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Monday, April 23, 2007

~*~ Saint Teresa Of Avila ~ Holy Divine Mystic And Visionary ~*~






Chapter XL.

Visions, Revelations, and Locutions.
1. One day, in prayer, the sweetness of which was so great that, knowing how unworthy I was of so great a blessing, I began to think how much I had deserved to be in that place which I had seen prepared for me in hell,--for, as I said before, [1] I never forget the way I saw myself there,--as I was thinking of this, my soul began to be more and more on fire, and I was carried away in spirit in a way I cannot describe. It seemed to me as if I had been absorbed in, and filled with, that grandeur of God which, on another occasion, I had felt. [2] In that majesty it was given me to understand one truth, which is the fulness of all truth, but I cannot tell how, for I saw nothing. It was said to me, I saw not by whom, but I knew well enough it was the Truth Itself: "This I am doing to thee is not a slight matter; it is one of those things for which thou owest Me much; for all the evil in the world comes from ignorance of the truths of the holy writings in their clear simplicity, of which not one iota shall pass away." [3] I thought that I had always believed this, and that all the faithful also believed it. Then he said,: "Ah, My daughter, they are few who love Me in truth; for if men loved Me, I should not hide My secrets from them. Knowest thou what it is to love Me in truth? It is to admit everything to be a lie which is not pleasing unto Me. Now thou dost not understand it, but thou shalt understand it clearly hereafter, in the profit it will be to thy soul."


2. Our Lord be praised, so I found it; for after this vision I look upon everything which does not tend to the service of God as vanity and lies. I cannot tell how much I am convinced of this, nor how sorry I am for those whom I see living in darkness, not knowing the truth. I derived other great blessings also from this, some of which I will here speak of, others I cannot describe.


3. Our Lord at the same time uttered a special word of most exceeding graciousness. I know not how it was done, for I saw nothing; but I was filled, in a way which also I cannot describe, with exceeding strength and earnestness of purpose to observe with all my might everything contained in the divine writings. I thought that I could rise above every possible hindrance put in my way.


4. Of this divine truth, which was put before me I know not how, there remains imprinted within me a truth--I cannot give it a name--which fills me with a new reverence for God; it gives me a notion of His Majesty and power in a way which I cannot explain. I can understand that it is something very high. I had a very great desire never to speak of anything but of those deep truths which far surpass all that is spoken of here in the world,--and so the living in it began to be painful to me.


5. The vision left me in great tenderness, joy, and humility. It seemed to me, though I knew not how, that our Lord now gave me great things; and I had no suspicion whatever of any illusion. I saw nothing; but I understood how great a blessing it is to make no account of anything which does not lead us nearer unto God. I also understood what it is for a soul to be walking in the truth, in the presence of the Truth itself. What I understood is this: that our Lord gave me to understand that He is Himself the very Truth.


6. All this I am speaking of I learnt at times by means of words uttered; at other times I learnt some things without the help of words, and that more clearly than those other things which were told me in words. I understood exceedingly deep truths concerning the Truth, more than I could have done through the teaching of many learned men. It seems to me that learned men never could have thus impressed upon me, nor so clearly explained to me, the vanity of this world.


7. The Truth of which I am speaking, and which I was given to see, is Truth Itself, in Itself. It has neither beginning nor end. All other truths depend on this Truth, as all other loves depend on this love, and all other grandeurs on this grandeur. I understood it all, notwithstanding that my words are obscure in comparison with that distinctness with which it pleased our Lord to show it to me. What think you must be the power of His Majesty, seeing that in so short a time it leaves so great a blessing and such an impression on the soul? O Grandeur! Majesty of mine! what is it Thou art doing, O my Lord Almighty! Consider who it is to whom Thou givest blessings so great! Dost Thou not remember that this my soul has been an abyss of lies and a sea of vanities, and all my fault? Though Thou hadst given me a natural hatred of lying yet I did involve myself in many lying ways. How is this, O my God? how can it be that mercies and graces so great should fall to the lot of one who has so ill deserved them at Thy hands?


8. Once, when I was with the whole community reciting the Office, my soul became suddenly recollected, and seemed to me all bright as a mirror, clear behind, sideways, upwards, and downwards; and in the centre of it I saw Christ our Lord, as I usually see Him. It seemed to me that I saw Him distinctly in every part of my soul, as in a mirror, and at the same time the mirror was all sculptured--I cannot explain it--in our Lord Himself by a most loving communication which I can never describe. I know that this vision was a great blessing to me, and is still whenever I remember it, particularly after Communion.


