The Rudolf Steiner Archive

22. Pauline Christianity and Johannine Christianity

[Dear Attendees]

[ 1 ] Now that our previous considerations have shown us how the mystery beliefs prevalent at the time were incorporated into the formation of Christianity, let us now examine two leading figures of early Christianity to see how they positioned themselves within the overall development and the process of its emergence.

[ 2 ] Undoubtedly, Paul saw Christ as the mediator between God and humankind—a being at such a high stage of spiritual development that, according to Paul’s view, this being had undoubtedly overcome death and truly appeared to him in a spiritual body at the moment of his conversion. That is Paul’s faith. That is also what gave him the confidence to teach. Convinced of the Mediator between God and humanity, of the risen Jesus Christ, he went out and preached the Gospel.

[ 3 ] Where, then, did the elements [of these teachings] come from that presuppose a very specific philosophical perspective—and especially those that appear to us as reinterpretations of the [ancient initiation] rituals? Where should we look for the origin of the life of Jesus? We may certainly say: within the sermons of the first century that were delivered to the large Christian community. Within this community, Paul probably did not hold the view that we encounter in the Gospel of John, where Christ Jesus is the second form of God made flesh. Paul never held this strictly metaphysical, theosophical view. John, however, did. Since the Book of Revelation is undoubtedly by John, we find in the school of John—which conceives of Christ as God incarnate—not merely as the mediator between humanity and God, nor merely as an exemplary figure—but rather, in the personality built upon John, we are dealing with a spiritualized personality. We see a spiritualized personality taking hold there.

[ 4 ] We know that John stayed in Ephesus, that he wrote his most important works there, and that he was associated with John the Presbyter. Whether the teachings about the Logos were derived from Egyptian-Greek philosophy is more or less irrelevant to us. But it must be noted that the metaphysical-theosophical conception originated with John.

[ 5 ] There were a number of Christian churches in Ephesus and Asia Minor. In any case, there were far more than seven. Strictly speaking, the Book of Revelation is addressed only to seven churches to whom the teaching is to be revealed. When John arrives in Ephesus, he plays a very special role. He is one of the most important figures there. In the administration of the church, however, he actually has no particular influence. The administrators are entirely different people. When one of these church leaders dies, another is simply elected, without any thought of placing John at the head. All the accounts we have from this period indicate that there was a certain contrast [with Paul]—but not conflict—and that John’s approach and Pauline Christianity must have coexisted. This is a very important fact. It can only be explained by the fact that, in view of the very different portrayal of Jesus in the Gospel of John and in view of something else I will mention later, we see the Johannine school as a special school [in which certain teachings were imparted], though these were not preached to the general masses. We even know that John’s teachings were initially considered dangerous for the general masses. The Johannine School was likely a kind of secret school, a mystical community from which the Gospel of John emerged and which also influenced the Synoptic Gospels. It was not originally written down in the form of a narrative; only the teachings were recorded. Language became the universe. The narrative, however, was not written down until the end of the first century at the earliest.

[ 6 ] This suggests that we are dealing with the great

[ 7 ] The Christian community in Ephesus and the surrounding area—and a mystical school of theosophy founded by John. Everything we have in Christianity in the way of historical-allegorical elements stems from this school of John, whereas in Pauline Christianity we have nothing other than: Christ, who died for humanity, and what he taught—including his institution of the Lord’s Supper. That was the common bond by which the Christians of that time recognized one another.

[ 8 ] The fact that we are dealing with a mystical community can be seen from the fact that [in the Book of Revelation] we are dealing with seven churches. Right at the beginning of the Book of Revelation, we are dealing with an allegorical school, whereas in the Gospel of John we are dealing with a mystical-theosophical school. The School of John was not the only one. We may learn about another one today, if there is still time.

[ 9 ] So what did the School of John bring into Christianity? The very things I have already mentioned. The raising of Lazarus, which is nothing other than the depiction of an initiation process. These [elements] originate from schools that were intimately familiar with the mystery rites. The raising of Lazarus is undoubtedly an element of a secret school, and [it was not included in the Synoptic Gospels]. The facts support this.

[ 10 ] What we must now consider is this: Within the Mystery School, what is known as the Apostles’ Creed must have come into being. This is nothing other than a result of the mystery cults[—those mystery cults that are described in the account I gave to the members. D. Anyone who embarked on the path of initiation had to take a creed, in accordance with which they were initiated. I would like to outline such a creed for you. One cannot simply make this up arbitrarily; rather, it follows quite naturally from what has been handed down to us:

[ 11 ] 1. [The initiate] must first believe in a supreme deity, for although this deity is deeply hidden, a path opens up to those who wish to walk the highest path toward the [mysteries]. [God] is the Father of all things. That was the first article.

[ 12 ] 2. Then he must believe in the second Logos. The first Logos was the Father himself, who then entered into all things. This is how he came to take on the form of the second Logos.

