prepare a people to meet the Lord"

Likewise, in the New Testament, John the Baptist declares: "I am a voice crying out in the desert wilderness, prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah, prepare to meet the Lord."

According to the prophecies of Isaiah (Isaiah lived hundreds of years before John and Yahshua) before the Messiah of Peace would manifest himself to Israel, two things must occur:

1. A group of people must:
   
   

   "prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah; make a straight path for the Lord in the wilderness: prepare a people to meet the Lord."

   
   
2. Elijah (Elijah lived hundreds of years before Yahshua and John) must return to earth to prepare the way and announce the coming of the Messiah.
   

The astute reader is aware of the fact that in both the orthodox New Testament and our Essene New Testament, YAHSHUA (JESUS) DECLARES THAT JOHN THE BAPTIST IS THE RETURNED ELIJAH! But even the astute reader is probably not aware of the following fascinating fact: the exact spot on the bank of the Jordan River where John performed his baptisms is the same spot where Elijah had ascended into heaven in a 'chariot of fire'! In The Armageddon Script, a remarkable book by Peter Lemesurier, we read:

"The details of John's mission had, we may be sure, already been spelt out for the Teacher of Righteousness. At the appropriate time John must identify himself as Elijah by adopting Elijah's outlandish garb (Elijah wore a camel hair robe as did John). Longhaired and unshaven, he must proceed to the spot on the east bank of the Jordan... where the river emptied into the Dead Sea. (to perform baptisms) This, after all, had been the site of Elijah's dramatic and legendary disappearance in a 'chariot of fire' some eight centuries before. Thus doubly identified as 'Elijah returned', he must then proclaim the imminent appearance of the Messiah himself."

I have introduced all the above information on John the Baptist for the following reason. If, indeed, John the Baptist was a Qumran Essene -- which is obvious -- he would certainly have recognized Yahshua IF HE ALSO LIVED AT QUMRAN. Qumran was a small monastic commune; about 250 Essene monks lived there and they all knew each other very well, eating all their meals together according to the 'Community Rule'. And yet John the Baptist -- said to be a cousin of Yahshua -- did not recognize Yahshua when they met for the baptism. The story of their meeting is familiar to most readers; but in the following account from the book Mystic Christianity, by Yogi Ramacharaka, we are treated to certain esoteric details that are left out of most accounts:

"John emerged from the wilderness... and began his ministry work.... One of his principal requisites was that of Baptism, the Essenic rite.... His meetings were events of great importance to thousands who gathered to see and hear the prophet of the wilderness, the Essene who had emerged from his desert seclusion.... But one day there was a meeting destined to gain worldwide fame. This was the day when there came to John the Baptist the MASTER of whose coming John had frequently foretold.... " "Jesus came unannounced to, and unrecognized by John.... Although the two were cousins, they had not met since childhood, and John did not at first recognize Jesus. The traditions of the Mystic Orders further state that Jesus then gave to John the various signs of the Mystery Schools to which they both belonged. Working from the common signs up until Jesus passed on to degrees to which John had not attained, although he was an eminent high-degree Essene. Whereupon John saw that the man before him was no common applicant for Baptism, but was, instead, a highest-degree Mystic Adept, his superior in rank and unfoldment."

While the New Testament does not include all of the esoteric information above, it does declare that John -- the Qumran Baptist -- DID NOT RECOGNIZE HIS COUSIN JESUS. I believe I have proven this part of my thesis: JESUS WAS NOT A QUMRAN ESSENE. But I still must link him with the Northern Essenes of Mount Carmel.

