Gnostic Insights Virgin Birth–The Infancy Gospel of James
The date of this recording was Christmas Eve, 12-24-2021. I’m repeating this episode now because although not particularly “gnostic,” it does shed light on the birth of Jesus Christ.
And I know a lot of people reject Jesus as the Christ. They don’t even like the idea of there being a Christ. But I have to remind you that the Christ is a, we could call it in our modern terminology, a correcting algorithm for our human selves, for our human DNA, even. And it is thought, primarily by me, and I’m sure other people probably share this point of view, that by saying that Jesus is both fully human and fully God, what was meant by that is that Jesus shares our human DNA. Yet the DNA of Jesus is perfect. It is as designed. Jesus was a perfectly constructed human. There was no epigenetic changes, no degradation of his DNA and its various functions. He didn’t inherit any congenital problems from his parental lineage.
And being fully God means that the perfection of the Pleroma, the perfection of the Fullness of God, filled this body, this DNA, and the Self of Jesus. We all have the same one Self. We all share the same Self that comes from the Fullness of God. But for most of us, well, for all of us really, our Self is hidden. It’s covered over by this shroud of memes that we have acquired in this lifetime and in prior lifetimes that come down to us from our human societies, from various personal problems and misunderstandings and hang-ups.
Particularly, we have been under attack by the Demiurge and the archons of the Demiurge. The Demiurge does not care for humans. Humans challenge the authority of the Demiurge, because we claim to be from the Fullness of God. And the Demiurge, of course, believes that he is the Fullness of God. He does not acknowledge the God Above All Gods or the Pleroma above, because he has a case of amnesia at the moment.
Eventually, everything will be redeemed by the Christ. That was the purpose of the Christ. And the Christ pre-exists Jesus of Nazareth. The Christ is not exactly the same as Jesus. The Christ is a supernatural power that lives up there in the Pleroma. The Christ is the Fullness of God plus the willpower of the Son with the blessing of the Father. So the Christ embodies the entire lineage of the Holy Spirit without interruption. And the Christ was sent down to this Earth, presumably in the body of Jesus of Nazareth, in order to implant this correction, this correcting algorithm, onto us humans who have fallen away from the perfection of our original design, either spiritually, because of the archonic attacks and the memes that we hold, or physically, because of our human DNA that is shared with the body of the Jesus. And that’s why Jesus had to have a virgin birth, because Mary was the vessel. However, the Fullness of God was the parental unit that gave this perfect human to the Earth for correction and assistance.
Earlier in the year, I heard an interview with a very interesting woman named Marguerite Mary Rigoglioso, and she has written a book called The Mystery Tradition of Miraculous Conception, Mary and the Lineage of Virgin Births. And what Marguerite does in this book is show that there was a tradition of virgin birth—that actually Mary was not the first and only woman on Earth to give birth to a baby with no male semen involved. And in this book of hers, she goes through various other religious writings from various traditions and shows how such a thing is possible.
This idea of virgin birth—there’s actually a scientific name for it. It’s called parthenogenesis. And it is not a fairy tale. As it turns out, creatures on Earth can have parthenogenesis. Animals in zoos have been observed to become pregnant and have babies without any male creature around. So there is such a thing as parthenogenesis, and this is what we’re talking about when we’re talking about Mary and Jesus.
Now, since it’s Christmas, I thought I would just go ahead and read to you out of one of the forbidden Gospels that didn’t make the cut when the Nicene Council put together the conventional Christianity as we know it today. They left a lot out. And this Gospel, which deals with the virgin birth, is called The Infancy Gospel of James. Marguerite has put it as an appendix at the back of her book, and so I’m going to read to you directly from the Gospel of James, the Infancy Gospel of James here, so we can have another Christmas story that’s kind of similar but kind of different from the ones that are handed down to us in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John from the New Testament.
Now, before we begin this Christmas story, let me add that this is not a particularly Gnostic book or story. It’s a Christian story. It’s a Christmas story, just like the birth of Jesus that is told every year at Christmas time in the churches. This is just an alternative Christmas story or Nativity story that was cut out and thrown away for whatever reason by the Nicene Council. And so I’m not sure you’re going to learn anything particularly Gnostic from this, but it’s fun and it’s different and it’s interesting. So, Merry Christmas and enjoy! Here’s how it goes. I’m going to begin reading from Chapter 7 of the Infancy Gospel of James, which has to do with Mary’s childhood and upbringing.
