"Who Sinned? ... This Man or His Parents?

CHAPTER #2 - “WHO SINNED? … THIS MAN OR HIS PARENTS? John 9:2

Endnotes may be found on my website under the title of “Reincarnation in the Bible.”
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"What does the Bible have to say about reincarnation?" Nothing, if we expect to find the word reincarnation.

A lot, if we read the Bible through the lens of belief in reincarnation. In Chapter 1, I discuss the early Church Fathers’ efforts to establish a worldwide church subscribing to one and the same doctrine. A very serious repercussion has been heresy trials resulting in excommunication, burning of books, even death for expounding a different doctrine.

A second devastating consequence has been the forced reading of and interpretation of the Bible according to the established church creeds. Any portion of the Scriptures that is contrary to the established creed (or, for those churches not subscribing to a creed, the traditional facets of the Christian doctrines) are ignored. Much within the gospel of John, which many scholars believe to be based in Gnosticism, is an excellent example. Another illustration is Jesus’ statement, found twice in the gospel of Matthew, that John the Baptist is Elijah.

For seventeen hundred years, the church continues to read the Bible through the lens of the established creeds. In so doing, our eyes are blinded to the opportunities for new insights. Even when a minister or layperson recognizes new truth within its pages, the establishment reacts with the statement that has stifled spiritual insight throughout Christian history: "That interpretation is not according to Christianity." Christianity becomes an idol of stone hindering the unfolding of new understandings within the Bible.
Let’s try on a different set of eyeglasses. You can always choose to return to your old ones. For now, let’s embark on a sightseeing adventure through the pages of the Bible. The fee for this quest is an open mind. Our destination is to find those places in the Bible where the concept of reincarnation deepens our understanding and offers new insights.

On our first stop, we will view the case study of John the Baptist. In the closing verses of the Old Testament (in the Christian arrangement of books), we find the prophet Malachi predicting the return to Earth of Elijah: "Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse."75

The Israelite prophet, Elijah, lives during the first half of the ninth century B.C.E. He is a nomad who lives in desert caves and dresses in animal skins.76 According to II Kings 2:11, Elijah does not die. Instead, he ascends to heaven in a chariot of fire drawn by horses of fire. Elijah is one of three Old Testament characters who ascend to heaven without experiencing physical death. The other two are Enoch and Melchizedek.77

Scholars are confident in dating the writing of Malachi in the first half of the fifth century B.C.E.78 Thus for at least five hundred years before the birth of John the Baptist, the Jewish people look forward to the return of Elijah as heralding a time of healing, blessings, and peace. Knowing this prophecy will aid in the understanding of the New Testament text and why the Jewish people question whether or not John the Baptist and Jesus are Elijah.

Near the end of the first century B.C.E., as Zechariah administers his priestly duties, an angel appears with a message. Elizabeth, his barren wife, will conceive a son whose name is to be "John." In the words of the angel, "You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink: even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents of their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."79 Luke’s gospel reveals to us, "The child grew and become strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel." Though his parents reside in "a Judean town in the hill country,"80 John the Baptist, like Elijah, lives in the wilderness. Both the Old Testament Hebrew word midbar and the New Testament Greek word eremos can be translated desert or wilderness. Matthew’s gospel describes John, "Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist."81 John dresses like Elijah. During John the Baptist’s wilderness ministry, the Jewish people and Levites come from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you? Are you Elijah? John answers, "No."82

If John the Baptist is the reincarnation of Elijah, would he not be the first to know? Think back to the discussion of continuity of consciousness in the third chapter. It is not surprising that John does not remember his incarnation as Elijah. The lack of memory is a safeguard to ensure John completes his soul’s work this lifetime. If we read the stories of Elijah, we learn he orders the people to kill 450 Baal priests. The soul of Elijah has negative karma to confront while in the physical body of John the Baptist. John can accomplish his ministry of preparing the way for the Lord much better if he does not consciously remember that he has a debt to pay. Continuity of consciousness is readily available to us only after we have cleared away enough of our negative karma for the memories not to overwhelm and render us immobile with guilt and dread. The negative karma Elijah sows by having the priests murdered is reaped by the soul while in John’s body. John is beheaded for what appears on the surface to be a whimsical gift to Herodias’ daughter.83 Underneath the obvious is the reaping of the soul’s past life negative karma.

Jesus recognizes John the Baptist’s identity. The gospel of Matthew twice records his identification of John as Elijah returned to earth.84 In Matthew 11, Jesus speaks to the crowds concerning John the Baptist: "For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John came; and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come." Jesus reaffirms this fact following his transfiguration as recorded in Matthew 17: "He replied, ‘Elijah is indeed coming and will restore all things; but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man is about to suffer at their hands.’ Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them about John the Baptist."

