The Immortal Soul:

It is a fragile thread that connects us to this world. We are at every moment precariously poised upon the precipice of extinction. The duration of our existence at best is brief and at worst is but a momentary flickering of a spark that will never become a flame. The span of our journey is as much a matter of chance as it is of genetic inheritance or conscious calculation and we are ever exposed to the ruthless and merciless demands of our senses. It is a journey that is as beautiful as it is ugly and the distinction between the two, to a large extent, lies both in the mind of the interpreter and the heart of the observer while that selfsame mind and heart are unceasingly subject to the immediate circumstances and events that mold and manipulate them. It is, nonetheless, the joy of humankind that it has been endowed both with the power of vision and the power of discovery whereby it is enabled to rise above the world of the senses and dwell in the heaven of spirit. It requires, however, a conscious effort and vigilant attention of the mind and heart to subdue the raging forces of nature and avoid becoming a slave to the senses. It is not without pain nor is it without sacrifice but the prize is worth the effort.

Why is it that humankind, from as far back as accurate records and story telling traditions indicate, has always entertained the inner conviction that only his outer body dies but that his inner soul lives on forever? This is an assertion that has always been advanced by religion and its most revered and respected proponents and it is also an assertion that has been embraced by most members of the scientific community. Nevertheless, there is also an element within humankind composed of scientists and philosophers who scoff at the idea of God, who refuse to give credence to His existence, who reject the idea of an immortal soul, who assert that death is the end of both the physical and spiritual life, who claim that the entire range of a human person’s existence occupies only the time frame from crib to coffin, who contemptuously state that there is no hereafter and that those who believe that there is have been deluded by religious leaders and spiritual cranks whose only area of expertise is myth and superstition.

However, if we ignore myth and superstition, set aside traditional religious beliefs, subject the question to reason, logic, and empirical examination and then clothe it in the garment of scientific and technological discovery then perhaps we will find that the scales will tip more to one position than to the other and perhaps, also, will advance the irresistible likelihood that humankind, as a whole, has been instinctively, intuitively, and deductively correct from the very beginning. Besides, only in humankind does the faculty exist whereby the question can be conceived, its related data researched, and its various and contending aspects subjected to the rigors of argument. Nowhere in nature does this faculty exist except in humankind and not even nature itself, despite our physically being a part of it, is able to depart from obedience to its own inviolable laws and is incapable of abstract reasoning, conscious deliberation, deductive speculation, or coherent speech. It is a faculty neither exercised nor demonstrated anywhere else in nature and begs the question, “How is it that nature can produce something possessed of qualities and attributes of which nature itself is bereft?” It is the same as imagining that if a person were to take an empty cup and immerse it in the ocean that they could find in the contents of the cup that which is absent in the ocean from which it was derived.

Even the most cynical and irreligiously minded scientist, who disclaims any association with any organized religion will, when the question is appropriately put to them, admit that they have neither an explanation as to how the expanse of the universe originally came into being nor any means by which they can replicate it. They are unable either to describe or define the First Cause, the Primary Motivating Force, the Creator of all things visible and invisible, and yet, are equally unable to deny that an effect must have a Cause, that a creation must have a Creator, and that it takes Intelligence to beget intelligence. Not even the most skeptical scientist would attempt to advance the notion that intelligence came into being as a result of random chance nor would they be so presumptuous as to claim that they have personally created any of the operating principles and underlying laws of nature that they have discovered. Humankind was created in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of God with the primary difference being that God is the Creator whereas humankind is simply creative. God brings something into existence out of nothingness whereas humankind must have something with which to begin. Science is the arena of discovering that which is already there whereas God is the One who put it there.

One of the axioms, that is to say, the self-evident truths that even the simplest of human intellects can readily grasp is that, ‘We did not create ourselves’ and another is that, ‘We did not create the universe in which we live’. These two axioms, without drawing upon any others, are incontrovertible proof of the existence of God. However, they do not describe Him nor do they explain His Existence. They simply testify that He exists and that humankind is a product of his Creative Energy. Knowing that something exists and observing and recording the phenomena that derive from it is not the same as understanding it or comprehending its inner reality. We know that God exists but at the same time have not the capacity nor the means by which to know what He is.

Admitting the existence of God, even though we have neither the tools nor the method by which to grasp His inner Reality and Essence, is the first step toward admitting also of the existence of the human soul, that pre-eminent spiritual substance that distinguishes humankind above and beyond any other creature on planet earth and by which he is in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of his Creator. This term is applied in the same way that we would describe our own image and likeness were we to gaze upon our reflection in a mirror. Although all the characteristics, the shape and form, that identify us outwardly as human are captured in the reflection, nonetheless, we did not descend into the mirror in order to create that reflection and the reflection cannot be said to have the same qualities or attributes that we ourselves possess. It is true that we are in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of God in that we possess all of His attributes but we possess each and every one to a limited degree which is what makes us human whereas God possesses each and every quality and attribute to an absolute degree which is what makes Him God.

