This tendency toward pseudepigraphy has its roots in Apocalyptic literature, which claims that esoteric knowledge such as magic, divination and astrology was transmitted to humans in the mythic past by the two angels, Aza and Azaz'el (in other places, Azaz'el and Uzaz'el) who 'fell' from heaven (see Genesis 6:4).

Le 16:8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. {scapegoat: Heb. Azazel}

That's interesting. Consider Sounds like they might be right on for the source.

It's also interesting that Mithra has infiltrated both Christian religion and Jewish.

Increasing Perils and Dangers.--In this degenerate age many will be found who are so blinded to the sinfulness of sin that they choose a licentious life because it suits the natural and perverse inclination of the heart. Instead of facing the mirror of the law of God and bringing their hearts and characters up to God's standard, they allow Satan's agents to erect his standard in their hearts. Corrupt men think it easier to misinterpret the Scriptures to sustain them in their iniquity than to yield up their corruption and sin and be pure in heart and life. {AH 329.3}
There are more men of this stamp than many have imagined, and they will multiply as we draw near the end of time. {AH 329.4}

A physician does not need to have cancer to treat it.

I'm assuming that there's a part 2 coming as there's no connection with the Kabbalah in your first post.

This is an important history and I'm glad you brought it up.

"The mind of a man or woman does not come down in a moment from purity and holiness to depravity, corruption, and crime. It takes time to transform the human to the divine, or to degrade those formed in the image of God to the brutal or the satanic. By beholding we become changed. Though formed in the image of his Maker, man can so educate his mind that sin which he once loathed will become pleasant to him. As he ceases to watch and pray, he ceases to guard the citadel, the heart, and engages in sin and crime. The mind is debased, and it is impossible to elevate it from corruption while it is being educated to enslave the moral and intellectual powers and bring them in subjection to grosser passions. Constant war against the carnal mind must be maintained; and we must be aided by the refining influence of the grace of God, which will attract the mind upward and habituate it to meditate upon pure and holy things.12 {AH 330.2}

Why do men claiming the name of the Lord get excited in studying occultism? Is there nothing better to fill your minds with?

A recent very prominent Adventist Theologian was defrocked for sexual immorality. He wanted to be re-baptized. Yet it turned out his moral fall was not once, but a string of them, which no one knew about. He has an on-line "ministry". All the tell-tail signs of the occult are there on his website, the images and even the name. It is subtle. But if you know what you are looking for, it is as bright as day. I doubt you would see it. (inflammatory)

The occult is about sun worship, sex worship, the creature rather that the creator. Yet, it is occult, it can be very subtle. Matthew 24:24 KJV For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

You JT, accuse me for defending Rick H. I don't see Rick being steeped in the occult. He is becoming informed of how it has infiltrated ALL of society. He now more aware of the signs which are ALL around us.

A physician does not need to become infected with a venereal disease in order to be able to understand it and treat it, and to inform her patient of the perils of the activity he has engaged in. But I would suppose that you would want to remain ignorant.

You want a plain statement? Read them JT. They are sobering. Well, they should be...

"And the Saviour has plainly said, "With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again." Who can stand before God and plead a faultless character, a blameless life? And how, then, dare any criticise and condemn their brethren? Those who themselves can hope for salvation only through the merits of Christ, who must seek forgiveness by virtue of his blood, are under the strongest obligation to exercise love, pity, and forgiveness toward their fellow-sinners. {RH, November 30, 1886 par. 13} "

How much harm has been done because men have lifted up themselves in condemning others, when before God they were guilty of far greater mistakes and sins. They say to their brethren, "Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye," when there is a beam in their own eye. {RH, August 20, 1895 par. 4}

