The Church Of Rome

The Church Of Rome

Looked at objectively it is obvious that the Cathars were right. In the 21st century The Church of Rome still preaches the Jewish religion. The sole point of difference is that Church of Rome teaches that Jesus was the Messiah; anointed by God, the King of Israel who will reunite Jewish tribes in a Jewish Kingdom and usher in the messianic age of peace. The Messiah, however, preached, rather conveniently for the Romans, that the kingdom would be not of this world.

The Jews themselves refute that Jesus was the Messiah, they still await his arrival and they still expect Jewish domination. That is the only point of difference. Today there is a Jewish reform movement which rejects the concept of a Messiah linked with Jewish domination.

The Jews were important to the Romans; the diaspora had already begun. One estimate is that twenty percent of the population of the eastern empire was Jewish. Judaism incurred the wrath of the Roman Empire by combining religious beliefs with blatant nationalism.

In the name of the Devil

In Cathar eyes the Jews had distorted the message of Jesus. In Cathar eyes Jesus taught that the material world and the obsession of material wealth is evil. They believed that all gods are the same, rulers provide a service, material possessions are irrelevant and critically– the worship of Set (or Jehova), the God of the Jews, must be abanndonned. This message was absolutely offensive to many Jews but had had enormous appeal to almost everyone else including the Roman state.

Cathars believed that a group of Jews adopted the name of christianity and slowly but surely modified it for their own ends. In Cathar eyes they concealed the message in a mess of incomprehensible mystology.

Cathars believed that the result was that the Church of Rome was still working to fulfil Set’s agenda. It was all being done in the name of the Devil.

The Council of Jerusalem

One of the first formal acts of “Christianity” was Council of Jerusalem.  The council was convened to inquire into St Paul’s activities as a promotor of the new faith. The focus of the conference was whether Gentile converts had to comply with Mosaic Law (need for circumcision) and /or the laws of Noah ( Idolatry, improper butchering of animals and fornication).

What is interesting is that the leader of the Desposyni(literally Christ’s relatives) Church, and therefore the convener of the Council of Jerusalem was not St Peter but the man considered by many to be Jesus younger brother, St James. So much for ‘Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church”. 

Therefore at this very early stage there were three distinct strands of even this essentially Jewish church. Orthdox Jews, Desposyni and Christians. The Desposyni created a Jewish church centred in Jerusalem. This was pure Judaism but with the assumption that Jesus was the Messiah. 

Disappointed at being overlooked for leadership, St Peter left Jerusalem to join St Paul on the mission to the gentiles inexorably working towards the centre of power, Rome.

The traditional Jewish religion rejected both of of the new sects and there was violence.

Acceptance

Where then was the fourth strand which rejected the old testament and therefore could not be either of these strands of faith? It was hidden from view, because the Church of Rome removed the story from the records. This strand stipulated that there was only one God but that that one god was not Set. This was unacceptable to mainstream Jews, disposyni and Paul and Peter.  

If we assume this forth strand was the precursor to the Cathar faith it was acceptable and indeed welcomed by other Roman cults who saw it as compatible with their own beliefs. The cult of Isis and Horus and the cult of Mithras, Gnosticism and the cult of Sol Invictus, not only survived but thrived, incorporating Jesus teaching. Inevitably the interpretation of Jesus message was slightly different in each of these cults.

Chrestos

Both Mithras and Osiris, the husband of Isis,were known as Chrestos. The words Chrestos and Christos lead to much confusion. In the opinion of the Cathars this confusion was deliberately encouraged by the Church of Rome as they pursued a campaign to establish themselves as the legitimate successors to Jesus. The Greek translation of Messiah is Christos (annointed) and this is where the term Christian developed from. The Cathars however considered themselves “Good Chrestians” not ” Good Christians.”

Early Conflict

The Church of Rome believed that Jesus was a real person and that he was both the Jewish Messiah and God. The Cathars also believed that Jesus was a real person, but a person who had given a vastly different message to the one proagated by the Church of Rome. Cathars rejected the whole of Jewish teaching and did not believe that Jesus was God.

When did the differences of belief turn into physical conflict ? In Judaea, almost immediately. There was violence on the streets of Rome during the reigns of Tiberius, not long after the date given for Jesus death.

The violence was repeated in the reigns of Gaius (Caligula) and Claudius. By the time of Claudius the violence had spread to Alexandria and other provincial capitals. What were the “Jews” fighting about? It can only have been about religious differences.

The clash between the rival faiths spilled over into the streets of Rome, Alexandria and Jerusalem. The Roman Goverment saw quite clearly that the instigators of the disturbances were the “Jewish” faction and first Tiberius and then Claudius banned them from entering or living in Rome.

The fourth strand, the Cathars were at this time invisible, absorbed into Roman life as followers of a faith compatible with Rome.

Nero

It proved impossible to keep them The Jews out of Rome. The alternative faiths were fighting for the hearts and minds of the people.  

For a time all three major strands were present in Rome. The Emperor Nero has been given a terrible name by the Church of Rome perhaps unjustly.  He tried to provide better lives for the citizens of Rome and raised taxes to pay for his programs. This made him unpopular with the senate.

