About Jerry B. Brown Ph.D.

I am an author, activist and anthropologist. After receiving my doctorate from Cornell University, I served as Founding Professor of Anthropology at Florida International University in Miami from 1972-2014. There I taught a course on "Hallucinogens and Culture" which laid the foundation for The Psychedelic Gospels, which proposes a controversial theory about the role of psychedelics in the history of Christianity. (See www.psychedelicgospels.com)

In 2006, after reading about Rosslyn Chapel in Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, I visited this unique "bible in stone" and made a surprising discovery. There sculpted on the forehead of Rosslyn's most prominent green was a psychoactive mushroom--which had remained hidden in plain sight for half a millennium. This was the catalyst for Julie and my decision to undertake a anthropological journey, visiting churches and cathedrals throughout Europe and the Middle East, in search of iconic evidence of the presence of entheogens (God-generating-within plants) in Christian art.

While our findings are startling, it is not our intention to question people's faith in Christianity, but to uncover a mystery that we believe applies to many religions. We do not deny the importance of religious sacraments, but suggest that they should encompass all of God's creations, including psychoactive plants which provide an ancient pathway to the divine. In the concluding chapter, "Psychedelic Renaissance," we explore the "new science of psychedelics" and advocate the responsible exploration of entheogens for religious and spiritual purposes as a fundamental right under the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.

Terence McKenna

Rick Strassman

William A. Richards

Paul Stamets

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The Psychedelic Gospels: The Secret History of Hallucinogens in Christianity Sep 15, 2016

by Jerry B. Brown , Julie M. Brown

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Reveals evidence of visionary plants in Christianity and the life of Jesus found in medieval art and biblical scripture--hidden in plain sight for centuries

• Follows the authors’ anthropological adventure discovering sacred mushroom images in European and Middle Eastern churches, including Roslyn Chapel and Chartres

• Provides color photos showing how R. Gordon Wasson’s psychedelic theory of religion clearly extends to Christianity and reveals why Wasson suppressed this information due to his secret relationship with the Vatican

• Examines the Bible and the Gnostic Gospels to show that visionary plants were the catalyst for Jesus’s awakening to his divinity and immortality

Throughout medieval Christianity, religious works of art emerged to illustrate the teachings of the Bible for the largely illiterate population. What, then, is the significance of the psychoactive mushrooms hiding in plain sight in the artwork and icons of many European and Middle-Eastern churches? Does Christianity have a psychedelic history?

Providing stunning visual evidence from their anthropological journey throughout Europe and the Middle East, including visits to Roslyn Chapel and Chartres Cathedral, authors Julie and Jerry Brown document the role of visionary plants in Christianity. They retrace the pioneering research of R. Gordon Wasson, the famous “sacred mushroom seeker,” on psychedelics in ancient Greece and India, and among the present-day reindeer herders of Siberia and the Mazatecs of Mexico. Challenging Wasson’s legacy, the authors reveal his secret relationship with the Vatican that led to Wasson’s refusal to pursue his hallucinogen theory into the hallowed halls of Christianity.

Examining the Bible and the Gnostic Gospels, the authors provide scriptural support to show that sacred mushrooms were the inspiration for Jesus’ revelation of the Kingdom of Heaven and that he was initiated into these mystical practices in Egypt during the Missing Years. They contend that the Trees of Knowledge and of Immortality in Eden were sacred mushrooms.

Uncovering the role played by visionary plants in the origins of Judeo-Christianity, the authors invite us to rethink what we know about the life of Jesus and to consider a controversial theory that challenges us to explore these sacred pathways to the divine.

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