When you see supposed defects in the brethren who are preaching the Word of God, you talk of their mistakes and seek to uproot the confidence that others have in them, simply because they do not meet your ideas; but are your ideas without a flaw? Are your ways perfect before God? Has He placed you on the judgment seat to discover defects in others, to denounce and condemn them? I tell you, He has not; it is a work you have taken upon yourself. In place of humbling your own heart before God, you have watched for something to accuse in your ministering brethren. Elder [E. P.] Daniels has helped you, and you have helped him in this work which is condemned of God, for it is most cruel work. {20MR 96.3}
To accuse others is to work in harmony with the great adversary of souls; to bring deception upon others. Satan is an accuser of the brethren, and all this accusation on your part will not make right one of your own errors, will not make less grievous one of your own wrongs. The spirit of criticism fastens you in the snare of Satan, for he desires you to think yourself better and wiser than your brethren. When you closely examine your own case, when you are sure that you are a doer of the words of Christ, that you are walking in His footsteps, you will not have time or desire to weaken your brethren. You will know how displeasing to God it is. {20MR 96.4}

Sorry, but history with evils false worship and religion is part of the great Controversy and you will find it throughtout the SOP and the Holy Canon, should we take it out.

Have we ever been introduced? Have I given you the impression that you may use my initials like the familiar spirit that motivates you? I am a brother unless you are not Christ's. Call me brother or don't even address me, do you think you can get that?

You stand guilty of everything you just accused me of in this one writing alone.

By the way, our Lord has blessed me with an IQ of 169 and He speaks to me through His Holy Spirit in dreams visions and impressions, and I think I CAN comprehend your innuendo and veiled insinuations.

If you think you can bring Satanic writings into the church without incurring the wrath of God; then do your best. Again, like I said before, with the God of heaven as my witness, He impressed me to address Brother Rick. So if you want to argue against a brother who was motivated to warn you, that's your prerogative.

Is and IQ of 169 supposed to impress us, and bow down and worship you, and turn off our brains, and not think for ourselves?

By the way, our Lord has blessed me with an IQ of 169 and He speaks to me through His Holy Spirit in dreams visions and impressions, and I think I CAN comprehend your innuendo and veiled insinuations.

I doubt you would see it..

Am I your brother? Do you accept me as one? Do you accept me as brother even if I'm not Christ's?

No Brother, that is not what was meant. God put that there to warn us not to go there. He did not say "go find out all you can about this garbage so you don't step in it".

Does God EVER ask us to go to the devil to find out about the devil? Did He want Adam to eat the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to avoid sinning? You have a skewed understanding and I am motivated to warn you. That's all.

Now if you go and let yourself be taken in or immerse yourself in it and allow it to take hold, then thats a different matter, you must learn to discern the difference, and act accordingly.

I came across more...Kabbalism Albert Pike, 33-degree Freemason, informs us that Kabbalism is part of Masonic doctrine: The Holy Kabalah, or tradition of the children of Seth, was carried from Chaldea by Abraham, taught to the Egyptian priesthood by Joseph, recovered and purified by Moses, concealed under symbols in the Bible, revealed by the Saviour to Saint John, and contained, entire, under hieratic figures analogous to those of all antiquity, in the Apocalypse of that Apostle... Masonry is a search after Light. That search leads us directly back, as you can see, to the Kabalah. In that ancient and little understood medley of absurdity and philosophy, the Initiate will find the source of many doctrines.xxxviii What, then, is Kabbalism? The Kabbalah is a collection of Jewish mystical teachings. Some of these doctrines are based on an esoteric interpretation of the OldTestament. Kabbalism is no longer solely Jewish, but is the basis for doctrine in many mystical Orders and New Age groups. Helena Blavatsky tells us that Kabbalism is Gnostic teaching: Once that the key to Genesis is in our hands, the scientific and symbolical Kabalah unveils the secret. The Great Serpent of the Garden of Eden and the "Lord God" are identical, and so are Jehovah and Cain ONE—that Cain who is referred to in theology as the "murderer" and the LIAR to God! Jehovah tempts the King of Israel to number the people, and Satan tempts him to do the same in another place. Jehovah turns into the Fiery Serpents to bite those he is displeased with; and Jehovah informs the Brazen Serpent that heals them. These short, and seemingly contradictory, statements in the Old Testament—contradictory because the two Powers are separated instead of being regarded as the two faces of one and the same thing—are the echoes, distorted out of recognition by exoterism and theology, of universal and philosophical dogmas in Nature (bold emphases added, capitalization in original).xxxix Mithraism Mithraism, an ancient Roman cult, may have been one of the first secret societies. Those in the cult worshiped the god Mithra in a secret temple called a mithraeum, and were initiated in the same way as modern secret society members: The structure of the cult was hierarchical. Members went through a series of seven grades, each of which had a special symbol and a tutelary planet. From lowest to highest these grades were Corax (raven, under Mercury), Nymphus (a made-up word meaning male bride, under Venus), Miles (the soldier, under Mars), Leo (the lion, under Jupiter), Perses (the Persian, under Luna, the moon), Heliodromus (the Sun's courier, under Sol, the sun), and finally Pater (father, under Saturn). Those who reached the highest grade, Pater, could become the head of a congregation.xl Mithraism was part of ancient Roman paganism, which has formed into modern Roman Catholic practice.

