Mystical Garden and Luisa

The Bahir speaks about the garden or vineyard and the process of digging up the bad crop or wild sour grapes and planting a new crop. We saw in my last post that some interpret this in regards to reincarnation whereas Perle Besserman demonstrates that is part of the mystical work we do in meditative prayer in order to be conformed and unite (devekut)with the Divine Will. The Bahir says: "Go and see. This is like a person who has planted a vineyard in his garden, and he hoped it would bring forth cultivated sweet grapes, and it brought forth wild sour grapes [after isaiah 5:2]. He saw that he was not succeeding- so he replanted it, placed a fence around it, repaired the breaches, pruned the wild grapes and planted it a second time. He saw that he wasn't succeeding-he again fenced it off, and again replanted it after pruning it. How often? Until a thousand generations,as it is written: "He commanded a Word to a thousand generations' [Psalm 105:8]. This is what is meant by the saying[Hagigah 13b]: "Nine hundred and seventy four generations were lacking, when the Holy One, blessed be He, stood and planted them in every generation..."The 26 generations [974 + 26 =1000] refer to the mantra of reciting "Give thanks to God for his mercy is everlasting" 26 times in Psalm 136. This 26 alludes to Y-H-V-H as the God of Mercy and to the 26 letters between each letter of the names Terumah, Miriam and Yeshua hidden in the text in Genesis 1 as a hidden mystical garden. The Rabbis also connect this with the 26 generations of Exile from the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve lived in Divine Will until the giving of the Torah or Word on Sinai which was a manifestion of the Divine Will as Divine Mercy by revealing the Torah 974 generations sooner.

Luisa Piccarreta in the "Book of Heaven writes about this mystical garden: "Afterwards, I found myself in a vast garden, and to my surprise, I found the Queen Mama who, approaching me, said to me: "My daughter, come with me to work in this garden. We must plant celestial flowers and fruits. It is now almost empty: and if there is any plant at all, it is terrestial and human; therefore it is appropriate for us to pull it up, so that this garden may be all pleasing to my son Jesus. The seeds we must plant are all my virtues, my works, my pains, which contain the seed of the 'fiat voluntas tua'. There was nothing I did which did not contain this seed of the Will of God...The whole of Creation, all beings, recognised me as ruler over them, because they saw the Supreme Will reigning in me. So, we will unite all that I did together with all that you did with this seed of the Supreme Will, and we will plant it in this garden."...But while we were doing this, from behind the walls of the garden, which were very high, we heard the noise of weapons and of cannons, which roared in a horrible way; so we were forced to run out and give help. As we arrived there, we could see people of various races, of different colours, and many nations united together, which were waging battle and striking terror and fright..." [Volume 17 August 4 1925] This mystical garden is the garden of our soul in which it is empty except for a few deeds done in our own selfish will rather than in union with the Divine Will. It would take at least a thousand lifetimes to achieve any significant spiritual progress. However God in his mercy and grace speaks a word or seed into every generation (soul)which is the seed of Joseph (in a very hidden way), Mary and Luisa united to Jesus that will lead to all being replanted in the Will of God as it is in heaven so on the earth. Those who live in the Divine Will will redo or replant all generations in his Will with the four Minds. Through this process all souls who seek truth and the good will be surrounded by many mystical divine Lives which makes it unnecessary to have a literal thousand lifetimes to advance spiritually and produce good fruit. Even our bad fruit is replanted or redone in Divine Will and is transformed into eternal fruitfulness.

Bahir and Reincarnation

As I have mentioned in a previous blog the idea of gilgul as reincarnation is a misintrepretation of Jewish meditative and mystical concepts through the penetration of pagan eastern ideas into Judaism increasing in recent centuries. Many writers following Gershom Scholem claim that it is taught in the mystical book "Bahir". "In contrast with the conspicuous opposition of Jewish philosophy, metempsychosis is taken for granted in the Kabbalah from its first literary expression in the Sefer ha-Bahir (published in late 12th century). The absence of any special apology for this doctrine, which is expounded by the Bahir in several parables, proves that the idea grew or developed in the circles of the early kabbalists without any affinity to the philosophic discussion of transmigration. Biblical verses (e.g., "One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh" (Eccles. 1:4), taken as meaning that the generation that passes away is the generation that comes) and talmudic aggadot and parables were explained in terms of transmigration. It is not clear whether there was any connection between the appearance of the metempsychosic doctrine in kabbalistic circles in southern France and its appearance among the contemporary Cathars, who also lived there. Indeed the latter, like most believers in transmigration, taught that the soul also passes into the bodies of animals, whereas in the Bahir it is mentioned only in relation to the bodies of men.


After the Bahir the doctrine of gilgul developed in several directions and became one of the major doctrines of the Kabbalah, although the kabbalists differed widely in regard to details. In the 13th century, transmigration was viewed as an esoteric doctrine and was only alluded to, but in the 14th century many detailed and explicit writings on it appeared. In philosophic literature the term ha'atakah ("transference") was generally used for gilgul; in kabbalistic literature the term gilgul appears only from the Sefer ha-Temunah onward; both are translations of the Arabic term tanāsukh. The early kabbalists, such as the disciples of Isaac the Blind and the kabbalists of Gerona, spoke of "the secret of ibbur" ("impregnation"). It was only in the late 13th or 14th centuries that gilgul and ibbur began to be differentiated. The terms hitḥallefut ("exchange") and din benei ḥalof (from Prov. 31:8) also occur. From the period of the Zohar on, the term gilgul became prevalent in Hebrew literature and began to appear in philosophic works as well." This however demonstrates a total misunderstanding of the original meditative and mystical nature of the concepts of gilgul and ibbur. Gershom Scholem makes many mistakes because he perceives Kabbalah as part of Gnosticism- rather than Gnosticism as a perversion of the authentic mystical traditions of Judaism and Christianity.



