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The Gospel of St. John
in Relation to the Other Three Gospels
GA 112

6 July 1909, Kassel

13. The Cosmic Significance of the Mystery of Golgotha

Yesterday we contemplated the significance the Mystery of Golgotha has for human evolution on our earth. But as every event in the world is connected through literally endless interrelationships with the evolution of the whole cosmos, we will fully understand the Mystery of Golgotha in its true essentiality only by throwing light on its cosmic significance as well.

We already know that the Being we designate the Christ Being descended to our earth from supra-terrestrial regions and that It was seen in Its descent, so to speak: in ancient Persia by means of the clairvoyant faculty of Zarathustra It was perceived in the sun, then by Moses in the burning bush and in the fire on Sinai, and finally by those who experienced the Christ event, in the presence of the Christ in the body of Jesus of Nazareth.

We know further that the events of this earth, and particularly the evolution of mankind, are related to our solar system; for we have shown that the development of humanity, in the form it has actually taken, could never have come about had not a cosmic body, in which our present sun and moon were still united with the earth, cast out first the sun and later the moon, thereby establishing for the earth a sort of position of equilibrium between sun and moon. Because man could not keep pace with the rapid development of the beings who sought the sun as their field of action, the earth had to be separated from the sun; and because a continued union of earth and moon would have entailed a rapid hardening, an ossification, for mankind, the moon, together with its substances and beings, had to be cast out as well. This made it possible for humanity to develop in the right way. But we learned yesterday that a certain remnant of this tendency to rigidity has nevertheless remained; and it would have sufficed to lead mankind into a state of corruption at the end of our Earth evolution had the Christ impulse not come. These considerations will give us an insight into our whole evolution.

At one time, then, sun, moon, and earth constituted a single cosmic body. Then the sun split off, leaving only earth and moon united. Finally our present moon withdrew, and the earth remained as the scene of human evolution. This occurred in the old Lemurian time, the period preceding the so-called Atlantean age which we have already discussed from various points of view. From that time forth, from the Atlantean into our own time, the earth has developed in such a way that the sun and the moon forces have acted from without. Let us now consider the further progress of earth development up to the entry of the Christ impulse, and let us concentrate on a quite definite moment of our earth development: the moment in which the Cross was raised on Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds of Christ Jesus. Let us focus our attention on this moment in the evolution of our earth.

Up to this point all that mankind had experienced had been determined by the entry, into the inner being of man, of the combined powers of the Luciferic and Ahrimanic beings; and we have seen that as a consequence of this intrusion man became amalgamated with the outer world in maya, or illusion: Ahriman prevented the outer world from manifesting itself in its true form, making it appear like a world consisting only of matter and solid substance—as though no spirit underlay all matter. For a long time, therefore—and this is still the case today regarding many factors in earth development—the human being was placed in a state brought about by error, because he receives from his environment only the material sense impressions which he then elaborates in his conceptions. So by reason of this influence of Ahriman, or Mephistopheles, he has a false picture of the outer world and forms illusory and erroneous conceptions of the spiritual world.

But all spirit is bound up with physical effects, and we have seen what physical effects accompanied this distortion of outward perception. We have seen that, as a consequence of the Luciferic and Ahrimanic influences, human blood became ever less fitted to provide the faculty of seeing the outer world in its true light: a steady aggravation of illusion was bound up with the blood's deterioration, with the dissolution of blood as it had been in the age of consanguinity, with the dispersion and killing off of blood by commingling it. No longer could men consult the old wisdom they had once possessed as a legacy, a wisdom that told them: It is an error to believe that the outer world is nothing but matter; for if you consult the remnants of the old wisdom you inherited, these will tell you that a spiritual world underlies the physical world.

But these remnants kept dwindling, with the result that man became ever more dependent upon the physical world in regard to his entire soul life and his knowledge. That is what transformed all his physical impressions into delusions and deceptions; and had it not been for the intervention of the Christ influence he would ultimately have lost his whole heritage of ancient wisdom by being gradually reduced to complete dependence upon the outer sense world and its impressions. He would have forgotten the existence of a spiritual world—that is what would inevitably have occurred: he would have become blind to the spiritual world.

It is now incumbent upon us to consider in all its gravity a truth such as this: the danger of man falling into ever greater delusion and error concerning the outer world. It is not a simple matter to do this—to contemplate in all its implications and its seriousness such a fact as man's lapse into error regarding the outer impressions of the sense world. Try to understand what it means to recognize as maya, as delusion, all external impressions of the senses as they confront us in the physical sense world. We are asked to learn that phenomena and impressions, as they exist in the sense world and as they impress us, are false; and that we must learn to see their true form behind the external impressions they give.

There is one event to which it is especially difficult, as a rule, to apply the truth, to say to oneself: The form in which it confronts me in the outer world is untrue, is illusion—maya. Can you think what event I have in mind? It is death. As a result of the sort of impressions we have described, our comprehension has come to grasp only external physical events; and for this reason death, when faced in the physical world, bears certain attributes that render it impossible of contemplation other than from the standpoint of the outer physical world. Death is a phenomenon concerning which mankind has inevitably become entangled in particularly erroneous and fatal views; and the inference we must draw from this is that the form in which death presents itself is but maya—a delusion.

Before our eyes in the outer physical world a great variety of phenomena present themselves. There are the stars that intersperse cosmic space, yonder, the mountains, the plants, the animals; here is the world of our minerals, and here, too, we have man, together with all the facts we can gather by means of sense observation. And if we enquire into the origin of these phenomena, of this outer physical-sensible world which appears to us as a world of matter, we must answer, Their origin is in spirit: spirit underlies our physical-sensible world. Then, were we to seek the primordial form of spirit from which springs all that is physical and of the senses, we could not regard it as other than the basis of all being. In Christian esotericism this is the aspect of divinity known as the Father principle. It underlies everything that is creature. So what exactly is it that was hidden from man when all things became obscured by maya, or illusion? It was the divine Father principle. Instead of the mirage of the senses, man should see everywhere and in all things the divine Father principle, of which all things and he himself are a part. The Father principle, then, does not appear in its true form. Because of the decline in human faculties, of which we have spoken, we see the Father principle veiled by delusion, by maya.
What do we find woven into this great delusion? Among all the phenomena we perceive, one stands out as essentially fundamental: death. Therefore we should tell ourselves that the outer objects confronting our senses are in reality the Father principle, are expressions of the divine-spiritual Father element. And since death is interwoven in the totality of the sense world, it is something that pertains to the divine-spiritual Father principle. Owing to the nature of man's development the divine Father principle has become obscured for him by many a veil, and ultimately by the veil of death. What must man seek? The Father, the cosmic Father; and just as he must learn to think of every object as being in truth the Father, so he must come to feel that death, too, is the Father. And why does a false picture of the Father appear to us in the physical sense world? Why is it distorted into the grotesque image appearing to us so deceptively as death? Because the Lucifer-Ahriman principle has been infused into every phase of our life.

What was needed, therefore, to disabuse man of this false, deceptive view of death and to provide a true conception of it was enlightenment arrived at by means of the facts in the case. Something had to occur whereby he could learn that what he had known about death, what he had felt about it—everything he had been impelled to do as a result of his conception of death—was untrue. An event had to take place which would show him the true aspect of death: its false form must be obliterated and its true one set forth. To substitute, through His deed, the true aspect of death for the false one, that was Christ's mission on earth.

It was owing to the interference of Lucifer-Ahriman in human evolution that death became the distorted image of the Father. Death was the consequence, the effect, of the influence of Lucifer-Ahriman. So what had to be done by Him Who would rid the world of this false face of death? Never could human life be released from this distorted form of death had not its source been removed—Lucifer-Ahriman. But that is something no earthly being could have accomplished. An earthly being can extinguish, within earth development, anything brought about by earthly beings themselves, but not the Luciferic-Ahrimanic influence. This could be driven out only by a being that had not been on the earth but out in cosmic space when Lucifer-Ahriman intervened, a being that came to earth at a time when Lucifer-Ahriman had already fully entered the human body.

Now, this Being did come to earth and removed Lucifer-Ahriman, as we have seen, at exactly the right moment—eliminated the cause of all that had brought death into the world. This deed called for a Being having nothing whatever to do with any causes of death among men. It had to be a being in no way connected with any cause of human death—that is, with anything brought about by Lucifer and later by Ahriman, with any individual human deeds done under the Lucifer-Ahriman influence—in short, with anything whereby men became guilty, fell a prey to evil. For the death of a being affected by any of these causes would have been justified. Only an undeserved death, undertaken by one without guilt—an utterly innocent death—could extinguish all guilty death.

An innocent Being, accordingly, had to suffer death, wed death, submit to death; and by so doing He infused into human life those forces which will gradually create knowledge concerning the true aspect of death; that is, the realization that death as it appears in the sense world is not truth—that on the contrary, this death had to occur to provide for life in the spiritual world; that precisely this death forms, in fact, the basis of that life.

Thus the innocent death on Golgotha furnished the proof, which will gradually be comprehended by humanity, that death is the ever-living Father. And once we have achieved the right view of death, once we have learned from the event of Golgotha that external dying is of no importance, that in the body of Jesus of Nazareth there dwelt the Christ with Whom we can unite; once we have realized what Christ achieved, even though we see the image of death hung on the Cross, in rendering death a mere external event, that His life in the etheric body was the same before death as it was after this death, and that therefore this death cannot touch life—once we have understood that here is a death incapable of extinguishing life but is, rather, itself life, then the Christ on the Cross becomes the eternal emblem of the truth that death is in reality the giver of life. The plant comes forth from the seed: death is not the destroyer of life, but its seed. It has been sown in our physical sense world in order that the latter may not fall away from life, but may be raised into life. The refutation of death had to be furnished on the Cross by a contradictory death, by a death that was innocent.

We must now enquire what, exactly, was brought about by this event. From the previous lectures we know that as the fourth principle of his being man has an ego, and that as this develops, the blood is its outer physical instrument. Blood is the expression of the ego, hence with its steady deterioration the ego fell to an ever increasing extent into error, into maya, or illusion. Hence, also, man is indebted for the growing power of his ego to the circumstance that he is provided with blood. But this ego, in turn, he owes in its spiritual aspect to the fact of his having learned to distinguish himself from the spiritual world, of his having become an individuality. This capacity could not have been bestowed upon him otherwise than by temporarily cutting off his view of the spiritual world; and the agency that effected this was precisely death. Had man always known that death is the seed of life he would not have achieved independence for his ego, for he would have remained linked with the spiritual world. As it was, however, death appeared, gave him the illusion of being separated from the spiritual world, and so trained his ego to independence.

This ego principle, however, grew more and more independent: it exaggerated its independence, strained it past a certain point; and this condition could be counteracted only by the withdrawal of the force which had caused it. Hence the factor which would have induced exaggerated egotism, which would have fostered not merely the ego principle, egoism, but egotism—this factor had to be driven out. And this was accomplished in such a way that in the future it can be more and more eradicated from the individual egos as well: it was accomplished when death came on the Cross of Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds. In the blood flowing from Christ's wounds we have the factual symbol of the excessive egotism in the human ego. Just as blood is the expression of the ego, so the blood that flowed on Golgotha is the expression of excess in the human ego. Had not the blood flowed on Golgotha, man would have become spiritually hardened in his egotism and would have been doomed to the fate we described yesterday. But the blood that flowed on Golgotha gave an impetus for the gradual disappearance of the force that makes an egotist of the ego.

But every physical event has its spiritual counterpart, and as the blood flowed from the wounds on Golgotha there occurred a corresponding spiritual event: at this moment it happened for the first time that rays streamed forth from the earth into cosmic space, where formerly there had been none. We must visualize, then, as created at this moment, rays streaming from the earth into cosmic space. Darker and darker had the earth become with the passing of time—up to the event on Golgotha. Now the blood flows on Golgotha—and the earth begins to radiate light.

If in pre-Christian time some clairvoyant being had been able to observe the earth from a distant cosmic body he would have seen the earth's aura gradually fading out, and darkest immediately preceding the event on Golgotha. Then, however, he would have seen it shine forth in new colors. The deed on Golgotha suffused the earth with an astral light that will gradually become an etheric and then a physical light. Every being in the world continues to evolve. What is today the sun was first a planet; and just as the old Saturn became a Sun, so our earth, now a planet, will gradually develop into a sun. The first impetus in this direction was given when the blood flowed from the wounds of our Redeemer on Golgotha. The earth began to shine—for the time being astrally, visible only to the seer; but in the future the astral light will become physical light and the earth will be a luminous body, a sun body.