As for the clergy, they borrowed the title of "father" from priests of Mithra, in spite of Christ's formal prohibition: "And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven" (Matthew 23:9). Thus it is not astonishing that mitre, meaning a bishop's cap, calls Mithra to mind, and that the Pope's headdress tiara (a word of Persian origin) derives from frigium, referring to the Phrygian cap.xli Mithraism is still alive in another form today, as Masonic author A. T. C. Pierson admits: The Masonic legend stands by itself, unsupported by history or other than its own traditions; yet we readily recognize in Hiram Abiff [Christ-figure of Freemasonry] the Osiris of the Egyptians, the Mithras of the Persians...xlii i. Nesta Webster, Secret Societies and Subversive Movements (London: Boswell Publishing)

Should we call every man a brother? Paul did not call his slave Onesimus a brother until he was fully converted, look at Philemon 1

Phil 1:8 "Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, 9 yet I prefer to appeal to you on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus— 10 that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. 11 Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.

12 I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. 13 I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. 14 But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do would not seem forced but would be voluntary. 15 Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever— 16 no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.

17 So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. 18 If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self. 20 I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ. 21 Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask."

So are we supposed to call every man brother?

James 1:13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.

So what Spirit says "Jehovah tempted the king of Israel to number the people" if this is contrary to the will of God? Why would you say that if you are under the influence of the Holy Spirit?

It seems to me you HAVE immersed yourself in it. By beholding we become changed. You are in a position of authority on this website and probably in your church. Would you do this in your congregation?

I came across the other parts of these mystery religions/secret socities that grew from the Kabbalah, but I will post more on the connections.

"The Zohar (Hebrew זהר "Splendor, radiance") is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. It is a mystical commentary on the Torah (the five books of Moses), written in medieval Aramaic and medieval Hebrew. It contains a mystical discussion of the nature of God, the origin and structure of the universe, the nature of souls, sin, redemption, good and evil, and related topics."

"The Zohar is not even OLD. That may be very disappointing to those who are Jewish. But the Zohar did NOT exist before the Middle Ages. It claims to be authentic, but it is not. There has never been any copy of the Zohar ever found, that is earlier than the Middle Ages. The Zohar is a counterfeit book, a book that was written in Medieval Europe, so that some people would FEEL closer to God. Only the way that the author of the Zohar was getting close "to God" is by going into a trance and writing things - without knowledge of what their hand was writing.

This is called "Automated Writing". This phenomena does not happen by itself. It is not a normal force of nature. It cannot happen - in fact - until a spiritual entity possesses the Body of a human being, takes over their body, and begins to write through them. The Bible has a term for that: IT is called "demonic possession"!

