| Contents
Part 1: The Highest Meaning of
the Sacred Sacrament of the Eucharist
Introduction
The highest truths of God need to be intuitively
realised
Intuitive knowing, the pure comprehension
of the soul
How
can one experience the intuitive knowing of the Soul
Why
Jesus spoke to the masses in parables
The
Highest Meaning of the Flesh and Blood of Christ
Part 2: Constitution
on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium — Restoring
and advancing the
Sacred Liturgy through God-communion
Meditating
to commune with God through prayer
How
to Love God 'with all thy Soul'
Increasing
conscious and active participation in the sacred liturgy
Honouring
the highest meaning of the Sabbath
Meditating
and contemplating to fully understand and teach the deepest teachings
of the Bible
How
one ought to wisely study scripture written for our instruction
Educating
and training clergy
The
qualities to be cultivated for those who would teach in the name
of Christ
Meditation
techniques to hear the 'Word of God'
Further
spiritualising other sacraments
Further
spiritualising Holy days, feasts and festivals
Music
to increase devotion
Part
3: A message to the faithful about the Second Coming of our beloved
Christ
Peace on Earth
The
role of a strong Church
A
message of courage to those who fear change
Part
1: The Highest Meaning of the Sacred Sacrament of the Eucharist
Introduction
Then Jesus said unto them, "Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood,
ye have no life in you." John 6:53 (King James Version)
In
much of the text recorded in the Gospel of John, Jesus speaks challengingly
obscure truths in such cryptic analogies and metaphors that few
could understand what he was talking about. Sometimes Jesus confounded
even his own disciples:
Many
therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, "This
is an hard saying; who can hear it?" John 6:59-60 (King
James Version)
Before
we explore the deep meaning of Jesus' sacred words of truth above
it is helpful to have an understanding of why Jesus spoke of great
spiritual truths so cryptically.
The
highest truths of God need to be intuitively realised
For this is good and acceptable
in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to
be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 1
Timothy 2:3-4 (King James Version)
The Lord does not like us to suffer so whenever the Lord's
beloved flock wanders off into forgetfulness of him and misuses
their freewill to the point where they become hopelessly lost
he intervenes to dispel ignorance and lead them out of darkness
with his bright light of wisdom imparting truth.
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Through Jesus,
the Prophets and the Saints, God has brought the light of truth
to those in the darkness of delusion. Let know one, however, mistake
this for a simple task. Whilst teaching basic truths on morality
may be a straightforward matter; teaching great God-revealing spiritual
truths about the Kingdom of God, for instance, is another thing
entirely. Although such truths maybe fully understood by those who
speak of them, they have to translate them into words and sometimes
all the words in all the languages that have ever been spoken would
be insufficient to fully convey a God-given truth.
If
a person has never tasted an orange how can one describe it
to them? We can say it's sweet but a little tart. Until a
person tastes an orange, however, they'll never really understand.
In this
way the highest teachings of God can never be conveyed perfectly
by human languages—which are imperfect because man is
imperfect.
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Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift. 2 Corinthians 9:15
(King James Version)
Language
aside, God and His wisdom, no matter how well it is expressed in
the scriptures by Jesus, the prophets and the saints, are ever hidden
from the sense-identified intellects of worldly people who cannot
receive in their small cups of understanding the vast ocean of truth.
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ability to understand is limited because the senses are limited.
Man does not perceive the full spectrum of even material manifestations.
If the power of vision were increased one could see all kinds
of lights — atoms, electrons, photons, magnetic fields
— dancing around him. If the power of hearing were sufficiently
increased man could hear the hum of the atoms; the planets in
their course around the sun; and explosions of stars making
a tremendous rumbling throughout the universe. One could sense
the whole universe throbbing with life. |
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To
get a further perspective of just how limited our sense of sight
is, for example, consider that what we experience as visible
light consists of only a very narrow range of frequencies within
the electromagnetic spectrum (please see figure 1
opposite). Even then our knowledge of the electromagnetic
spectrum only includes what we can detect and measure.
Since the senses are limited so is intellectual understanding.
The senses and the mind are the outer door through which knowledge
percolates into the consciousness. Human knowledge filters in
through the senses and is interpreted by the mind. If the senses
err in perception, the conclusion drawn is also incorrect. A
white gossamer cloth fluttering in the distance may look like
a ghost, and a superstitious person may believe it is a ghost;
but closer observation reveals the error of the conclusion.
The senses and understanding are easily deluded because they
cannot grasp the real nature, the essential character and substance
of created things.
The perceptions
of imperfect, worldly-minded people are further restricted
to the sphere of their own limited life experiences and the
education they've received from other sense-identified people.
For these
reasons no-one should try to interpret spiritual truths equipped
only with reason, emotion and imagination. The highest teachings
of God need to be intuitively comprehended
and realised by each individual who seeks to fully know them.
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Figure
1
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Let no one suppose, that we may attain to this true light and perfect
knowledge, or life of Christ, by much questioning, or by hearsay,
or by reading and study, nor yet by high skill and great learning.
Theologia Germanica Chapter XIX
Intuitive knowing, the pure comprehension of the soul
The ultimate
truths of the Kingdom of God, the reality that lies behind sensory
perception and beyond the cogitations of the rationalising mind,
can only be grasped by intuition — awakening the intuitive
knowing, the pure comprehension of the Soul.
Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of
God dwelleth in you?
1 Corinthians 3:16 (King James Version)
The Soul within each of us is a pure, reflected unit of God's own
consciousness. It is individualised Spirit and it is the true and
immortal nature of man. As a Soul is made in God's image it already
has all knowledge of God and his Kingdom as an innate attribute.
This is why Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God is within us. (Luke
17:21)
Intuition is
the all knowing faculty of the soul, which enables one to experience
direct perception of truth without the intermediary of the senses.
(St Thomas of Aquinas gives an account of visions which are not
perceived through the senses but by immediate conception through
the intellect in Summa Theologiae). Through intuition perfect,
flawless knowledge of a particular subject or object can be revealed
instantly. Reason and logic may then follow on after like faithful
servants.
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see examples of this with famous scientists whose greatest discoveries
have often come as intuitive flashes of genius — the famous
'Ah ha!' moments. Such insights frequently come as a result
of persistent, deep concentration and a sincere desire to know
the object being contemplated. For instance, Albert Einstein
in discovering his famous special theory of relativity, which
sets out the relationship between matter and energy as E= mc²
(Specifically, energy (E) equals mass (m) times the square of
the speed of light (c² ),)
obviously did not get in space ship and travel near the speed
of light to observe this relationship. Nor did he infer it by
observing natural phenomena. Yet a catalogue of confirmations
including the use of modern day precision instrument testing
supports this theory. |
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When the solution is simple, God is answering. — Albert
Einstein
By
intuition we can also know the world of higher realities beyond
the senses and thoughts. By intuitional Soul awakening delusive
ignorance that gives rise to the ego (false sense of identity) and
obstructs awareness of the unity of man's Soul and God is removed.
That primordial forgetfulness is vanquished only by Soul-realisation,
through the power of which the soul directly apprehends its own
nature as individualised Spirit and perceives Spirit as the essence
of everything. In this way man swaps his mortal 'Son of man' or
body-consciousness for immortal 'Son of God' or Soul-consciousness.
Christian saints through the centuries have partaken of such Soul
intuition in their attainment of divine realisation and mystical
union with God.
How
can one experience the intuitive knowing of the Soul
'Be
still, and know that I am God' Psalm 46:10 (King James Version)
Intuition
develops naturally through meditation. Concentration is an unwavering
flow of attention on an object or subject. Meditation in our Christian
tradition is unwavering concentration used to know God. Meditation
becomes stable by devoted, persistent practice.
The heart is
the receiving station for intuition.
He
that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the
King shall be his friend. Proverbs 22:10-11 (King James
Version)
"Blessed
are the pure in heart: for they shall see God." Matthew
5:8 (King James Version)
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In summary,
much of what Jesus taught needs to be directly experienced and realised
for oneself. Then the things that confuse the intellect will bring
instant recognition and joy from the heart.
Why Jesus spoke to the masses in parables
The
same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side. And
great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went
into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, "Behold,
a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by
the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell
upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith
they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when
the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root,
they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung
up, and choked them: But other fell into good ground, and brought
forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
"Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." Matthew 13:1-9
(King James Version)
In
the well-known parable of the sower, the seed and the ground,
Jesus illustrates how divine seeds of truth grow or perish according
to the mental soil, or faith and receptivity, of the spiritual
aspirants on whom the seeds have been sown: "Listen attentively,
with wisdom, to the truth that here among you are devotees with
varying degrees of receptive minds on which have been sown the
seeds of my teachings.
"Some
seeds of truth fell by the wayside of the spiritual indifference
of curiosity seekers. Those seeds of potentially enlightening
intuitional experiences were trodden by the animals of material
habits and devoured by the fouls of doubts flying in the atmosphere
of the mind. |
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"Some seeds
of my teachings fell upon the rocky terrain of materially crude
minds with only a little soil of skin-deep spiritual perception
and appreciation. In such persons the teachings sprouted into some
short-lived, but not deep-rooted, spiritual experiences. When the
sun of daily material habits rose, those experiences were fatally
scorched. Because they did not form deep-rooted habits in the super-conscious
of the soul, they withered away due to lack of nourishment of continued
devotion and spiritual aspiration in new acts of meditation and
fervent effort.
"And some seeds of my teachings were sown on the mental soil
of persons filled with prolific thorns of spiritual distrust and
theological doubts. Thus, though those seeds sprouted somewhat is
such theologically inquisitive minds, those spiritual inspirations
could not survive when choked by the overwhelmingly predominant
thorns of theological scepticism. The ill-fated plants of inspiration
could bear no fruits of divine wisdom or God-contact.
| "Other
seeds of my teachings fell on the soil of mentalities furnished
and ploughed by receptivity, watered with continuous goodness
and regular, deep spiritual effort at meditation, and hedged
in by good company so that the animals and birds of material
minds and doubts could not invade and destroy the burgeoning
garden of soul qualities. In those protected, receptive minds,
the seeds of truth grew into trees laden with the fruits of
Soul-realisation. These human trees, strong and sturdy, could
withstand any onslaughts while providing an increasing yield
of wisdom, ever new bliss , and the advancement in divine attainment
of spiritual qualities — thirty, sixty, one hundredfold." |
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Jesus' analogy
makes it plain that a true disciple, by virtue of a dedicated spiritual
life, is fertile ground in which his teachings can be successfully
sown. What makes the difference in receptivity is whether one's
desire and effort to know truth are strong. The most responsive
are those who have an ardent desire for God.
The parable
of the sower and the seed points out how the various good or bad
habits of persons affect whether the soil of their minds is fertile
or stony. Even if one feels thwarted by bad habits that are already
formed, that opposition can be overcome by one's strong spiritual
desire and faithful adherence to Christ's teachings. The highest
intelligence is to be able to change what needs to be changed in
one's life so that continual soul progress is possible.
"Who hath
ears to hear, let him hear." Obviously the people weren't physically
deaf. Jesus meant: "He who is receptive and hears with spiritual
understanding what I say, let him appreciate the truth in my words
and live by them for complete Soul-emancipation."
The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful
servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and
has forgotten the gift. — Albert Einstein
Modern
studies show that most worldly-minded people have an average attention
span of around three seconds; meaning that if they focus their mind
on a particular thought their attention will jump to another thought
after just three seconds. If they never learn to master their restless
minds and turn the search light of their senses within through meditation,
then they cannot intuitively understand the highest mysteries of
God within.
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great spiritual truth about the Kingdom of God were taught directly
to the unprepared and untrained masses they would not be able
to comprehend such teachings and they would misinterpret them.