Perle Besserman a student of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan and Rabbi Zvi Yehudah Kook and a descendant of the Baal Shem Tov writes about this in her book "Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism". "Gershom Scholem cites the twelfth-century Sefer Bahir as the first kabbalistic reference to the idea that the soul travels from one body to another after physical death. Identifying Jewish mysticism as an antiphilosophical, antiaristolean phenomenon and likening it to its Christian and Islamic counterparts, he links the three dualistic (and therefore heretical) traditions under the common heading of "Gnosticism". Defining the kabbalistic term gilgul as, "literally, 'turning over' or 'rolling over', " he asserts that the underlying assumption in all three dulaistic belief systems is the desire for redemption outside the physical body. Impeccable as his scholarship is, however, Scholem's literal interpretation of the term distracts him from its symbolic function. To the practitioner of Kabbalah, the soul is neither a physical or an ethereal entity, but a figurative representation of a level of consciousness. Whether it is referred to as ruach, neshamah, or nefesh, the soul corresponds to a stage in the meditation process. Therefore, rather than transmigrating, literally, from body to body after death, the soul (consciousness) "rolls" and 'skips" from one world (sefirah)to the next as it "ascends" in meditation to the highest realm of nonthought. In their instruction manuals, mystics from the Merkavah period to the present point out that the ruach level of the soul is synonymous with the breath, and that 'planting" alludes to a meditative technique which demands a lifelong commitment to the practice of permuting and chanting the sacred Names."

Besserman then quotes the two passages in the Bahir that Gershom believes speak of reincarnation and demonstrates that they are a hidden set of meditation instructions. "In the first passage, the "rest" that follows the image of the souls flying out corresponds to the period assigned to holding the exhalation while permuting the letters of the sacred Name a thousand times." In the Zohar this flying out of the souls imagery is linked to the divine song and melody connected with the nekudim and the musical cantillations. Besserman continues by discussing the allegory of the the vineyard: "The second passage gives prepartory instructions for the mediation technique known as the planting.. One is enjoined to 'place a fence' around the area (isolate oneself from worldly affairs in meditation, hitbodedut): to engage in "repairing" the breaches around the grapevines (perform a tikkun meditation linking one's consciousness to one of the red or green lower or upper sefirot); and to prune' distracting thoughts before reciting the Names no less than a thousand times. Where Scholem goes on to argue that the Bahir's references to 'garments' stands for the numerous impure bodies assumed by the human soul in transmigration (including those of animals!), we ought to see these as prefiguring the Zohar, which warns aspirants not to be fooled by the "garments" (i.e. the exoteric level of the Torah) that hide the Skekhinah from the uninitiated." The Shekhinah sometimes refers to the concept or aspect of the Mystical Mother who is clothed with all the garments of the Divine King as Matronita (Virgin Mother),G'virah (Queen Mother)and Ark of the Covenant, Sovereign of the whole Universe (see the Zohar) among others.


These insights of Perle Besserman seem to be confirmed by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov in Likutey Moharan Vol.1:2 [Emor El ha Kohanim]on the mystery of prayer. He speaks about entering into mystical union with the spirit or aspect of Joseph in prayer and the spirit or aspect of Moses through righteous connectedness. By entering into the charisms of Joseph and Moses one enters into aspect of the Messiah. We know that this has nothing to do with reincarnation as all the scholars referred to each other as Moses. "Therefore, before praying it is necessary for each individual to attach himself to the true saints of the generation. For each true saint is an aspect (type/sign/behinat)of Messiah, an aspect of Moses. Thus we find the saints addressing each other as Moses (shabbat 101b): "Moses, you said it well". And Moses is a type (behinat) of the Messiah..."[Likutey Moharan Vol.1:2;6]This is further demonstrated in the next section (2:7) where Rebbe Nachman refers to the teachings contained in the Sefer haGilgulim. He also confirms what Besserman wrote about the garments having nothing to do with reincarnation but is a prayer state of the soul. " Now all the Torah a person studies for the purpose of observing and fulfilling-all these are sparks of souls, and they are clothed within prayer. There they are renewed in an aspect of pregnancy (ibbur). As is brought in the Sefer haGilgulim: All souls enter Malkut (the Sefirah of kingship/kingdom)in the aspect of pregnancy (ibbur) and are renewed there...Thus these souls together with prayer are termed 'glory' on account of prayer's clothing them. Just as Rabbi Yochanan called his garments 'my glorifiers'..." Rebbe Nachman then alludes to the souls clothed in glory through the prayer and praise ascent uniting with the Mystical Mother's female waters (mayin nukvin)in her mystical womb. This mystical pregnancy brings to birth new insights of Torah represented as mystical maidens of the Mother. These new insights can only be embraced when united with one's saintly spiritual guide (tzadik of the generation). "...The souls shine to prayer in an aspect of raising female waters and prayer shines to the souls in the aspect of new insights. For She [the Mystical Mother] renews them in an aspect of pregnancy. And the souls, when clothed in prayer and brought to the Tzadik of the generation, are an aspect of "maidens, Her companions who follow Her, shall be brought to you"(Psalm 45:15)." Unfortunately many followers of Breslov have also read back into Rebbe Nachman's writings the doctrine of reincarnation and thus polluting the pure Mother's milk of the Torah with the flesh of the demonic goat. Rebbe Nachman is a true master of the Zohar and Bahir. He was a True Master of Prayer for his generation and teaches cryptically at times the deep mysteries of prayer and the Kingdom and not the impure klippot of reincarnation and eastern occultic wisdom. These impure and pagan demonic teachings mixed with Kabbalah are found today unfortunately in many books even by orthodox Jewish Rabbis including Breslov Rabbis.
see Reincarnation and Judaism

Divine Melody

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov speaks of the divine melody in all things. This melody is the life-force or hidden Will in all things. One has to go beyond intellect and words into the great silence in order to then hear or perceive this hidden melody. This is the melody or music of the galgalim or spheres. Zvi Mark writes about this in "Mysticism and Madness". "...This conception is portrayed in a circular structure: every created being and wisdom has a melody and wisdom that are higher than it, that encompass and vitalise it, and by force of which'this wisdom is derived'. Thus it is possible to ascend from one wisdom to another, from one level to the next, until one reaches the beginning of Creation..." One must then first descend to the void of silence before one can ascend on the hidden melody into the Infinite Light (Ain Sof). Rebbe Nachman speaks of the highest level of the melody as the melody of faith/trust (emunah). Rebbe Nachman connects this melody with the Song of Moses which he will sing (yashir)as the future song or melody which can nullify and repair (tikkun)all heresies and sins.