That is the true origin of the Zohar AND the Kabbalah.

The Authors of the Kabbalah are themselves Occult Authors. The Kabbalah was Not translated for English Speaking audiences until the late 1800s. And who translated it ? Were they Godly men who had a passion to save others, and show them that the real way to Eternal Life is by the shed blood, sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who truly came to Earth to save those who accept to believe in Him? No, Not at all. Those who translated the Kabbalah were Occult authors who were steeped in Demonic Worship and Demonic books - They were writing them !

It is NOT hard to learn who the authors of the Kabbalah were. We know. They are mainly:

1. Eliphas Levi

2. MacGregor Mathers

3. H.P. Blavatsky

4. A.E. Waite

These are the main authors of books about the Kabbalah.

Eliphas Levi is the author who led the Occult Revival of the 1800s, that revived Satanism and Luciferianism. He wrote many books about Ritual Black Magic and how to have contact with Demonic Spirits...because he was seeking them.

MacGregor Mathers goes by several names. He is one of the Three founders of the Occult Society - known as the society of the Golden Dawn. This is a demonic society, not because we say so, but because THEY say so. This is one of the occult societies that covets demonic possession. Christians would consider their teachings to be Satanic. MacGregor Mathers is also one of the mentors of the Great Satanist Aleister Crowley. The first Translation of the Kabbalah into English was by MacGregor Mathers. (He lived in the U.K. for most of his life, where he recruited a lot of the elites into his occult Golden Dawn society).

H.P. Blavatsky is the founder of Theosophy. This is the view that Lucifer is truly an angel of light and he is the one who deserves our worship and allegiance. Blavatsky came from an occult family, and was already a Medium when she was a teenager. She sought out evil and the company of demonic spirits all of her life. She wrote many books about the occult. She believed that the Jews - through books like the Kabbalah - had stolen books of black magic that had previously come from the Chaldeans. She denied that Jesus was the Christ. She also denied that salvation could come through Jesus Christ. She remained extremely hostile to Jehovah/Yahweh - the God of the Jews.

A.E. Waite is an occult author. He played a large role in helping many occult authors in the early 1900s. He was involved in Many occult societies including the Golden Dawn.

All of these authors are devoted to the Kabbalah and other forms of the Occult. These authors deliberately sought to be involved with demonic spirits.

Surely the Real God of the Universe has better ways of dealing with mankind, than to operate through those who consciously willfully oppose the Bible and the teachings of Salvation by Faith alone in Christ Jesus. The Zohar is a book that claims to have been written by forces, which can only be identified as Demonic.

This kind of material is Exactly what the Bible commands us to stay away from. Those who have been involved in the Study of the Kabbalah would do well to ask God to forgive them of their involvement in it, and to open their eyes and help them to return to the God of the Bible.

The God of the Kabbalah and the God of the Bible are 100% in Opposition to each other. They cannot both be right. Christians know that the God of the Bible Is the one true God. Anyone is entitled to their views, and to their choice of what to believe. But as far as what Christians believe, the God of the Bible can be found, by reading the Bible (such as the gospel of John in the New Testament), Not by reading occult material such as the Kabbalah.

Christians and others should maintain a strong vigilance against being deceived."

While I agree with James that extreme caution is necessary when delving into these subjects for they can take hold and distract one from truth in Christ, yet I also agree with Rick that some understanding of the source of stuff being brought into the churches is very necessary.

Too many Christians assume that as long as bible is quoted and some lofty spiritual ideas are included that there is no problem (other than purhaps a misunderstanding).

If the aim of this thread is to warn people to stay away from Kabbalahism then it may well be a needed thread.

However, if it invites people to delve into Kabbalah then heed Jame's warning AND STAY OUT of those writings.

The kabbahal is an occultic commentary on scripture. Supposedly Moses was given some mystry revelations that he never wrote down but passed on orally. These supposed oral traditions were later written in the Talmud. But it's grown from that...