Jesus: The Explosive Story of the 30 Lost Years and the Ancient Mystery Religions

LOVE THIS BOOK - it is a must read for people who want to know the TRUTH about Christianity. I have been a church goer - and a church leader - lead ministries - teen ministries - studied the Bible with a lot of people, baptized a few. And I left a fundamental, controlling, cultish church years ago because something BOTHERED ME greatly and it had so much to do with the fact that I could not put together the insanity the Bible caused me. This god was skitzo and Jesus's message seemed incomplete to me. A lot of things Paul said bothered me greatly as well. It bothered me GREATLY that only 4 gospels were put in the entire book - more books written by Paul who never met Jesus than gospels of Jesus and yet there are SO many Gospels and many that were BURNED. So when the Nag Hammadi scriptures showed up - it was like God was standing there handing them to us and no one has seemed to go crazy and sing. Then I remembered, my mother told me when I was young and telling her my heart on what I believed that I was gnostic. And so I realized, I must read these gnostic texts and I need to start asking the questions church leaders told me I was a heathen to ask. And this book was the second step after I read the Nag Hammadi scriptures - and I have been reading more and more, listening to open minded priests talk about things the church invented to control us, listening to exministers talk about what THEY also learned about the origins of the Bible. I had a very intense experience when I was 20 - I met someone I KNEW I knew in another life. And there I was, a typical college cheerleader who grew up Christian. And this KNOWING moment knocked me back. I did not know what to do with that KNOWING. And as I read the Nag Hammadi and other sacred texts that the church did not think important to share - I learned that the Emperor Justinine actually put a pope in prison in the late 500s for 4 years and reappointed the clergy so that they would rewrite the Bible to edit out anything pertaining to reincarnation. The pope had said NO because it was a central truth within Jesus's teaching. DOES ANYONE KNOW THIS? This is PROFOUND and it basically says everyone has been wrong for 2000 years. A society can be controlled if they are kept beat down and afraid of going to hell following rules. They forget that God loves them NO MATTER WHAT - the spiritual enlightenment is for you as a soul individually. You do not do good deeds for God. Does God need your good deeds? No, you do good deeds to feed your soul. Your God soul inside of you. The Kingdom of Heaven is WITHIN you. Jesus said this. This is central to gnostic teachings. The gnostic teachings are in the Nag Hammadi - and other scriptures. The Gospel of Thomas is a unedited version of Matthew. And guess what, Jesus defended animals in so many scriptures. He took kittens away from little boys - he protected a horse being abused, a camel being overworked, even a tiger being hunted for sport. He said to attack them is like attacking him because they have the breath of eternal life. He also was a vegetarian and said we should not eat meat. VERY controversial. He was an ESSENE Jew. His dad was an Essene Jew - they believed men and women were equal. They lived in communities that adhered to a community ideal system (communistic). Most of Matthew, Mark and John is Jesus talking to Jews about their law (particularly the first half of Matthew). But Christianity has looked at it as Jesus's teaching but NO - its NOT -he is repeating the LAW. He is saying to the Jews that they have forgotten the SPIRIT as to why the law was written. Divorce was because women were dead according to the laws of the land if you divorced them - they could not work - they could not own land. Today it is different. I stayed in a bad marriage for 15 years - abusive - because of this dogma. Then he says they no longer have to live by the Law (Jewish Law). Christianity has made itself a continuation of the Law. We are all a bunch of Sudduces Jews! Please people open up your minds and hearts and go figure out what you believe in. Stop just believing what people tell you to believe. This is a great book to help give you some tidbits - but read other things as well - the Nag Hammadi - the dead sea scrolls - etc. And meditate and listen to your hearts.

I read this book for research into the claim that Jesus traveled to various places during the years uncounted for in the Gospels. In my 1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles series, I wanted a few past life stories to place my characters in this time period. I perused many books for a visionary approach to the subject, and a comprehensive account of the theories and textual evidence of Jesus' missing years. McCannon delivers both. The book is exhaustive in its chronological account of the places he went. And it provides a compelling point of view, that Jesus was part of an already ancient continuum of mystical healers and magicians (Magi). He traveled to different centers of sacred training to prepare for his mission: Egypt, Britain, India, and Persia. The interpretation of the death and resurrection related to this training is fascinating. A complex, thorough, and brilliantly creative study. Even if you don't believe, the book is imaginative, entertaining (as in an idea), and spiritually rich.

