After an argument had developed between Jesus' disciples and the followers of John the Baptist, Jesus went around in Galilee, purposely staying away from Judea. But when the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near, Jesus' brothers encouraged him, "You ought to leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples may see the miracles you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world." （John 7:1-4）

Jesus told them, "The right time for me has not yet come; for you any time is right. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil. You go to the Feast. I am not yet going up to this Feast, because for me the right time has not yet come." Having said this, he stayed in Galilee. However, after his brothers had left for the Feast, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. (John 7:6-10)

The relationship between Jesus and his brothers (The Origin of Christianity:Brothers of the Lord P.136-138) is inferred dimly from this conversation. The author of the gospel of John notes, "For even his own brothers did not believe in him," (John 7:5) immediately after mentioning that many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him because of his teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. His brothers seem to have seen Jesus as an equal brother but not an object of their faith. However, they likely understood both Jesus' mission and his plan. James the Less, who served as the high priest for the Nazirites in the temple and won the high honor of the Righteous among the clergy in Jerusalem, was perhaps the mainstay of Jesus' family and his other younger brothers seem to have studied under James but not Jesus.

The word, "so that your disciples may see the miracles you do", suggests that Jesus' brothers distinguished themselves from the disciples of Jesus and seems to tell that James and other younger brothers could help Jesus to do miracles in Jerusalem, where James could perform as the high priest for the Nazirites.

While the word, "The world cannot hate you, but it hates me," seems to have ridiculed James, who served as the high priest for the Nazirites in the temple and won the high honor of the Righteous among the clergy in Jerusalem, and other his brothers who followed James.

Judaism is based on Covenants of God with Abraham, Moses, David and their descendants. However Jesus declaring that his teaching was based on the glory he had with God before the world began (John 17:5/24) and transcended Abraham, Moses, Noah and even Adam and Eve. And he criticized the most of the fundamental rules of Judaism from the dining etiquette to fasting, prayer, alms and the Sabbath, sometimes violently and sometimes with humor and irony.

More over, Jesus made deliberately an extreme lecture to Jews, who were strictly forbidden to drink blood and even to eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it, saying, "Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. (John 6:49) I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. (John 6:51) Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you." (John 6:53) The congregation was stunned, when he said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. Even his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?" (John 6:60) And many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him, (John 6:66) according to the Gospel of John.

Such preaching style of Jesus was passed on to Zen priests after being having conveyed to India by Thomas, such as Bodhi Dharma who was asked by Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty in China, "What is a reward of believing in Buddhism?" and answered, "No reward", ZhaoZhou who was asked, "Has a dog the Buddha Nature?" and answered, "Wu (has not)", YunMen who said that a dry piece of shit was the entity of Buddha and DanXia TianRan who roasted the wooden Buddha to warm himself.

Once a monk CuiWei WuXue (?-?) came to study with Zen Master DanXia TianRan (739-824), he asked the master, "What is the Teacher of all the Buddhas?"

TianRan is famous for roasting the wooden Buddha images to warm his backside on a frigid cold winter evening during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

The master exclaimed, "The poor lived in a hovel needs to wipe and sweep with dust cloth.(You are originally impeccable! Why do you need to take up a dust rag and broom?)" WuXue retreated three steps. The master yelled, "Wrong." WuXue again came forward three steps. The master said, "Wrong. Wrong." WuXue then lifted one foot in the air, spun around in a circle, and started to go out. Master TianRan said, "Such an answer! It's turning your back on all the awakened ones." Upon hearing these words, WuXue had a clear understanding.

Jesus also said, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him," (John 6:44) after saying, "All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. (John 6:37) My Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life" (John 6:40) while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. He meant that only ones, who went back to the word which had been with God in the beginning (John 1:1), could certify that "God is truthful."(John 3:33) In other words, They can possess eternal life through being baptized with the Holy Spirit.