I have explained repeatedly that no new cosmic body comes into being through the agglomeration of physical matter, but through the creation, by a spiritual being, of a new spiritual center, a new sphere of activity. The formation of a cosmic body begins in spirit. Every physical cosmic body was first spirit. What our earth will ultimately become consists at present of the astral aspect of its aura which began to ray forth from the earth at the time we are here considering: that is the first nucleus of the future sun-earth. But what a man of that time would have perceived with his misleading senses is a phantom: that has no truth, it dissolves, it ceases to be; and the farther the earth moves toward its sun state, the more will this maya be consumed and perish in the fire of the sun. But through having been suffused at that time with a new force, through the newly created possibility for the earth to become a sun, it became possible as well for this same force to permeate man. This was the first impulse toward what I described yesterday: the radiating of the Christ force into the etheric human body; and thanks to the streaming in of this astral force it could start absorbing new vitality such as it will need in the distant future.

So if you will visualize the period in which the event of Golgotha occurred and then compare it with a later period—that is, if you compare a future condition of humanity with that which prevailed at the time of the event of Golgotha—you will find that at the time the Christ impulse intervened, the earth of itself had nothing left to infuse into the etheric bodies of men. Some time later, however, the etheric bodies of those who had found a contact with the Christ impulse were irradiated: men who understood the Christ absorbed the radiant force that has been in the earth ever since—the earth's new radiance. They have taken the light of Christ into their etheric bodies. The Christ light streams into the etheric bodies of men.

And here we must ask, What takes place, now that there is always something of the Christ light in human etheric bodies? What occurs in that part of the etheric body in which the Christ light has been received? What happens to it after death? What is it, in short, that gradually permeates the etheric body as a result of the Christ impulse? It is the possibility that was given at that time, as an effect of the Christ light, for something new to appear, something living and breathing and immortal, something that can never perish in death. While men on earth are still misled by the illusory image of death, this new factor will nevertheless be rescued from death, will have no part in it.

Ever since that time, then, the human etheric body has held something that is not subject to death, to the death forces of the earth. And this something which does not die with the rest, and which men gradually achieve through the influence of the Christ impulse, now streams back again—out into cosmic space; and in proportion to its intensity in man it generates a certain force that flows out into cosmic space. And this force will in turn create a sphere around our earth that is in the process of becoming a sun: a sort of spiritual sphere is forming around the earth, composed of the etheric bodies that have come alive. The Christ light radiates from the earth, but there is also a kind of reflection of it that encircles the earth. What is here reflected as the Christ light, appearing as a consequence of the Christ event, this is what Christ called the Holy Spirit. Just as the event of Golgotha provided the first impetus for the earth to become a sun, so it is true that beginning with this event the earth began to be creative, surrounding itself with a spiritual ring which, in turn, will in the future develop into a sort of planet circling the earth.

Thus a momentous process that commenced with the event of Golgotha has since been unfolding in the cosmos. When the Cross was raised on Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds of Christ Jesus, a new cosmic center was created. We were present when that occurred: we were present as human beings, whether in a physical body or outside this physical life between birth and death. That is the way new worlds come into being; and we must comprehend that while we behold the dying Christ we stand in the presence of the genesis of a new sun.

Christ espouses death, which on earth had become the characteristic expression of the Father Spirit. Christ goes to the Father and unites with His manifestation, death—and the image of death is seen to be false, for death becomes the seed of a new sun in the universe. If we feel this event, if we can sense this unmasking of death and realize that the death on the Cross becomes the seed from which a new sun will germinate, then we shall understand why mankind on earth must have felt and conceived of it as the supreme transition in human evolution.

There was once a time when men still possessed a vague, dim clairvoyance. They lived in a spiritual element; and as they looked back upon their lives—from their thirtieth to their twentieth year, from the twentieth to the tenth, and so on back to their birth—they knew that they had come to this birth from divine-spiritual heights. For them birth was not a beginning: as spiritual beings they saw not only their birth but their death as well, and they knew that something of spirit dwelt within them which this death could not touch. Birth and death in their present meaning did not exist as yet: they came later, and they acquired their untrue, deceptive form in the outer image of the Father. Death became the characteristic feature of this external aspect of the Father.

Then men, in contemplating death, saw it apparently destroying life, and death became more and more an image representing the contrast to life. Though life brought a large measure of suffering, death was considered the greatest suffering of all. What view of death must have been held by one who saw earth events from without, saw how these earth events were reflected in humanity before the appearance of the Christ? If he had descended from divine-spiritual heights as a higher being with views differing from those of men, he would have been constrained, in contemplating mankind, to speak as Buddha spoke. This Buddha had come forth from his royal palace where he had been reared, and where he had seen only what elevates life. Now, however, as he came forth, he saw a suffering human being, then an aged man, and finally even a dead man. These experiences wrung from him the utterance: “Sickness is suffering, old age is suffering, death is suffering.” That is indeed the way it was felt by men; and in these words the common feeling burst forth from the great soul of Buddha.

Then Christ appeared. And then, after the lapse of another six hundred years—just as six hundred had passed between Buddha and Christ—there were those who understood, when envisioning the Cross and the dead Man upon it, that what hung upon the Cross was the symbol of that seed from which springs forth life in abundance. They had learned to sense the true nature of death. Christ espoused death, entered this death that had become the characteristic expression of the Father, united with this death; and from the union of Christ Jesus and death sprang the inception of a new life sun. It is a false picture that shows death as synonymous with suffering: it is maya, illusion. Death, if permitted to approach us as it did Christ, is in reality the germ of life; and in the course of future ages men will come to recognize this. What men will contribute to a new sun and a new planetary system will be proportionate to what they receive of the Christ impulse and then give of themselves in sacrifice, thus steadily adding to the radiance of the sun of life.

Here the objection might be raised, So says spiritual science; but how can you reconcile a cosmology of that sort with the Gospel?—Christ enlightened those who were His disciples; and in order to prepare them for the most comprehensive revelations He employed the method that is indispensable if the loftiest truths are to be adequately understood: He spoke to His disciples in parables or, as it is worded in the German Bible, in “proverbs” (Sprichwörter)—that is, in transcriptions and parables. Then came the time when the disciples, having steadily matured, believed themselves able to receive the truth without its being clothed in proverbs; and the moment arrives in which Christ Jesus is prepared to talk to His apostles without proverbs, without parables. The apostles craved to hear the name, the significant name, for the sake of which He had come into the world.

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. These things have I spoken unto you in parables: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in parables, but shall shew you plainly of the father.

Try to feel the moment approaching in which He would speak to His disciples of the Father.

At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray to the Father for you:
For the Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.
I came forth from the Father ...

He had, of course, come forth from the Father's true form, not from the deceptive image.

I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.

Now it dawns upon the disciples, whose understanding had ripened, that the world as it surrounds them is the expression of the Father, and that what is most significant precisely where the outer world is most densely shrouded in maya, in illusion, is equally the expression of the Father: that Death is the name for the Father. That is what came to them in a flash of comprehension. Only, the passage must be read aright.

His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no parable. Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.

Jesus answered them, Now ye believe. [1]

Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.

These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Did the disciples know whither He was about to depart? Yes, from now on they knew that He would go to meet death, to wed death.—And now read again what He said to them after they had learned the meaning of the words: “I came forth from death”—that is, from death in its true form, the life-Father—“and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.” And to this the disciples replied: “Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.”

Now the disciples knew that the true form of death bases in the divine Father Spirit; that death as it is seen and felt by men is a deceptive phenomenon, an error. Thus Christ reveals to His disciples the name of death behind which is hidden the fount of transcendent life. Never would the new life sun have come into being had not death entered the world and been overcome by Christ. Death, therefore, when contemplated in its true form, is the Father; and Christ came into the world because a false reflection of this Father had arisen in the aspect of death. Christ came to create the true form, a true image of the living Father-God. The Son is the issue of the Father, and His mission was to reveal the true form of the Father. Verily, the Father sent His Son into the world that the true nature of the Father be made manifest: life eternal, veiled behind temporal death.

All this is not a mere cosmology of spiritual science: it is what is needed to extract the full, profound import from the Gospel of St. John; and he who wrote that Gospel thereby established, so to speak, the loftiest truths of which he could say,

In these mankind will find sustenance for all future time.

And in proportion as mankind learns to understand and practice these truths it will attain to a new wisdom and will grow into the spiritual world in a new way. But as this will come about only by degrees, it was necessary that in the meantime the guides of Christian development should provide for the creation of what may be called auxiliary books to function side by side with the Gospel of St. John, books not intended only for the most willing and understanding—such as is the John Gospel, meant as a legacy of Christ for all eternity—but suitable for the immediate present.

Thus there appeared in the first place a book from which people of the first Christian centuries could learn, in the measure of their understanding, the essence of what they needed to comprehend the Christ event. Even here, of course, there were but few in proportion to the whole of mankind who could glean from this auxiliary book the exact nature of what it contained for them. This first book of its kind, not intended for the innermost circle but still for the chosen ones, was the Gospel of St. Mark. This Gospel embodies precisely those features that held an intimate appeal, so to speak, for a certain type of understanding then prevalent (we shall come back to this). Then it gradually became less intelligible, human comprehension turning more in the direction of seeing most clearly the full force of Christ in its inner value for the soul and in a certain contempt for the outer physical world.

Next followed a period in which men were imbued with the feeling: 'Worthless are all temporal goods; true riches are found only in the properly developed inner self of man. This was also the time in which, for example, Johannes Tauler wrote his book, Von armen Leben Kristi (The Pitious Life of Christ): the time in which the Gospel of St. Luke was the one best understood. Luke, a disciple of Paul, was one of those who gave Paul's own gospel a form adapted to the time, stressing the “pitious life” of Jesus of Nazareth, born in a stable among poor shepherds. We recognize das arme Leben Kristi as mirroring the account in the Luke Gospel, a second subsidiary book for the further development of humanity.

In our time there will be those who can best learn what they are able to understand, as it accords with our age, from the Gospel of St. Matthew. People of our period, though perhaps referring less frequently to the name “Matthew,” will nevertheless select more and more what corresponds with the Matthew Gospel. The time will come when people will point out that it is impossible to understand the super-sensible events that took place at the Baptism in the Jordan, as we have described them. That is an understanding which will come to many only in the future. We are approaching an epoch in which He Who, in the thirtieth year of His Life, received the Christ into Himself, will be increasingly thought of as“the simple man of Nazareth”—even by theological research.

Those who feel this way about it, those to whom the simple man of Nazareth is of supreme importance and who attach less significance to the Christ than to the lofty initiate—those, in short, who want Jesus of Nazareth—will feel the Matthew Gospel to be preeminently significant, at least in its import. A materialistically thinking age can say: We open the Matthew Gospel and find a genealogic record, a table of heredity that shows us the ancestors of Jesus of Nazareth chronologically. It runs from Abraham down through three times fourteen generations to Joseph; and we are told that Abraham begat Isaac, Isaac begat Jacob, and so on and so forth. It runs to Joseph and Jesus of Nazareth; and the reason this is stated is to make quite clear the possibility of tracing back to Abraham the physical line of heredity of that body into which Jesus of Nazareth, as an individual, had been born. Leave out Joseph, and the whole table becomes meaningless. To speak of a super-sensible birth in the face of this table robs the latter of every vestige of sense; for why should the writer of the Matthew Gospel take the trouble to trace a line of ancestry through three times fourteen generations if he intended to follow this by saying that in respect of the physical flesh Jesus of Nazareth was not descended from Joseph? The only way in which the Gospel of St. Matthew can be understood is by stressing the fact that through Joseph the individuality of Jesus of Nazareth was born into a body which had actually descended from Abraham. The purpose of this table was to emphasize the impossibility of omitting Joseph, within the meaning of the Matthew Gospel; and it follows that neither can Joseph be ignored by those who fail to understand the super-sensible birth in the sense of the Baptism in the Jordan.

But the Matthew Gospel was originally written in a community which placed the greatest value not upon Christ, but upon the individuality that stood before men in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, the initiate. Underlying the Matthew Gospel was the initiate wisdom known to the Ebionite Gnostics, and this Gospel bases upon a document from that source as its model. Prime importance was placed on the initiate, Jesus of Nazareth; and all else connected with the matter becomes far clearer still by reason of its being embodied in the Ebionite gospel. But this is precisely what makes possible a certain approach to the Matthew Gospel—one which is not exactly demanded by it, for actually it is not implied, but which can be read into it: The Gospel of St. Matthew may be interpreted as implying that we are not dealing here with a super-sensible birth. On the other hand, what is presented in the Matthew Gospel may be regarded as the symbol of a God—one who is simply called a God, one who, as a God, is really only a human being—even though this was not what Matthew meant. But those who nowadays base their standpoint upon Matthew—and they will do so more and more—will interpret the matter in that way.

In order that no man wishing to approach the Christ may be denied the opportunity of doing so, the Matthew Gospel provides for those who are unable to rise from Jesus to Christ: it is a rung in the ladder which they can ascend to Jesus of Nazareth. The mission of spiritual science, however, is to guide men upward to an understanding of the Gospel of Gospels, the Gospel of St. John. Every other Gospel should be regarded as complementary to it. In the John Gospel are to be found the reasons for the existence of the others, and we shall understand these aright only by studying them on the basis of the John Gospel.