If we admit that God exists and that He is the Creator of all things both visible and invisible and, if we admit that He possesses all qualities to an absolute degree, then it necessarily follows that His Creation is absolute, that is to say, it has no boundaries, no limitations, no ending, and no dimensions because as an absolute it will possess all characteristics to an infinite and immeasurable degree. Science readily accepts the postulate of the ‘indestructibility and conservation of matter’ wherein the ‘building blocks of matter’ may disassemble and re-assemble in various shapes and forms but are themselves never destroyed and, hence, are infinite as regards the physical universe. On the other hand, religion postulates that the soul is an indivisible substance not subject to decomposition that was created by God to be eternal and imperishable and which will travel through all of His infinite worlds gradually unfolding the infinite qualities it has in common with Him and by which it will arrive at its intended destiny. There should be no conflict between these two positions that, in essence, are two halves of a whole. God is called the Creator not the Uncreator. Whatsoever He fashions and sets in motion cannot be unfashioned or set in reverse. Nothing whatsoever can frustrate the Will of God and any and all attempts are invariably met with built in safeguards that protect its design and purpose and which impose corrective measures against those who foolishly disregard its warning signs.

Having advanced simple but incontrovertible proof of the existence of God and, similarly, having advanced the self-evident truth that humankind possesses qualities and attributes of which nature is bereft, we are left with the irresistible postulate that these qualities and attributes, not found in nature, are the human soul. Further, since God is an Absolute, the only absolute, it necessarily follows that He does not act with limitation and, having created the soul in His ‘Image and Likeness’ would confer upon it the self same infinite nature and range of qualities that would enable it to pass successfully through an infinite extension of worlds which by His Absolute Nature He would be compelled to create. The human soul is the crowning point of God’s creation and by its very nature is immortal, indestructible, and indivisible.

The Wrath of God:


Man is, unhappily, possessed of a highly developed faculty for blaming everyone and everything other than himself for whatever happens to or around him. He can justify his every error, foolishness, vanity and perversity, and he can rationalize his every shortcoming, injustice, inadequacy, and brutality by blaming it on some outside influence over which he had no control and for which he had no resistance. When all else has failed as a defense for his weaknesses and iniquities he will inevitably blame God. Such is the pettiness of humankind and therein lies the essence of his degradation and self-inflicted misery. When humankind describes the misery and suffering that they have wrought upon themselves as the vengeance and wrath of God they are exercising nothing less than manifest hypocrisy and human deception.

A loving mother will forbid her child to place its unprotected hand upon a red-hot burner because she knows the pain and suffering that will result. She tells the child that it will hurt him, that it will injure his hand, and that it may never properly heal. Her warning is a protection to him and the sign of her loving-kindness and concern for his happiness. If the child does not pay heed to her warning, defies her command, and places his hand on the red-hot burner then he will experience the agony of pain and will have severely damaged a member of his body. The mother cannot be blamed for the child’s defiance of her warning any more than she can be blamed for the suffering that resulted from the disobedience. This cannot be called the wrath of the mother or maternal chastisement. Likewise it cannot be called the wrath of God or Divine chastisement when humankind disobeys the commands of God and suffers the agonizing results. God is not vengeful but He is just. He has provided humankind with the protection of His Word as a sign of His Loving-Kindness and has endowed him with the capacity to distinguish truth from error as a sign of His infinite Mercy and Justice. God has never left humankind comfortless nor has He ever withheld the Wisdom of His Counsel. Humankind’s rejection of His Counsel, defiance of His Commands, disobedience against His Teachings, violation of His Principles, and persecution of His Messengers has invariably resulted in immeasurable pain, suffering, and abject misery.
Humankind, if it be true to that which it professes to believe must, of necessity, also recognize, embrace, and attest to the logical consequences of each and every one of those beliefs and must, if it be true to the integrity of those beliefs, act and be the living example by which the truth of those beliefs can be vindicated. Each belief leads irresistibly to its logical consequence and each logical consequence leads irresistibly to another belief. To profess to believe in one while at the same time denying its logical consequence is to engage in blind imitation and to become a puppet for the myths and superstitions that abound throughout society.
Belief is not only spiritual but must also be logical and must not fly in the face of reason and common sense. An illustration of this is as follows;