9. I understood by it, that, when a soul is in mortal sin, this mirror becomes clouded with a thick vapour, and utterly obscured, so that our Lord is neither visible nor present, though He is always present in the conservation of its being. In heretics, the mirror is, as it were, broken in pieces, and that is worse than being dimmed. There is a very great difference between seeing this and describing it, for it can hardly be explained. But it has done me great good; it has also made me very sorry on account of those times when I dimmed the lustre of my soul by my sins, so that I could not see our Lord.


10. This vision seems to me very profitable to recollected persons, to teach them to look upon our Lord as being in the innermost part of their soul. It is a method of looking upon Him which penetrates us more thoroughly, and is much more fruitful, than that of looking upon Him as external to us, as I have said elsewhere, [4] and as it is laid down in books on prayer, where they speak of where we are to seek God. The glorious St. Augustin, [5] in particular, says so, when he says that neither in the streets of the city, nor in pleasures, nor in any place whatever where he sought Him, did he find Him as he found Him within himself. This is clearly the best way; we need not go up to heaven, nor any further than our own selves, for that would only distress the spirit and distract the soul, and bring but little fruit.


11. I should like to point out one result of a deep trance; it may be that some are aware of it. When the time is over during which the soul was in union, wherein all its powers were wholly absorbed,--it lasts, as I have said, [6] but a moment,--the soul continues still to be recollected, unable to recover itself even in outward things; for the two powers--the memory and the understanding--are, as it were, in a frenzy, extremely disordered. This, I say, happens occasionally, particularly in the beginnings. I am thinking whether it does not result from this: that our natural weakness cannot endure the vehemence of the spirit, which is so great, and that the imagination is enfeebled. I know it to be so with some. I think it best for these to force themselves to give up prayer at that time, and resume it afterwards, when they may recover what they have lost, and not do everything at once, for in that case much harm might come of it. I know this by experience, as well as the necessity of considering what our health can bear.


12. Experience is necessary throughout, so also is a spiritual director; for when the soul has reached this point, there are many matters which must be referred to the director. If, after seeking such a one, the soul cannot find him, our Lord will not fail that soul, seeing that He has not failed me, who am what I am: They are not many, I believe, who know by experience so many things, and without experience it is useless to treat a soul at all, for nothing will come of it, save only trouble and distress. But our Lord will take this also into account, and for that reason it is always best to refer the matter to the director. I have already more than once said this, [7] and even all I am saying now, only I do not distinctly remember it; but I do see that it is of great importance, particularly to women, that they should go to their confessor, and that he should be a man of experience herein. There are many more women than men to whom our Lord gives these graces; I have heard the holy friar Peter of Alcantara say so, and, indeed, I know it myself. He used to say that women made greater progress in this way than men did; and he gave excellent reasons for his opinion, all in favour of women; but there is no necessity for repeating them here.


13. Once, when in prayer, I had a vision, for a moment,--I saw nothing distinctly, but the vision was most clear,--how all things are seen in God and how all things are comprehended in Him. I cannot in any way explain it, but the vision remains most deeply impressed on my soul, and is one of those grand graces which our Lord wrought in me, and one of those which put me to the greatest shame and confusion whenever I call my sins to remembrance. I believe, if it had pleased our Lord that I had seen this at an earlier time, or if they saw it who sin against Him, we should have neither the heart nor the daring to do so. I had the vision, I repeat it, but I cannot say that I saw anything; however, I must have seen something, seeing that I explain it by an illustration, only it must have been in a way so subtile and delicate that the understanding is unable to reach it, or I am so ignorant in all that relates to these visions, which seem to be not imaginary. In some of these visions there must be something imaginary, only, as the powers of the soul are then in a trance, they are not able afterwards to retain the forms, as our Lord showed them to it then, and as He would have it rejoice in them.


14. Let us suppose the Godhead to be a most brilliant diamond, much larger than the whole world, or a mirror like that to which I compared the soul in a former vision, [8] only in a way so high that I cannot possibly describe it; and that all our actions are seen in that diamond, which is of such dimensions as to include everything, because nothing can be beyond it. It was a fearful thing for me to see, in so short a time, so many things together in that brilliant diamond, and a most piteous thing too, whenever I think of it, to see such foul things as my sins present in the pure brilliancy of that light.