A study of the Gospel of St. John will lead to a comprehensive understanding of what took place on Golgotha; to an understanding of the Mystery by means of which death, in the untrue form it had assumed in human evolution, was refuted. And men will further learn to grasp the fact that through the deed of Golgotha, not only was it revealed to human cognition that death is in reality the source of life, but man was provided with an attitude toward death which permitted him to infuse more and more life into his own being, until ultimately it will become wholly alive—that is, until he will be able to rise from all death, until he has overcome death. That is what was revealed to Paul when he saw the living Christ on the road to Damascus—when he knew: Christ liveth—as he gazed with his newly found clairvoyance into what constituted the environment of the earth. As an Old-Testament initiate he knew that until then the earth had lacked a certain light, but now he saw that light in it; hence the Christ was present; hence also, He Who had hung on the Cross was the Christ in Jesus of Nazareth.

Thus there came to Paul, on the road to Damascus, an understanding of what had taken place on Golgotha.

Dreizehnter Vortrag

Gestern haben wir vor unsere Seele hingestellt die Bedeutung des Mysteriums von Golgatha für die menschliche Entwickelung auf unserer Erde. Nun aber hängt in der Welt jedes Ereignis durch schier unendliche Beziehungen im Grunde genommen mit der Entwickelung des ganzen Kosmos zusammen. Und wir werden das Mysterium von Golgatha seiner Wesenheit nach vollständig nur verstehen können, wenn wir uns auch über die kosmische Bedeutung dieses Ereignisses auf klären.

Wir wissen ja bereits, daß die Wesenheit, die wir als die Christus-Wesenheit bezeichnen, aus überirdischen Regionen heruntergestiegen ist auf unsere Erde, daß sie sozusagen in ihrem Herankommen gesehen wurde im alten Persien durch die Hellsehergabe des Zarathustra auf der Sonne, dann durch Moses im brennenden Dornbusch und in dem Feuer auf Sinai, und endlich für diejenigen, die das Christus-Ereignis erlebt haben, in der Anwesenheit des Christus indemLeibe des Jesus von Nazareth.

Wir wissen, daß unsere Erdenereignisse, vor allen Dingen die Menschheitsentwickelung, mit unserem Sonnensystem zusammenhängen. Denn wir haben ja gezeigt, daß diese Menschheitsentwickelung, so wie sie geworden ist, überhaupt sich nicht hätte vollziehen können, wenn nicht einst aus einem Weltenkörper, in welchem unsere Sonne und unser heutiger Mond noch mit der Erde vereinigt waren, zunächst die Sonne und dann später der Mond herausgetreten wären und unsere Erde dadurch wie in eine Gleichgewichtslage zwischen Sonne und Mond hineingestellt worden wäre. Weil der Mensch nicht hat mitmachen können das rasche Tempo der Entwickelung jener Wesen, die sich auf der Sonne einen Schauplatz suchten, so mußte eben die Erde von der Sonne getrennt werden. Und weil dann, wenn die Erde mit dem Monde zusammengeblieben wäre, die Menschheit einer raschen Verhärtung, einer Verknöcherung anheimgefallen wäre, mußte der Mond mit seinen Substanzen und Wesenheiten herausgetrennt werden. Dadurch wurde die Menschheitsentwickelung in der richtigen Weise ermöglicht. Aber wir haben gestern gesehen, daß ein gewisser Rest von Tendenz zur Verhärtung immerhin geblieben ist und daß dieser Rest ausreichen würde, die Menschheit am Ennde unserer Erdentwickelung einer Art von Verwesungszustand entgegenzuführen, wenn nicht der Christus-Impuls gekommen wäre. Das wird uns ermöglichen, ein wenig hineinzuschauen in unsere ganze Entwickelung.

Einmal waren also Sonne, Mond und Erde ein Weltenkörper. Dann kam die Zeit, in welcher sich die Sonne abtrennte; da waren nur Erde und Mond noch vereint. Dann trennte sich der heutige Mond ab, und die Erde blieb zurück als der Schauplatz der Menschheitsentwickelung. Das war in der alten lemurischen Zeit, welche der sogenannten atlantischen Zeit, die wir jetzt schon von verschiedenen Gesichtspunkten her besprochen haben, vorangegangen ist. Dann entwickelte sich die Erde so, daß die Kräfte von Sonne und Mond von außen wirkten, von der atlantischen Zeit bis in unsere Zeit herauf.

Betrachten wir nun einmal den weiteren Fortgang der Erdenentwickelung bis zu der Zeit, in welcher der Christus-Impuls kam. Und zwar wollen wir da einen ganz bestimmten Zeitpunkt unserer Erdenentwickelung ins Auge fassen, den Zeitpunkt, in welchem auf Golgatha das Kreuz erhöht wurde, wo aus den Wunden des Christus Jesus das Blut herausfloß. Diesen Zeitpunkt unserer Erdenentwickelung fassen wir ins Auge.

Bis zu diesem Zeitpunkt hin ist mit der Menschheit dasjenige geschehen, was die Folge davon ist, daß in das Innere der menschlichen Wesenheit eingezogen sind die vereinigten Mächte der luziferischen und ahrimanischen Wesenheiten. Und wir haben gesehen, daß durch dieses Einziehen sich der Mensch hineinlebte in bezug auf die äußere Welt in Maja oder Illusion: Ahriman bewirkte, daß die äußere Welt dem Menschen nicht in ihrer wahren Gestalt erschien, sondern so, als ob sie nur eine materielle, eine stoffliche Welt wäre, als ob nicht hinter allem Stofflichen das Geistige wäre. Es befand sich also der Mensch lange Zeit — und für viele Glieder der Erdenentwickelung befindet er sich noch heute darin — in einem Zustand, der durch Irrtum bewirkt worden ist, weil der Mensch nur die sinnlichen, materiellen Eindrücke um sich sieht und sie durch seine Vorstellungen verarbeitet. Durch diesen Einfluß des Ahriman oder Mephistopheles sieht der Mensch also die äußere Welt in einem falschen Bilde, und er macht sich illusorische und unwahre Vorstellungen über die geistige Welt. Aber alles Geistige steht im Zusammenhang mit physischen Wirkungen, und wir haben gesehen, welche physischen Wirkungen einhergingen mit diesem Trugbild der äußeren Anschauung. Wir haben gesehen, daß eben eine Folge des luziferischen und des ahrimanischen Einflusses die war, daß des Menschen Blut immer weniger und weniger geeignet wurde, ihm die Fähigkeit zu geben, in der äußeren Welt das Richtige zu sehen, so daß mit der Verschlechterung des Blutes, mit dem Auflösen des Blutes, wie es war in den Zeiten alter Blutsverwandtschaft, mit diesem Zerstieben, mit diesem Abtöten des Blutes durch die Blutmischung verbunden war ein Immer-größer-Werden der Illusion. Denn der Mensch konnte nicht mehr die alte Weisheit fragen, die er früher noch als ein Erbstück hatte und die ihm sagte: Es ist nicht so, daß die Außenwelt bloß Stoff ist; denn wenn du dich an deine alten Weisheitserbstücke hältst, so sagen dir diese, daß hinter der physischen Welt eine geistige Welt steht. — Aber diese Erbstücke verloren sich immer mehr und mehr. Und so war der Mensch immer mehr mit seinem ganzen Seelenleben und seiner Erkenntnis auf die äußere physische Welt angewiesen. Das also verwandelte ihm alle physischen Eindrücke in Illusion, in Täuschung. Wäre nun nicht der Christus-Einfluß eingetreten, so würde der Mensch endlich so weit gekommen sein, daß er alle alten Erbstücke der Weisheit hätte verlieren müssen, daß er nach und nach ganz angewiesen wäre bloß auf die äußere Welt der Sinne und ihre Eindrücke. Er hätte vergessen, daß es eine geistige Welt gibt. Das hätte eintreten müssen. Blind hätte der Mensch werden müssen für die geistige Welt.

Nun müssen wir eine solche Wahrheit, daß der Mensch immer mehr und mehr verfallen würde in Täuschung und Irrtum über die äußere Welt, in ihrem vollen Ernste betrachten. Es ist nicht so einfach, diese Wahrheit, die eben jetzt vor Sie hingestellt worden ist - das Verfallen des Menschen in Irrtum über die äußeren Eindrücke der Sinnenwelt -, in vollem Ernste und in voller Breite zu nehmen. Versuchen Sie einmal zu begreifen, was das heißt: Wir sollen alle äußeren Eindrücke der Sinne, wie sie sich uns darbieten in der physisch-sinnlichen Welt, erkennen als Illusion, als Täuschung. Wir sollen uns sagen lernen: Wie die Tatsachen und Eindrücke in der Sinnenwelt sind und auf uns Eindruck machen, so sind sie falsch, und wir müssen lernen, hinter den äußeren Eindrücken ihre wahre Gestalt zu sehen.

Ich werde Ihnen ein Ereignis nennen, auf das es in der Regel schwer wird für den Menschen, die Wahrheit anzuwenden, so daß er sich sagt: Die Gestalt, die sich mir darbietet in der äußeren Welt über dieses Ereignis, ist unwahr, ist eine Illusion, ist Maja. — Und wissen Sie, was das Für ein Ereignis ist? Dieses Ereignis ist der Tod. Indem der Tod uns in der äußeren, physischen Welt entgegentritt, indem er zu unserer Erkenntnis spricht, die nach und nach unter den Einflüssen, die wir geschildert haben, zu einer solchen geworden ist, die nur äußere physische Ereignisse begreifen kann, trägt der Tod ein Gewisses von Eigenschaften an sich, ist er so geworden, daß ihn die Menschen nur noch unter dem Gesichtsblick der äußeren physischen Welt betrachten können. Gerade über den Tod mußte die Menschheit in die irrtümlichsten, verhängnisvollsten Anschauungen verfallen. Also die Konsequenz müssen wir ziehen, daß die Gestalt, in der sich uns der Tod darstellt, nur Maja, Illusion, eine Täuschung ist.

Vor unseren Augen in der äußeren physischen Welt stehen die mannigfaltigsten Ereignisse. Da stehen vor unserem Auge die Sterne, die den Weltenraum durchsetzen ; da sind die Berge, die Pflanzen, die Tiere; da ist die ganze Welt unserer Mineralien; da steht auch der Mensch und alles übrige mit den Tatsachen, die wir durch unsere Beobachtung mit den Sinnen gewinnen können. Und wenn wir uns fragen: Woher sind denn diese Tatsachen? Woher kommt denn diese äußere physisch-sinnliche Welt, die sich uns als eine materielle Welt darstellt? dann müssen wir antworten: Sie kommt aus dem Geistigen. Geistiges liegt unserer physisch-sinnlichen Welt zugrunde. - Und wenn wir auf die ursprünglichste Gestalt des Geistes zurückgehen würden, aus dem alles SinnlichPhysische hervorgeht, so würden wir es nennen müssen die Grundlage alles Seins, in der christlichen Esoterik dasjenige, was man in der Gottheit das Vater-Prinzip nennt. Es liegt zugrunde alledem, was Geschöpf ist, das göttliche Vater-Prinzip. Was also ist dem Menschen eigentlich verhüllt worden, indem sich für ihn alles eingetaucht hat in Maja oder Illusion? Das göttliche Vater-Prinzip! Statt der Trugbilder der Sinne müßte er in allem, was um ihn herum ist, das göttliche Vater-Prinzip sehen. Das göttlich-geistige Vater-Prinzip, dem alle Dinge und er selber angehören, das müßte der Mensch sehen allüberall. Das göttlich-geistige Vater-Prinzip, dem alle Dinge und er selber angehören, zeigt sich also nicht in seiner wahren Gestalt. Dadurch, daß der Mensch erlitten hat diejenigen Verminderungen seiner Fähigkeiten, von denen wir gesprochen haben, dadurch zeigt sich dieses Vater-Prinzip durch die große Täuschung, durch die Maja hindurch.

