2000-3-7 11:34:00
I liked Brian's comment about the word MAGI being incorporated into imagine. It is not a coincidence that we have many hidden messages within the words we use - more than even the enlightened realize.
Rick asks: "I got the impression, from earlier teachings on the list, that you said we were always human. The above seems to say that our consciousness evolves up through the spectrum of Kingdoms. So, I'm not clear, yet, on just what we are.
"Is a human life one that has grown through mineral, plant and animal forms or is it a collective made up of millions of smaller lives? Each of the countless little lives that make up the One Life, have to go through its own growth process, but each IS also the One Life."
JJ: In a way we have evolved through all the kingdoms because that which has combined to create a vehicle for our expression has come from all the lower kingdoms. However, that intelligence which is you never incarnated on the earth until the lower lives prepared a vehicle of expression for you. Remember, you are not your body, your feelings or even your mind. You are an idea in the mind of God, which has been given the power of Decision. That idea which is you does not fit into the idea of a plant. You would not be happy there with such limitations. However, the idea of the plant is happy to be a plant until it reaches relative perfection. We are happy to be human until we reach our relative perfection. Then we seek to join with others to become a part of a greater life, while keeping our identity as a unique self we merge with the whole.
Rick continues by comparing us to a hard drive with cooperating programs. The computer itself is a good correspondence. Let us compare the computer to a human life.
Within your computer are many programs. These are like lesser lives (animal types) working in isolated unity to make a complete whole. Now on my Mac each program has a sub program called extensions. These are subprograms that make the larger programs function with greater efficiency. These correspond to plant life.
Finally, we have the hardware composed of metal, glass and silicon. This compares to the mineral kingdom.
These three kingdoms on our computers create the whole instrument, but no memory chip will ever evolve into a whole computer. No word processor will ever change into the whole machine. The word processor though, after many versions, will reach relative perfection and blend in with the functioning of the whole.
Living things have an advantage over computer parts in that they become one in consciousness with the greater whole. That is a greater experience than the mere realization that you are just a part of a greater whole.
If you contemplate the lesser lives within your own body you can sense their desire to know you. In a sense you are a god to them and they seek to be one with their god. Their god also should seek to be one with them. This is one of the secrets of perfect health.
The question: "Now we have basically concluded that this Law (of correspondences) can be of great help in the discovery of the truth, but how about the reverse? Can it also help us in the discovery of error? When we have power to discover error we are then aided through the process of elimination as mentioned earlier.
"Let us pick a popular belief and see how it lines up with the Law of Correspondences. The Second Coming of Christ is a good one. Many believe that in the end times (which are supposed to be about now) the world will become very wicked. To protect the righteous God will rapture them into heaven, completely off the earth.
"Christ will come back in his wrath. He will appear in the sky visible to every person on earth, having great armies of angels and send down fire to consume all who have not confessed a particular scripted belief in God and Christ. Afterwards, the raptured earthlings will float down to the earth and Christ will turn it into a paradise that these righteous born againers will inherit for eternity.
"Now let us apply the Law of Correspondences to this belief. Does it fit? Why not?"
James made a good point on this - that the standard version of the second Coming implies some type of instant perfection of imperfect beings into some static condition for all eternity.
Now all things are ultimately possible, and there will be times when some unusual events may occur that are unlike anything else in memory; but even these things will have correspondences somewhere along the line. Nevertheless, when we see someone making a prediction that has no representation in history, there will be over a 99% chance that the prediction is either wrong or misunderstood.
There are several things about the standard belief of the Coming of Christ that has no correspondence in history.
(1) First the idea that he will appear in the sky and light it up for the whole world to see, apparently both sides of the globe.
The scriptures indicating such an event is subject to several more practical interpretations, but beyond this, such an occurrence has no correspondence in either recorded or even mythological history.
(2) The prediction that he will burn all those as stubble who do not bow down and worship him.
This does not correspond to anything in scripture or recorded history. The Spirit of God always promotes free will. To threaten those who do not bow the knee with execution by fire does not allow for much free will for those who believe such words.
(3) The idea that a group of very flawed emotionally based people who presently do not even get along with one another will be transformed into a heavenly kingdom where all will love one another has no correspondence anywhere.
There's a lot of truth in the maxim that a leopard does not change its spots. If a person is irritating and selfish before he makes a declaration of faith, the chances are that these characteristics will remain after such declaration until he naturally works them out of his system over a period of time. Neither Jesus nor God showing up in person will change a selfish, unloving person into an angel.
Obviously this idea of instant transformation into perfection has no correspondence anywhere.
(4) Those who proclaim Jesus as Lord will be raptured up into heaven only leaving behind those who do not believe as they do.
There is no accepted historical writing about anything close to this happening in history. However there are legends and some scriptures that give evidence that some type of mass translation has happened, but even here this happened as enlightened people gathered into one location and perfected their society.
Even in the scriptures it appears that God uses people because of what is in their heart or what they have demonstrated in their actions. He gives very little credit for merely proclaiming belief. Such people who only prayed and had faith were the greatest enemies of Jesus 2000 years ago. Thus, there seems to be no correspondence that applies to this idea.
Susan made a statement that is a good guide in looking for the real fulfillment of prophecy: "Everything works out so normally that most people miss what is actually going on." Can you imagine the Christ coming and living among us here on the earth for 30 or 40 years and the ultra religious people still looking for him to come in the skies? This is entirely possible.
Now let us look at some New Age beliefs and see how they fit.
(1) Many are predicting drastic earth changes.
(2) Many are predicting a visit from space aliens who will rapture us similar to the Christian belief about the coming of Christ.
(3) Many are predicting a shift into a 5th, 6th or some other dimension which will transform all human life.
Question: How do these beliefs fit in with the Law of Correspondences?
Copyright 2000 by J.J. Dewey, All Rights Reserved