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Mountain Views-News Saturday, March 30, 2024 


CHRISTOPHER Nyerges 

 [Nyerges is an educator, and author of such books as “Extreme Simplicity,” and “Self-
Sufficient Home.” His book “Squatter in Los Angeles” is available on Kindle. You can learn 

REMINGTON STEELE (AKA "REMY")

STEEL GRAY MALE SHORTHAIR

BORN 2022-2023

This steel gray, handsome young 
lad came into a crowded LA shelter 
with a life-threatening urinary 
blockage. We stepped in and got 
him the emergency care he needed, 
and now he is doing great. He 
will need to be on a prescription diet for life to prevent future 
blockages. He’s neutered, cur-rent on vaccines, and will be 
chipped. In other words, he’s ready-to-go!

According to his foster dad, Remy 
is cool with other cats and is an all-
around good boy. Want a sweet lap 
cat? Remy's your guy! 

NOTE: If you think it’s a strange name, and don’t remember the 
1980’s TV show with Pierce Brosnan, just Google it. 

Remy’s pictures and adoption application are at https://www.
lifelineforpets.org/remington-steel.html. 


EASTER AND THE 
MAN BEHIND IT

Jesus! You say just that name 
and everyone knows who you 
mean. What a man he was! 
What a life he must have lived! 
He is known and literally 
worshipped by at least a third 
of all humanity, and around whom our current 
world system of reckoning time revolves. 
Amazing! And perhaps the even more amazing 
is that there is still so much debate about who 
he was, what he did, how he lived, and what he 
believed. Hundreds of differing Christian sects 
are stark testament to the fact that though Jesus 
might have had “one message,” that message has 
been widely interpreted and debated over the 
centuries.

Let’s work through some of the most basic 
facts. As an historical person, he can be placed 
in a specific time and location. All historians 
concede that they do not know the birthday of 
Jesus, but it is widely acknowledged that the 
birth date is not December 25. Most scholars 
suggest that Jesus was born in either April or 
September, in 4 B.C. or 6 B.C. of our current 
reckoning. Herod died in 4 B.C., so that was the 
most recent date he could have been born. Some 
place his birth as early as 10 B.C. in our current 
reckoning of time.

“Jesus” was not his name! Really? Then why do 
we call him that? “Jesus” is the English rendering 
of Yeshu, or Iesu. Did he have a full name? Yes, 
of course, and it was not “Jesus Christ,” either, 
which is a title, meaning Jesus the Christ, or 
Jesus the Annointed. Historians say that the 
actual name was Yeshua ben Josephus, that is, 
Jesus son of Joseph. Another version says it is 
Yeshua ben Pandirah, Jesus son of the Panther. 
In Indian literature, he is referred to as Yuz 
Asaf. When mentioned in the Koran, he is Isa 
(or Issa). Dilletante “historians” have suggested 
that “Jesus” didn’t actually exist because they 
were unable to find “Jesus Christ” in other 
contemporary historical records.

WAS JESUS BLACK?

Ethnically, culturally, and religiously, he was 
Jewish. But occasionally, a writer will suggest 
that Jesus was actually black, with such evidence 
as the preponderance of the “Black Madonnas” 
found throughout Europe. The only Biblical 
evidence on this are the two lineages of Jesus 
provided, which, unlike any other person whose 
lineage is recorded in the Bible, include women. 
Look them up yourself.

The key genealogies of Jesus listed are Luke 3: 
23-31, and Matthew 1:1-17. In these lineages, we 
are told of at least four of the women in Jesus’ 
genealogical line. These are Rehab, Ruth, Tamar, 
and Bathsheba. Rehab (also spelled Rahab) was 
a Canaanite. Tamar was probably a Canaanite. 
Bethsheba, often referred to as a Hittite, was 
more likely Japhethic, that is, not a descendant 
of Ham. (However, this is not clear). Ruth was 
in the line of Ham. Now, who was Ham? Who 
were the Canaanites and Hittites? 

 

According to Genesis 9:19, all mankind 
descended from Noah’s three sons: Shem, Ham, 
and Japheth. Ham’s descendants became the 
black people who settled in Africa, and parts 
of the Arabian peninsula. His sons were Cush, 
whose descendants settled in Ethiopia, Mizraim, 
whose descendants settled in Egypt, Put, whose 
descendants settled in Libya, and Canaan, 
whose descendants settled in Palestine. The 
descendants of Cush were the main populace 
of the Cushite Empire, which extended from 
western Libya to Ethiopia and Nubia, all of 
present day Egypt, and the Arabian peninsula 
into the mountains of Turkey. They spoke 
several languages and had skin pigmentation 
ranging from dark black to medium brown. 

 

It takes a bit of study to ascertain who these 
people were – and there were other possible 
African women in Jesus’ lineage as well – but, 
in general, when we are speaking of Cushites, 
Canaanites, descendants of Ham, etc., we are 
speaking of Africans. It is entirely possible 
that this wasn’t a big deal when the scriptures 
were written since Jesus’ racial background was 
common knowledge.

 

So, although Jesus had some African ancestry, 
his physical appearance was such that he fit 
right in with the Jews 
of that era, based on 
several passages that 
indicate that Jesus not 
only looked like every 
one else in a crowd, but 
was also a very average 
and normal looking 
Middle-Easterner, 
not sticking out at 
all. Remember how 
the Roman guards 
had to ask for others 
to identify Jesus. He 
was of an average 
appearance for that 
day and location, 
and blended into the 
crowd.