In regards to the melody in the teachings of Rebbe Nachman Breslov Rav Eliezer Berland teaches his students the practical application. "The Rav read from Chayei Moharan 340 of the praises of the holy teachings of the Rebbe, that anyone who heard his teaching with its unique melody and dance would become egoless out of ecstasy. The Rav said that this is the main thing—to hear the melody that emanates from every single letter, because there is nothing higher than melody, than the “World of Ta’amim” [i.e. the melody that accompanies the reading of the Torah]. A person in [a state of] melody ascends to the world of Atzilus, where there are no words, just melody. This is the aspect of desire and longing for Hashem, an aspect of “My heart and my flesh will sing to the living G–d” (Tehillim 84:13.) The Rav said that in Breslov, today, people ask, “How much may one get excited? How many degrees of heat must one burn for Hashem?” This is what someone asked the Tcheriner Rav, “What is the meaning of that which the Rebbe says in lesson forty–nine, that the heart of a Jew burns endlessly [literally, “to the Ein Sof”] for Hashem?” The Tcheriner Rav rebuked him, saying, “There was a time that when people read this line, they would immediately run out to the field to cry to Hashem. Today they ask what it means? How many degrees?” The Rav said that, today, the entire teaching of Rebbe Nachman is turned upside–down. The main thing is the practice, to do hisbodedus, to get up at midnight and go to the field and, in so doing, meaning, by following the Rebbe’s guidance with simplicity, which is the main thing, one then merits to hear the awesome melody of each and every lesson. Today, everything is turned into sophistry, into hair–splitting questions and solutions. And even though this also is very good, because there is incredible wisdom in every lesson, the truth is that the main point of learning in–depth is to go deeper into hearing the melody that permeates every single lesson..." [from shuvubomin.org].



Rabbi Avraham Greenbaum writes about the ten melodies in the teachings of Rebbe Nachman in "Wings of the Sun". "...the main cure of the soul is through melody and joy. There are ten kinds of melody, and these bring vitality to the ten kinds of pulse. The "ten kinds of melody" are mentioned in the Talmud and Zohar. "Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Through ten expressions of praise the book of Psalms was composed: Nitzuach, Nigun, Maskil, Mizmor, Shir, Ashrey, Tehilah, Tefilah, Hoda'ah and Haleluyah" (Pesachim 117a and see Rashi on Psalms 1:1). The Zohar tells us that the ten kinds of melody correspond to the Ten Sefirot (Zohar III, 223b)..." The 'Na NaCh NaChMa NaChMaN' niggun of Sabba Yisrael and the Na Nach movement is connected with the ten melodies which are one melody. This mystery is the mystery of Y-H-V-H and Y-Sh-V-Ayin.

Reincarnation and Judaism

One of the greatest and most secret and hidden concepts in Jewish Mysticism is the concepts of the World of Galgalim (Rounds/spheres). Perverted concepts of Gilgul which in English is translated as reincarnation has come to dominate in certain branches of Judaism eventhough Jewish authorities such as Saadia Gaon condemned such beliefs. In recent centuries this concept of gilgul has come to mean reincarnation in Jewish circles. It comes from the words galgal (circle/round) and Gilgal (places of stone circles mentioned in the Bible). It actually refers to mystical rounds of ascent of the souls in the spiritual life/world. It is linked to the wheel (or Galgal ) in Ezekiel. This has been linked to the Buddhist and Hindu concepts of reincarnation and the Wheel of Life etc. but this is a perversion of the original concept. These modern developments are then read back into old Jewish texts such as the Bahir and the Zohar confusing the issue even more. The problem occurs when those not so mystically advanced misinterpret the mystical insights of the great mystics whether they be Jewish or Christian. Perle Besserman a descendant of the Baal Shem Tov in her book "Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism" discusses how those references in the Jewish mystical texts that have been interpreted as referring to reincarnation are actually texts revealing the stages of meditation in the mystics practice of prayer.

In Judaism there are different levels to the soul called nefesh, ruach, neshamah and coverings of the soul chayah and yechidah. The nefesh is the soul we are born with- or the vessel of the soul. The concept of Gilgul refers especially to the level of neshamah and Gilgul is also called Gilgul Neshamot. The four higher levels according to some are states the soul merits or attains to. It is also connected to the universal soul of Adam (Adam Klalit) in which all mankind shared but with Adam's sin it broke into many individual neshamot. So we see the idea of the soul as Neshamah is not what most of us think about when we use the term soul. Just as John the Baptist and Elisha shared in the spirit/soul of Elijah in some mystical way- this does not mean reincarnation in the sense of the person/nefesh of Elijah being reincarnated. We see that Elisha received the double portion of the spirit of Elijah and Elisha was alive at the same time as Elijah. This concept reminds one of the Catholic idea of entering into the charism of certain saints and founders of spirtitual works. The concept of Gilgal and rounds is alluded to in the life of Samuel the Prophet: "And he went every year and made rounds of Beit El, Gilgal and Mitzpeh"(1 Samuel 7:16)