In addition, in attempting to share those teachings with others,
instead of passing them on word for word, people would likely
re-interpret what they thought they heard — some would
even adapt the teachings to suit their own agendas and perceived
self-interests. Through such continuous distortions spiritual
truths would quickly become diluted and lost as time passed
by. |
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Knowing this,
at public gatherings Jesus spoke in parables that expounded some
of the most profound spiritual truths ever voiced using simple terminology
that conveyed different layers of meanings depending on his intended
audience and their ability to understand truth through their own
intuition. In Matthew 13: 10 -13 and Mark 4:10-12
he explains to his disciples why he used parables and that there
is deeper meanings in his teachings.
And
the disciples came, and said unto him, "Why speakest thou unto
them in parables?"
He answered and said unto them, "Because it is given unto you
to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is
not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall
have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken
away even that he hath."
"Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing
see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand."
Matthew 13:10-13 (King James Version)
Parallel reference:
And when he was alone, they that were about
him with the twelve asked of him the parable. And he said unto them,
"Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of
God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in
parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing
they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should
be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them." Mark
4:10-12 (King James Version)
When Jesus was asked in the above passages why he used parables
he answered:
"Because
it is so ordained that you who are my real disciples, living a spiritualised
life and disciplining your actions according to my teachings, deserve
by virtue of your inner awakening in your meditations to understand
the truth of the arcane mysteries of heaven and how to attain the
Kingdom of God. But ordinary people, unprepared in their receptivity,
are not able to either comprehend or to practice the deeper wisdom
truths. From parables, they glean according to their understanding
simple truths from the wisdom I send out to them. By practical application
of what they are able to receive, they make some progress toward
redemption.
| "Because
your are receptive and advanced in spiritual thought, the expanded
cup of your understanding can hold the oceanic revelations of
truth which I have poured into you from my own realisation in
the state of Christ Consciousness (God's consciousness within
vibratory creation that is actively creating and recreating)
and Cosmic Consciousness (God the Father's pure consciousness
outside of creation that is eternal and unchanging bliss): the
Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God." |
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(The
difference between ‘Jesus’ (Son of man) and ‘Christ’
(Son of God) is explained by Jesus in the Matthew
22:41-46
because the Pharisees did not understand the difference between
the incarnate Messiah and the infinite Christ Consciousness he embodied.
Commentary on this important verse is given in the Christmas
Meditation Service)
The Kingdom of God is the infinite kingdom of the one King of Absolute
Existence, Absolute Consciousness and Absolute Bliss untouched by
vibratory manifestations. The Kingdom of Heaven is the wondrous
realm of heavenly forces and beings, imbued with the omnipresent
Christ Consciousness. The state of Cosmic Consciousness can be felt
by souls who in meditation have withdrawn from the region of the
body and gone beyond the subconscious and concentration on the super-conscious
bliss perceptions of the Kingdom of Heaven and the immanent Christ
state. But unto those souls that are yet wholly identified with
their mortal physical bodies (Son of Man consciousness) rather than
their immortal Souls (Son of God consciousness); all these subtle
perceptions about the states of heaven, Christ Consciousness and
Cosmic Consciousness are explained in coverings of parables, lest
those persons scorn, for lack of understanding, that sacred knowledge
of fully revealed truth. Unreceptive persons would not even try
to fathom the deeper truths by which they could be free from their
bad habits of materiality, "lest they should be converted"
from body-identified souls into spiritual beings, through the grace
of God and their own effort.
Jesus then cites
an exact law that governs all habits. "Whosoever hath"
created a habit of spirituality shall attract perceptions of Soul
-realisation from within himself; and having the taste of soul wisdom
and bliss, shall grow more spiritual habits, attracting greater
manifestations of soul unfoldment. "But whosoever hath not"—
that is, cares not to possess or create spiritual habits of meditation
and living — must lose, owing to the lack of tasting the spiritual
joy of soul-realisation and forgetfulness of God any spiritual habit
that might be latent within him.
"Therefore
my disciples, I speak in parables, covering the meat of truth with
the shell of mystical words and esoteric illustrations. Just as
the bird does not know the use of a nut cracker to get to a kernel
within the nutshell, so ordinary minds do not see the way of using
intuition to break through the shells of parables and get the wisdom
hidden therein. Such persons lacking intuitive perception do not
hear the revelations of truth accompanying my words, even though
they hear the wisdom falling from my lips. It is though they never
heard at all."
In Mark 4:21 - 25 and Luke 8:16 - 18 Jesus goes
on to emphasize in additional metaphors how important it is for
his disciples to understand, through their own intuitive Soul-realisation,
the deeper truths hidden in his parables.
And
he said unto them, "Is a candle brought to be put under
a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?
For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither
was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. If
any man have ears to hear, let him hear."
And he said unto them, "Take heed what ye hear: with what
measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that
hear shall more be given. For he that hath, to him shall be
given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that
which he hath." Mark 4:21-25 (King James Version) |
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Parallel reference:
"No man, when he hath lighted a candle,
covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth
it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light.
For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither
any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad. Take heed
therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given;
and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which
he seemeth to have." Luke 8:16-18 (King James Version)
"No devotee of God who has kindled the candle of
intuitive perception of truth by the match of meditation keeps it
ignorantly hidden under a bushel of restless thoughts, or obscured
by forgetfulness under the bed of his subconscious. Rather, he keeps
that flame of Soul-realisation burning constantly on the candlestick
of his conscious mind, so that all thoughts are illumined by his
light of inner realisation. One who continuously keeps his candle
of Soul-realisation burning on the candlesticks of his consciousness
and memory will find that no truth will remain hidden from him;
all will be manifested or revealed in the perception of inner illumination.
There is nothing concealed in the universe that will not be known
to a devotee with inner light. Every truth hidden in the deepest
mysteries will perforce be brought out in the devotee's illuminating
inner vision.
"If anyone
has a keen perception and receptive ears of spirituality let him
hear these truths of awakening Soul-realisation and live them.
"Take care
to practice the truths you hear from me and meditate on them. As
much as will be your efforts to know truth, so much wisdom will
you receive from my words. Those of you who will meditate deeply
and live by sermons will receive greater Soul-realisation; and those
of you who will pay less attention to practicing my teachings will
receive commensurately less."
The
Highest Meaning of the Flesh and Blood of Christ
Now let us turn our attention to the most sacred mystery of
the Eucharist from the view points of the ones who enter the
temple of silence within; and offering themselves fully in loving
devotion receive inner communion with beloved Christ:
"I
am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man
eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that
I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the
world." John 6:51 (King James Version) |
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"I am the
living bread which came down from heaven: The I-am human consciousness
in me is united with the ever-living Christ Intelligence, which
is omnipresent behind the subtle, heavenly screen of the ubiquitous
Cosmic Energy and is fully manifested in me. If any devotee continuously
nourishes his life with this bread of Christ Intelligence, his life
also will be united forever with everlasting life. And the bread,
or Christ Intelligence, manifesting as my flesh, or condensed Cosmic
Energy, I (the infinite Christ) will give to the true devotee that
he may unite it with the life force in his body (which is the 'life
of the world') and thereby realise his own immortality as Soul.
"For the
masses in general, that they might be stirred to seek awakening
of the everlasting life in them, I Jesus, will sacrifice on the
cross my flesh of condensed Cosmic Energy, which after three days
will be quickened into Christ Consciousness and immortality."
The
Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, "How can this
man give us his flesh to eat?"
Then Jesus said unto them, "Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood,
ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,
hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For
my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth
my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As
the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he
that eateth me, even he shall live by me." John 6:52-57
(King James Version)
The people were dismayed: "Is this man advocating cannibalism
by offering us his flesh?" Jesus persisted, though their doubting
materialistic minds were unable to understand the wisdom concealed
within the esoteric metaphor:
"Unless the devotee eats and absorbs the 'flesh' of Christ
consciousness hidden in the Son of man, or human body, and drinks
and absorbs his 'blood' of vitality-giving Cosmic energy present
also within the body, he cannot feel the everlasting life templed
within him.
"Most of you are the living dead, the walking dead; you neither
perceive the everlasting life within you nor do you charge your
life with the holy vibration of Cosmic Energy and your consciousness
with the Christ consciousness hidden behind your body consciousness.
"Any devotee
who by ecstasy can absorb in his human consciousness my Christ consciousness
(flesh) and who can unite his life force in the body with my omnipotent
Cosmic Energy (blood) will find his consciousness immortal and his
life eternal. For my flesh of Christ Consciousness present in all
souls is the real meat or sustenance that can satisfy one's hunger
for wisdom - the all knowingness of divine realisation. And my blood
of Christ Intelligence - guided cosmic energy is the only vitality
that can charge human life with immortality, and quench the thirst
of all earthly desires.
| "The
devotee who by deep ecstatic meditation has absorbed my Christ
Consciousness in his human consciousness and recharged his life
force with the Christ Consciousness-guided cosmic energy is
united in his being with Christ Consciousness—'he dwelleth
in me as I in him.' As the ever-living God the Father (Cosmic
Consciousness present beyond vibratory creation) has 'sent me,'
reflected his everlasting life as the Christ Intelligence (present
in all vibratory creation); and the Christ Consciousness 'lives
by the Father' Cosmic Consciousness, so also the devotee who
absorbs (eateth) the Christ Consciousness finds that his consciousness
and life are sustained forever by that Infinite Intelligence,
which is equally present in the body of the devotee and my body
which is called Jesus." |
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In the metaphorical
words of these Gospel verses Jesus enunciated very profound truths.
Christ Consciousness (bread) and Cosmic Energy (blood) are inseparable,
as Christ Consciousness is the reflection in creation of Cosmic
Consciousness (which is beyond creation) manifested as Cosmic Energy
or vibratory creation.
God the Father
and Cosmic Consciousness are synonymous: Christ the Son and Christ
Consciousness are one and the same. God the Father emanated from
Himself His Son, Christ Intelligence and the Holy Spirit, Cosmic
Energy. As a son is conceived with the dual instrumentality of the
father and the mother, so Christ Intelligence would not exist without
the dual instrumentality of God the Father and Cosmic Energy (Holy
Spirit or Cosmic Mother Nature). With God the Father remaining transcendent
beyond creation, Christ Intelligence, 'the bread or flesh', and
the Cosmic Energy or 'blood', being inseparably together in creation,
work to manifest the different forms existant in the universal spectacle.
These
things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum. Many
therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, "This
is an hard saying; who can hear it?"
When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he
said unto them, "Doth this offend you? What and if ye shall
see the Son of man ascend up where he was before? It is the spirit
that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak
unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." John 6:59-63
(King James Version)
Sometimes
Jesus confounded even his disciples; save for a few: "I am
amazed that you who have followed me thus far still do not understand
with intuitive receptivity the priceless wisdom I give to you; rather
you are murmuring your misunderstanding amongst yourselves. You
doubt my words and wonder at my sayings, but how much more astonished
you would be if you see my body, the Son of man, go back to the
Christ Consciousness from where it came?"
The consciousness of Jesus was tuned already with Christ Consciousness;
and here Jesus alludes obliquely to his foreknowledge that his body,
though visibly apart from Christ Consciousness, but being an emanation
of that Consciousness, would consciously merge in it when the proper
moment arrived.
Jesus tells his doubting disciples that if they wonder at his amazing
sayings, they would have cause to be wholly astonished when they
would behold his body after crucifixion return to life and be received
by heavenly Christ Consciousness. Jesus thereby promised his doubting
disciples a demonstration of spirit and life contained in the truth
of his words.
"When
you concentrate on the Spirit, you understand that the Infinite
Immortality can enliven your temporary life with eternal life.
It is the flesh consciousness, the doubting material consciousness
within you, that will yield you no profit, no lasting happiness.
It is spiritual understanding that can quickly lead you to
eternal emancipation.
"The
words of wisdom I speak unto you 'are Spirit, and they are
life, 'they are charged with the Cosmic Consciousness of the
Spirit and can give life to the spiritually dead, as are some
of you. I know those among you who believe not that the universal
panacea for human suffering lies hidden behind the words of
my wisdom, if they are truly applied and fully realised."
Later in the Gospels we come to the Last Supper:
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And
he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them,
saying, "This is my body which is given for you: this do in
remembrance of me."
Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the
new testament in my blood, which is shed for you." Luke
22:19-20 (King James Version)
Parallel reference:
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread,
and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and
said, "Take, eat; this is my body."
And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying,
"Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the new testament,
which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matthew 26:26-28
(King James Version)
| Jesus
had earlier declared the metaphorical nature of the sacrament
of his flesh and blood, so the apostles understood the esoteric
significance of the symbolic 'bread' and 'cup' offered by Jesus
at the Last Supper. This is implicit as he relates the symbology
to his crucifixion and 'the new testament', "As
I break this bread and give it to you for your physical nourishment,
likewise I offer my little body called Jesus to be broken and
crucified, that through the example of my life and my sacrifice
your spiritual life can be nourished. So whenever you break
bread and give thanks to God and eat, remember my breaking bread
for you on the eve of my sacrifice; celebrate it as a symbol
of my offering this body for the sake of your spiritual development
and that of all humanity. |
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"In the
cup I give to you, receive the new testament sent by God through
me for your liberation: his message for which my blood is shed for
you. It is the spirit of willingness to sacrifice everything, even
life itself, for the sake of attaining eternal liberation in God-consciousness.
This shall be signified by my crucifixion. Drink the immortalising
wisdom from the cup of my supreme sacrifice on the cross, which
is to inspire you and all peoples of the world to make sacrifices
necessary to attain God-consciousness. Thereby, you will have found
the way to liberation from suffering the cause and effect consequences
of your past sinful actions."
Jesus spoke
of his sacrifice on the cross as the cup, and of the spiritual lesson
involved in his crucifixion as the contents of the cup of sacrifice.
When he asked his disciples to drink all of that cup, he did not
mean literal physical crucifixion is necessary in order to know
God — nor that physical crucifixion alone bestows Christhood.
To manifest his exalted state, Jesus had crucified ignorance by
wisdom, restlessness by meditation, desires by renunciation, sense
temptations by interiorisation of his consciousness, hatred by love,
selfishness by unselfishness, before he was ready to take on victoriously
the sufferings of the cross. These are important prerequisites to
Christhood. Anyone who can crucify physical attachment by God-communion
will reach a state wherein even bodily crucifixion, in whatever
form, can be endured, if necessary, for God and truth.
| Jesus'
request that his disciples share the cup, therefore, was an
exhortation to absorb into their own being his "blood of
the new testament" that would awaken in them the Christ
Consciousness-imbued qualities of his exemplary life. His selfless
sacrifice on the cross was the ultimate demonstration of his
immortality-bestowing teachings of forgiveness, divine love,
unshakable fortitude, wisdom, judgment, will power, supreme
love of God, love and compassion for God's children, overcoming
brute force with spiritual force, self-surrender (supplanting
the wishes of the little ego-self by obedience to the will of
God). |
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In saying that
his blood was to be "shed for many for the remission of sins,"
Jesus never meant that his crucifixion could wash away the sins
of mere 'believers' for all time to come. Such a possibility suggests
a profound non-understanding of the complexity of "sin"
and its roots in the universal law of cause and effect (the law
of reaping what we sow). Obtaining forgiveness is more than a matter
of belief. It requires the neutralisation of the residual tendency
seeds — and their potential for painful consequences —
left in the wrongdoer's consciousness by his sinful actions. Certainly
Jesus could partially or wholly free repentant devotees from the
fruition of such seeds, cauterizing them by use of divine will force.
But it is a metaphysical error to think that merely because of professed
belief in Jesus as Saviour, one can feel free to act in any way
one pleases within variably broad moral constraints — behaving
in worldly ways and clinging to material desires and attachments
— and yet be saved from after death consequences by the sacrifice
Jesus made on the cross two thousand years ago.
In his reference
to the remissions of sins Jesus was stating primarily that the extraordinary
example of his sacrifice on the cross, through which he attained
complete liberation in Cosmic Consciousness — freedom from
the willingly accepted bonds of his mortal incarnation — would
serve to inspire earnest truth-seekers to forsake inferior material
attachments for the supreme attainment of God-consciousness. Reaching
this state, they would be free from all sins.
In
all the above ways did the glorified example of Jesus' life,
death and resurrection reveal the new teaching, "the new
testament" or covenant between God and man, which had been
foretold by the prophet Jeremiah:
"Behold, the days come," saith the Lord, "that
I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with
the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made
with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to
bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they
brake, although I was an husband unto them," saith the
Lord:
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"But
this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel;
After those days," saith the Lord, "I will put my law
in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be
their God, and they shall be my people." Jeremiah 31:31-33
(King James Version)
Jesus proclaimed this new covenant throughout his teachings, summarised
in his clear declaration: "...Behold the kingdom of God is
within you." (Luke 17:21)
"And
they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man
his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord': for they shall all know me,
from the least of them unto the greatest of them," saith the
Lord: "for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember
their sin no more." Jeremiah 31:34 (King James Version)
Literal
interpreters down the centuries have bequeathed to church goers
the belief that, 'for the remission of sins', Jesus during the Passover
feast asked that people believe that they actually partake of his
body and his blood —'the blood of the Lamb' (Revelation
7:14) "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the
world" (John 1:29), who "washed us from our sins
in his own blood" (Revelation 1:5). During the original
Passover each Hebrew family sacrificed and partook of the flesh
of the lamb, and the lamb's blood with which they marked their homes
procured safety during the divine punishment visited upon the Egyptians.
Jesus used the familiar symbology of the Passover rites to declare
the new testament, the covenant brought to the world through his
life. Jesus would not have alluded to a practice even metaphorically
equated to a concept of cannibalism.
| Jesus
showed again and again that his 'body' was not himself. He was
Spirit; he could pass through walls and walk on water because
he knew the real substance of his form to be consciousness.
So 'flesh of Christ' means consciousness. 'Blood' means the
life of Christ, the Holy Spirit Cosmic Energy that is the life
and light of the little body called Jesus and his cosmic body
the universe. |
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The outward
ritual of symbolically celebrating the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion
with bread and wine blesses sincere church-goers with devotional
upliftment and inspiration; but those who have true communion with
Christ can perceive Jesus not merely in a ritualistic symbolic form,
but in the formless infinitude as one with the all-pervading Christ
Consciousness and the Universal Light of the Holy Spirit Cosmic
Energy.
Teresa of Avila spoke of seeing the formless Christ. She was much
persecuted by the church officials for this abstruse assertion,
until they discovered that centuries earlier the great church philosopher
Saint Thomas Aquinas had also written of communion with the formless
Christ in Summa Theologia. In extremely learned terms he
presents an account of visions which are not perceived through the
senses but in species impressa, by immediate conception
through the intellect. The body of Jesus was only a speck of matter,
but behind that was infinite Christ Consciousness and the Infinite
Energy of Vibratory Cosmic Light.
Saint John to
his contemporary followers of Jesus:
"This then is the message which we have
heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him
is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him,
and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk
in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from
all sin." 1 John 1:5-7 (King James Version)
Anyone,
of any religion or any era, who sees that Sacred Vibratory Light
of God and his reflected Christ Consciousness, finds that immediately
that Light changes the brain cells. This is the real import of partaking
of the blood of Christ. By bathing in that Light, which was and
is his manifest life and power, deeply meditating devotees are cleansed
in the 'blood' of Divine Energy that cauterizes their ignorance,
bad habits, and seeds of subconscious tendencies from past sins.
And those who tune in with his consciousness have truly tasted his
'flesh' of Christ Consciousness, "the bread that came down
from heaven" of which "he that eateth...shall live forever."
It is this that
Jesus desired his devotees to do "in remembrance of me."
| The
words of our beloved Jesus were not bookish dissertations, but
emanated directly from the wisdom fountain of Cosmic Consciousness
and the life-sustaining Christ Consciousness guided Cosmic Energy.
The wise and spiritually inclined retire every day from the
cacophonous busyness of thoughts and secrete themselves in the
caves of silence deep in the clefts of contemplation. There
the true devotee drinks from the fountain of Spirit and Life. |
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Part 2: Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy:
Sacrosanctum Concilium: Restoring and
advancing the
Sacred Liturgy through God-communion
From
the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium,
Paragraphs 1:5:
1.
This sacred Council has several aims in view: it desires to
impart an ever increasing vigor to the Christian life of the
faithful; to adapt more suitably to the needs of our own times
those institutions which are subject to change; to foster whatever
can promote union among all who believe in Christ; to strengthen
whatever can help to call the whole of mankind into the household
of the Church. The Council therefore sees particularly cogent
reasons for undertaking the reform and promotion of the liturgy.
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"But
the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship
the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to
worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship
him in spirit and in truth." John 4:23-24 (King James Version)
The reason that God remains unknown to millions who worship Him
in temples, churches, and in holy cities and places of pilgrimage
is that the physical instruments of knowledge can apprehend only
the products of the Creator; Divinity Itself is perceived by the
supramental faculty of intuition, the soul's God-given power of
knowing truth. When mental restlessness is stilled and consciousness
is interiorised, in touch with the soul, the God revealing intuitive
faculty is awakened.
The tabernacle
of deep meditation, the temple of soul intuition, is where the devotee
is first introduced to God. To one who finds Him within, God is
no longer an unknown mystery concealed by His various material manifestations.
Such people establish the temple of God within themselves as the
following passage prescribes:
"The
most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith
the prophet, 'Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool:
what house will ye build me?' saith the Lord: or 'what is the
place of my rest? Hath not my hand made all these things?"
Acts 7:48-50 (quoting Isaiah 66:1-2)
This solid foundation of truth should be used to reform and
advance the liturgy if the household of the Church is to be
a strong, united household of the Lord's children. |
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2. For the liturgy, "through which the work of our
redemption is accomplished," [1] most of all
in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist, is the outstanding means
whereby the faithful may express in their lives, and manifest to
others, the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.
It is of the essence of the Church that she be both human and divine,
visible and yet invisibly equipped, eager to act and yet intent
on contemplation, present in this world and yet not at home in it;
and she is all these things in such wise that in her the human is
directed and subordinated to the divine, the visible likewise to
the invisible, action to contemplation, and this present world to
that city yet to come, which we seek [2]. While the liturgy
daily builds up those who are within into a holy temple of the Lord,
into a dwelling place for God in the Spirit [3],
to the mature measure of the fullness of Christ [4], at
the same time it marvellously strengthens their power to preach
Christ, and thus shows forth the Church to those who are outside
as a sign lifted up among the nations [5] under which the scattered
children of God may be gathered together [6], until there is one
sheepfold and one shepherd [7].
3. Wherefore the sacred Council judges that
the following principles concerning the promotion and reform of
the liturgy should be called to mind, and that practical norms should
be established.
Among these principles and norms there are some which can and should
be applied both to the Roman rite and also to all the other rites.
The practical norms which follow, however, should be taken as applying
only to the Roman rite, except for those which, in the very nature
of things, affect other rites as well.
4.
Lastly, in faithful obedience to tradition, the sacred Council
declares that holy Mother Church holds all lawfully acknowledged
rites to be of equal right and dignity; that she wishes to preserve
them in the future and to foster them in every way. The
Council also desires that, where necessary, the rites be revised
carefully in the light of sound tradition, and that they be
given new vigour to meet the circumstances and needs of modern
times.
The
Nature of the Sacred Liturgy and Its Importance in the Church's
Life
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5.
God who "wills that all men be saved and come to the knowledge
of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4), "who in many and various ways
spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets" (Heb. 1:1),
when the fullness of time had come sent His Son, the Word made flesh,
anointed by the Holy Spirit, to preach the the gospel to the poor,
to heal the contrite of heart [8], to be a "bodily and spiritual
medicine" [9], the Mediator between God and man [10]. For His
humanity, united with the person of the Word, was the instrument
of our salvation. Therefore in Christ "the perfect achievement
of our reconciliation came forth, and the fullness of divine worship
was given to us" [11].