Many months passed, but when the child, [and that’s Mary now], reached two years of age, Joaquin said, Let’s take her up to the temple of the Lord so that we can keep the promise we made, or else the Lord will be angry with us and our gifts will be unacceptable. And Anna said, Let’s wait until she’s three so she won’t miss her father or mother. And Joaquin agreed, Let’s wait.
When the child turned three years of age, Joaquin said, Let’s send for the undefiled Hebrew daughters. Let them each take a lamp and light it so the child won’t turn back and have her heart captivated by things outside the Lord’s temple. And this is what they did until the time they ascended to the Lord’s temple. The priest welcomed her, kissed her, and blessed her. The Lord God has exalted your name among all generations. In you, the Lord will disclose his redemption to the people of Israel during the last days. And he sat her down on the third step of the altar, and the Lord showered favor on her, and she danced, and the whole house of Israel loved her.
Chapter 8. Her parents left for home, marveling and praising and glorifying the Lord God, because the child did not look back at them. And Mary lived in the temple of the Lord. She was fed there like a dove, receiving her food from the hand of a heavenly messenger. When she turned twelve, however, there was a meeting of the priests. Look, they said, Mary has turned twelve in the temple of the Lord. What should we do with her so she won’t pollute the sanctuary of the Lord our God? And they said to the high priest, You stand at the altar of the Lord, enter and pray about her, and we’ll do whatever the Lord God discloses to you. And so the high priest took the vestment with the twelve bells, entered the Holy of Holies, and began to pray about her. And suddenly a messenger of the Lord appeared, Zechariah, Zechariah, go out and assemble the widowers of the people, and have them each bring a staff. She will become the wife of one to whom the Lord shows a sign. And so heralds covered the surrounding territory of Judea. The trumpet of the Lord sounded, and all the widowers came running.
So this chapter I just read, Mary was raised as a vestal virgin with other virgins in the great temple of the Hebrews in Israel. This is what we were just talking about. And that’s something that Marguerite goes into in this book, that there were temple virgins dedicated to weaving the vestments of the priests and the great cloth that separated the Holy of Holies from the outer sanctuary. And Mary was raised as one of these people. But when she turned twelve, that is when she probably began menstruating, the priests were worried about the menstrual blood polluting the temple, and so they thought it best to go ahead and marry her off. And so they called the various widowers to come.
Chapter 9. And Joseph too threw down his carpenter’s axe and left for the meeting. When they had all gathered, they went to the high priest with their staffs. After the high priest had collected everyone’s staff, he entered the temple and began to pray. When he had finished his prayer, he took the staffs and went out and began to give them back to each man. But there was no sign on any of them. Joseph got the last staff.
Suddenly a dove came out of this staff and perched on Joseph’s head. Joseph, Joseph, the high priest said, you’ve been chosen by Lot to take the Virgin of the Lord into your care and protection. But Joseph objected. I already have sons and I’m an old man. She’s only a young woman. I’m afraid that I’ll become the butt of jokes among the people of Israel.
And the high priest responded, Joseph, fear the Lord your God and remember what God did to Dathan, Abiran, and Koreh. The Earth was split open and they were all swallowed up because of their objection. So now Joseph, you ought to take heed so that the same thing won’t happen to your family. And so out of fear, Joseph took her into his care and protection. He said to her, Mary, I’ve gotten you from the temple of the Lord, but now I’m leaving you at home. I’m going away to build houses, but I’ll come back to you. The Lord will protect you.
Chapter 10. Meanwhile, there was a council of the priests who agreed, let’s make a veil for the temple of the Lord. And the high priest said, summon the true virgins from the tribe of David. And so the temple assistants left and searched everywhere and found seven. And the high priest then remembered the girl, Mary, that she too was from the tribe of David and was pure in God’s eyes.
