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The Gospel of John. Prologue
1 In the very beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was a divine Being.
2 He was in the very beginning with God.
3 All things came into being through him,
and nothing of all that has come into being
was made except through him.
4 In him was life,
and the life was the light of human beings.
5 And the light shines in the darkness;
and the darkness has not accepted it.
6 There came a man,
sent from God,
his name was John.
7 He came to bear witness,
to witness to the light
and so to awaken faith in all hearts.
8 He himself was not the light,
he was to be a witness to the light.
9 The true light that enlightens all human beings
was to come into the world.
10 It was in the world,
for the world came into being through it,
yet the world did not recognize it.
11 It came to men of individual spirit,
but those very individuals did not accept it.
12 To all, however, who did accept it,
it gave the free power to become children of God.
They are the ones who trustingly take its power into themselves.
13 They receive their life, not out of blood,
nor out of the will of the flesh,
and not out of human willing;
for they are born of God.
14 And the Word became flesh
and lived among us.
And we have beheld his revelation,
the revelation of the only Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
(Madson translation)
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The Gospel of John. Prologue (Rudolf Steiner translation to German)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things came into being through It and save through It was not anything made that was made.
4 In It was Life and Life was the Light of men.
5 And the Light shone into the darkness, but the darkness comprehended it not.
6 There was a man; he was sent from God, bearing the name John.
7 The same came as a witness in order to bear witness of the Light that through him all might believe.
8 He was not the Light but was a witness of the Light.
For the true Light which illumines every man should come into the world.
9 It was in the world and the world came into being through It, but the world knew It not.
11 It entered into individual men (that is, the ego-men); but individual men (the ego-men) received it not.
12 But they who received it could reveal themselves as Children of God.
13 They who trusted in His name were not born of the blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man – but of God.
14 And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we have heard His teaching, the teaching of the once born Son of the Father filled with Devotion and Truth.
(Rudolf Steiner, C W. 103, The Gospel of St. John, Lecture 4. Hamburg, 22. May 1908)
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There are the four Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the New Testament of the Bible, which describe the life of Jesus Christ, culminating in the Mystery of Golgotha.∞ ∞ ∞
We are trying to connect deeper with the Gospel of John and soul-spiritual impulses in the connection to it. For that, we learn and meditate by ourselves, and we also meet online and dedicate our meetings to these topics. We can take in our souls the impulses from the Prolog of The Gospel of John.
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Prolog of the Gospel of John in papyrus 75, ca. end of 2nd century
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We can approach an understanding of the importance of the Gospel of John from these ideas of Rudolf Steiner:
„The Gospel of John is one of the writings that contains the infinite as a source within it“ Rudolf Steiner, GA 97 – 4, p.49
“If not a single soul on Earth had read the Gospel of John, then the mission of the Earth could not have been fulfilled: from our participation in such things, spiritual forces are radiated, which give the Earth new life instead of what dies in it.” Rudolf Steiner, GA 145-5
“Every other gospel is to be seen as an addition to the gospel of John.
And the reasons for all the other Gospels lie in the Gospel of John. We therefore understand the other Gospels only when we consider them on the foundation of the Gospel of John.”
Rudolf Steiner, GA 112-13
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We can continue to develop in our souls modesty and humbleness:
“We must look at the world in a new way. Modesty and humbleness are what must take root and grow strong in our souls, especially concerning all that is said about the Gospels and in the Gospels themselves.
Then gradually we can draw nearer to the truths, to the wisdom necessary to research the problem of Christ.” Rudolf Steiner, GA 117-8
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We can take in our souls the impulse from Rudolf Steiner:
“Early in the morning when the soul was still virginal, they have let these words (John 1-14) resound in their soul,
When a man does this day by day, then something shows itself in the soul which gives him new life, he is reborn, he is spiritually transformed.
He sees around him a spiritual world of which he had previously no idea.
Everyone who takes the first verses of the Saint John Gospel and lets them work upon him for the education and training of his soul, experiences the Saint John Gospel itself in mighty pictures.”
Rudolf Steiner, GA 68a, 27 November 1906, Dusseldorf
Esoteric Christianity, The Gospel of St. John and Ancient Mysteries
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This initiative is a part of the Power of the Light of Christ initiative.
If you would like to connect, please contact Rowan beingconscious@outlook.com
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