Allow me to introduce to you
the new Jesus. This isn't the Jesus Christ known to us from the pages of the
Holy Bible. This Jesus is a new version cast into the arena of international
politics and global change – it's a new messiah for a new millennium.

   Wondering what I'm talking about?

   In the fall of 1999, I received a little book titled The Night Jesus
Christ Returned To Earth, authored by Captain Tom A. Hudgens. In the late
1990's, while attending a conference on world federalism, I had the opportunity
to hear Mr. Hudgens' present his views on "world order" and global citizenship.
At that time Mr. Hudgens was President and CEO of the Association to Unite the
Democracies, an organization dedicated to the advancement of world government by
politically unifying the leading democratic nations. So his talk carried a
decidedly internationalist flavor. Not surprisingly, so too does the Jesus
character of his book.

   In his Foreword, Hudgens writes; "In this book I have intentionally put words
into Jesus' mouth. Whether the words came directly to me from Him or that the
words are my own invention is debatable"

[1].

   Then Hudgens draws out a
challenge; "If what I have Jesus say in this book does not agree with what you
think He would say, I challenge you to write down what you think He would
endorse today"

[2].

   As a work of fiction, the
author portrays Jesus Christ as returning to Earth during the Millennium
Celebrations at Times Square in New York City. The year, 1999, is only seconds
away from closing.

"At the very moment that the
white ball should start its descent, a loud explosion scatters the ball into a
million pieces of confetti. In its place is Jesus Christ, descending and
arriving at the bottom for his triumphal return to Earth, not as described in
the Book of Revelation, but as He Himself had decided to make His entrance"

[3].

   At this point in the book,
Jesus explains why he appeared first in the United States, and New York City
more specifically:

A. America has the most Christians,

B. The United Nations is headquartered in New York, and…

C. The US is the "freest of all nations and the guarantor of freedom and human
rights"

[4].
   Jesus then asks "all citizens of the world to elect ten disciples for me…"
This new messiah is obviously very democratic minded.

[5].

   All of this is rather
novel, especially given the fact that the Jesus of the Bible always invited His
disciples to follow Him; it was not a decision made by the mob, but of
invitation and personal calling.

   Hudgens then goes on to describe what his version of Jesus "would endorse
today."

1. A stabilization of the United Nations and a call to global democracy

[6].

2. A uniting of all democratic countries into a limited federal republic; ie, a
world government. In fact, this "Millennium Messiah" [my phrase] makes numerous
direct references to the Association to Unite the Democracies – Hudgens' world
government lobbying organization – along with it's agendas and ideas, and its
importance in striving for a political, economic, and military unification of
like-minded nations

[7].

3. That the European Union should become the core group used to unite the
leading democracies, and that other existing international arrangements (such as
NATO) be brought into the fold

[8].

4. That "total gun control" is necessary. In this regard, the National Rifle
Association is mentioned as a negative factor in America's political system

[9].

5. A calling to "sap the strength of the multinational corporations which are
ruling the world." Hudgens' Jesus explained that these multinational
corporations are "ruling the world" to the detriment of the poor

[10]. Note: Multinational corporations do wield an enormous degree of power,
but often the critical view that's presented is a form of dialectic; if only we
can bring down corporations, then the poor will be elevated. In reality, the
poor or oppressed are seldom raised up in such a scenario.

6. A calling for population control and the necessity of abortion to ensure the
safety of the Earth's environment. Hudgens' Jesus even tells us when life
begins; "when the umbilical cord is severed." Moreover, Jesus puts his foot
down: "I plan to speak with the Pope about this matter"

[11].

7. Lastly, Jesus brings religion into the picture by declaring; "Over time I
believe we can show that Christianity is compatible with all other religions. My
coming will help to solidify the religions"

[12].

   I understand that Mr. Hudgens' name and organization are relatively obscure.
Few people outside of World Federalist circles and global citizenship lobby
groups will have heard of either the individual or his association. And it's not
that his book The Night Jesus Christ Returned To Earth has been a
top-seller. Odds are, those who have the book are few and far-between.

   So why bring all of this up? Simply because these concepts represent a line
of thinking found within certain elements of the international community. Of
this we need to be aware.

   Former United Nations high-official, Robert Muller [not the FBI Robert
Muller], readily preached a new global order and an internationalist, New Age
Jesus. In his 1982 book, New Genesis: Shaping a Global Spirituality,
Muller writes, "If Christ came back to earth, his first visit would be to the
United Nations to see if his dream of human oneness and brotherhood had come
true"

[13].

   In a section of New Genesis titled "The Reappearance of Christ,"
Muller spells out a lengthy yet revealing vision of "Christ" within a new world
paradigm.

   "So everywhere I look –
and I am not a theologian or a philosopher, I am just a United Nations official
trying to make a little sense out of all this – everywhere I see the Christ's
luminous messages. They are all still among us, they are coming again to the
fore ever more potently. In the present global world they have to express
themselves in the ecumenism of religions. The world's major religions in the end
all want the same thing, even though they were born in different places and
circumstances on this planet. What the world needs today is a convergence of the
different religions in the search for and definition of the cosmic or divine
laws which ought to regulate our behavior on this planet. World-wide spiritual
ecumenism, expressed in new forms of religious cooperation and institutions,
would probably be closest to the heart of the resurrected Christ. I would
wholeheartedly support the creation of an institutional arrangement in the UN or
in UNESCO for a dialogue and cooperation between religions. There is a famous
painting and poster which shows Christ knocking at the tall United Nations
building, wanting to enter it. I often visualize in my mind another even more
accurate painting: that of a United Nations which would be the body of Christ"

[14].