And so the temple assistants went out and got her and they took the maidens into the temple of the Lord. And the high priest said, cast lots for me to decide who will spin which threads for the veil, the gold, the white, the linen, the silk, the violet, the scarlet, and the true purple. And the true purple and scarlet threads fell to Mary. And she took them and turned home. Now it was at this time that Zechariah became mute and Samuel took his place until Zechariah regained his speech. Meanwhile, Mary had taken up the scarlet thread and was spinning it.
Chapter 11. And she took her water jar and went out to fill it with water. Suddenly there was a voice saying to her, Greetings, favored one, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women. Mary began looking around both right and left to see where the voice was coming from. She became terrified and went home.
After putting the water jar down and taking up the purple thread, she sat down on her chair and began to spin. A heavenly messenger suddenly stood before her. Don’t be afraid, Mary. You see, you have found favor in the sight of the Lord of all. You will conceive by means of his word. But as she listened, Mary was doubtful and said, If I actually conceive by the Lord, the living God, will I also give birth the way women usually do? And the messenger of the Lord replied, No, Mary, because the power of God will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called Holy Son of the Most High, and you will name him Jesus. The name means he will save his people from their sins. And Mary said, Here I am, the Lord’s slave before him. I pray that all you’ve told me comes true.
Chapter Twelve And she finished spinning the purple and scarlet thread and took her work up to the high priest. The high priest accepted them and praised her and said, Mary, the Lord God has extolled your name, and you will be blessed by all the generations of the Earth.
Mary rejoiced and left to visit her relative Elizabeth. She knocked at the door. Elizabeth heard her, tossed aside the scarlet thread, ran to the door and opened it for her. And she blessed her and said, Who am I that the mother of my Lord should visit me? You see, the baby inside me has jumped for joy and blessed you. But Mary forgot the mysteries which the heavenly messenger Gabriel had spoken, and she looked up to the sky and said, Who am I, Lord, that every generation on Earth will congratulate me? She spent three months with Elizabeth. Day by day, her womb kept swelling. And so Mary became frightened, returned home and hid from the people of Israel. She was just sixteen years old when these mysterious things happened to her.
And by the way, you notice that Elizabeth was also a weaver with the scarlet threads, and scarlet being the royal or holy color. And we know that Elizabeth was the one who was pregnant at the time with John the Baptist.
Chapter Thirteen She was in her sixth month when one day Joseph came home from his building projects, entered his house and found her pregnant. He struck himself in the face, threw himself to the ground on sackcloth and began to cry bitterly. What sort of face should I present to the Lord God? What prayer can I say on her behalf, since I received her as a virgin from the temple of the Lord God and didn’t protect her? Who has set this trap for me? Who has done this evil deed in my house? Who has lured this virgin away from me and violated her? The story of Adam has been repeated in my case, hasn’t it? For just as Adam was praying when the serpent came and found Eve alone, deceived her and corrupted her, so the same thing has happened to me.
So Joseph got up from the sackcloth and summoned Mary and said to her, God has taken a special interest in you. How could you have done this? Have you forgotten the Lord your God? Why have you brought shame on yourself? You were raised in the Holy of Holies and fed by a heavenly messenger. But she began to cry bitter tears. I’m innocent. I haven’t had sex with any man. And Joseph said to her, then where did the child you’re carrying come from? And she replied, as the Lord my God lives, I don’t know where it came from.
Chapter 14 And Joseph became very frightened and no longer spoke with her as he pondered what he was going to do with her. And Joseph said to himself, if I try to cover up her sin, I’ll end up going against the law of the Lord. And if I disclose her condition to the people of Israel, I’m afraid that the child inside her might be heaven sent and I’ll end up handing innocent blood over to a death sentence. So what should I do with her? I know—I’ll divorce her quietly. But when night came, a messenger of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream and said, don’t be afraid of this girl because the child in her is the Holy Spirit’s doing. She will have a son and you will name him Jesus. The name means he will save his people from their sins. And Joseph got up from his sleep and praised the God of Israel who had given him this favor. And so he began to protect the girl.