15. So it is, whenever I remember it, I do not know how to bear it, and I was then so ashamed of myself that I knew not where to hide myself. Oh, that some one could make this plain to those who commit most foul and filthy sins, that they may remember their sins are not secret, and that God most justly resents them, seeing that they are wrought in the very presence of His Majesty, and that we are demeaning ourselves so irreverently before Him! I saw, too, how completely hell is deserved for only one mortal sin, and how impossible it is to understand the exceeding great wickedness of committing it in the sight of majesty so great, and how abhorrent to His nature such actions are. In this we see more and more of His mercifulness, who, though we all know His hatred of sin, yet suffers us to live.


16. The vision made me also reflect, that if one such vision as this fills the souls with such awe, what will it be in the day of judgment, when His Majesty will appear distinctly, and when we too shall look on the sins we have committed! O my God, I have been, oh, how blind! I have often been amazed at what I have written; and you, my father, be you not amazed at anything, but that I am still living,--I, who see such things, and know myself to be what I am. Blessed for ever be He who has borne with me so long!


17. Once, in prayer, with much recollection, sweetness, and repose, I saw myself, as it seemed to me, surrounded by angels, and was close unto God. I began to intercede with His Majesty on behalf of the church. I was given to understand the great services which a particular Order would render in the latter days, and the courage with which its members would maintain the faith.


18. I was praying before the most Holy Sacrament one day; I had a vision of a Saint, whose Order was in some degree fallen. In his hands he held a large book, which he opened, and then told me to read certain words, written in large and very legible letters; they were to this effect: "In times to come this Order will flourish; it will have many martyrs." [9]


19. On another occasion, when I was at Matins in choir, six or seven persons, who seemed to me to be of this Order, appeared and stood before me with swords in their hands. The meaning of that, as I think, is that they are to be defenders of the faith; for at another time, when I was in prayer, I fell into a trance, and stood in spirit on a wide plain, where many persons were fighting; and the members of this Order were fighting with great zeal. Their faces were beautiful, and as it were on fire. Many they laid low on the ground defeated, others they killed. It seemed to me to be a battle with heretics.


20. I have seen this glorious Saint occasionally, and he has told me certain things, and thanked me for praying for his Order, and he has promised to pray for me to our Lord. I do not say which Orders these are,--our Lord, if it so pleased Him, could make them known,--lest the others should be aggrieved. Let every Order, or every member of them by himself, labour, that by his means our Lord would so bless his own Order that it may serve Him in the present grave necessities of His Church. Blessed are they whose lives are so spent.


21. I was once asked by a person to pray God to let him know whether his acceptance of a bishopric would be for the service of God. After Communion our Lord said to me: "When he shall have clearly and really understood that true dominion consists in possessing nothing, he may then accept it." I understood by this that he who is to be in dignity must be very far from wishing or desiring it, or at least he must not seek it.


22. These and many other graces our Lord has given, and is giving continually, to me a sinner. I do not think it is necessary to speak of them, because the state of my soul can be ascertained from what I have written; so also can the spirit which our Lord has given me. May He be blessed for ever, who has been so mindful of me!


23. Our Lord said to me once, consoling me, that I was not to distress myself,--this He said most lovingly,--because in this life we could not continue in the same state. [10] At one time I should be fervent, at another not; now disquieted, and again at peace, and tempted; but I must hope in Him, and fear not.


24. I was one day thinking whether it was a want of detachment in me to take pleasure in the company of those who had the care of my soul, and to have an affection for them, and to comfort myself with those whom I see to be very great servants of God. [11] Our Lord said to me: "It is not a virtue in a sick man to abstain from thanking and loving the physician who seems to restore him to health when he is in danger of death. What should I have done without these persons? The conversation of good people was never hurtful; my words should always be weighed, and holy; and I was not to cease my relations with them, for they would do me good rather than harm."


25. This was a great comfort to me, because, now and then, I wished to abstain from converse with all people; for it seemed to me that I was attached to them. Always, in all things, did our Lord console me, even to the showing me how I was to treat those who were weak, and some other people also. Never did He cease to take care of me. I am sometimes distressed to see how little I do in His service, and how I am forced to spend time in taking care of a body so weak and worthless as mine is, more than I wish.


26. I was in prayer one night, when it was time to go to sleep. I was in very great pain, and my usual sickness was coming on. [12] I saw myself so great a slave to myself, and, on the other hand, the spirit asked for time for itself. I was so much distressed that I began to weep exceedingly, and to be very sorry. This has happened to me not once only, but, as I am saying, very often; and it seems to make me weary of myself, so that at the time I hold myself literally in abhorrence. Habitually, however, I know that I do not hate myself, and I never fail to take that which I see to be necessary for me. May our Lord grant that I do not take more than is necessary!--I am afraid I do.


