Hearing today’s Gospel: Jesus told the learned men of his day: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment”—and added the kicker (which makes it much harder to profess love of God while demonizing one’s fellow earth inhabitants): “And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” (Jesus elsewhere clearly defined who is “my neighbor—who wouldn’t need to ask help for that? But with God, all things are possible!)
Many of us are looking at the insanity that many people in their present state of evolution have brought to the world; the fears and doubts of the mass mind, and so many facing the future with trepidation and fears of scarcity. Contrast this thinking with the beautiful planet that we inhabit, full of abundance; teaming with life and eager to regenerate and restore itself.
Then there is the condition of our own temple, which responds to lifetimes of thoughts and emotions with precision. Father Paul once directed his ministers to carry this saying in their wallet: “The highest intelligence shall bid themselves ready to fulfill your every desire.”
There is a difference between faith and healing, which bring a great “letting go” and expansion of being, as contrasted with dogmatic stubbornness and unwillingness to let go of fixed opinions of how things should be.
This brings an image of the parable of the loaves and fishes, and the abundance of God at all times no matter how much limitations we think are there!
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for?” –Robert Browning
God bless, wherever this adventure takes you—Revs. M&M
From Father Paul:
The greatest of all experiences—the greatest of all spiritual experiences—is the feeling of Life, and when we have reached some degree of sensitivity, we will experience this exotic thrill. Likewise during the experiencing of the enacting of Light, we are bound to meet with tests, sorrows, some unfinished things, and then we meet also with memories of the past.
But out of this cross-section of experiences and feeling comes the consciousness of knowing; actually knowing, of right and wrong. Because the difference between these two radicals is within us.
God is within us.
The devil, as spoken of in the Holy Scriptures and the ancient scripts, is the combination of errors which we have made. It is the dweller on the threshold which we have created: It is right within you, for that is your lower nature to which you have given power when you go against that which you know to be the right decision.
The higher you climb the ladder of attainment—until you have reached that cherished point of self-realization, having filled the body with Light and gained full sight in Illumination—then you will instinctively and decidedly, without question, know right from wrong without hesitation.
But in the meantime while you are climbing and aspiring to the Son-ship of Godhood, you will have strong temptations; for the older the soul, the stronger the being, the stronger the temptations.
You might ask yourself, “Why was this done to me?” or “Why did I deserve this?” The experience was created and born of your own strength, and any lesser experiences would have meant little better than nothing to you, and would not have strengthened the moral and spiritual fiber of your being.
When we are in kindergarten, we are taught lovingly and gently; but when we have graduated and gone to the University, we are taught in the language of the University, and in this University of experience we can best understand, in a way in which we can best call forth our inner strength.
Looking Backward
If you will look backward through the pages recording various periods of your life, you will notice that knowing grew from experience which wells up out of the memory in your subconscious mind.
Take anything or subject which you are absolutely sure of and have resolved that this is the truth and that you thoroughly understand; if you look backward, you will find an experience which laid this up in your subconscious mind, even though it might be an experience of mass understanding or of high spiritual concept. Then you will begin to conceive of the spiritual reality of being.
To be able to have a true and more perfect concept of right and wrong, it is well to examine these things of the past surely and slowly, and dismiss those things not useful.
AWAKENING I (from Tree of Life lessons)
“I am the way, the truth, and the life” said Jesus.
All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. The aspirations of every individual directed through his life basically are the ennobling of man regardless of his profession.
They lift him up to a better physical existence and experience and slowly but surely lead him toward the reality of what is so frequently said, “Man, know thyself.”
It is by no means a measure of chance that our present educational system in schools has developed out of the ancient mystery schools and that sciences were first known by the old mystics and teachers.
It would be much to man’s greater development if both churches and universities insofar as they might live up to their true function, should seek to prepare man to fit him to stand on his two feet as a counterpart of the great creative mind and power.
As man looks at his brother he sees those special persons who stand out in the ranks of humanity as having something that the rest of the masses do not possess.
It is the calmness of this man that is the one thing that attracts people to them along with the possession of that firm but gentle attitude — they each one of them know themselves, and the power they possess.
Some of the teachers were called mystics and some were called just philosophers, but there was something these men had that seemed to endow them with spiritual abilities that other men did not have.
This apparent difference was not an inequality of God’s doing but they had earned this endowment by their working with the law and order of things, and abiding by the laws of creation.
