John the Baptist (Yahya Yuhana) baptizing Yeshua the Nazorean Christ (Yeshua Ha Mashiah / Yishu Mshiha / Jesus Christ)
In Mandaean and early Nazorean Gnostic traditions, baptism is a central ritual symbolizing spiritual purification, enlightenment, and the soul’s connection to the divine world. Unlike the Christian concept of baptism as a one-time act for salvation, Mandaean baptism (masbuta) is a repeated, sacred act performed in flowing, living waters, representing the soul’s continual cleansing and ascent toward the Lightworld. It is a powerful rite of renewal and protection, believed to wash away darkness and negative influences while reconnecting the individual with divine truth and the higher spiritual realms. For early Nazoreans, baptism also carried esoteric significance as a transformative journey—an initiation into hidden wisdom and an alignment with cosmic forces. Both groups viewed John the Baptist as the master of this sacred practice, elevating baptism as a mystical path to liberation and unity with the divine.
In his letter to Emperor Trajan (Epistle 10.96), Pliny mentions that Christians would “assemble again to partake of food—but ordinary and innocent food.”
Pliny the Younger is describing the practices of early Christians. He notes that they customarily met before dawn to sing hymns to Christ and bound themselves by oath to abstain from crimes such as fraud, theft, and adultery. After these gatherings, they would “reassemble to partake of food—but food of an ordinary and innocent kind.”
Many scholars interpret Pliny’s description of the Christians’ meals as potentially vegetarian. In Pliny the Younger’s Letter 10.96, he writes to Emperor Trajan describing the Christians, stating that they would “reassemble to partake of food—but food of an ordinary and innocent kind” (cibum… promiscuum tamen et innoxium).
While Pliny does not explicitly state the type of food consumed, the phrase “innocent kind” has led some scholars to speculate that it might refer to vegetarian meals. This interpretation arises from the possibility that early Christian communities, influenced by Jewish dietary laws or ascetic traditions, may have avoided meat due to ethical, ritualistic, or symbolic reasons.
However, this view is debated. Other scholars argue that “ordinary and innocent” likely refers to simple, unadulterated food and not necessarily vegetarianism. Pliny’s goal in describing the Christians’ practices was to refute rumors of their alleged immoral feasts, such as cannibalism.
Some scholars suggest that the term “innocent” (innoxium) could imply a vegetarian diet, reflecting a commitment to non-violence and purity. This perspective is informed by the fact that certain religious groups in antiquity, such as the Pythagoreans, practiced vegetarianism for ethical reasons.
Pliny the Younger’s observation of early Christians abstaining from animal sacrifices and consuming a simple, “ordinary and innocent” meal aligns with historical evidence that the earliest followers of Jesus, including the Ebionites and Nazoreans, practiced vegetarianism. These groups not only rejected animal sacrifices but also upheld a vegetarian Love Feast or Agape Meal, reflecting their commitment to compassion, purity, and the original teachings of Jesus.
Early Christian Vegetarian Agape Love Feast
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The Nazoreans and Ebionites, early Jewish-Christian groups, had a unique interpretation of the Last Supper, seeing it less as a literal meal or sacrificial act and more as a symbolic communal gathering rooted in Gnostic spirituality. These sects emphasized the idea of Christ as a spiritual teacher who imparted secret wisdom, and they interpreted the Last Supper as a Love Feast (or agape feast), meant to reflect divine unity and mutual love among followers. Unlike the orthodox Christian focus on the Eucharist as the body and blood of Christ, they rejected the notion of sacrificial consumption, instead highlighting the sharing of food as a reflection of spiritual nourishment and harmony.
Vegetarianism played a central role in this interpretation. Both groups adhered to strict dietary laws, abstaining from meat and emphasizing a return to an Edenic ideal of nonviolence and purity. The Last Supper, in their eyes, was likely a vegetarian meal symbolizing the rejection of fleshly desires and worldly corruption. By sharing simple, plant-based food, they demonstrated their commitment to spiritual elevation and the interconnectedness of life. This practice also aligned with their broader ethical concerns about compassion, aligning the physical act of eating with the moral and spiritual ideals they believed Christ embodied.
For the Nazoreans and Ebionites, the Love Feast was not just a meal but a deeply communal and mystical experience, embodying Gnostic ideas of unity with the divine. It symbolized the breaking down of barriers between individuals and the fostering of a spiritual brotherhood that transcended physical concerns. In this sense, the Last Supper was a celebration of divine wisdom, love, and the potential for spiritual enlightenment, distinct from later sacramental interpretations. Their practices reflected a worldview in which the material world was seen as secondary to the spiritual, and the meal became a medium for transcending the mundane and aligning with divine truth.
