The Bible tells Jesus was born in a manger in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary, who was impregnated by the Holy Spirit and he grew up as the son of a simple carpenter in Galilee. Yet he became revered as the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savour and a whole new religion was built up around him. There is more than enough evidence within the Gospels and Talmud to demonstrate that Jesus’ family were actually wealthy, educated and influential characters within Judaean society. But since these texts have obviously been manipulated and amended, one must look beyond this deliberate obfuscation to uncover the truth.
In about 4 AD, a royal Parthian family of Edessa (modern Sanlurfa), was exiled to Rome and finally settled in Bethanya [Bethany], in eastern Syrio-Judaea – the village Jesus entered upon his return to Judaea according to the Bible. Queen Helena and her son Izates Manu VI brought with them into exile 500 cavalry and 100 relations and retinue, a history which tallies with Josephus’ accounts of the 'biblical family' (of Jesus of Gamala) maintaining their own military forces. Members of this exiled royal family were not only directly related to Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt, but also to Emperor Julius Caesar of Rome, and to King Phraates IV / Agbarus V of Parthia (or Persia). In other words, this family was hugely influential, relatively unknown, suddenly impoverished and, in addition, uniquely related to all three of the major empires of this era.
A prince of this family could also have been a threat to the rule of the Roman emperors and the Parthian kings, because it was possible that this new prince (Jesus/ Izates Manu, with his sister-wife Mary Magdalene from Bethany) could have united the entire Roman and Parthian empires into one single, united kingdom. This was a family that would have been deemed worthy a visit by the Parthian Magi – who were seeking a royal heir - and likely to have educated its sons in Egypt – Joseph and Mary, Jesus Biblical birth parents fled to Egypt. This was indeed a family that could have made Herod (the tetrarch) fear for his position, sufficient for him to want to eliminate all the male (royal) children of Syrio-Judaea.
What was the political landscape of Rome, Parthia and Judea at the time of Jesus’ birth? Who were his ancestors, including his parents, and does he fit the profile of a royal contender for the throne of Rome, eventually occupied by Vespasian – why was Jesus, the King of Edessa written out of history? Many questions sparking many debates are: Did he marry Mary Magdalene and who was she? Why would the son of a carpenter be bedecked in a royal purple cloak and what about his capability to perform miracles for example feeding the multitude of 5,000 with a few fish and loaves of bread? Is there actually a likeness of him?
Ralph Ellis started as a software engineer, but moved into the equally technical spheres of mineral surveying, aviation, and palaeoclimatology, but always maintained and built upon the archaeological interests and research of his father. As a historian, Ralph has toured the Mediterranean for more than three decades searching for secular similarities and parallels between the apparently disparate disciplines of history and theology. And the research has been very fruitful with many new fundamental discoveries being made, mostly in Egypt, resulting in 13 books. Ralph has also sought to understand the design of the megalithic monuments from a purely scientific and engineering viewpoint. Nevertheless, his lateral analysis of the likely possibilities for the design of these great monuments is still very novel and highly provocative. He has also launched a series of lectures under the banner of Ralph Ellis Illumination on YouTube and his own channel Patreon.
His latest book: Shards of Illumination is a compilation of questions and answers most asked on his
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