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The Holy Qur’an says that Sayyidina ‘Isa, our Lord Jesus Christ, on whom be peace, was neither crucified nor put to death in any other way, “but so it was made to appear to them” at the time (wa lakin shubbiha lahum, 4/157), and the oldest extant gospel describes this event in fascinating detail. As Muslims, it is our duty to draw the attention of our Christian brothers to the fact that in the light of this record, Easter, the highest holiday of the ecclesiastical year, simply becomes a nonsensical undertaking.
All Christendom is celebrating Easter at this time. And yet there are good reasons for assuming that the Christians’ highest holiday is fundamentally flawed. The main error lies in the assumption that Jesus, the son of Mary, on whom be peace, died on the cross. In truth however, by the holy command of the almighty Lord of the worlds, Jesus was transported to the third heaven when his pursuers were closing in on him, whereas by divine command Judas Iscariot, the traitor, was given the appearance and the voice of Jesus, so that the soldiery and even his own companions mistook him for Jesus. Therefore, it was never Jesus, who walked the way of the Cross, trod now by so many in his wake, and it was not he who was crucified, but rather the traitor Judas.
The Holy Qur’an says that Sayyidina ‘Isa, our Lord Jesus Christ, on whom be peace, was neither crucified nor put to death in any other way, “but so it was made to appear to them” at the time (wa lakin shubbiha lahum, 4/157), and the oldest extant gospel describes this event in fascinating detail. As Muslims, it is our duty to draw the attention of our Christian brothers to the fact that in the light of this record, Easter, the highest holiday of the ecclesiastical year, simply becomes a nonsensical undertaking.
All Christendom is celebrating Easter at this time. And yet there are good reasons for assuming that the Christians’ highest holiday is fundamentally flawed. The main error lies in the assumption that Jesus, the son of Mary, on whom be peace, died on the cross. In truth however, by the holy command of the almighty Lord of the worlds, Jesus was transported to the third heaven when his pursuers were closing in on him, whereas by divine command Judas Iscariot, the traitor, was given the appearance and the voice of Jesus, so that the soldiery and even his own companions mistook him for Jesus. Therefore, it was never Jesus, who walked the way of the Cross, trod now by so many in his wake, and it was not he who was crucified, but rather the traitor Judas.
These days Easter celebrations are taking place in Europe and all over the world. People wish each other, “Happy Easter!” or here in Greek Cyprus, “kalo paskha!” For Christians this feast is of special significance, there can be no doubt that it is the highest holiday in the Christian calendar. It is the feast of resurrection from the dead, the Resurrection of Jesus who allegedly died on the cross. On Easter Sunday, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict will give his famous blessing, urbi et orbi, and he will surely make mention of every single country on earth, and perhaps he will speak a few words in one or the other of the many different languages spoken in the world, for it is Easter time.
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| Pope Benedict XVI meet Maulana Sheikh Nazim in CIPRUS |
Yet there are valid reasons for considering the highest holiday of the Christian creed merely as the unfortunate consequence of a fundamental flaw. The error lies in the assumption that our Lord Jesus, the son of Mary, on whom be peace, died on the cross.
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| THE MAQAM OF APOSTOLOS BARNABAS AT SALAMIS (CYPRUS) |
JESUS WAS RAISED TO THE THIRD HEAVENS
The truth is that by the command of the Almighty, Jesus was raised to the third heaven when his pursuers closed in on him, whereas by divine command Judas Iscariot, the traitor, was given the appearance and the voice of Jesus, so that the soldiery and even his own companions mistook him for Jesus. Therefore it was never Jesus, who walked the way of the Cross, trod now by so many in his wake, and it was not he who was crucified, but rather the traitor Judas.
In the Gospel of Barnabas (1) in Chapter 215 we read:
“When the soldiers with Judas drew near to the place where Jesus was, Jesus heard the approach of many people, wherefore in fear he withdrew into the house. And the eleven were sleeping. Then God, seeing the danger of his servant, commanded Gabriel, Michael, Rafael, and Uriel his ministers, to take Jesus out of the world. The holy angels came and took Jesus out by the window that looks toward the South. They bare him and placed him in the third heaven in the company of angels blessing God for evermore.”
THE TRANSFORMATION OF JUDAS
The Apostle Barnabas describes the “Transformation of Judas” in Chapter 216 of his Gospel in the following words: “Judas entered impetuously before all into the chamber whence Jesus had been taken up. And the disciples were sleeping. Whereupon the wonderful God acted wonderfully, insomuch that Judas was so changed in speech and in face to be like Jesus that we believed him to be Jesus. And he, having awakened us, was seeking where the Master was. Whereupon we marvelled, and answered: ‘You, Lord, are our master; have you now forgotten us?’