From the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium,
Paragraph 10 -16:
10....the
(sacred) liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the
Church is directed; at the same time it is the font from which all
her power flows. For the aim and object of apostolic works
is that all who are made sons of God by faith and baptism should
come together to praise God in the midst of His Church, to take
part in the sacrifice, and to eat the Lord's supper.
| The
liturgy in its turn moves the faithful, filled with "the
paschal sacraments," to be "one in holiness"
[26]; it prays that "they may hold fast in their lives
to what they have grasped by their faith" [27]; the
renewal in the Eucharist of the covenant between the Lord and
man draws the faithful into the compelling love of Christ and
sets them on fire. From the liturgy, therefore, and
especially from the Eucharist, as from a font, grace is poured
forth upon us; and the sanctification of men in Christ and the
glorification of God, to which all other activities of the Church
are directed as toward their end, is achieved in the most efficacious
possible way. |
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11.
But in order that the liturgy may be able to produce its
full effects, it is necessary that the faithful come to it with
proper dispositions, that their minds should be attuned
to (God ) their voices, and that they should cooperate with divine
grace lest they receive it in vain. [28] Pastors of souls
must therefore realize that, when the liturgy is celebrated, something
more is required than the mere observation of the laws governing
valid and licit celebration; it is their duty also to ensure that
the faithful take part fully aware of what they are doing, actively
engaged in the rite, and enriched by its effects.
12. The spiritual life, however, is not limited solely to participation
in the liturgy. The Christian is indeed called to pray with
his brethren, but he must also enter into his chamber to pray to
the Father, in secret [29]; yet more, according to the
teaching of the Apostle, he should pray without ceasing
[30]. We learn from the same Apostle that we must always
bear about in our body the dying of Jesus, so that
the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodily
frame [31]. This is why we ask the Lord in the sacrifice
of the Mass that, "receiving the offering of the spiritual
victim," he may fashion us for himself "as an
eternal gift" [32].
Meditating
to commune with God through prayer
"But
thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou
hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and
thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
Matthew 6:6 (King James Version)
"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet (withdraw
the mind into the silence within) and when thou hast shut thy
door (the door of the senses), pray to thy Father which is in
secret (in the inner transcendent divine consciousness); and
thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly (shall
bless you with the ever new Bliss of his Being)."
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Pray
without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (King James Version)
Unceasing prayer involves repetition — not vain or mechanical,
but spiritualised with ever-increasing thoughtful, heartfelt devotion.
The devotee who continuously keeps the mind on God, intensifying
the thoughts of his prayer, unceasingly reining in the attention
regardless of how many times it wanders away is sure to find divine
contact.
To utter "God" with devotion , and increase the concentration
and devotion with each repetition of His name, is to plunge the
mind deeper and deeper in the ocean of His presence until one reaches
fathomless depths of divine peace and ecstatic joy, sure proof that
one's prayers have touched God.
"But
when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for
they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth
what things ye have need of, before ye ask him." Matthew
6:7-8 (King James Version)
Prayer with devotion is a wonderful means of opening oneself
to the freely flowing blessings of God, a necessary link of
man's life to the Infinite Source of all benefaction. But it
takes a long time for prayer to be effective when the mind is
outwardly roaming. That is why we should deeply meditate first
and then pray. |
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How to Love God 'with all thy Soul'
Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting
him, and saying, "Master, which is the great commandment in
the law?"
Jesus said unto him, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This
is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto
it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets." Matthew 22:35-40 (King
James Version)
Parallel references:
And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and
tempted him, saying, "Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal
life?"
He said unto him, "What is written in the law? how readest
thou?"
And he answering said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength,
and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself."
And he said unto him, "Thou hast answered right: this do, and
thou shalt live." Luke 10:25-28 (King James Version)
See also Mark 12:28-34
The
whole purpose of religion — indeed life itself — is
encapsulated in the two paramount commandments cited by our beloved
Lord Jesus in these verses. In them lies the essence of eternal
truth distinguishing all bona-fide spiritual paths, the irreducible
imperative that man must embrace as an individualised soul separated
from God if he would reclaim the realisation of oneness with his
Maker.
"This
do, and thou shalt live," Jesus told the lawyer who had
asked how to obtain eternal life. That is: "If you can
love God wholly in actual communion in daily meditation, and
show by your actions your love for your neighbour (your divine
brother) even as you love yourself, you will rise above mortal
consciousness of this delusive plane of life and death and realise
the eternal changeless Spirit existing within yourself and Its
everywhere-ness."
To love God,
Jesus declared, is the foremost of cosmic laws ordained by the
Spirit for soul upliftment and liberation; for through the portal
of man's love God enters into oneness with him, a union that
liberates him from bondage of delusion. To love God supremely
is to receive from Him eternal contentment and fulfilment, with
freedom from all human desires that irresponsibly provoke suffering.
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For God to
command that man love Him above everything else might seem unbecoming
of an all-powerful Deity. But all saints have known in their hearts
that this is not to appease some quixotic whim of God, but rather
a necessity through which the individualised soul can make a conscious
connection with its Source. God can live without man's love; but
as the wave cannot live without the ocean, so it is not possible
for man to exist without the love of God. The thirst for love in
every human heart is because man is made in God's image of love.
So those who know God call upon mankind to love God because the
ocean of His love surges behind the little wave of love in every
heart.
Many a worldly person foolishly engages their heart, mind, soul
and physical strength in the pursuit of money or human love or earthly
power, only to lose them — if perchance they had found them
— at the time of death. The wisest use of life is to invest
it in seeking God, the one treasure that satisfies forever and can
never be lost or diminished.
| Though
one must love God in order to know Him, it is equally true that
one must know God in order to love Him. No one can love anything
of which they are entirely ignorant; no one can love a person
who is completely unknown to them. But those who meditate deeply
do 'know,' because they find proof of the existence of God as
the ever new Joy felt in meditation, or the Cosmic Sound of
Aum (Amen) heard in deep silence, or the Cosmic Love
experienced while concentrating devotion in the heart, or the
Cosmic Wisdom that dawns as inner enlightenment, or the Cosmic
Light evoking visions of Infinity, or the Cosmic Life felt in
meditation when the little life is joined to the greater Life
in everything. |
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Any devotee
who even once has sensed God as any one of His tangible manifestations
in meditation cannot but help but love Him when thus touched by
His thrilling qualities. Most people never really love God because
they little know how lovable the Lord is when He visits the heart
of the meditating devotee. This actual contact of the transcendental
presence of God is possible to determined devotees who persist in
meditation and continuous soulful prayers.
There is but one Originator of all capabilities of man: God. For
God is the Creator of our love with which we love, of our souls
with which we claim immortality, of our minds and mental processes
with which we think, reason and accomplish, of our vitality with
which we engage in activities of life. We should use all these gifts
in a supreme energetic effort in meditation to express our love
for God until we feel consciously His responding manifestation.
To "love God with all your heart" means to seek union
with God through unconditional love and devotion. Whatever is in
a person's heart, that is where their concentration is — on
the things they love. As a lover's heart is on the beloved and the
drunkard's is on the drink, so the devotee's heart is continuously
absorbed in love of their Divine Beloved.
To "love God with all your mind" means focused concentration.
This means focusing the mind one-pointedly through definite techniques,
so that during the time of worship the devotee is able to keep their
whole attention on God. If while offering prayerful devotions the
mind is constantly flitting to thoughts of work or food or bodily
sensations or other diversions that is not loving God with all the
mind.
To "love God with all your soul" means to enter the state
of super-conscious ecstasy, direct perception of the soul and its
oneness with God. When no thoughts cross the mind, but there is
conscious all-knowingness, when one knows through intuitive realisation
that they can do anything just by ordering it, then one is in the
expanded state of super-consciousness. It is the realisation of
the soul as the reflection of God, the soul's connection with the
consciousness of God. It is a state of exceeding joy: the soul's
crystalline perception of the omnipresent Spirit reflected as the
joy of meditation.
To
love God with all the soul requires the complete stillness of
transcendent interiorization.
This cannot be achieved while praying aloud, moving the hands
this way and that, singing or chanting, or doing anything else
that activates the sensory-muscular apparatus of the body. Just
as in deep sleep the body and senses become inert, that inner
withdrawal is characteristic also of super-conscious ecstasy
— only ecstasy is much deeper than sleep. Ten million
sleeps do not describe the joy of it. That is the state in which
one can know the soul, and with that true Self wholly adore
Him who is love itself. |
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"I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our
Lord (Christ Consciousness), I die daily." 1 Corinthians
15:31 (King James Version)
The average church-goer may attempt to feel love and devotion for
God in their heart; and to put their mind on God as best they can
during prayer; but when it comes to loving God with all their soul
they are at a loss as they do not even know what the soul is.
It is wise that the Holy Mother Church teaches and encourages meditation
in all places of worship to provide for this fundamental need of
all those who would follow Christ.
13. '...But these devotions should be so drawn
up that they harmonize with the liturgical seasons, accord with
the sacred liturgy, are in some fashion derived from it, and lead
the people to it, since, in fact, the liturgy by its very nature
far surpasses any of them.'
The Promotion of Liturgical Instruction and Active Participation
14. Mother Church earnestly desires that all the faithful
should be led to that fully conscious and active participation in
liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of
the liturgy.
Increasing
conscious and active participation in the sacred liturgy
If modern studies show that most worldly people have an average
attention span of around three seconds, as stated earlier, then
it can be reasonably expected that most church-goers will have
their attentions distracted by competing hoards of restless,
worldly thoughts, temptations, and worries from daily life through
out much of the worship. How then can they be 'fully conscious'
as 'is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy'?
It is recommended
that, a ten minute silent meditation on Christ should precede
the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. Other ten minute silent
meditations should also be gently introduced to the beginning
of mass and at the most appropriate times as the Holy Mother
Church sees fit to help further spiritualise sacred ritual.
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It is also recommended
that on Sundays clergy lead the faithful in early morning and afternoon
meditation services with longer periods of group meditation (especially
for the highest needs of devoted church-goers who become proficient
meditators).
These
recommendations are given to honour the highest meaning of the Sabbath.
Honouring
the highest meaning of the Sabbath
Through Moses came the scriptural command:
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it
holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh
day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do
any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor
thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within
thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the
Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. Exodus 20:8-11
(King James Version)
The Sabbath day is meant to be a time of rest and repose, to balance
man's outwardly active nature by contact with the transcendental
stillness at the core of his being.
And
he said unto them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man
for the Sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath."
Mark 2:27-28 (King James Version)
| The
spiritual code of conduct for observances of the Sabbath, especially
as a day of divine communion, was created for the advantage
and spiritual upliftment of man; the Sabbath was not created
as some special entity that man is bound to observe blindly,
without rhyme or reason. Indeed, an unenlightened following
of a dogmatically delineated Sabbath may at times, contrarily,
be disadvantageous. |
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Jesus upheld
the Sabbath as essential for people to recharge their vitality by
the restful silence of interiorisation. The worldly person saturates
themself with worries and bombardments of sensory stimuli throughout
the week, and loads their body with excessive ill-chosen food and
their unassimilated poisons. A day of fasting and introspective
silence, tapping the peaceful wisdom reservoir of the soul, gives
each individual a chance to think things over and re-organise their
life into a balanced mode. Sermons and periods of silence and meditation
on the Sabbath recharge body, mind and soul. This peace, if deeply
infused into the consciousness, may last throughout the whole week,
helping people to battle their restless moods, temptations, and
financial worries. If the worldly person gives six days of the week
to money making pursuits, eating and amusements, should they not
give at least one day to the thought of God, without whom their
very life, brain function, physical activity, feeling and enjoyment
of entertainments are impossible?
Observance of
the Sabbath as a day given to God and spiritual culture signifies
the willing cessation of all activities that scatter and divert
the mind into material channels. Church-goers would need to be actively
encouraged to willingly stay away from materialistic diversions
to spend the day in God-reminding, spiritually rejuvenating activities.
