Christian Churches of God

No. B7_A

Mysticism

Volume 1

The Origin of World Religions

(Edition 1.1 19900930-20050319)

In this paper we outline the contents of Mysticism Volume 1.

Christian Churches of God

PO Box 369, WODEN ACT 2606, AUSTRALIA

Email: secretary@ccg.org

(Copyright © 1990, 2000, 2005 Wade Cox)

This paper may be freely copied and distributed provided it is copied in total with no alterations or deletions. The publisher’s name and address and the copyright notice must be included. No charge may be levied on recipients of distributed copies. Brief quotations may be embodied in critical articles and reviews without breaching copyright.

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Contents of Mysticism Volume 1

Mysticism Chapter 1 Spreading the Babylonian Mysteries (No. B7_1)

Establishing the Nature of Mysticism

Theistic and Monistic Mysticism

Mystical Experience

Greek Influence on the Origins of Christian Mysticism

Philo and the God Who Speaks

Plotinus

The Extent of the Spread of Mysticism

The Ascent

Medieval Developments

Eastern Indo-Aryan Religion

Shamanism

Eastern Mystical Ascent

Mysticism in the Pacific

Australia

Maori Concepts

Tracing the Path

Mysticism Chapter 2 The Egyptian Gods and the Exodus (No. B7_2)

Moses’ Life as the Plan

The Second Forty Years

The Third Forty Year Period

Miracles

1. The Serpents

2. Blood

3. Frogs

4. The Flies

5. The Plague of the Cattle

6. Boils

7. Hail

8. Locusts

9. Darkness

10. The Killing of the Firstborn

The Pillar of Fire and Cloud

Middle East Cosmology

Mysticism Chapter 3 The Golden Calf (No. B7_3)

The Finger of Ashirat

The Bull

Mysticism Chapter 4 Judeo-Christianity (No. B7_4)

Original Judeo-Christian Concepts

Cosmology

Overview: How God is One

The Godhead as Eloah, The Elohim, Morning Stars and the Sons of God

The Elohim

The Elohim as a Plurality

Morning Stars

Cherubim

The Spirit of Man and the Angelic Order

Original Millennial Doctrines

The Logos and Creation

Will and Nature

Christianity After the Edict of Toleration

Arles

War in Christianity

The Roman Army

Roman Persian Buffers

Concepts of God and the Christian Factions Prior to 590AD

Mysticism Chapter 5 Islam (No. B7_5)

Religious History to the Birth of Islam

Arab Beliefs

Tribal Dispositions and Power

The Rise of Islam

The Arabs in Islam and Later Doctrines

Expansion and Syncretism

Early Conquests

Islam in China

The Abbasids

Overthrow of the Umayyads

Baghdad

Loss of Territory

Economic Resources

Literature

Islamic Anthropomorphic Puritanism

Decline of the Abbasids

Later Indo-Aryan Influence on Islamic Theology

The Emergence of Mystical Syncretism in Islam

Sufi Mysticism

The Rise of Sufism

The Sufi Orders

Mysticism Chapter 6 Origins of the Indian Religious Systems (No. B7_6)

Early Aryan Religion

The Ramayana

Yoga, Pantheism and Monotheism

Indian Syncretic Pantheism

Indian Monotheism

Mother Goddess Theology in Asia

Developments of the Indo-Aryan System in the First Millennium CE

Mysticism Chapter 7 Buddhism (No. B7_7)

Liberation Theology

The Buddha

The Dharma

Monasticism in Buddhism

The Denial of Independent Existence

Bhakti as Faith and Infallibility

Arhants and the Mystical Ascent

Buddhism in Asia

The Revolution

The Development of Mystical Thought in Buddhism

The Diamond and Matrix Systems

The Medieval Systems

The Intrusion of the Mother Goddess Cult into Buddhism and the Development of Animistic Practices

Tara

The Goddess and Tantric Mysticism in Southeast Asia

Mysticism Chapter 8 East Asia - China and Japan (No. B7_8)

Origins of the Chinese

The Move from the West

Chinese Religion

Early Systems

Creation from Primodial Chaos and the First God

Taoism

From Dualism to Singularist Tao

Taoist Pseudo-Monotheism

Mother Goddess Figures

The Taoist High Priest

The Taoist – Confucian Conflict

Syncretic Myths

The Kings of Heaven and Other Myths

Chinese Dragons

Indo-Aryan Time Myths

Prehistory and the Archaeological Record

Tracing the Bronze Age

The Chinese Dynasties

The Nexus

Isolating Early Chinese Occultists

Mysticism Chapter 9 South East Asian Systems (No. B7_9)

Original Religious Systems

Buddhism and Indianization in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asian History from the Twelfth Century

The Development of Islam in Southeast Asia Chinese Influence

The Origins and Method of Islam’s Arrival in Sumatra

The Spread of Islam under the Mongols

East and West Asian Mysticism Meet in Aceh

Nineteenth Century Islamic Theology in Southeast Asia

Modern Day Religion on Java

Mysticism Chapter 10 Summary of Volume 1 The Origin of World Religions (No. B7_10)