Rav Avraham Brandwein writes: "There is another kind of gilgul that can take place while a person is still alive. The Ari calls this form of reincarnation, Ibur. It is usually thought that gilgul takes place after a person passes from this world, after the death of the body, at which time or soon after the soul transmigrates into another body. Ibur does not work like this. It involves receiving a new (higher) soul sometime during one's lifetime. That is, a new soul comes into a person's heart while he is still alive. The reason this is called Ibur, gestation or pregnancy, is because this person becomes "pregnant" with this new soul while he is still alive. This phenomenon is the deeper explanation behind certain people going through drastic changes in their lives. They either undergo a change of mind about certain things or change their lifestyle, and thereby ascend to the next spiritual level. This is also included under the general heading of gilgul-incarnation because they are now hosting a new soul [or an aspect of their own soul or a higher soul of which they are a part] in order to be a vehicle for that soul's rectification. This is what occurs when a person is ready to advance in his soul evolution. This is why the soul has five names, each higher than the other, nefesh, ruach, neshamah, chayah and yechidah. [According to the Zohar, the four higher levels of the soul usually enter a person during his lifetime in Ibur: First, a person receives nefesh when he or she is born; then, when they merit it, they receive ruach; when they merit it, they receive neshamah; when they merit it, they receive chayah. The higher the level, the rarer its occurrence. Very few have ever merited to neshamah, let alone chayah. Nobody has ever received the highest level, yechidah. Adam would have received it had he not sinned. " We thus see that the terms gilgul and gilgulim (which mean cycle and cycles rather then reincarnation)is referring more to spiritual states and graces that the soul attains to in the spiritual realm of the galgalim.

Eli Dahan writes:"..."Know, that no person on earth can escape from these Gilgulim". The Ari claims that if a purified soul has neglected some religious duties on earth, it must return to the earthly life, and attaching itself to the soul of a living man, unite with it in order to make good such neglect. Further, the departed soul of a man freed from sin appears again on earth to support a weak soul which feels unequal to its task..." Here the Ari (or rather his disciple Chayyim Vidal) is not speaking about reincarnation in the Eastern sense but of souls coming back and attaching themselves in some mystical way as a form of purgatorial penance (tikun). Many similar accounts are found in Catholic writings of souls who cling to the living or who come spiritually to people or places connected to their lives in order to do reparation in order to purify the soul before the ascent to Heaven. Catholics also believe that the souls of purgatory can visit and assist the living. Luisa Piccaretta's concepts of doing rounds in the Divine Will clarify what the Jewish mystics glimpsed by 'running and returning' of these mysteries of galgalim or gilgulim.

Gilgal Refaim- Ancient Stone Circle in Israel

Saadia Gaon refers to the eastern concept of reincarnation of souls returning into physical bodies as coming from avodah zara (foreign or alien worship). Many have read the Sava de Mishpatim in the Zohar as speaking of reincarnation in this sense but in fact the Zohar is condemning such concepts using the analogy of the soul as a Daughter of Abraham-Bat Kohen who has united with a alien or foreign man (ish zar). The Zohar confirms that the Eastern concept of reincarnation is connected to avodah zara. However it goes on to state that some of the Goyim and others who believe such errors may be more holy and sincere than the Jewish High Priest who is insincere and ignorant. This part of the Zohar is highly mystical and speaks of spiritual states and mysteries. However when one interprets them in a literal way great mistakes occur. The Zohar here speaks about tormented souls and new born babies however one should not necessarily interpret this as literal babies but as referring to those who are entering into a new spiritual state. However God foresees that they will be corrupted by the evil side (represented by Lilith)so he takes them out of this world while they are still suckling on their mother's breast (still connected to goodness). In the same way Luisa is referred to as the new born in the Divine Will and she speaks of mystically bringing to birth divine lives. It would be easy for one to misunderstand her teachings and think they referred to some kind of reincarnation if one read her in a literalistic manner. Sadly the words of the old donkey driver (Elijah who is connected to the mystery of Gilgal)are still misunderstood and mistaken for those of the impure foreskin which is the teachings of Lilith on the demonic,reincarnation etc. It was near the stone circle of Gilgal that the Israelites of Joshua's generation were circumcised and rested at Gibeath Haaraloth (the Hill of Foreskins)before entering the Holy Land. Gilgal from this origin was also associated with a spiritual place of rest.


The Zohar also alludes to the virginal nuptial unions in the spiritual realms of the soul. In this regard it refers to Solomon and the Shekhinah or Mother who is also known as Solomon's Shekhinah or Hokmah (wisdom) as opposed to the higher Shekhinah or mother who is Elohim's Shekhinah or Wisdom (Sophia). Both the Talmud and the Midrash Mishle speak of the heavenly Sanhedrin that wished to damn Solomon but he was saved because the Shekhinah appeared before God and prostrated herself and pleaded on behalf of Solomon. We could say that Solomon represents the nefesh (vessel of the soul) in the World of Assiyah and the first Nuptial union with the lower Mother and nukvah (Luisa) is the level of ruach (spirit/wind/breath)-the south wind and the eagle in the World of Yetzirah, the next level is Neshama (soul) and associated by the Zohar with Joseph-the west wind and the Ox (Bull/Unicorn) in the World of Beriah, the next level Chaya (life)is nuptial union with the little chaya Matronita (Our Lady)-the North wind and Lioness in the World of Atzilut and the highest level is yechidah (union)with Yeshua ha Mashiach-the East wind and the Man who is the Adam Kadmon.


Kabbalah also speaks of three stages of growth of the soul Ibur (embryo), Yenika (suckling/nursling)and Mochin (brain/mind). However many Kabbalist don't understand that once one reaches the highest spiritual level the process is reversed. One moves from gradlut (greatness)where one is a fully developed intellectual being to katnut (smallness) where one moves into the darkness of faith to become as a nursling child dependant on its Mother's care. Then the soul must descend to katnut d'katnut as a mystical embryo with no independent action outside the Divine Will. Rebbe Nachman of Breslov understood this mystery but knew that in his time one could only experience this temporarily as 'running and returning' but he looked forward to the future time when one could attain this stage in a continuous, eternal and divine manner. One would then live simultaneously in this world and the Universe of the Third Heavenly Realm called Atzilut (third Yehi or fiat). This grace of the Divine Will(not present on earth with the death and assumption of Our Lady)was given potentially to all who desire it beginning with Luisa Piccarreta in 1889- less than a hundred years after the death of Rebbe Nachman.