With so many material enticements kept alive on Sundays, the minds
of people run riot. Where is the time for restorative calmness,
introspection, and creative thinking to adopt the best actions for
an all round existence during the coming week (not frantic reasonings
but a stilling of thoughts, which are then replaced with intuitive
perception). A Sabbath well spent in silence, meditation and creative
thinking affords the soul reinforcement with harmony, peace, and
mental and physical strength to use wise discrimination to develop
physically, mentally and spiritually in the best possible way.
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inveterate worker who goes at it non-stop, seven days a week,
lets their soul become subject to mechanical activity. Such
a person loses their ability to govern their activity by free
will, discrimination and peace. They become a physical and mental
wreck, shorn of spiritual happiness. Activity and calmness both
must be cultivated and kept in balance, one with the other,
in order to produce peace and happiness during periods of activity
as well as silence. |
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At first spiritual
endeavour to observe the Sabbath may seem difficult to generate
amongst restless church-goers unless approached with enthusiastic
anticipation that generates a perpetual motion of divine ardour.
But with persistence the time comes when one's Sabbath becomes the
most interesting and desirable experience by complete ecstatic communion
with God. There is no happiness that excels the joy of contact of
God in meditation.
Meditating in groups is also vital to observing the Sabbath. It
is through group meditations that we experience the true meaning
of Jesus' statement:
Again I say unto you, "That if two of
you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask,
it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where
two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the
midst of them." Matthew 18:19-20 (King James Version)
"Again I declare unto you, if two of you unite your concentration,
'agree,' and very deeply pray for the realisation of any wholesome
desire, your Father in heaven will know of it and by His will shall
grant your wish on earth. But your united concentration must be
strong and continuous to reach that level of the Father's presence
that brings from Him a conscious direct response in fulfilling your
good wish."
That is why Jesus taught: "But thou, when thou prayest, enter
into thy closet (withdraw the mind into the silence within) and
when thou hast shut thy door (the door of the senses), pray to thy
Father which is in secret (in the inner transcendent divine consciousness);
and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly (shall
bless you with the ever new Bliss of His Being)."
"Wherever
two or three devotees gather together 'in my name' — listen
in meditation to the Cosmic Vibration within them — there
in that vibration they shall feel my Christ Consciousness."
When Jesus said, "If two of you shall agree," he emphasised
that when one's human will is reinforced by the stronger will
of another, it becomes stronger. When the strong will of two
or more people is united in deep meditation on God, their will
becomes charged with the all-powerful, all-accomplishing Divine
Will. |
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Man's will is
the activating faculty of consciousness that makes him a vital,
thinking, creative, accomplishing being. Every soul is a child of
God and a reflection of God's Omnipotent Will, but by egoism man
isolates his will from the Divine Will and thus limits it. But when
a devotee reinforces their will by deep concentration and union
with the strong will of other devotees they transform their will
into God's will, recollecting their identity with God and thus recovering
their divine heritage, possessing the illimitable material or spiritual
power of their Heavenly Father. The devotee ought not to expect
the full realization of the power of their will and prayer until
they have strengthened them by divine company and God-contact.
When Jesus said, "Where two or three are gathered together
in my name, there am I," he stressed the power of united concentration:
When two or a few devotees come together for inner worship of God,
the stronger divine concentration of one person strengthens the
weaker concentration of another. But if gatherings are merely a
cause for discussion and gossip, half-hearted recitation of prayers,
or absent-minded rituals, with no real inner communion with God,
it is unlikely that the Divine Guest of Honour will be felt in their
midst. Jesus' exhortation was a call for sincere devotees to unite
the depths of their meditation in hearing "my name," Cosmic
Vibratory Sound, Amen (sounds as Aum), announcing that
"there am I," Christ Consciousness, "in the midst
of them."
In the Cosmic Vibration they will feel the Christ Intelligence become
manifest within their own uplifted consciousness.
These things saith the Amen, the faithful
and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. Revelation
3:14
Saint John in the Book of Revelation said: "I was in the Spirit
on the Lord's Day, and heard behind me a great voice as of a trumpet."
The 'voice of a trumpet' signifies the great cosmic sound of Aum,
which the devotee hears in meditation as they approach Spirit. The
'Lord's day' signifies the occasion when the Christ Consciousness,
Lord of all vibratory creation, dawns upon the consciousness of
the devotee in deep meditation.
Further
Notes:
1. Let us not forget our children
One of
the reasons why people today are so restless is because children
are not nurtured enough in spiritual ideals and practices.
Spirituality needs to be encouraged (not forced as a discipline)
from an early age. Not only can children be taught to commune
with God in meditation, they often come to enjoy it. A spiritual
habit started early in life often becomes a life-long habit.
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Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he
will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 (King James Version)
2.
Basic techniques for meditating as well as more advanced techniques
for contacting the Holy Spirit are explained in more depth on under
the headings: Special Christmas Meditation
Service and How to Contact the Holy Spirit
Through Meditation.
Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium, Paragraph
14 continued:
Such participation by the Christian people
as "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a redeemed
people (1 Peter. 2:9; cf. 2:4-5), is their right and duty
by reason of their baptism.
| In
the restoration and promotion of the sacred liturgy, this full
and active participation by all the people is the aim to be
considered before all else; for it is the primary and indispensable
source from which the faithful are to derive the true Christian
spirit; and therefore pastors of souls must zealously
strive to achieve it, by means of the necessary instruction,
in all their pastoral work. |
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Yet
it would be futile to entertain any hopes of realizing this unless
the pastors themselves, in the first place, become thoroughly imbued
with the spirit and power of the liturgy, and undertake
to give instruction about it. A prime need, therefore, is that attention
be directed, first of all, to the liturgical instruction of the
clergy. '
15. Professors who are appointed to teach
liturgy in seminaries, religious houses of study, and theological
faculties must be properly trained for their work in institutes
which specialize in this subject.
16. The study of sacred liturgy is to be ranked among the compulsory
and major courses in seminaries and religions houses of studies;
in theological faculties it is to rank among the principal courses.
It is to be taught under its theological, historical, spiritual,
pastoral, and juridical aspects. Moreover, other professors, while
striving to expound the mystery of Christ and the history of salvation
from the angle proper to each of their own subjects, must nevertheless
do so in a way which will clearly bring out the connection between
their subjects and the liturgy, as also the unity which underlies
all priestly training. This consideration is especially important
for professors of dogmatic, spiritual, and pastoral theology and
for those of Holy Scripture.
Meditating and contemplating to fully understand
and teach the deepest teachings of the Bible
The ultimate knowledge of every God-mystery is barred to no-one
who makes themself ready to read the Book of Life, whenever and
in whatever way the Lord opens its pages to them.
All
these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and
without a parable spake he not unto them: That it might be fulfilled
which was spoken by the prophet, saying, "I will open my
mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept
secret from the foundation of the world."
Matthew 13:34-35 (King James Version)
Parallel
reference: |
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And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they
were able to hear it. But without a parable spake he not unto them:
and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
Mark 4:33-34(King James Version)
Jesus conveyed in terms and illustrations that were familiar to
his generation the profound eternal truth he received directly from
God. As was explained earlier the ordinary people of his time could
not understand, for example, the differences between the kingdom
of heaven attained by super-conscious ecstasy and the transcendent
kingdom of God-consciousness.
Jesus taught
the deeper truths to his disciples when they were alone with him.
Those same truths he guarded with parables when given to the non-understanding
masses, but discernable to all deserving advanced souls who could
hear the underlying wisdom with ears of intuition.
Ordinary people,
to whom deep metaphysical truths were unintelligible, received the
parables as simple illustrations from which guidance they could
better their lives and rouse their faith in God. To this day the
words of our beloved Christ are received similarly, with varying
literal and theological interpretations around which have grown
so many denominations and sects. The reference of Matthew to "things
which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world"
declares the ultimate nature of truth as provable only by the infallible
perception of soul intuition, the direct experience of truth by
becoming one with it. Without this inner realisation truth remains
a mystery to man, only dimly imagined or otherwise surmised by intellect.
Truth is that which is closest to reality. Thus to understand the
one and only perception of Jesus Christ behind the words of his
teaching, devotees must be able to perceive through their intuition
in the sanctuary of meditation the revealed mysteries of which he
spoke in parables.
The
very fact that it was to his close disciples alone that Jesus
"expounded all things" of those truths he had hidden
in the parables given to the multitudes tells modern would-be
disciples of Christ that they should not be satisfied with
anything less than understanding and teaching the highest
meanings of those parables. A pastor with mere theoretical
knowledge of the scriptures is gratified if he can momentarily
inspire his congregation with what he infers or imagines to
be the truth taught by Jesus Christ. But a real divine spokesman,
meditating to become imbued with Christ Conscious, inspires
others to become with him a disciplined band of truth seekers
and truth demonstrators who by meditation congregate in the
inner sanctuary of silence to learn from God, who speaks through
the lips of the devotee's intuition, the mysteries of life
and soul liberation.
A true
house of God must never become satisfied only with preaching
theories about God; it must teach the art of God contact,
of how to make the soul of man an illumined temple wherein
God himself will come and deliver sermons through His voice
of intuition to the sincerely seeking devotional thoughts
of the devotee.
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And from Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium,
Paragraph 33
33. Although the sacred liturgy is above all
things the worship of the divine Majesty, it likewise contains much
instruction for the faithful [34]. For in the liturgy God
speaks to His people and Christ is still proclaiming His gospel.
And the people reply to God both by song and prayer.
Moreover,
the prayers addressed to God by the priest who presides over
the assembly in the person of Christ are said in the name of
the entire holy people and of all present. And the visible signs
used by the liturgy to signify invisible divine things have
been chosen by Christ or the Church. Thus not only when things
are read "which were written for our instruction"
(Rom. 15:4), but also when the Church prays or sings
or acts, the faith of those taking part is nourished and their
minds are raised to God, so that they may offer Him their rational
service and more abundantly receive His grace.
How one ought to wisely study scripture written for our instruction
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For
whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning,
that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have
hope. Romans 15:4 (King James Version)
To
reiterate, to perceive the truth behind the language of scripture,
as intended by those who gave it, the requisite facility of intuitive
calmness gained from deep meditation is required.
An ordinary
person reading or hearing scriptural truths interprets their visual
and auditory sensations and impressions of them according to the
limitations of their senses and understanding. A person of spiritual
acuity studies the Holy Scriptures and then tries to perceive their
meaning with their developed intuition. They do not voraciously
ingest scripture, but after deep meditation they read only a small
portion before internally dwelling on it to feel the truth therein
through the soul's intuition. As stated earlier no-one should try
to interpret spiritual truths equipped only with reason, emotion
and imagination; nor should anyone confuse understanding with a
larger vocabulary and a broader memory. Otherwise, continual intellectual
study may result in vanity, false satisfaction, and undigested knowledge.
Scripture is most beneficial in giving 'hope' by stimulating desire
for inward realization, if one passage at a time is slowly assimilated.
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summary, Church-goers should be taught and encouraged to contemplate
the meaning of Holy Scripture within by quiet meditation and
real communion with God. Rather than being passive members of
a church, satisfied merely with listening to sermons, worshipers
should be encouraged to engage more in the effort to cultivate
perfect stillness in both body and mind. The peace of absolute
physical and mental stillness is the real temple wherein God
most often visits His devotees. "Be still and know that
I am God." |
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And from the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum
Concilium, Paragraphs 17 - 19:
17.
In seminaries and houses of religious, clerics shall be given a
liturgical formation in their spiritual life. For this they will
need proper direction, so that they may be able to understand the
sacred rites and take part in them wholeheartedly; and they will
also need personally to celebrate the sacred mysteries, as well
as popular devotions which are imbued with the spirit of the liturgy.
In addition they must learn how to observe the liturgical laws,
so that life in seminaries and houses of religious may be thoroughly
influenced by the spirit of the liturgy.
18. Priests, both secular and religious, who are already working
in the Lord's vineyard are to be helped by every suitable means
to understand ever more fully what it is that they are doing when
they perform sacred rites; they are to be aided to live the liturgical
life and to share it with the faithful entrusted to their care.
