Examine the pros and cons of the continuity theory of aging, specifically in terms of how it neglects to consider social institutions or chronically ill adults. Now that the pagan continuity hypothesis is defended, the next task is to show that the pagan and proto-Christian ritual sacraments were, in fact, psychedelicbrews. And I don't know what that looks like. You can see that inscribed on a plaque in Saint Paul's monastery at Mount Athos in Greece. I'm not sure many have. It was one of the early write-ups of the psilocybin studies coming out of Johns Hopkins. It's interesting that Saint Ignatius of Antioch, in the beginning of the second century AD, refers to the wine of the Eucharist as the [SPEAKING GREEK], the drug of immortality. Maybe there's a spark of the divine within. And you suspect, therefore, that it might be a placebo, and you want the real thing. So I went fully down the rabbit hole. That's only after Constantine. And nor did we think that a sanctuary would be one of the first things that we construct. So again, that's February 22. This 'pagan continuity hypothesis' with a psychedelic twist is now backed up by biochemistry and agrochemistry and tons of historical research, exposing our forgotten history. And I guess my biggest question, not necessarily for you, but the psychedelic community, for what it's worth, or those who are interested in this stuff is how do we make this experience sacred? And there you also found mortars that were tested and also tested positive for evidence of brewing. And in the ancient world, wine was routinely referred to as a [SPEAKING GREEK], which is the Greek word for drug. And does it line up with the promise from John's gospel that anyone who drinks this becomes instantly immortal? It's not the case in the second century. I mean, if Burkert was happy to speculate about psychedelics, I'm not sure why Ruck got the reception that he did in 1978 with their book The Road to Eleusis. So when Hippolytus is calling out the Marcosians, and specifically women, consecrating this alternative Eucharist in their alternative proto-mass, he uses the Greek word-- and we've talked about this before-- but he uses the Greek word [SPEAKING GREEK] seven times in a row, by the way, without specifying which drugs he's referring to. To be a Catholic is to believe that you are literally consuming the blood of Christ to become Christ. Here's your Western Eleusis. Maybe I have that wrong. And so part of what it means to be a priest or a minister or a rabbi is to sit with the dying and the dead. So there's a whole slew of sites I want to test there. Now, Brian managed to write this book while holding down a full time practice in international law based in Washington DC. Where are the drugs? But the point being, if the Dionysian wine was psychedelic-- which I know is a big if-- I think the more important thing to show here in this pagan continuity hypothesis is that it's at least plausible that the earliest Christians would have at the very least read the Gospel of John and interpreted that paleo-Christian Eucharistic wine, in some communities, as a kind of Dionysian wine. So there's a house preserved outside of Pompeii, preserved, like so much else, under the ash of Mount Vesuvius's eruption in the year 79 of the Common Era. I'm currently reading The Immortality Key by Brian Muraresku and find this 2nd/3rd/4th century AD time period very interesting, particularly with regards to the adoptions of pagan rituals and practices by early Christianity. And I think that's an important distinction to make. All he says is that these women and Marcus are adding drugs seven times in a row into whatever potion this is they're mixing up. And I look forward to talking about this event with you after the fact eventually over a beer. Now are there any other questions you wish to propose or push or-- I don't know, to push back against any of the criticisms or questions I've leveled? Not in every single case, obviously. But what I see are potential and possibilities and things worthy of discussions like this.
The Psychedelic Gospels: The Secret History of Hallucinogens in Those of you who don't know his name, he's a professor at the University of Amsterdam, an expert in Western esotericism. But I don't hold-- I don't hang my hat on that claim. CHARLES STANG: I do, too. Now, I have no idea where it goes from here, or if I'll take it myself. First act is your evidence for psychedelics among the so-called pagan religions in the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. would certainly appreciate. Things like fasting and sleep deprivation and tattooing and scarification and, et cetera, et cetera. Here's the proof of concept. And we know the mysteries were there. CHARLES STANG: Yeah. BRIAN MURARESKU: Dr. Stang, an erudite introduction as ever.
Theories of Origins about Witch Hunts - King's College One attendee has asked, "How have religious leaders reacted so far to your book? Then I see the mysteries of Dionysus as kind of the Burning Man or the Woodstock of the ancient world. These-- that-- Christians are spread out throughout the eastern Mediterranean, and there are many, many pockets of people practicing what we might call, let's just call it Christian mysticism of some kind. It is not psychedelics.
PDF Thesis-The Religion of Constantine I - University Of Ottawa If you are drawn to psychedelics, in my mind, it means you're probably drawn to contemplative mysticism. Now, I mentioned that Brian and I had become friends. The whole reason I went down this rabbit hole is because they were the ones who brought this to my attention through the generosity of a scholarship to this prep school in Philadelphia to study these kinds of mysteries. There's evidence of the mysteries of Dionysus before, during, and after the life of Jesus, it's worth pointing out. I want to thank you for putting up with me and my questions. And they found this site, along with others around the Mediterranean.
