Door Jan Peter Schouten

267 Pagina’s | 2007 | Softcover | Uitgeverij DAMON | ISBN 9789055737826

Mensen in India vormen zich een beeld van Jezus Christus dat aansluit bij hun eigen cultuur. Voor hindoes krijgt Jezus een plaats tussen de leraren en goden van de eigen religie. Zij herkennen in zijn levensverhaal iets van de wijsheid en de mystiek, die in het hindoeïsme zo centraal staat. Ook christenen in India maken gebruik van de begrippen die het hindoeïsme aanreikt, als zij de betekenis van Christus onder woorden willen brengen.

Zo wordt Jezus in ieder geval – voor hindoes én christenen – een goeroe, een wijsheidsleraar die met goddelijk gezag spreekt. Maar voor menig hindoedenker en christelijk theoloog is er nog veel meer over hem te zeggen in een Indiaas kader. Zo kan hij als avatara, neerdaling van een godheid, worden beschreven of in verband gebracht worden met het Brahman, de allesomvattende Werkelijkheid. In deze studie komen hindoes en christenen aan het woord, te beginnen met de hindoeïstische hervormer Rammohan Roy uit het begin van de negentiende eeuw, alsmede de eerste christelijke theologen van India. Mahatma Gandhi en de monniken van de Ramakrishna Mission worden besproken, maar ook invloedrijke christelijke stromingen als de Ashram-beweging en de Dalit-theologie.

In een vijftal intermezzo’s wordt getoond hoe kunstenaars in India Jezus Christus uitbeelden.

Dr. Jan Peter Schouten studeerde theologie en sociologie en heeft verschillende publicaties op zijn naam staan over het hindoeïsme. Hij is predikant bij de Protestantse gemeente te Bloemendaal.

By Isis Resende, R. Heber Newton (1840 – 1914) & Franz Hartmann (1838 – 1912).

92 Pages | 2019 | Hardcover | Martil Firrell Company / Modern Theosophy, London | ISBN: 9781912622092.

Isis Resende is a life-long member of the Theosophical Society. She is an international speaker and serves as the President of the Inter-American Theosophical Federation.

Richard Heber Newton was a prominent American Episcopalian priest and writer.

Franz hartmann was a German medical doctor, author, and founder of the German Theosophical Society in 1896.

”Throughout history, there has always been an esoteric aspect to Christianity.”
–Isis Resende, 2019

”The qualities the western world lacks, the eastern world holds in escess.”
–R. Heber Newton, 1913

”The best medicine becomes a poison if misapplied.”
–Franz Hartmann, 1911

By Ravi Ravindra Ph.D.

257 Pages | 2004, fourth edition | Paperback | Inner Traditions, Vermont | ISBN: 9781594770180.

Earlier edition published under the name The Yoga of the Christ.

The Gospel of John differs notably from the other canonical gospels in its overall point of view concerning Jesus Christ and his mission on earth: It is much more cosmological in scale and mystical in nature and has long been considered more esoteric. In The Gospel of John in the Light of Indian Mysticism Ravi Ravindra explores this scripture–which he considers one of the world’s great spiritual texts–from a Hindu perspective, taking us into the heart of St. John’s words. His commentary on the verses in the gospel eloquently and convincingly reveals the interconnectedness of all faiths and the growing need in today’s world for interfaith dialogue. For those concerned with the emergence of a universal spirituality, Ravindra provides a source of light, a translucent pool of wisdom that offers from its depths an immense and lasting spiritual vision.

”A dazzlingly brilliant and cross-cultural study of the most mystical of the books of the Bible, the Gospel of John. Few will finish this book unchanged, either intellectually or spiritually.”
— Robert Ellwood, author of The Cross and the Grail

By Pekka Ervast (1875 – 1934)

143 Pages | First edition, 2010 | Paperback | Theosophical Publishing House, Wheaton | ISBN: 9780835608923

Decodes the Deepest, Most Secret Meaning in the Gospels

”The seed is the word of God” (Luke 8:15)–or is it? For Christian mystic Pekka Ervast, orthodox religion failed to explain the real meaning of life. Then the great Russian author Leo Tolstoy gave him an esoteric view, opening new worlds. Ervast saw humans as reincarnating souls journeying through the school of this world to learn and evolve. He interprets the words of the Schoolmaster Jesus through the way of the truth-seeker, illuminating his parables, lessons, and practical advice for living honestly.

Ervast’s aim is to free us from intellectual bondage so that the divine seed within can germinate and grow. Then, he says, ”We connect with the living Christ Consciousness, with God as Love, and also with others living in that Consciousness. This powerful collective touches the soul pregnant with the Holy Spirit and so gives birth to the same consciousness. Within us, Christ is born.”

”Pekka Ervast demonstrates the great emphasis Jesus as teacher placed on indepence and honesty. If as disciples of Jesus we accept any doctrines or theories, we must first understand why we accept them, and secondly we must know from our own experience what we believe in.”
— Jordan Stratford, Gnostic priest and author of Living Gnosticism: An Ancient Way of Knowing

Door Jacob Slavenburg

255 Pagina’s | 2e dr. 2017 (1e dr. 2016, herziene uitgave van Opus Posthuum, 2001)) | Softcover | Walburg Pers, Zutphen | ISBN: 9789462491564

Er zijn heel weinig boeken geschreven over het vroegste christendom, nog voor het ontstaan van de Bijbelse evangeliën. Dit komt mede omdat er weinig bronnen uit die periode leken te bestaan. Bij velen bestaat daardoor het onterechte beeld van een zich van aanvang af hermonisch ontwikkelende wereldkerk.
Historicus Jacob Slavenburg toont aan de hand van uitputtend bronnenonderzoek aan dat dit een vals beeld is. Er is praktisch geen enkele overeenkomst tussen de kerken en de vroegste christelijke gemeenten. De ‘oudste’ chistenen zouden zich op geen enkele wijze in de huidige kerkdiensten van vandaag herkennen. Een vastomlijnde theologie was niet aanwezig. Een duidelijke geloofsleer ontbrak. Van een canon en een vaste hiërarchie was nog geen sprake.
De auteur legt een fascinerend beeld bloot van de oergemeente voor de val van Jeruzalem. Opvallend daarin is vooral de gestalte van Jacobus, een broer van Jezus, die niet alleen de onbetwiste leider van de Jeruzalemse gemeente was, maar ook de spiritueel leidsman van de gezamnelijke gemeenten. Zo waren Paulus en Petrus hem verantwoording schuldig.

Door Jacob Slavenburg

189 Pagina’s |9e druk 2020, (1e druk 2008)|Softcover| Walburg Pers, Zutphen | ISBN: 9789462494763

Wie waren de echte schrijvers van de evangeliën? Wie nam in de vroege kerk de beslissing over wat wel en niet in de Bijbel terechtkwam? Waarom mochten de apocriefe en gnostische evangeliën niet meer gelezen worden?
Pas generaties na Jezus’ dood werden de evangeliën samengesteld door onbekende schrijvers met een eigen agenda. Die verhalen werden in de eerste eeuwen talloze malen ‘verbeterd’om ze te laten sporen met nieuwe geloofsregels en uitgedachte dogma’s. In dat proces werden zeer oorspronkelijke en vroege geschriften vernietigd.