   Muller's vision didn't
emerge from his own sense of spiritual understanding, it is the result of other
peoples work, including the mystic Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (Muller devotes a
chapter to Chardin in New Genesis)

[15], and Alice Bailey, whose Theosophical writings heavily influenced the
Robert Muller School program

[16].

   Chardin, a highly controversial Catholic theologian, advocated the complete
unification of mankind, including,

1. The development of a common humanity-wide consciousness

[17].

2. A "new spiritual dimension" based on "universal unification"

[18], and the establishment of a universal human creed; "…a new spirit for a
new order"

[19].

3. A complete economic, political, and social planetary structure based on group
thinking,

   "...everything suggests
that at the present time we are entering a peculiarly critical phase of
super-humanisation. This is what I hope to persuade you of by drawing your
attention to an altogether extraordinary and highly suggestive condition of the
world round us, one which we all see and are subject to, but without paying
attention to it, or at lease without understanding it: I mean the increasingly
rapid growth in the human world of the forces of collectivisation.

   The phenomenon calls for no detailed description. It takes the form of the
all- encompassing ascent of the masses; the constant tightening of economic
bonds; the spread of financial and intellectual associations; the totalisation
of political regimes; the closer physical contact of individuals as well as
nations; the increasing impossibility of being or acting or thinking alone…"

[20]

4. Global unification through
supernatural powers; "Whether we wish it or not, Mankind is becoming
collectivised, totalised under the influence of psychic and spiritual forces on
a planetary scale"

[21].

5. And an endorsement and longing for the United Nations to flourish, even
though it is still imperfect and will remain so until complete social
collectivism is achieved

[22].

   Placing the capstone on all of this is the ongoing and incomplete work of the
New Age Christ,

   "And since Christ was
born, and ceased to grow, and died, everything has continued in motion because
he has not yet attained the fullness of his form. He has not gathered about Him
the last folds of the garment of flesh and love woven for him by his faithful.
The mystical Christ has not reached the peak of his growth... and it is the
continuation of this engendering that there lies the ultimate driving force
behind all created activity... Christ is the term of even the natural evolution
of living beings."

[23]

   Similar to Chardin, Alice
Bailey – a leader in the early Theosophical movement and founder of Lucifer
Publishing Company, which later morphed into Lucis Trust and has since spurred
on a whole series of New Age subsidiaries – taught that a transformed world was
close at hand. And like Chardin's "new spirit for a new order," Bailey writes in
The Rays and The Initiations, "Some day the minds of men – illuminated by
the light of the soul – will formulate the one universal religion, recognizable
by all"

[24].

   Expanding this spiritual collective philosophy further, Bailey reveals that
the new world Christ will manifest himself physically, directing his will into
the arena of world politics, economics, and religion

[25]. Even now, Bailey explains, the apparent contradiction of national and
international conflict is geared towards this singular purpose – a "climax" and
a "point of tension" that "will eventually prove to be the agent that will bring
about a point of emergence"

[26].

   Muller, Chardin, Bailey...each of these visionaries, and scores more, call
out for a restructured international political sand economic system, and a
social transformation of the globe – all brought about by a New Age Messiah.
Which brings us full circle, coming face-to-face with Hudgens' Millennium Jesus
and Hudgens' challenge: what would Jesus endorse today?
   Actually, this isn't too hard to figure out. Hebrews 13:8 tell us that;
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."

   Knowing this, it's fairly
easy to discern what Jesus Christ would endorse today; it's the same thing He
endorsed 2000 years ago – an exclusive way to the Father (John 14:6) and that
man is in need of a Savior because man is a sinful creature (John 3:16-21).

   But none of this bodes well in today's climate of global tolerance and
planetary correctness. Instead, a New Age Messiah is desired and anticipated,
one that is willing to embrace all religions and unite all nations. --

Carl Teichrib is editor of

Forcing Change, a monthly publication documenting the worldview challenges
now facing the Western world.  

Endnotes:

1 

Captain Tom A. Hudgens, The Night Jesus Christ Returned To Earth (Denver,
CO: BILR Corporation, 1999, ISBN 0-937177-01-6), Forward..

2. Ibid., Forward.

3. Ibid., p.35.

4. Ibid., p.36.

5. Ibid., p.37.

6. Ibid., p.40.

7. Ibid., pp.41-43.

8. Ibid., p.44.

9. Ibid., p.47.

10. Ibid., p.51.

11. Ibid., pp.52, 87.

12. Ibid., p.85.

13. Robert Muller, New Genesis: Shaping A Global Spirituality
(Anacortes, WA: World Happiness and Cooperation, 1993/1982, ISBN 1-880455-04-8),
p.19.

14. Ibid., pp.126-127.

15. Ibid., pp.159-168.

16. See Gary Kah's book, The New World Religion (Noblesville, IN:
Hope International Publishing, 1999, ISBN 0-9670098-0-4), pp.162-184.

17. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, The Future of Man (New York, NY:
Harper & Row, 1959/1964), p.56.

18. Ibid., p.62.

19. Ibid., p.79.

20. Ibid., pp.117-118.

21. Ibid., p.201.

22. Ibid., pp.267-268.

23. Ibid., 320.

24. Alice Bailey, The Rays and The Initiations (New York, NY: Lucis
Publishing Company, 1960), p.594.

25. Ibid., see Section Two, pp.556-661.

26. Ibid., p.623.