By the time of the transfiguration, John the Baptist has been beheaded. The soul that occupied the physical bodies of Elijah and John is here seen appearing as Elijah in spirit, accompanied by Moses. From the world of spirit, Elijah and Moses assist Jesus with the completion of his earthly mission.85 Our souls move back and forth from the world of spirit to the world of matter. Wherever we are, we reside in a community of spiritual and embodied souls. The case study of John the Baptist takes us through an entire scenario of the concept of reincarnation.

We move on to the second step on our sightseeing tour of the Bible. The presence of an underlying belief in reincarnation can be seen in the story of a man born blind, found in John 9. Jesus and his disciples are walking when they notice a man, blind from birth. The disciples question Jesus: "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answers, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him." Looking back to chapter three, you can find examples of souls planning, while in spirit, to incarnate with particular handicaps for specific purposes. This man’s soul agreed to be born blind "so that God’s works might be revealed in him." Notice how the disciples, like us, immediately assume the negative: blindness is a result of sin. Jesus refutes this pessimistic judgment. In doing so, he reveals just how seriously we may err, when we choose to be judgmental.

The story of Nicodemus, found in John 3, will be our third stop. As a Pharisee, Nicodemus would believe in reincarnation for the good souls.86 He has been observing Jesus and is impressed: "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." Jesus intuitively knows that Nicodemus’ statement is really a question. He answers the question he perceives. "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he is not able to see the kingdom of God." The Greek word used here is "gennethe" in the passive voice, indicating the subject is acted upon by someone else. In the passive, "gennethe" means to be born of a woman. The Greek work translated here as "again" is "anothen." It means both again and from above. I choose to translate "anothen" as born again based on the passive voice of "gennethe." Read through the lens of reincarnation, Jesus explains to Nicodemus that he must re-incarnate; he must be born of woman again. Nicodemus responds on the level of another physical birth with his questions: "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?" Jesus proceeds with an explanation that relates the reason for reincarnation. "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit."

Water symbolizes many things in the Bible, so we cannot be sure what Jesus or the gospel writer means. We can find clues by observing how water is used throughout John’s gospel. Jesus turns the water into wine at the wedding feast. Jesus walks on water. Jesus heals the lame man beside the waters of the Bethzatha Pool. In John 7:37-38, the Father within Jesus speaks, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink … out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water." Each of John’s usages of water relates to a level of spirituality that manifests the Father within. To know and manifest the Father within self is the goal of reincarnation. The majority of us take many lifetimes to evolve back to our original state as a being of spirit, manifesting according to God’s image. Thus, in order to be born of water and the spirit, we must reincarnate. [As of 2006, Earth humans have the opportunity to speed up their ascension process with concentrated effort. As the Ascended Masters and our Galactic Family become visibly present with us, they will teach us the Pathway to Ascension in an accelerated form that will eliminate the need for our souls to reincarnate into the 3rd dimensional plane of duality, where we tend to learn through suffering. Earth humans are scheduled to ascend into the 5th dimensional consciousness where all is love and unity. Ascension is not, however, completed for us—we must evolve spiritually as the individual child god that we are. In John 10:34, Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6, "Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods?’"]

Jesus grows impatient with Nicodemus’ lack of understanding: "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?" Pharisees believe in reincarnation. Why are you, Nicodemus, having so much difficulty with the concept?

Our fourth sightseeing location is in Caesarea. Jesus and his disciples have just arrived. Curious as to who the crowds think he is, Jesus asks, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" With the ease of those who accept reincarnation, the disciples answer him: "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."87 Elijah, Jeremiah, and the other prophets lived hundreds of years before Jesus. Neither the disciples nor Jesus find it odd that the people are speculating that Jesus is a reincarnation of one of the prophets. A belief in reincarnation is an integrated part of the culture in which they live.

The last stop on our sightseeing trip will be Matthew 26:52. Jesus and his disciples are in the Garden of Gethsemane. The chief priests and elders of the people, armed with swords and clubs, arrive to arrest Jesus. As they grab Jesus, one of his disciples draws his sword, cutting off the ear of one of the high priest’s slaves. Jesus reacts immediately: "Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword." We all know that murderers do not necessarily die violently in the present life. Jesus is teaching his disciples that violent behavior in this life will eventually be met with violence, in this life or a future one. Violent actions create negative karma. [However, all souls have the opportunity to transmute this violent karma—before it manifests—through loving service to others. Negative karma stored within our energy field is temporary and can be transformed by exercising forgiveness and loving service. Only positive karma is stored eternally. Positive karma becomes "the stars in our crown" celebrated in an old gospel hymn.]

We end our tour with these five examples.88