'Abdu'l-Baha said: Jesus Christ had two bodies -- one spiritual and one material.
The material body is of no importance; it changes and
changes and changes always. An old person's body is not the same, as that of
the same individual when young.
The visible world does nothing but change, and change leads
to annihilation.
We must be sure that when the soul of man leaves his body,
it never returns to that body again.
In the Gospel record, when Jesus Christ was crucified and
ascended, Mary Magdalene and the other disciples had fallen into such a state
of excitement and agitation, that during three days the cause of God was
annihilated for them. After three days their agitation having abated, they
realised that the cause of Jesus Christ, and His teaching was everlasting in
the world. The disciples would not at first write to the other believers openly
that Jesus was crucified till Mary Magdalene said to them what does it matter;
His soul is with us. When Jesus was crucified, some said "His religion is
annihilated and gone." Mary Magdalene said "Matter is gone, and flesh
-- but the soul of the religion is forever."
Thomas was a feeble character who believed the cause was lost: after a little time he saw that though Jesus was killed, the cause of God still continued, and then he realised and believed.
After the death of the Blessed Perfection, one day the chief
&Mohammedan priest of Akká came to our Lord, and said he had seen the door
of his room open and the Blessed Perfection came into his room. This was the
Truth and Cause of the Blessed Perfection which manifested itself and its
continuance to him in this way.
To those who say Jesus Christ came back to earth in his
earthly; they should reflect that Jesus Christ was thirty-three years old at
the time of His death. According to medical science it is established that in
thirty years a man's body has been completely changed at least three times. If
it was the body of the third decade of His life which revived, what became of
the other two?
The Perfections and characteristics of God towards man are
not conditional upon any fact. God is merciful to man, and His mercy does not
depend on the fact of Jesus Christ having done anything; but He is always
sacrificed and this is the great question of the Mystery of Self-Sacrifice.
('Abdu'l-Baha, reported by Ethel
Rosenberg, ‘Notes Taken at Haifa by E. J. Rosenberg -- Feb. and Mar. 1901)