Agape Gnostic Love Feast
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The Ebionites, an early Jewish-Christian sect, revered Jesus not as a divine being but as a prophet chosen by God to guide humanity. For them, the Holy Family was an embodiment of humility and piety, a testament to God’s ability to work through the ordinary. Mary, in their view, was a devout young woman of deep faith, chosen by God for her purity of heart rather than supernatural qualities. Joseph, too, was a righteous man who provided for his family with the steady hands of a carpenter or stone mason, a reflection of the quiet virtues of diligence and faithfulness. Together, they symbolized the simplicity of God’s will being fulfilled through the lives of the meek and humble.
Jesus, to the Ebionites, was born not through divine conception but as the natural child of Mary and Joseph, a product of human love and obedience to God’s laws. They believed that Jesus’ wisdom and righteousness were the result of his devout upbringing and his unwavering devotion to the Torah. As a child, he would sit at Joseph’s feet, learning the trade of carpentry, while Mary taught him the sacred traditions and scriptures. The family was seen as a model of Jewish piety, adhering to the dietary laws, observing the Sabbath, and making annual pilgrimages to the Temple. The Ebionites found in them a relatable sanctity, a reminder that holiness was accessible to all who lived in alignment with God’s commandments.
The Ebionites also believed that the Holy Family’s way of life reflected an ethic of compassion, which extended to their dietary practices. They taught that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus adhered to a vegetarian diet, avoiding the killing of animals as part of their commitment to God’s creation. For the Ebionites, this was not just a matter of health but a profound spiritual discipline, rooted in the belief that the original harmony of Eden could be restored through nonviolence and reverence for all life. They saw Jesus as the perfect exemplar of this principle, teaching love not only for humanity but for all creatures. The vegetarianism of the Holy Family became, for the Ebionites, a symbol of their purity and their alignment with God’s original intent for the world, inspiring them to practice the same in their pursuit of righteousness.
This perspective on the Holy Family shaped the Ebionite understanding of salvation. They believed that Jesus, inspired by the Spirit of God at his baptism, became a teacher and guide for humanity, showing the way to live in harmony with God’s will. The family’s humble origins underscored their belief that salvation did not come from wealth, power, or divine favoritism, but from obedience to the law and a life of compassion and simplicity. For the Ebionites, the story of the Holy Family was not about miraculous interventions but about the sanctification of the ordinary, a message they sought to live out in their own lives.
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Dear friends, today I invite you to reflect on evidence that has been largely overlooked but deserves our serious consideration: the possibility that Jesus and the earliest Christians lived a vegetarian lifestyle. This is not just an idea born out of modern concerns but a perspective deeply rooted in ancient texts, early Christian traditions, and historical records.
First, let us begin with the figure of John the Baptist, a man revered as the forerunner of Christ. Traditionally, John is said to have eaten locusts and wild honey, but alternative translations and ancient texts like the Gospel of the Ebionites suggest that “locusts” may have been mistranslated, and he likely ate “honey cakes” or manna, both vegetarian foods. Could this indicate a broader ethos of compassion and simplicity, reflective of a plant-based diet?
Consider also James the Just, the brother of Jesus and a key leader of the early Christian community. Historical accounts, including those by Hegesippus, describe James as a Nazarite, a man who abstained from meat and alcohol. As Jesus’ closest companion, wouldn’t James have exemplified his brother’s teachings? Scholars like Robert Eisenman suggest that James’ vegetarianism reflects the values of the original Jesus movement.
Furthermore, early Christian texts such as the Clementine Homilies advocate for abstaining from meat, aligning with the belief that humanity was created to live in harmony with all creatures. These writings reveal that early Christian communities may have viewed vegetarianism not just as a dietary choice but as a moral imperative, integral to living a life of love, mercy, and nonviolence—the very heart of Jesus’ teachings.
Finally, let us look to the Ebionites, an early Jewish-Christian sect who followed Jesus’ teachings and practiced vegetarianism. Though dismissed by later church orthodoxy, their practices and beliefs offer a glimpse into the original teachings of Christ. Alongside them, the Mandaeans and other ancient sects reveal that vegetarianism was not just an anomaly but a recurring theme among early spiritual movements.
Friends, this is not a call to rewrite scripture but to recognize the undeniable evidence before us—evidence that challenges us to reevaluate our understanding of Jesus’ teachings and the practices of his earliest followers. It reminds us to approach history with humility and a willingness to learn. Whether or not we adopt these practices ourselves, let us honor the compassion and respect for life that these traditions embody, for they are timeless truths deeply aligned with the spirit of Christ.
Amen.
Yeshua as an Ebionite Nazarene vegetarian prophet and messiah, embodying compassion and harmony with nature.
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After the crucifixion of Jesus, James, who is traditionally identified as the brother of Jesus, became a prominent leader in the early Christian movement in Jerusalem.