Was ist eingewoben in die große Täuschung? Unter all den Tatsachen, die wir sehen, stellt sich uns eine dar, die grundwesentlich ist, und das ist der Tod. Sagen müßte sich der Mensch daher: Die äußeren Dinge, die sich unseren Sinnen darbieten, sind in Wahrheit das VaterPrinzip; das göttlich-geistige Vater-Element, das drücken sie aus. Und wenn uns einverwoben ist in die ganze Sinnenwelt der Tod, so ist der Tod für uns etwas, was zum göttlich-geistigen Vater-Prinzip gehört. Dadurch, daß der Mensch sich so entwickelt hat, wie er sich entwickelt hat, dadurch ist für ihn das göttliche Vater-Prinzip eingehüllt in mancherlei Hüllen - und zuletzt in die Hülle des Todes. Was muß der Mensch deshalb hinter dem Tode suchen, wie hinter allem Sinnlichen? Den Vater, den kosmischen Vater! So wie der Mensch lernen muß von einem jeglichen Ding zu sagen: «Es ist der Vater in Wahrheit», so muß er lernen, sich zu sagen: «Der Tod ist der Vater.» Und warum erscheint uns im Sinnlich-Physischen ein falsches Bild des Vaters? Warum erscheint uns das Bild des Vaters so verzerrt, daß es bis zu dem entstellt erscheint, was sich uns als der trügerische Tod darstellt? Weil all unserem Leben beigemischt ist das Luzifer-Ahriman-Prinzip! Wenn also der Mensch nun geführt werden sollte von einer falschen, von einer trügerischen, majahaften Anschauung über den Tod zu einer richtigen Anschauung über den Tod, was müßte da geschehen?

Der Mensch müßte durch die Tatsachen aufgeklärt werden über den Tod! Es müßte etwas geschehen, durch das der Mensch lernen könnte, daß es unwahr ist, was er über den Tod gewußt hat, was er über den Tod empfunden hat, was er alles unter dem Impuls seiner Vorstellung über den Tod hat tun können. Es mußte ein Ereignis auftreten, das ihm die wahre Gestalt des Todes vor Augen stellte. Die falsche Gestalt des Todes mußte ausgelöscht werden, eine wahre Gestalt des Todes mußte hingestellt werden.

Das war die Mission des Christus auf Erden, daß er an die Stelle der falschen Gestalt des Todes durch seine Tat die wahre Gestalt des Todes hinstellte.

Der Tod ist zu diesem Zerrbild des Vaters geworden dadurch, daß Luzifer-Ahriman sich eingemischt hat in die Menschheitsentwickelung. Der Tod war die Folge, die Wirkung des Einflusses von Luzifer-Ahriman. Was mußte also derjenige tun, der diese falsche Gestalt des Todes aus der Welt schaffen wollte?

Nimmermehr hätte die falsche Gestalt des Todes aus dem Menschenleben fortkommen können, wenn nicht die Ursache - Luzifer- Ahriman beseitigt worden wäre. Aber das hätte kein Erdenwesen vollbringen können. Ein Erdenwesen kann innerhalb der Erdenentwickelung wohl auslöschen die Dinge, die durch Erdenwesen selbst geschehen sind, nicht aber den luziferisch-ahrimanischen Einfluß. Den konnte nur ein Wesen herausbringen, das selber noch nicht auf der Erde war, als Luzifer-Ahriman wirkte, das noch im Weltenraum draußen war, das in einer Zeit auf die Erde kam, wo Luzifer-Ahriman schon ganz in den Menschenleib hineingegangen war.

Nun kam dieses Wesen auf die Erde und beseitigte gerade im richtigen Moment, wie wir gesehen haben, Luzifer-Ahriman, schuf hinweg die Ursache dessen, was den Tod gebracht hat in die Welt. Also mußte das ein Wesen sein, welches mit allen sonstigen Todesursachen innerhalb der Menschheit nichts zu tun hatte. Mit alledem, wodurch die Menschen den Tod erlitten haben, das ist mit alledem, was durch Luzifer, später dutch Ahriman bewirkt worden ist, was die einzelnen Menschen dadurch auf der Erde vollbracht haben, daß es einen LuziferAhriman-Einfluß gab, mit anderen Worten: mit all dem, wodurch die Menschen schuldig geworden sind, in das Böse verfallen sind, mit all dem durfte diese Wesenheit nichts zu tun haben. Denn hätte ein Wesen den Tod erlitten, welches unter dem Einfluß aller dieser Ursachen gestanden hätte, dann wäre dieser Tod begründet gewesen. Ein solcher Tod, der unbegründet war, der ohne Schuld von einem Wesen auf sich genommen wurde, ein ganz und gar unschuldiger Tod konnte allein auslöschen allen schuldigen Tod.

Demnach mußte ein Unschuldiger den Tod erleiden, sich mit dem Tode vermählen, mußte den Tod über sich ergehen lassen. Und indem er den Tod über sich ergehen ließ, brachte er hinein in dieses Menschenleben diejenigen Kräfte, welche nach und nach für den Menschen die Erkenntnis der wahren Gestalt des Todes schaffen, das heißt, die Erkenntnis, daß der Tod, wie er in der Sinneswelt auftritt, keine Wahrheit hat, daß im Gegenteil dieser Tod eintreten mußte zum Behufe des Lebens in der geistigen Welt, daß mit diesem Tode gerade die Grundlage geschaffen ist für das Leben im Geistigen.

So war durch den unschuldigen Tod auf Golgatha der Beweis geliefert, den die Menschen nach und nach verstehen werden: daß der Tod der immer lebendige Vater ist! Und haben wir erst die richtige Anschauung über den Tod, haben wir erst durch das Ereignis von Golgatha kennengelernt, daß das äußere Sterben nichts bedeutet, daß in dem Leibe des Jesus von Nazareth der Christus gelebt hat, mit dem wir uns vereinigen können, haben wir erst erkannt, daß dieser Christus bewirkt hat, daß, obwohl das Bild des Todes am Kreuz sich darbietet, dies nur ein äußeres Ereignis ist, und daß das Leben des Christus im Ätherleibe vor dem Tode dasselbe ist wie nach diesem Tode, daß dieser Tod also dem Leben nichts anhaben kann, - haben wir begriffen, daß wir hier einen Tod vor uns haben, der das Leben nicht auslöscht, der selbst Leben ist, dann haben wir durch das, was am Kreuze hing, ein für allemal das Wahrzeichen, daß der Tod in Wahrheit der Leben-Spender ist. Ebenso wie die Pflanze aus dem Samen hervorwächst, ist auch der Tod kein Vernichter, sondern ein Same des Lebens. Er ist hineingesät worden in unsere physisch-sinnliche Welt, damit diese physisch-sinnliche Welt nicht herausfällt aus dem Leben, sondern heraufgenommen werden kann in das Leben. Die Widerlegung des Todes mußte am Kreuze geliefert werden durch den widerspruchsvollen Tod, durch den Tod, der ein unschuldiger gewesen ist. Was aber wurde damit eigentlich getan?

Wir wissen aus den vorhergehenden Vorträgen, daß der Mensch ein Ich als das vierte Glied seiner Wesenheit hat, und daß, indem dieses Ich sich entwickelt, es zu seinem äußeren physischen Instrument das Blut hat. Das Blut ist der Ausdruck des Ich. Deshalb verfiel das Ich in Irrtum, immer mehr und mehr in Maja oder Illusion, als das Blut immer schlechter und schlechter wurde. Deshalb verdankt der Mensch auch die Erhöhung der Kraft seines Ich dem Umstande, daß er sein Blut hat. Wiederum aber verdankt er dieses Ich in geistiger Beziehung dem Umstande, daß er sich unterscheiden lernte von der geistigen Welt, daß er eine Individualität wurde. Das konnte ihm nicht unter anderen Verhältnissen gegeben werden als dadurch, daß ihm der Ausblick zur geistigen Welt zunächst durchschnitten wurde. Und was ihm diesen Ausblick durchschnitten hat, das war eben der Tod. Hätte der Mensch immer gewußt, daß der Tod der Same des Lebens ist, er wäre auch nicht zu einer selbständigen Ichheit gekommen, denn er wäre geblieben im Zusammenhang mit der geistigen Welt. So aber trat der Tod ein, gab ihm die Illusion, daß er getrennt sei von der geistigen Welt, und erzog so den Menschen zur selbständigen Ichheit.

Aber diese Ichheit wurde immer selbständiger und selbständiger, und zwar so, daß sie ihre Selbständigkeit übertrieb, überspannte über einen gewissen Punkt hinaus. Das konnte auf der anderen Seite nur ausgeglichen werden dadurch, daß dieser Ichheit jene Kraft entzogen wurde, welche sie über diesen Punkt hinausgetrieben hatte. Was also in dem Ich zu stark in den Egoismus hineingeführt hatte, was an dem Ich nicht die bloße Egoität, die Ichheit, sondern den Egoismus gefördert hatte, das mußte herausgetrieben werden. Das wurde aber herausgetrieben — so daß es im Verlaufe der Zukunft immer mehr und mehr auch aus den einzelnen Ichen herausgetrieben werden kann - damals, als der Tod am Kreuz auf Golgatha eintrat und das Blut aus den Wunden floß.

In dem fließenden Blute aus den Wunden des Christus sehen wir daher das tatsächliche Symbolum für den überschüssigen Egoismus im menschlichen Ich. So wie das Blut der Ausdruck ist für das Ich, so ist das Blut, das auf Golgatha floß, der Ausdruck für das Überschüssige im menschlichen Ich. Wäre das Blut nicht geflossen auf Golgatha, so wäre der Mensch im Egoismus geistig verhärtet und damit dem Schicksal entgegengegangen, das wir gestern beschrieben haben. Mit dem auf Golgatha fließenden Blute ist der Anstoß dazu gegeben, daß dasjenige, was das Ich zum Egoisten macht, allmählich aus der Menschheit schwinden kann.

Aber ein jegliches physisches Ereignis hat zu seinem Gegenbilde ein geistiges Ereignis. In demselben Maße, als das Blut aus den Wunden auf Golgatha floß, geschah etwas Geistiges. Es geschah in diesem Moment, daß zum ersten Male Strahlen von der Erde nach dem Weltenraum hinausgingen, die früher nicht hinausgegangen waren, so daß wir, in diesem Zeitpunkt geschaffen, von der Erde Strahlen nach dem Weltenraum uns denken. Immer finsterer und finsterer war die Erde geworden mit dem Fortgange der Zeit bis zu dem Ereignis von Golgatha. Jetzt fließt das Blut auf Golgatha, und zu leuchten beginnt die Erde!

Hätte in der vorchristlichen Zeit irgendein Wesen - zunächst mit hellseherischer Kraft — von einem fernen Weltenkörper auf die Erde herunterblicken können, dann hätte es gesehen, wie die Erdenaura nach und nach verglomm und am dunkelsten wurde in der Zeit, die dem Ereignis von Golgatha voranging. Dann aber hätte es gesehen, wie die Erdenaura aufleuchtete in neuen Farben. Die Tat auf Golgatha hat die Erde mit einem astralischen Licht durchdrungen, das nach und nach zum ätherischen und dann zum physischen Licht werden wird. Denn ein jegliches Wesen in der Welt entwickelt sich weiter. Was heute Sonne ist, das war zuerst Planet. Und wie sich der alte Saturn zur Sonne entwickelt hat, so entwickeltsich unsere Erde, die jetzt Planetist, zur Sonne heran. Der erste Anstoß zum Sonnewerden unserer Erde ist damals gegeben worden, als das Blut aus den Wunden des Erlösers auf Golgatha floß. Da fing die Erde zu leuchten an, zunächst astralisch, also nur für den Hellseher sichtbar. Aber in der Zukunft wird das astralische Licht zum physischen Licht werden, und die Erde wird ein leuchtender Körper, ein Sonnen-Körper werden.

Ich habe Ihnen schon öfter gesagt: Nicht dadurch, daß sich physische Materie zusammenballt, entsteht ein Weltenkörper, sondern dadurch, daß von einem geistigen Wesen aus ein neuer geistiger Mittelpunkt, ein neuer Schauplatz geschaffen wird. Vom Geistigen aus beginnt die Bildung eines Weltenkörpers. Jeder physische Weltenkörper ist zuerst Geist gewesen. Das, was unsere Erde einmal werden wird, ist zunächst das Aurisch-Astralische, das hier anfing auszustrahlen von der Erde. Das ist die erste Anlage zur künftigen Sonnen-Erde. Das aber, was damals ein Mensch mit seinen trügerischen Sinnen gesehen hätte, das ist ein Trugbild. Das ist gar keine Wahrheit; das löst sich auf, das hört auf zu sein. Je mehr die Erde Sonne wird, desto mehr verbrennt diese Maja im Sonnenfeuer, geht auf darinnen.

Dadurch aber, daß damals die Erde durchstrahlt worden ist von einer neuen Kraft, daß die Grundlage gelegt worden ist zum Sonnewerden der Erde, dadurch war die Möglichkeit gegeben, daß diese Kraft auch die Menschen durchstrahlt. Es wurde der erste Anstoß zu dem gegeben, was ich gestern dargestellt habe: zum Ausstrahlen der ChristusKraft in den ätherischen Menschenleib. Und durch das, was da astralisch in ihn einstrahlen konnte, dadurch konnte dieser ätherische Menschenleib neue Lebenskraft aufzunehmen beginnen, wie er sie braucht für die spätere Zukunft.