To believe in God is to believe in the eternal, imperishable, and unalterable nature of the soul.
To believe in the immortality of the soul is to believe in the survival of the soul after death.
To believe in the survival of the soul is to believe in the existence of another life in another world.
To believe that life does not begin and end in this world is to believe that there are joys, rewards, bounties, and treasures in the next world that are eternal and imperishable.
To believe that the joys and rewards of the next world are eternal and imperishable is to believe that the transitory and perishable joys and rewards of this world, by comparison, are insignificant and only worthy of a modicum of pursuit.
To believe that the joys and rewards of this world are only worthy of a modicum of pursuit is to believe that only the treasures of the next world are worthy of the focus of our pursuit.
To believe that only the treasures of the next world are worthy of pursuit is to believe that the qualities necessary to acquire them have been deposited in the human soul.
To believe that theses qualities have been deposited in the human soul is to believe that each and every soul has the capacity to unfold them.
To believe that the soul has the capacity to unfold these God-given attributes is to believe that they are the hidden essence of humankind.
To believe that these attributes are the hidden essence of humankind is to believe that their unfoldment will reveal the true knowledge of humankind.
To believe that these unfolded qualities will reveal the true knowledge of humankind is to believe that humankind is ignorant and handicapped without their unfoldment.
To believe that God is a Spirit and not a physical being is to believe that humankind can only reflect the spiritual attributes of God.
To believe that humankind can reflect the spiritual attributes of God is to believe that these attributes have been deposited in the human soul.
To believe that these spiritual attributes have been deposited in the human soul is to believe that they are the hidden essence of humankind.
To believe that these spiritual attributes are the hidden essence of humankind is to believe that they are the means by which humankind is in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of god.
To believe that humankind is ignorant and handicapped without their unfolding is to believe that humankind is ignorant and handicapped unless he is reflecting the spiritual attributes of God.
To believe that humankind is ignorant and handicapped unless he is reflecting the spiritual attributes of God is to believe that the unfolding of these attributes will lead to the discovery of the true knowledge of humankind.
To believe that the unfolding of these attributes will lead to a true knowledge of humankind is to believe that the hidden essence of humankind, the spiritual attributes of God, the ‘Image and Likeness’ of God, and the true knowledge of humankind are all one and the same.
To believe that they are all one and the same is to believe that the exaltation and progress of humankind rests solely in their achievement.
To believe that the exaltation and progress of humankind lies solely in their achievement is to believe that the degradation and regression of humankind lies in their abandonment.
To believe that the degradation and regression of humankind lies in his refusal to reflect the attributes of God is to believe that God has given humankind the freedom to, on the one hand, choose either to gratify its greeds, passions, and desires or, on the other hand, to comply with the Teachings, Principles, and Commandments that He has sent to them through His Messengers.
To believe that God is Just is to believe that He has provided humankind with the Protection of His Word so that humankind can avoid unnecessary pain, suffering, and abject misery.
To believe that the Word of God is a Protection against pain, suffering, and abject misery is to believe that defiance and rejection of His Word will lead to pain, suffering , and abject misery.
To believe that that defiance of God’s Word will lead to pain, suffering, and abject misery is to believe that this suffering is a result of humankind’s defiance and disregard and is not, therefore, a demonstration of God’s wrath or vengeance.
By the Wrath of God is meant the defiance, betrayal, and disregard of those spiritual and physical laws that are inherent in His universe, are self-regulating, and which do not require His personal intervention in order to assure that both the soul of humankind and His physical universe arrive at their pre-determined destiny.

The Eternal Covenant:


A Covenant, by definition, is a solemn agreement or promise between two or more parties. The Covenant between God and humankind is eternal, imperishable and indestructible and does not rely on the behaviour of His creatures whether good or bad inasmuch as He cannot by His nature violate a trust. We may not live up to our side of
this covenant because we are limited and imperfect but God will always maintain and act in accordance with His promise. God’s love and bounty do not discriminate but, rather, are the essence of equity and justice and rain down their nourishing effect upon high and low alike.

The Covenant between God’s Prophet and Messenger, on the other hand is temporary, that is to say, it begins with His Messenger’s appearance upon the horizon of humankind and terminates upon the appearance of His Successor Who has the Authority and Mission to minister to the needs of the age in which He appears and to supplant, abrogate, alter, dismiss, or re-establish any or all of the dictates of His Predecessor. Each new Manifestation of God refurbishes, revitalizes, and spiritually propels the body of humankind forward while at the same time infusing into it a spirit of moral and ethical sacrifice and dedication the example of which in a select few of its martyrs and saints stands as a model for others to follow and to emulate and the effect of which lifts humankind out of the mire of corruption and perversion into which it has descended and enables it to gradually rise toward the destiny for which it was created.

God has, through His human Manifestations, a gradually progressive series of human Emissaries carrying His Message to His creatures, assured those creatures that He will never leave them comfortless either in this world or in any of the worlds to come. This is the Eternal Covenant that has no boundaries or limitations and which spans an infinite array of worlds yet to be experienced but through which the soul must travel on its unalterable journey towards its Creator. The soul is inextricably bound to its Creator by Will, Purpose, and Intent that no intervention by any outside force can disturb or alter. The Eternal Covenant is equally inherent and expressed in the biblical quotation, “ Let Us make man in our Image and after our Likeness.” It is implicit in this statement that humankind is the recipient potentially both ‘en masse’ and individually of all of the qualities of God, i.e., immortality, indestructibility, knowledge, wisdom, creativity, etc. all of which will become more and more apparent and more and more fully developed as the soul progresses through each world of God and encounters those conditions necessary to the expression of qualities and abilities not as yet manifest but which are inherently possessed.

