BACKGROUND:
The Jewish people had been praying for the arrival of a savior for hundreds of years.

The Romans had politically conquered the region.
Prophets had earlier warned the Jews that they would lose their political freedom for their repeated turning away from Spiritual Guidance and denial of God. They had also foretold that a savior would be born who would free the Jews from political and economic enslavement.

SUPERNATURAL OCCURRENCES
A huge star appeared in the sky over Bethlehem.
It had the influence of making the night as light as an overcast day. Astronomers from the east had been expecting the star and had travelled to the area. They knew of the old prophesies and together with the calculations they made, there was an expectation of something miraculous.

Mary, a virgin, and Joseph, an old man were also expecting something miraculous. They had been told by the Holy Spirit to marry some months earlier.

Mary became pregnant by the Spirit and now gave birth with the arrival of the star.

Herod, a king ruled the region. He knew of the prophesies and heard rumors about the stories which the wise men had spread throughout the region in their recent and short visit. He was very fearful that this infant would overthrow his rule. He issued a law requiring that all male infants that would be near to the age of Jesus be taken from their parents and executed.

Obeying the Holy Spirit, the infant Jesus was taken out of the region and escaped the murder of the male babies.

At a young age, Jesus spent much time in the synagogue (Jewish religious school-temple) reading and studying everything he could.

Jesus attended a religious ceremony being held by a relative named John the Baptist. People who wanted to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit attended and went through the ritual. This change into a new life of Spiritual freedom and direction was symbolically expressed by their submergence in water and their taking an oath. A dove landed on Jesus head signifying that he had received the Gift.

Immediately Jesus was directed to go into the desert and fast for 40 days and nights.

The devil tempted Jesus with requests that if Jesus was really the Son of God he could prove it by turning the stones around him into food. Jesus responded that people had both body and spirit and that food alone did not sustain them.

The devil appeared again and challenged Jesus.
This time he took Jesus to a great height and said to Him: If you are the Son of God, jump, and God will send angels to catch you. Jesus reminded the devil that it is irreverent tempt God.

A third time the devil returned.
He told Jesus that if He would worship him, he would make Jesus a ruler of all the kingdoms of the world. And Jesus rebuked the devil again reminding him that the first commandment is to have no other gods before God.

Jesus showed his willingness to ask God for Guidance by frequently going off alone to pray. He told a number of fishermen to become His disciples and help him convert others so more people could be saved. At first, he would only share his good news of Higher Self Guidance with the Jews. Then, when a gentile challenged him to ask for Guidance and tell her why non-Jews could not also hear the news, he asked, and received Guidance that the news was for all peoples. And he changed.

Jesus began his ministry: spreading the news.
His mission would be to tell good people how they could be saved from hell. If they received the message and accepted Him as the Son of God and the redeemer of all their sins, they would become sons of God. By this act they would conquer death and avoid hell and have everlasting life in Heaven.

First, Jesus would tell others that it would be almost impossible for them to receive the Holy Spirit and be saved unless they minimized and showed little respect for their personal possessions and wealth.

Secondly, he became a preacher.
He performed many miracles of healing and changing of substances.

Adults were often set in their ways of behaving and thinking and in their intolerance were difficult encourage and persuade to accept the new beliefs. Children were more able to consider his concepts without simply defending against them because they were different. So, he encouraged his disciples to be especially considerate of children.

He would encourage people to respect the secular authorities.
They had a job to do and they should be provided with the means to carry out the services they in turn provided for the people.

Jesus became angry with the church administrators for their use of the holy area of the temple to conduct business and for that business often taking advantage of foreigners and non-Jews. Accused in fear, convicted in jealousy, sentenced in greed for power, and taunted on the cross by proud soldiers --- he would ask God if indeed he must accept this humiliation and die. Acknowledging the yes reply, he would never raise the question again.

Every action recorded of his life following his commitment to follow Holy Spirit Guidance, resulted in his confronting prejudice towards the poor, afflicted, other races, prostitutes, women, laborers. He chastised dishonest tax collectors and called for people to share rather than hoard.

He attempted to instruct his disciples by telling them what he had learned. He showed them that it was better to provide service to others than to expect service from others.

Three of his disciples would betray Jesus.
Peter was aggressive and cut off the ear of a soldier sent to arrest Jesus. A second, out of fear, would deny knowing Jesus so as to escape possible imprisonment. A third, would greedily sell the whereabouts of Jesus to the soldiers. Jesus warned his disciples beforehand that this would happen.

Crucified, as a warning to others, Jesus died.
As spiritually guided, Jesus's body was taken to a particular tomb and safeguarded there. He rose from the dead after several days. He met briefly with his disciples to confirm his return to life. He then rose into the clouds to join His Father in Heaven.

The disciples of Jesus continued to spread the beliefs He had given them. Often, because of political suppression by the Romans, they had to meet in secret and in small groups.