19. With zeal and patience, pastors of souls must promote the liturgical
instruction of the faithful, and also their active participation
in the liturgy both internally and externally, taking into account
their age and condition, their way of life, and standard of religious
culture. By so doing, pastors will be fulfilling one of the chief
duties of a faithful dispenser of the mysteries of God; and in this
matter they must lead their flock not only in word but also
by example.
Educating and training clergy
Jesus
and his disciples, possessing no theological degrees or intellectual
college or university education, nor instruction in elocution, preached
what they knew from direct God-contact: "We speak that we know,
and testify that we have seen." (John 3:11)
| Contact
with God is evidenced in a holy life. The ego is diminished
and replaced with an ever-increasing love for God and desire
to follow His will alone. A truly holy person touches one's
whole being with a "peace which passeth all understanding"
(Philippians 4:7) and radiates to all as kindness and
goodwill. God-contact in deep meditation opens the channel of
soul intuition and speaks through the inner guiding voice of
conscience. God uses His great prophets to proclaim revelations;
He speaks personally to His true devotees those revelations
that will change them into God-loving beings who inspire others
to become likewise. The exultations, visions, and divine oneness
of God-contact come in good time to the advanced devotee who
perseveres in deepening meditation; but God's presence is no
less real in its subtle transforming power of inner peace, joy,
understanding and divine love. |
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A preacher of
truth therefore hears the voice of God as inner intuitive inspiration
and does not depend solely on books at the risk of preparing undigested
and unlived sermons. Jesus preached extensively to the masses; and
in between gatherings, he retired to the seclusion of the desert
or mountain tops to commune with God. Renewed in body and spirit,
he came back to give his reinforced God-consciousness to truth seekers.
It is therefore
recommended all clergy should develop the spiritual habit of daily
meditating in the early morning before they commence activity to
attune themselves with the Lord; and in the evening to cleanse themselves
of activity so they may sleep deep in the Lord.
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is also recommended that every year clergy leave their residence
and community and spend two weeks in silent contemplation of
God and his mysteries in a monastic environment. In this way
they may seek deep communion with the Lord by interiorising
their consciousness for longer periods without the disruption
of daily church life and social interactions with others. This
will allow for vital spiritual renewal and development as well
as necessary rest from worldly affairs and duties. |
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The
qualities to be cultivated for those who would teach in the name
of Christ
What are the qualities to cultivate if one is to teach in the name
of Christ?
Humility, love of God and doing everything with the thought of God,
forgetting self are fundamentals.
Additionally, the following principles are given that Jesus, in
one form or another, instilled in his apostles during the time they
spent in his company absorbing his spirit and ideals:
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A
Christian spiritual teacher should have Soul-realisation,
or at least be sincerely striving for that God-attunement
and subversion of the ego. |
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They
should have an appreciative, respectful, comparative knowledge
of religions, while being grounded in truth and free from
hidebound dogma. They should know the difference between
true religion and custom, discriminating between universal
spirituality and denominational observances. |
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In
order to transmit truth effectively, one must be inspired
by the inner perception of truth. The highest type of
Christian spiritual teacher spends much time in the divine
communion of prayer and meditation. This is the way to
be able to arrive at the truth in any given situation.
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They
should believe in and be well versed in the truths they want
to teach, and then strive to realise those truths in themself.
The intuitional teacher is most qualified. The intuitive power
of the soul, once awakened by meditation, does not depend on
reason; it knows. |
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A
teacher should always meditate before instructing others, a
practice more valuable than gleaning ideas from books or dialogues
with other people. |
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They
must keep their mind on God that they might in the highest way
be able to convey thoughts of God to others. |
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They
must have complete faith in God, believing that His help will
come when needed. The divine law works! |
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The
best sermon a teacher can give is through the voice of their
character and actions; they should be one with God in exemplary
qualities. They should be morally upright, balanced and even-minded,
honest and agreeable. They should wear a soulful smile; cheerfulness
that comes from the soul. |
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Proper
decorum and knowing the rules of etiquette are highly desirable,
but even more important than manners is sincerity. They should
always keep their word with people; one's word is one's bond.
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They
should be natural and loyal to their ideals. They should always
stand firm for the truth, but never be angry with or entertain
revengeful thoughts against people who criticise them. They
should never gossip or speak unkind words about others. |
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One
cannot transmit truth if they are not sympathetic. A spiritual
teacher should be free from racial and class preferences, and
give spiritual help to those seeking relief from their troubles
as well as to those seeking spiritual development. |
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A
spiritual teacher should never try to compete with others;
they should stick to their goal and teach loyalty to that
purpose. |
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They
should never allow themselves to be controlled by those
who would compromise their ideals for financial or organisational
favours given. |
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Lastly
they should never use spirituality for commercial or personal
gain. |
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Constitution
on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium, Paragraph 21:
The Reform of the Sacred Liturgy
21. In order that the Christian people
may more certainly derive an abundance of graces from the sacred
liturgy, holy Mother Church desires to undertake with great care
a general restoration of the liturgy itself. For the liturgy is
made up of immutable elements divinely instituted, and of elements
subject to change. These not only may but ought to be changed with
the passage of time if they have suffered from the intrusion of
anything out of harmony with the inner nature of the liturgy or
have become unsuited to it.
Continuing with
Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium,
Paragraphs 43, 50, 51, 56
43. Zeal for the promotion and restoration
of the liturgy is rightly held to be a sign of the providential
dispositions of God in our time, as a movement of the Holy Spirit
in His Church. It is today a distinguishing mark of the Church's
life, indeed of the whole tenor of contemporary religious thought
and action.
50.
The rite of the Mass is to be revised in such a way that
the intrinsic nature and purpose of its several parts, as also the
connection between them, may be more clearly manifested, and that
devout and active participation by the faithful may be more easily
achieved.
For this purpose the rites are to be simplified, due care being
taken to preserve their substance; elements which, with the passage
of time, came to be duplicated, or were added with but little advantage,
are now to be discarded; other elements which have suffered
injury through accidents of history are now to be restored to the
vigour which they had in the days of the holy Fathers, as may seem
useful or necessary.
| 51.
The treasures of the bible are to be opened up more
lavishly, so that richer fare may be provided for the faithful
at the table of God's word. In this way a more representative
portion of the Holy Scriptures will be read to the people in
the course of a prescribed number of years. |
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56. The two parts which, in a certain sense, go to make
up the Mass, namely, the liturgy of the word and the eucharistic
liturgy, are so closely connected with each other that they form
but one single act of worship. Accordingly this sacred Synod strongly
urges pastors of souls that, when instructing the faithful, they
insistently teach them to take their part in the entire Mass, especially
on Sundays and feasts of obligation.
Meditation
techniques to hear the 'Word of God'
As explained
earlier by deeply meditating until one hears the word of God within:
'the liturgy of the word', one will feel the Christ Consciousness
manifest within their own uplifted consciousness and in this way
will partake of the highest meaning of 'the sacred Eucharist Liturgy'.
Note:
This is explained in more depth in How to contact
the Holy Spirit through meditation.
Continuing
with Constitution on the Sacred
Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium, Paragraphs 59, 62, 106, 107, 112
THE OTHER SACRAMENTS AND THE SACRAMENTALS
59. The purpose of the sacraments
is to sanctify men, to build up the body of Christ, and, finally,
to give worship to God; because they are signs they also instruct.
They not only presuppose faith, but by words and objects they also
nourish, strengthen, and express it; that is why they are called
"sacraments of faith." They do indeed impart grace, but,
in addition, the very act of celebrating them most effectively disposes
the faithful to receive this grace in a fruitful manner, to worship
God duly, and to practice charity.
It
is therefore of the highest importance that the faithful should
easily understand the sacramental signs, and should frequent
with great eagerness those sacraments which were instituted
to nourish the Christian life.
62. With the passage of time, however, there have crept
into the rites of the sacraments and sacramentals certain features
which have rendered their nature and purpose far from clear
to the people of today; hence some changes have become necessary
to adapt them to the needs of our own times.
Further
spiritualising other sacraments
Just as the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist has a higher meaning
that needs to be lovingly restored in our times; so other sacraments
need faithful attention to increase their power to nourish and
strengthen faith. |
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106. By a tradition handed down from
the apostles which took its origin from the very day of Christ's
resurrection, the Church celebrates the paschal mystery every eighth
day; with good reason this, then, bears the name of the Lord's Day
or Sunday. For on this day Christ's faithful are bound to come together
into one place so that; by hearing the word of God and taking part
in the Eucharist, they may call to mind the passion, the resurrection
and the glorification of the Lord Jesus, and may thank God who "has
begotten them again, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead, unto a living hope" (1 Pet. 1:3). Hence
the Lord's day is the original feast day, and it should be proposed
to the piety of the faithful and taught to them so that it may become
in fact a day of joy and of freedom from work. Other celebrations,
unless they be truly of greatest importance, shall not have precedence
over the Sunday which is the foundation and kernel of the whole
liturgical year.
107. The liturgical year is to be
revised so that the traditional customs and discipline of the sacred
seasons shall be preserved or restored to suit the conditions of
modern times; their specific character is to be retained, so that
they duly nourish the piety of the faithful who celebrate the mysteries
of Christian redemption, and above all the paschal mystery.
If certain adaptations are considered necessary on account of local
conditions, they are to be made in accordance with the provisions
of Art. 39 and 40.
Further
spiritualising Holy days, feasts and festivals
The
celebration of the Holy Season and Christmas
We need
to restore the sanctity of the Holy Season and especially
Christmas. We need to begin by returning Christmas back to
Christ and his ideals of plainer living and higher thinking.
The rampant consumerism in developed countries that we see
increase each year obviously weakens the spiritual fabric
of those societies and damages the natural environment.
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To re-empower
the spiritual sanctity of Christmas a special Christmas Meditation
Service program has been carefully and lovingly prepared to help
awaken Christ within the consciousness of the populace. Please see
Special Christmas Meditation
Service.
The
celebration of Easter
Much more
can be done to empower the celebration of beloved Lord Jesus'
sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection to increase love
for Christ worldwide and restore peace to the hearts of the
world's people.
A special
Easter Meditation Service is humbly offered for the purpose:
please see Special Easter
Meditation Service
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112.
The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable
value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason
for this pre-eminence is that, as sacred song united to
the words, it forms a necessary or integral part of the solemn liturgy.
Music to increase devotion
Spiritual music,
such as sacred hymns, songs and devotional chants raises the listener's
consciousness and dispels frivolous, nervous and even base emotions.
Because man himself is an expression of the Creative Word of God,
sound exercises on him a potent and immediate effect.
To maximise
the benefit of spiritual singing church-goers should cultivate intense
concentration on the words they sing. Preferably, with closed eyes
they should simultaneously focus their attention and awareness at
the spiritual eye (located at the point between the eyebrows).
"The
light of the body is the (spiritual) eye: if therefore thine eye
be single (singularly focused on God), thy whole body shall be full
of life." Matthew 6:22
(Please
see Special Christmas Meditation
Service for more information on this.)
Holding their awareness at the spiritual eye they should sing
with such loving devotion to the Lord that it puts them in
personal harmony with the soul.
This can
be a tremendous aid to meditation. Meditation without enough
devotional intention runs the risk of becoming merely a mechanical
exercise in concentration. Singing lovingly with all your
heart and soul as if God and all of heaven is your intended
audience helps ensure that the mind is absorbed into a strong
devotional state to meditate.
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Part 3: A message to the faithful about the Second Coming of our
beloved Christ
"Immediately after the tribulation of
those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give
her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers
of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of
the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth
mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of
heaven with power and great glory.
"And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet,
and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from
one end of heaven to the other.
"Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet
tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So
likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is
near, even at the doors.
"Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till
all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away,
but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth
no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."
Matthew 24:29-36 (King James Version)
Parallel reference:
"And there shall be signs in the sun,
and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of
nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men's hearts
failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which
are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power
and great glory.
