Restoration of Jesus’ Original Vegan Teachings. By Rev. V.A. Holmes-Gore. Paraphrased by Dr Chapman Chen

Vegan English clergyman the Reverend Vincent Arthur Holmes-Gore (1909–1952), in his 1946 book Christ or Paul?, was convinced that any version of Christianity that did not include compassion for all God's creatures was a misrepresentation of what the Master actually taught, and that Paul was responsible for most of Christianity's erroneous anti-vegan doctrines.

The conclusion of Holmes-Gore’s book (pp. 95-100) can be summarized as follows:

1. To Corrupt Jesus’ Church from the Inside Out

The forces which opposed to Christ's mission did not abandon their efforts after Jesus' crucifixion. Having failed to destroy the Christian movement via the actions of figures such as Caiaphas, Herod, and Pontius Pilate, they adopted a subtler strategy. Realizing that the Gospel itself could not simply be wiped out, they sought instead to weaken its effectiveness from within. Their method was to employ false teachers, of whom Paul is the most well-known and influential to render the Gospel more user-friendly and more popular, and therefore strip it of its original redeeming power. They caused immense damage to authentic Christianity by changing it from an inward spiritual path into an external religious institution and social kingdom.

2. Jesus’ Warnings about Paul

Jesus Himself foresaw the coming corruption of his teachings. He warned, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. By their fruits ye shall know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? (Matt 7:15–16 KJV)

Applying this principle, it is obviously that Paul was a fake prophet. He established the "Pauline Church" despite objection from the original apostles. He developed doctrines that redirected Christianity away from the Master's inward, mystical, and spiritual teachings, replacing them with a more externalized and misunderstood interpretation. It was Paul who diminished the role of women and intuitive spiritual insight within the Christian community. He is also guilty of introducing a spirit of compromise with worldly values that weakened Christianity from its earliest days. In addition, Paul promoted belief in a God characterized by wrath, punishment, and arbitrary authority, rather than the God of perfect compassion, love, and mercy revealed by Jesus.

3. Justification of Animal Abuse

Christianity took a fundamentally wrong direction once Paul's influence became dominant. Paul's departure from the Master's original teachings obscured the true vision of Christianity so severely that later generations were able to justify war, slavery, animal abuse/consumption, sexual discrimination, and many other practices by appealing to biblical authority. What should have been a religion of compassion and inner transformation was reshaped into something very different.

The institutional Church continues to cling to the Pauline interpretation of Christianity. This attachment is not presented as evidence of the superiority of Paul's teaching, but rather as a consequence of habit and familiarity. The Church remains attached to the Pauline system because it knows no alternative and has nothing else to which it can turn.

4. Christ’s Return

Jesus foresaw the coming corruption of his message. Despite repeatedly warning his followers, Jesus recognized that sorrow and disappointment would temporarily prevail. Yet Jesus also promised that sorrow would eventually be transformed into joy and that reunion and restoration would come. “Verily verily I say unto you… ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy… I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice” (John 16:20-22).  

Christ's Return would naturally be accompanied by a recovery of the original Christian message as it was first taught and understood almost 2 millennia ago. This restored message would call humanity to the highest standards of moral, mental, and spiritual purity. At the same time, it would require a universal compassion extending not only to humans but to all animals.

5. Separation of Jesus’ Teachings from All the Dross  

Finally, such a restoration would not represent a new religion or a novel doctrine. Rather, it will be “the Teachings of the Master, separated from all the dross with which they have been mixed from the earliest days, and restored in their original form and purity” (Holmes-Gore 1946, p.100).

P.S. Restoration of the original vegan Teachings of Jesus Christ is exactly the goal of Vegan Theology.

Full Text: https://www.vegantheology.net/post/restoration-of-jesus-original-vegan-teachings-by-rev-v-a-holmes-gore-paraphrased-by-dr-chapman