Saul, a soldier, was one of the new Christian's most fervent persecutors.
One day on one of his travels, he was struck down by a bright light and received a vision that converted him to Christianity. He would now change his name, leave the military, and travel about preaching to the various communities of the Good Word.

There became dissention between the disciples as to how the longer-term leadership of the emerging church should be decided. Jesus had chosen Peter to be the leader during His life but it became unclear after His Rising whether this was to be a genetic lineage or a temporary position. The leaders of each of the community churches would after Christianity became accepted declare that they should be the leader or that their version of Christianity was the best.

Over 100 years after the death of Jesus, and after a severe persecution of the Christians in Rome, the Roman political leader would reverse government policy to now support Christianity. He had formerly worshipped the Sun god. Now, he worshipped the Son of God.

This simplified administration mattered immensely for the Roman Empire.
Previously, the Romans had worshipped a great many gods and each god, with its followers was given a feast holiday. This was like having 80 labor unions with each wanting a different set of days off work. With the adoption of Christianity, now everyone was to take the same holidays and believe in the same values.

The leadership of this now institutionalized religion now fell between the religious community leaders (bishops) of the eastern Roman provinces and those of the western provinces. In Rome, the public works (pontiff) administrator was also in charge of religious affairs. Roman culture was centered on orderliness and homogeneity. Presently, there was so much variation between how Christian communities conducted themselves and what they believed Christ had preached as well as the significance and meaning of Christ that anarchy reigned.

A struggle for leadership over the religious empire began.
A conference was held to homogenize, unify and organize the many Christian fellowships into one institution. The tenuous result was that a list of principles were adopted as the basis of the Christian faith. Although there would be recurrent conflict over the years ahead, the pontiff of Rome was chosen to be the Supreme Head of the organized church.

The new church was named the Holy Roman Catholic Church.
Services and liturgies would only be given in the Roman classical language of Latin until the mid-1960s. This meant that almost all of those attending the church were totally dependent upon the verbal interpretation of the local administrator (priest) as to what the scriptures meant and as to what they should do to lead a spiritually guided life. Emphasis was placed on ritual pattern, giving monies to the church, worship of Jesus, repenting of designated sins and atoning through the payment of fines, and complete obedience to the administrators of the church.

The Roman Catholic Church grew in size and power.
As a unifying source of people, it increasingly became influential in supporting kings and acting politically to control the area around Rome. Popes, acting as kings, supported and participated in wars against other states. Popes plotted for the assassination of their rivals and banishment of their opposition. Some Popes retained over 1000 prostitutes, called courtesans - good time women for hire. A woman posed as a Pope for a period and when it was found out that she was female AND pregnant, both she and her infant were stoned to death. The Church made every effort to eradicate her existence from their records.

Automated printing was first supported by orders from the Church to print Redemption certificates for sale to the parishioners. Persons who had committed, or intended to commit, or expected to commit crimes or acts against the values taught by the Church could buy such certificates and redeem them to their Bishop at the relevant time of confession. The certificates were to make the procedure easier to administer, friendlier for the congregation, and raise some much needed capital for the expense of the lavish lifestyle of the Pope as well as maintaining an active and well-equipped army.

Once printing was automated, it became easier for other people to begin printing books and articles, and, to print them in, and expand the use and popularity of core languages. Within 70 years most of the 600 regional dialects spoken in Europe had been standardized into about 10 formal languages. This made literacy a viable option for the first time. More people began reading, writing, and publishing. Soon, the Bible was printed in the major languages and the parishioners could now read the scriptures for themselves. More and more found large differences between what was written and published, and, what was being taught by the priests and the Church.

The Church sought to stifle this opposition by calling it heresy and lobbying politically for the right to lay charges against those who printed or used printed materials which were not authorized by the Church. With the power to lay charges also came the right to punish and execute. Many people were continuing to use the old medicine ways of herbals and spiritual divination and the frequent union of these two practices weakened the absolute authority of the Church over the populace. About 90% of the books printed during this period were legally confiscated and burned.

Bad weather for decades and economic poverty for many promoted fungal contamination of the common rye grain and led to widespread mental disorders. The mental disorientation symptoms caused by eating fungal contaminated grains justified the use of torture, execution, and panic used by the Church against those who opposed its absolute authority. Perhaps 100,000 persons or more were burned alive on the basis of symptom disorientation, gossip, false testimony --- in order to cleanse the society of un-Christian influences.

There is much more "modern" history of the influence of organized religion, Christian or otherwise. They all have variations of the same theme. Well-intentioned actions bring hardship and devastation to millions of people while the core beliefs originally expressed by the founders are selectively enforced and ignored. Well-intentioned efforts also enable huge populations to exist relatively peacefully considering the factors of conflict present. SuperEgo efforts and decision-making allow for wide-ranging acts of good and evil.