With the upcoming release of Star Wars VII: The Force Awakening, fans and popular culture are
once again about to be immersed the world of The Force, with its Light Side and
its Dark Side, not to mention the Living Force vis-à-vis the Unifying
Force. The latter two, of course, were
only mentioned on-screen in the widely-panned Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace; it was left to the novels of the
Expanded Universe to expand those concepts further, most extensively in the final
novel of the New Jedi Order series, The
Unifying Force.
Most Christians and Jews, even their theologians, are
oblivious to the fact that late Temple era Judaism and early Christianity
shared a similar tradition of Two Ways.
By the first century, these were more often termed the Way of Life and
the Way of Death, but even in later works sometimes called by their original
designations, the Way of Light and the Way of Darkness.
De doctrina Apostolorum,
early 1st century CE (maybe earlier)
This work, possibly from as early as the first century BCE,
opens with the lines, ‘There are two roads in the world, the Way of Life and
the Way of Death, the Way of Light and
the Way of Darkness. They have at their
head two angels, one of good and one of evil. But big is the difference between the Two Paths’.
The De doctrina
Apostolorum does not name them, but the two angels at the head of the Two
Ways can only be Michael and Beliar, the latter being the form of Belial late
in the Temple era.
The chapter concludes with defining the Way of Life/Light in
terms of the Great Mitzvot, or Summary of the Torah, to which is appended the
Golden Rule:
‘The way of life is this: first, you shall love the eternal God who
made you; second, your neighbor as yourself, and what you do not
want to be done to you, do not do to another.’
Chapters II, III, and IV are an exposition of the Way of
Life through moral proscriptions and prescriptions. Chapter V expounds on the Way of Death. Chapter VI warns the reader to stay on the
correct path, then ends with the interpolated doxology.
While being just one of many, and one of the latest from the
view of first century Judaism, this is the foundation of the Two Ways tradition
in early Christianity, with all subsequent works that describe the Two Ways
mostly comprising direct quotations or much-rephrased versions of this original
document.
Zoroastrian influence
The religion of Zartosht, also known as Zarathustra and
Zoroaster, not only influenced the Israelites of Samerina (Samaria), Yehud
(Judea), and Egypt to eventually adopt monotheism, it also led many toward a
dualistic view of reality. To its
adherents, the religion is Mazdayasna.
The Israelite colony in Egypt formed around 650 BCE after
the Egyptians had kicked out their Nubian overlords. Its most important and largest settlement was
on the island of Yeb, which the Greek later called Elephantine, a military
outpost on a hostile frontier. There
were five other large settlements throughout Egypt, including in the capital at
Memphis. These Israelites even had their
own fully-functioning “House of Yahweh”, recognized in Shechem and Jerusalem,
at their main settlement on Yeb.
Though the Israelite Samaritans and Jews may have first
encountered Mazdayasna through trade, after the fall of the Chaldean Empire
they did so on a massive scale, Mazdayasna then being the official religion of
the court. Along with monotheism, the
Iranian religion brought Samerina and Yehud their first taste of well-defined
dualism, which provided a working blueprint from which the two Israelite
peoples could form their own monotheism and create their own dualism.
The Iranshahr (‘realm of the Aryans’) under the Achaemenids
conquered the Chaldean Empire in 539 BCE, taking the entire Levant along with
it. Egypt fell in 525 BCE.
Very superficial basics of Mazdayasna
The Supreme Being of Mazdayasna is Ahura Mazda, or ‘Being
Mind’ (Assara Mazas in Aramaic). Ahura
Mazda is the one uncreated being who creates everything and is the guardian of
Asha, Truth. Ahura Mazda creates and
acts through six “divine sparks”, emanations of and of the same essence as himself,
called Amesha Spentas (‘Immortals Bounteous’), who in turn act through spirits
known as the Yazatas. The Faravashis are
the spirits who watch over individual humans.
The relationship of Amesha Spentas, Yazatas, and Faravashis corresponds
roughly to archangels, angels, and guardian angels.