The great Sage Saadia Gaon writes on Reincarnation in Emunoth veDeoth:"Yet, I must say that I have found certain people, who call themselves Jews, professing the doctrine of metempsychosis (reincarnation) which is designated by them as the theory of “transmigration” of souls. What the mean thereby is that the spirit of Ruben is transferred to Simon and afterwards to Levi and after that to Judah. Many of them would go so far as to assert that the spirit of a human being might enter into the body of a beast or that of a beast into the body of a human being, and other such nonsense and stupidities. This in itself, however, indicates how very foolish they are. For they take it for granted that the body of a man is capable of transforming the essence of the soul so as to make of it a human soul, after having been the soul of a beast. They assume, furthermore, that the soul itself is capable of transforming the essence of a human body to the point of endowing it with the traits of the beasts, even though its form be that of men. It was not sufficient for them, then, that they attributed to the soul a variable nature by not assigning to it an intrinsic essence, but they contradicted themselves when they declared the soul capable of transforming and changing the body, and the body capable of transforming and changing the soul. But such reasoning is a deviation from logic. The third [argument they present] is in the form of a logical argument. They same, namely: “Inasmuch as the Creator is just, it is inconceivable that he should occasion suffering to little children, unless it be for sins committed by their souls during the time that they were lodged in their former bodies.” This view is, however, subject to numerous refutations. The first is that they have forgotten what we have mentioned on the subject of compensation in the hereafter for misfortunes experienced in this world. Furthermore we should like to ask them what they conceive the original status of the soul to be – we mean its status when it is first created. Is it charged by its Master with any obligation to obey Him or not? If they allege that it is not so charged, then there can be no punishments for it either, since it was not charged with any obligations to begin with. If, on the other hand, they acknowledge the imposition of such a charge, in which case obedience and disobedience did not apply before, they thereby admit that God charges His servants with obligations on account of the future and not at all on account of the past. But then they return to our theory and are forced to give up their insistence on the view that man’s suffering in this world is due solely to his conduct in a previous existence."

also see Bahir and Reincarnation

Council of Florence and Jewish observance

Anti-Jewish Catholics often refer to the Papal Bull from the Council of Florence and quote sections out of the historical context and situation of the document. I thought my readers would like to hear part of my response to one such writer:

"...You quote in your different posts on this blog the same old misunderstanding of the Council of Florence and you elevate any statements that can be read in an anti-Jewish manner to the status of infalliblity while ignoring the continuing infallible magisterium of the Church and Pope today.

The whole negative theology on the Jews and Judaism followed by many Catholics in the past has been recognised by the magisterium in Vatican II and in the magisterial documents since, to have been a false theological path that in some ways helped lead us to the horrors of the Shoah. Of course those before Vatican II may have held those interpretations in good faith but today with the further magisterial development of doctrine those who hold to such theology are not thinking with the mind of the Church.
Coptic Pope and Bishops

I might add that not everything in an Ecumenical Council's documents are infallible teaching- much of it is either pastoral or disciplinary. For example it is obviously infallible doctrine when the Council of Florence affirms that to believe that one needs to keep particular Jewish observances and customs to be saved is a mortal sin. I and all Catholics would adhere to this. However the pastoral meaning of that for the Copts whom the Council is addressing is another reality. If we read the document out of context and in a hyper-literal way we would assume that no Catholic may be circumcised under pain of mortal sin. However we know that this was not the intention of the Church as after this time the Filippino people who practiced circumcision became Catholics and continued circumcising their sons to this day. What was the difference between the Copts of that day and the Filippinos- some Copts were claiming that one had to be circumcisied to be a member of the Church (thus seeming to make an observance into a requirement for salvation) whereas for the Filippino people they practiced circumcision as a initiation rite for a boy into manhood which was a cultural custom with some spiritual significance. The Church at the time of Florence obviously thought that asking the Copts (those who came in to union with Rome) to stop circumcising their sons would be the best pastoral policy to protect that infallible doctrine that one does not require circumcision to be saved. In another age with another situation or group the Church will adapt its pastoral policy to suit that time and place. Pastoral policies may be bad or good but they are certainly not infallible.

In recent years the Church practiced a very bad pastoral policy in regard to the Tridentine Latin Mass by almost suppressing it and many clerics persecuting those who held it dear. In time the Church has come to realise this bad pastoral approach and has sought to implement a better pastoral approach in this regard. So it is with the issues relating to Jews and Judaism and Jews in the Church."