[ 13 ] The second Logos is thus a kind of image of God, a spiritual reflection of God. It descends and takes on material form. This is called “the immersion of God in a material existence.” It condenses and takes on material form. The world at large is nothing other than the materialized second Logos, which evolves upward to the human soul in order to find its way back to God from there.

[ 14 ] When human beings explore matter, they find spirit within it. But this spirit is nothing other than the spirit that previously descended into matter. This descent is presented to us mystically in the figures of Dionysus and in various other mystical figures such as Osiris, Isis, and so on. In mythological narratives, we see various reinterpretations of this process. In short: I believe in the Logos made manifest in matter.

[ 15 ] [B-] Why, then, did God make this sacrifice of materialization? Why did He descend? It represents the entire process of evolution itself. The world would not exist. This is what the initiate professes. The Logos descended into matter and is now ascending once more.

[ 16 ] This general view was, as it were, repeated on a microcosmic scale within each individual human being. The belief held was that the same process takes place within human beings as it did with God.

[ 17 ] The initiation rites were intended to make this particularly vivid for the initiate. As a rule, such mystery rites were held near lakes. And in Athens, too, they took place near ponds. The lake, the water—as we know from the Egyptian initiation ritual—were regarded as symbols of material existence. The descent into material existence was to be reflected [by descending into the water] by the one seeking initiation. Water was regarded as a symbol of material existence. That is why this rite was held near lakes.

[ 18 ] Something most remarkable has occurred here. You can see this if you examine the Apostles’ Creed as established by the various councils: All the events described in the Creed are nothing other than the very same points, the very same processes, that are also found in the initiation process. The Apostles’ Creed still clearly illustrates the initiation process. If you [for now] simply omit the words “suffered under Pontius Pilate,” you will see that it is an initiation process. A confession is made to God, then to the materialized God, the Second Logos, and then to the ascent [of the initiate]. Three days in sleep, the descent into hell, to be awakened again on the third day, and then to emerge from the process as an initiate.

[ 19 ] But here lies the difficulty: on the one hand, we have the Second Logos, Jesus Christ—the Gospel of John virtually identifies Jesus with the Second Logos—and on the other hand, we have the person of Jesus, so that we can assume that [in the Creed] we are dealing with a reinterpretation of the Second Logos as the person of Jesus. So [the Second Logos] has been Christianized.

[ 20 ] Now I come to a hypothesis—I’ll call it a hypothesis for the time being—namely, the words: “suffered under Pontius Pilate.” We have them from the writings dating from that time, but we know nothing of the events themselves. We know that Pilate, even if not in Jerusalem, did exist in the Assyrian Empire. But that cannot convince us that a most peculiar trial must have taken place. We therefore have no choice but to interpret the Apostles’ Creed as a reinterpreted initiation rite. The Second Logos has been transformed into a personality. How, then, does “suffered under Pontius Pilate” fit into this? You need only omit a single letter from “Pontius” and say “Pontus” instead, taking “Pontus” to mean “lake.” This may seem somewhat bold. But such insertions—do not call them forgeries, for they were made in good faith—occurred all the time in the early centuries. This creed describes the various stages of initiation according to the mystery rituals. These, however, were held at various individual locations, almost always by a lake. It has always been said that these events took place at some lake here or there. We would therefore be downright surprised if, in the adaptation of a mystery ritual, the fact that the event took place at a lake were not reflected in it. We therefore have reason to assume that we are dealing with the [vision of an initiation process], so that it would mean nothing other than the descent [of the Logos] into matter or the undergoing of the initiation process.

[ 21 ] We are thus dealing with an application of ritual and a fusion of what was taught and what was incorporated into Christianity from various cults. A wide variety of cults have been practiced in a wide variety of places, even within Christianity.

[ 22 ] For example, we know that when the first Christian communities were established in Rome, the rituals were quite different from those in Ephesus in Asia Minor. Those who later came to Rome longed for the rite of Ephesus. It was, therefore, a process of amalgamation and of the new growing into the mysteries that still existed from earlier times.

[ 23 ] Paul began with a teaching rooted in Judaism. He also welcomed Gentiles, but always with respect for what already existed. He also says: “The Jews place greater emphasis on signs, the Greeks on wisdom. I treat both as they wish to be treated.” He did not create something that left people perplexed; rather, he shaped what was already before him. To a much greater extent, it seems the others did the same. To imagine that Christianity was a uniform doctrine from the very beginning would be a childish notion.

[ 24 ] Paul and Peter were deeply at odds, and there were also disputes within the congregations. Paul frequently sought to mediate such disputes. Thus, [early Christianity] was not characterized by a strictly uniform doctrine, but rather by a convergence of diverse perspectives. Centralization took place much later.