Wenn Sie sich also eine gewisse Zeit nach dem Ereignis von Golgatha vorstellen und sie vergleichen mit jener Zeit, da das Ereignis von Golgatha geschah, wenn Sie also einen zukünftigen Zustand der Menschheit vergleichen mit dem Zeitpunkt, als das Ereignis von Golgatha sich vollzog, dann können Sie sich sagen: Damals, als der Christus-Einschlag kam, war die Erde noch so, daß sie von sich selber aus nichts mehr einstrahlen konnte in die Ätherleiber der Menschen. Eine Zeitlang danach aber sind die Ätherleiber derjenigen Menschen, die eine Beziehung zu dem Christus-Impuls gefunden haben, durchstrahlt worden, sie haben aufgenommen in sich, wenn sie den Christus verstanden haben, die strahlende Gewalt, die seither in der Erde ist, die neue Leuchtkraft der Erde. Sie haben aufgenommen in den Ätherleibern das Christus-Licht! In die Ätherleiber der Menschen fließt das Christus-Licht ein.

Und jetzt, da seit jener Zeit in den Ätherleibern der Menschen immer ein Teil ist des Christus-Lichtes, was geschieht jetzt? Was geschieht mit demjenigen Teil im Ätherleib des Menschen, der das Christus-Licht in sich aufgenommen hat? Was geschieht mit ihm nach dem Tode? Was ist es überhaupt, was da als Folge des Christus-Impulses in den Ätherleib des Menschen sich nach und nach einlebt?

Das ist etwas, was der Christus-Impuls gebracht hat, was der Christus-Impuls in den Ätherleib des Menschen hineingesenkt hat, was seitdem da sein kann in dem Ätherleib des Menschen und was vorher nicht da war. Seit jener Zeit ist in den Ätherleibern der Menschen die Möglichkeit gegeben, daß in ihnen gleichsam als eine Wirkung des Christus-Lichtes etwas Neues auftritt, etwas auftritt, was Leben atmet, was unsterblich ist, was niemals dem Tode verfallen kann. Wenn es aber nicht dem Tode verfällt, so wird es, solange der Mensch auf der Erde noch dem Trugbild des Todes verfällt, gerettet sein vom Tode, wird es den Tod nicht mitmachen. Es gibt also seit jener Zeit etwas im Ätherleibe des Menschen, was den Tod nicht mitmacht, was nicht verfälltden Sterbekräften der Erde. Und dieses Etwas, das den Tod nicht mitmacht, was die Menschen sich nach und nach erobern durch den Einfluß des Christus-Impulses, das strömt nun zurück, das strömt hinaus in den Weltenraum, das bildet, je nachdem es stärker oder schwächer ist im Menschen, eine Kraft, die da hinausfließt in den Weltenraum. Und es wird diese Kraft eine Sphäre um die Erde herum bilden, die im SonneWerden ist. Eine Art von Geistes-Sphäre bildet sich um die Erde herum aus den lebendig gewordenen Ätherleibern. Ebenso wie das ChristusLicht von der Erde ausstrahlt, ebenso haben wir eine Art von Widerspiegelung des Christus-Lichtes im Umkreise der Erde. Was hier widergespiegelt wird als Christus-Licht, und was als Folge des Christus-Ereignisses eingetreten ist, ist das, was Christus den Heiligen Geist nennt. Ebenso wahr, wie die Erde ihr Sonne-Werden beginnt durch das Ereignis von Golgatha, ebenso wahr ist es, daß von diesem Ereignis an die Erde auch beginnt, schöpferisch zu werden und um sich herum einen geistigen Ring zu bilden, der später wiederum zu einer Art von Planet um die Erde wird.

So geht im Kosmos von diesem Ereignis von Golgatha an etwas Wesentliches vor. Damals, als das Kreuz erhöht wurde auf Golgatha und das Blut rann aus den Wunden des Christus Jesus, da wurde ein neuer kosmischer Mittelpunkt geschaffen. Wir waren dabei, als dieser neue kosmische Mittelpunkt geschaffen wurde! Wir waren dabei als Men sehen, ob nun in einem physischen Leib oder außerhalb des physischen Lebens zwischen Geburt und Tod.

So entstehen Neubildungen von Welten! Das aber müssen wir verstehen, daß wir vor dem Ausgangspunkt einer neu sich bildenden Sonne stehen, indem wir den sterbenden Christus betrachten.

Der Christus vermählt sich dem Tod, der auf der Erde der charakteristische Ausdruck des Vater-Geistes geworden ist. Der Christus geht hin zum Vater und vermählt sich mit seinem Ausdruck, dem Tod, — und unwahr wird das Bild des Todes, denn der Tod wird zum Samen einer neuen Sonne im Weltenall. Fühlen wir dieses Ereignis, fühlen wir dieses Unwahrwerden des Todes, fühlen wir, daß der Tod an dem Kreuze das Samenkorn wird, aus dem eine neue Sonne hervorsprießt, dann fühlen wir auch so recht, wie die Menschheit auf der Erde es hat empfinden und ahnen müssen als den allerwichtigsten Übergang innerhalb der Menschheitsentwickelung.

Da war einstmals eine Zeit, wo die Menschen noch ein dumpfes, dämmerhaftes Hellsehen hatten. Da lebten sie im Geistigen, und da sahen sie zurück in ihr Leben. Wenn sie etwa im dreißigsten Jahre gestanden haben, sahen sie zurück auf ihr zwanzigstes, auf ihr zehntes Jahr und so weiter, bis zu ihrer Geburt, aber sie wußten: Ich bin in diese Geburt hineingekommen aus göttlich-geistigen Höhen. - Damals war die Geburt kein Anfang: als geistige Wesenheiten sahen sie die Geburt und sahen sie auch den Tod, und sie wußten, daß in ihnen ein Geistiges ist, etwas, was von diesem Tode nicht berührt werden konnte. Geburt und Tod im heutigen Sinn waren noch nicht da. Geburt und Tod kamen erst — und bekamen ihre unwahre, trügerische Gestalt in dem äußeren Bilde des Vaters. In dem äußeren Bilde des Vaters wurde das Charakteristische der Tod! Und dann sahen die Menschen hin auf den Tod und sahen, wie er scheinbar das Leben vernichtet. Und der Tod wurde immer mehr und mehr zu einem Bilde, das den Gegensatz des Lebens darstellte. Wenn das Leben vielfach Leiden brachte, so war der Tod etwas, was das größte Leiden darstellte.

Wie mußte derjenige, der von außen auf die Erdenereignisse sah, das heißt, der sah, wie diese Erdenereignisse sich spiegelten in der Menschheit vor dem Eintritt des Christus, wie mußte er über den Tod denken? Er mußte, wenn er aus göttlich-geistigen Höhen herunterstieg als ein höheres Wesen, das andere Anschauungen hatte als die Menschen, er mußte, wenn er auf die Menschheit hinsah, so sagen, wie der Buddha gesagt hat.

Herausgekommen war dieser Buddha aus einem Königspalaste, in welchem er erzogen worden war. Er hatte dort nichts anderes gesehen als das, was das Leben erhöhte. Jetzt aber, da er heraustrat, sah er einen leidenden Menschen, da sah er einen kranken Menschen, vor allen Dingen aber sah er einen toten Menschen. Als er das erlebt hatte, da trat ihm vor die Augen der Satz: «Krankheit ist Leiden! Alter ist Leiden! Tod ist Leiden!» So hatte es in der Tat die Menschheit empfunden. Und das, was die ganze Menschheit empfunden hatte, aus Buddhas groBer Seele rang es sich los.

Dann kam der Christus. Und nach dem Christus, nachdem weitere sechshundert Jahre vergangen waren, wie sechshundert Jahre vergangen waren von dem Buddha bis zu dem Christus, da gab es Leute, die da sagen konnten, wenn sie das Kreuz sahen und den toten Menschen darauf: Was am Kreuze hängt, das ist das Symbolum jenes Samens, aus dem Leben über Leben quillt! - Sie hatten wahr empfinden gelernt über den Tod!

Der Christus Jesus hat sich dem Tode vermählt, ist hingegangen zu diesem Tode, der der charakteristische Ausdruck des Vaters wurde, hat sich vereinigt mit diesem Tode. Und aus der Vermählung des Christus Jesus mit dem Tode ist der Anfang einer Lebens-Sonne geboten. Es ist ein Trugbild, eine Maja oder Illusion, daß der Tod gleichbedeutend mit Leiden ist. Der Tod, wenn die Menschen im Laufe der Zukunft lernen, ihn so an sich herantreten zu lassen, wie er an den Christus herantrat, ist in Wahrheit der Keim zum Leben. Und so viel werden die Menschen beitragen zu einer neuen Sonne und zu einem neuen Planetensystem, als sie, empfangend vom Christus-Impuls, hingeben von ihrem Eigenen, und so immer mehr und mehr die Lebens-Sonne zu einer gröBeren machen.

Es könnte jemand einwenden: Das sagt die Geisteswissenschaft! Was aber willst du mit einer solchen Kosmologie gegenüber dem Evangelium?

Der Christus hat diejenigen, die seine Schüler waren, belehrt. Und um sie reif zu machen für das Größte, hat er diejenige Methode befolgt, welche notwendig ist, damit man das Größte in der entsprechenden Weise begreifen lernt: er hat zu den Jüngern gesprochen in Gleichnissen oder, wie es in der deutschen Bibel übersetzt heißt, in «Sprichwörtern» -, in Übertragungen und Gleichnissen. Da kommt der Zeitpunkt, wo die Schüler immer reifer und reifer geworden sind, und wo sie sich reif glauben konnten, die Wahrheit ohne Sprichwörter zu hören. Und der Christus Jesus läßt den Zeitpunkt eintreten, wo er ohne Sprichwort, ohne Gleichnis zu seinen Aposteln reden will. Denn die Apostel wollen hören den Namen, wegen dessen er in die Welt gekommen ist; den wichtigen Namen wollen sie hören:

«Bisher habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen. Bittet, so werdet ihr nehmen, daß eure Freude vollkommen sei. .

Solches habe ich zu euch dutch Sprichwörter geredet. Es kommt aber die Zeit, daß ich nicht mehr durch Sprichwörter mit euch reden werde, sondern euch frei heraus verkündigen von meinem Vater.»

Fühlen wir den Zeitpunkt herankommen, wo er reden will zu seinen Jüngern von dem Vater!

«An demselbigen Tage werdet ihr bitten in meinem Namen. Und ich sage euch nicht, daß ich den Vater für euch bitten will.

Denn er selbst, der Vater, hat euch lieb, darum daß ihr mich liebet, und glaubet, daß ich von Gott ausgegangen bin.

Ich bin vom Vater ausgegangen.»

Er ist natürlich ausgegangen von dem Vater in der wahren Gestalt, und nicht von der trügerischen Gestalt des Vaters.

«Ich bin vom Vater ausgegangen, und gekommen in die Welt; wiederum verlasse ich die Welt und gehe zum Vater.»

Nun leuchtet in den Jüngern auf, weil sie reif geworden sind, daß die Welt, wie sie um sie herum ist, der äußere Ausdruck des Vaters ist, und daß dasjenige, was das Bedeutsamste an der äußeren Welt ist - da, wo die äußere Welt am meisten Maja oder Illusion ist —, der Ausdruck des Vaters ist: daß der Tod der Name ist für den Vater. Das geht den Jüngern auf. Nur muß man es richtig lesen.

«Sprechen zu ihm seine Jünger: Siehe, nun redest du freiheraus, und sagest kein Sprichwort.

Nun wissen wir, daß du alle Dinge weißt, und bedarfst nicht, daß dich jemand frage; darum glauben wir, daß du von Gott ausgegangen bist.

Jesus antwortete ihnen: Jetzt glaubet ihr.

Siehe, es kommt die Stunde, und ist schon kommen, daß ihr zerstreuet werdet, ein jeglicher in das Seine, und mick allein lasset. Aber ich bin nicht allein; denn der Vater ist bei mir.

Solches habe ich mit euch geredet, daß ihr in mir Frieden habet. In der Welt habet ihr Angst; aber seid getrost, ich habe die Welt überwunden.» (16, 24-33)

Wußten die Jünger, wohin er jetzt geht? Ja, sie wußten von jetzt ab, er geht zum Tode, er vermählt sich mit dem Tode. Und nun lesen Sie, was er zu ihnen gesagt hat, nachdem sie verstehen gelernt haben die Worte: «Ich bin vom Tode ausgegangen », das heißt vom Tode in seiner wahren Gestalt, vom Lebens-Vater, «und kommen in die Welt; wiederum verlasse ich die Welt und gehe zum Vater.» Da sagen seine Jünger:

«Nun wissen wir, daß du alle Dinge weißt, und bedarfst nicht, daß dich jemand frage; darum glauben wir, daß du von Gott ausgegangen bist.»

