Kansas City journal., 1898-03-13
THE OCCULT SCIENCES.
A TREATISE ON THE NEW RELIC
IOUS BELIEFS OF THE DAY.
Theosophy and Christian Science An
alyxed and Compared-Their
Purposes and Merits
Made Plain.

Purposes and Merits
| Made Plain.
Written for The Journal
| Judging from the many churcheS-in some
| sort a water-mark of the high-tide of
| the Christianity OF our city-one may infer
| that. to the average Kansas Cityan. the
| construction of church is the first relig-
| ious duty of man; but those to whom the
| realization of the relation In which they
| stand to things about them is the most i'm
| portant matter in life will have interest in
| tracing the development of some of these
mower departmental religions. which have
| one work in common with all other relig-
| ions-the regeneration of humanity: the
| pursuit of perfection. This century is char
acterized as especially the century of sci
| eEce, and Darwin's name is selected to typ
| ify this nineteenth century science because
| his work was most influential on human
| thinking, not by reason OF the practical
| utilities Of his theory. Doctrinal unrest,
| finding expression in new forms of religious
| belief, so far, has been the chief output Of
| this modern culture. In this busy period of
the worlds progress. absorbed as men are
in the competition for wealth and power.
| practical examinations into the various re-
| ligio-philosophic fads which alluringy in
vlte to investigation.
| The philosopher Locke well said that No
body is under an obligation to know
| everything" yet the fairy educated, OBJ
| servant individual thinks it necessary to
have scme knowledge. independent of be-
lief or opinion, upon those subjects engag-
| Ing public attention in the world of thought
| and action. In some measure to meet this
| demand, this attempt is made at summing
| up in few articles, Of the limits a daily
| paper imposes, cardinal points in modern
| theosophy, Christian science and psychical
| research.
| Modern theosophy has Buddhism's his
tory behind it, upon which in turn rests
| the religion Of many hundred millions OF
| human beings, SO that, in truth, the term
something new in the way of q religious
| cult and system, but rather it has won an
assured place among the progressive factors
of our day through and by the merits of
| its own theory Of enlightenment, its own
| idea Of true knowledge as taught in the
| Aryan religions.
The premise Of theosophy is: God is form
| less and all pervading; that Universal Es-
sence which is the ali. The one pure force.
| and that worlds. nations, men, are each but
some OF its innumerable manifestations.
This immutable force-principle expresses 1t
self throughout all manifestations by its
| two aspects of consciousness or divine
| thought, and matter or divine substance.
Any and every manifestation of thought
| Unity in nature, divine harmony, is classi-
| fled and explained through and by the law
Of cycles. fundamental law in life typi-
| fled in its constant alienation; life to
death; sleeping to waking: the universe it
| self gaining new. force for summer while
| resting fast-locked in the icy breath of
winter. 1t is in this divine law of harmony,
originating in the unity of the Absolute All,
| that the law Of justice-eternal as Cod
| makes imperative the ultimate return of the
spirit-part or God-part of man to the Abb
and effect its system of salvation by action
developed the doctrine Of the immortality
| Of the human soul through reincarnation-a
principle which, in part, teaches that doing
| becomes being; that right human actions
crystalline and form the soul. and thus the
deeds of earth become character for i'm
| mortality.
| Theosophy before anything else means
| enlightenment of mind, resulting from in
| tense self-concentration and abstract medi-
tation. combined with the exercise of mans
| own reasoning powers and intuitions. mo
| man." says Emerson, can learn what he
has not preparation for learning, however
near to his eye is the object"
heretofore ascribed to supernatural agencies
| are in man himself and can be cultivated
to manifestation and USE.
Il breaches purity in thought. word and
deed: and though 1t teaches the law Of
cycles. and the law Of reincarnation, it
disclaims to enforce any dogma. Its aim
is to help all beings to develop the nature
of truth. and to guide them to the plane OF
truth with the deepest sympathy and ten
derest humanity. 1t is in this direction that
] tio 1hteiudtIoUdl bEOlHeTuOOu cAeLpllilSS
the object Of the organization in practical
Observation-Disclosures becoming a per-
| sistent factor in rationalistic Christianity.
In the plan Of theosophic metaphysics
to show what man was. is and will be.
one needs be versed in the dialectics of the
| occult to explain the sevenfold nature Of
that comes to earth again and again to
| gain experience for the soul.
In this law Of reincarnation the first
resting place Of the just soul after death
is called Devachan. and IS described rs a
state Of glorified and intensified ideal
heaven where all noble aspirations and
death the heart that on earth loved the
thought-world of lofty aspirations. and
at last viii come a stifi more perfect ex.
istencs called Nirvana. In this state
the perfecton Of humanity is
in mans grasp. and then two paths are
| open to the soul-one leads to indescriba-
BILE bliss and another back to earth. Tho
reward-a heaven of eternity-has been
earned. but oftentimes great souls turn
back to earth to help. by their added wis
| dom. humanity to progress.
do. about which the thought of the world
concerns itself. affords little interests re-
gsrding the mysticism of its formula.
understand. is the sublime ethics Of that
through this system of faith.
In the quest of truth and right men no
loEger accept textual inanities: priest
| made creeds: They examine. They think.
| They search out. Upon this promon-
| tory Of thought the outlook Of present re-
| ligion has new perspective. To-day. re-
ligion stands out In a glory of material.
moral and intellectual progression. not
seen In the old limitations OF bigotry and
narrowness. From such a viewpoint the
theCsophcal and the Christian Science
movement shade Off into each other in this
way, they see God in the totality of all
that IS. The faith of each, though defined
| in no creed Of written revelation. rests
| nal and all-embracing foundation of nat
| ural ethics which makes for ultimate per-
| fection. The philosophy of Socrates held
| that virtue is eternally existent: that un-
swervfng adherence to justice is not only
| the most true but the only happiness. The
desire of Plato's heart was to see mankind
| live in manner like the gods: believing.
| like Socrates, that man came from heaven
and had 1t in his power to be restored to
| that state of Real Existences." The phil
| osophy of Socrates reached the loftiest
| tain. yet his reasoning did not meet either
mans spiritual or intellectual wants until
| Philo Judaeus brought in the alliance Of
| Oriental mysticism and that of a God
| given faith" Then 1t was that philoso-
ply became theology and then, a little
| later on, with that divine event toward
| which the whole creation moves" Chris
! tianity's advent into the world provided
| in itself a life spirit that is able to meet
| all the changing wants of advancing CIV
| iliZation by new developments and adapta-
| tions This it does because of the fullness
| of its life. which 1t derives from its head
nj CT f,, 1,-ID