The fact that Yahshua was not from Qumran DOES NOT MEAN HE WAS NOT AN ESSENE. Often, when orthodox Christian scholars are attempting to prove that Yahshua was not an Essene, they point out certain differences between the teachings of Yahshua and the Dead Sea Scrolls. (They often point out that Yahshua's doctrine is less strict in some matters than the 'Community Rule' of the Qumran Dead Sea Scrolls; by doing so, they think they are proving that Yahshua was not an Essene.) But they are missing the point: QUMRAN WAS ONLY ONE OF MANY DIVERSE ESSENE COMMUNITIES. Whereas Qumran was a strict monastic commune for celibate men, some other Essene communities -- such as Mount Carmel and the related Nazarene stronghold of Nazareth -- were for entire families and naturally had more relaxed rules. The teachings of Yahshua were more a product of the Northern Essene environment of Mount Carmel than Qumran. Again I quote from Peter Lemesurier's The Armageddon Script:

"Admittedly, Yahshua was often considerably' more forthcoming (less secretive) than the typical Qumran Essene, but then it should be remembered that he was not a Qumran Essene. Not only was he a 'Carmelite' or 'Nazarene', a product of the Essene movement's necessarily 'ecumenical' headquarters-group, but he was the intended messianic Priest-King, the ultimate 'Interpreter of the Law'.... As such, his rank was superior by far to the rest of the Essene leadership, even to the original Teacher of Righteousness. Consequently he was free to interpret the Law and the Prophets in his own way and to whom he pleased as the spirit guided him."

Thus, the differences between the teachings of Yahshua and the Qumran Essenes are due to:

1. Yahshua was raised at the more ecumenical, profoundly mystical, celibate ascetic Essene community at Mount Carmel; nearby were Essene families dedicated to holiness and purity and the marital act was only for procreating an angelic child for God's service; and
   
   
2. The Dead Sea Scrolls, wonderful as they are, were written by Essenes who were prayerfully preparing for the coming of the Universal Messiah, the Prince of Peace. Obviously, once the Messiah of the Universe came to earth, the words that came out of his mouth were far transcendent of even the best of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
   

Before turning our attention to Nazareth and the Essene community at Mount Carmel, let us identify a third Essene community which was the probable sanctuary of the holy family when they fled to Egypt: THE ESSENE COMMUNITY OF THEREPUTAE AT LAKE MAREOTIS. You will recall that Mary and Joseph took baby Yahshua to Egypt to escape Herod. And we know from the writings of Philo, a Jewish philosopher who lived about 2,000 years ago, that there was indeed an Essene community of "theraputae" or "healers" at Lake Mareotis, in Egypt. Almost certainly, that Essene community was the place of sanctuary enjoyed by the Essene holy family.

When the holy family returned from Egypt after Herod's death (this Herod was succeeded by his son, also called Herod, who was later to behead John the Baptist and assist in the crucifixion of Yahshua), we are told they settled in Nazareth. As you can see on the map, Nazareth is very near Mount Carmel, the headquarters of the entire Essene movement. However, in those days, there was no town called "Nazareth"; rather, it was simply a cooperative village of Essene "Nazarenes". We read in The Armageddon Script:

"... historical evidence that it (Nazareth) existed at the time is entirely lacking. The tradition almost certainly goes back to the fact that the family were members of the Nazarene sect of the Essenes. This group seems to have become the dominant one on Carmel, to the point where the word 'Nazarene' came to be applied to the Northern Essenes in general. It is possible, of course, that the Essenes had a camp in the vicinity of the modern Nazareth."

Thus, the term "Jesus of Nazareth" was originally "Yahshua the Nazarene", and a "Nazarene" is a "Northern Essene" associated with Mount Carmel. Which is why in the New Testament Book of Acts, the early Christians' are referred to as "the sect of the Nazarenes." The sect of the Nazarenes was considered a dangerous cult by the governmental authorities; and the orthodox Jews agreed, declaring in the New Testament: "Nothing good can come from Nazareth" [the Nazarenes]. (To avoid confusion it should be noted that the New Testament reference to Yahshua being booted out of a synagogue in his "home town" of "Nazareth" is NOT a reference to the Nazarene commune; rather, the synagogue in question was the ORTHODOX Jewish Synagogue located in the same territory as the Nazarene commune. When Yahshua of the despised "Nazarene cult" entered that orthodox synagogue, picked up the Isaiah Scroll and read a Messianic prophecy -- AND THEN DECLARED HIMSELF TO BE THE FULFILLMENT OF THAT PROPHECY -- the orthodox Jews were outraged and wanted to kill him on the spot.)