Jetzt wußten die Jünger, daß die wahre Gestalt des Todes im göttlichen Vater-Geist begründet ist, daß der Tod, wie er angeschaut wird von den Menschen und empfunden wird, eine trügerische Erscheinung ist, ein Irrtum. So enthüllt der Christus seinen Jüngern den Namen des Todes, hinter dem sich verbirgt der Quell des höchsten Lebens. Nimmermehr wäre die neue Lebens-Sonne entstanden, wenn nicht der Tod in die Welt gekommen wäre und sich hätte überwinden lassen von dem Christus. So ist der Tod, in seiner wahren Gestalt angesehen, der Vater. Und der Christus ist in die Welt gekommen, weil von diesem Vater ein falsches Spiegelbild entstanden ist im Tode. Und der Christus ist in die Welt gekommen, um die wahre Gestalt, ein wahres Nachbild des lebendigen Vater-Gottes zu schaffen. Der Sohn ist der Nachkomme des Vaters, der die wahre Gestalt des Vaters offenbart. Wahrhaftig, der Vater hat seinen Sohn in die Welt geschickt, damit die wahre Natur des Vaters offenbar werde, das heißt, das ewige Leben, das sich hinter dem zeitlichen Tode verbirgt.

Das ist nicht bloß Kosmologie der Geisteswissenschaft. Es ist das, was man braucht, um die ganze, volle Tiefe des Johannes-Evangeliums auszuschöpfen. Und derjenige, der das Johannes-Evangelium geschrieben hat, hat damit höchste Wahrheiten gleichsam niedergelegt und sich sagen können: Darinnen stehen Wahrheiten, von denen die Menschheit in alle Zukunft wird zehren können. Und indem die Menschheit immer mehr und mehr diese Wahrheiten verstehen und üben lernen wird, wird sie eine neue Weisheit haben und in einer neuen Art in die geistige Welt hineinwachsen. — Aber erst nach und nach wird das geschehen. Daher mußte von der Gesamtleitung der christlichen Entwickelung die Möglichkeit gegeben werden, sozusagen Beibücher zu schaffen, die sich neben das Johannes-Evangelium hinstellen, Bücher, die nicht etwa bloß für die allerwilligsten Versteher da waren, wie das Johannes-Evangelium, das ja sein sollte ein Vermächtnis des Christus für die Ewigkeit, sondern es mußten Beibücher geschaffen werden für die nächsten Zeiten.

Da wurde zunächst ein Buch geschaffen, aus dem die ersten Jahrhunderte der christlichen Entwickelung, ihrem Verständnisse angemessen, lernen konnten das Beste, was sie brauchten für das Verständnis des Christus-Ereignisses. Freilich waren auch da, im Verhältnis zur ganzen Menschheit, nur wenige, die aus diesem Beibuch verstanden, um was es sich für sie handelte. Dieses erste Beibuch, das gegeben wurde, zwar nicht für die Allerauserlesensten, aber doch für die Auserlesenen, das war das Markus-Evangelium. Das Markus-Evangelium hat gerade diejenige Einrichtung - und wir kommen darauf noch zurück -, durch die es sozusagen einem gewissen Verständnis der damaligen Zeit besonders nahe lag.

Dann kam eine Zeit, in der man allmählich anfing das Markus-Evangelium weniger zu verstehen, in der sich das menschliche Verständnis so richtete, daß man am besten verstand, die ganze Kraft des Christus in dem innerlichen Wert für die menschliche Seele und in einer gewissen Verachtung der äußeren physischen Welt zu sehen. Eine Zeit kam, in der man so recht die Anlage hatte, sagen zu können: Wertlos sind die äußeren zeitlichen Güter, der rechte Reichtum ist nur in dem entwikkelten menschlicheren Innern. Das war die Zeit, in der auch zum Beispiel Johannes Tauler sein Buch geschrieben hat «Vom armen Leben Kristi», wo man besonders verstanden hat das Lukas-Evangelium. — Lukas, ein Schüler des Paulus, ist einer derjenigen, die das Evangelium des Paulus selber in der Weise, wie es eben für diesen Zeitraum entsprechend war, umgestaltet haben, so daß es vor allen Dingen das «arme Leben» des Jesus von Nazareth, der in einem Stall bei armen Hirten geboren wird, an die Spitze gestellt hat. Da sehen wir das «arme Leben Kristi» von Johannes Tauler in dem Lukas-Evangelium dargestellt - ein zweites Beibuch für die weitere Entwickelung der Menschheit.

In unserer Zeit werden wiederum einige Menschen sein, die das, was sie verstehen können, unserer Zeit entsprechend, am besten aus dem Matthäus-Evangelium lernen. Es wird so kommen, daß unsere Zeit, wenn sie vielleicht auch dann den Namen « Matthäus» weniger wählt, doch immer mehr und mehr dasjenige wählt, was am meisten dem Matthäus-Evangelium entspricht. Es wird eine Zeit kommen, wo man immer mehr darauf hinweisen wird, daß man nichts verstehen könne von den übersinnlichen Ereignissen, die sich bei der Johannes-Taufe abspielten, wie wir sie erzählt haben. Das ist etwas, was für viele Menschen noch in der Zukunft liegt. Wir leben uns in die Zeit hinein, wo man denjenigen, der im dreißigsten Jahre seines Lebens den Christus aufgenommen hat, immer mehr und mehr--selbstalsReligionsforscher— zum «schlichten Mann aus Nazareth » machen wird. Die Menschen, die das wollen, denen das Wichtigste ist der schlichte Mann aus Nazareth, die geringeren Wert legen auf den Christus als auf den hohen Eingeweihten, die den Jesus von Nazareth wollen, sie werden das MatthäusEvangelium - wenigstens dem Sinne nach - besonders wichtig finden. Eine materialistisch denkende Zeit kann sagen: Schlagen wir das Matthäus-Evangelium auf, so finden wir da ein Geschlechtsregister, eine Abstammungstafel, wo uns gezeigt wird die Vorfahrenreihe des Jesus von Nazareth; das geht von Abraham herunter durch dreimal vierzehn Glieder bis zu Joseph. Und wie gesagt wird: Abraham zeugte Isaak, Isaak den Jakob und so weiter, so geht es bis zum Joseph und Jesus von Nazareth. Und das steht da aus dem Grunde, um klarzulegen, daß man die physische Stammeslinie, die physische Vererbungslinie desjenigen Körpers, in welchen der Jesus von Nazareth seiner Individualität nach hineingeboren worden ist, hinauf bis zu Abraham leiten kann. Lassen Sie den Joseph weg, so hat diese Stammtafel nicht den allergetingsten Sinn. Reden Sie dieser Starmmtafel gegenüber von einer übersinnlichen Geburt, dann hört diese Stammtafel auf, den allergeringsten Sinn zu haben. Denn warum sollte sich der Schreiber des MatthäusEvangeliums bemühen, durch dreimal vierzehn Glieder eine Stammtafel zu zeichnen, wenn er nachher sagen wollte: Der Jesus von Nazareth stammt nach dem Physischen, nach dem Fleische nicht ab von Joseph! - Man kann das Matthäus-Evangelium nur verstehen in dem Betonen, daß die Individualität hineingeboren war in einen Leib, der wirklich abstammte durch den Joseph von Abraham. Das war die Intention, daß diese Stammestafel sagte: Nein, der Joseph kann im Sinne des Matthäus-Evangeliums nicht weggelassen werden! — Daher kann der Joseph nicht fortgelassen werden von denen, welche die übersinnliche Geburt im Sinne der Johannes-Taufe nicht begreifen können.

Aber das Matthäus-Evangelium ist ursprünglich geschrieben in einer Gemeinde, wo man den Hauptwert nicht gelegt hat auf den Christus, sondern auf diejenige Individualität, die in der Person des Eingeweihten Jesus von Nazareth vor der Welt stand. Dem Matthäus-Evangelium liegt zugrunde das, was als Einweihungsurkunde kannten die ebionitischen Gnostiker, und auf eine solche Schrift als ihre Vorlage geht zurück das Matthäus-Evangelium. Da wurde der Wert gelegt auf den Eingeweihten Jesus von Nazareth, und alles übrige wird noch viel deutlicher dadurch, daß es in dem ebionitischen Evangelium steht. Dadurch aber ist gerade im Matthäus-Evangelium diejenige Stimmung gegeben, die man nicht gerade herauslesen muß - denn sie ist in Wahrheit nicht drinnen —, aber man kann sie hineinlesen, man kann das Matthäus-Evangelium so lesen, daß man sagt: Wir haben es darin nicht zu tun mit einer übernatürlichen Geburt. - Und doch wiederum wird die Möglichkeit gegeben sein, dasjenige, was im Matthäus-Evangelium vorgeführt wird, als Symbol zu finden für einen Gott, den man eben so nennt, der als ein Gotteigentlich doch nurein Mensch ist, wenn das auch Matthäus nicht so meint. Aber diejenigen, die sich heute auf Matthäus berufen und sich immer mehr darauf berufen werden, sie werden es so interpretieren.

Damit für keinen Menschen, der an den Christus herangehen will, verloren gehe die Möglichkeit, sich ihm zu nähern, ist auch für die Menschen, die sich nicht erheben können von dem Jesus zu dem Christus, dafür gesorgt, daß sie in dem Matthäus-Evangelium eine derjenigen Sprossen haben, durch die sie sich hinaufentwickeln können zu dem Jesus von Nazareth.

Die Geistesforschung ist aber dazu berufen, die Menschen hinaufzuführen zum Verständnis des Evangeliums der Evangelien, zum Johannes-Evangelium. Ein jedes andere Evangelium ist wie eine Ergänzung des Johannes-Evangeliums anzusehen. Und die Gründe für alle anderen Evangelien liegen im Johannes-Evangelium. Wir begreifen daher auch die anderen Evangelien erst recht, wenn wir sie auf dem Untergrunde des Johannes-Evangeliums betrachten.

Die Betrachtung des Johannes-Evangeliums wird die Menschen dahin führen, im weitesten Sinne zu begreifen, was auf Golgatha geschehen ist; zu begreifen, durch welches Mysterium der Tod innerhalb der Menschheitsentwickelung in der Gestalt, die seine unwahre ist, widerlegt worden ist. Und die Menschen werden begreifen lernen, wie durch die Tat von Golgatha nicht nur gezeigt worden ist für die Erkenntnis, daß der Tod in Wahrheit Lebensquell ist, sondern wie durch sie bewirkt worden ist, daß dem Menschen eine Stellung zum Tode möglich wird, die ihn dahin führt, sein eigenes Wesen immer lebendiger und lebendiger zu gestalten, bis es endlich ganz lebendig wird, das heißt, auferstehen kann von allem Tod—, bis es den Tod überwunden hat. Das war es, was sich dem Paulus enthüllte, als er den lebendigen Christus vor Damaskus sah, als er wußte: Der Christus lebt! — als er hineinschaute durch sein hellsehend gewordenes Auge in das, was geistige Erden-Umgebung war, und nun als ein Eingeweihter des Alten Testamentes wußte: Vorher war die Erde ohne ein gewisses Licht. Jetzt sehe ich das Licht darinnen. Also war der Christus da, also war derjenige, der am Kreuze geendet hat, der Christus in dem Jesus von Nazareth!

So konnte der Paulus vor Damaskus das Ereignis begreifen, das auf Golgatha geschehen war.

Thirteenth Lecture

Yesterday we placed before our souls the significance of the Mystery of Golgotha for human development on our earth. But every event in the world is connected, through almost infinite relationships, with the development of the entire cosmos. And we will only be able to understand the Mystery of Golgotha in its essence if we also clarify the cosmic significance of this event.

We already know that the being we call the Christ being descended from super-earthly regions to our earth, that it was seen, so to speak, in its approach in ancient Persia through the clairvoyant gift of Zarathustra on the sun, then through Moses in the burning bush and in the fire on Sinai, and finally, for those who experienced the Christ event, in the presence of Christ in the body of Jesus of Nazareth.

We know that our earthly events, above all the development of humanity, are connected with our solar system. For we have shown that this development of humanity, as it has come about, could not have taken place at all if, out of a world body in which our sun and our present moon were still united with the earth, first the sun and then later the moon had not emerged, thereby placing our earth in a position of equilibrium between the sun and the moon. Because human beings could not keep up with the rapid pace of development of those beings who sought a place on the sun, the Earth had to be separated from the sun. And because, if the Earth had remained together with the moon, humanity would have fallen prey to rapid hardening and ossification, the moon had to be separated with its substances and entities. This made the development of humanity possible in the right way. But yesterday we saw that a certain tendency toward hardening remained, and that this remnant would have been sufficient to lead humanity toward a kind of state of decay at the end of our Earth's development, had the Christ impulse not come. This will enable us to look a little into our entire development.