His rule was plagued with dissension between the quarrelling Jewish factions. In the end Nero lost patience and tried to remove the quarreling factions from Rome. He failed miserably and whatever the motivation for his persecution the Jewish strand always suspected the Cathars of complicity in Nero’s attack on them.

The Bishop of Rome

Two of the victims of Nero’s purge were St Peter and St Pau.

However regardless of what The Church of Rome claims St Peter was never Bishop of Rome. St Peter himself, in Apostolic Constitutions(BookVII Section IV), accepts that St Linus was already installed as Bishop of Rome before he arrived there .

St Linus

St Linus came from Britain and was a member of the Celtic Church – the Druidic tradition also accepting Jesus message quite possibly a Cathar.

St Linus’ tenure as Bishop of Rome is recorded as 67-76 AD. St Peter died in 67 AD. The conclusion must be made that if Peter was right about Linus, then he himself could not have been Bishop of Rome. Possibly for a brief period he could have been an Anti-Bishop.

The church of the Desposyni in Jerusalem was wiped out in by a combination of Jewish prejudice and Roman invasion. A delegation of Desposyni came to rome to seek integration but their approach was rejected. 

It was from this small beginning that The Church of Rome emerged, growing eventually to take complete control of the western empire.

How they achieved this is far from clear, but at the heart of their strategy was a determination to eliminate all opposition.

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Extract from The Prisoner of Foix--Chapter 43 -The EntranceNo need to buy a Kindle. Read it on your computer or tablet

John Stanley-26th April 1355

 

'Looks like we are going to see a bit of excitement, John. The Captain tried to get an agreement from the Prince that if there is surf running across the channel to Arcachon we will turn back to Bordeaux, but the Prince would hear none of it. Instead, he has offered to provide insurance for all three ships. If they are damaged or sunk, the owners will be compensated and every sailor who makes the passage will be given a bounty payment. What none of this seems to take into account is that if we sink in rough, fast-flowing waters we might all drown.'

John raised his eyebrows. 'But that is what we are going to do?'

'Yes, despite the fact that surf running accross the entrance is not uncommon and the deep water channel moves continually. In the end, the Prince attacked their captains on their weakest point, their professional pride! He threw down the gauntlet. He offered to take the Sally first through the channel, and to take control during the passage.' He raised his brow. 'We are going into the Bay of Arcachon, come what may! '

Extract from The Eagle of Carcassone -- Chapter 24-- A Real GoddessNo need to buy a Kindle. Read it on your computer or tablet

John Stanley - 22 July 1355

An hour later John walked with Ximene close to the river along the valley below St Feriole. It was the very essence of a summer’s day. The sun was fierce but in the shadow of the trees, it was cool and fragrant. The trees and shrubs along the riverbank hid their progress, from the Château, from St Feriole.

Eventually they reached a point where John thought it was safe to emerge from cover. To his satisfaction the stream extended into a pool with a sandy beach, shaded by trees. Where the stream entered the pool there was a flat grassy area, almost circular. Behind this, the bulk of two mountain ridges provided a splendid backdrop. He looked around once more ‘Not just a good training ground but a great training ground. If the Greek heroes knew about this they might be tempted to join me, to train with me’

Ximene laughed out loud. He turned to look at her. She had removed her outer clothes and was wearing a white chemise, cut short so that it barely reached her knees. Around her waist, she wore a plaited leather belt, obviously fashioned from the multitude of leather straps to be found in the tackle room.

She ran her hands down over her breasts. ‘When you were unconscious I heard you muttering about gods and goddesses, so  I have decided that from now on, for you, I will be the goddess.’

The Prisoner of FoixVol 1 of the series—The Treasure of Trencavel

Aquitaine, an English possession, is in crisis. It is under threat from neighbouring nations and internal dissension.

The Black Prince, King Edward III’s eldest son has been given the task of taking command in Aquitaine.

Suddenly there is an opportunity. Ximene Trencavel is the heiress to the lands of Occitan, to the east of Aquitaine: lands controlled by the Franks. Ximene wants independence, both for herself and for Occitan.

A union between Aquitaine and Occitan would be mutually beneficial. The Black Prince undertakes a secret journey to meet Ximene to negotiate a marriage contract. It is, however, a marriage neither of them really wants.

Meanwhile, the  Franks plot to murder Ximene to prevent ,not just the marriage, but any kind of union between England and Occitan.

The Eagle Of CarcassonneVol II of the series—The Treasure of Trencavel

The loose alliance between Ximene Trencavel and the Black Prince is under threat.

The Prince invades Occitan, to show his support for Ximene but it becomes an invasion which creates more problems than it solves.

The Prince has fallen hopelessly in love with Joan of Kent and Joan is now determined to marry him and become the next Queen of England.

Joan is therefore  determined to convince Ximene that she should not marry the Prince.

Part of her strategy is to encourage Ximene’s relationship with John Stanley—one of the Princes bodyguards—not an easy task as both John and Ximene have doubts about their compatibility.

However, John is grievously injured in a battle and Ximene commits herself to nurse him back to health.