It is self-evident that there can be no Eternal Covenant unless eternity exists. There can be no Eternal Covenant unless God exists and there can be no Eternal Covenant unless humankind exists. It is implicit in this trinity that an Eternal Covenant exists even if Its length, breadth, and duration cannot be fully grasped in any individual lifetime. We know It exists because of the evidence that attests to and derives from Its existence. Eternity is a very long time and the most generous duration of the physical body is dwarfed and diminished by comparison and stands in stark clarity and incontrovertible testimony to the exhortation of every Manifestation of God that the focus of our entire lifetime should be to the progress and cultivation of our soul which is immortal and not to pandering to and pursuing the pleasures of the physical world which are brief, temporary, and of limited value. It offends all reason and common sense to discard the pearl and to cherish and delight only in the shell.

God has promised in the tenets of each of the great religions, that is to say, He has entered into an Eternal Covenant with humankind that His Grace and Blessings will never be withheld, even for an instant, from even the lowliest and that we have but to call on His Name, never forget Him in any of our dealings in life, recognize His Manifestation of Wisdom when He appears, and strive to live our lives according to the Teachings of His Messenger in order to be the eternal recipients and benefactors of this overflowing shower of limitless bounties and bestowals. We have but to be vigilant in our search, diligent in our efforts, and unflagging in our resolve to live for our soul and not sacrifice its treasures for the mundane pursuits of an ephemeral word and a frail and temporary human body.

The Eternal Covenant:


A Covenant, by definition, is a solemn agreement or promise between two or more parties. The Covenant between God and humankind is eternal, imperishable and indestructible and does not rely on the behaviour of His creatures whether good or bad inasmuch as He cannot by His nature violate a trust. We may not live up to our side of
this covenant because we are limited and imperfect but God will always maintain and act in accordance with His promise. God’s love and bounty do not discriminate but, rather, are the essence of equity and justice and rain down their nourishing effect upon high and low alike.

The Covenant between God’s Prophet and Messenger, on the other hand is temporary, that is to say, it begins with His Messenger’s appearance upon the horizon of humankind and terminates upon the appearance of His Successor Who has the Authority and Mission to minister to the needs of the age in which He appears and to supplant, abrogate, alter, dismiss, or re-establish any or all of the dictates of His Predecessor. Each new Manifestation of God refurbishes, revitalizes, and spiritually propels the body of humankind forward while at the same time infusing into it a spirit of moral and ethical sacrifice and dedication the example of which in a select few of its martyrs and saints stands as a model for others to follow and to emulate and the effect of which lifts humankind out of the mire of corruption and perversion into which it has descended and enables it to gradually rise toward the destiny for which it was created.

God has, through His human Manifestations, a gradually progressive series of human Emissaries carrying His Message to His creatures, assured those creatures that He will never leave them comfortless either in this world or in any of the worlds to come. This is the Eternal Covenant that has no boundaries or limitations and which spans an infinite array of worlds yet to be experienced but through which the soul must travel on its unalterable journey towards its Creator. The soul is inextricably bound to its Creator by Will, Purpose, and Intent that no intervention by any outside force can disturb or alter. The Eternal Covenant is equally inherent and expressed in the biblical quotation, “ Let Us make man in our Image and after our Likeness.” It is implicit in this statement that humankind is the recipient potentially both ‘en masse’ and individually of all of the qualities of God, i.e., immortality, indestructibility, knowledge, wisdom, creativity, etc. all of which will become more and more apparent and more and more fully developed as the soul progresses through each world of God and encounters those conditions necessary to the expression of qualities and abilities not as yet manifest but which are inherently possessed.

It is self-evident that there can be no Eternal Covenant unless eternity exists. There can be no Eternal Covenant unless God exists and there can be no Eternal Covenant unless humankind exists. It is implicit in this trinity that an Eternal Covenant exists even if Its length, breadth, and duration cannot be fully grasped in any individual lifetime. We know It exists because of the evidence that attests to and derives from Its existence. Eternity is a very long time and the most generous duration of the physical body is dwarfed and diminished by comparison and stands in stark clarity and incontrovertible testimony to the exhortation of every Manifestation of God that the focus of our entire lifetime should be to the progress and cultivation of our soul which is immortal and not to pandering to and pursuing the pleasures of the physical world which are brief, temporary, and of limited value. It offends all reason and common sense to discard the pearl and to cherish and delight only in the shell.

God has promised in the tenets of each of the great religions, that is to say, He has entered into an Eternal Covenant with humankind that His Grace and Blessings will never be withheld, even for an instant, from even the lowliest and that we have but to call on His Name, never forget Him in any of our dealings in life, recognize His Manifestation of Wisdom when He appears, and strive to live our lives according to the Teachings of His Messenger in order to be the eternal recipients and benefactors of this overflowing shower of limitless bounties and bestowals. We have but to be vigilant in our search, diligent in our efforts, and unflagging in our resolve to live for our soul and not sacrifice its treasures for the mundane pursuits of an ephemeral word and a frail and temporary human body.