Opposite Ahura Mazda stands Angra Mainyu (‘Destructive
Spirit’). Angra Mainyu serves the
principle of Druj, Falsehood, and is the source of evil, adversity, chaos, and
untruth. His servants are the Daevas, the
chief six of whom are known as the Kamaligan Dewan and are the dark side counterparts
of the light side Amesha Spentas.
Although chief opponent of Ahura Mazda, Angra Mainyu is not
his equal. Instead he is the equal of Ahura
Mazda’s chief servant in the battle of good and evil, light and darkness,
bounty and destruction, truth and lie, Spenta Mainyu (‘Bounteous Spirit’). Spenta Mainyu is the emanation of Ahura Mazda
acting first among equals among the Amesha Spentas.
According to some of the middle period Mazdayasna
scriptures, the struggle between the champions of Asha and the servants of Druj
will last ten thousand years.
Two Ways in the Tanakh
In Judaism, the Two Ways tradition goes back to several
passages in the Tanakh, with the influence of Mazdayasna showing up in the
Prophets and the Ketuvim, and even making itself felt in the Torah.
Deuteronomy, of
course, is the fifth and latest book of the Torah. If it did truly originate in the pre-Exile
period in the reign of Josiah, then it was certainly edited in the late Temple
period. In fact, this probably took
place in Alexandria when the Septuagint was first collected, that being the
first time the Tanakh as such had been complied.
Speaking of the Septuagint, the order in these quotations are
presented below is that of their books as they appear in that edition of the
Tanakh.
Deuteronomy 30:15
‘See, I have set before you today Life and Good, Death and Evil.’
Without the mention of ‘way’ or ‘path’ or ‘road’, but
juxtaposing the same antitheses nonetheless, so same result.
Psalm 1:6
‘Yahweh watches
over the Way of the Righteous, but the Way of the Wicked will perish.’
A bit more explicit.
Proverbs 2:13
‘Those who forsake
the Paths of Uprightness to walk in the Ways of Darkness.’
Ditto.
Proverbs 4:18-19
‘The Path of the Righteous
is like the Light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. The Way of the Wicked is like deep Darkness; they
do not know what they stumble over.’
This defines the
difference even more stark.
Proverbs 12:28
‘In the Path of Righteousness
there is life, in walking its Path there is no Death.’
This sentence
defines the one, and its counterpart also, but only in reflection.
Sirach 33:14-15, early 2nd
century BCE
‘Good is the opposite of Evil, and Life the opposite of Death…Look
at all the works of the Most High; they come in pairs, one the opposite of the
other.’
A definite statement of dualistic monism.
Isaiah 45:7
‘I am Yahweh, the
One True God, producer of light and creator of darkness, maker of bounty and
creator of desolation; I, Yahweh, do all these things.’
The ultimate
statement in the Tanakh of both dualistic monism and of absolute monotheism,
and within one sentence.
Jeremiah 21:8
‘And to this people you shall say: Thus says Yahweh: See, I
am setting before you the Way of Life and the Way of Death.’
Another explicit declaration of the principle of dualism.
Essenes and apocalypsists
The Two Ways, especially in the form of the Way of Light
versus the Way of Darkness, played a major part in the doctrines of the
movement based in Qumran, and also showed up in some of the apocalyptic and
pseudepigraphic works from the turn of the era.
War Scroll, 2nd
century BCE
Also known by the title The
War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness, which is why people
usually use the other name. It was one
of the most important works found at Qumran.
It is at the same time a history, a prophecy, and a manual of how to
organize the Army of Light.
Here, the Army of Light is commanded by the angel Michael
and supported by the Beni Levi, Beni Judah, and Beni Benjamin. The Army of Darkness is commanded by the
angel Beliar and composed of Edomites, Moabites, Ammonites, Amalekites, Philistines,
and Kittim of Asshur.
This entire work is prophecy, allegory, and apocalypse,
taking the Two Ways concept out of the abstract into the concrete.
