The role alternate states of consciousness played in the baptism and Eucharist of the earliest Jesus-followers

Abstract

In this article it is argued that the baptism and Eucharist of the earliest Jesus-followers can be better understood when contemporary knowledge with regard to alternate states of consciousness is taken into consideration. During Jesus’ baptism and all-inclusive meals, he experienced alternate states of consciousness, which can be understood as expressions of the direct influence the Spirit of God had in his life. In the rites of baptism and the Eucharist the early Jesus-followers re-enacted Jesus’ alternate states of consciousness. This re-enactment is illustrated by means of a model termed “anti-language”. The understanding of the earliest baptism and Eucharist, as described in this article, could aid contemporary Christians in experiencing these rites as being meaningful today.