Why?

Why is it that we do not ask ‘Why?’ more frequently, more persistently, and more deliberately? The world abounds with self-evident truths and is filled with axioms upon which to launch our opinions and convictions and from which to test the validity of our beliefs. Even the most simple-minded human is capable of grasping the lions share of these axioms and truths and to recognize the fundamental wisdom inherent in each. Why is it that so many ignore the stark reality of a self-evident truth in order to embrace a myth or superstition that flies in the face of logic and reasoning and collapses in the face of honest investigation?

Do we not have an obligation to our natural curiosity and insatiable thirst for truth to subject the accuracy and validity of any belief to the rigorous scrutiny of personal investigation and do we not have an obligation to this same curiosity and thirst for truth not to blindly accept a belief, tradition, dogma, or ritual, simply because our ancestors or because someone we hold in high esteem does so?

We have an obligation to our own selves, to our conscience, and to the integrity of our soul, to acquire knowledge and to tenaciously cling to its verities but only after we have first, through our own efforts, determined that these verities will not collapse and vanish in a puff of smoke when subjected to the harsh reality of a probing mind, an inquiring intellect, and an inflexible logic that refuses to accept as valid that which is in defiance of it’s reason.

Socrates, Galileo, and Copernicus, along with countless multitudes, are serious examples and victims of the confrontation between reality and superstition who have, even though they are the crowning point of God’s creation, been sacrificed upon the altar of ignorance and stupidity for no other reason than to maintain a concept, belief, or philosophy that has crumbled in the face of self-evident truth. Religion is the co-equal partner to science but to be true unto itself it must act in consort with science not in defiance of it. Religion, as it is often presented, is not always correct nor is its counterpart science. Each is but a half of a whole and it is only when they unite in partnership that the ark of knowledge that they sail upon the ocean of humanity will chart a safe journey to the shore of truth.

Humankind lives in two worlds simultaneously. The physical world of science and the spiritual world of religion and philosophy and it simply becomes less than human when it pursues one to the exclusion of the other. Both are necessary to healthy development and each provides the essential balance by which the other is restrained from descending into the ruthless pit of excess. Science without the morals and ethics of religion will, without these regulating guidelines, wander into the ruthless and brutal arena of contempt for the rights of the individual who it will mercilessly sacrifice in the name of the pursuit of knowledge whereas religion, without the logic and reason of science will, without the sanity of these virtues, descend into the reproachable pit of superstition and myth from which it will perform acts that stain the mirror of the human soul so that it is no longer able to reflect those attributes by which it is in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of God.

Why, since they are clearly two halves of a single whole, do not science and religion walk hand in hand as do any two betrothed’s when dedicated to the same destiny and committed to serving the same Master of their union? Why do they not extend to each other the respect deserved by each?

Why can they not perceive in each other the autonomous arena in which each is gifted with its unique expertise and which should be welcomed and embraced by the other and without which each is diminished and left wanting?

Why does each immediately reject out of hand that which does not, in appearance or perceived substance, conform to its own strongly held views without extending to it the simple courtesy of a receptive ear, a discerning eye, an open mind, and an appraising intellect?

Perhaps the answer may reside in the deep rooted fear and suspicion that the other may be more correct than they wish to admit and, if admitted, would demand that they scrutinize their own beliefs more deliberately and honestly and be forced into the insecure position of relinquishing a portion of the firm foundation upon which their life perspective had been established. A scary position indeed! Perhaps even a position so intolerable to their emotional and spiritual equilibrium that rejection and denial becomes the only recourse and, hence, ethics and morality are deemed of secondary importance and must be sacrificed upon the altar of emotional security and sanity. A sad indictment of our standards and code of conduct that they are so fragile and frail that we must seek to exterminate anything that differs for fear we will be ensnared in its brambles and drawn into its differences.

Stairway of Human Affairs:

The stairway of human affairs either ascends into the
Heaven of wisdom or descends into the hell of
Arrogance and ignorance.

Those who descend the stairway into the abyss of ignorance
and arrogance are characterized by symptoms the blight
of which erodes their human attributes and deprives them
of the potential for moral, ethical, and spiritual excellence

If, however, they ascend the stairway the steps
they trod will lead them to the threshold
Of that which is their most beloved.

-------------------

The first step on the stairway to wisdom
Is the recognition that there is more to learn
than is already known.

The second step is acceptance that what has
Long been believed to be true may not be.

The third step is the knowledge that truth is in the mind
of the interpreter and that the true translation of truth has only
been bestowed upon the Founders of the Great religions
and not on the self-appointed prophets who profess
to speak on Their behalf and with Their approval.

The fourth step is the recognition that science
Is one of the greatest Gifts of the Creator to His creation
And that through it the truths revealed by his Prophets
are tried, tested, and immersed in the cleansing crucible
of rigorous examination and reason.

The fifth step is respect and courtesy toward even the lowliest
of God’s creatures each of whom derives its existence
from His behest and that disrespect to that which
He has created is an affront to Him also.