I have to give kudos to Tricia on her book of the pre-ministry years of Jesus. I've also been studying Christian origins for over 20 years and found much of her research very interesting and supportive of my own studies. It is outside the main stream scholarship, but then they tend to focus on studying the trees and not looking at the forest. What I found most interesting is the conncetion for ancient myths with the mystery religions which I had previously made also. There is very little written on the similarities of these religions although you can find a number of books claiming Jesus plagarized his religion from pagan sources and event more astounding is their claim that Jesus never really existed, that he too was mythical; these seem to be hasty generalizations from authors promoting their own atheistic agenda. This book comes at a very different angle, supporting my findings that most of the major religions came from a very ancient single source. The problem for most Christians in reading this book will be that it is too far out there for them to make a connection. As one reviewer previously put it, "I'll rely on the NT" [paraphrasing]. This "solo scriptora" (scriptures only) attitude has caused Christianity to remain in an ever shrinking box that becomes more and more disconnected with time. There are a number of other books that support that original Christianity was more esoteric and probably closer to the Gnostic Christian version than the orthodox version we have today (Inner Christianiyt for one). So Christians have to give up a few of their idealistic beliefs such as Christianity being a unique revelation in the doctrinal sense. Jesus himself confirms that what he teaches is not something new, but rather something very, very old as he questions why Nicodemus doesn't get the concept of being 'born again' (Jn 3:10) The verse implies that this Pharisee was, or should have been taught that this ancient concept in his training also. Most people have no problem realizing that Jesus was Jewish and much of his theology came from his Jewish religion. I also subscribe to the theory that Christianity was more Essene in it's theology than Pharisitic. But some how it we discover that Jesus taught concepts similar to those in non-Jewish religions then somehow it has to be false. The logic doesn't follow here. Again, we have Christians having to give up the assumption that they have a monopoly on truth. Margaret Barker, Oxford scholar, wrote on the Hidden Tradition of Christianity and one has difficulty walking away from reading that book without knowing that Jesus taught the mysteries of the kingdom. In fact both Christianity and Judaism were mystical and mystery cults. So to say that other mystery cults had similar teachings is not something that should be thought of as heretical. But the biggest problem of this book facing a Christian audience is that most do not study their own religion, let alone the stories and legends outside the Bible. This book may be too much of a quantum leap for them to embrace. I appreciate the many footnotes the author provided, but also consent that although there may be traditions of Christ visiting those other countries in his pre-ministry years, it is far from solid evidence for absolute proof. Too often, the author seems to throw in premises without fully building an argument in favor of. All in all, it's a book I would recommend for those ready to receive it.

Tricia McCannon not only writes a scholarly book of the birth, life and death of Jesus, she writes in a clear and easy to understand way that make this book as suspenseful as any work of fiction. She brings Jesus the man to life. She shows that Jesus was human, that he worked at his knowledge visiting Egypt, England, India and Tibet, learning from the greatest minds of his time. That he didn't just come into this world knowing all things, though he was one of the four great Kumaras, the solar lords, the eternally young sons of God who 'realized the truth of self', he did his homework. McCannon's view of Jesus, heavily researched, is a thousand times more interesting than the whitewashed version of Jesus that portrays him as the son of God who was born of a virgin, knew everything, could do no wrong, and was killed for our sins. Instead we see a human being who studied and earned his powers showing us the way to the promised land. Filled with illustrations, footnotes from works found in the Vatican that not many people get to see, oral traditions, and so many other books that I don't see how it was humanly possible to read, McCannon not only offers us an incredible look at Jesus, she backs it up. Simply an amazing work. When I Dream