Actually these men were so close to nature and themselves that they were, in reality, natural scientists.
Then we have the lamas, the priests, the disciples, and let us not forget the Apostles of our Lord and Master. All were alike except they had made up their minds that the way of attaining and manifesting the perfection of their deity was of greater importance than anything else in their life.
They had come to the great realization that only when they were able to find God or the understanding of the great creative intelligence would they be able to help their one thousand and one brothers in the world which had not come to that point of awakening.
The Science of Man and its teachings takes the mystery out of the mysteries in this new age and have already added to it the sciences of the outer material world and the Christian mysteries taught by our Lord Jesus Christ, Buddha, and many others.
Thus it is that the Science of Man with its insight and direct revelation of our Master Jesus Christ, not only teaches but practices as esoteric brothers and have realized the reality of these teachings at a level or state of consciousness and vibration which brings to light the commandments in their reality and a consciousness of the one WAY or universality of all peoples’ soul growth.
The awakening to the reality of the “Way” makes it possible for them to function without dogma, without creed, regardless in what group, what church, or what mystical group in the body of Christ exists that they are working in, because they revert to the infinite information of the Self and the Law of God which directs one regardless of his position on the golden stairway.
It is through his becoming acquainted with and knowing how to use the tools God gave him that he is able to work with any and all people and he senses and sees existence of the greater light.
He is somehow conscious of the Way which is the ultimate path of attainment which you must travel to peace so that all the world may have peace.
This is the Way traveled by the great ones. On this path you find no differentiation in race, creed, or color. It is long and becomes very narrow the further one travels along it. It is also very satisfying; it brings the inner peace and security regardless of the turmoil and strife around you.
The Science of Man has no new philosophy, except to unite ourselves with all men as it is their only wish and striving to put these tools of the great Creator into the hands of each brother on earth and work with the great White Brotherhood in bringing the earth in its entirety into the light of the Christos.
To be a real brother in the Science of Man is to be under the direct guidance of the great teacher; its striving is to understand his brother, not just agreeing to be sociable or at peace with him.
One of the first commandments, if you wish to follow or put your foot on this Way, is don’t try to convert a man to your philosophy or religion, but try to understand his philosophy or religion; but to do, to do, all things in service for your brother that will help to raise him to your own level of appreciation of God.
Remember man only learns to know himself by knowing the Creator he lives in, working with it, walking the face of the earth and among all people without fear or want and in joy and gladness, thus only can we serve God and man alike.
Remember that it takes a brave man to be an individual and work in the body of Christ to live his Way. Grow with him, grow with us in this Age of beauty and share the glory of the Christos returned to earth. It takes a brave heart to attain his Godhood.
For man consciously started on the path of involution into dense matter and is now evolving out of dense matter to attain his mastership and Godhood.
Set your face to the Sun
Never Run
Use spear of Mind
Which is thought
To stop what negativity has wrought
Be a “Brother”
Help another.
The most important thing that could ever come into a spiritual person’s life is the awakening of the Soul.
Let us before going on see what Webster’s New World Dictionary has to say about the meaning of the word “awakening”: “A waking up, an arousing or reviving, as of impulses or religions.”
Since a revival is indicated, something must be there which was awake but now sleeps. Let us search the scriptures on this subject: Mark 4:38. “They awoke Jesus and said unto him, Master, don’t you care that we are drowning?” This is the awaking of fear. Jesus rebuked them for their unbelief.
In Luke 9:32, we find the awaking to the Glory of God. “But Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep, and it was as they struggled in wakefulness that they saw the Glory of Jesus and the two men standing with him.”
It is in awakening to the fact that all around mass mind is asleep, and that it has lulled us into sleep, that we are righteously angered into awaking enough to see the Glory of Jesus, which is the Glory of the Father. Jesus reflects the Father’s Glory.
. In John 11:11 — Jesus states that he is going to awaken Lazarus. “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going to wake him up.” We need to be awakened to the Christ.
Go happily, joyfully, peacefully, and share this Knowledge, this Spirit, with the entire world. Share it with all who come close to you. May the entire creation be filled with peace and joy, love and light. –Sri Swami Satchidananda
A Vision of Jerusalem for All Faiths
When Jerusalem was conquered by the Muslims in 637 AD, led by the Caliph Umar Ibn Al Khattab, he established a peace treaty with the people of the City of Jerusalem, called The Umariyya Covenant. This treaty guaranteed rights of worship for people of all faiths, including Christians and most notably, a Jewish people who had been oppressed for 500 years prior.