"And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up,
and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
And he spake to them a parable; "Behold the fig tree, and all
the trees; When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own
selves that summer is now nigh at hand. So likewise ye, when ye
see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is
nigh at hand.
"Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away,
till all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my
words shall not pass away.
"And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts
be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this
life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall
it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch
ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to
escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before
the Son of man." Luke 21:25-36(King James Version)
These
passages in the Bible have been the source of great misunderstanding
among many Christian sects. Many firmly believe that God will
literally produce Jesus out of the sky in a glorious display
and with His power will destroy the "wicked" (non-conforming)
people of earth and give redemption to selected worshipers.
Jesus said. "This generation shall not pass, till all these
things be fulfilled." Yet twenty centuries have passed,
and Jesus has not yet come out of the clouds openly before the
different nations, 'tribes'. |
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Many true devotees
throughout the ages, however, have in ecstatic states of devout
meditation seen Jesus coming out of the clouds of darkness of their
closed eyes, resplendent in great power and glory. Saint Francis,
who saw Jesus many times and talked with him in the woods of Assisi
testifies to all mankind by his own experience — as have other
saints — the fulfilment of the prophecy of Jesus that devotees
of any clime or time who transmute material pursuits into spiritual
advancement will witness Jesus Christ, and angels and liberated
souls, in their visions. But it is a sadly futile wait for those
who expect at some future time for Jesus to come out of the clouds
to establish and rule an ideal kingdom in this world (or for that
matter, to take only a select few from earth to such a kingdom patterned
after a glorified earth in heaven).
Jesus reigns everlastingly in God's kingdom of Infinity, redeeming
souls who look to him for help in making their way to God. It is
an unreasonable proposition — not least, a selfishly unkind
one — to want the infinite consciousness of Jesus to be confined
forever in a limited form to rule a kingdom on earth (or in heaven)
of a chosen few from the multitude of God's children, the masses
of which (even perhaps one's own beloved family members) would perforce
forever thereafter exist in torment in perdition. That would not
be an act of an Almighty Loving God nor the judgment of the exquisitely
compassionate Jesus who forgave and blessed those who had fallen
into sin.
From his home in infinity, Jesus observes with omnipresent awareness,
along with other of God's angels and liberated Saints, the affairs
of man and the ordered destiny of the cosmic drama. The presence
of Jesus and the Great Ones in the immanent Christ Consciousness
responds to any outreach of man's heart, and maintains a constant
pull toward God in the tug-of-war with the outgoing influence of
satanic power. Redemption is nigh at any time for those who loosen
their souls from the bonds of cosmic delusion and absorb their consciousness
in the uplifting power of divine intercession and God's grace.
| To
illustrate how the devotee recognises the signs of the unfoldment
of Soul-realisation, Jesus spoke of the young leaves of the
fig tree that appear as a certainty of summer's approach. So,
likewise, a disciple or true devotee who 'lifts up their heads
and looks up into the spiritual eye between the eyebrows' and
sees through that awakened spiritual eye any materialised vision
of Christ or of liberated souls or of some manifested attribute
of the Infinite can then know through pure intuition that the
tree of their salvation has put forth tender branches of realisation
and leaves of divine perception, and that the summer of his
final liberation is near at hand. |
|
Jesus foresaw
that even his contemporary generation would not pass away before
some had begun to experience these signs of approaching liberation
through his teachings. But to emphasize that his teachings were
for all time, he affirmed that the truth of his words as a path
to salvation — being a reflection of Cosmic Consciousness
— would outlast even the dissolution of earth and the heavenly
realms. Truth and its manifest expression of wisdom are changeless
and eternal; creation and its forces are subject to change and extinguishment.
The words of Jesus embody eternal truth and hence they will abide
to out live all created things.
When Jesus said of the signs of advent of liberation: "But
of that day and hour knoweth no man, not the angels of heaven, but
my Father only." he was praising the singular grandeur of Almighty
God who alone can know certain things, concealed even from His greatest
devotees. God is the sole Knower unrestricted by the consequential
relativities of time and space, cause and effect; everything is
revealed in His consciousness of the Eternal Now, while even the
angels have a conditional existence and overview in their purpose
of serving the universal order through cosmic law. The time of liberation
of an individual is entirely problematic, dependant upon the use
of one's free will and subject to the acquired spiritual merits
and the degree and depth of the devotion with which one imbues one's
efforts. Therefore, since the devotee themself determines the day
and hour of liberation, according to their spiritual ardour and
quality of meditation, which can quicken or delay it, only the Cosmic
Consciousness within Itself knows and can foretell that auspicious
moment. Liberated souls, however, who can say with Jesus, "I
and my Father are one," can thereby realise in a transcendent
state the omniscience of God 's Cosmic Consciousness; but this knowing
is not always immediately relatable to the here and now of a tedious
cause-and-effect cosmos of conditional perspective.
"Take heed therefore, continuously pray, meditate, and watch
the tricks of the fickle mind to see if it is centred on God or
not; for you know not when trials and delusions will overtake you
and test you as to whether you are qualifying for liberation. "
Peace
on Earth
"And seek not ye what ye shall eat,
or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For
all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and
your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather
seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added
unto you." Luke 12:29-31 (King James Version) |
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The earth
would be a veritable heaven if nations as well as individuals would
heed Jesus' admonition to make God the primary aim of life. When
people concentrate on political and business selfishness and personal
accumulation of power and luxuries at the expense of others, the
divine law of happiness is broken, creating disorder and want in
the family, the nation and the world. If the leaders of different
nations, instead of extolling aggression and patriotic selfishness,
turned the minds of their citizens toward the acquirement of inner
peace, love of God and neighbour, and bliss of meditation, then
material prosperity, health, and international harmony would automatically
be added unto the spiritual treasures of the nations.
Jesus pointed out the supreme wisdom of 'God first' as the best
recipe not only for individual happiness but also for national and
international well-being: "The nations of the earth seek inordinately
and selfishly after material prosperity and power, which inevitably
leads to hurtful inequities, wars and destruction. Let them rather
seek God and add His principled righteous to their endeavours, and
live harmoniously beneath the canopy of international spiritual
brotherhood.
And
(God) hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell
on all the face of the earth, ...That they should seek the Lord,
if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he
be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move,
and have our being; ... For we are also his offspring. Acts
17:26-28 (King James Version)
"On nations who live in peace with one another, and in
the pursuit of God-consciousness, the Heavenly Father bestows
lasting prosperity, well earned by aid to the world family,
goodwill, and international business co-operation. God, who
is the Provider of the cosmos, knows the needs of individuals
and nations; if He feeds the raven and clothes the lily, how
much more would He provide to the individual and the nation
who are tune with His ideals!" |
|
The state of
money-mad modern civilisation distinctly shows that selfishness
wrecks individual and national happiness. The excessive competitiveness
is pernicious because each one tries to take away the possessions
of others. Thus in a community of 1,000 each businessperson has
999 enemies and competitors. Jesus urged people to share their possessions
with all; when that law is observed each person in a community of
1,000 has 999 helpers.
Survival in the present-day cut-throat commercial environment is
so demanding that the business person is run ragged and is unable
to concentrate on making their life truly and spiritually happy.
Business was made for the happiness of man; man was not made for
business. Only that much enterprise is necessary which does not
interfere with the spiritual development of man. Advancement in
science and technology is to be applauded when used for the betterment
of the human race; but in practical application, nations of the
earth could enhance the happiness of their citizens if they advocated
a consciousness of plain living and high thinking — concentrating
their minds more on spiritual development, inspirational literature,
philosophy, knowledge of the wonders and workings of creation, and
less on frenetic technologies that encourage money-madness.
If
nations of the earth did not complicate civilisation by industrial
selfishness, which leads to over-production and over-consumption
in rich countries, and exploitation and miserliness toward weaker
nations, then all peoples would have plenty to eat and live
well. But since patriotic selfishness and material superiority
are the aims of almost all developed nations, regardless of
the needs of their neighbours, the world suffers episodes of
chaos and confusion of isms resulting in famine, poverty and
the avoidable miseries of wars.
|
|
Modern chaotic
conditions the world over are the result of ungodly living. Individuals
and nations can be protected from self-generated utter destruction
if they live by heavenly ideals of brotherhood, industrial co-operation
and the international exchange of earthly goods and spiritual experiences.
The present economic system of profiteering and exploitation has
failed; a brotherhood of nations and a brotherhood of necessary
industries and industrialists can alone bring lasting prosperity
to the world.
| The
recent near collapse of the world's financial system humbled
many billionaires who were sure of their financial acumen to
preserve their mighty fortunes. Even some of the shrewdest businessmen
became bewildered children in the hands of destiny and recession
not knowing which way to turn. The spiritual laws of 'unselfishness'
and 'including the prosperity of others in one's own prosperity'
were broken; hence the near total collapse of the international
banking system. Industrial selfishness was precipitated from
dire human greed, leading to suicidal business practices by
banks and competition amongst other banks in terms of who could
profit the most from it. |
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When the greedy
materialist's brain is befuddled with greed, their intelligence
institutes plans that fail one after the other. This is the price
all materialistic God-forgetting egotists are bound to meet sometime
or other.
By giving artificial monetary value to industrial production, man
has created strife between capital and labour, systematically causing
recurrent booms and recessions / depressions. Capital and labour,
like brain and limbs, should co-operate for the overall welfare
of the body and soul of the nation, rather than fighting each other
and thereby ensuring their own mutual destruction. Brain and hands
both co-operate to maintain the body and share the food in the stomach;
so also capital (the brains of society) and the labour (its hands
and feet) must co-operate to make life prosperous and to share the
bounty they produce. Neither capital nor labour should get special
preference, avoiding the pitfalls of both imperialistic and socialistic
forms of government. Capital and labour each has its confirmed place
and both must do their respective duties in equality. Everybody
should be provided food, clothing, shelter, education, and medical
care through sharing the national wealth; or everybody should equally
shoulder the burden of poverty if it comes unavoidably through the
inclemencies of nature. There should be no inequitable distribution
of basic necessities for a progressive material, mental and spiritual
existence; the have-nots against those who have is the root cause
of crime, greed, selfishness and other untold social evils.
| A
family member who becomes sick or disabled is not an object
of charity, but honourably partakes of the family food and financial
means. The same should hold good for each member of the world
family. No one should starve because they are unable to find
employment or because they are old or disabled. If the nations
of the earth want to please God, they should live according
to Christ-like principles as brother and sister in the United
Nations of the world, exchanging commodities so that no individual
would suffer from lack, famine or poverty. |
|
It is imperative
now that individuals and nations forsake selfishness to feed and
clothe the international body. National citizenry should subdue
preoccupation with self-interest and learn to acquire wisdom, and
to meditate and be in tune with the Infinite, so that they collectively
feed the national soul with all-round happiness. Nations living
in tune with God and His ideals of brotherhood and peace can endure
for centuries without wars or famine, in perpetual prosperity and
spiritual happiness. Nations who are rich in prosperity but lacking
in wisdom and God-bliss may lose their top-heavy materiality through
civil war, fights between capital and labour, and troubles with
envious neighbours jealous of their prosperity. One nation possessing
abundance side-by-side with another nation starving to death can
never be a productive formula for peace on earth.
| Nations
must look after one another or they are doomed. That is why
Jesus speaks to the nations of the earth: "O you nations,
do not be selfish and think only of food, industry and raiment,
in utter forgetfulness of brotherhood and God, the Giver of
all things, or you will bring self-created disaster on yourselves
through your ignorance and its attendant wars, pestilence and
other miseries." |
|
Prosperity
often dulls the social conscience: "What do we care for other
nations: we worked to create our prosperity so that we could roll
in plenty! Why should they not do the same?" Callous arrogance
is short-sighted. Enduring national prosperity depends not only
upon natural resources and the initiative of the nations's citizens,
but primarily on the moral conduct, harmony and spiritual living
of the people. No matter how successful a nation may be, if it becomes
debauched, selfish, and inharmonious, it will have civil wars, treachery
and foreign aggression to disrupt its complacency and good fortune.