Epiphanius, the Catholic Bishop of Constantia in the fourth century, wrote a book called Panarion in which he described and denounced various non-Catholic Christian groups. In that book he admits that in his own day -- the fourth century -- there still existed "Jewish Christians" called "Nazarenes" related to the ancient order of Essenes. Epiphanius admits also that the original followers of Yahshua were "known as Nazarenes" and that "the sect of the Nazarenes existed prior to the birth of Jesus". But rather than admit the obvious -- THAT THE NAZARENE SECT OF HIS DAY WAS THE DIRECT DESCENDANT OF ORIGINAL CHRISTIANITY AND THE TRUE CUSTODIAN OF THE TEACHINGS OF YAHSHUA -- Epiphanius denounced them as heretics because their teachings were not in line with Catholic dogma! What were the Nazarene-Christian doctrines that Catholic Bishop Epiphanius found so heretical? They were:

1. The Essene Nazarenes -- both the ancient Judaic Nazarenes and the later Essene Christian Nazarenes -- WERE STRICT VEGETARIANS;
   
   
2. The Nazarenes believed that the Old Testament books of Moses had been falsified by the fallen orthodox Jewish priesthood and corrupt kings; they believed that Moses indeed gave the true Law, but that the true Law had been removed from the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament attributed to Moses) and was preserved only in their own Nazarene scriptures;
   
   
3. The Nazarene-Christians claimed that they possessed the original New Testament of Yahshua, written in Aramaic, and it differed from the Catholic New Testament.
   

In reference to number one above, not only does Epiphanius admit that the Nazarenes "eat no meat", but modern scholars concur; Hugh Shonfield, in The Passover Plot:

"There has been emerging ever clearer evidence that in the Galilean region an ancient Israelitish type of religion persisted in the time of Jesus, defying Judean efforts to obliterate it.... The name he bears, Jesus the Nazorean, has northern sectarian implications.... The name borne by the earliest followers of Jesus was not Christians: they were called Nazoreans (Nazarenes).... They were vegetarians and rejected animal sacrifices."

In regard to Schonfield's reference to the Nazarenes as "an ancient Israelitish type of religion... defying Judean efforts to obliterate it", it is important to note that the term "Judean" refers to southern Israel and especially the orthodox Jewish temple at Jerusalem. Like Schonfield, H.P. Blavatsky demonstrates that the northern Nazarene-Essene religion was much more ancient and authentic than the orthodox Judaism that held power in Yahshua's day, pre-dating even the authentic versions of the several books of Moses (Moses was attempting to reestablish the Essene Nazarene religion after the captivity) and certainly pre-dating the falsified versions; in her Isis Unveiled:

"The Nazireate [her spelling] sect existed long before the laws of Moses, and originated among... the people of Galilee... where was built Nazara, the present Nazareth. It is in Nazara that the ancient Nazoria or Nazireates held their "Mysteries of Life...."

In reference to Epiphanius charge in number two above -- that the Nazarenes believed the books of Moses had been falsified -- modern scholarship again concurs; Schonfield writes:

"The old Nazareans ("Nazarenes"), like the Samaritans, were opposed to the Judean traditions, holding that the southerners had falsified the Law of Moses."

In regard to number three above -- the "differences" in the New Testament used by the "heretical" Nazarenes -- we know that Epiphanius was especially disturbed by the Christology of the "Judaic Christians" (he uses the term "Judaic Christian" as a put-down; he seems to have forgotten that Yahshua and all the Apostles were exactly that: Judaic Christians!). Whereas Catholic dogma had decreed that Yahshua was part of the Godhead itself; "one with the Father, very God of very God", THE NAZARENE CHRISTOLOGY HELD THAT JESUS WAS, TO QUOTE FROM EPIPHANIUS' PANARION: "CREATED SIMILAR TO, BUT HIGHER THAN, THE ARCHANGELS...THAT HE RULES BOTH THE ANGELS AND ALL THOSE THINGS CREATED BY THE ALMIGHTY."