27. When I was thus distressed, our Lord appeared unto me. He comforted me greatly, and told me I must do this for His love, and bear it; my life was necessary now. And so, I believe, I have never known real pain since I resolved to serve my Lord and my Consoler with all my strength; for though he would leave me to suffer a little, yet He would console me in such a way that I am doing nothing when I long for troubles. And it seems to me there is nothing worth living for but this, and suffering is what I most heartily pray to God for. I say to Him sometimes, with my whole heart: "O Lord, either to die or to suffer! I ask of Thee nothing else for myself." It is a comfort to me to hear the clock strike, because I seem to have come a little nearer to the vision of God, in that another hour of my life has passed away.


28. At other times I am in such a state that I do not feel that I am living, nor yet do I desire to die but I am lukewarm, and darkness surrounds me on every side, as I said before; [13] for I am very often in great trouble. It pleased our Lord that the graces He wrought in me should be published abroad, [14] as He told me some years ago they should be. It was a great pain to me, and I have borne much on that account even to this day, as you, my father, know, because every man explains them in his own sense. But my comfort herein is that it is not my fault that they are become known, for I was extremely cautious never to speak of them but to my confessors, or to persons who I knew had heard of them from them. I was silent, however, not out of humility, but because, as I said before, [15] it gave me great pain to speak of them even to my confessors.


29. Now, however,--to God be the glory!--though many speak against me, but out of a zeal for goodness, and though some are afraid to speak to me, and even to hear my confession, and though others have much to say about me, because I see that our Lord willed by this means to provide help for many souls,--and also because I see clearly and keep in mind how much He would suffer, if only for the gaining of one,--I do not care about it at all.


30. I know not why it is so, but perhaps the reason may in some measure be that His Majesty has placed me in this corner out of the way, where the enclosure is so strict, and where I am as one that is dead. I thought that no one would remember me, but I am not so much forgotten as I wish I was, for I am forced to speak to some people. But as I am in a house where none may see me, it seems as if our Lord had been pleased to bring me to a haven, which I trust in His Majesty will be secure. Now that I am out of the world, with companions holy and few in number, I look down on the world as from a great height, and care very little what people say or know about me. I think much more of one soul's advancement, even if it were but slight, than of all that people may say of me; and since I am settled here it has pleased our Lord that all my desires tend to this.


31. He has made my life to me now a kind of sleep; for almost always what I see seems to me to be seen as in a dream, nor have I any great sense either of pleasure or of pain. If matters occur which may occasion either, the sense of it passes away so quickly that it astonishes me, and leaves an impression as if I had been dreaming,--and this is the simple truth; for if I wished afterwards to delight in that pleasure, or be sorry over that pain, it is not in my power to do so: just as a sensible person feels neither pain nor pleasure in the memory of a dream that is past; for now our Lord has roused my soul out of that state which, because I was not mortified nor dead to the things of this world, made me feel as I did, and His Majesty does not wish me to become blind again.


32. This is the way I live now, my lord and father; do you, my father, pray to God that He would take me to Himself, or enable me to serve Him. May it please His Majesty that what I have written may be of some use to you, my father! I have so little time, [16] and therefore my trouble has been great in writing; but it will be a blessed trouble if I have succeeded in saying anything that will cause one single act of praise to our Lord. If that were the case, I should look upon myself as sufficiently rewarded, even if you, my father, burnt at once what I have written. I would rather it were not burnt before those three saw it, whom you, my father, know of, because they are, and have been, my confessors; for if it be bad, it is right they should lose the good opinion they have of me; and if it be good, they are good and learned men, and I know they will recognise its source, and give praise to Him who hath spoken through me.


33. May His Majesty ever be your protector, and make you so great a saint that your spirit and light may show the way to me a miserable creature, so wanting in humility and so bold as to have ventured to write on subjects so high! May our Lord grant I have not fallen into any errors in the matter, for I had the intention and the desire to be accurate and obedient, and also that through me He might, in some measure, have glory,--because that is what I have been praying for these many years; and as my good works are inefficient for that end, I have ventured to put in order this my disordered life. Still, I have not wasted more time, nor given it more attention, than was necessary for writing it; yet I have put down all that has happened to me with all the simplicity and sincerity possible.


34. May our Lord, who is all-powerful, grant--and He can if He will--that I may attain to the doing of His will in all things! May He never suffer this soul to be lost, which He so often, in so many ways, and by so many means, has rescued from hell and drawn unto Himself! Amen.
I.H.S.