Door Alain Delaye, vertaling Lieven Vanderbrugghen.

137 Pagina’s | Uitgegeven in 2016 in de Reeks ‘Spirituele Meesters’ | Softcover | Carmelitana, Gent | ISBN: 9789492434029.

Frans origineel: Jean de la Croix – Sage, Po’te et Mystique | Editions du Point, Paris | EAN: 9782757828892.

In een onaanzienlijk dorp van Oud-Castilië ziet in 1542 de zoon van arme wevers, verstoten door hun familie, het levenslicht. In 1591, in een klooster in Andalusië, sterft een karmeliet, door zijn medebroeders gemarginaliseerd, overdekt met zweren en wonden. Tussen deze twee data spelen zich de negenenveertig jaren af van het beproefd, avontuurlijk en hartstochtelijk leven van Jan van het Kruis. Hij wordt heden ten dage beschouwd als een van de grote dichters en mystici van zijn tijd, misschien zelfs van alle tijden.

Zijn werk schetst een reis naar de levende God, naar de contemplatie van de Goddelijke essentie, en houdt niet op zijn onzegbare karakter aan te duiden. Jan van het Kruis is op zoek naar een wijsheid die vol is van mysterie, waarbij men God liefheeft zonder hem te kennen, onthecht en arm van geest. Geïnspireerd door de transcendentie en door haar omvat is zijn poëzie toch nooit abstract en wereldvreemd, maar integendeel kosmisch en de mens met alles verbindend. Viering van de liefde, vruchtbaar gemaakt door de ‘nacht’ die ons toelaat over te gaan naar het licht, is zij het geprivilegieerde kader van een ervaring van het Ultieme, Jan van het Kruis was een lichtende minnaar, getuige van de felle vuurgloed, die nu niet ophoudt ons te verhelderen.

Afkomstig uit Hoofdstuk 1 ‘Wijze’, deel 3 ‘Vrij Mens’ (p. 49):

” Verwijder toch, geestelijke ziel, die pluisjes en haartjes, die nevel, en zuiver uw oog. Dan zal de zon helder voor u schitteren en zult gij duidelijk zien. Breng uw ziel in vrede, haal haar weg en bevrijd haar uit het juk en de slavernij van de zwakke activiteit van haar eigen vermogen. Dit is immers de gevangenschap van Egypte. (…) Zie, hoe God zijn kinderen naar de woestijn roept voor deze deze vrijheid en dit heilig niets-doen. ”

Door Riemer Roukema.

294 Pagina’s | Uitgegeven in 2007 | Softcover | Uitgeverij Meinema, Zoetermeer| ISBN: 9789021141688.

Kunnen wij nog achterhalen wie Jezus is en waar hij voor staat? Sinds de vondst van de geschriften van Nag Hammadi en andere gnostische boeken menen velen dat Jezus eigenlijk een gnostische wijsheidsleraar is. In het Evangelie van Thomas zou zijn gnosis bewaard gebleven zijn en de kerk zou Jezus’ eigen onderricht hebben verdonkeremaand. In dit boek wordt op grond van historische argumenten betoogd dat Jezus geen gnosticus is, maar een jood, die in de traditie van het Oude Testament staat. De opvatting van de vroege kerk dat Jezus tegelijk ook de Zoon van God en zelf God is, blijkt joodse wortels te hebben. Zelfs de basis van het dogma van de drie-eenheid blijkt heel vroeg te zijn gelegd. De auteur laat zien dat dit dogma meer recht van spreken heeft dan de gnostische visie op Jezus.

Afkomstig uit Hoofdstuk 10 – ‘Conclusies en Evaluatie’ (p. 252):

” In Paragraaf 5.1 hebben wij uit de hoofdstukken 2 tot 4 al enkele voorlopige conclusies getrokken ten aanzien van de verhouding tussen Jezus en de gnosis van de gnostici. Wij concludeerden daar dat aan de nieuwtestamentische getuigenissen over Jezus een grotere mate van historische betrouwbaarheid moet worden toegekend dan aan de uiteenlopende gnostische visies op Jezus. Volgens de nieuwtestamentische evangelien stond Jezus in de lijn van het Oude Testament en vertrouwde hij op de God van Israel. Hij verkondigde de komst van Gods koninkrijk en trad op met goddelijk gezag. Hij beschouwde zichzelf als Messias, de Mensenzoon en Gods Zoon. Zijn dood aan een kruis heeft geen einde gemaakt aan de beweging die hij op gang had gebracht. Zijn leerlingen ervoeren dat hij uit de dood was opgewekt, weer aan hen verscheen en hen instrueerde. Volgens hen was zijn plaats voortaan in de hemel, aan Gods rechterhand. Daar kon hij door mensen worden aangeroepen, hetgeen wijst op de goddelijke status die aan hem werd toegekend. “

Door Johan M. Pameijer.

232 Pagina’s | Uitgegeven in 2006 | Softcover | Aionion Symbolon | ISBN: 9074899722.

Hoewel de kerken leeggelopen zijn en hun greep op de massa verloren hebben, is religie zelf nog springlevend. Bij veel mensen vindt er juist een verdieping plaats van hun religieuze gevoelens, waarbij de nadruk vooral is komen te liggen op het opdoen van innerlijke ervaringen.

In het verlengde daarvan signaleert de schrijver een verlangen naar een eenvoudige, heldere en doorzichtige maatschappijvorm. Mensen zoeken weer eenheid en de harmonie van heelheid, en zullen steeds meer gaan openstaan voor een grotere aandacht voor de Ziel. Johan Pameijer laat zien dat de nieuwe inzichten. die we uit de Gnostische Nag Hammadi-vondsten hebben gekregen van groot belang zijn om de Kerk weer in staat te stellen een genezende rol te spelen. We kunnen niet langer meer om de echte oorsprong van het Christendom en om de Gnostiek heen. We moeten terug naar de Bron in onszelf en een weg van inwijding doormaken om bij – wat Carl G. Jung noemde – ons ware Zelf te komen, waarmee we in verbinding met het Goddelijk kunnen komen. Een bevlogen, betrokken en zeer inspirerend boek!

