Hidden Gospel

Neil Douglas-Klotz is an internationally known scholar in the fields connecting religious studies (comparative Semitic hermeneutics) and psychology as well as a poet and musician. He is the author of Revelations of the Aramaic Jesus, The Aramaic Jesus Book of Days, Prayers of the Cosmos, and The Hidden Gospel and coauthor of The Tent of Abraham with Sister Joan Chittister and Rabbi Arthur Waskow. He is the past chair of the Mysticism Group of the American Academy of Religion.

“This gem of a book reminds us that Jesus’s message is about our personal relationship with the divine and with one another. It carries a message of connection, compassion, and wholeness—one that we can all greatly benefit from today.”—Suzanne Giesemann, author of The Awakened Way“This book is a gift to all those who want to enter into the spirit of the historical Jesus and the mystic Christ. By honoring the people of Jesus’s land and their poetic language, it brings a needed balance to the historical Jesus movement. It undoes rigid and dualistic translations of the Christian scriptures and thereby awakens, challenges, and makes fresh the good news that, after all these centuries, is still news.”—Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing“Neil Douglas-Klotz’s reinterpretations of well-known phrases are insightful, penetrating, and, in some cases, dazzling. This book will change the way many people read the New Testament.”—Leonard Shlain, MD, author of The Alphabet versus the Goddess“Neil Douglas-Klotz’s scholarly work on the spirituality of the Aramaic Jesus brings a unique Middle Eastern perspective to the larger questions of our spiritual life and faith. The richness of the Aramaic worldview and an emphasis on spiritual practice make this book both inspirational and a profoundly practical guide for spiritual seekers. In his study of the Aramaic Jesus, the author looks at various themes expressed in the words and stories of Jesus, not to determine their validity, but rather to uncover their depth and their power to move us ‘to search for our own souls.’ Themes such as breath, holiness, light, Sophia, and love become doorways to a fresh, deep, multilayered interpretation of Yeshua, the native Middle Eastern man who has so influenced Western civilization for so long. Many of Neil’s spiritual insights are brilliant; many are guides to an authentic practice of spirituality. What I most appreciate is the ease with which Neil moves back and forth from his scholarly explanations of the texts to meditation practices, body prayers, and poetic interpretations. Those who read this book will find a view of Jesus as a Middle Eastern mystic and teacher full of heart, sweetness, and wisdom!”—Marlene De Nardo, former cochair of The Naropa Institute’s master’s program in creation spirituality, Oakland, California