The Holy Spirit be ever with you, my father. [17] Amen. It would not be anything improper if I were to magnify my labour in writing this, to oblige you to be very careful to recommend me to our Lord; for indeed I may well do so, considering what I have gone through in giving this account of myself, and in retracing my manifold wretchedness. But, still, I can say with truth that I felt it more difficult to speak of the graces which I have received from our Lord than to speak of my offences against His Majesty. You, my father, commanded me to write at length; that is what I have done, on condition that you will do what you promised, namely, destroy everything in it that has the appearance of being wrong. I had not yet read it through after I had written it, when your reverence sent for it. Some things in it may not be very clearly explained, and there may be some repetitions; for the time I could give to it was so short, that I could not stop to see what I was writing. I entreat your reverence to correct it and have it copied, if it is to be sent on to the Father-Master, Avila, [18] for perhaps some one may recognise the handwriting. I wish very much you would order it so that he might see it, for I began to write it with a view to that I shall be greatly comforted if he shall think that I am on a safe road, now that, so far as it concerns me, there is nothing more to be done.


Your reverence will do in all things that which to you shall seem good, and you will look upon yourself as under an obligation to take care of one who trusts her soul to your keeping. I will pray for the soul of your reverence to our Lord, so long as I live. You will, therefore, be diligent in His service, in order that you may be able to help me; for your reverence will see by what I have written how profitable it is to give oneself, as your reverence has begun to do, wholly unto Him who gives Himself to us so utterly without measure.


Blessed be His Majesty for ever! I hope of His mercy we shall see one another one day, when we, your reverence and myself, shall see more clearly the great mercies He has shown us, and when we shall praise Him for ever and ever. Amen. This book was finished in June, 1562.
"This date refers to the first account which the holy Mother Teresa of Jesus wrote of her life; it was not then divided into chapters. Afterwards she made this copy, and inserted in it many things which had taken place subsequent to this date, such as the foundation of the monastery of St. Joseph of Avila, as in p. 169. [19]--Fray Do Bañes."



3. St. Matt. v. 18: "Iota unum aut unus apex non præteribit a lege."

5. "Ecce quantum spatiatus sum in memoria mea quærens Te, Domine; et non Te inveni extra eam. . . . Ex quo didici Te, manes in memoria mea, et illic Te invenio cum reminiscor Tui et delector in Te" (Confess. x. 24). See Inner Fortress, Sixth Mansion, ch. iv.

7. Ch. xxv. § 18, ch. xxvi. § 4. See St. John of the Cross, Mount Carmel, bk. ii. ch. xxii.

9. Yepez says that the Order here spoken of is the Carmelite, and Ribera understands the Saint to refer to that of St. Dominic. The Bollandists, n. 1638-1646, on the whole, prefer the authority of Ribera to that of Yepez and give good reasons for their preference, setting aside as insufficient the testimony of Fray Luis of the Assumption, who says he heard himself from the Venerable Anne of St. Bartholomew that the Order in question is the Order of our Lady of Mount Carmel. Don Vicente, the Spanish editor, rejects the opinion of Ribera, on the ground that it could not have been truly said of the Dominicans in the sixteenth century that the Order was in "some degree fallen," for it was in a most flourishing state. He therefore was inclined to believe that the Saint referred to the Augustinians or to the Franciscans. But, after he had printed this part of his book, he discovered among the MSS. in the public library of Madrid a letter of Anne of St. Bartholomew, addressed to Fray Luis of the Assumption, in which the saintly companion of St. Teresa says that the "Order was ours." Don Vicente has published the letter in the Appendix, p. 566.

10. Job xiv. 2: "Nunquam in eodem statu permanet."

17. This letter, which seems to have accompanied the "Life," is printed among the other letters of the Saint, and is addressed to her confessor, the Dominican friar, Pedro Ibañez. It is the fifteenth letter in the first volume of the edition of Madrid; but it is not dated there.

18. Juan de Avila, commonly called the Apostle of Andalusia.

19. I.e. of the MS. See p. 337 of this translation.



The
Relations or Manifestations
of Her
Spiritual State
Which
St. Teresa Submitted to Her Confessors.

The Relations.

Relation 1.

Sent to St. Peter of Alcantara in 1560 from the Monastery of the Incarnation, Avila. [1]


1. The method of prayer I observe at present is this: when I am in prayer, it is very rarely that I can use the understanding, because the soul becomes at once recollected, remains in repose, or falls into a trance, so that I cannot in any way have the use of the faculties and the senses,--so much so, that the hearing alone is left; but then it does not help me to understand anything.