Afkomstig uit Hoofdstuk 6 – ‘Tweelingbroers’ (p. 61):

” De tegenwoordige mensheid is als een school spartelende vissen in de netten van een egocentrisch commercieel systeem. Diep van binnen dragen zij heugenis aan een kern van collectieve vrijheid. In weerwil daarvan zijn ze bevangen door collectieve hersenspoelingen en bewegen zich als verdwaalde dwazen door een doolhof van onwetendheid op zoek naar hun ware Zelf. Onbehaaglijk bespeuren zij een voortdurende bedreiging, uitgaande van afschuwelijke demonen, ‘das Ungeheuer’. Iedereen is op zoek naar zijn tweelingbroer, omdat eenieder in zijn diepste wezen weet dat zijn ego slechts een speerpunt is van zijn individuele Zelf. Het grote levensideaal is de vereniging van deze twee, het samensmelten van het ego en Zelf, van de strijder en de priester, van activiteit en passiviteit, van werken en gebed. Alle religies bestaan bij de gratie van wat Jung heeft genoemd de individuatie, het proces van zelfverwerkelijking, het samensmelten van bewustzijn en onbewuste, zodat een groot, alomvattend weten tot gelding komt. “

Door Christian Vandekerkhove.

132 Bladzijden | Uitgegeven in 2013 | Softcover | Mens & Cultuur Uitgevers, Gent | ISBN: 9789077135389.

‘Veranderen of verdwijnen’ is de keuze waar de Kerk steeds wezenlijker mee wordt geconfronteerd. Niet alleen is er de al jarenlange spirituele en feitelijke leegloop van de kerken, ondertussen ondermijnen ook een hele reeks schandalen haar geloofwaardigheid. Na de zwarte bladzijden uit het verleden van de Kerk, zijn haar schaduwzijden in onze tijd voor velen de druppel, die de emmer doet overlopen. Ook oprecht gelovige mensen keren de Kerk in groten getale de rug toe. Een evolutie, die het appel van andere Geestesrichtingen en zeker het atheïsme accentueert.

Wijzen de profetieën van Malachias over de allerlaatste paus, maar ook die van Nostradamus en anderen, en de onmiskenbare afvalligheid van de Kerk naar dezelfde zaken die te gebeuren staan? Het is nog te vroeg om hierop te antwoorden. Dit boek brengt alle profetieën helder en chronologisch in kaart en bespreekt alvast de verschillende toekomstscenario’s voor de Kerk.

Afkomstig uit Hoofdstuk 5 – ‘Wat weten we over Paus Franciscus?’ (p. 29):

Sociale rechtvaardigheid

” Reeds enkele decennia predikt de Kerk dat armoede een onrecht is, dat moet worden bestreden. Reeds in de Rerum Novarum Encycliek eind 19de eeuw wordt gepleit voor sociale rechtvaardigheid. Toch is er een verschil tussen het prediken ervan en daadwerkelijk tussen de armen gaan staan. Hier wordt Franciscus ook erg om geprezen! Hij is er immers niet vies van om af te zakken naar de sloppenwijken en daar samen met de gewone mens het voedsel te bereiden. Dit doet hij overigens ook in zijn flat. Voor een kok en een auto met chauffeur heeft hij altijd bedankt. Tijdens een audiëntie met de internationale pers op 16 maart 2013 zegt hij dat de Kerk haar rijkdommen moet afwerpen en zich moet concentreren op de armen! Nooit was een Paus hierin zo expliciet! “

By Ravi Ravindra.

316 Pages | First published in 1990, first reprint 2007 | Softcover | The Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 8170594472.

Ook uitgegeven door Inner Traditions, Rochester Vermont, USA als The Gospel of John in the Light of Indian Mysticism

‘He, who is near me is near the fire, and he who is far from me is far from the Kingdom.’

The only reason that I, an outsider to the Christian tradition and not particularly learned in it, write about one of its most sacred texts is because of my love for it. The first time, I encountered it, I was much moved by The Gospel According to St. John. Since then I have read this Gospel many times. Always it leaves me in an uplifted internal state: I feel myself called by a mysterious and higher voice.

In our contemporary pluralistic world, where a cross-cultural communication has increasingly become a matter of necessity for global survival, a new consciousness is emerging. One of the major features of this new consciousness is a non-sectarian spirituality. A universal spirituality is at the very root of all traditions, but it is continually lost in theological exclusivism, or in scholastic partiality, or in evangelical enthusiasm, and it needs to be rediscovered and restated anew again and again. Anybody, who would approach a major work of a religious tradition with a global perspective, and with an effort to discover the universal truths in it, will aid the development of the new consciousness in the right direction.

From Chapter 21 – ‘A New Beginning’ (p. 297):

” Each one of us must begin anew, perhaps again and again, if we wish to come to the deathless Beginning. Jesus Christ said. in a non-canonical saying found on some papyri discovered in Oxyrhynchus in Egypt at the end of the nineteenth century: ‘Let not him, who seeks cease until he finds, and when he finds he shall be astonished. Astonished he shall reach the Kingdom, and having reached the Kingdom, he shall rest. “

By Charles Webster Leadbeater (1854 – 1934).

630 Pages | First edition 1920, 10th reprint 1997 | Softcover | Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 8170592968.

The Science of Sacraments can be defined as ‘a new idea of Church worship’, for it presents a clairvoyant description of the inner or invisible side of the traditional Catholic rites. The central theme of the book is that a sacrament is ‘an outer and visible sign of an inner, spiritual grace‘. The author examines the far-reaching effect of ceremonies like the Holy Eucharist, which benefit not only those attending, but also the community at large with its strong radiance of peace.

The Rt. Revd Charles Webster Leadbeater was acclaimed as one of the great clairvoyants in this century. He wrote many books including The Chakras, Man Visible and Invisible, The Hidden Side of Things and Thought Forms (with Annie Besant). He was for a number of years Presiding Bishop of the Liberal Catholic Church, which seeks to combine the preservation of the Catholic sacraments with the widest measure of freedom of thought and interpretation of the Scriptures.

From the Appendix (p. 608):

” Do not believe in a thing said merely because it is said; nor in traditions because they have been handed down from antiquity; nor in rumours, as such; nor in writings by sages, merely because they have been handed down from antiquity; nor in rumours, as such; nor in writings by sages, merely because sages wrote them; nor in fancies that you may suspect to have been inspired in you by an Angel (that is, in presumed spiritual inspiration); nor in inferences drawn from some haphazard assumption you may have made; nor because of what seems an analogical necessity; nor on the mere authority of your own teachers or masters. But we are to believe when the writing, doctrine or saying is corroborated by our own reason and consciousness. For this I have taught you, not to believe merely because you have heard; but when you believe of your own consciousness, then to act accordingly and abundantly. ”  – Kalama Sutta of the Anguttara Nikaya.

By Geoffrey Hodson (1886 – 1983).

408 Pages | First edition 1967, 2nd & revised edition 1972, reprinted in 1986 | Hardcover | The Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 0835607054.

The Holy Bible belongs to a special category of literature. Mystics, Kabbalists, and students of sacred texts regard the Scriptures as allegorical, constructed of symbols, analogies, and parables, woven into a tapestry of meaning that holds the age-old truths of existence.

From ‘The Hidden Wisdom and why It is concealed’ (p. ix):

” The greatest degree of power, which occult science can bestow is to be derived from knowledge of the unity and interaction between the Macrocosm and the Microcosm, the Universe and Man. ‘The mystery of the earthly and mortal man is after the mystery of the supernal and immortal One’, wrote Éliphas Lévi (1810 – 1875), Lao Tzu (6th century BC) also expresses this truth in his words: ‘The Universe is a man on a larger scale’. “

The late Geoffrey Hodson is the author of The Brotherhood of Angels and Men and Clairvoyant Investigations.

