Summary: Hungarian linguist cum vegetarian spiritual writer Edmond Bordeaux Szekely (1905–1979) claimed to have discovered The Essene Gospel of Peace in the Vatican Library in the 1920s, and published it in 1937 as an ancient Gospel of Jesus’ teachings on vegetarianism, spirituality and holistic living. The Jesus portrayed in Book One of the Gospel compassionately preaches vegetarianism and condemns the slaughtering and eating of animals as a deadly sin:- “the flesh of slain beasts in his body will become his own tomb… Kill not, neither eat the flesh of your innocent prey, lest you become the slaves of Satan” (Szelely 1978, pp.33-34). Book Four also includes Szekely’s elevating poetry on Inner Light and Sound meditation. Many vegan advocates often quote from Book One to support their case. Most scholars, however, conclude that it is Szekely’s own interpretation of the Bible instead of an authentic historical text, mainly because Szekely failed to produce even a single page of the Gospel’s manuscript (cf. Bean 2013). Worse still, it is not even vegan, for the Jesus in it condones milking animals (Szelely 1978, pp. 30, 34), and anthropocentrically claims that animals are for humans on the grounds that only humans, but not animals, are made in God’s image (Szekely 1978, p.35).
Full Text: https://www.vegantheology.net/post/a-vegan-critique-of-the-essene-gospel-of-peace-by-dr-chapman-chen
1. No Manuscript Ever Produced
The Essene Gospel of Peace, first published by Edmond Bordeaux Szekely in 1937, while well-meaning efforts to reconstruct a vegetarian Ebionite form of Christianity, is by no means an ancient work. This work was only published in recent decades. There is no evidence that an Aramaic, Greek, or Hebrew manuscript of this Gospel ever existed in the Vatican or anywhere else. It is neither an ancient document nor a hidden Vatican library text, but rather Szekely’s own interpretation—his attempt to revive the lost Gospel of the Hebrews or Ebionites, a group known for their veganism and closer affinity to the Essenes than any other Jewish sect (cf. Bean 2013).
2. Eat Animals and You’ll Become Satan’s Slaves!
The Essene Gospel of Peace volumes are filled with profound, compassionate, animal insights and enjoyable to read. For example, in Book One, Jesus affirms that the Sixth Commandment “Thou shalt not kill” covers not only humans but animals, (Szekely 1978, p.33); and warns that when people kill and/or eat the flesh of innocent creatures, they will become Satan’s slaves and the flesh of the slain animals will become their own tomb (Szekely 1978, p.34).
2.1. Raw Vegetarianism
In the same book, Jesus even promotes raw vegetarianism:- “Kill neither men, nor beasts, nor yet the food which goes into your mouth. For if you eat living food, the same will quicken you, but if you kill your food, the dead food will kill you also” (Szekely 1978, p.36).
3. Is Jesus a Speciesist?
The book, however, is vegetarian instead of vegan. The Jesus in it anthropocentrically claims that as “God created only man after his image…beasts are for man,” despite the fact that in the Bible, God never asserts that ONLY humans are made in His image. “Jesus” goes on to say that it is lawful to kill an animal which endangers a human’s life, but anyone, who kills an animal for lust, or food, or skin or tusks, will be turned into a “wild beast” themselves. The last clause is, of course, discriminatory toward animals.
3.1. Animals are At Least Partly Made in God’s Image
As a matter of fact, animals at least partly manifest God's image because of the following reasons:- Firstly, The Bible never denies that animals are made in the image of God. Secondly, both humanity and other animals were made out of dust by God. Thirdly, God made a covenant with not only humanity but also other animals (Genesis 9:9-11; Hosea 2:18). Fourthly, many verses in the Bible describe how different animals bear different characteristics of God (e.g. Isaiah 31:4; Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34; John 1:29; Matthew 3:16). Fifthly, not only humans but other animals are gifted with a "living soul" (נֶ֣פֶשׁ חַיָּ֔ה nephesh chayyah) (Genesis 1:21, 24; Genesis 1:30).
