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To Those to Whom Is Given the Gift of Eternal Life:
In the midst of your existence, while Christ is being formed in you1 that your days might become secure and eternal, I advocate the pursuit of a spiritual perspective through an honest introspection that neither condemns nor exalts the self unduly. And I suggest that through an objective self-evaluation you seek to establish the necessary guidelines that assure each man and woman an ongoing progress, which every son of God deserves.
But I would caution you concerning mankind's tendency to fall into the jaws of the trap of being puffed up with pride. This comes about through the accumulation of darkness simultaneously with Light. And each such folly indulged in by the seeker after godliness must become a reckoning point in his eventual emancipation from all darkness and his exaltation by grace into Light.
In the matter of bodily health, the state of the mind and spirit must be considered. How foolish it is for men to ignore the content of the mind and to fail to examine that which they allow to fall into it; for the mind can be a pit and a snare because it is of the earth, earthy.2 Men should carefully watch the intake of their minds, for out of all that is absorbed therein are often compounded those animallike qualities which later appear "out of nowhere" to crush the evolving Christ Consciousness, both in its infancy and as it approaches a mature perfection. A man must consider how he becomes his own worst enemy. Unless this be done, his progress may be slow; for within the circle of his being, he will find lurking the most crafty of enemies.
There are many victims of maladies of the mind and spirit who attribute to outside forces the distortions which they themselves have taken into their world. Let us seek to cast out of each blessed monad the negativities that have entered there in order that the eyes may see with singleness of vision the beauty of the emerging Christ. For it is not enough to be called a follower of Christ, a follower of Buddha, or an adherent of any religion accredited by God or man; we must wash one another's feet and minister unto our Lord in all whom we meet.
The seamless garment worn by the Master Jesus tells us of the need for the consciousness that would become identified with the all-loving Father to exclude any and all divisive concepts or dogmatic presentations of the letter that result from the intake of fragmented ideas. Whatever does not hold the being of man to the seamless-garment consciousness, to the unity of the Holy Spirit, or to the sweetness of universal bliss whose cup of joy runneth over3 throughout the universe, is not pure religion undefiled before God.
If man can become his own worst enemy, shall he not perceive how he can escape from the buffeting of this consciousness? Shall he not determine how he can cease to feed the Moloch of the human ego that so easily becomes the snare of his soul? Shall he not recognize the beauty of the Divine Ego? For, as it has been told in the story of Jacob and Esau,4 man's spiritual birthright is mighty indeed and ought to be zealously guarded. The Divine Ego is the firstborn in every man; then comes the human ego into carnal manifestation. And of this men ought to beware. Esau, being the firstborn, was given the first opportunity to manifest Christ-dominion; but because victory is in spiritual election - in each man's free-will choice - Jacob, who more eagerly pursued identification with the Divine Ego, must in honor be preferred as the elect of God. Thus to him Esau, who identified with the wants and desires of the human ego, bowed and sold his birthright.
"So the last shall be first, and the first last ... 5 "Howbeit," the Apostle declared: "that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven ... As we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly."6
I believe that splinters of gross darkness are often found within the very life of the individual who seeks after righteousness but finds that it escapes him. The poison of asps7 lies subtly concealed beneath the surface of the mind. Beloved, all bitterness should be cast out. Only then will the soul be truly free to build those concepts of Christ-reality which are akin to the Mind of God.
What more shall I say regarding the health of the body that proceeds from the health of the mind and spirit? So much remains hidden, even in feelings of hatred and mild dislike, which are actually masochistic tendencies in that they overthrow the peace of God in man. But this peace abides naturally within the mind that is unafraid to pursue an existence patterned after the plan which God first formed in the heavens.
Today, faced with all modern dilemmas, man must still look to the ancient covenant which the eternal Father made with the soul of each one and which is the most beautiful promise of hope that anyone can find anywhere. The strengthening of the bonds of love, the uprooting of the seeds of anxiety and fear, and the elimination of the sense of struggle are keys that open the door of individual happiness leading to the altar of mercy. Here man finds the peace of Heaven that provides progress and movement to the soul and removes the barriers of self-love that are always imposed by man upon himself.
To this direction I write, that this my epistle for twentieth-century man, issuing forth from the Heart of eternal Life, may set before him that measure of perfection which truly is his star. In following the pathway that leads to spiritual triumph, man should rejoice in his ability to recognize the plan of God and, above all, he should be unafraid to destroy those weeds of conflict in the garden of his mind and being that may lead him astray. Thus in casting out the darkness of the mind of the ego, he will see clearly how to cast out the enemy within and how to triumph over the enemy without.
Dedicated to a greater understanding of the kingdom of self, of man's true identity, and of the strength of the Spirit, I am extending my counsel as admonishment and as the revelation of the splendor of the ages, which by His grace I have seen wholly self-evident in Christ. The building of victory over the carnal man is accomplished through the clear seeing of the Holy Spirit, whose warmth and radiance of love becomes a mark of health unto the soul, making fat thy bones8 and causing the body to glow according to the measure of perfection that lies within. And nowhere does perfection blossom more beautifully than where it is welcomed and cultured as a pearl of great price,9 the gift of our God whose mercy endureth forever.10
In your getting of understanding11 be unafraid to travel over the same road you have traveled before; for in the very things you may have overlooked, you will often find the manifestation of a grace undreamed of by the natural man. The things of the Spirit in their hallowed beauty pass unnoticed by those involved in self-centered and transient activities. Oh, how much they lose and how much the God-directed man gains of those fragile concepts of heaven which are able to bestow upon him permanent happiness. Thus does divine dominion reveal itself to be the thrust of eternal purpose.
I remain devoted to the integration of wholeness and strength within the Body of God upon earth. Truly you are as little children as you love one another and grow in grace and wisdom into His Consciousness that is within you.