The passage they refer to is from "Cantate Domino" which is the Bull on the reunion of the Copts. "Session 11—4 February 1442[Bull of Union with the Copts]:
It [The Holy Roman Church] firmly believes, professes and teaches that the legal prescriptions of the old Testament or the Mosaic law, which are divided into ceremonies, holy sacrifices and sacraments, because they were instituted to signify something in the future, although they were adequate for the divine cult of that age, once our lord Jesus Christ who was signified by them had come, came to an end and the sacraments of the new Testament had their beginning. Whoever, after the passion, places his hope in the legal prescriptions and submits himself to them as necessary for salvation and as if faith in Christ without them could not save, sins mortally. It does not deny that from Christ's passion until the promulgation of the gospel they could have been retained, provided they were in no way believed to be necessary for salvation. But it asserts that after the promulgation of the gospel they cannot be observed without loss of eternal salvation. Therefore it denounces all who after that time observe circumcision, the sabbath and other legal prescriptions as strangers to the faith of Christ and unable to share in eternal salvation, unless they recoil at some time from these errors. Therefore it strictly orders all who glory in the name of Christian, not to practise circumcision either before or after baptism, since whether or not they place their hope in it, it cannot possibly be observed without loss of eternal salvation..." This bull written in the triumphalist language of the Middle Ages may be difficult for people to understand. However it clearly is referring here to those who believe it is necessary for salvation to observe Jewish observances such as circumcision, Sabbath etc. It makes an exception for those first Christians until the church clarified the issue at the Council of Jerusalem. Those early Christians who believed that such practices were necessary for salvation even after the Passion did not commit a mortal sin, just as those Catholics who did not accept the Immaculate Conception before it was promulgation as a dogma, did not commit a mortal sin but after 1854 they do. One must also realise that this bull is not adressed to Jewish Catholics but to Gentiles who were believed by the Roman Church representatives to be practicing Jewish customs as a means to salvation. That the Roman officials may have misunderstood the Coptic practice is highly likely in an era of many prejudices and thus given the Pope and Council a false impression of the coptic practice and its reasons.

The document then refers to a pastoral policy as a result of this desire of the Church to save souls from mortal sin. It asks these Christians to refrain from making these practices into part of the Christian initiation rites prior to or after baptism whether they believe it is necessary for salvation or not. The Church considered it a priority to proclaim that salvation is found in the Messiah not particular Jewish observances. Pope Benedict XIV stated that the Church could bind all the Jewish observances on Gentile Catholics under the pain of mortal sin if she so desired for a new covenant purpose- however he stated that the Church would never do this with circumcision for the Gentiles. The issue of the place of circumcision in the life of Jewish Catholics (which in the early Church was called the Church of the Circumcision)has never been infallibly defined. That the Jewish branch of the Church continued with Jewish observances including circumcision demonstrates that while they certainly from the time of the Council of Jerusalem could not believe they were necessary for salvation but they certainly believed in their value as a means of sanctification for the Jewish soul. St Justin Martyr in the middle of the second century certainly still considered Jewishly observant Judeo-Catholics to be his fellow believers which was a hundred years after the Council of Jerusalem.



Even in regard to the Copts it would seem that the rather narrow pastoral policy (based on sincere intentions) put forward to the Copts regarding circumcision may have played a part in the failure of the full reunion of the Copts with Rome. After all the Egyptians had practiced circumcision since ancient times. The Church learnt from this rigid pastoral stance and did not follow it when the evanglisation to the Phillippines began. Today the issue of Circumcision among the Copts and Ethiopan Orthodox churches does not seem to be an issue for Ecumenical dialogue. I might add that many English-speaking Catholics in America, Australia and New Zealand are circumcised by the parents as babies and I do not think the Catholic Church today considers all these Catholic parents as heretics commiting mortal sin which would be the conclusion for a too hyperliteral reading of Cantate Domino.

The Bull states:"...Whoever, after the passion, places his hope in the legal prescriptions and submits himself to them as necessary for salvation and as if faith in Christ without them could not save, sins mortally...". Thus we see that the Church annunciates three requirements for the practice of Jewish observances to be a mortal sin. Firstly if one hopes to be saved by them rather than by the grace of God. Secondly if he obligates himself to them as necessary for salvation and thirdly believing that faith in Christ is not enough to save a soul. I know of no Hebrew Catholic who observes Jewish customs with these intentions. Those who observe them do it as a means of sanctification appropriate for those who are Jewish in background. It in no way is concerned with salvation or being saved. Just as one does not attain salvation by praying the Rosary or wearing the scapular but one certainly grows in holiness by such practices and their practice may lead one to place himself in the grace of God. So it is with Jewish prayer observances- at their best they are vessels of light leading us into the infinite Light of the Grace of God. This Grace is free and unearnable, available to Jew and Gentile, circumcised and uncircumcised, male and female, cleric and lay. In this way Jesus is not only our Salvation but he is our Sanctification- for all our Jewish and Catholic observances are done in, with and through Jesus who is the Divine Light. The Jewish Catholic however does not observe the Jewish customs and observances with the intentions appropriate before the passion but he observes them with the New Covenant intention focused on the Life, Death and Resurrection of the Messiah Jesus. Nor do we observe as some kind of evangelisation ploy to proselytize religious Jews but because these now Messianic and Marian observances resonate with our souls and provide us fitting vessels to grow in holiness.

Note: There are many conflicting opinions on the status of 'Cantate Domino' among Catholics. Some believe that it is a Papal Bull- others a Conciliar Decree of the Council. Its status as infallible is also questioned by some as it seems to be expressing the theological understanding of the Roman Church on these issues which are in conflict with certain Coptic beliefs. While this text touches on infallible truths -their explications do not share in this infalliblity but are the theological understanding of that day which are fallible and open to further study, development and theological reflection and speculation. The status of this document for the Church ultimately relies on the Magisterium to discern. Until it does so, all Catholics may freely express their opinions on this topic. When it does so, I along with all faithful Catholics will accept that discernment.

Hebrew Gospel of Matthew

Recently I purchased "Hebrew Gospel of Matthew" by George Howard. He presents the Hebrew text and English translation of a Hebrew version of Matthew preserved in the Jewish community and copied into "Evan Bohan" by Rabbi Shem Tob Ibn Shaprut in the 14th century. While I believe the four gospels were written originally in Hebrew (see Claude Tresmontant and Carmignac)we must be careful in accepting that this version of Matthew is the complete original primitive Hebrew text. Of course Howard does not claim this for the text- it is others who are claiming such authority for this Hebrew text. In fact Howard has done a very good job of presenting the 'Shem Tob' Matthew to a wider audience and correcting certain incorrect assumptions of past scholarship on this issue.