Hence, the admonition of Jesus that no individual or nation should
be selfish and give entire thought to food or raiment or acquirement
of earthly treasure, but should be humble, share prosperity with
needy brothers, and acknowledge God as the only Owner and Giver
of all the gifts of the earth.
Of course most of the world's people have become so gripped by spiritual
poverty that they have wandered away from the Shepherd. What is
needed is a Second Coming of Christ in consciousness of the world's
people.
The
role of a strong Church
He said, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make
straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias (Isaiah)"
John 1:21-23(King James Version)
| The
word 'straight' as it is used in context with John the Baptist's
statement signifies the straight path of truth, through which
alone the soul can reach God. It is very difficult to choose
the right course amid varied religious opinions. John declared
to the people the straight path out of ignorance, and exhorted
them to follow it to receive the teachings of Jesus in attaining
Christ Consciousness. People who wander from church to church,
from preacher to preacher seeking intellectual satisfaction
seldom find God, for intellectual nourishment is necessary only
to inspire one to 'drink' God. When the intellect forgets to
actually taste God, it is a detriment to Soul-realisation. Spiritual
truth and wisdom are found not in any words of a priest or preacher,
but in the 'wilderness' of inner silence. |
|
True religion
lies within oneself, in the cave of stillness, in the cave of intuitive
wisdom, in the cave of the spiritual eye. By concentrating on the
point between the eyebrows in meditation and delving into the depths
of quiet in the luminous spiritual eye, one can find answers to
all religious queries of the heart.
"But the Comforter, which is the Holy
Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you
all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever
I have said unto you." John 14:26 (King James Version)
By the right method of meditation on the Holy Spirit as the light
of the spiritual eye and the holy sound of the cosmic vibration
Aum, any persevering devotee, by constant practice can
experience the blessings of the manifested vibratory presence of
God. The Sacred Vibration, the Great Comforter, being imbued with
the universal, reflected God-consciousness, contains the all-encompassing
bliss of God.
For all the reasons given the purpose of a church should obviously
be to give God-contact. If it claims to meet that criterion then
it must do so or it will cease to exist as a powerful spiritual
force. Toward this end, it is the paramount duty of all clergy to
improve themselves by daily deep meditation for communion with God,
and to reform their congregations likewise with spiritual habits
and the joy of divine communion. The Soul-realisation of true seekers
would spontaneously, without urging, hold those members to their
respective path that is leading them to God. A strong congregation
is united in uncoerced loyalty born of each member's Soul-realisation
garnered from the inner discipline and meditation taught by the
church.
| The
hives of organised churches should be filled with the honey
of God's presence. Congregational worship should therefore stress
primarily meditation, interiorisation with cessation of bodily
motions, absence of mental restlessness and the presence of
God contact. When bodily motions cease and thoughts become quiet,
God begins to appear as the blessedness of stillness and divine
bliss on the altar of peace and changelessness. |
|
Churches will
profit spiritually when they have become temples where both leaders
and members in unison sit together to discuss spiritual principles;
and then together or individually, through proven techniques of
concentration and meditation, they try to commune with God and to
realise truth through the direct experience of soul intuition.
By this means the deeper meanings of the teachings of Christ can
be revived and most importantly lived. Then if Christ Consciousness
that was manifest in Jesus can first be established in the hearts
of people, it will reign strongly in the church also. Then silent
prayer, meditation and pure devotion to God will be found to be
the common denominator that can unite the denominations of all religions
in the love of God.
| These
twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, "Go
not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans
enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of
Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven
is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead,
cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give."
Matthew 10:5-8 (King James Version) |
|
Thus did Jesus
command his disciples that they should not go to the self-satisfied
worldly people, "the Gentiles," worshipers of gods of
fame and fortune, or to the Samaritans, fixed in their convictions,
but rather go to truth-seekers who are repentant for having strayed
away from God. "Vibrate into them your God-realisation and
show them that the kingdom of heaven, the state of attunement with
the heavenly powers of finer vibration, wisdom, bliss and God-consciousness,
lies within their reach, just behind the human consciousness of
wakefulness and subconsciousness, in the state of super-consciousness
and God-contact as realised in deep meditation. As you heal the
soul of material consciousness by establishing the kingdom of heaven
of God-consciousness there, so also heal the ailments of the bodily
instrument of the soul.
"Free the truly repentant God seekers not only from physical
sickness but also from mental, moral, and spiritual sickness. Raise
spiritually dead people into the consciousness of God; and by transmitting
your God-given-power, release them from devils and obsessions of
cosmic delusion and ignorance and evil disembodied souls. Bring
to life the good departed souls who have more good than evil subconscious
tendencies, or at least equal good and bad, because such acts are
now sanctioned by the Heavenly Father to assure benighted mankind
that all things are possible with God's true devotees and followers
of the path of goodness. The worthy souls you resurrect will do
much good on earth.
| "You
have received by your own free accord, through your uninfluenced,
spontaneously spiritual free will, and through my own free will
and God's divine compassion, the God-consciousness transmitted
into your self-disciplined meditating lives. In the way you
have grasped God-consciousness, teach the same to the people.
You exercised your divine ardour, reason, and free will to meditate
and advance spiritually, and so you awakened the spontaneous
response in God and desire in me to transmit into you Our divine
consciousness. Likewise teach other devotees to rouse their
free will and to meditate and thereby receive the God-consciousness
freely available to them." |
|
Every pastor
should pass their life more in meditation and in order to be able
to transmit spirituality to real seekers — those whom they
meet through the will of God and proper moral publicity —
regularly meditate with them whenever they can, in small groups,
preferably in quiet or secluded centrally located places. If churches
get together and follow the above practice they will bring about
a revival in Christ Consciousness in the hearts of true worshippers.
In deeply meditating together in small sincere groups, such seekers
will find the Christ Consciousness which was in Jesus will manifest
in them and bring about in their consciousness the Second Coming
of Christ.
"As many as received him, to them gave he the power to become
the sons of God." (John 1:12)
And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,
"All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore,
and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you
always, even unto the end of the world." Amen. Matthew
28:18-20 (King James Version)
To
save the modern world's lost 'Gentiles' and 'Samaritans' one
needs to first be the change one wants to see in others. All
lost sheep in the wilderness of spiritual poverty and stuck
fast in the mud of ignorance, desire happiness and freedom from
suffering. But for them to trust the hand that reaches out to
help them they must first see real, God-given peace in the eyes
and God-given happiness in the smiles of their would-be rescuers.
Words alone will not reach them if their eyes and ears are closed.
Such people can only be taught by the example of loving action
which melts their hearts and encourages them to choose of their
own free will to come unto and follow the shepherd who possesses
abundant inner joy and will lead them to the green pastures
of the Lord.
A message of courage to those who fear change
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It can be very
easy to become settled into habitual, regular routines and patterns
of established thought. For this reason some can come to fear significant
change. Some fear what the future will hold if the wind of change
is allowed to blow through holy Mother Church. Will it blow away
the cobwebs and dust or will it blow the whole Church down?
Since the time of Jesus we have seen rapid changes in the mental
capabilities of man to unravel, manipulate and harness the mysterious
workings of nature. We've gone from thinking the earth was flat
to detecting other planets around far away stars. Everything in
the Universe is in a constant state of change; only God the Father
beyond Creation remains permanent and unchanging. For this reason
if holy Mother Church does not adapt sufficiently to the times in
which she lives she will find herself under relentless siege from
modernity. If she is to maintain her relevance in the eyes of the
people she must not see modernity as an enemy but embrace it as
a friend. Adapting to the challenges that modernity brings requires
much soul-searching which encourages new spiritual growth.
The
Sacred Liturgy now needs to be reformed in the light of the
sacred truth revealed. Does that mean ritual practice and traditions
established over centuries should be caste aside? Of course
not! It's important that the Mother Church does not lose her
sacred identity. What is needed is a determined new effort to
establish God-communion as the living heart and soul of the
Sacred Liturgy and to spiritualise
existing ritual practice and traditions in the light of that.
|
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To those who
fear such significant changes in their lives and in our holy Mother
Church, take courage from the words of the may Saints and Martyrs
that echo from the past:
| "I
have bled for your Name oh Lord; and for your Name’s sake
I am willing ever to bleed. Like a mighty warrior, with gory
limbs, injured body, wounded honour, and a thorn crown of derision,
undismayed I fight on. My scars I wear as roses of courage,
of inspiration to persevere in the battle against evil. I may
continue to suffer blows on my arms outstretched to help others,
and receive persecution instead of love, but my soul shall ever
bask in the sunshine of your blessings, O Lord. You do guide
your soldier’s campaigns that conquer for you the lands
of human hearts now oppressed by sadness." |
|
Remember the
words of our beloved Jesus and say unto any fear, "Get thee
behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest
not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." (Matthew
16:23)
Jesus was born in a human body; he was crucified; and he resurrected
himself. He rebuilt his body, and his soul entered that resurrected
form. But he did not re-create a body to remain confined in it.
Though he appeared in physical form to his disciples many times
after crucifixion, he dissolved that body again. To understand him
only as incarnate in a body that was crucified and then resurrected
is not appreciably to understand Christ as he is. Incarnate or after
resurrection, Jesus was not only a physical personality, but a vessel
of the infinite Christ Consciousness. While he resurrected himself
in a body, he resurrected his spirit from the confinement of form
into omnipresent Spirit. In oneness with the infinite Christ, he
is resurrected in every new born baby, and in you and me, and in
all people on earth, and everything that has life. He is resurrected
in the winking stars, in the planets, and in the cosmic blue. He
is resurrected in all things that grow from the earth — in
the grass and the tenderest rose. He feels his resurrection in every
form that exists. He is risen in every atom and cell of the vast
cosmos.
| This
is how Jesus wants his devotees to know him: not to limit him
to a form, but to understand his resurrection in omnipresence,
to perceive him as one with the Infinite Light of Christ Consciousness.
Through the spiritual eye, the worshipper can not only behold
the Christ with form, but the formless Christ felt in the vastness
of inner perception, because Christ is already present at that
divine centre of consciousness in all human beings. To experience
Christ as the Cosmic Intelligence is far more wonderful than
just seeing an image formed out of that Infinite Christ. That
is the transcendental Christ which is the 'only begotten son,'
the only begotten reflection of the Heavenly Father's Cosmic
Consciousness in all creation. |
|
"Behold,
he cometh with clouds (he shall come out of the clouds of ignorance)
and every eye (spiritual eye) shall see him."(Revelation
1:7) It is the Spirit behind the body of Christ with which
one should strive to be united — to rise from the tomb of
ignorance and realise in the ascension of the soul the resurrection
of the Christ within.
Let us revitalise
a mighty work of love, 'the new testament', to prepare the world
for the Second Coming of Christ.
Notes
from quoted passages in Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: Sacrosanctum
Concilium
[1] Secret of the ninth Sunday after Pentecost.
[2] Cf. Heb. 13:14.
[3] Cf. Eph. 2:21-22.
[4] Cf. Eph. 4:13.
[5] Cf. Is. 11:12.
[6] Cf. John 11:52.
[7] Cf. John 10:16.
[8] Cf. Is. 61:1; Luke 4:18.
[9] St. Ignatius of Antioch, To the Ephesians, 7, 2.
[10] Cf. 1 Tim. 2:5.
[11] Sacramentarium Veronese (ed. Mohlberg), n. 1265; cf. also n.
1241, 1248.
[26] Postcommunion for both Masses of Easter Sunday.
[27] Collect of the Mass for Tuesday of Easter Week.
[28] Cf. 2 Cor. 6:1.
[29] Cf. Matt. 6:6.
[30] Cf . 1 Thess. 5:17.
[31] Cf . 2 Cor. 4:10-11.
[32] Secret for Monday of Pentecost Week.
[34] Cf. Council of Trent, Session XXII, Doctrine on the Holy Sacrifice
of the Mass, c. 8.
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