2. It often happens, when I am not even thinking of the things of God, but engaged in other matters, and when prayer seems to be beyond my power, whatever efforts I might make, because of the great aridity I am in, bodily pains contributing thereto, that this recollection or elevation of spirit comes upon me so suddenly that I cannot withstand it, and the fruits and blessings it brings with it are in a moment mine: and this, without my having had a vision, or heard anything, or knowing where I am, except that when the soul seems to be lost I see it make great progress, which I could not have made if I had laboured for a whole year, so great is my gain.


3. At other times certain excessive impetuosities occur, accompanied with a certain fainting away of the soul for God, so that I have no control over myself; [2] my life seems to have come to an end, and so it makes me cry out and call upon God; and this comes upon me with great vehemence. Sometimes I cannot remain sitting, so great is the oppression of the heart; and this pain comes on without my doing anything to cause it, and the nature of it is such that my soul would be glad never to be without it while I live. And the longings I have are longings not to live; and they come on because it seems as if I must live on without being able to find any relief, for relief comes from the vision of God, which comes by death, and death is what I cannot take; and with all this my soul thinks that all except itself are filled with consolations, and that all find help in their troubles, but not itself. The distress thus occasioned is so intense that, if our Lord did not relieve it by throwing it into a trance, whereby all is made calm, and the soul rests in great quiet and is satisfied, now by seeing something of that which it desires, now by hearing other things, it would seem to be impossible for it to be delivered from this pain.


4. At other times there come upon me certain desires to serve God, with a vehemence so great that I cannot describe it, and accompanied with a certain pain at seeing how unprofitable I am. It seems to me then that there is nothing in the world, neither death, nor martyrdom, that I could not easily endure. This conviction, too, is not the result of any reflection, but comes in a moment. I am wholly changed, and I know not whence cometh such great courage. I think I should live to raise my voice, and publish to all the world how important it is for men not to be satisfied with the common way, and how great the good is that God will give us if we prepare ourselves to receive it. I say it again, these desires are such that I am melted away in myself, for I seem to desire what I cannot have. The body seems to me to hold me in prison, through its inability to serve God and my state [3] in anything; for if it were not for the body, I might do very great things, so far as my strength would allow; and thus, because I see myself without any power whatever to serve God, I feel this pain in a way wholly indescribable; the issue is delight, recollection, and the consolation of God.


5. Again, it has happened, when these longings to serve Him come upon me, that I wish to do penance, but I am not able. It would be a great relief to me, and it does relieve and cheer me, though what I do is almost nothing, because of my bodily weakness; and yet, if I were to give way to these my longings, I believe I should observe no moderation.


6. Sometimes, if I have to speak to any one, I am greatly distressed, and I suffer so much that it makes me weep abundantly; for my whole desire is to be alone, and solitude comforts me, though at times I neither pray nor read, and conversation--particularly of kindred and connections--seems oppressive, and myself to be as a slave, except when I speak to those whose conversation is of prayer and matters of the soul,--in these I find comfort and joy; [4] yet these occasionally are too much for me, and I would rather not see them, but go where I might be alone: though this is not often the case, for those especially who direct my conscience always console me.


7. At other times it gives me much pain that I must eat and sleep, and that I see I cannot forego these things, being less able to do so than any one. I submit that I may serve God, and thus I offer up those actions to him. Time seems to me too short, and that I have not enough for my prayer, for I should never be tired of being alone. I am always wishing I had time for reading, for I have been always fond of reading. I read very little, for when I take up a book I become recollected through the pleasure it gives me, and thus my reading is turned into prayer: and it is but rarely, for I have many occupations; and though they are good, they do not give me the pleasure which reading would give. And thus I am always wishing for more time, and everything becomes disagreeable, so I believe, because I see I cannot do what I wish and desire.


8. All these desires, with an increase in virtue, have been given me by our Lord since He raised me to this prayer of quiet, and sent these raptures. I find myself so improved that I look on myself as being a mass of perdition before this. These raptures and visions leave me in possession of the blessings I shall now speak of; and I maintain that, if there be any good in me, they are the occasions of it.