By Margaret Placentra Johnston.

300 Pages | First Quest Edition 2012 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 9780835609050.

Faith Beyond Belief seems to give us a good way to understand those, who have rejected their own church, but are still engaged in a spiritual search beyond the conventional language and categories, that left them feeling empty. It is an excellent way to get a feel for the issues as they are experienced by a growing number of Americans, who are spiritual but not religious. You can feel the difference in the openness, the inquiring mind and the caring Soul, that this book unveils.

From Chapter 23 – ‘Where Do We Go From Here’ (p. 278):

” Rather than keep its adherents mired in childish myths, the religion of the future will lead its members toward the more fluid form of faith that can develop ‘beyond belief’. It will encourage them to undertake the critical reflection required to begin the progression to mature faith. Rather than suppress diversity and self-expression in religious experience, the religion of the future will promote the spiritual exploration that is necessary to reach the Mystic level. Where the religion of the past was exclusionist, ethnocentric, judgemental and triumphalist, the religion of the future will be inclusive, universal, unitive, and accepting, The religion of the future will be Love! “

Edited and translated by Louise Carus.

214 Pages | First Quest Edition 2020. ‘NAPRA Nautilus Award Grand Winner 2003’. | Softcover, with pictures | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 9780835608138.

‘While Santa Claus just brings toys, St. Nicholas changes lives and brings real joy’! 

The Real St. Nicholas is a jubilant celebration of spiritual values and the true meaning of the holiday season. Santa Claus is only a nickname. The historical Nicholas was a fourth-century bishop in what is now modern Turkey. Over time, tales of his goodness spread as far as Karelia, bordering Finland and Russia, throughout Europe. The Dutch brought him to the New World as Sinterklaas.

While slimmer than Santa, St. Nicholas is much larger in Spirit. He is the patron Saint not only of children, but also of sailors, bakers, bankers, prisoners, pharmacists, maidens, merchants and, New York City. But the traditions around him have been lost in America. Louise Carus restores this important image of the kind, wise Elder with rare stories from Spain, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Germany, The Netherlands, France, Russia and Armenia – among other countries. Most are simple folktales of powerful virtue. We hear of how Nicholas rescues orphans and soldiers, feeds the hungry, helps hapless lowers, outwits thieves and devils, and heals the ill and lame (including an ant!). An Afterword recounts modern legends of healing and rescue told by people living in Greece today.

The result is the best such collection available in English. It is a gift to all parents, educators, story loversm and others, who long to resanctify the holidays. There’s a story for each of the thirty-one days in December, but The Real St. Nicholas can inspire us on any day of the year.

Louise Carus, Ph.D., is a Jungian analyst and the editor of Betwixt and Between and Crossroads: two books on adolescent ‘rites of passage’ recognized as classics in the field.

From Chapter – ‘Signs of St. Nicholas Today’ (p. 191):

” A miller, Fragiadakis Mixales, who lives outside of  Zaros, Crete, told us this story about his daughter. It happened when the girl was about four years old and suffering from epilepsy:

‘After my daughter had had several seizures, my wife took her to our nearby St. Nicholas monastery. She laid her down to sleep just at the entrance of the monastery under an olive tree and then went into the church to pray for her healing. When my wife returned to our daughter, the little one awoke and said: ‘And old man with a white beard came and touched my hand and told me, ‘You are well now”.’

My daughter never had another seizure. She is married now, with two children, and lives in Athens. This true story is well known in my community. “

245 pages | Paperback | Quest Books, 2006

Early Christianity held secrets equal to those of other great religions, says Annie Besant. It’s first followers guarded them As priceless treasures. After an increasingly rigid hierarchy began to bury these truths in the early centuries A.D., they were known only to a few initiates, who communicated them privately, often in obscure language. In Esoteric Christianity, Besant’s aim is to restore the secret truths underlying Christian doctrine. As public interest grows in the Gnostic Gospels and the mystical side of Christianity, Besant’s remarkable book, first published in 1901, is attracting new attention.

The word mystery, Besant says, is to be understood not as a puzzle but as a window to a higher dimension. Jesus’ birth is a metaphor for the rebirth we must all undergo to find the kingdom within. She take the same view in discussing the mythic Christ, the Atonement, the Resurrection and Ascension, the Trinity, Prayer, Forgiveness of Sins, the Sacraments, and Revelation. Richard Smoley’s introduction and brilliant notes make her classic work newly accessible for modern readers.

368 pages | Paperback | Quest books, 2011

“Because we are still comparatively unevolved, any god that we could fully understand would not be much of a god.”
—Charles W. Leadbeater
In Christian Gnosis, Charles W. Leadbeater reveals the inner teachings of early Christianity while supplying additional insight from a clairvoyant’s perspective.

By Jay G. Williams.

134 Pages | Copyright 1978 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A | ISBN: 0835605159.

If you feel Christian dogma is in need of a new spark – a charge of vitality – based upon a deeper and more significant interpretation of Biblical stories, here is a dynamically different commentary upon the New Testament. Jay G. Williams approach to the study of the life of Christ simply overflows with intuitional creativity, permitting the student to find for him or herself trans-historical, yet new and existential situations in the Biblical story.

Buddha means ’the Enlightened One’ and the author uses the word in this generic sense. ‘My thesis‘, he writes, ‘is that the perennial philosophy, so well represented in Asia by Buddhism, provides a significant perspective from which to understand the life and teachings of Yeshua’. This is a radical departure book in which Yeshua Buddha and Gautama Buddha finally join hands to shed common light into the darkened cosmos.

From Chapter 7 – ‘Resurrection beyond the End’ (p.115):

” A disciple must take upon himself the discipline of Yeshua; yet this is no set of laws or doctrines which can be encompassed in a book. The Way has little to do with rules and dogmas. The Early Church was at least partially correct in this: it depended primarily upon a succession of apostolic teachers for the preservation of the church. Presumably such teachers did not purvey general theories but advised their disciples concerning effective ways to engage the old deluder in mortal combat. Therefore, all readers who have persevered this far are strongly urged to take what has been said with a grain of salt. The disciple must engage in battle, not just theorize about the nature of war. This book will only have performed its task if it has facilitated that first step along the Way. If it leads the reader to say, ‘O now I understand’, it has failed miserably. “

By Lao Tse (601 BC – unknown), translated by Henry Wei.

234 Pages | First published 1982, 3rd printing 1988 | Paperback | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN:

Twenty-six centuries ago, a man called Lao Tzu offered a daringly new way of life to his countrymen. His work is called the TAO Teh Ching, a philosophy of pure beauty, rare charm, and great spiritual depth and represents a magnificent treatise on human rights. For centuries, it has been a source of inspiration for Chinese art, poetry and painting. In many of its moral viewpoints it is similar to Christianity. Indirectly, it also inspired the development of acupuncture, alchemy, astrology, and the martial arts (kung fu). Its quintessential teaching, however concerns yoga and meditation.