Community Rule, late 2nd
century BCE
Originally known as the Manual
of Discipline, the Community Rule
is a Jewish forerunner of the early Christian “church orders” found with the
Dead Sea Scrolls. The most relevant section
of the Rule to the subject here is ‘Of the two spirits of humanity’, of
which the following is excerpt:
‘God has created man
to govern the world, and has appointed for him two spirits in which to walk
until the time of his visitation: the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Falsehood. Those born of Truth spring from a Fountain of
Light, but those born of Falsehood spring from a Well of Darkness. All the children of righteousness are ruled by
the Prince of Light [Michael] and walk in the Way of Light, but all the
children of falsehood are ruled by the Angel of Darkness [Beliar] and walk in
the Way of Darkness…For God created the Spirit of Light and the Spirit of Darkness
and founded every action upon them and established every deed upon their ways. ‘
(3:17b-26a)
After this passage,
the writer waxes on the results of “communion” with the Spirit of Truth versus
that with the Spirit of Falsehood. Truth
and Falsehood are then presented as mutually antagonistic “inclinations”, exactly
the same as Asha (Truth) and Druj (Falshood) are in Mazdayasna.
Qumran fragment
4Q473
…and he has placed before you Two Ways, one which is good
and one which is evil. If you choose the Good Way, he will bless you. But if you walk in the Evil Way, he will curse
you ... and in your tents, and he will destroy you with ... and mildew, snow,
ice and hail...
Qumran fragment 4Q186
Possibly an
astrological treatise, this work talks about a House of Light and a House of
Darkness.
Testaments of the Twelve
Patriarchs: Asher 1:3-6a, late 2nd century BCE
This pseudepigraphic, apocalyptic work from the latter
decades of the second century BCE is framed as the last testaments of the
twelve sons of Jacob. The part named Testament of Asher opens with the
following:
‘Two Ways has God given to the sons of men, and two Inclinations,
and two kinds of action, and two modes (of action), and two issues. Therefore
all things are by twos, one over against the other. For there are two Ways, the Way of Good and
the Way of Evil, and with these are the two Inclinations in our breasts
discriminating them.’
The Two Ways contrasted again, along with the Two
Inclinations, or ‘spirits’, as in Spenta Mainyu, ‘Bounteous Spirit’, and Angra
Mainyu, ‘Destructive Spirit’. The rabbis
still teach this paradigm as the ‘yetzer
ha-tov’ and the ‘yetzer ha-rah’, or
the ‘good inclination’ vis-à-vis the ‘bad inclination’. Only in their version, at least in modern
times, both inclination reside inside of each human on Earth.
1 Enoch 91:18-19; 94:1-4
‘And now I tell you, my sons, and show you the Paths of
Righteousness and the Paths of Iniquity.
Yea, I will show them to you again that ye may know what will come to
pass. And now, hearken unto me, my sons,
and walk in the Paths of Righteousness, and walk not in the Paths of Iniquity;
for all who walk in the Paths of Iniquity shall perish forever.’
‘And now I say unto you, my sons, love righteousness and
walk therein; for the Paths of Righteousness are worthy of acceptation, but the
Paths of Iniquity shall suddenly be destroyed and vanish. And to certain men of a generation shall the
Paths of Iniquity and of Death be revealed, and they shall hold themselves afar
from them, and shall not follow them. And now I say unto you the
righteous: walk not in the Paths of Iniquity, nor in the Paths of Death, and draw
not nigh to them, lest ye be destroyed. But
seek and choose for yourselves righteousness and an elect life, and walk in the
Paths of Peace, and ye shall live and prosper.’
2 Enoch 30:13b-14, 1st
century BCE
‘I called his name Adam, and showed him the Two Ways, the
Light and the Darkness, and I told him: This
is good, and that bad, that I should learn whether he has love towards me, or
hatred, that it be clear which in his race love me.’
The light side and the dark side, BCE-style.
Early Christian sources
Gospel of Matthew, 7:13-14,
late 1st century CE
‘Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the
Way easy that leads to Destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the Way hard that
leads to Life, and there are few who find it.’
Out of the many passages in the New Testament which compare
good and bad/evil, this is the only one which does so in terms like ‘Way of
Destruction’ and ‘Way of Life’.
Didache, late 1st
century CE
First six chapters are virtually identical with the six of De doctrina Apostolorum, but with
additions of quotations from the gospels, mostly the Gospel of Matthew but some from the Gospel of Luke.