Believe it or not, the rather exalted status given to Yahshua by Nazarene Christology -- that he was "created similar to, but higher than, the archangels", -- DID NOT GO FAR ENOUGH FOR CATHOLIC BISHOP EPlPHANIUS! Because the Nazarenes believed Yahshua was "CREATED" by God, they were considered in violation of the Catholic dogma that Yahshua, being part of the uncreated Godhead, had never been "created". And we all know what the punishment for that type of heresy is: DEATH! Which was exactly the eventual fate of the Nazarene remnant that still existed in Epiphanius' time:

THEY WERE EXTERMINATED BY THE CATHOLIC ARMY!

My reason for providing the above several paragraphs is to support my contention that YAHSHUA WAS A MEMBER OF AN ESSENE SECT CALLED "NAZARENES" AND THAT THE TERM "JESUS THE NAZARENE" REFERS TO THAT AFFILIATION AND NOT SIMPLY THAT HE LIVED IN A TOWN CALLED "NAZARETH". When we link that information to the previously quoted material from The Armageddon Script -- that the Nazarenes were the Essenes of Mount Carmel -- we are face to face with the main thesis of this article: THAT YAHSHUA WAS PRIMARILY ASSOCIATED WITH THE ESSENES OF MOUNT CARMEL IN NORTHERN ISRAEL.

Let us now consider some interesting information about Mount Carmel. Even by its very name, it is clear that Mount Carmel has long been considered both a natural paradise and a sacred mountain: for the literal Hebrew meaning of "Carmel" is "garden paradise" and the spiritual meaning of the word is defined in the Metaphysical Bible Dictionary as:

"A place in consciousness where we realize the fullness of our possibilities under the divine law. It is the garden of God; Yahshua called it 'paradise', freedom from sense. Mount Carmel stands for the center of spirituality, which is located in man's body consciousness at the top of the head."

In fact, Mount Carmel was considered so holy that there were strict taboos against spilling any blood there, not only of people but also animals, AND IT WAS EVEN FORBIDDEN TO HARM A TREE OR DISTURB ANY OF THE NATURAL LIFE. These rules applied not only to the Essenes but also to anyone who climbed the holy mountain. Vulgar people were not permitted access to Mount Carmel. In The Religion of the Semites, by W. Robertson Smith, we learn:

"Yet some... of the old sanctity of whole regions survived... to a late date. Ianblichus, in the last days of heathenism, still speaks of Mount Carmel as 'sacred above all mountains and forbidden of access to the vulgar'.... The Taboos or restrictions applicable within these sacred tracts have already been touched upon. The most universal of them was that men were not allowed to interfere with the natural life of the spot. No blood might be shed and no tree cut down...."

Evidently, gardening was permitted as long as it was done in an environmentally sound manner, since Mount Carmel was famous for its vegetable gardens and fruit orchards as well as its lush, natural forest. However, permanent dwellings were not permitted on holy Mount Carmel -- they were considered too obtrusive to the natural environment -- AND SO THE ESSENE NAZARENE RESIDENTS OF THE MOUNTAIN ARE SAID TO HAVE LIVED IN TENTS (the tents were actually a type of yurt which is much sturdier and "home-like" than the typical American "tent", having a wooden frame and often more than one room).

It is precisely because the Essenes of Mount Carmel did not build permanent structures on the holy mountain that no -- or very little -- physical trace of their presence remains for archaeologists to study. In The Armageddon Script, Lemesurier reports:

"To date, while there is certainly some... evidence of the Essenes' sojourn on Carmel, specific archaeological evidence... is lacking.... This is entirely to be expected, however, since one of the conditions... was that the people must live only in temporary shelters or arbours.... Even the Divine Sanctuary was to be no more than a 'Tent of the Presence' within its sacred enclosure."