Chapter 15 Then Anas, the scholar, came to him and said, Joseph, why haven’t you attended our assembly? And he replied to him, because I was worn out from the trip and rested my first day home. Then Anas turned and saw that Mary was pregnant. He left in a hurry for the high priest had said to him, you remember Joseph, don’t you? The man you yourself vouched for? Well, he’s committed a serious offense. And the high priest said, in what way? Joseph has violated the virgin he received from the temple of the Lord, he replied. He has had his way with her and hasn’t disclosed his action to the people of Israel. And the high priest asked him, has Joseph really done this? And he replied, send temple assistants and you’ll find the virgin pregnant. And so the temple assistants went and found her just as Anas had reported. And then they brought her along with Joseph to the court.
Mary, why have you done this? the high priest asked her. Why have you humiliated yourself? Have you forgotten the Lord, your God? You who were raised in the holy of the holies and were fed by heavenly messengers? You of all people who heard their hymns and danced for them. Why have you done this? And she wept bitterly. As the Lord God lives, I stand innocent before him. Believe me, I have not had sex with any man. And the high priest said, Joseph, why have you done this? And Joseph said, as the Lord lives, I am innocent where she is concerned.
And the high priest said, don’t perjure yourself, but tell the truth. You’ve had your way with her and haven’t disclosed this action to the people of Israel. And you haven’t humbled yourself under God’s mighty hand so that your offspring might be blessed. But Joseph was silent.
Chapter 16. Then the high priest said, return the virgin you received from the temple to the Lord. And Joseph bursting into tears. And the high priest said, I’m going to give you the Lord’s drink test, and it will disclose your sin clearly to both of you. And the high priest took the water and made Joseph drink it and sent him into the wilderness. But he returned unharmed. And he made the girl drink it too and sent her into the wilderness. She also came back unharmed.
And everybody was surprised because their sin had not been revealed. And so the high priest said, if the Lord God has not exposed your sin, then neither do I condemn you. And he dismissed them. Joseph took Mary and returned home celebrating and praising the God of Israel.
Chapter 17. Now an order came from the Emperor Augustus that everybody in Bethlehem of Judea be enrolled in the census.
And Joseph wondered, I’ll enroll my sons, but what am I going to do with this girl? How will I enroll her? As my wife? I’m ashamed to do that. As my daughter? The people of Israel know she’s not my daughter. How this is to be decided depends on the Lord. And so he saddled his donkey and had her get on it. His son led it and Samuel brought up the rear. As they neared the three mile marker, Joseph turned around and saw that she was sulking. And he said to himself, perhaps the baby she is carrying is causing her discomfort. Joseph turned around again and saw her laughing and said to her, Mary, what’s going on with you? One minute I see you laughing and the next minute you’re sulking. And she replied, Joseph, it’s because I imagined two peoples in front of me, one weeping and mourning and the other celebrating and jumping for joy.
Halfway through the trip, Mary said to him, Joseph, help me down from the donkey. The child inside me is about to be born. And he helped her down and said to her, where will I take you to give you some privacy since this place is out in the open?
Chapter 18. He found a cave nearby and took her inside. He stationed his sons to guard her and went to look for Hebrew midwife in the country around Bethlehem. Now, I, Joseph, was walking along and yet not going anywhere. I looked up at the vault of the sky and I saw it standing still and then at the clouds and saw them paused in amazement and at the birds of the sky suspended in mid air. And I looked on the Earth and I saw a bowl lying there and workers reclining around it with their hands in the bowl. Some were chewing and yet did not chew. Some were picking up something to eat and yet did not pick it up. And some were putting food in their mouths and yet did not do so. Instead, they were all looking upward. I saw sheep being driven along and yet the sheep stood still. The shepherd was lifting his hand to strike them and yet his hand remained raised. And I observed the current of the river and saw goats with their mouths in the water and yet they were not drinking. Then all of a sudden everything and everybody went on with what they had been doing.
Chapter 19. Then I saw a woman coming down from the hill country and she asked, Where are you going, sir? I replied, I am looking for a Hebrew midwife. She inquired, Are you an Israelite? I told her yes. And she said, And who’s the one having a baby in the cave? I replied, My fiance. And she continued, She isn’t your wife? I said to her, She is Mary, who was raised in the temple of the Lord. I obtained her by lot as my wife, but she’s not really my wife. She’s pregnant by the Holy Spirit. The midwife said, Really? Joseph responded, Come and see.