It is recorded that Umar declined an invitation by Saint Sophronius to pray in The Church of The Holy Sepulchre for fear of endangering it to those who would convert it to a temple of their own faith. It is this spirit of respect for the faith traditions of neighbours that needs to be restored to the sanctity and zeitgeist of Jerusalem. As the late intellectual Edward Said said: “There is a massive Palestinian-Muslim-Christian-multi-cultural reality in Jerusalem…” Let us work towards preserving that reality.” – Saleem Safdar
Established in 1996, World Peace and Prayer Day was created on the initiative of Chief Arvol Looking Horse of the Sioux Nation. It first gathered native people of North and South America, but spread to the rest of the world.
It’s celebrated on June 21st, the summer solstice, as it is believed to be a powerful time to pray for peace and harmony between all living beings. Regardless of origin, nation, religion and beliefs, everyone is encouraged to gather at sacred sites and pray: “All Nations, All Faiths, One Prayer.”
The Sahel–Sahara region is home to many of the world’s poorest people, who live in some of the driest conditions and are among the most vulnerable to climate change. The green-wall project was formally adopted by the African Union in 2007, five years after the union’s creation. It was championed by two powerful heads of government: Nigeria’s Olusegun Obasanjo and Senegal’s Abdoulaye Wade. The aim is to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land in 11 countries straddling the Sahel south of the Sahara, from Senegal in the west to Djibouti in the east — all by 2030. Originally conceived as a 7,000-kilometre wall of trees, it has evolved into a more complex set of activities, including not only planting new trees but also improving soils, setting up community gardens and protecting existing forests.
– Sermon Through Father Paul [Excerpt]
.…This Order is dedicated and has received our Lord as Master of its Order, and has accepted that there is but one way, and that is the way of the New Testament and our Master’s word. There may be many schools of a different nature, but basically, they are all fundamentally at the very foundation, teaching the same few basic, principled truths, which the Father in heaven created this solar system handed down unto us. And in the finality, we only seek to bring the truth which has been the worship of the Christ, the First-born Son of the Father, unto this world…And that the truth and the law and the mysteries may be revealed and may be taught to all men….For somehow or other, man, through these hundreds of years since our Lord was here as the great Messiah…Now Lord of this earth, and so close that his very breath is our breath, his very life is our life–somehow man has always sought to have his way, either in the material world or in the spiritual world in one way or another. And somehow, as in the ancient Hebrew rituals of the sacrificing of the fatted calf, man has not understood. For it is not until we are able as a body of dedicated brothers and priests, able to make that same sacrifice that was in the Jewish temple, the fatted calf—the over-filled mind. Until we have put our mind upon the altar, until we have laid down our whole being, can we listen to the voice of the Almighty God, and our Lord Jesus Christ from within our holy temples which have been prepared for Him.
I am not a professional theologian, so to speak. And I claim no degrees in that particular aspect of theology. I am a doctor of divinity, rightfully earned. But I know and I have been shown one particular thing. And it is supported by our Lord Jesus and His words. And I have often thought of it as I have read the lengthy works supporting some particular little passage or phrase of our Lord’s teaching. I have understood their writings. I am very appreciative of the great number of hours and the great effort that they have made in order to get to the point where they could read and understand the many languages, and the hours of dedication in giving these interpretations. I do not belittle them, nor do I belittle any man who acclaims or does assume the robe or the way of the ministry in any form or any church.
But as I read their works and listen to their discourses, I am so convinced that the Master Jesus Christ, our Lord of this earth, was so right when he said, “Unless ye be as little children, ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.” For unto this work, it cannot be of yourself. And ye can only be of our Lord. There are many things in this day that are attracting the young people in their search for good, to satisfy that appetite that comes from within. And it can only be supplied through the true and the truths of our Lord Jesus. Not something interpreted, but the reality.