I could not put the book down. Ms McCannon writes clearly and keeps you interested. I particularly liked the heavy footnoting which made the book more meaningful. If you are interested in seeing Jesus as the man he was and why he was so learned in the ancient mystery religions, this is the book. If you become hooked with the topic there are many citations to keep you searching. Everywhere I look now I see the symbolism which is the foundation for much of Christianity today, including the "beehive" hat the Pope wears to the "fish" symbol that appears so ubiquitously on the back of automobiles and the origin of the "cross", which was already an important ancient religious symbol before Christ. Rather than travel to the Holy Land, I suggest go to the Isle of Avalon in Gastonbury England where Jesus lived and his followers, lead by Joseph of Aramethia, went to start the first Christian church. You will find out that Jesus also traveled extensively in India and was well grounded in the ancient teachings of the Egyptians, from which he may have learned about resurrection. The raising of the Eucharist during the Catholic mass is a symbol for the Sun, based on the Egyptian god of the Sun, Ra, whose "eye" is the derivation of the "fish" symbol. All this and more is explored by this wonderful book that places our current Western religious practice and the life of Jesus in in a modern perspective.

Well organized, significantly detailed to maintain interest. Straight forward and nicely paced. Well referenced in text and footnotes. Good reading and great service. Thanks!

For those who are interested in the Christology of Jesus and are open to a non mainstrem approach other than mainstream doctrine this book provides an interesting approach. This is a book about the empirical Jesus meaning the Jesus that is not disclosed in the Gospels. In my opinion, Jesus should not be limited to doctrinal, mythical, historical or archetypical study and commentary. Jesus, in my opinion, should be experienced. This means, again in my opinion, that Jesus can not be limited to the reasoning of our finite mind sets. The very idea that Jesus can be limited to what the Gospels, particularly what the synoptics say about him, is to miss from the level of our personal experience who Jusus truly is. This books opens this idea up in a readable and, again in my opinion, thought provoking manner. To me that means that this book will encourage us to know and experience Jesus in a greater and more expansive way. That, to me, is the purpose of reading Christology in the first place and this book helps to serve that purpose.

This book is especially useful for those who want a good overview of the spiritual principles and traditions that the Jesus phenomenon resonates with. Admittedly the author frequently goes out on a limb and cites vague and questionable sources; but this is the kind of book that points the way forward rather than just summarizing what we know for sure as proven fact. I recommend it more to spiritual journeyers than to historians. Some take the commonalities among the stories of Thoth, Osiris, Krishna, Mithra, Horus, Buddha, and Jesus as evidence that they are fictitious; but McCannon shows that these figures all purposefully followed a pattern of spiritual love and redemption established eons ago...or right now, if you believe that time is an illusion. The redeemer phenomenon is seen as an eternal spiritual template.

Truly enjoying this book, it was recommended by a friend. Very interesting read I am learning a lot from this, to assist in my spiritual journey

Great book, very deep grounded. For oneself or as a gift for a friend. Fast delivery.

A fascinating read and utterly believable that Jesus was an initiate of many mystery traditions. The book is well written and presented. I appreciated the lack of incomplete sentences and ampersands that litter so many American publications. The author mentions the channelled work of Stuart Wilson and Joanna Prentis 'The Essenes Children of the Light', I was wondering if she too believed that Jesus survived the crucifixion... and yes in one sentence, the only one, she refers to healing given to Jesus afterwards. This book is full of interesting information on the mystery traditions around the world and presents a probable explanation for the 30 years of Jesus' life that are unaccounted for.

Really love this book...not finished yet, but it is well written and well researched and fascinating!

Ms McCannon has written the most astonishing book about the life of Jesus – filled with stunning details about the Mystery Schools and their Initiates, such as Jesus, Buddha, Zoroaster et al. I found it exciting beyond words and cannot recommend it highly enough to anyone interested in this area. And you don't need to believe just her word, as she has supplied both an extensive Bibliography and Notes, which provide references of where she obtained her information, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, etc.. Indeed, the Afterword and Notes are packed with such detailed information and references, that they are worthy of a book in themselves! My eyes and mind have been opened, as nearly everything I ever wanted to know about Jesus has been condensed into this one amazing book. And of course it has now given me the urge to now study more. For example about other Initiates such as Roger Bacon and John the Baptist.