While "vulgar" people were not permitted access to Mount Carmel, it was a haven for holy pilgrims from various countries. In The Life of Pythagoras written in the 2nd century by Jamblichus, we learn that the great sage Pythagoras, as a young seeker, visited the Essene sanctuary atop Mount Carmel:

"In Phoenicia he [Pythagoras] conversed with the prophets who were descendants of Moses.... After gaining all he could from the Phoenician mysteries, he found that they had originated from the sacred rites of Egypt. This led him to... Egypt. Following the advice of his teacher Thales, he left... through the agency of some Egyptian sailors, and landed on the coast under Mount Carmel."

Pythagoras then climbed Mount Carmel where he evidently received powerful teachings from the Essene Nazarenes; for when he returned to the ship, the sailors, who had hatched a secret plan to sell young Pythagoras into slavery, were mesmerized by his spiritual luminosity and unable to harm him. Whatever teachings Pythagoras had studied and practiced during his stay with the Essenes atop Carmel, they had obviously served to transform him!

HE HAD CLIMBED THE MOUNTAIN AS AN ADVANCED SEEKER; HE DESCENDED THE MOUNTAIN A MASTER. The sailors, reports Jamblichus, believed Pythagoras had become "supernatural". We know that Pythagoras went on to become a chief exponent of vegetarianism, reincarnation, fasting and sacred geometry -- all Essene teachings -- and that he and his followers wore only white linen garments, in the fashion of the Essenes of Mount Carmel.

We have seen above that no killing -- not ever animals -- was permitted on Mount Carmel, and that ALL of Judaism was bound by that law, not only the Essenes. That made Mount Carmel the perfect place for the Essenes to create their international headquarters. In Spiritual Vegetarianism, Abbot George Burke supports that assessment:

"The aspect of their non-killing that most offended other Jews was the refusal of the Essenes to offer animal sacrifices in the Temple... so adamant were the Essenes on this point they established for themselves a Temple on Mount Carmel...."

A second reason that the Essenes chose Mount Carmel as their headquarters was its connection with one of their own forefathers, the great Essene prophet Elijah (Elijah and other Essene prophets had long used Carmel as their chief spiritual retreat but it was not until several hundred years later that the Essenes made it their international headquarters). Lemesurier writes:

"And now it was the turn of the Essenes to repeat the process yet again, and re-establish what they saw as the true worship of the New Covenant on their own sacred mountain.... Here at last the Teacher (of Righteousness) could start to give full rein to his gifts of prophetic intuition.... The northern mountains... were to be the general assembly area for the body of Essene refugees.... But out of their various groupings and ideologies a kind of 'core-group' must be formed to spearhead the movement.... Yet this core-group had to remain doctrinally broad-based enough to permit... members of all the various Essenic sub-groups to give it their allegiance. And there, almost miraculously, the answer suddenly swam into view: Mount Carmel.... It had been widely regarded as by far the most sacred mountain in the region since early Egyptian times. Far more than that, however, it had become the headquarters of the great prophet Elijah, whose cave on Carmel can still be visited today.... Like Elijah, as the sole true remnant of Israel, they too must now make their way to Mount Carmel.... And just as Elijah had rebuilt the 'altar'... on Mount Carmel with twelve stones - one for each tribe of Israel - so these Essenes likewise could hope to restore the true worship there.... There could no longer be any doubt among the Essene predestinarians that Carmel was their prophesied objective, marked out for them from even before time began."

Since, as we have seen, it was taboo to build permanent structures on holy Carmel, the Essene Nazarenes created a yurt village with a "Tent of the Presence" as Temple. Again, this "tent Temple" was no small American pup-tent; it was a large, many-roomed Yurt. BESIDES THE IMPERMANENT STRUCTURES ON MOUNT CARMEL ITSELF, A COUPLE OF MILES FROM THE SOUTHWESTERN EDGE OF CARMEL THE ESSENE NAZARENES BUILT A LARGE VILLAGE OF PERMANENT STRUCTURES: "Nazareth." Here, at Nazareth, many Essene-Nazarene families lived next to the spiritual center atop Carmel, visiting it regularly. The priests and more hardy families -- those capable of "roughing it" -- lived in the yurt village atop Carmel.