4. Does Jesus Endorse the Dairy Industry?
Worse still, the book endorses the drinking of animals’ milk by humans. It rewrites “Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you” (Genesis 9:3 KJV) as “the milk of every thing that moveth and that liveth upon earth shall be meat for you” (Szekely 1978, p. 34). But in the Exegeses Companion Bible (ECB), a literal translation of the Bible, it’s “Every living creeper…”(Jahn 1992: Col.11), which could only mean creeper plant because the eating of creeping animals, i.e., reptiles, was strictly forbidden (Leviticus 11:41-2); and in the Genesis Apocryphon, one of the Dead Scrolls, it’s just “vegetables and plants” (Reeves 2014).
Equally alarmingly, in Book One, “Jesus” Himself “milked an ewe” (Szekely 1978, p.30) ! Yet, it is sinful to drink animals’ milk for the following reasons.
5. Not Your Mother, Not Your Milk!
Firstly, per Creation Care Church (2025), God intended milk to be produced by mothers for their own infant. The Infancy Gospel of James describes Jesus sucking milk from Saint Mary (cf. Luke 11:27); the mainstream Bible mentions jackals and other animals breastfeeding their own young (Lamentations 4:3), and speaks of a land brimming with milk and honey as a symbol of fertility and abundance (Exodus 3:8, 13:5).
6. Consuming Dairy Products Violates at Least 3 Commandments
Secondly, when we drink animals’ milk or manufacture animals’ milk, we are violating the 8th Commandment, Thou shalt not steal; the 10th Commandment, Thou shalt not covet what belongs to your neighbour; the 6th Commandment, Thou shalt not kill; and the 7th Commandment, Thou shalt not commit adultery! For when we consume animal products like milk, cheese, cream, butter, and yogurt, we steal what was meant for another—milk intended for an animal's baby, not for us. And in the dairy industry, farmers forcibly impregnate—that is, rape—dairy cows repeatedly, ensuring a continuous cycle of milk production for them to sell. When a dairy cow gives birth, her newborn calf is taken away—usually within 24 hours. Male dairy calves are considered worthless to the industry and usually murdered shortly after birth. Female calves are kept alive to join the herd, where they too will be forcibly impregnated—raped—again and again. Ultimately, all dairy cows meet the same fate, sent to the slaughterhouse once their bodies are no longer profitable. The dairy industry is, therefore, the meat industry or a rape-and-murder industry.
7. Conclusion
Jesus said, “I desire compassion, rather than sacrifice” (Matt. 9:13, 12:7). And He actually died for the cause of animal liberation (Mark 11:15-18; Akers 2020, pp. 113-134). Thus, the Jesus in history probably really preached that “Thou shalt not kill” includes animals, and that it is sinful to abuse, kill and eat animals, just as what Szekely postulates in his book. However, we vegan advocates risk losing our audience’s trust and confidence if we quote The Essene Gospel of Peace to support our case, because it is Szekely’s own wishful fantasy rather than a historical document. For authentic historical sources demonstrating that veganism was part of early Christianity, one had better refer to more reliable texts like Clementine Homilies and the fragments of Gospel of the Ebionites, etc.
References
Bean, James (2013). “Uncovering a Vegetarian Jesus at the Beginning of Christianity.” https://medium.com/sant-mat-meditation-and-spirituality/uncovering-a-vegetarian-jesus-at-the-beginning-of-christianity-9279741be7c4
Creation Care Church (Craig Douglas Wescoe) (2025). “What Does the Bible Say about Milk?” Creation Care Church, YouTube Channel, Feb 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKJe9_HeSj0&t=11s
Szekely, Edmond Bordeaux (1978/1937). The Essene Gospel of Peace, Book One. Cartago, Costa Rica: International Biogenic Society https://archive.org/details/essenegospelofpe01sz/mode/1up
Comments