9. I have made a very strong resolution never to offend God, not even venially. I would rather die a thousand deaths than do anything of the kind knowingly. I am resolved never to leave undone anything I may consider to be the more perfect, or more for the honour of our Lord, if he who has the care of my soul and directs me tells me I may do it. Cost me what pain it might, I would not leave such an act undone for all the treasure of the world. If I were to do so, I do not think I could have the face to ask anything of God our Lord, or to make my prayer; and yet, for all this, I have many faults and imperfections. I am obedient to my confessor, [5] though imperfectly; but if I know that he wishes or commands anything, I would not leave that undone, so far as I understand it; if I did so, I should think myself under a grievous delusion.


10. I have a longing for poverty, though not free from imperfection; however, I believe, if I had wealth, I would not reserve any revenue, nor hoard money for myself, nor do I care for it; I wish to have only what is necessary. Nevertheless, I feel that I am very defective in this virtue; for, though I desire nothing for myself, I should like to have something to give away: still, I desire no revenue, nor anything for myself. [6]


11. In almost all the visions I have had, I have found good, if it be not a delusion of Satan; herein I submit myself to the judgment of my confessors.


12. As to fine and beautiful things, such as water, fields, perfume, music, etc., I think I would rather not have them, so great is the difference between them and what I am in the habit of seeing, and so all pleasure in them is gone from me. [7] Hence it is that I care not for them, unless it be at the first sight: they never make any further impression; to me they seem but dirt.


13. If I speak or converse with people in the world--for I cannot help it--even about prayer, and if the conversation be long, though to pass away the time, I am under great constraint if it be not necessary, for it gives me much pain.


14. Amusements, of which I used to be fond, and worldly things, are all disagreeable to me now, and I cannot look at them.


15. The longings, which I said I have, [8] of loving and serving and seeing God, are not helped by any reflections, as formerly, when I thought I was very devout, and shed many tears; but they flow out of a certain fire and heat so excessive that, I repeat it, if God did not relieve them by throwing me into a trance, wherein the soul seems to find itself satisfied, I believe my life would come to an end at once.


16. When I see persons making great progress, and thus resolved, detached, and courageous, I love them much; and I should like to have my conversation with such persons, and I think they help me on. People who are afraid, and seemingly cautious in those things, the doing of which is perfectly reasonable here, seem to vex me, and drive me to pray to God and the saints to make them undertake such things as these which now frighten us. Not that I am good for anything myself, but because I believe that God helps those who, for His sake, apply themselves to great things, and that He never abandons any one who puts his trust in Him only. And I should like to find any one who would help me to believe so, and to be without thought about food and raiment, but leave it all in the hands of God. [9]


17. This leaving in the hands of God the supply of all I need is not to be understood as excluding all labour on my part, but merely solicitude--I mean, the solicitude of care. And since I have attained to this liberty, it goes well with me, and I labour to forget myself as much as I can. I do not think it is a year ago since our Lord gave me this liberty.


18. Vainglory [10]--glory, be to God!--so far as I know, there is no reason why I should have any; for I see plainly that in these things which God sends me I have no part myself; on the contrary, God makes me conscious of my own wretchedness; for whatever reflections I might be able to make, I could never come to the knowledge of such deep truths as I attain to in a single rapture.


19. When I speak of these things a few days after, they seem to me as if they had happened to another person. Previously, I thought it a wrong to me that they should be known to others; but I see now that I am not therefore any the better, but rather worse, seeing that I make so little progress after receiving mercies so great. And certainly, in every way, it seems to me that there was not in the world anybody worse than myself; and so the virtues of others seem to me much more meritorious than mine, and that I do nothing myself but receive graces, and that God must give to others at once all that He is now giving unto me; and I pray Him not to reward me in this life; and so I believe that God has led me along this way because I am weak and wicked.


20. When I am in prayer, and even almost always when I am able to reflect at all, I cannot, even if I tried, pray to God for rest, or desire it; for I see that His life was one of suffering, and that I ask Him to send me, giving me first the grace to bear it.


21. Everything of this kind, and of the highest perfection, seems to make so deep an impression on me in prayer, that I am amazed at the sight of truths so great and so clear that the things of the world seem to be folly; and so it is necessary for me to take pains to reflect on the way I demeaned myself formerly in the things of the world, for it seems to me folly to feel for deaths and the troubles of the world,--at least, that sorrow for, or love of, kindred and friends should last long. I say I have to take pains when I am considering what I was, and what I used to feel.