With Mount Carmel as their base of operations, the Essenes began to prepare themselves for a spectacular event: THE COMING OF THE MESSIAH. In Spiritual Vegetarianism, Abbott George Burkes writes:

"Jesus of Nazareth was an Essene. Joachim and Anna, the parents of the virgin Mary, were both from renowned Essene families.... It was a long-standing tradition among the Essenes that the Messiah would be born into an Essene family."

Hundreds of years before the birth of Yahshua, the head priest of the Essenes, known as the "Teacher of Righteousness", had a vision: An angel told him that a great Avatar, the Christ Messiah, would come to Earth through the Essenes. But for this to occur, according to the angel, the Essenes must follow certain practices in order to create a physical body capable of withstanding the powerful vibrations of the Christ Spirit, as well as a group energy powerful enough to open an "energy vortex" or "doorway" into this space-time dimension. Rev Michael Robinson, in the Winter issue of "The Essene Path", provides related information:

"Essene prophets who were attuned to the will of the Almighty, by virtue of their Holy meditations and their lifestyle of Righteousness, prepared for generations for the arrival of the Messiah of Peace. Genealogies were consulted and candidates were chosen and raised to a holy life. Pure diet, free of the taint of death and blood as well as training in the Essene mysteries, brought forth children of a Holy nature, from which new candidates were chosen."

In this article I have cited the work of many respected scholars. Having demonstrated that my thesis is supported by mainstream scholarship, I now feel free to cite a more unusual -- certainly not mainstream -- source: the modern "seer", Edgar Cayce. Unlike many "new age" seers, the predictions and revelations of Cayce have proven remarkably accurate. He even predicted the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Cayce died in 1945 and the scrolls were discovered in 1947). The "readings" of Cayce (he would go into a trance and provide information verbally that his assistant would write down) contain much information about Yahshua and his connection to the Essenes of Mount Carmel. In the book, Edger Cayce's Story of Jesus, edited by Jeffrey Furst, we read:

"... the Essenes... dedicated their lives, their minds, their bodies to a purpose, to a seeking for that which had been to them a promise of old.... Hence, there was the continued preparation and dedication of those who might be the channels through which this chosen vessel might enter through choice into this material realm. Thus in Carmel -- where there were the chief priests and leaders of this faith -- there were the maidens chosen who were dedicated to this purpose.... Among them was Mary, the beloved, the chosen one."

Again from Cayce:

"The Essenes were dedicated to their purpose and made holy Mount Carmel their headquarters. This was the original place where the school of prophets was established during Elijah's time...." "Here, the Essenes prepared themselves for several generations to open as it were a door into this realm for the Messiah.... And he became known as Jesus the Nazarene, for he was of the Essenian sect of Nazarenes in the region of Carmel."

Even the Catholic monastic order of "White Friars" (they are vegetarian and wear white robes) currently established on Mount Carmel (they moved there in the twelfth century) assert that Yahshua was an Essene and was raised on Mount Carmel. These Catholic "Carmelites" learned these things from Essene monks that still survived on Carmel in the 12th century! It is from these Essene Monks that the Catholic Carmelites adopted vegetarianism and white robes. (The information in this paragraph is available from many sources including The Essene Christ by Upton Ewing, the Catholic Carmelites own history books, and the Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition, vol. 5, pg. 358.)

I am confident that the reader will agree that my thesis has been amply demonstrated: YAHSHUA WAS A NORTHERN ESSENE -- a Nazarene -- PRIMARILY ASSOCIATED WITH THE ESSENES OF MOUNT CARMEL; he was not "raised and trained at Qumran" as some in the modern Essene movement mistakenly assert.

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~*~ Bountiful Ambrosial Blessings In Christ Jesus! ~*~

~*~ Reverend Celestial ~*~

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