Jesus
Orthodox: The unique God-man, fully divine and fully human, whose death and resurrection accomplish salvation once-for-all. He is fundamentally different than you and he is the only son of God.
Esoteric: Fully human just like you, but who has completed the great work and transcended the body. An elder brother, fully awakened to his true Christ nature, who demonstrates the truth. His life is a teaching example. He is “the way, the truth, and the life” only in the sense that he was the first to complete his part in the atonement totally, and thus is the master teacher and guide for the rest of the sonship.
Christ
Orthodox: The eternal Son, second Person of the Trinity, uniquely incarnate as Jesus of Nazareth.
Esoteric: The shared, undivided Sonship — the true Self of every being. Jesus exemplifies the Christ, but Christ is universal identity. The shared, single Self of God’s Son.
God
Orthodox: Transcendent Creator, wholly other, personal Trinity (Father, Son, Spirit) who brings the universe into being ex nihilo.
Esoteric: Infinite Mind, Source of Love, wholly One; no separation, no duality. God did not create the world of perception — only Spirit is real.
Sin
Orthodox: Real rupture in humanity’s relationship with God; inherited from Adam and Eve (“original sin”) and perpetuated by human disobedience.
Esoteric: A mistaken belief in separation — an error of perception, not an ontological stain. Guilt is illusion; innocence is untouched. Sin is merely a “missing of the mark”. You are a sinner only in that you have chosen to separate yourself from God and continually choose to repeat that attack, fear, etc…
Crucifixion
Orthodox: The central saving event, in which Jesus bears sin and conquers death. Proof of divine love, but also is a blood sacrifice for our sins. Imposes guilt upon Christian believers that the Son of God died for them and their sins….
Esoteric: A teaching demonstration that attack is meaningless. Jesus shows that love cannot be destroyed and fear is powerless. A demonstration that the body and this world is not real and therefore can and will die. Crucifixion is the total destruction and annihilation of the body and the ego - all that one clings to.
Resurrection
Orthodox: The bodily rising of Jesus from the dead; empty tomb; pledge of creation’s redemption and future resurrection of the faithful.
Esoteric: Awakening of the mind from the dream of the body and death. Resurrection = recognition of life’s invulnerability, realized in the present.
Atonement
Orthodox: Christ’s sacrificial death reconciles humanity to God. One must atone and accept one’s status as a fundamentally guilty sinner in order to be saved. Achieved by Jesus for us Atonement is accomplished trough the Crucifixion.
Esoteric: The undoing of error and recognition that separation never occurred. Atonement = “at-one-ment.” Accepted by us, demonstrated by Jesus. A correction rather than a payment. Atonement is accomplished through the Resurrection, NOT the Crucifixion
Salvation
Orthodox: Deliverance from sin, death, and hell through faith in Christ (and sacraments/Church in Catholic and Orthodox tradition).
Esoteric: The release of fear and guilt through true perception and the practice of forgiveness. Salvation is remembering innocence now, not something achieved in time. Salvation is in knowing that the body and world is unreal and only God and the Son is.
Holy Spirit
Orthodox: Third Person of the Trinity, indwelling presence who sanctifies, guides, and empowers the Church.
Esoteric: The inner Teacher, Voice of & for God within the mind, guiding perception away from the ego toward love. The connection and communication with our Creator that remains always in our mind and is the guide Home.
Church
Orthodox: Mystical Body of Christ, visible institution entrusted with Word, sacraments, authority, and mission.
Esoteric: Not a hierarchy, but the living community of those who accept the Inner Teacher. True Church is the shared recognition of Christ within.
Sacraments / Rituals
Orthodox: Means of grace (e.g., baptism, Eucharist) instituted by Christ, necessary for spiritual life.
Esoteric: Symbolic learning devices. Baptism = a ritual of cleansing and renewal, Eucharist = a rite of imbibing the metaphorical body and blood of Christhood…. Grace comes directly from God, not mediated.
Judgment
Orthodox: Final judgment by Christ at the end of time; eternal destiny in heaven or hell.
Esoteric: Judgment ends when we refuse to judge. The“Second Coming” is the universal correction of perception, realized moment by moment. The “Last Judgement” is when we decide once and for all to set aside all egoic judgement. It is literally the “last” judgement.
Heaven & Hell
Orthodox: Heaven = A place up in the sky we may go to after death if we are “good” and accept Jesus as our lord and savior; Hell = eternal separation and punishment in a place of suffering that sinners and unbelievers are sent to.
Esoteric: States of mind. Heaven = awareness of Oneness. Hell = the state of being in the ego’s guilt and fear. Heaven is the reality right NOW; Hell is an illusion created from separation, darkness, misperception, ignorance.