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October 24th, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington D.C.
I am here, St. Luke, (Writer of the Third Gospel
That Was.)
I was with you tonight at the meeting of the Spiritualists, and
heard the statement of the speaker as to the probabilities of what
became of the body of Jesus after the crucifixion.
I was not present at the crucifixion, and, of course, do not personally
know what became of the body of Jesus, but I have been told by those
who were present that the Bible description of his burial in the
tomb of Joseph was true. The body was buried in the tomb of Joseph
and was left there by those who placed it in the tomb, which was
sealed and a guard set over it to prevent anyone from approaching
and interfering with the body, because Jesus had predicted that
in three days he would rise again.
After the tomb was sealed Jesus arose, and without his body of
flesh passed from the tomb and descended into the lower spheres
where the dark spirits lived in their ignorance and sufferings,
and preached to them the rebestowal of the gift of immortality.
The body of flesh by the power which Jesus possessed, became so
spiritualized or etherialized that its component parts became disseminated
by Jesus in the surrounding atmosphere and he retained only the
spiritual body in which he afterwards appeared to the disciples
and others.
When he appeared at the meeting of the apostles, where Thomas,
the doubter, was present, he recalled to his form, as you will better
understand by my using such expression, elements of the material,
so that in appearance the body was as much like flesh and blood
as when it was placed in the tomb, and before he disseminated these
elements, as I have said.
The flesh and blood which encloses the spirit form of man, as you
may have heard, is continually changing in obedience to the ordinary
laws of nature as understood by man. And when Jesus who understood
and had power to call into operation other laws of nature, caused
such other laws to operate, that the dissemination of the elements
of flesh and blood took place, and he was left only with the spirit
form.
This, I know, has been a great mystery to mankind since the time
of the discovery of its absence by the watchmen at his tomb, and
because of being such mystery, and as an only explanation of such
disappearance, men have believed and taught that his body of flesh
and blood actually arose from the dead, and, therefore, the real
body of flesh and blood of mortals will also arise in what they
call the great resurrection day.
But no body of flesh and blood arose, and the spirit form of Jesus
did not remain in the tomb after the dissemination of the material
body, for no tomb or other place could confine the spirit. You will
remember that on the third day Jesus appeared to Mary, who was most
intimate and familiar with the appearance of Jesus, and yet she
did not recognize him, but thought he was the gardener; and so with
the disciples who were travelling with him to Emmaus. Now, if he
had retained his body of flesh and blood, do you not suppose that
they would have recognized him?
If he had the power to resume that material body into which Thomas
thrust his hand and found it to be a body in appearance of flesh
and blood, do you think it strange or wonderful that he would have
had the power to cast off his earthly body while in the tomb and
cause it to disappear into thin air?
This I am informed is the true explanation of the disappearance
of the material body of Jesus; and to me and to others who understand
the laws of nature - I mean that nature that is beyond the ken of
men - it is not surprising or worthy to be deemed a mystery.
I am glad that I went with you to the meeting tonight, as I became
impressed with the desirability of making this great mystery a mystery
no longer.
With all my love, I am,
Your brother in Christ,
St. Luke
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