About the ‘Eternal Tao’ (p.22):

” There is something formless and perfect,

Existing before the birth of Heaven and Earth

How still it is! How quiet!

Abiding alone and unchanging,

It pervades everywhere without fail.

Well may it be called Mother of the World.

I do not know its name,

but label it TAO . . . “

By Jacob Boehme (1575 – 1624), edited by Robin Waterfield.

239 Pages | Copyright 2001 | Softcover | North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, California | ISBN: 1556433573.

Hihgly regarded among Christian mystics, Jacob Boehme was famous for his inspired and provocative analysis of the nature and being of God. Grounded in Paracelsus, the Kabbala, astrology, alchemy and the Hermetic tradition, Boehme articulated a revelatory theology, which emphasized the process, whereby God comes to know Himself.

Boehme reasoned that from His illimitable oneness, God was unable to truly apprehend Himself as God in all His splendor. Thus, God had to become an incarnated, limited being, for only through experience could He satisfy His need for self-understanding. Driven by a series of spiritual epiphanies, Boehme boldly proclaimed his new revelations, rejecting the narrow dogmatism and bibliolatry of mainstream sentiment. His subsequent prosecution by church authorities led to banishment from his home town of Goerlitz, and continued harassment by more orthodox thinkers. After his death in 1624, his writings continued to provoke debate among mystics and scholars investigating the nature of good and evil, creation and God’s will.

This anthology serves an an introduction to Boehme’s thought and will bring readers deeper into his philosophy. Part One gives biography and context of Boehme’s writings and their influence on later scientists, alchemical researchers and poets. Part Two contains selections from Boehme’s works grappling with his main themes including the birth of God and the vindication of His goodness. Of particular interest are a number of letters from Boehme, which have never appeared previously in English.

Compiled and annotated by Henk J. Spierenburg.

343 Pages | Published in 1987 | Softcover | Point Loma Publications, San Diego | ISBN: 0913004510.

‘Every act of the Jesus of the New Testament, every word attributed to him, every event related of him during the three years of the mission he is said to have accomplished, rests on the programme of the Cycle of Initiation, a cycle founded on the Precession of the Equinoxes and the Signs of the Zodiac’.

The riches concealed in the nearly 10.000 pages of the books and journal articles written by H.P. Blavatsky, the articles contained in fourteen Volumes of her Collected Writings, have so far been valued at their true worth by only very few students. Even many of those, whohave occupied themselves with the products of H.P.B.’s pen all their lives, fail to value them at their real worth.

One, who should be inclined to doubt this statement need only ask one of the above students what are exactly H.P.B.’s ideas about the New Testament from publications by theologians, will no doubt formulate a certain answer. In October, 1889 H.P.B. said: ‘The New Testament is not unity; it is as useless to try to reconcile the meaning of particular words out of their contexts or stereotype a special meaning . . .’ This certainly is saying something.

From the Publisher’s Note (p. VI):

” A universal truth is revealed, concealed for the most part in parables and ‘dark, though beautiful sayings’, but given vibrant meaning when the light of the Ancient Wisdom is shone on them. For here opportunity is given to span the limiting centuries, passing beyond a brief 2.000 years, and from the ageless past to breathe something precious and preserved. We sense here a Wisdom, which is Truth and a Truth which is Wisdom. “

By Richard Smoley and Jay Kinney.

400 Pages | First edition 1999, revised edition 2006, incl. suggested reading lists per chapter | Softcover | Quest Books U.S.A. | ISBN: 9780835608442.

For decades, our modern society has looked to the East for spiritual guidance and renewal. Here is a guide much closer to home. Its subjects range comprehensibly from Jungian psychology to the Kabbalah and Gnosticism, and from Freemasonry and the Templars to Alchemy, Shamanism, the work of Gurdjieff, Neopaganism, Sufism and esoteric Christianity.

Authors Smoley and Kinney speak with sensible, even-handed objectivity, covering the strengths and weaknesses as well as the history and ideas of each tradition. They also end each chapter with a wealth of resources for further exploration. Whether you are just beginning to seek a spiritual practice or want to know more about a particular teaching; Hidden Wisdom is an invaluable resource for finding the Path, that is right for you.

From Chapter 5 – ‘Magicians: Sculptors of the Astral Light’ (p. 105):

” Magic is the traditional science of the secrets of Nature, which has been transmitted to us from the Magi. By means of this science the Adept is invested with a species of relative omnipotence and can operate superhumanly – that is, after a manner which transcends the normal possibility of man. “

Richard Smoley is the former editor of <em>Gnosis</em> magazine and today is editor of Quest Books.

Door Jacob Slavenburg

223 Pagina’s | Paperback |Rozenkruis Pers, Haarlem |ISBN: 9067322776

Woorden van Jezus en Christus-verschijningen zorgden tweeduizend jaar geleden voor een explosie . . . in het hart. De charismatische beweging die daaruit ontstond en als een brede stroom uitwaaierde, werd echter steeds meer gekanaliseerd. Een spirituele kern werd tot een institutionele kerk.
De schrijver voert de lezer mee door de bonte wereld van de vroege christenen. Ooit ontlook het Christendom als een wat vreemde loot aan een in die dagen veelkleurige Joodse stam. Maar na de val van Jeruzalem in het jaar 70 verdween dat oorspronkelijke joodse christendom uit beeld. Veel opvattingen van de joodse christenen vinden we wel terug in het gnostische christendom van de tweede eeuw .Met de latere bestrijding van bepaalde opvattingen binnen dit spirituele christendom werd met het badwater ook het kind weggespoeld. Niet alleen de gnostici werden veroordeeld, zelfs de meest oorspronkelijke christenen, de joodse christenen, werden tot ketters verklaard. Toch is er in de eerste eeuwen nog sprake van een grote pluriformiteit. De oerknal trilt door in veel charismatische leraren, zoals onder meer Paulus, Valentinus, Clemens en Origenes. Deze leraren helpen hun medemens de Christusvonk in zichzelf te ontdekken en vrij te maken.
Pas in de eeuwen van de grote christelijke concilies wordt de vrijheid van denken en spreken drastisch ingeperkt. De kerk wordt een instituut dat uitmaakt wat beleden mag worden; of eigenlijk: wat niet meer gezegd, ja zelfs niet meer gelezen mag worden.
Drs. Jacob Slavenburg is een kenner van de geschiedenis van het vroegste christendom en van de gnosis.

By Gottfried de Purucker (1874 – 1942).

45 Pages | First published in 1938, second printing 1944, second edition and edited in 1972 | Softcover | Point Loma Publications, San Diego, California | ISBN: 091300406.

Dutch translation: Bekleed met de ZON – het Mysterie-verhaal van Jezus | Uitgegeven in 1972 | Stichting ISIS, International Study-Centre for Independent Search for Truth, ‘s-Gravenhage | ISBN: 9070163195.