This version I believe is certainly based on the original text of the Hebrew Matthew but it has obviously been edited by a Jewish Christian sect in the early centuries to remove any universal elements positive towards a Gentile mission and also it seems to have a rather elevated view of John the Baptist. We also know that there were groups of Jewish Christians that did reject the other gospels and the Gentile mission and had their own version of Matthew. Obviously remnants of these Jewish Christians reassimilated back into Judaism and brought their edited Hebrew Matthew with them.

The other two versions of the Hebrew Matthew preserved in the Jewish community of Rome are known as the Munster and Du Tillet versions. The obvious puns and word connections that are made clear when the gospels are translated back into Hebrew demonstrate that Hebrew and Aramaic were the first languages the Gospels were written in and then translated into a Septuagint type Greek.

The original text was written in Hebrew and then translated into Aramaic soon after. It is probably from the Aramaic text that the Greek was based on. A possible evidence for this is the famous passage about Peter and the Rock. In the Aramaic text the rock is Kepha (kaf alef feh alef) but in the Shem Tob Hebrew text it is Eben. The Du Tillet Hebrew text also uses Kepha or kifah (kaf yod feh heh). In the Aramaic text the play on words is with the word kepha "You are Kepha and upon this kepha" whereas the play on words in the Shem Tob Hebrew version is with Eben or even (rock/stone) and evneh or ebneh ( I will build). The Shem Tob Hebrew version makes it clearer that it is on Peter that he will build his Church. That you are a Stone (she'Atah Even) and I will build upon you ( v'ani evneh alayik)my House of Prayer (beit tefilati). However caution is urged as we don't know if Jesus spoke the original phrase in Hebrew or Aramaic or which version of the Hebrew. The du Tillet Hebrew version reads You are Kifah (atah kifah)and on this kifa (ve'al hakifah hazot)I will build my community (evneh et m'kehili). The Hebrew term kifah or kipah also has the meaning of dome or covering and is the name of the dome-like head covering of the Jewish male. Perhaps Simon Peter was wearing a dome-like head covering (kipah) when Jesus spoke to him before the shrine of the demonic God Pan. Until today the successors of Peter also wear the kipah. The Aramaic reads "d'anat hu kepha veal hadei kepha evneyh l'edati". The Shem Tob and du Tillet Hebrew versions also differ on the phrase gates of hell. The Shem Tob says Gates of Gehinnom (purgatory/Hell) whereas the du Tillet says takhatiot (underworlds) and the Aramaic Sheol(Hades). As I have not seen this verse in the Munster Hebrew version I would appreciate any one who has if they could share that reading with me.



Shem Tob Our Father

Avinu, yitkadesh shimkha
Our Father may your name be sanctified
v'yitbarekh malkhutkha
may your kingdom be blessed
ratzonkha yihiyi asui bashamayim uvaaretz
your will let it be done in heaven and on earth
v'titen lakhmaynu temidit
and give our bread daily
umekhol lanu khatotenu
and forgive us our sins
kaasher anakhnu mokholim lakhotim lanu
as we forgive those who sin against us
veal tevienu liday nisayon veshomrenu mekhol rah. amen
and do not lead us into temptation and keep us from all evil. amen


du Tillet Our Father

Avinu shebashamayim, yitkadesh shimkha
tavo malkhutkha, y'aseh ratzonkha k'bashamayim
uvaaretz, usilakh lanu et khovoteynu kaasher
anakhnu mekholim l'vaali khovoteynu,
veal tevienu liday nisayon ele hatzilnu mekhol rah,
ki lakh hamalkhuta v'hagevurah ukavod,
l'olam uleolmei olamim Amen

Chanukah and the Hand of Miriam

I have written and given talks on the significance of the Hand of Miriam also called the Chamsa (five). The Muslims call it the Hand of Fatima. The Catholics know it as Mano Ponderosa (the Big Hand). Some Catholic writers have connected the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal with Queen Esther and the Book of Esther. Queen Esther and Mordecai were from the tribe of Benjamin. Esther's name means star and her hebrew name Hadassah is the name for the 5 pointed star shaped flower known as myrtle. In the recent apparitions of Our Lady of Light in Giza Egypt one person commented that it reminded her of the shape of the Chamsa. The five may represent the 5 Marian dogmas. [click here for an article on Fatima and Queen Esther]

The Jewish festival of light Chanukah is also linked to the chamsa or hand of Miriam by the parshat Mikeitz reading. Shirat Devorah blog states: ""And Binyamin's portion was five times as large as any of them" [Mikeitz 43:34]As is well known, said R' Naftali of Ropshitz, Chanukah always falls out during the week that we read Parshas Mikeitz. This is hinted to in the Torah, as the verse states: "And Binyamin's portion was five times (chamesh yados) as large as any of them." "Chamesh yados" alludes to the five instances that we mention the word "yad" (hand) in the special Chanukah prayer Al HaNissim: You delivered the mighty into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the wanton sinners into the hands of those who occupy themselves with Your Torah."


The Parshat Mikeitz also speaks of Joseph and his dreams. Parshat Mikeitz means the Parshat 'from the end'. This alludes to the period of time known as the 'end of times'. The Zohar speaks of two periods known as the end of time. We are now in the first period of the 'end of time' before the Great Era of Peace. Mikeitz can also mean "from the thorns" alluding to the Ram caught in the thorns at the Akeidah of Isaac as well as the Rose among the thorns in the Song of Songs. The Midrash also says:"When a rose is among thorns, a north wind goes forth and bends her toward the south and a thorn pricks her, then a south wind goes forth and bends her toward the north and a thorn pricks her; yet, for all that, her core is directed upwards. The same is true with the Jewish people. Although they are oppressed and tortured from all sides by the nations, their hearts are directed towards their Father in Heaven." The mystical North Wind (Tzaphon ruach)refers to Our Lady who is snow white. It is the North wind that comes and blows on David's harp at midnight. Kabbalah associates this north wind or spirit with the ruach that hovered over the face of the Waters. It also associates her with Binah the Mother. The north wind has the five gevurot (powers) of the imma (mother/mama) and this is represented by the five wings or corners of the lungs from which ruach comes. The north wind blows on 5 of the strings of David's harp with the Song of Miriam (the song of the Redemption). She is the hidden ruach of the heart. It is said that the evil spirits roam the night but when the north wind comes at midnight they flee into a cavern in the sea. The south wind is associated with Chesed (loving kindness or charity). She is also associated with the heat or warmth of the Sun and she blows on the other 5 strings of David's harp the Song of the Future (the Song of Santification). The north wind is the Givirah (Queen Mother) of the King of Peace (Solomon)and the south wind is the Queen of Sheba- the Queen coming out of the captivity of the fallen into the kingdom of the Divine Will. They share in the wounds of love of the King and in his tikkun (reparation)for all.
Mano Ponderosa

