Gospel of Thomas: Thomas 44

Thomas 44:  Jesus said, “Whoever blasphemes against the Father will be forgiven, and whoever blasphemes against the Son will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either on earth or in heaven.”

Pneumatology is a branch of Christian theology which refers to the study of the Holy Spirit. Delving into this area demonstrates how allusive a definition can become, particularly when it has a history stemming from the Jewish Torah to the New Testament. This kind of archaeology illustrates how various authors had made nuanced references, such that it made the definition of what the Holy Spirit embodied (pun intended) very broad and difficult to encapsulate. The confusion becomes more obvious when we see the schism it has caused among various denominations of the Christian faith. 

The definition of the Holy Spirit from the perspective of the Gospel of Thomas is, at first glance, controversial. Through 77th Pearl: The Perpetual Tree, we see that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one. The two anthropomorphised characteristics (father and son) describe attributes of this one. The Source is like the human father who combines his genes with the mothers. In this analogy, the mother is the sentient bodies, planet Earth and universe. The seed of the Father is the soul – this becomes the Son when it matures into a living Spirit. It is no surprise that the ethereal nature of the Holy Spirit has been attributed to elemental forces, such as wind, fire and water. This is evidence of the human drawing on what they experience in the material realm to describe what is in the realm of the Spirit. Evidence of these three (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) being attributes of the one thing can be seen in Thomas 30, where Jesus (Yeshua) affirms He is with the one. The one is the Source (Father), joined to the Son (sentient beings), through the collective consciousness (Holy Spirit). In this triad, the Holy Spirit connects the Father and Son through consciousness – the mind of God, the Source. After all, if the mind is disconnected from the body then the body cannot function. If we look at the broad, visual symbology of the Holy Spirit then this notion of connection becomes even more apparent. In the Old Testament (Torah), God (the Spirit) is described as the breath of life, also understood as wind, to create life and give people prophetic vision. In Hebrew, the word ‘ruach’ (meaning wind or breath) can be used in both masculine and feminine form. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is symbolised as water, which becomes a dove during Jesus’ baptism. In Acts of the Apostles, it is described as fire coming down upon the disciples, allowing them to be understood by the diverse cultural groups who were present. Notice, these descriptions have a common characteristic, that is connection. The air flows all around us, we could not survive without it. The air we breathe is shared by all and it shifts from one corner of the globe to the other, via the wind. The human Spirit, in its enlightened state, is neither male nor female, rather, it is both of these at the same time. Water is composed of two elements that are connected to form this life giving, and sustaining, liquid. The properties of fire have been used by humanity for aeons – it can act as light, protection and warmth that all humans may benefit from. These observations allow us to see what the Comforter, mentioned by Jesus in the Gospel of John, has always been – it is consciousness. This is God, the  Father, the Source. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the importance of consciousness was recognised by scientists and researchers studying UAP (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena) and associated paranormal incidents. This is the Comforter being disclosed to many. 

People are now becoming aware of the dynamics of quantum physics, how particles on a subatomic level may behave in this universe. These theories allow us to consider the human body as a conglomeration of atoms, which combine and are held together by an unknown force. We can relate this force to the teachings about the Holy Spirit, referenced previously. Consciousness is awareness, thought; but where does it come from? It can only be a collective whole – joined in a singularity humans have called God. It is a form of light that has expanded into this realm. It has inspired the creation of physical forms to house Its Light. In this way, the fractured Source is reunited to the whole (Thomas 107). This is what beings from other worlds/dimensions know and have been trying to teach humanity. Evidence of this triad is not unlike human intuition. We can find this truth in the Gospel of

Mark, Chapter 13: 11, where we see Jesus state,

And when you are taken to be handed over, do not worry beforehand about what to say; no, say whatever is given to you when the time comes, because it is not you who will be speaking; it is the Holy Spirit.

Here we see Jesus assure His disciples that they will know what to say, because they are connected to the collective consciousness. This is God the Father (the Source) communicating through the conduit, the Holy Spirit. 

In Thomas 44, we see Yeshua warn people that if they deny their heritage this is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, because they are negating its action of unification. This is evident in the last part of the saying: ‘either on earth or in heaven’. We have seen that the way humans have perceived heaven is not correct (Thomas 3, 11, 18, 20, 22, 24), so these words have another, more cryptic meaning. In referring to both heaven and earth, Yeshua gives people a clue as to what the Holy Spirit does—it is the thing that is the link between the physical and metaphysical, the intangible. The Son (sentient bodies) exist in this material realm. They are the life forms where the light of the Source, which went out onto the distant road (the abyss), may dwell. The Trinity is describing a relationship between what humans have called God and humanity, which is something profoundly intimate and sacred. Denying this intimacy and this link is to blaspheme. The Earth represents the material manifestation and heaven represents the metaphysical—the Soul. Heaven and Earth become one through the presence of consciousness – what people have called the Holy Spirit. 

People whose faith denies the existence of the Holy Spirit are not being condemned here. Their deep love and commitment for their God is the Holy Spirit in action–it is their soul seeking connection with God, the Source. When Yeshua states that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven on earth or in heaven, He means that this is not a way of thinking that can be made whole. All other perceptions are something people can redeem themselves from, but this is different. This blasphemy is about denying the logic of the heart; the sin here is to not understand the reality, the truth. Forgiveness cannot make someone accept the truth. To not accept consciousness as an integral part of the God anatomy is to deny the existence of the human heart, without which, the human tastes death, becoming the lion (Thomas 7).   

In Thomas 44, Yeshua reveals to us the importance of the Holy Spirit (consciousness), confirming that it is the thing that connects all spiritual beings. God, the Source is the invisible Light that is through all things (Thomas 77) and It is the thing our soul is made of. In this realm (this universe) the Sons are male, female, those people identifying as transgender, and intersex. In ‘heaven’ (the other realms/dimensions) the Son is the genderless Spirit. It is for the recognition of this link that Yeshua’s spirit was thrust through the divide, into this dimension, so that the powerful one (this realm’s allure) could be metaphorically destroyed (Thomas 98). Through the actions of the collective consciousness, humans could recognise the poverty and, instead, embrace the wealth—which they truly are (Thomas 3 and 29).

Gospel of Thomas on The Eucharist 

77th Pearl: The Perpetual Tree – audio extracts from the book on Youtube