A First Century Church in the Twenty-First Century

New Hope at home Seminary and education programs, Inc.

Lesson One - What is a First-Century Church?

A first century church is a faith that tries to interpret Jesus' life and actions - and seeks the meaning and real messages in life from the reality of each moment of our lives.



We are the Voice and we serve that Voice.  We have messages for specific people - if you feel the call, contact us.

Jesus Christ never expressed his desire to create a written history.  Jesus instead called on his followers to 'carry' his message.


The truth we all seek is not written - it is written in the fabric of our days.  The truth calls to us from today...  always today.

Reality and God are the same word.  In speech and in action, we follow the path upon which we are placed.

God's glory can be messy, it can be cruel, it can be terrible to live through.  Some do not live - but the illusion is death.

Click Here to Learn How and Maybe Find Your Message

We help when we can - we try to be as Jesus was, the "Perfect Stranger".  Help people!  That is the path.  Help and be merry!


Yours in Christ,

Was Jesus Divine?

  Lesson title -

Was Jesus More Divine Than Other People?

Of course, as Catholics, our Sacred Traditions and culture dictate that we believe in Christ's divinity.  We are fortunate that way.

The big question that then follows is, "Was Jesus Christ more divine than everyone else?"

Both traditional Gospels and especially the Nag Hammadi Gospels both seem to leave this critical question unanswered.  Nowhere does Jesus say, "I'm better than you are."  Oh, he claimed divinity 100% and often - but he then seemed to proffer this same divinity to all mankind.

His path of discipleship to Apostleship is thick with references to them acquiring His divine powers.  He specifically granted miracle-working authority to his Apostles after his resurrection. 

A Perspective on Jesus as a Jew

Lesson Title:  Didn't Jesus Always Wear a Hat?


Dear Students,

I find myself returning to this short article time and again.  Please read and contemplate this important work describing the implications of Jesus' Judaic heritage.

http://www.moshereiss.org/christianity/03_hillel/03_hillel.htm

As you are aware, the Reform Catholic Church believes that our lives of Apostolic Faith should be consistent with Jesus' walk of life as much as possible.

Since Jesus discarded the old laws in one of his Gospels (although he did not disrespect or avoid them in his own life), we as Catholics do not need to follow the old Jewish culture regarding dietary restrictions, etc.  We do find it interesting and informative that Jesus followed these rules, and we do respect the role of sacrifice and fasting in our spiritual lives.

I call this picture, "Jesus as a Jew".  The real title is "Christ and Saint Mary Magdalen at the tomb."  The original painting is by Rembrandt.

As you read in the article, Jesus as a 1st-century Jewish Rabbi would have always worn a hat or other headcovering in public.

It is interesting to me how rare paintings or sculptures of Jesus wearing a traditional yarmulke or other head covering are in Christian art.  One might presume this was quite intentional and "hatless Jesus" was a dictate of the powerful church authorities who both censored (and indeed, sponsored) most significant art from the dark ages through the early Renaissance.

Yours in Christ,

Prayer for Matthew Storm Victims

Prayer to Saint Rita for the people experiencing Hurricane Matthew.

Saint Rita of Cascia, Wikipedia

For victims of the storm:

Oh Holy Patroness of those in need; Saint Rita

Whose pleadings to the Divine Lord are almost irresistible

Who for your generosity in granting favors is called the

 'Advocate of the Hopeless and Even of the Impossible'

All who come to you knowing they will receive if not relief, at least comfort.

Look with favor upon our petition

Be generous with us, as you have in so many wonderful cases.

For the Greater Glory of God

For the spreading of thine own devotion

And the comfort of We who come to You

Amen.








If you want to learn about Saint Medard, the Catholic Saint of Storms, CLICK HERE.

Church Theology Thought Stream

The Theology and Foundational principals of the Reform Catholic Church:

We are relatively new.  The Church was initially formed in 2014.  Currently our faith has two deacons (a word we teach is synonymous with 'Rabbi'), and two or three active members.

We make a dedicated and active effort to follow Christ's call to Apostleship.  We study and choose to follow the known works and words of Jesus Christ - but we study and interpret the Bible and Sacred Texts in private, and only speak of them from memory and in an oral tradition.

We believe the Gospel is only the living word of God if it is expressed orally in parable and as a sacred tradition.

We believe Jesus called all of his students to be Apostles, and actively invited all mankind to join him as a Savior.  He conferred upon all active Apostles the gift of miracle working - a gift which we all share as our heritage in faith.

We believe that fully realized Apostles a sprinkled through history and live among us.  The common label within Catholicism for these miraculous people is "Saints".

We accept Christ's mandate in the Nag Hammadi Gospels to not build churches, but instead to hold sacred every dwelling, no matter how humble or grand.  "Every table an altar, every meal a Sacrament, every word of truth, love and kindness a part of God's infinite purpose.

We believe in one God Almighty in honor of the Sacred Traditions of our families and culture.  We believe in God Almighty, in the Holy Spirit within all creation, and in the words, actions and deeds of Jesus of Nazareth - the prophesied Savior promised in Old Testament (Torah) ancient Judaic texts.

We believe Jesus was a practicing Rabbi, and thus study and embrace the theology of first century Judaism.  The Pirke Avot (Wisdom of the Jewish Sages) is our primary historic source for this knowledge.

