My Eye: A Vision of Christ
The Gnostic Christian Autobiography of Mark Wonser
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Heaven
Max Planck has told us that there is a conscious and intelligent mind behind the unifying force that holds this universe together. This conscious and intelligent mind, which I know as God, is not somewhere else looking down on me and calling plays like a quarterback on a football field. God is present in everything I do and everywhere I go. My consciousness is linked to His. He is living out His experience as God through me, and it is my destiny to live out each experience in my life as Him. To know myself as being connected to Him in this way is to experience heaven. Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say ,’Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you”(Luke 17:20-21; NIV).
Heaven is not some place that I go to when I die, it is here, present right now in the very place I am standing. Kevin did not go somewhere else when he died; he lives in a new Awareness that is present right here and right now. Heaven refers to an inner realm of consciousness, not a location. I can find heaven within me, albeit buried under layers of flesh and ego. If I look deep enough inside I can find it. By looking, I also discover that the heaven I find is not different than the heaven you will find. All things are intertwined and that includes you and me and heaven and earth. I find heaven and earth in all things as I find myself in all things.
Many religions promise that death will bridge the gap between our spiritual desire and the realization of that desire. The implication is that God and heaven are not where we are right now, but somewhere else we need to travel to. When Jesus says “the kingdom of God is within you,” he makes it clear that heaven is right here and right now. We just need to open our eyes to see it.
What we learn in physics is that everything is made up of atoms that vibrate at different frequencies. You and I are made up of atoms as are trees, flowers, rocks, tables, cars, etc. What gives us our unique shape and form is the frequency with which those atoms are vibrating. Thoughts, present in the same physical space as matter, vibrate at a different frequency than matter and that is why we are unable to see them, and why thoughts and matter can coexist. It doesn’t take much of a stretch of the imagination to realize that heaven is yet another layer of reality vibrating at a different frequency which we, unless we know how to look for it, are unable to see. The Kabbalah teaches that there are universes built upon universes all underlying our present reality. Through prayer and spiritual practices we are able to transcend these different layers until we reach our ultimate destination, unification with the One.
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About the Book
The first half of this two part book tells the story of an ordinary boy enriched by his mother’s faith yet torn apart by a bitter divorce. Maintaining his religious underpinnings, Mark struggles through the divorce and graduates from college with a degree in finance. This takes him to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange where he makes millions of dollars, marries his wife and retires at the age of 36. Shortly after, Mark received a Master’s degree in Theology setting the foundation for the remainder of his life. The first half of the book ends with the death his forth child, Kevin, which becomes the catalyst for a tremendous spiritual conversion.
The second half of the book walks the reader through that conversion documenting the steps taken to accomplish it. A discussion of physics is used to set up a foundation for further explanations in theology. This discussion results in a need to re-evaluate the meaning of Mark 8:29 when Jesus asks: “Who do you say that I am?” The result is a shift from orthodox religion to a focus on Sophian Gnosticism. Time is spent focusing on Kabbalah and The Tree of Life, and on a special sign Mark created called the “Sign of the Tree.” Kabbalistic teachings on reincarnation and suffering are explored. Mark applies these teachings to his life by leaving the material world behind, going to work at a homeless shelter, and becoming a hospice volunteer.
About the Author
Mark Wonser, born in 1953, is a self made millionaire and father of four. He retired at an early age from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and purchased a large estate near where he was born in Portland, Oregon, and began growing and selling Christmas trees. A Masters Degree in Theology and the death of his son, Kevin, caused him to abandon the world of belongings and possessions in pursuit of a different kind of wealth.