And he, smiling, said: ‘Now are you foolish, that know not me to be Judas Iscariot!’ And as he was saying this the soldiery entered, and laid their hands upon Judas, because he was in every way like to Jesus. We having heard Judas’ saying, and seeing the multitude of soldiers, fled as beside ourselves….”
The Apostle Barnabas describes the “Transformation of Judas” in Chapter 216 of his Gospel in the following words: “Judas entered impetuously before all into the chamber whence Jesus had been taken up. And the disciples were sleeping. Whereupon the wonderful God acted wonderfully, insomuch that Judas was so changed in speech and in face to be like Jesus that we believed him to be Jesus. And he, having awakened us, was seeking where the Master was. Whereupon we marvelled, and answered: ‘You, Lord, are our master; have you now forgotten us?’
And he, smiling, said: ‘Now are you foolish, that know not me to be Judas Iscariot!’ And as he was saying this the soldiery entered, and laid their hands upon Judas, because he was in every way like to Jesus. We having heard Judas’ saying, and seeing the multitude of soldiers, fled as beside ourselves….”
THE PASSION OF JUDAS
The following events are familiar to all the many Christians, who these very days walk the Stations of the Cross in solemn processions, following the footsteps of the man they take to have been Jesus, but who in truth was none other that Judas, the traitor. All the suffering ascribed to Jesus, was actually suffered by Judas. The testimony of the Apostle Barnabas tells us in Chapter 217: “The soldiers took Judas; and bound him, not without derision. For he truthfully denied that he was Jesus; and the soldiers, mocking him, said: ‘Sir, fear not, for we are come to make you king of Israel, and we have bound you because we know that you do refuse the kingdom.’ Judas answered: ‘Now have you lost your senses! You are come to take Jesus of Nazareth, with arms and lanterns as [against] a robber; and you have bound me that have guided you, to make me king!’
Then the soldiers lost their patience, and with blows and kicks they began to flout Judas, and they led him with fury into Jerusalem. John and Peter followed the soldiers afar off; and they affirmed to him who writes that they saw all the examination that was made of Judas by the high priest, and by the council of the Pharisees, who were assembled to put Jesus to death. Whereupon Judas spoke many words of madness, insomuch that every one was filled with laughter, believing that he was really Jesus, and that for fear of death he was feigning madness. Whereupon the scribes bound his eyes with a bandage, and mocking him said: ‘Jesus, prophet of the Nazarenes, (for so they called them who believed in Jesus), ’tell us, who was it that smote you?’ And they buffeted him and spat in his face.”
But not only the Jesus’ enemies mistook Judas for him, even his family, his mother and his friends thought it was he. Thus the apostle reports:
“When it was morning there assembled the great council of scribes and elders of the people; and the high priest with the Pharisees sought false witness against Judas, believing him to be Jesus: and they found not that which they sought. And why say I that the chief priests believed Judas to be Jesus? No all the disciples, with him who writes, believed it; and more, the poor Virgin mother of Jesus, with his kinsfolk and friends, believed it, insomuch that the sorrow of every one was incredible. As God lives, he who writes forgot all that Jesus had said: how that he should be taken up from the world, and that he should suffer in a third person, and that he should not die until near the end of the world. Wherefore he went with the mother of Jesus and with John to the cross.” (Chapter 217)
We are all more or less familiar with the story of the passion and crucifixion of Jesus, which deserves to be studied carefully in the version told by the apostle Barnabas. In it we find, for instance, the remarkable commentary of Pilate, the Roman governor of Jerusalem, who would have set Judas free with the following reasoning: “’This man says,” said the governor, “that he is not Jesus, but a certain Judas who guided the soldiery to take Jesus, and he says that Jesus the Galilean has by his are magic so transformed him. Wherefore, if this be true, it were a great wrong to kill him, seeing that he were innocent. But if he is Jesus and denies that he is, assuredly he has lost his understanding, and it were impious to slay a madman.” (Chapter 217)
HE SHALL FALL INTO THE PIT WHICH HE HAD PREPARED FOR OTHERS
The following events are familiar to all the many Christians, who these very days walk the Stations of the Cross in solemn processions, following the footsteps of the man they take to have been Jesus, but who in truth was none other that Judas, the traitor. All the suffering ascribed to Jesus, was actually suffered by Judas. The testimony of the Apostle Barnabas tells us in Chapter 217: “The soldiers took Judas; and bound him, not without derision. For he truthfully denied that he was Jesus; and the soldiers, mocking him, said: ‘Sir, fear not, for we are come to make you king of Israel, and we have bound you because we know that you do refuse the kingdom.’ Judas answered: ‘Now have you lost your senses! You are come to take Jesus of Nazareth, with arms and lanterns as [against] a robber; and you have bound me that have guided you, to make me king!’