The sixth step is the realization that forgiveness is
greater than revenge, kindness is more powerful than cruelty,
compassion is more productive than callousness, generosity is
more rewarding than greed, love is more fulfilling than hatred
and courtesy is more bountiful than rudeness.

The seventh step is the recognition that there is only
one God though He may be known through various Messengers
each of whom is a credit to and a legitimate Spokesperson
on His behalf and Each of whom appears at a different time
and with a different Message suited to the needs of the
age in which They appear.

The eighth step is the recognition that superficial differences
such as color, language, race, or culture are simply ecological
adaptations by the species and do not reflect any inherent
weakness or deficiency thereby and that there is only one
human family and one country to which all equally belong

The ninth step is the recognition that it is the virtues
not the vices that distinguish us as human and that
it is the degree to which we aspire to the one and
diligently avoid the other that will lead us to the destiny
for which we were created and into the beckoning
arms of the inmates of heaven.

The Fear of God?




There are no justifiable or warranted reasons to be evil but there is every reason to be good.

Those who wish to absolve their mean and despicable ways will argue that life has dealt them a harsh and cruel hand and that they are only responding in kind and that if there is a God that He too must be inherently cruel and harsh for He looks down with favour on some and on others with malice and perversity.

If God is All-Powerful, All-Loving, and All-Encompassing, they say, then why does He not intercede on behalf of the innocent and helpless who, through no fault of their own, are victims of cruel treatment, merciless conditions and punishing deprivation? How can a kind, loving, and generous Creator stand idly by and allow such suffering and torture to continue? The world abounds with cruelty, brutality, and injustice so why then does God not bring an end to these tragic and pitiful symptoms of imperfection in a creation for which He alone claims credit?

Man creates nothing! He merely discovers that which already exists and then creatively employs it to his advantage. Man has the power of discovery but not the power of creation, hence, from whence comes cruelty, torture, hatred, treachery, betrayal, lying, cheating, and theft? Humankind may exhibit these symptoms but cannot rightfully claim credit for having created them. This dubious distinction must be laid at the doorstep of He Who is the Creator of all things both visible and invisible. If evil exists then God must have created it. How then can the Creator of evil condemn and punish His creation for having fallen prey to insidious forces that are not of their making?

We most certainly can fear a God Who possesses such overwhelming power and Who can impose terrible anguish and retribution against all who would rebel against Him but how can we be expected to love and worship such a biased and whimsical deity? We cannot help but fear Him for He is Omnipotent and we are helpless and powerless pawns in the face of His irresistible Will. But, in the same way that a bag cannot contain more than it can hold, so too is it true that there is no room in a human heart for love when it is filled to overflowing with fear and outrage.

When confronted by the inescapable reality of all the pain and suffering that surrounds us, these observations and criticisms are unavoidable and expected, nonetheless, no matter how easily these complaints and queries roll off the tongue and occupy the mind, an answer capable of subduing the bitterness and of instilling a serenity of attitude into a troubled soul does lie within our grasp, but, the conditions for its discovery require that we observe with an eye that is not clouded by imitation, that we listen with an ear that hearkens to the exquisite sounds of harmony and is not deafened by the discordant cacophony of shrieking ravens, and that we listen with a mind that is uncluttered by the clamor of the misguided, uncontaminated by the blemish of enmity, and unsullied by the stain of bias.

All the elements for securely grasping and resolving this perplexity are well within our reach and require only that we approach them with a purity of motive, sincerity of intent, and earnestness of heart.

What then is meant by the ‘fear of God’? Indeed! The phrase is both a contradiction and a riddle. On the surface it would seem to be a contradiction for it flies in the face of our conception of God as being All-Loving, All-Merciful, and All-Forgiving, and yet, all of the Founders of the Great Religions have instructed Their followers to arm themselves with, and to exhort their fellow man to observe, a proper fear of God and to dread and beware of His wrath.

How can we, on the one hand, embrace the concept that God is loving, merciful, generous, and forgiving and, on the other hand, recoil from Him with a heart that is filled with fear and dread of His wrath?

The answer lies in the reality that these are two entirely different positions of the mind whereby our heart is moved and our actions dictated. These are two very different vantage points and each cultivates praiseworthy behaviour and promotes commendable conduct by appealing to very different perceptions entertained in the minds of very different individuals.

In general, when we think of the word fear it conjures up an image of limbs quaking, knees knocking, loins cramping, bowels sagging, and kidneys emptying in response to some imminent threat of injury to body, mind, or cherished possession and, generally, this is true. However, there is also the fear that arises when we consider the consequences of our actions by which behaviour is molded, conduct is guided, emotions are harnessed, and passions are restrained, thereby liberating our innate abilities and loosing our inherent talents to soar to the heights for which they were intended.