And the midwife went with him. In the cave, a dark cloud overshadowed it. The midwife said, I’ve really been privileged, because today my eyes have seen a miracle in that salvation has come to Israel. Suddenly the cloud withdrew from the cave, and an intense light appeared inside the cave, so that their eyes could not bear to look. And a little later, that light receded, until an infant became visible. He took the breast of his mother, Mary. Then the midwife shouted, What a great day this is for me, because I have seen this new miracle. And the midwife left the cave, and met Salome, and said to her, Salome, Salome, let me tell you about a new marvel. A virgin has given birth, and you know that’s impossible. And Salome replied, As the Lord my God lives, unless I insert my finger and examine her, I will never believe the virgin has given birth.
Chapter 20 The midwife entered and said, Mary, position yourself for an examination. You are facing a serious test. And so Mary, when she heard these instructions, positioned herself, and Salome inserted her finger into Mary. And then Salome cried aloud and said, I’ll be damned, because of my transgression and my disbelief, I have put the living God on trial. Look, my hand is disappearing, it’s been consumed by flames. Then Salome fell on her knees in the presence of the Lord with these words, God of my ancestors, remember me because I am a descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Do not make an example of me for the people of Israel, but give me a place among the poor again. You yourself know, Lord, that I’ve been healing people in your name and have been receiving my payment from you.
And suddenly a messenger of the Lord appeared, saying to her, Salome, Salome, the Lord of all has heard your prayer. Hold out your hand to the child and pick him up, and then you will have salvation and joy. Salome approached the child and picked him up with these words, I’ll worship him because he’s been born to be king of Israel. And Salome was instantly healed and left the cave vindicated. Then a voice said abruptly, Salome, Salome, don’t report the marvels you’ve seen until the child goes to Jerusalem.
Joseph was about ready to depart for Judea, but a great uproar was about to take place in Bethlehem in Judea. It all started when astrologers came inquiring, where is the newborn king of the Judeans? We are here because we saw his star in the east and have come to pay him homage. When Herod heard about their visit, he was terrified and sent agents to the astrologers. He also sent for the high priests and questioned them in his palace. What has been written about the anointed? Where is he supposed to be born? They said to him, in Bethlehem, Judea, that’s what the scriptures say. And he dismissed them.
Then he questioned the astrologers, what sign have you seen regarding the one who has been born king? And the astrologers said, we saw a star of exceptional brilliance in the sky, and it so dimmed the other stars that they disappeared. Consequently, we know that a king was born for Israel, and we have come to pay him homage. Herod instructed them, go and begin your search, and if you find him, report back to me, so I can also go and pay him homage. The astrologers departed. And there it was, the star they had seen in the east, led them on until they came to the cave.
Then the star stopped directly above the head of the child. After the astrologers saw him with his mother Mary, they took gifts out of their pouches, gold, pure incense, and myrrh. Since they had been advised by the heavenly messenger not to go into Judea, they returned to their country by another route.
Chapter 22 When Herod realized that he had been duped by the astrologers, he flew into a rage and dispatched his executioners with instructions to kill all the infants, two years old and younger. When Mary heard that the infants were being killed, she was frightened, and took her child, wrapped him in strips of cloth, and put him in a feeding trough used by cattle. As for Elizabeth, when she heard that they were looking for John, she took him and went up into the hill country. She kept searching for a place to hide him, but there was none to be had. Then she groaned and said out loud, Mountain of God, please take in a mother with her child. You see, Elizabeth was unable to keep on climbing because her nerve failed her. But suddenly the mountain was split open and let them in. This mountain allowed the light to shine through to her, since a messenger of the Lord was with them for protection.
Okay, there are more chapters that follow, and if you are interested in this, I encourage you to pick up a copy of the Infancy Gospel of James and read the entire book. But since we’re focusing on Christmas right now and the birth of Jesus, I think these are the chapters that relate to that. God bless you, Happy New Year, and Onward and Upward!