James continued to participate in the Jewish Temple and observed Jewish laws and customs. He is described in the New Testament and other early Christian writings as being very devout and zealous for the Jewish law.
It’s important to note that the early followers of Jesus saw themselves as Jews who believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They continued to participate in Jewish religious practices while also following the teachings of Jesus. The complete separation between Christianity and Judaism took several centuries to develop.
Was the Jerusalem church of James different than the sacrificial cult of the Jewish Temple?
The Jerusalem church led by James and the sacrificial cult of the Jewish Temple were distinct in their practices and beliefs, although they shared some common roots.
The Jerusalem church, under the leadership of James, was a community of Jewish followers of Jesus who believed that he was the Messiah. They continued to observe Jewish laws and customs but also incorporated the teachings of Jesus into their faith. Their worship centered on Jesus as the risen Lord and the fulfillment of Jewish prophecies.
On the other hand, the sacrificial cult of the Jewish Temple was centered around the rituals and sacrifices prescribed by the Mosaic Law. This included animal sacrifices, offerings, and other ceremonies performed by the priests in the Temple.
While James and the Jerusalem church continued to participate in Jewish religious practices, they placed greater emphasis on the teachings of Jesus and the new covenant he established. The Temple cult, however, did not recognize Jesus as the Messiah and continued to operate under the traditional Jewish sacrificial system.
Over time, as the early Christian movement spread and developed its own distinct identity, the practices and beliefs of the Jerusalem church and the Jewish Temple became increasingly divergent.
Can it be said that the Jerusalem Church of James was against the animal sacrifices of the Jewish Temple?
The New Testament and early Christian writings do not explicitly state that the Jerusalem church, led by James, show there are indications that the early Jewish followers of Jesus, including James and the Jerusalem church, placed greater emphasis on the teachings of Jesus and the new covenant he established, which they believed fulfilled and superseded the old covenant.
Some scholars argue that as the early Christian movement developed, there was a shift away from the emphasis on Temple sacrifices. The Book of Hebrews in the New Testament, for example, presents Jesus as the ultimate high priest and his sacrifice on the cross as the final and perfect sacrifice, making the Temple sacrifices obsolete.
James and the Jerusalem church continued to participate in Jewish religious practices, including Temple worship, while also incorporating the teachings of Jesus. It’s possible that they viewed the Temple sacrifices in a new light in light of their belief in Jesus as the Messiah and his sacrificial death.
James and the Ebionites
James is often associated with the Ebionites, a Jewish Christian sect that rejected the divinity of Jesus and adhered to Jewish law, including the rejection of the sacrificial system of the Temple.
The Ebionites believed that Jesus was the Messiah but considered him to be a human prophet rather than divine. They maintained strict adherence to the Mosaic Law and rejected the Apostle Paul’s teachings, emphasizing instead the importance of Jewish practices and the teachings of Jesus.
Given this context, it is plausible to say that the Ebionites, including those led by James, were against the animal sacrifices of the Jewish Temple. They likely viewed these sacrifices as no longer necessary or valid in light of their understanding of Jesus’ teachings and his role as the Messiah.
For further reading and research on this topic read the book “James the Brother of Jesus” by Professor Robert Eisenman.
Here’s some reviews of the book :
ABOUT JAMES THE BROTHER OF JESUS
“A passionate quest for the historical James refigures Christian origins, … can be enjoyed as a thrilling essay in historical detection.” —The Guardian
James was a vegetarian, wore only linen clothing, bathed daily at dawn in cold water, and was a life-long Nazirite. In this profound and provocative work of scholarly detection, eminent biblical scholar Robert Eisenman introduces a startling theory about the identity of James—the brother of Jesus, who was almost entirely marginalized in the New Testament.Drawing on long-overlooked early Church texts and the Dead Sea Scrolls, Eisenman reveals in this groundbreaking exploration that James, not Peter, was the real successor to the movement we now call “Christianity.” In an argument with enormous implications, Eisenman identifies Paul as deeply compromised by Roman contacts. James is presented as not simply the leader of Christianity of his day, but the popular Jewish leader of his time, whose death triggered the Uprising against Rome—a fact that creative rewriting of early Church documents has obscured. Eisenman reveals that characters such as “Judas Iscariot” and “the Apostle James” did not exist as such. In delineating the deliberate falsifications in New Testament dcouments, Eisenman shows how—as James was written out—anti-Semitism was written in. By rescuing James from the oblivion into which he was cast, the final conclusion of James the Brother of Jesus is, in the words of The Jerusalem Post, “apocalyptic” —who and whatever James was, so was Jesus.