Nothing is more pitiable than to waste time and energy rallying our talents and abilities in the pursuit of that which is worthless and profitless. Man was not intended to be a fig tree that bears no fruit and that is only fit for the fire. The meadow of his mind was meant to blossom in a dazzling spectrum of floral beauty and the orchard of his heart was meant to abound in a succulent array of unblemished fruit from which all succeeding generations may partake. The sound of his voice should carry a melody to delight the hearing of the lover of song and cause all the atoms of his limbs to dance to the ecstasy of its exhilarating harmony. Joy and gladness are gifts of God the absence of which brings anguish to the mind and the prospect of the loss of which brings fear to the heart.

Why then would any person persist, with an intransigent mind, to disregard these self-evident truths and to indulge their most corrupt inclinations? Why does the intelligent and perceptive mind construct battlements to enclose and protect its selfish pursuits and to shut out every effort by the Emissaries of truth and reason to bridge the moat of their self-imposed isolation from reality?

Is it, perhaps, that they fear the loss of that which they already possess and are unable to perceive any substitute of equal or greater value that could impel them to relinquish their hold on it? Or is it, perhaps, that they refuse to gaze beyond the moment, and in the narrow and confined prison of their ignorance, have no fear of consequences that they refuse to acknowledge and, hence, no motive to curb their appetite?

Each and every person throughout the limitless expanse of the universe has been created to know God and to worship Him and each soul from the moment of its birth embarks on a journey the ultimate destination of which is reunion with its Creator and asylum within His loving embrace. When, however, a soul resorts to and employs torture, cruelty, betrayal, violence, cheating, lying, and theft as a means to gain their fortune or advance their position, so too do they attract to them forces of a similar nature with an effect equally as fearful, since the daily practice of these contemptible actions forces them to exist at a level that is immeasurably beneath the station that they are destined in the fullness of time to occupy. They have every good reason to fear the consequences of such flagrant misconduct because this spiritually criminal behaviour does no less than rally the forces of the universe to resist their perverse actions and automatically invokes its self-regulating safeguards to ensure that all the elements within it are properly disciplined for all attempts to disrupt the harmony and unity of its existence.

Both fear and the wrath of God pre-exist our awareness of them and whether in this world or the next the inescapable effect of our transgression will exert its influence and be brought to bear upon the soul.

By the wrath of God is meant cause and effect and should not be construed to mean that God sits idly upon His plush throne surveying His creation while at the same time correcting mistakes that have not gone according to His Will. God does not make mistakes that He must at a later date correct. The universe does and is unable to resist unfolding according to His Will. In other words, the entire universal system, all of God’s creatures including humankind, and all other universes presently unknown to us, have been created by Him completely equipped with all safeguards and universal laws that, if ignored or transgressed, will bring retribution to bear upon the transgressor. If you disregard His instructions to you, or if you deliberately and knowingly act in opposition to His laws and teachings then you will pay the price for your transgression whether it be in this world or the next. That is one of the immutable and universal laws that underlies His entire creation both visible and invisible.

Two innate guardians that serve as protective champions to the soul are, the sense of shame and, the sentinel of conscience, neither of which exists in every persons heart or occupies every persons mind.

There are some who are not endowed with a sense of shame and whose sordid existence is a reflection of this absence and there are others whose heart and mind are deprived of conscience and for whom torture and cruelty are instruments of delight and for whom pity, mercy, and remorse, are deemed to be the attributes of fools. Their hardened hearts are unmoved by the cries of their victims, the pleas of their captives, or the tears of the grief-stricken whose agony arises out of the loss of a loved one at the hands of evil butchers. Such as these are parasitic organisms whose behaviour is not regulated by ethics or morality and who respond only to the fear of retribution by outer social forces designed to safeguard the whole of which they are a destructive part. Justice, not personal revenge, demands that laws and the means for their application be put in place to protect the innocent from the parasites that seek to feed upon them. A flock of lambs must be safeguarded by a shepherd to protect them from the insatiable appetite of the wolf against whom they have no defense. The shepherd harbors no ill-will and his protection is not motivated by hatred for the wolf, rather, while recognizing that the wolf is a victim of its predatory and carnivorous inclinations and cannot be blamed for pursuing its prey he, nonetheless, also recognizes that the lambs have neither the strength or the faculties to stand against the wolf who, if left to his own devices, will steal into the pack and devour them all one by one. The shepherd would prefer that the wolf never approach his flock for it is not his wish to bring harm to it, however, his first duty is to his flock and if necessary he will destroy the wolf if it threatens the safety of the innocent lambs in his custody. Punishment should never be motivated by revenge lest it descend into the abyss of brutality and cruelty and in so doing transform the guardian into a mirror image of the perpetrator that they condemn so that no distinction can be detected between them.

If the actions of the heart and mind are conditioned by the sense of shame then it becomes unthinkable to entertain any idea or course of action that would redound either to your own personal dishonor or to the dishonor of those things that you hold most dear.

If the actions of the heart and mind are faithfully served by the sentinel of conscience then it becomes equally unthinkable to knowingly and deliberately perpetrate acts that would bring injury and suffering to the innocent and harmless or that would inflict savage, brutal, and merciless torture and revenge upon those who are deemed to be guilty.