[ 25 ] Alongside Paul’s popular form of Christianity, an esoteric tradition—the School of John—also persisted. We owe our knowledge of this tradition to a series of writings. These appeared in the sixth century A.D., and later served as the basis for the works of various ecclesiastical writers. Later, they were attributed to the [Areopagite writer] Dionysius, who is said to have been converted to Christianity by Paul in Athens. This has often been regarded as false. But it is difficult to understand what that is supposed to mean. One can perhaps only interpret it to mean that Dionysius did not author the writings himself. However, when we examine these writings, we find an even deeper understanding of Christianity. The author is not named, but the references by the Church Fathers certainly show that these writings existed. All evidence suggests that they were not present in [early] Latin Christianity, but that we received them quite late. We are thus dealing with writings that reflect the views of the early Church Fathers of the Greek Church. The author presents them to us as a development of the ancient mystery traditions, as the belief in God that is accessible only through mystical means.

[ 26 ] We are then shown how imperfect beings emanate from this God, and how a descent thus takes place down to the forms to which human beings themselves belong. We are then shown how a return to God is to take place through the various forms. We find more detailed accounts in the works of Scotus Eriugena, who wrote his “Classification of Nature” in this spirit. What we learn from these writings indicates that, beginning in the second century, we are dealing with such a mystical school, very similar to the School of John in Ephesus. That school, too, cultivated such mystical-theosophical teachings.

[ 27 ] Thus, traditions that seek to demonstrate that we are dealing with a “Pseudo-Dionysius” indicate that such a school existed, one that did not record its teachings in writing but transmitted them orally, and that these teachings can be traced back to Dionysius, who was converted by the Apostle. Such secret schools undoubtedly existed in the early days of Christianity. Therefore, we must distinguish between popular belief and the views held by the individual initiate himself.

[ 28 ] When we examine the writings of [Hermas], we can almost touch with our own hands what lies behind his choice of words. [Hermas] does not break with the [Christian-mystical] tradition, but stands on the same ground.

[ 29 ] However, we are dealing with teachings that reflect a deeper understanding of Christianity, which people strive to express through symbolism—in the creed, which was developed step by step in the councils, and in the liturgical acts and rites.

[ 30 ] We can see this clearly in the writings of the Church Fathers. Sometimes we cannot understand what such a symbol signifies, but we must accept it with faith and trust that its meaning will gradually become clear to us. Now, when this man [—Hermas—] speaks of there being four degrees of initiation, as described in the writings, we can only say that, in addition to the exoteric teaching, there must have been an esoteric teaching as well.

[ 31 ] Whoever received the symbol—[for example,] to whom the sacrificial offering was presented—is not disturbed by the fact that something is being presented to him [that he does not understand]; rather, he is simply given a symbol. Soon he will come to understand the mysterious meaning of the symbol.

[ 32 ] In the writings of the Church Fathers of the third and fourth centuries, we clearly see that the [students of] the deeper teachings of Christianity must undergo various stages of initiation. For the general public, the esoteric teaching was presented in symbolic form.

[ 33 ] Now let us see how esoteric teaching developed and how the esoteric adapted to the exoteric. And how, as a result, the Church strives for worldly power. Let us see how this [esoteric] character has gradually been lost and how traces of it have faded away into Scholasticism. This is connected to key events that took place in church history and to the transfer of Christian practices from Ephesus in Asia to Rome in Italy.

[ 34 ] In the first century and at the beginning of the second, Ephesus was the most important center for the spread of Christianity. Then this center shifted from Ephesus to Rome in Italy. Ephesus is also referred to as an “Asian Rome,” specifically in connection with a branch of Christianity that was not Johannine but Pauline. We thus see in the teachings of John an esoteric form of Christianity, while the Pauline tradition represents the popular form.

FAQ:

[ 35 ] Pontus = lake. Pontius Pilate was the governor of Caesarea. [“Suffered under Pontius Pilate” thus refers to suffering caused by passing through the stages of matter.

[ 36 ] “I am Osiris N. Growing among the blossoms of the fig tree is the name of Osiris N.” “Go your way,” see the Book of the Dead.

[ 37 ] Pontius Pilate is mentioned by Roman and other writers as the governor of Caesarea.]

[ 38 ] The Holy Spirit is nothing other than the third Logos, which we find in matter and in our soul.

[ 39 ] The resurrection of the flesh points to the doctrine of reincarnation. This cannot be found in the Johannine school; it probably never existed there at all. The Church replaced initiation with inspiration through faith. The esoteric teachings were canonized [dogmatized]. Why the doctrine of reincarnation was not popular is quite clear to me today. Even today, it is difficult to make it popular. People see a political danger in it. After all, the doctrine of reincarnation in its true form cannot be made popular. The doctrine of reincarnation has led to the wildest superstitions, [such as the doctrine of] the transmigration of souls through animals and so on.

[ 40 ] Christianity does not regard the doctrine of reincarnation as one that could be taught to the masses. The vicarious atoning death in Pauline Christianity is something that cannot be reconciled with reincarnation and karma.