Then the soldiers lost their patience, and with blows and kicks they began to flout Judas, and they led him with fury into Jerusalem. John and Peter followed the soldiers afar off; and they affirmed to him who writes that they saw all the examination that was made of Judas by the high priest, and by the council of the Pharisees, who were assembled to put Jesus to death. Whereupon Judas spoke many words of madness, insomuch that every one was filled with laughter, believing that he was really Jesus, and that for fear of death he was feigning madness. Whereupon the scribes bound his eyes with a bandage, and mocking him said: ‘Jesus, prophet of the Nazarenes, (for so they called them who believed in Jesus), ’tell us, who was it that smote you?’ And they buffeted him and spat in his face.”
But not only the Jesus’ enemies mistook Judas for him, even his family, his mother and his friends thought it was he. Thus the apostle reports:
“When it was morning there assembled the great council of scribes and elders of the people; and the high priest with the Pharisees sought false witness against Judas, believing him to be Jesus: and they found not that which they sought. And why say I that the chief priests believed Judas to be Jesus? No all the disciples, with him who writes, believed it; and more, the poor Virgin mother of Jesus, with his kinsfolk and friends, believed it, insomuch that the sorrow of every one was incredible. As God lives, he who writes forgot all that Jesus had said: how that he should be taken up from the world, and that he should suffer in a third person, and that he should not die until near the end of the world. Wherefore he went with the mother of Jesus and with John to the cross.” (Chapter 217)
We are all more or less familiar with the story of the passion and crucifixion of Jesus, which deserves to be studied carefully in the version told by the apostle Barnabas. In it we find, for instance, the remarkable commentary of Pilate, the Roman governor of Jerusalem, who would have set Judas free with the following reasoning: “’This man says,” said the governor, “that he is not Jesus, but a certain Judas who guided the soldiery to take Jesus, and he says that Jesus the Galilean has by his are magic so transformed him. Wherefore, if this be true, it were a great wrong to kill him, seeing that he were innocent. But if he is Jesus and denies that he is, assuredly he has lost his understanding, and it were impious to slay a madman.” (Chapter 217)
HE SHALL FALL INTO THE PIT WHICH HE HAD PREPARED FOR OTHERS
Actually, the disciples of Jesus ought to have known or at least have had a premonition of what was going to happen. According to the apostle’s report, when they were last assembled for the eating of the paschal lamb on the feast of Passover and Jesus washed the feet of all his disciples, he said to them: “I have washed you, yet are you not all clean, for as much as all the water of the sea will not wash him that believes me not.” This said Jesus, because he knew who was betraying him. The disciples were sad at these words, when Jesus said again: “Truly I say to you, that one of you shall betray me, insomuch that I shall be sold like a sheep; but woe to him, for he shall fulfil all that our father David said of such an one, that ‘he shall fall into the pit which he had prepared for others.’”
Whereupon the disciples looked one upon another, saying with sorrow: “Who shall be the traitor?” Judas then said: “Shall it be I, O Master?” Jesus answered: “You have told me who it shall be that shall betray me.” And the eleven apostles heard it not. When the lamb was eaten, the devil came upon the back of Judas; and he went forth from the house, Jesus saying to him again: “Do quickly that which you must do.” (Chapter 213)
Then they pass from Pilate to Herod and back from Herod to Pilate. Money also plays an important part in the story. In the end Judas dies on the cross, and the death of Jesus turns out to be a complete sham! This story sounds incredible to any of us brought up in a Christian context; therefore it is easy to understand how Pauline Christianity came to fear the Gospel of Barnabas, Jesus’ eldest disciple, most of all the gospels that have been passed down to us. For without the death on the cross, there is no resurrection, without resurrection there is no Easter. Without an Easter celebration, Pauline Christianity simply collapses upon itself.
THE JEWISH RECORD
According to the Jewish record, the main reason for not acknowledging Jesus as a divinely sent Prophet of God is the alleged fact that he is to have suffered death on the cross. The Jews claim that it is inconceivable that God could have permitted one of His beloved prophets to be put to death in such a shameful, disgraceful manner, as the crucifixion was a method of execution reserved for vile criminals.
In a reversal of this argument, if it became widely recognized that it was Judas who died on the cross instead of Jesus, the Jews would have no more reason for not acknowledging the prophethood of Jesus, as he would then be no longer tainted with the ignominy of a criminal’s death.
THE MUSLIM TRADITION
According to the Muslim tradition, it is completely out of the question that Allah – praised be He – would allow His prophet Sayyiduna ‘Isa to be crucified. Muslims have always considered Jesus as one of their most important prophets. His Lord had equipped him with extraordinary powers, and no soldier would have dared to approach him, for fear of being hurled into orbit, as if by contact with the high voltage of a power station
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The holy Qur’an gives us the most recent record of the crucifixion and murder. In 4/157 we read: “but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them… wa lakin shubbiha lahum”
According to Muslim belief, Jesus, on whom be peace, will return to earth at the end of times and together with Sayyiduna al-Mahdi, on whom be peace, will fight against Dajjāl and ultimately kill him.