The sense of shame and the sentinel of conscience are the twin pillars upon which the canopy of justice is supported and they are the secure foundation upon which the institution of justice is erected. Within the hallowed sanctuary of their embrace, that is an asylum for the righteous and the innocent, can only be inhaled the fragrance of equity and the scent of freedom.

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Carbon is the most abundant element of the earth and no living organism has yet been discovered that does not rely upon it for the integrity of its existence. When carbon is placed in the crucible of fire and subjected to the rigors of extreme pressure it emerges as the hardest substance known to man and when this same substance is refined and polished its beauty and brilliance cause it to be diligently sought after as a source of wealth and adornment. The many faceted diamond expresses its luster no matter from which vantage point it is viewed and has long been the symbol for the journey of that which is crude, in its earliest stages, to the eventual zenith of its potential.

From the bowels of human history and out of the earth of human understanding have been extracted two unique diamonds pre-eminent over all others, both of which are pursued with passion, and each of which is the reciprocal counterpart and adversary of the other. One is a prodigy to be admired and emulated whereas the other is a prodigal to be distrusted and avoided. In a contingent world life does not exist without both since the presence of one depends on the presence of the other. The knowledge of one requires the knowledge of the other since only in the Eden of total ignorance does the presence of either remain undetected.

These two paramount diamonds that dominate the activities of humankind are Love and Hate, out of which all other qualities and attributes arise and they represent, on the one hand, the conditions of heaven and hell and, on the other hand, the two compelling forces that propel humankind either to soar to the heights of greatness or to descend to the depths of shame.

Love, that is to say, the force of attraction and affection, without which solid form would cease to exist and the most minute component of the tiniest atom would suddenly vanish into nothingness, and without which, throughout the infinite expanse of our universe and all universes that extend beyond, all matter and all life that depended upon it would simply disappear with only a void remaining where life had once existed, is the central emanation from God and the surest sign of His presence.

Those who know God and worship Him are also those who love Him and whose hearts are filled with dread, not because of the expectation of His retribution against them, but because they fear that they may transgress His Word, earn His censure, and thereby fail to enjoy His approval. This fear arises from the need not to disappoint their Beloved and is a natural corollary to the sense of shame and the sentinel of conscience. This is the spiritual and emotional fear and is a healthy and necessary part of our existence and it is a fear that is capable of subjugating all other considerations, including physical fear, as is evidenced by those courageous and heroic martyrs who have shed their blood and their very substance in the path of their beliefs and who have stoically endured a persecution and suffering, the like of which we can but imagine, for the sake of their love for their Beloved.

Love is the essence of life, the cause of all attraction, the basis of all affection, the source of all bonding, and it permeates all things whether visible or invisible, and, though it is not a thing that can be seen, touched, or examined, nonetheless, the evidence of its existence is both undeniable and irrefutable and is the most eloquent testimony to the All-Pervading Presence of the Creator from whence it emanates.

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Hate, that is to say, the forces of division and repulsion, the source of chaos and confusion, the manifestation of corruption and depravity, the mother of sin and imperfection, the cause of decomposition and death, and the vortex into which all the engulfing snares of hell lure and attract us, is the adversary and counterpart of love that constantly lurks in the darkness and that is ever poised and vigilant and that, patient and tireless, seeks to topple us into the abyss of error and to dash our hopes, smash our spirits, and cripple the ability of our soul to attain the lofty position it was destined to occupy. It is both resourceful and opportunistic and will avail itself of any moment of carelessness to distract us from our purpose and will employ any occasion of weakness or mistake to divert us from our path. It ill behooves us to underestimate either the influence or strength of such a nefarious foe or to disregard the growing signs of its pervasive presence in the activities that surround us and that influence and manipulate our every move.

Hate, however, is not a being or a personality nor is it a living, conscious, and thinking adversary that with willful deliberation plots and conspires for our downfall. Nor can we, with picturesque simplicity, ascribe to it the various names of Lucifer, Satan, or the Devil, whereby it is transformed into a competitor against God. God has no peer, is without an equal, has no rival and is without a competitor. God stand alone and Pre-Eminent above His creation that includes all things living or inanimate and all things whether visible or invisible.

Hate is a condition, an emotion, a symptom, that fills the vacancy when love departs, when affection is discarded, when attraction vanishes, and it seeps into every fiber, occupies every niche, and takes up residency wherever and whenever the spirit loses sight of the purpose for which it was created. It is the soil in which the seeds of evil are nourished and cultivated and it is the germ that invades and infects the healthy organism. Hate can only exist in the absence of love in the same way that evil can only exist in the absence of good. Hate and evil do not have any substance in and of themselves but, rather, become manifest and exert their pernicious influence when love is abandoned. They tarnish the mirror of the human soul and form the dross that obscures the ‘image and likeness’ of God that lies potentially therein from appearing in all its resplendent glory.