We are Pantheistic - We believe that if God is infinite than every single thing in reality is part of the infinite revealed in countless parts.  The separateness of one from another is an illusion - through our own personal Holy Spirit we all contain the infinite within ourselves.

We believe that the word "God" and the word "Reality" are the same word.

We believe every table is an altar, every home is a church, and every gathering is sacred.  We express our faith through words and actions.

We are establishing an oral tradition - we do not use the written word to create and share God's gospels and our faith.

We incorporate the contemporary Bible into our historical foundations, but we believe the word of God is woven into our daily lives, and that living word is the law and the truth as espoused by Jesus.

We fully incorporate the Nag Hammadi Gospels and modern sources like Gandhi and Martin Luther King into what we preach - which is the 3rd testament, a testament that is both taught and spoken but not recorded in text form.  We are still undecided about whether our oral traditions should be recorded and saved - but for now we are purely a faith of oral Gospel, apostleship and action.

A First Century Church in the Twenty-First Century

Jesus Christ never desired a written history, he called on his followers to 'carry' his message, not to write everything down and make a book out of it.

If you recall, in one of Christ's Gospels he said out loud he was here to void the old laws.  The Reform Catholic Church interprets Christ's words literally and interprets this statement as an admonition against the use of written texts to carry the Gospel and history of God's words.
Instead the congregation and ministry of the Reform Church carries the word as an oral tradition - freely interpreting both the historical texts and modern sources as the revealed Word of God.

We then carry the word in Apostleship and Faith, as Christ commanded.  In speech and in action, we follow the path of Christ.

What is Charisma?

Background:

Charisma is the least understood verified human behavioral phenomena.


Charismatic people exist in all cultures, and this rare quality often leads to world-changing experiences that affect the arc of human history.    Charismatics engage other people at a layer of the human psyche that has very little in common with the real world.

I have learned that charisma is a relatively rare human trait.  It appears to be an inborn quality, and it is not easily taught or learned.  It is virtually unknown to science what causes this strange human attraction that seems to radiate from some people.

Some charismatics can control and focus this effect.  Derren Brown is a famous British "magician" who does no traditional magic at all - but he can buy expensive things with blank sheets of paper, and he can pick up a random ticket from the floor of a horse racing track and present it for hundreds of dollars of winnings.  His personality is simply that powerful.  Here is a link:  Derren Brown buying things with blank paper.

"There was a Master come unto the Earth.  Born in the Holy Land of Indiana, raised in the mystical hills East of Fort Wayne."  Richard Bach, 'Illusions'.

What is known about charisma?

I have studied charisma and mass human influence for over 40 years.  I have discovered that charisma is what we call someone who has the power to completely focus 100% of their attention on the people they are interacting with.  Often they do this without thought or apparent effort - it is woven into the fabric of who they are at the deepest level.  

This ability to fully focus attention appears to trigger an immediate and unexplained response within almost every person with whom they interact.  Very few people are recorded as immune to charisma.

Human beings respond dramatically to charismatics in person, in print, on TV and on the radio - and charismatics create and influence mass movements, create huge cultural and economic shifts, and quite simply change the lives of millions of human beings almost without effort.

Charisma has always been the great unknown.  Doctors, philosophers, scientists… not even psychiatrists and sociologists can explain charisma.  What human quality creates a Hitler, a Bill Clinton, a Che Guevarra or a Donald Trump?

Good people have it, like Ghandi... terrible people can have it too - like Hitler.  Who and what are these people?  Since charisma is very similar to hypnosis, it is important to learn what charisma is and how it works.

In other words, "What is charisma?" 

Let's look it up:

__________________________________________________________________

cha·ris·ma                                                     From:  Wikipedia online

kəˈrizmə/

noun

                           1.  compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others.

                   "she enchanted guests with her charisma"

                2. a divinely conferred power or talent. 

___________________________________________________________

That's it - two extremely vague statements that might as well read "We know it is real, but we have no idea at all what it is and what causes this universal phenomenon."

Interesting facts about charisma:  

The Bible is full of charismatics.  So is every other major religious text or oral tradition.  We need not argue whether Jesus or Buddha or Gandhi were divine - we are drawn to their words like moths to a flame.

There is a strong possibility charisma can outlive the life of the charismatic person.

Powerful charismatics can make almost anyone see, hear and experience things that are not real.  There is some evidence that points to either genuine paranormal (miracle) events or mass hallucination on an incredible scale.

Many charismatics live very ordinary lives - think of your favorite teacher, your favorite Aunt or special person.  It is quite possible they have significant charismatic qualities.

Fraudulent "News" Website publishing dangerous rumors.

Fraudulent "News" Website publishing dangerous rumors.

Millions Of Uncounted Bernie Sanders Ballots Have Been Found

10/3/2016 

This "news" source is a very well crafted website that mixes in false clickbait "news" stories and profits from the resultant furor.

The timing on this story could not be worse.  It is critical that everyone be made aware that http://bients.com is a patently fake news source.  Something like this could take hold as a rumor and seriously alter the upcoming election.

The Saint Joseph Reform Catholic Church encourages you to visit the site and make up your own mind.  If you believe as we do that this rumor is both evil and dangerous, please let everyone know this is a false rumor.

Yours in Spirit,

Deacon John Hubertz

johnhubertz@outlook.com

Fort Wayne, Indiana