Muslims also believe themselves to be generally closer to Sayyiduna ‘Isa, peace be upon him, and to have a better understanding of him than today’s Christians. The noted historian of religion H. J. Schoeps confirms this view by recognizing the close resemblance between the original teaching of Jesus and his Nazarenes and today’s Muslims. The closing passage of his seminal work, “Das Judenchristentum” (2) reads: “_Thus a paradox of global historical scope results from the fact that Jewish Christianity has disappeared from within the Christian church whereas it is preserved in Islam, whereby some of its driving impulses have survived even into our day and age._”
According to this testimony, it is the Muslims who are the true spiritual heirs to Jesus and therefore better “Christians” than those who nowadays call themselves Christians. All contemporary Christians seduced by the Pauline teaching will surely see this as a profound provocation, and correspondingly they will be filled with hatred for Muslims, even as they are filled with fear of the Gospel of Barnabas.
THEY FEAR THE TRUTH
For centuries the gospel of Saint Barnabas – may God bless him – remained hidden from public view, until in the sixteenth century a manuscript in Italian translation emerged from the sealed vaults of the Vatican, which after a long and tortuous journey has come to rest in the Wiener Staatsbibliothek/State Library of Vienna (Cod. 2662 Eug.)
The scholars of antiquity were already puzzled at the removal of the Gospel of Barnabas from the old codices. Even today we may wonder for what reason this was done, what was and is being kept from us, what secret knowledge is being guarded?
Could the fact that it was not Jesus, the Anointed who died on the cross, but Judas Iscariot who through miraculous divine intervention assumed the form and appearance of Jesus, as we learn from the apostle and closest familiar Barnabas, – could this be the reason for the proscription? Undeniably, the teachings of the Gospel of Barnabas concur with the beliefs of the Nazarene community of Jewish Christians, as testified by Clemens, the second Bishop of Rome in Peter’s itinerary sermons. According to these teachings, there is no divine trinity, Jesus is human and a prophet of God, and Jewish ritual law is upheld and followed.
Ever since the Gospel of Barnabas was published in a German language edition,1 a vehement debate has ensued among commentators and exegetes in regard to the significance and the history of the book’s origins. We would here like to comment briefly on this debate:
Objections tendered by alarmed Christians concerning the authenticity of this gospel have tended to backfire in the light of more recent research, which has only revealed more clearly the authenticity and high status of this work. Apart from this, the dramatic impact of this scripture is further seen in that it exposes contemporary (Pauline) Christianity as a blatant distortion of the original teaching of Jesus and of absolutely crucial moments in his biography. From the Pauline point of view this is further aggravated by the fact that this gospel demonstrates its proximity not only to the old Jewish Christians, but also bears similarity to the Muslim perception of Jesus, the son of Mary – on whom be peace.
Agitators have staged a veritable campaign to disparage the authenticity of this gospel; this “crusade” has meanwhile assumed traits of desperate obsessiveness. The polemic attacks, for instance, of Jan Slomps and Christine Schirrmacher who claim that the extant text was compiled by a 16th century Jew who converted to Islam as an act of revenge, have been repeated in uninterrupted stereotype to this very day, even though Luigi Cirillo, a student of Henry Corbin, has long since shown this argument to be untenable, and clearly sees in the work here presented fragments of an ancient Jewish-Christian gospel.
There appears to be a hidden motive for all the propaganda leveled against the Gospel of Barnabas that obstinately refuses to yield to sound arguments. This precisely was the sentiment that a wise man expressed upon taking out from the Theological Seminary of the University of Freiburg a copy of the first edition of the book by Lonsdale and Laura Ragg, 1907. He remarked on the fact that after having been in the possession of theologians for nearly a hundred years, the pages of this book had not yet been sliced open and he commented, “They fear the truth!”
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| The Old Apostle Barnabas in CIPRUS |
We hope, therefore, that this book will eventually enjoy wide circulation among those who can appreciate its wisdom, admire its staggering beauty and who have no fear of the truth contained therein.
From the German translate Radhia Shukrullah in Ciprus
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(1) The Gospel of Barnaba, trans. Lonsdale and Laura Ragg, [London, 1907]
German edition: Das Barnabas Evangelium Wahres Evangelium Jesu, genannt Christus, von Gott der Welt gesandt gemäß dem Bericht des Barnabas, seines Apostels. Spohr Verlag Kandern 1994/2004.
(2) H. J. Schoeps: Das Judenchistentum. Untersuchungen über Gruppenbildungen und Parteikämpfe in der frühen Christenheit. Franckeverlag Bern 1964.
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