And you know, it is an interesting thing. When we study back through the annals of history that we find that Christians existed long before our Lord and Master came here. But he sure had a big job to straighten things out in the formal church and dogmatic teaching. For Christ was worshipped thousands of years before our Lord came. And He’ll be worshipped thousands of years before. Why cannot we use, why cannot we appreciate as Christians, the very word which we annex and take as the title of our sect…catholic, not Roman, not Russian, not Parisian, but just catholic. Catholic in the way of the universal teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. Is not this sufficient, with all of the realities which back it up? With the practices of thousands of years prior to his coming, in the ancient wisdom teachings which explained the mysteries? And did he not tell us that in those days…in these days which we are now going through, that the mysteries would be revealed?
Rev. ___, and I wanted to say Brother ____, I see you searching, and I see every brother of the Order of Jesus, searching for the great truth. But it is not in Pentecostal or speaking of tongues. It is not in the analysis of the truth. It is not in one part of the Word of God. It is in the whole word brought both in all its beauty and reality. And I say to those whom are seeking to bring the Spirit into its reality…into manifestation, as the old Pentecostal and the old free Methodist used to do…and I know these and understand these religions because I was brought up in a free Methodist home, and I have been taught by some of your theologians as a Roman Catholic; and I have worshipped at the Temple of Giza; and I have walked the water and the fire, and I know from which I speak, and I speak the word of our Lord Jesus. Come back to the teachings of the Testament as they are, and seek to know and to acquire the Light. And look within thyself and accept and find thine own being. And when thy mind is still…and thy mind has been placed upon the altar of God Almighty,…through our Lord Jesus Christ, then will you hear his true voice, then will you hear the true Word, and then the Spirit will motivate the realities of creation unto you, and there will be no mysteries.
For there is a pitfall in the Pentecostal approach; when the ego goes on its demonstration. “Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven within you, and all of these things shall be added unto you.”
This I give to you as my answer to your letter. Not in vindictiveness, but just saying, Come, Brothers, let us follow the teachings which you have declared as your motto of that order, the Society of Jesus. Let him speak through you. And may God bless you throughout the world. AMEN
from Joe Kay associate minister at Nexus United Church of Christ, Butler County, Ohio: Peace takes a lot of faith and hope and courage and commitment. It takes the kind of spirit that the Rev. King described in his acceptance speech at Oslo, Norway, when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964:
“I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsam and jetsam in the river of life which surrounds him.
“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality. I believe that even amid today’s mortar bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow …
“I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits.
I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, other-centered men can build up. …
“I still believe that we shall overcome. This faith can give us courage to face the uncertainties of tomorrow.”
From Mother Ruth:
I gradually became convinced of the validity of reincarnation. It was the first truly just explanation of why some persons experience much adversity, while others are apparently cushioned from it and are instead very fortunate in life. This provided the hope that there really is more than one chance for everyone, and that one can act in the present to better his future.
It also brought out the fact that we have earned whatever situation we find ourselves in now, whether it is good or bad, and that this is not a haphazard matter of chance, or someone else’s fault, but represents infinite justice. (“The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine.”) This belief had a further freeing effect in that I could now entirely release the nagging belief that if my parents had shown greater wisdom in their affairs, it might have given us a better chance in life. Now I saw that I alone was responsible for where I was, but better still, that I could improve on this by acting in the best possible way from now on.
Perhaps the best result of all this reading, along with some broadening of understanding and a growing tolerance of other religions, was that it brought me round to the realization that Jesus outshone all the other teachers or avatars I read about, and led me to appreciate Christianity more deeply than ever before, whereas it had previously been a taken-for-granted matter of having been born into the Christian faith and culture…
I had become convinced of the reality of reincarnation. It was obvious that Jesus and his disciples also believed that a person might come to earth in a physical body more than once, as shown in Matthew 11:14, 16:14 and 17:13; also in Mark 9:13. Some of the early church fathers apparently did not agree with this and so shut out that teaching from the Christian churches. Not only have the churches omitted certain teachings but, which is worse, have become intolerant of others who believe them. Too often ignorance leads to pre-judgment, or in other words, “pre-judice’, which may be human enough, but should be kept to oneself, not promulgated…
EPILOGUE
As the final page is turned
And the words become a charcoaled haze,
The lamp is lit within your soul;
The knowledge becomes an unending blaze
The path may grow wide, then thin,
Be straight, then twist and turn:
And yet, you may rest assured
That the fire shall never harm nor mar
Nor the earthly flesh will it burn.
The door just closed
It can easily be opened again
By returning to the place you were,
To the cloud of mist that covers all of this.
Mirror on the wall, from this path do not let me fall.
–Memoirs of a Mystic