Those chapters outline the Two Ways once again, but leaves
out mention of the two angels at the head of each. It also includes a nearly identical Summary
of the Torah with the Golden Rule at the beginning of the exposition of the Way
of Life.
Shepherd of Hermas, Book II,
Commands VI, mid-2nd
century CE
From Chapter 1: ‘For the Path of Righteousness is straight,
but the Path of Iniquity is crooked. But
walk in the straight and even Way, and mind not the crooked Way.’
From Chapter 2: ‘Every person has within them two angels, an
Angel of Righteousness and an Angel of Iniquity.’
Epistle of Barnabas, late 2nd
century CE
Chapter 18 opens with the Two Ways. It brings back reference to angels standing
at the head of each Way, though in a much more dualistic fashion, contrasting
the “angels of God” with the “angels of Satan”.
The epistle lays out the Way of Light in chapter 19, giving both
prescriptions of the Summary of the Torah but separated by several negative
prescriptions on morality and behavior; the Golden Rule is absent. The Way of Darkness is dealt with in chapter
20.
Didascalia Apostolorum, 230
CE
This third century work inserts the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, which includes the Two Ways, into
chapter III, covering more or less the same ground as the De doctrina Apostolorum and the first six chapters of the Didache, even closing with a
mini-apocalypse.
Clementine Homilies, Homily
7, Chapter 7, 3rd century CE
‘I make known unto
you as it were Two Paths, and I shall show you by which travellers are
lost and by which they are saved, being guided of God. The Path of the Lost, then, is broad and very
smooth—it ruins them without troubling them; but the Path of the Saved is
narrow, rugged, and in the end it saves, not without much toil, those who have
journeyed through it. And these two
paths are presided over by unbelief and faith…’
Apostolic Church Order, 300
CE
Opens with the Two Ways, with the discussion by the apostles
following more or less the pattern of the previous examples but only expounding
on the Way of Life. Begins that
discussion with John giving the Summary of the Torah; Matthew follows with the
Golden Rule.
Apostolic Constitutions, 375
CE
Book VII, Chapter II is based largely on the Didache, including the Two Ways,
generally following its source, but heavily edited. The exposition of the Way of Life begins with
the Summary of the Torah and the Golden Rule.
Later, and today
In the Christian Church, the Two Ways faded into
insignificance, then obscurity by the mid-fifth century. In its place came a paradigm of ethereal,
spiritual warfare with the forces of Heaven under God, chaired by Jesus Christ,
and commanded by Michael on one side versus the forces of Hell under Satan,
sometimes chaired and commanded by him directly, other times with authority
delegated to lesser demons.
As well as angelologies, medieval demonologies grew quite
elaborate. Sometimes Belial/Beliar
equated with the Great Satan, sometimes not.
Eventually, some Western theologian with little understanding of what he
was writing about pronounced that the “Lucifer” of Isaiah 14:12 was Satan before the Fall. The Hebrew word translated ‘Luciphoros’ also
means ‘light-bearer’ and refers specifically to the morning star, nicknamed
‘son of the morning’. The passage is a
polemic against an unnamed king of Babylon.
Much of the Church has backed off from such an infantile
cosmic view, but there are still pockets that believe every word, particularly
among fundamentalist Christians in the USA, the Christian Supremacist Right.
Judaism has never viewed Satan as a challenger of Yahweh. Instead, he is Yahweh’s most loyal servant,
taking up the unenviable task of testing humans to prove their faith.
Every year at the Hajj, Muslims throw stones at a pillar
representing Iblis, their version of the Christian Satan.
In Part I of the Gulag
Archipeligo, novelist, human rights activist, and devout Russian Orthodox
believer Alexandr Solzhenitsyn wrote, “If only there were evil people somewhere
insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them
from the rest of us and destroy them.
But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every
human being. And who is willing to
destroy a piece of his own heart?”.
Later in the book, he wrote that, “Gradually it was disclosed to me that
the line separating good and evil passes not through states, not between
classes, nor between political parties, but through every human heart.”
On those words, every human should be able to agree,
regardless of religion, lack of religion, philosophy, culture, or nationality.
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