Once upon a time, the sun, moon, and earth were one world body. Then came the time when the sun separated; only the earth and moon remained united. Then the present moon separated, and the earth remained behind as the scene of human evolution. That was in the ancient Lemurian period, which preceded the so-called Atlantean period, which we have already discussed from various points of view. Then the earth developed in such a way that the forces of the sun and moon worked from outside, from the Atlantean period up to our time.

Let us now consider the further course of Earth's development up to the time when the Christ impulse came. And let us focus on a very specific point in time in our Earth's development, the moment when the cross was raised on Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds of Christ Jesus. Let us focus on this moment in our Earth's development.

Up to this point, what happened to humanity was the consequence of the united forces of the Luciferic and Ahrimanic beings entering into the inner being of human beings. And we have seen that through this entering, human beings lived themselves into Maya or illusion in relation to the outer world: Ahriman caused the outer world not to appear to human beings in its true form, but as if it were only a material, a physical world, as if there were nothing spiritual behind all that is physical. Thus, for a long time — and for many members of the Earth's evolution, this is still the case today — human beings found themselves in a state brought about by error, because they only see the sensory, material impressions around them and process them through their ideas. Through this influence of Ahriman or Mephistopheles, human beings see the outer world in a false light and form illusory and untrue ideas about the spiritual world. But everything spiritual is connected with physical effects, and we have seen what physical effects accompanied this illusion of outer perception. We have seen that one consequence of the Luciferic and Ahrimanic influences was that human blood became less and less capable of giving people the ability to see what is right in the outer world, so that with the deterioration of the blood, with the dissolution of the blood, as it was in the times of ancient blood kinship, with this scattering, with this killing of the blood through the mixing of blood, there was an ever-increasing illusion. For human beings could no longer ask the old wisdom that they had inherited and that told them: It is not so that the outer world is merely matter; for if you hold fast to your old wisdom, it tells you that behind the physical world there is a spiritual world. — But this wisdom was lost more and more. And so human beings became increasingly dependent on the external physical world with their entire soul life and their knowledge. This transformed all physical impressions into illusion, into deception. If the influence of Christ had not come, man would have finally reached the point where he would have lost all the old treasures of wisdom and would have been completely dependent on the external world of the senses and its impressions. He would have forgotten that there is a spiritual world. That would have had to happen. Man would have become blind to the spiritual world.

Now we must consider in all its seriousness the truth that human beings would have fallen more and more into deception and error about the outer world. It is not easy to take this truth, which has just been presented to you—the fall of human beings into error about the outer impressions of the sensory world—in all its seriousness and breadth. Try to understand what this means: we are to recognize all external impressions of the senses, as they present themselves to us in the physical-sensory world, as illusion, as deception. We are to learn to say to ourselves: as the facts and impressions in the sensory world are and make an impression on us, so they are false, and we must learn to see their true form behind the external impressions.

I will tell you of an event in which it is usually difficult for people to apply the truth, so that they say to themselves: The form that presents itself to me in the external world through this event is untrue, is an illusion, is Maya. — And do you know what this event is? This event is death. By confronting us in the outer, physical world, by speaking to our consciousness, which has gradually become such that it can only comprehend external physical events under the influences we have described, death carries a certain quality within itself, has become such that human beings can only view it from the perspective of the outer physical world. It was precisely through death that humanity fell into the most erroneous and fateful views. We must therefore conclude that the form in which death presents itself to us is only Maya, illusion, a deception.

Before our eyes in the external physical world stand the most manifold events. There before our eyes are the stars that fill the universe; there are the mountains, the plants, the animals; there is the whole world of our minerals; there also stands man and everything else with the facts that we can gain through our observation with the senses. And when we ask ourselves: Where do these facts come from? Where does this external physical-sensory world, which presents itself to us as a material world, come from? Then we must answer: It comes from the spiritual. The spiritual lies at the foundation of our physical, sensory world. And if we were to go back to the most original form of the spirit from which everything sensory and physical emerges, we would have to call it the foundation of all being, in Christian esotericism that which is called the Father principle in the Godhead. The divine Father principle lies at the foundation of everything that is created. So what has actually been veiled from human beings, causing everything to be immersed in Maya or illusion? The divine Father principle! Instead of the illusions of the senses, they should see the divine Father principle in everything around them. Human beings should see everywhere the divine-spiritual Father principle to which all things and they themselves belong. The divine-spiritual Father principle, to which all things and he himself belong, does not reveal itself in its true form. Because human beings have suffered the diminutions of their abilities that we have spoken of, this Father principle reveals itself through the great deception, through Maya.

What is woven into the great deception? Among all the facts we see, one presents itself to us as fundamental, and that is death. Man should therefore say to himself: The external things that present themselves to our senses are in truth the Father principle; they express the divine-spiritual Father element. And if death is woven into the entire sensory world, then death is something that belongs to the divine-spiritual Father principle. Because human beings have developed as they have, the divine Father principle is enveloped in various shells—and ultimately in the shell of death. What must human beings therefore seek behind death, as behind everything sensory? The Father, the cosmic Father! Just as human beings must learn to say of every thing, “It is the Father in truth,” so must they learn to say to themselves, “Death is the Father.” And why does a false image of the Father appear to us in the sensory-physical world? Why does the image of the father appear so distorted to us that it seems disfigured, appearing to us as the deceptive death? Because the Lucifer-Ahriman principle is mixed into all our lives! So if human beings are to be led from a false, deceptive, majestic view of death to a correct view of death, what must happen?

Human beings would have to be enlightened about death through facts! Something would have to happen through which human beings could learn that what they have known about death, what they have felt about death, what they have been able to do under the impulse of their ideas about death, is untrue. An event had to occur that would reveal the true form of death to them. The false form of death had to be eradicated, and a true form of death had to be established.

That was the mission of Christ on earth: through his deed, he replaced the false form of death with the true form of death.

Death became this distorted image of the Father through the intervention of Lucifer-Ahriman in human evolution. Death was the consequence, the effect of the influence of Lucifer-Ahriman. What, then, must the one who wanted to remove this false image of death from the world do?

The false form of death could never have been removed from human life unless its cause—Lucifer-Ahriman—had been eliminated. But no earthly being could have accomplished this. An earthly being can, within the course of earthly evolution, wipe out the things that have been done by earthly beings themselves, but not the Luciferic-Ahrimanic influence. Only a being who was not yet on earth when Lucifer-Ahriman was active, who was still in outer space, who came to earth at a time when Lucifer-Ahriman had already entered the human body completely, could bring this about.

Now this being came to Earth and, as we have seen, eliminated Lucifer-Ahriman at just the right moment, removing the cause of what had brought death into the world. So this had to be a being that had nothing to do with all the other causes of death within humanity. With everything that caused human beings to suffer death, that is, with everything that was brought about by Lucifer, later Ahriman, with everything that individual human beings accomplished on Earth because of the influence of Lucifer-Ahriman, in other words: with everything through which human beings became guilty, fell into evil, this being had to have nothing to do with. For if a being had suffered death under the influence of all these causes, then this death would have been justified. Such a death, which was unjustified, which was taken upon itself by a being without guilt, a completely innocent death, could alone wipe out all guilty death.

Accordingly, an innocent being had to suffer death, had to marry death, had to endure death. And by enduring death, he brought into this human life those forces which gradually create for human beings the knowledge of the true nature of death, that is, the knowledge that death, as it appears in the sensory world, has no truth, that, on the contrary, this death had to occur for the sake of life in the spiritual world, that with this death the very foundation is laid for life in the spiritual.

Thus, through the innocent death on Golgotha, the proof was provided that human beings will gradually come to understand: that death is the ever-living Father! And once we have the right view of death, once we have learned through the event of Golgotha that outer death means nothing, that the Christ lived in the body of Jesus of Nazareth, with whom we can unite, once we have recognized that this Christ has brought about that, although the image of death on the cross presents itself, this is only an outer event, and that the life of Christ in the etheric body before death is the same as after death, that this death therefore cannot harm life—we have understood that we have before us a death that does not extinguish life, that is itself life, then we have, through what hung on the cross, once and for all the sign that death is in truth the giver of life. Just as the plant grows out of the seed, death is not a destroyer, but a seed of life. It has been sown into our physical-sensory world so that this physical-sensory world does not fall out of life, but can be taken up into life. The refutation of death had to be delivered on the cross through the contradictory death, through the death of an innocent one. But what was actually accomplished by this?

We know from the previous lectures that human beings have an I as the fourth member of their being, and that as this I develops, it has blood as its outer physical instrument. Blood is the expression of the I. That is why the I fell into error, more and more into Maya or illusion, as the blood became worse and worse. That is why human beings also owe the increase in the power of their I to the fact that they have blood. But in turn, they owe this I in a spiritual sense to the fact that they learned to distinguish themselves from the spiritual world, that they became individuals. This could not be given to him under any other circumstances than by first cutting off his view of the spiritual world. And what cut off this view was precisely death. If man had always known that death is the seed of life, he would not have come to an independent ego, for he would have remained connected with the spiritual world. But death came and gave him the illusion that he was separated from the spiritual world, and thus educated man to independent individuality.

But this individuality became more and more independent, so much so that it exaggerated its independence and went beyond a certain point. On the other hand, this could only be balanced by withdrawing from this egoism the power that had driven it beyond this point. What had led too strongly into egoism in the ego, what had promoted not mere egoity, egoism, but egoism in the ego, had to be driven out. But this was driven out — so that in the course of the future it can be driven out more and more from the individual egos — at that time, when death came on the cross at Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds.

In the flowing blood from the wounds of Christ, we therefore see the actual symbol of the excess egoism in the human ego. Just as blood is the expression of the ego, so the blood that flowed on Golgotha is the expression of the excess in the human ego. If the blood had not flowed on Golgotha, human beings would have become spiritually hardened in egoism and thus headed toward the fate we described yesterday. With the blood flowing on Golgotha, the impetus was given for that which makes the ego egoistic to gradually disappear from humanity.

But every physical event has a spiritual counterpart. To the same extent that blood flowed from the wounds on Golgotha, something spiritual happened. At that moment, rays that had not previously gone out from the Earth went out into space for the first time, so that we, created at that moment, can think of rays going out from the Earth into space. The earth had become darker and darker with the passing of time until the event at Golgotha. Now the blood flows on Golgotha, and the earth begins to shine!

If, in pre-Christian times, any being had been able to look down on the earth from a distant world, initially with clairvoyant powers, it would have seen how the earth's aura gradually dimmed and became darkest in the time preceding the event of Golgotha. But then it would have seen how the earth's aura lit up in new colors. The deed on Golgotha permeated the earth with an astral light that will gradually become etheric and then physical light. For every being in the world continues to evolve. What is the sun today was first a planet. And just as ancient Saturn evolved into the sun, so our earth, which is now a planet, is evolving into the sun. The first impetus for our Earth to become a sun was given when the blood flowed from the wounds of the Redeemer on Golgotha. Then the Earth began to shine, at first astral, visible only to clairvoyants. But in the future, the astral light will become physical light, and the Earth will become a shining body, a sun body.

I have often told you: it is not through the agglomeration of physical matter that a world body comes into being, but through the creation of a new spiritual center, a new theater of action, by a spiritual being. The formation of a world body begins with the spiritual. Every physical world body was first spirit. What our Earth will one day become is first the auric-astral, which began to radiate from the Earth here. This is the first seed of the future Sun-Earth. But what a human being would have seen at that time with their deceptive senses is an illusion. It is not the truth at all; it dissolves, it ceases to be. The more the earth becomes sun, the more this Maya burns in the sun's fire and disappears within it.

But because the earth was then permeated by a new force, because the foundation was laid for the earth to become sun, it became possible for this force to permeate human beings as well. The first impetus was given to what I described yesterday: the radiation of the Christ force into the etheric human body. And through what was able to radiate into it astralically, this etheric human body was able to begin to take in new life force, as it needs it for the future.

So if you imagine a certain time after the event of Golgotha and compare it with the time when the event of Golgotha took place, if you compare a future state of humanity with the time when the event of Golgotha took place, then you can say to yourself: At that time, when the Christ impulse came, the earth was still such that it could no longer radiate anything into the etheric bodies of human beings. For a time after that, however, the etheric bodies of those human beings who had found a connection with the Christ impulse were permeated by this light. When they understood Christ, they took into themselves the radiant power that has been in the earth ever since, the new luminosity of the earth. They took the Christ light into their etheric bodies! The Christ light flows into the etheric bodies of human beings.

And now, since that time, there is always a part of the Christ light in the etheric bodies of human beings. What happens now? What happens to that part of the etheric body of human beings that has taken in the Christ light? What happens to it after death? What is it that gradually takes up residence in the etheric body of human beings as a result of the Christ impulse?