Jesus lived. Whatever name he may have had, the individual known as Jesus (the Hebrew name being Jeshua or Joshua), was an actual man, a great Sage. He did indeed live. He was, furthermore, an initiate into the secret doctrine of his period; and around him, after his death, grew up legends and tales, which were woven in later days – say a century after his death- into the so-called Gospels.

But who was Jesus? Nobody really knows. There is not one, single definite, conclusive, and proving answer to this question – not a single answer, which is know to be a certainty. When did Jesus live? When was he born? The answers to these questions are still unfound and still occupy the attention of not a small army of scholars and students; but behind all the cloud of uncertainty and the dust of conflicting opinions and, through all the ages since Jesus, later called the Christ, came and taught his fellow-men, through all and behind all this, we nevertheless discern the sublime figure of a Great Teacher.

From page 23:

” Believe not, said in substance the Syrian Sage of old to his disciples, ‘men when they come to you and tell you: ‘Lo, I am the Christ, follow me!’ Or when another one comes and says: ‘Lo, I am the Christ follow me!’ Believe them not. But when one comes before you, in the name of the Christ-spirit, and tells you to follow Truth whose ringing tones are heard in every normal heart of man, and who speaks in the name of the god within, in the name of the inner Christ, in the name of the inner Buddha, then said in substance the Syrian Sage, ‘He is my own. Follow him. “

By George Robert Stowe Mead (1863 – 1931).

75 Pages | First published in 1907, Quest book edition 1973 | Paperback | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835604322.

According to Mead the translator of this beautiful Hymn of Jezus, there is strong reason to presume that this work is a very early Christian Mystery ritual. Perhaps the oldest Christian ritual preserved to us.

G.R.S. Mead was a renowned British scholar and a recognized authority on Christian origins and Gnostic and Hermetic literature. He died in 1933, but his works are still widely read. In his commentary on this Hymn in ritual form he has offered and interpretation of its inner, spiritual meaning.

” If then, we have before us not a Hymn, but the remains of a mystery-ritual, there must have been two people in the circle. One of them was the Master, the Initiator. Who was the other? Manifestly, the one to be initiated. Now the ultimate end of all Gnosis was the at-one-ment or union of little man with the Great Man, of the human Soul with the Divine Soul… “

By George R.S. Mead (1863-1933).

442 Pages | Photo copy of the first 1903 edition, The Theosophical Publishing Society, London & Benares | Kessinger Publishing Company, Montana U.S.A. | ISBN: 1564591301.

From I. – Foreword:

” When some five and a half centuries before the Christian era the Buddha arose in ancient Āryāvarta to substitute actuality for tradition, to break down the barriers of convention, and throw open the Way of Righteousness to all, irrespective of race or birth, we are told that He set aside the ancestral scriptures of His race and times and preached a Gospel of self-reliance and a freedom from bibliolatry that will ever keep His memory green among the independent thinkers of the world.

When the Christ arose in Judaea, once more to break down the barriers of exclusiveness and preach the Way to the ‘Amme ha-aretz’, the rejected of the ceremonialists and legal purists, we are told that He extended the aegis of His great authority over the ancient writings of His fellow-countrymen, and cited the Torah as the very Law of God Himself. 

We are assured by Traditionalists that the Incarnation of Deity Itself, the very Giver of that Law, explicitly attested the genuineness of the Five Books; He with His inerrant Wisdom, asserted that Moses wrote them, just as it was believed by the people of His day. Whereas, if there be anything certain in the whole field of Biblical research, it is that this cannot be the whole truth of the matter. 

It has been said in excuse, that the Christ did not come on earth to teach His disciples the ‘higher criticism’. This may well be so, and yet it is a fact of profound significance that, as we shall see in the course of the present enquiry, even in His day, this very Torah and much more the Prophets and Sacred Writings, were called in serious question by many. “

By Geddes MacGregor.

185 Pages | Copyright 1978, fourth Quest reprinting 1989 | Softcover | Quest Books U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835605019.

Is there room for the ‘rebirth concept’ in Christian dogma?

The question, that bothered Dr. MacGregor was quite basic: Can a Christian believe in reïncarnation and still remain loyal to the Bible and the Church? He decided to find some answers. He researched into the annals of Christian theory – cut through centuries of religious emotionalism – gathered his material together and reported his findings in this landmark work.

From Chapter III – Some Interpretative Considerations (p. 34 & 35):

” The myth of reïncarnation may be interpreted, then, in many different ways. Pythagoras, on the one hand, if we are to believe his biographer Diogenes Laertius, seems to have taken human rebirth literally, for (according to Diogenes), Pythagoras was accustomed to say he had formerly been Aethalides, then Euphorbus, and that he had been mortally wounded by Menelaus at the siege of Troy. Plato, on the other hand, as is well-known, used transmigration as part of the general mythological scenery available in his time; but how precisely he regarded it is unclear. We know only that he made use of the notion in presenting his own thought, as he made use of other popular myths of his day.

The myth of reincarnation has also, however, an obvious connection with what Professor Eliade has called the myth of eternal return, which represents the rythmn of birth, death and rebirth as a cyclic reality at the core of the whole universe. ‘According to this doctrine’, he writes, ’the universe is eternal but it is periodically destroyed and reconstituted every Great Year. ‘ “

By Charles Webster Leadbeater (1854 – 1934).

630 Pages | First edition 1920, 11th reprint 1999 | Hardcover | Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 8170591813.

The Science of Sacraments can be defined as ‘a new idea of Church worship’, for it presents a clairvoyant description of the inner or invisible side of the traditional Catholic rites. The central theme of the book is that a sacrament is ‘an outer and visible sign of an inner, spiritual grace‘. The author examines the far-reaching effect of ceremonies like the Holy Eucharist, which benefit not only those attending, but also the community at large with its strong radiance of peace.

The Rt. Revd Charles Webster Leadbeater was acclaimed as one of the great clairvoyants in this century. He wrote many books including The Chakras, Man Visible and Invisible, The Hidden Side of Things and Thought Forms (with Annie Besant). He was for a number of years Presiding Bishop of the Liberal Catholic Church, which seeks to combine the preservation of the Catholic sacraments with the widest measure of freedom of thought and interpretation of the scriptures.

From the Appendix:

” Do not believe in a thing said merely because it is said; nor in traditions because they have been handed down from antiquity; nor in rumours, as such; nor in writings by sages, merely because they have been handed down from antiquity; nor in rumours, as such; nor in writings by sages, merely because sages wrote them; nor in fancies that you may suspect to have been inspired in you by an Angel (that is, in presumed spiritual inspiration); nor in inferences drawn from some haphazard assumption you may have made; nor because of what seems an analogical necessity; nor on the mere authority of your own teachers or masters. But we are to believe when the writing, doctrine or saying is corroborated by our own reason and consciousness. For this I have taught you, not to believe merely because you have heard; but when you believe of your own consciousness, then to act accordingly and abundantly. ” – Kalama Sutta of the Anguttara Nikaya.