Under such preaching style, Jesus might have become the founder of Zen Buddhism which aims to foster one or even a half of true awakened believers and has perhaps worldwide less than 10 million followers, but Christianity would not have become the world religion which has about 2.2 billion believers today. However, since James the Less, who served as the high priest for the Nazirites, a fundamentalist sect, in the temple and won the high honor of the Righteous among the clergy in Jerusalem, was appointed a successor of Jesus' movement, when the first Christian church was born on the day of Pentecost, just seven weeks after the execution of Jesus, at the former meeting place of the Essenes, another fundamentalist sect, next to the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest, about three thousand new believers including representatives of the Gentile (non-circumcision believers) church around the Mediterranean coast and the Pharisees and the Sadducees were added to the church on that day. (Acts 2:41) (The Origin of Christianity P.139)

The 3 close aides of Jesus, Peter, James the Great and John, the brother of James, were disciples of John the Baptist at first, and John the Baptist is said to have had close relationship with the Essenes. Therefore these disciples also seem to have tried to rebuild the teachings of Jesus based on the doctrine of the Old Testament. Paul, who never been taught by Jesus, joined the primitive church and injected his own theory of "justification by one's faith" into it. As a result, the primitive church transformed from an elite religion to a popular religion and spread rapidly in the area of the Roman Empire.

According to the dialectic of the Gospel of John,

【Thesis】"A man can possess eternal life through accepting testimony of the Son of man and being baptized by him." (John 5:24)

【Anti-thesis】But "The one who comes from the earth cannot accept the testimony by one from heaven."(John 3:32)

How then can a man possess eternal life?

【Synthesis】"If you want to be baptized with the Holy Spirit, you can just go back to the word which was with God in the beginning (John 1:1) and certify that God is truthful. (John 3:33)"

When he said, "You are Huichao," Zen Master Fayan thrusted vivid Self in Huichao in front of his eyes. (P.171)

One cold winter day while he was staying at the Wisdom Woods Monastery in Dongjing, Tianran, finding no firewood, took a wooden statue of the Buddha and burned it in the fire to get warm.

The temple director saw this, got upset, and yelled, “Why are you burning the Buddha?”

Tianran pulled some embers from the fire and said, “I'm burning this buddha to get the sacred relics.”

The director said, “How can a wooden buddha have sacred relics?”

Tainran said, “Well, if it doesn't, let's burn a couple more of them!”

"The Master (Cuiwei Wuxue) asked Danxia, "What is the Teacher of all the Buddhas?"

Danxia scolded him, "Look, you're all right on your own. What are you doing going around holding on to a wiping cloth?"

The Master took three steps back.

Danxia yelled, "Wrong!"

The Master stepped forward.

Danxia yelled, "Wrong! Wrong!"

The Master lifted his leg, swivelled around and went off.

Danxia said, "That's better but you're turning away from all those Buddhas."

Hearing this, the Master realized the essence."

The Saint Thomas Christians are an ancient body of Christians from Kerala, India, who trace their origins to the evangelistic activity of Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century. They are also known as "Nasranis" because they are followers of "Jesus of Nazareth". The term "Nasrani" is still used by St. Thomas Christians in Kerala.

They are also called Syrian Christians because of their use of Syriac in liturgy. Their original liturgical language was Aramaic which was later changed to Syriac. They are also known as Malabar / Malankara Mar Thoma Nasranis, because these Christians are from Kerala that was also known as Malabar or Malankara. Their language is Malayalam, the language of Kerala. (wikipedia)

Believed to be one of the seven churches in India built by St. Thomas.

Believed to be one of the seven churches said to be built by Thomas.

Believed to be one of the seven churches said to be built by Thomas.

Believed to be one of the seven churches said to be built by Thomas.

Believed to be one of the seven churches said to be built by Thomas.

Believed to be founded by Thomas in 63. It is known as Arapalli, short form of Arachan Palli (King’s Church).

It was built by the king of Chempakassery in AD 1125