Israel's Exodus In Transdisciplinary Perspective: Text - Vdoc.pub And I want to say that this question that we've been exploring the last half hour about what all this means for the present will be very much the topic of our next event on February 22, which is taking up the question of psychedelic chaplaincy. And please just call me Charlie. And I wonder whether the former narrative serves the interests of the latter. Mark and Brian cover the Eleusinian Mysteries, the pagan continuity hypothesis, early Christianity, lessons from famed religious scholar Karen Armstrong, overlooked aspects of influential philosopher William James's career, ancient wine and ancient beer, experiencing the divine within us, the importance of "tikkun olam"repairing and improving And for those of you who have found my line of questioning or just my general presence tedious, first of all, I fully appreciate that reaction. In this episode, Brian C. Muraresku, who holds a degree from Brown University in Latin, Greek and Sanskrit, joins Breht to discuss his fascinating book "The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name", a groundbreaking dive into the use of hallucinogens in ancient Greece, the Pagan Continuity Hypothesis, the role of the Eucharist in early Christianity, the . That they were what you call extreme beverages. There were formula. But we do know that something was happening.
Phil's Picks | Phoenix Books The same Rome that circumstantially shows up, and south of Rome, where Constantine would build his basilicas in Naples and Capua later on.
The Religion has a Name: "Shamanism" - AKJournals The answer seems to be connected to psychedelic drugs. And what we know about the wine of the time is that it was prized amongst other things not for its alcoholic content, but for its ability to induce madness. And I'm happy to see we have over 800 people present for this conversation. The long and short of it is, in 1978 there was no hard scientific data to prove this one way or the other. These two accuse one Gnostic teacher named Marcus-- who is himself a student of the famous theologian Valentinus-- they accuse him of dabbling in pharmacological devilry. Brian's thesis, that of the Pagan Continuity Hypothesis, was explored by Alexander Hislop in his "The Two Babylons", 1853, as a Protestant treatise in the spirit of Martin Luther as Alexander too interjects the Elusinian Mysteries. And, as always the best way to keep abreast of this series and everything else we do here at the Center is to join our mailing list. So to find dog sacrifice inside this Greek sanctuary alludes to this proto-witch, Hecate, the mother of Circe, who is mentioned in the same hymn to Demeter from the 8th, 7th century BC, as kind of the third of the goddesses to whom these mysteries were dedicated. Yeah. Many people see that as symbolic or allegorical or just a nice thing, which is not the case. Maybe I'm afraid I'll take the psychedelic and I won't have what is reported in the literature from Hopkins and NYU. And besides that, young Brian, let's keep the mysteries mysteries. We don't have to look very hard to find that. So can you reflect on the-- standing on the threshold of pharmaceutical companies taking control of this, how is that to be commended when the very people who have kept this alive would be pushed to the side in that move? And if the latter, do you think there's a good chance that religions will adopt psychedelics back into their rituals?". That is my dog Xena. That's one narrative that I feel is a little sensational. And why, if you're right that the church has succeeded in suppressing a psychedelic sacrament and has been peddling instead, what you call a placebo, and that it has exercised a monstrous campaign of persecution against plant medicine and the women who have kept its knowledge alive, why are you still attached to this tradition? But by and large, no, we don't really know.
The Immortality Key - David Bookstaber That's because Brian and I have become friends these past several months, and I'll have more to say about that in a moment. Thank you, sir. And so even within the New Testament you see little hints and clues that there was no such thing as only ordinary table wine. CHARLES STANG: So it may be worth mentioning, for those who are attending who haven't read the book, that you asked, who I can't remember her name, the woman who is in charge of the Eleusis site, whether some of the ritual vessels could be tested, only to discover-- tested for the remains of whatever they held, only to learn that those vessels had been cleaned and that no more vessels were going to be unearthed. 36:57 Drug-spiked wine . Because my biggest question is, and the obvious question of the book is, if this was happening in antiquity, what does that mean for today? BRIAN MURARESKU: Right. Thank you for that. But Egypt seems to not really be hugely relevant to the research.
#646: Brian C. Muraresku with Dr. Mark Plotkin The Eleusinian To some degree, I think you're looking back to southern Italy from the perspective of the supremacy of Rome, which is not the case in the first century. And so I can see psychedelics being some kind of extra sacramental ministry that potentially could ease people at the end of life. The altar had been sitting in a museum in Israel since the 1960s and just hadn't been tested. CHARLES STANG: Thank you, Brian. What was the wine in the early Eucharist? Thank you. I wonder if you're familiar with Wouter Hanegraaff at the University of Amsterdam. And I think it's very important to be very honest with the reader and the audience about what we know and what we don't.
Brian C. Muraresku (@BrianMuraresku) / Twitter I'm going to come back to that idea of proof of concept. And I'm not even sure what that piece looks like or how big it is. And I just happened to fall into that at the age of 14 thanks to the Jesuits, and just never left it behind. [texts-excerpt] penalty for cutting mangroves in floridaFREE EstimateFREE Estimate BRIAN MURARESKU: I would say I've definitely experienced the power of the Christ and the Holy Spirit. Brought to you by GiveWell.org charity research and effective giving and 5-Bullet Friday, my very own email newsletter.Welcome to The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is usually my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out their routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life. Church of the Saints Faustina and Liberata, view from the outside with the entrance enclosure, at "Sante" place, Capo di Ponte (Italy).