This is something that the Christ impulse has brought, something that the Christ impulse has sunk into the etheric body of human beings, something that has been there ever since and was not there before. Since that time, the possibility has existed in the etheric bodies of human beings that something new may arise in them, as it were, as an effect of the Christ light, something that breathes life, that is immortal, that can never fall prey to death. But if it does not succumb to death, then as long as human beings on earth still succumb to the illusion of death, it will be saved from death; it will not participate in death. Since that time, therefore, there has been something in the etheric body of human beings that does not participate in death, that does not succumb to the forces of death on earth. And this something that does not participate in death, which human beings gradually conquer through the influence of the Christ impulse, now flows back, flows out into the world space, and, depending on whether it is stronger or weaker in human beings, forms a force that flows out into the world space. And this force will form a sphere around the Earth that is in the process of becoming the Sun. A kind of spiritual sphere is forming around the Earth from the etheric bodies that have become alive. Just as the Christ Light radiates from the Earth, we also have a kind of reflection of the Christ Light in the orbit of the Earth. What is reflected here as Christ Light, and what has come about as a result of the Christ event, is what Christ calls the Holy Spirit. Just as it is true that the Earth began to become a sun through the event of Golgotha, it is equally true that from this event onwards, the Earth also began to become creative and to form a spiritual ring around itself, which later became a kind of planet around the Earth.

Thus, something essential is happening in the cosmos from this event at Golgotha onwards. At that time, when the cross was raised on Golgotha and the blood flowed from the wounds of Christ Jesus, a new cosmic center was created. We were there when this new cosmic center was created! We were there as human beings, whether in a physical body or outside physical life between birth and death.

This is how new worlds are formed! But we must understand that we are standing at the starting point of a newly forming sun when we contemplate the dying Christ.

Christ marries death, which has become the characteristic expression of the Father Spirit on earth. Christ goes to the Father and marries his expression, death — and the image of death becomes untrue, for death becomes the seed of a new sun in the universe. If we feel this event, if we feel this untruthfulness of death, if we feel that death on the cross becomes the seed from which a new sun springs forth, then we also feel quite rightly what humanity on earth must have felt and sensed as the most important transition within human evolution.

There was once a time when people still had a dim, vague clairvoyance. They lived in the spiritual realm and looked back on their lives. When they reached the age of thirty, for example, they looked back on their twentieth year, their tenth year, and so on, back to their birth, but they knew: I have come into this birth from divine-spiritual heights. At that time, birth was not a beginning: as spiritual beings, they saw birth and they also saw death, and they knew that there was something spiritual within them that could not be touched by this death. Birth and death in the present sense did not yet exist. Birth and death only came later — and took on their false, deceptive form in the outer image of the father. In the outer image of the father, the characteristic feature became death! And then people looked at death and saw how it apparently destroyed life. And death became more and more an image that represented the opposite of life. If life brought much suffering, then death was something that represented the greatest suffering.

How must those who looked at earthly events from outside, that is, who saw how these earthly events were reflected in humanity before the coming of Christ, how must they have thought about death? When he descended from divine-spiritual heights as a higher being with different views from those of humans, when he looked down upon humanity, he had to say what Buddha said.

This Buddha had come from a royal palace where he had been educated. There he had seen nothing but things that elevated life. But now, when he stepped out, he saw a suffering human being, he saw a sick human being, but above all he saw a dead human being. When he experienced this, the sentence came before his eyes: “Sickness is suffering! Old age is suffering! Death is suffering!” This was indeed how humanity felt. And what all of humanity felt was wrung from Buddha's great soul.

Then came Christ. And after Christ, after another six hundred years had passed, as six hundred years had passed from Buddha to Christ, there were people who could say, when they saw the cross and the dead man on it: What hangs on the cross is the symbol of that seed from which life springs forth life after life! They had learned to feel truly about death!

Christ Jesus married death, went to this death, which became the characteristic expression of the Father, and united himself with this death. And from the marriage of Christ Jesus with death, the beginning of a sun of life is offered. It is a mirage, a Maya or illusion, that death is synonymous with suffering. Death, if people in the future learn to let it approach them as it approached Christ, is in truth the seed of life. And people will contribute to a new sun and a new planetary system in proportion to the extent that, receiving the Christ impulse, they give of themselves and thus make the sun of life greater and greater.

Someone might object: That is what spiritual science says! But what do you want with such a cosmology in relation to the Gospel?

Christ taught those who were his disciples. And in order to make them ready for the greatest thing, he followed the method necessary for learning to understand the greatest thing in the appropriate way: he spoke to his disciples in parables or, as it is translated in the German Bible, in “proverbs” — in allegories and similes. Then the time came when the disciples had become more and more mature, and when they felt ready to hear the truth without proverbs. And Christ Jesus allowed the time to come when he wanted to speak to his apostles without proverbs, without parables. For the apostles wanted to hear the name for which he had come into the world; they wanted to hear the important name:

“Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be complete.

I have spoken these things to you in proverbs. But the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will tell you plainly about my Father.”

Do we feel the moment approaching when he wants to speak to his disciples about the Father?

“On that day you will ask in my name. And I do not say to you that I will ask the Father for you.

For he himself, the Father, loves you, because you love me and believe that I came from God.

I came from the Father.”

He naturally came forth from the Father in His true form, and not in the deceptive form of the Father.

“I came from the Father and entered the world; now I have left the world and am going to the Father.”

Now it dawns on the disciples, because they have matured, that the world around them is the outer expression of the Father, and that what is most significant in the outer world—where the outer world is most Maya or illusion—is the expression of the Father: that death is the name for the Father. This dawns on the disciples. But one must read it correctly.

His disciples said to him, “See, now you speak plainly and do not speak in parables.

Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; therefore we believe that you came from God.”

Jesus answered them, ”Now you believe.

Behold, the hour is coming, and now is come, that ye shall be scattered, every one to his own, and shall leave me alone. But I am not alone, because I have the Father with me.

These things have I spoken unto you, that ye might have peace. In the world ye will have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (16:24-33)

Did the disciples know where he was going? Yes, they knew from now on that he was going to his death, that he was marrying death. And now read what he said to them after they had come to understand the words: “I have come from death,” that is, from death in its true form, from the Father of life, “and I have come into the world; again I leave the world and go to the Father.” Then his disciples said:

“Now we know that you know all things, and have no need for anyone to question you; therefore we believe that you came from God.”

Now the disciples knew that the true form of death is found in the divine Father-Spirit, that death, as it is viewed by humans and felt by them, is a deceptive appearance, an error. Thus Christ reveals to his disciples the name of death, behind which lies the source of the highest life. The new sun of life would never have come into being if death had not come into the world and allowed itself to be overcome by Christ. Thus, when viewed in its true form, death is the Father. And Christ came into the world because a false reflection arose from this Father in death. And Christ came into the world to create the true form, a true image of the living Father God. The Son is the descendant of the Father, who reveals the true form of the Father. Truly, the Father sent his Son into the world so that the true nature of the Father might be revealed, that is, the eternal life hidden behind temporal death.

This is not merely the cosmology of spiritual science. It is what is needed to exhaust the whole, full depth of the Gospel of John. And the one who wrote the Gospel of John has thereby laid down the highest truths, as it were, and has been able to say: Herein are truths from which humanity will be able to draw sustenance for all eternity. And as humanity learns to understand and practice these truths more and more, it will have a new wisdom and grow into the spiritual world in a new way. But this will only happen gradually. Therefore, the overall leadership of Christian development had to provide the possibility of creating, so to speak, supplementary books to accompany the Gospel of John, books that were not intended only for the most willing understanders, like the Gospel of John, which was meant to be Christ's legacy for eternity, but supplementary books had to be created for the times to come.

First, a book was created from which the first centuries of Christian development could learn, in a manner appropriate to their understanding, the best they needed for understanding the Christ event. Of course, in relation to the whole of humanity, there were only a few who understood from this supplementary book what it was about for them. This first supplementary book, which was given not for the most select, but for the elect, was the Gospel of Mark. The Gospel of Mark has precisely that structure—and we will come back to this—which made it particularly accessible to a certain understanding of the time.

Then came a time when people gradually began to understand the Gospel of Mark less and less, when human understanding was directed in such a way that it was best understood to see the whole power of Christ in the inner value for the human soul and in a certain contempt for the outer physical world. A time came when people were inclined to say: External temporal goods are worthless; true wealth lies only in the developed, more human inner life. That was the time when, for example, Johannes Tauler wrote his book “On the Poor Life of Christ,” in which the Gospel of Luke was particularly well understood. Luke, a disciple of Paul, is one of those who reshaped Paul's Gospel in a way that was appropriate for that period, so that it placed above all else the “poor life” of Jesus of Nazareth, who was born in a stable among poor shepherds. Here we see the “poor life of Christ” of John Tauler depicted in the Gospel of Luke—a second companion book for the further development of humanity.

In our time, there will again be some people who will learn what they can understand, in accordance with our time, best from the Gospel of Matthew. It will come about that our time, even if it perhaps chooses the name “Matthew” less, will nevertheless choose more and more that which corresponds most to the Gospel of Matthew. A time will come when it will be pointed out more and more that nothing can be understood of the supersensible events that took place at the baptism of John, as we have recounted them. This is something that still lies in the future for many people. We are living in a time when those who accepted Christ in the thirtieth year of their lives will increasingly be made into the “simple man from Nazareth,” even by religious scholars. People who want this, for whom the simple man from Nazareth is the most important thing, who value the lesser Christ than the highly initiated Jesus of Nazareth, will find the Gospel of Matthew particularly important, at least in its meaning. A materialistic age may say: When we open the Gospel of Matthew, we find a genealogical register, a family tree showing us the ancestors of Jesus of Nazareth, going back from Abraham through three times fourteen generations to Joseph. And as it says: Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and so on, down to Joseph and Jesus of Nazareth. And this is stated for the purpose of making it clear that the physical lineage, the physical line of inheritance of the body into which Jesus of Nazareth was born according to his individuality, can be traced back to Abraham. If you leave Joseph out, this family tree has no meaning whatsoever. If you talk about a supernatural birth in relation to this family tree, then it ceases to have any meaning whatsoever. For why would the writer of the Gospel of Matthew bother to draw a family tree with three times fourteen members if he wanted to say afterwards: Jesus of Nazareth is not descended from Joseph in the physical, in the flesh! The Gospel of Matthew can only be understood by emphasizing that individuality was born into a body that was truly descended from Joseph of Abraham. That was the intention behind this genealogical table: No, Joseph cannot be omitted in the sense of the Gospel of Matthew! — Therefore, Joseph cannot be omitted by those who cannot understand the supersensible birth in the sense of John's baptism.

But the Gospel of Matthew was originally written in a community where the main value was not placed on Christ, but on the individuality that stood before the world in the person of the initiated Jesus of Nazareth. The Gospel of Matthew is based on what the Ebionite Gnostics knew as the initiation document, and the Gospel of Matthew goes back to such a writing as its model. There, the value was placed on the initiated Jesus of Nazareth, and everything else becomes even clearer from the fact that it is found in the Ebionite Gospel. But this gives the Gospel of Matthew a mood that you don't have to read into it—because it's not really there—but you can read it into it, you can read the Gospel of Matthew in such a way that you say: We're not dealing with a supernatural birth here. And yet, again, it will be possible to find in what is presented in the Gospel of Matthew a symbol for a God who is called that, who as a God is actually only a human being, even if Matthew does not mean it that way. But those who refer to Matthew today and will refer to him more and more will interpret it that way.

So that no one who wants to approach Christ loses the opportunity to do so, provision has also been made for those who cannot rise from Jesus to Christ, so that they have in the Gospel of Matthew one of the rungs through which they can develop upward to Jesus of Nazareth.

Spiritual research, however, is called upon to lead people up to an understanding of the Gospel of the Gospels, to the Gospel of John. Every other Gospel is to be regarded as a supplement to the Gospel of John. And the reasons for all the other Gospels lie in the Gospel of John. We therefore understand the other Gospels all the better when we consider them against the background of the Gospel of John.

Contemplating the Gospel of John will lead people to understand in the broadest sense what happened at Golgotha; to understand through what mystery death has been refuted within human evolution in its false form. And people will learn to understand how the deed at Golgotha not only showed that death is in truth the source of life, but also how it was brought about that human beings could attain a position in relation to death that leads them to shape their own being more and more alive, until it finally becomes completely alive, that is, can rise from all death—until it has overcome death. This was what was revealed to Paul when he saw the living Christ before Damascus, when he knew: Christ lives! — when he looked through his clairvoyant eye into what was the spiritual environment of the earth, and now, as an initiate of the Old Testament, knew: Before, the earth was without a certain light. Now I see the light within it. So Christ was there, so the one who died on the cross was Christ in Jesus of Nazareth!

Thus Paul before Damascus was able to comprehend the event that had taken place on Golgotha.