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Discovered in 1945, The Apocalypse of Adam. 🍎 The Apocalypse of Adam, also known as the Revelation of Adam is Adam’s version of what happened in the garden of Eden. 🍒
Part of which Reads: “I went about with her in a glory which she had seen in the aeon from which we had come forth. She taught me a word of knowledge of the eternal God. And we resembled the great eternal angels, for we were higher than the god who had created us and the powers with him, whom we did not know.” 🫂
Omitted from the Bible because of what it reveals. Eve and the serpent are the hero’s of the story teaching Adam’s fruits of eternal knowledge. To “eat from” means to “take in and digest, or to fully understand.” Eve was sent to Adam from the eternal father that Jesus spoke of to remind Adam of who he really is, a light being imprisoned in the material world by a jealous creator god. This creator god made this imperfect material world that he fashioned afrer the eternal heavenly realm. Adam’s soul is what was needed to animate the flesh suit the creator god made as a prison for his soul, claiming he is a jealous God, demanding worship and unquestionable faith. 🐍
Jesus also tells this story in another book omitted from the Bible called the “Secret Book of John,” discovered in a cave in 1945.
Jesus quotes the creator god, and asked a question which reads; “I am a jealous God and there is no God but me!” 🤔
[But by doing this he admitted to his demons that there is indeed another God. For, if there were no other God, whom would he possibly be jealous of?] 🤔
Where The Bible starts from the creation of earth, what’s learned is this is actually a galatic story. Adam’s soul is known in this story as “the first knowledge that breathed within him,” aka his eternal spirit which was stolen from the heavenly realm. Eve was sent by the true eternal father located at the center of the galaxy. This is the father Jesus spoke of when he came to deliver the same message to humanity to help free us from the prison of the material realm. 🌎
This different interpretation than the story in the Bible will lead you to your true identity. 🪞 Gnosis or Awakening
The Serpent Gnostic sects of Egypt included known as the Ophites and Naaseni. Both names are Greek and denote “Serpents.” The Fourth Century historian Philaster maintained that these sects, along with the Sethians and Cainites, were specially united by having descended directly from the First Instructor and Serpent on the Tree. Of these sects the Ophites (from Ophidian, “snake”) and Nasseni (from Hebrew Naas or Nachash, “snake”) were unique in being the pre-eminent worshipers of live snakes. Like Serpent Gnostics worldwide, they were also renown for having “knowledge of the deepest things.”
The Naaseni are believed to have descended from the original gnostics in the west, and to have existed well before the birth of Christ. They are related to the Nasurai, the enlightened gnostics of the Mandeans, who blended with the Essenes to form the sect of Nasoreans or “Nazarenes.” The Mandaean Nasurai Jesus was born into this Essene Serpent sect and known by his peers as the Nasorean (or the Nazarene). Long after his Ascension, his Apostles continued the Serpent tradition of Jesus and named their little group Nasoreans. Jesus’s brother, James, oversaw this small group and continued to tradition of remaining in contact with other Serpent Gnostics in the Middle East. According to historical record, James sent “Mariam” with some very secretive “Serpent” teachings to transmit to the Nasseni of Alexandria. This Nasorean Mariam is believed to be none other than Mary Magadalene, who was apparently in association with the Apostles and their Nasorean sect long after the departure of Jesus.
According to the historian Epiphanius, the most important live snake of the Nasseni and Ophites was venerated as the First Instructor and commonly kept in a special chest known as the Cista Mystica, which was only opened during the most sacred of rituals. At mealtimes the favored snake, which the Serpent Gnostics addressed as their Savior, was coaxed out of its box and let loose to consecrate their food by slithering over and around it. Afterwards, the Ophites would take turns kissing the sacred snake upon the mouth and then sinking to their knees in humble worship of the reptile. These and other more secretive rites of the Ophites were timed with the ascension of the Celestial Serpent, the constellation of Draco the Dragon, which was acknowledged by them to be the eternal heavenly manifestation of the First Instructor.
The Ophites and Nasseni employed various Greek and Hebrew names for their Serpent Savior, including Nachash, Kneph, Chnouphis, and the Agathodeamon. For protection they carried coins, talismans and gems with images of their serpent deity carved deeply into them. The gems and talismans were often bright red in color, thus reflecting the fiery nature of the serpent engraved upon them, and covered with Greek mantras and symbols. The red gems also activated the Kundalini, which was a form of the Serpent Savior in the human body. Ophite initiate’s were known to spend long periods of time in the caves of the Egyptian desert while propitiating their Serpent Savior and his transformative power.
For their academic contemplation the Gnostic Nasseni studied The Gospel According to Thomas and they were known to have been great fans of The Gospel According to the Egyptians. They were also inveterate devotees of the Goddess and adopted many of Her rites that had been observed in the Eleusinian Mysteries and other Left Hand Path schools.
From: “World Gnosis: The Coming Gnostic Civilization” 🐉 by Mark Amaru Pinkham
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