The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-07-04
STILL ON
WARPATH
Bishop Willis After
Theosophists
Now.
ATTACKS THEM IN
PASTORAL LETTER
The Cult is Strongly Represented
in This City Lively Times
Ahead.

| In the current number of The Dioce-
san Magazine, Bishop Willis, head of
the Anglican Church in Hawaii, prints
his pastoral letter against the Theoso-
phists, a body of occult believers which
has numerous following in Honolulu.
The letter is as follows:
To All Members of the Anglican
| Church in Hawaii:
| My Dear People-The opening of the
| twentieth century, bringing with it
many new conditions, is fitting occa-
! sion for reviewing our position as a
part of the Church of Christ, and for
considering any difficulties or dangers
| that are present or approaching. And
when speak of our position as a
church, / do not mean with regard to
any external change of organization
| incidental on the political change that
! has taken place. For important as
| matters of ecclesiastical policy are,
and demanding very careful attention,
they sink into unimportance when
compared with all that concerns your
steadfastness in the faith and duty of
a Christian.
As you on your part, by your place
| in the Church of Christ, are called
| upon to contend earnestly for the faith
once delivered to the saints so those
who have been called to the higher
| ministries of the church are set as
watchmen on the walls Of Zion, whose
duty 1T is to give warning of the ap-
| proaeh of assailing forces from with
out, or of lurking treachery within.
the charge being laid upon every Bish-
| OPP at his conservation to be ready with
all faithful diligence to Danish and
drive away from the church all enron
Gods ward.
| In discharge of that duty I now pro-
| ceed to warn you earnestly to be on
your. guard against insidious teaching,
which under the pretense of enlighten-
| ment, is subversive alike of all faith
and hope in Christ. The danger against
| which 1 would warn you is in many re-
spects similar to that which, in the
first age of the church caused St. Paul
to write 70 the Christians in Colosse:
Beware lest any man spoil you
| through philosophy and vain deceit,
after the traditions OF men, after the
rudiments of the world, and not after
| Christ" (Col ii:S) And here let me
remark that by the word spoil the
apostle means make you his prey,
lead you away captive as his spoil. I"
For it was a state of slavery to these
false teachers to which they would be
brought, If deceived by their promises
of leading them to esoteric wisdom and
the knowledge of occult mysteries they
were drawn away from Christ, in
Whom are hid all the treasures of wis
dom and knowledge" treasures avail
able to all who viii seek for them in
Him.
Now, this is so precisely the result
of the theosophical teaching now be-
ing promulgated, it so leads captive
those who listen to it, SO makes them
the victims of decisions, that the
words written to the Colossians eigh-
force be addressed to those who are
carried away by the vain deceit of the
theosophy of the present day.
1t is advanced by the teachers OF
theosophy, and doubtless the same
claim was made by the teachers In Co.
Loose referred to by St Paul, that the
study of the esoteric doctrines it ex-
pounds is quite compaupie with the
Christian faith, and so the unwary
are deceived before they know with
er they are being led.
At the outset they suppose that the
osophy, as the name implies, viii lead
them to a knowledge of God, and con-
seuuent illumination, which has been
the aim of some theosophical systems;
but. instead of this, theosophy, as pro-
muleated today, is not only fundamen-
system of blank atheism, closely allied
to Buddhism, and derived from 1t.
Tt is Impossible for anyone to retain
the hope and faith of Christian, and
at the same time believe that the soul,
after it has left the body at death
win be reborn to live another LIE on
earth. The attempt to reconcile this
doctrine of rebirth Cor reincarnation,
as 1t is called by an unphilosophlcaI
use of Ianguage), with the teachings OF
Holy Scripture completely fails. 1t is
argued. that John the Baptist was a
temperance on earth OF Eiias. BUT
John himself denied that he was Ellas
John i:2D. For though he was
! second Elias. according to prophecy,
he was NOT. and could not be, the same
personality as the first. For Elias, &C
cordine TO Scripture, was carried up
| into heaven without undergoing any
| dissolution of soul and body. To hold,
! then. that his soul was clothed with a
new body in the womb OF Ellzapetn Is
10 make Holy Scripture contraoic1
itself.
nsychosis (now called reincarnationl
| no support whatever from the WORD OF
God. but 1t abandons all belief ID the
resurrection of the body, Wnich Is
| Fundamental article of our own faltn,
Were If true that each soul is invested
with a succession of bodies peioIe ieo
final goal is reached, Holy ScrlptIles
would not teach so clearly the closs
relationship existing between Soul anu
bodv whereby the reasonable soul and
flesh are one man Death, which DIS
solves the union of soul and body Tor
time. does not annul the relationship
! between them within the word on ai.
created. no single atom is ever ann ini-
lated The elementary Haleiiea l
whereof the now corrupted pooy M s-.
composed are therefore sllll - ,.rs,are