By Alvin Boyd Kuhn.

218 Pages | Published in 1976 | Hardcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835600157.

In this powerful book the author confronts the reader with many challenges regarding the orthodox approach to the life of Jesus and the history of Christianity. He points his critical finger at many of the rigid dogmas as well as the rigid dogmas as well as the literal interpretation of Biblical stories, which he asserts have created bigotry and mental servitude and stifled a real understanding of the Christian message.

For Dr. Kuhn the true meaning of Christianity is to be found in its mystical teaching. He calls for a revival of the effort to discover the esoteric significance of the Christian heritage, to understand the allegorical method of Biblical interpretation, and to find behind the myths, dramas, synbolks and allegories, the spiritual vision which they embody. Then, there will occur, he says, a new birth for Christianity and a new enlightenment.

From Chapter 21 – ‘Death Throes and Birth Pangs’ (p. 212):

” The spiritual science of every age has attempted to set forth the rationale of man’s approach to God, and God’s availability to man. A causal chain proceeds from the transcendent being of God through the complex orders of principalities and powers, archangels and angels to man. As the symbolism has it, the bodies of higher gods suffer dismemberment so that the fragments of their power may nourish the beings on the planes below. This is the true Eucharist, the true bread broken for all Souls. “

Door Rufus Jones (1863 – 1948).

160 Pagina’s | Eerste vertaling 1931, dit is de 2005 editie | Softcover | Uitgeverij Abraxas, Amsterdam | ISBN: 9080730041.

Quakers combineren al meer dan drie eeuwen een diepgevoelde religiositeit met hoogstaande ethiek. Na de roerige tijden van de Hervorming zijn ze langzaam tot rust gekomen en hebben zij zich weten te ontplooien tot een gewetensvolle godsdienst waarin een intens religieus beleven zich weet te verenigen met een liberale levensopvatting, waarin de praktijk van naastenliefde centraal staat. Zowel het Christendom als maatschappelijke organisaties, zoals bijvoorbeeld ‘Artsen zonder Grenzen’ en ‘Amnesty International’ zijn schatplichtig aan de Quakers. Zij kunnen zich met recht een ethische religie noemen en zijn dan ook de enige godsdienst, die ooit de Nobelprijs voor de Vrede in ontvangst mochten nemen.

” Want ik had honger en jullie gaven me te eten, ik had dorst en jullie gaven me te drinken. Ik was een vreemdeling, en jullie namen me op. Ik was ziek en jullie bezochten mij, ik zat gevangen en jullie kwamen naar mij toe. “

Hun eenvoud en consequente houding heeft een invloed, die doorklinkt in een wereld, die intuïtief respect voelt voor de oprechte en bescheiden invulling van belangrijke menselijke waarden. Deze invloed is moeilijk te overschatten. De geschiedenis, religie, mentaliteit, pedagogische uitgangspunten en het humanitaire werk van de quakers worden kritisch belicht en aangevuld met een artikel van Rudolf Otto over hun zwijgende eredienst.

By Quincy Howe Jr.

112 Pages | Copyright 1974 | Softcover | Quest Books U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835606260.

As more and more people in the Western world become intrigued with the ‘magnificent possibility’ of reincarnation, the question is frequently asked if one can believe in this concept and remain a Christian. The answer according to the author, a Christian scholar, is: Absolutely!

To back up his claim, Dr. Howe Jr. cites Chapter and verse from the Holy Bible, that clearly indicates an understanding and acceptance of the rebirth theory. Howe includes an explanation of the reincarnational philosophy, the process of rebirth, and explains how a series of physical lifetimes can provide a greater opportunity for the growth of the personality and the Soul.

He examines the evolution of Christian thought over the centuries, pinpointing the historical episode during which the concept of reincarnation was outlawed by the Christian hierarchy. He follows with a superb overview of Christianity’s greatest systematic theologian, the heretic Origen, who strongly advocated the inclusion of reincarnation as a legitimate Christian concept.

From the Introduction (p. 15):

” Now as never before the Christian Church is being called upon to prove its flexibility and responsiveness to change. An institution whose traditions are sacred and whose doctrines are revealed truth is being besieged from all sides by new philosophies, both sacred and profane. Some of these are openly antagonistic to organized religion, whereas others have an ambivalent impact. While I certainly do not suggest that the survival of the Church depends on its willingness to accept reincarnation, I do believe that the issue provides a case study of the kind of modern heresy that the church is going to be forced to confront. Some of these modern heresies may have the potential to give the Church a much-needed infusion of vitality. Perhaps this will prove to be true of reincarnation. “

By Stephan A. Hoeller.

268 Pages | A Quest Original 1989, 6th printing 2004 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835606465.

Within a matrix of modern depth psychology, Stephan A. Hoeller shows similarities between secret traditions of the Essenes and early Gnostic mysticism.

Gospels discovered in the 1940s reveal a pre-Christian Judaism of Gnostic character. The Dead Sea Scrolls essentially are mystical documents. It appears the Scrolls’ Essene authors of 130 B.C. – 70 A.D. like the Nag Hammadi Gnostic authors of the Apostolic Age, experienced visions of an esoteric nature, and the Scrolls possess an inner, hidden meaning. The Nag Hammadi Library, discovered by two peasants, who unearthed clay jars in 1945 in upper Egypt, did not appear in English for 32 years, because they were knotted in wranglings among scholars, politicians, and antique dealers. The Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in clay jars in Palestine by a goatherder in 1947, weathered similar storms. The first team of analysts were most Christian clergy, since the material frightened church leaders. As Dr. Hoeller shows in Jung and the Lost Gospels, they rightly feared the documents would reveal information to detract from unique claims of Christianity. Indeed, the Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammadi Library both contradict and complement accepted Old and New Testaments.

From Chapter 6 – ‘Errant Wisdom – The Myth of Sophia’ (p. 112):

” Sophia is the World Spirit, or the collective archetype of the entirety of cosmic and individual life, growth and development. As such, she is most closely associated with the nature and faith of humanity: the initial differentation and subsequent individuation of the soul and its Union with spirit. “

By Geoffrey Hodson (1886 – 1983).

345 Pages | First edition 1971, reprinted in 1992 | Hardcover | Thr Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 8170591732.

Volume III – The golden grain of Wisdom in the Book of Genesis. (Genesis chapters twenty-five to fifty).

In this Third Volume, Geoffrey Hodson offers the fruits of his attempts to delve into the Books of the Old Testament in search of truths, that he believes to be timeless and which, if applied, could profoundly affect those living in this present war-threatened, and actually war-torn, age in which (wo)man possesses the power of self-examination.

From ‘The Hidden Wisdom and why It is concealed’ (p. ix):

” The greatest degree of power, which occult science can bestow is to be derived from knowledge of the unity and interaction between the Macrocosm and the Microcosm, the Universe and Man. ‘The mystery of the earthly and mortal man is after the mystery of the supernal and immortal One’, wrote Éliphas Lévi (1810 – 1875), Lao Tzu (6th century BC) also expresses this truth in his words: ‘The Universe is a man on a larger scale’. “

The late Geoffrey Hodson is the author of The Brotherhood of Angels and Men and Clairvoyant Investigations.