 

Though politely referred to as “rabbi,” his ideas 
about life, family, death, and relationships did 
not always mesh well with the religious elite, who 
viewed Jesus as well-intended, but nevertheless a 
trouble-maker to the establishment.

THE EARLY YEARS

It is worth noting that the Persian Kings (the so-
called 3 kings) who sought out the infant Jesus 
were engaged in very much the same search that 
the Tibetan priests employed when seeking the 
embodiment of the next Dali Lama. The Bible 
speak of the young Jesus talking to the Rabbis in 
the Temple, sharing his youthful wisdom with 
the elders to the surprise of his parents. Then 
there is no Biblical record of what he did as a 
teenager, and during his 20s. We don’t hear from 
his again in the Bible until his appearance on the 
scene at about age 30 or so, where he reportedly 
transformed water into wine at a wedding feast, 
and was depicted as a healer, prophet, and fisher 
of men. 

His religious observations would have been the 
regular observations for Jews of the day, and 
entirely different from the observations of most 
Christian sects today. (The reasons for this are 
well-known and found in any encyclopedia on 
the history of the Church.)

Growing up as a Catholic, I studied Jesus, and 
often wondered, what did it really mean to 
“be like Jesus”? There was so much about this 
person that was beyond my ability to research. 
For example, what Holy Days would Jesus have 
observed? Was he an Essene? Was he a Nazarene? 
What did these groups believe and practice? Did 
he really have any Buddhist influence? Who 
were his closest followers, the apostles? What 
did he actually teach his close followers, beyond 
what is known from his various public talks? 
Were his miracles and public healings actual 
events, or were they symbolic stories? These and 
other questions have always swirled around this 
man called Jesus.

 

As a student of the real and historical Jesus, here 
are just a few of the many books I have found to 
be useful.

Garner Ted Armstrong of the Worldwide 
Church of God in Pasadena, wrote a book about 
the “Real Jesus,” and Jesus was described as 
a hard-working, athletic, health-food eating 
powerful man, a sort of health advocate Gypsy 
Boots of the past who also spoke about the 
Kingdom within.

 

Holger Kersten in his “Jesus Lived in India” book 
presents a very different Jesus, the very one who 
is depicted on the Shroud of Turin, and one who 
was actually recorded as traveling to India, and 
who studied from the Buddhists.

 

According to Harold Percival in his “Thinking 
and Destiny” book, Jesus succeeded in re-
uniting his Doer and Thinker and Knower, his 
internal trinity, which put him in touch with his 
divinity, which made him, effectively, a God. 
Though Percival’s terminology is unfamiliar to 
most Christians, he is less concerned about the 
historical details of Jesus and more concerned 
about what Jesus did, and became, that made 
him a focal point of most societies on earth over 
the last 2000 years.

 

Regardless of your religious background or 
belief, you are likely to be richly rewarded by 
delving deeply into the nuances of the details of 
who this Jesus was. When everyone’s mind is 
upon Jesus and the Mysteries during the Easter 
season, I have found great value in viewing the 
“Jesus of Nazareth” series, and I even in such 
depictions as “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Unlike so 
many who purport to follow in his path, I find a 
real Jesus emerging who was not dogmatic, but 
one who knew that only when we recognize each 
other’s humanity do we rise up into our own 
divinities.

 

 According to Holger Kersten, “Jesus did not 
supply theories to be ground in the mills of 
academia, about his path and message – he just 
lived his teachings! Tolerance, unprejudiced 
acceptance of others, giving and sharing, the 
capacity to take upon oneself the burdens of 
others, in other words, unlimited love in action 
and service for one’s fellow human beings – this 
is the path which Jesus showed to salvation.”


Pet of the Week

 
Happy-go-lucky Coffee is an adorable six-
month-old pit bull mix puppy sure to make 
every day start with a smile!

 This smart guy is ready to move to the 
head of a training class- he is an expert on 
numerous training cues, and he learns new 
things very quickly. He is eager to please and 
loves a treat- great motivators for additional 
training!

 Coffee has spent some time in a foster home 
and got along well with the other dog in the 
home. He is very sociable with people of 
all ages, too. In fact, he seems to thrive on 
attention!

 He recently got to have an adventure with 
the Pasadena Humane mobile outreach 
team at an adoption event. He loves going 
on walks, splashing in puddles and being a 
lovable goofball. 

 We’re buzzing about Coffee- we're sure you 
will be, too!

 Coffee and all other dogs over 6 months old 
can be adopted for only $25 during Pasadena 
Humane’s Love is Blooming promotion from 
April 4 – 14!

 The normal adoption fee for dogs is $150. 
All dog adoptions include spay or neuter, 
microchip, and age-appropriate vaccines. 

All dog adoptions include spay or neuter, 
microchip, and age-appropriate vaccines. 

 New adopters will receive a complimentary 
health-and-wellness exam from VCA Animal 
Hospitals, as well as a goody bag filled with 
information about how to care for your pet. 

 View photos of adoptable pets and 
schedule an adoption appointment at 
pasadenahumane.org. Daily adoption 
appointments can be scheduled online. New 
adoption appointments are released every 
Sunday and Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. Walk-
in adoptions are available every day from 2:00 
– 5:00.

 Pets may not be available for adoption and 
cannot be held for potential adopters by 
phone calls or email.


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com