The Baal ha Turim in discussing this Parshat Mikeitz links the ten years Joseph was in prison before the dreams with the Mikeitz of ten years of Abraham in Genesis 16:3 and the mikeitz of two years until the dream of Pharoah. The two dreamers of 'the end of 10 years' represent the two messianic figures that will rise- one a false Messiah and the other the true Messiah under the patronage of Joseph. This is in the 11th year and then after "the end of two years' [thus the 13th year]the false messiah will be destroyed and the true messiah triumphant. The baker represents the one who will abolish the true mass and replace it with the bread of demons. The cup bearer represents the one who will restore the true eucharistic cup of the Lord.


The period of thorns is also known as the time of Jacob's trouble which will end with the restoration of man to living in the Divine Will as Adam did in the 36 hours. These 36 hours are represented by the 36 lights of Hanukah and the 36 volumes of the Book of Heaven by Luisa Piccarreta. Rabbi Phincas Winston writing on Parshat mikeitz: "...Likewise was it the case with Mattisyahu and his tiny army of zealots. Surveying the developing situation around him, they sensed that a keitz, and therefore, a redemption as well, was at hand. This encouraged them, like Mordechai before them, to take a stand and fight, bringing about the Chanukah miracle we celebrate each year, with the lighting of the Menorah. For, it is the Menorah that symbolizes this very idea of how God builds into Creation what He needs for each keitz along the way. For example, long before there was even a first temple, let alone a second temple to rededicate, the Torah alludes to the miracle of Chanukah: But he got up that night and took his two wives, his two handmaids, and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Yabok. And when he took them and had them cross the stream, he sent over what was his. Ya’akov was left alone … (Bereishis 32:23-25) Rebi Elazar said: He remained for small jars. From here we learn that righteous people value their property more than their own bodies. (Chullin 91a) God said to Ya’akov, “For endangering yourself for a small container, I Myself will repay your children with a small container to the Chashmonaim!”(Midrash Tzeidah LaDerech, Maharil) Indeed, the Biblical roots of the Chanukah miracle go back even further in time, while Ya’akov Avinu was just starting his journey, not as he was finishing it: From where did Ya’akov get this jar? When he picked up the stones from under his head and returned them in the morning, he found a stone that had a jar of oil in it, and he used it to pour on the top stone. When it refilled itself, Ya’akov knew it was set aside for God. He said, “It’s not right to leave this here.” All miracles throughout Tanach occurred with this jar of oil. (Yalkut Reuveini, Vayishlach) And, apparently, even those beyond Tanach as well: What is the basis of [the holiday of] Chanukah? The rabbis taught: On the 25th day of Kislev begin the days of Chanukah, eight days during which we do not eulogize or fast. For, when the Greeks entered the Sanctuary they defiled all the oil in the Sanctuary, and when the kingdom of the House of Chashmonai proved victorious, they searched and could only find one jar of oil with the seal of the Kohen Gadol still intact,sufficient for only one day of lighting. A miracle happened to it [the oil], and they were able to light from it for eight days. (Shabbos 21b) Indeed, this is a novel way to define a keitz: an event during which the undercurrent of history rises to the top, like a geyser of water exploding through the surface of time. This is why, the number 36, which represents the revelation of the Ohr HaGanuz, the supernal Hidden Light with which God made and maintains Creation: For 36 hours the Light served … and Adam HaRishon saw with it from one end of the world to the other. (Yerushalmi, Brochos 8:5) keeps surfacing throughout history. For, every time it does, it means something to do with redemption, or the lack of it, has occurred: God called out to the man and said to him, “Aiyekah—Where are you?” (Bereishis 3:9) The word “aiyekah” is meant only as a gematria, totaling 36. (Eichah Zuta 1:1) Hence, Ya’akov Avinu was away from home for a total of 36 years, was married to a wife who died at the age of 36, and to another whose name has the gematria of 36. It is also why, after struggling with the angel for the entire night, and sustaining some bodily damage, it says: The sun shone for him—Lamed-Vav—as he passed Penuel and he was limping on his hip. (Bereishis 32:32) The word “lo” refers to the 36 candles of Chanukah. (Maharil, Avodah Zarah 3b) Each time the number 36 surfaces, it is a revelation of the undercurrent of history, a keitz, which is why Chanukah occurred in the 36th century from Creation. And, when we light our Menorahs each Chanukah, it is this that we are supposed to have in mind..."


Many of the Hamsa Hand of Miriam's have the Magen David, a Chai, an Eye or Fish on them. The Fish alludes to Joseph. The Zohar reveals that the mysterious young child who talks with the Rabbis is a son of Joseph and thus protected from the evil eye. The blessing of Jospeh in Genesis by Jacob refers to fish. Also Joshua ben Nun is descended from Joseph and Nun is fishhook in Hebrew and Nuna is fish in Aramaic. Rebbe Nachman also speaks of the sign of the fish in connection with the concept of Joseph, the Tzaddikim and Messiah son of Joseph in Likutey Moharan.