An examination of the idea that the contents of the Bible are partially allegorical. Volume I: an introduction to the sacred language of allegory and symbol.

From ‘The Hidden Wisdom and why It is concealed’ (p. vii):

” The greatest degree of power, which occult science can bestow is to be derived from knowledge of the unity and interaction between the Macrocosm and the Microcosm, the Universe and Man. ‘The mystery of the earthly and mortal man is after the mystery of the supernal and immortal One’, wrote Éliphas Lévi (1810 – 1875), Lao Tzu (6th century BC) also expresses this truth in his words: ‘The Universe is a man on a larger scale’. “

The late Geoffrey Hodson is the author of The Brotherhood of Angels and Men and Clairvoyant Investigations.

By Ralph Gardner.

24 Pages | Issued by the Theosophical Society in England in 1947 | Mini-booklet | The Chameleon Press, London | No ISBN.

This mini-booklet is an attempt by one, who belongs to and loves the Church of England, to justify to himself and explain to others his belief in palingenesis or rebirth. He invites the reader to consider the theory that human beings are not confined to a single experience of earthly life, but are subject to many successive rebirths. It is a theory immensely old – it is found as a belief, almost and an assumption, in some of the most ancient religious documents in the world. It is accepted to-day as a truism by several hundred of millions of Buddhists and Hindus. A belief so long-lived and so wide-spread should be of interest to us.

From page 11:

” We are familiar with the idea that a man’s personality is the result of all his previous experiences. Many of those experiences may be what we call ‘forgotten’; yet their effects are elements in his present character and consciousness . The psycho-analyst will seek for the cause of some disruption or dis-ease in a patient’s mind by helping him to recover a memory of the decisive event or events, which started the tangle. It is recognised that a man, well or ill in mind, is the product of his past. The doctrine of rebirth simply asserts that a man’s past is a very much longer one than that of his present personality; and the doctrine of karma means that his present quality as a man, his virtues and defects, derive from his efforts in this life based on the material passed on to him from previous lives. Karma properly regarded is not a chain binding a man to earth; it is the condition he must accept before he can attain to heaven. “

By Robert Ellwood.

193 Pages | First Quest Edition, 1997 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. } ISBN: 0835607607.

Many Christians today yearn for a deeper, more inward practice of their faith. Drawing on the ancient wisdom tradition and the themes and symbols of medieval romance, Robert Ellwood shows Christianity at its most profound to be a philosophical, meditative, and mystical path.

The two symbols at heart of Christian belief – the Cross and Grail – represent the two faces of contemporary Christianity. The Cross is its outward face – masculine, public, exalted. The Grail is its hidden and esoteric face – magical, feminine, sought by many, found only by those who are able to ask the right questions. This book teaches you to ask the right questions. Its readings, stories, prayers, and practices can help you plumb into the hidden depths of a faith you may have taken for granted.

From the Preface (p. x & xi):

” The Grail of medieval and Arthurian and Christian romance, reminds us that the Path is also a great quest for the holy, for that which will transform us and the world. There are many versions of the Grail story. It is not my purpose here to sort them out, and in the end the Holy Grail means something unique to each sincere seeker of the hidden and eternal treasure it represents. However, in one way or another, the narratives generally tell of a knight, who journeys to a blighted land, perhaps ruled over by maimed king. Reaching the country’s center, the knight dares to enter a castle containing as its great treasure a chalice of imperishable brightness, which is guarded by knights and maidens bearing enigmatic tokens, such as a broken sword or a lance dripping blood. The puzzling question: ‘Whom does the Grail serve?’ must be asked by the knight in order to transform himself and restore the wasteland. In all versions there is a feeling of magical and dreamlike strangeness, suggesting, that the story is ultimately about initiation and a transformation taking place inwardly, at the deepest levels of consciousness from which come dream and inspiration. “

By Coleston Brown.

171 Pages | First edition, 2007 | Paperback | Theosophical Publishing House, Wheaton | ISBN: 9780835608558

Linking Magic with Christianity is less controversial than som may think, says Coleston Brown. All spiritual traditions are potentially magical in containing myths and symbols that enable the mediation of energies between levens of reality. And mediation by its very nature brings about change. To speak of ”Magical Christianity,” then, refers to the use of certain potent Christian symbols as a means to self-transformation and spiritual service.

When studying with Gareth Knight—renowned authority on Qabalistic magic—Brown became fascinated by how specific Christian symbols also appear in esoteric traditions worldwide. He later explored these images using special methods of ritual and inner vision. Here he makes that experience available to you, explaining the esoteric meaning of symbols such as:
– the cross                  – the center            – the chalice
– the three realms    – the holy fire        – the wheel of life

This edition also includes new material on the Divine Feminine. On the CD, Brown narrates the experiential meditations given in each chapter to guide you more deeply into the renewing power of the imagery.

”Magic is an age-old means of using the imagination in a self-transformative way, and applying it to the symbolism of mystical Christianity has startling potential. Brown brings the two together to safe and rewarding effect. This is practical mysticism and enlightened magic in formidable combination!”
— Gareth Knight, author of Experience of the Inner Worlds

By Annie Besant (1847 – 1933).

57 Pages | First edition 1941, reprinted 1953, 1962, 1983 & 1995 | Paperback | Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar | ISBN: 817059264X.

Annie Besant (1847 – 1933), second President of the Theosophical Society (1907 – 1933) was described as a ‘Diamond Soul’, for she had many brilliant facets to her character. She was an outstanding orator of her time, a champion of human freedom, educationist, philanthropist and author with more than three hundred books and pamphlets to her credit. She also guided thousands of men and women all over the world in their spiritual quest.

In 1896, Dr. Annie Besant gave four Convention Lectures on Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Chrisitianity at Adyar, Madras, on the twenty-first anniversary of the Theosophical Society, the President-Founder, Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (1832 – 1907), being in the Chair. In 1901, she continued the series with another four lectures on Islam, Jainism, Sikhism and Theosophy or ‘Divine Wisdom’ as the common source of all religions at the twenty-sixth anniversary, Colonel Olcott again presiding. Each of the lectures on the seven religions has been published as a separate booklet with the exception of the lecture on Divine Wisdom, and the whole series as a single volume under the title Seven Great Religions.

From page 55:

” My appeal to Christians, as to men of other religions, would be an appeal for unity, for the breaking down of divisions; why should they not come on a common platform with all the rest of the great religion of the world? Why should not this young religion, with only ninenteen centuries of life behind it, come and join with Buddhism with its two thousand five hundred years of existence; with Zoroastrianism and with Hinduism, with their ten thousands and twenty thousands of years rolling backward into the past? Can they not see how they blaspheme God, when they declare that he has kept Himself for only one religion amongst all religions, and that well night the youngest of all? “