22. If I see people do anything which clearly seems to be sin, I cannot make up my mind that they have offended God; and if I dwell upon this at all,--which happens rarely or never,--I never can make up my mind, though I see it plainly enough. It seems to me that everybody is as anxious to serve God as I am. And herein God has been very gracious unto me, for I never dwell on an evil deed, to remember it afterwards and if I do remember it, I see some virtue or other in that person. In this way these things never weary me, except generally: but heresies do; they distress me very often, and almost always when I think of them they seem to me to be the only trouble which should be felt. And also I feel, when I see people who used to give themselves to prayer fall away; this gives me pain, but not much, because I strive not to dwell upon it.


23. I find, also, that I am improved in the matter of that excessive neatness which I was wont to observe, [11] though not wholly delivered from it. I do not discern that I am always mortified in this; sometimes, however, I do.


24. All this I have described, together with a very constant dwelling in thought on God, is the ordinary state of my soul, so far as I can understand it. And if I must be busy about something else, without my seeking it, as I said before, [12] I know not who makes me awake,--and this not always, only when I am busy with things of importance; and such--glory be to God!--only at intervals demand my attention, and do not occupy me at all times.


25. For some days--they are not many, however--for three, or four, or five, all my good and fervent thoughts, and my visions, seem to be withdrawn, yea, even forgotten, so that, if I were to seek for it, I know of no good that can ever have been in me. It seems to have been all a dream, or, at least, I can call nothing to mind. Bodily pains at the same time distress me. My understanding is troubled, so that I cannot think at all about God, neither do I know under what law I live. If I read anything, I do not understand it; I seem to be full of faults, and without any resolution whatever to practise virtue; and the great resolution I used to have is come to this, that I seem to be unable to resist the least temptation or slander of the world. It suggests itself to me then that I am good for nothing, if any one would have me undertake more than the common duties. I give way to sadness, thinking I have deceived all those who trusted me at all. I should like to hide myself where nobody could see me; but my desire for solitude arises from want of courage, not from love of virtue. It seems to me that I should like to dispute with all who contradict me; I am under the influence of these impressions, only God has been so gracious unto me, that I do not offend more frequently than I was wont to do, nor do I ask Him to deliver me from them, but only, if it be His will I should always suffer thus, to keep me from offending Him; and I submit myself to His will with my whole heart, and I see that it is a very great grace bestowed upon me that He does not keep me constantly in this state.


26. One thing astonishes me; it is that, while I am in this state, through a single word of those I am in the habit of hearing, or a single vision, or a little self-recollection, lasting but an Ave Maria, or through my drawing near to communicate, I find my soul and body so calm, so sound, the understanding so clear, and myself possessing all the strength and all the good desires I usually have. And this I have had experience of very often--at least when I go to Communion; it is more than six months ago that I felt a clear improvement in my bodily health, [13] and that occasionally brought about through raptures, and I find it last sometimes more than three hours, at other times I am much stronger for a whole day; and I do not think it is fancy, for I have considered the matter, and reflected on it. Accordingly, when I am thus recollected, I fear no illness. The truth is, that when I pray, as I was accustomed to do before, I feel no improvement.


27. All these things of which I am speaking make me believe that it comes from God; for when I see what I once was, that I was in the way of being lost, and that soon, my soul certainly is astonished at these things, without knowing whence these virtues came to me; I did not know myself, and saw that all was a gift, and not the fruit of my labours. I understand in all truthfulness and sincerity, and see that I am not deluded, that it has been not only the means of drawing me to God in His service, but of saving me also from hell. This my confessors know, who have heard my general confession.


28. Also, when I see any one who knows anything about me, I wish to let him know my whole life, [14] because my honour seems to me to consist in the honour of our Lord, and I care for nothing else. This He knows well, or I am very blind; for neither honour, nor life, nor praise, nor good either of body or of soul, can interest me, nor do I seek or desire any advantage, only His glory. I cannot believe that Satan has sought so many means of making my soul advance, in order to lose it after all. I do not hold him to be so foolish. Nor can I believe it of God, though I have deserved to fall into delusions because of my sins, that He has left unheeded so many prayers of so many good people for two years, and I do nothing else but ask everybody to pray to our Lord that He would show me if this be for His glory, or lead me by another way. [15] I do not believe that these things would have been permitted by His Majesty to be always going on if they were not His work. These considerations, and the reasons of so many saintly men, give me courage when I am under the pressure of fear that they are not from God, I being so wicked myself. But when I am in prayer, and during those days when I am in repose, and my thoughts fixed on God, if all the learned and holy men in the world came together and put me to, all conceivable tortures, and I, too, desirous of agreeing with them, they could not make me believe that this is the work of Satan, for I cannot. And when they would have had me believe it, I was afraid, seeing who it was that said so; and I thought that they must be saying what was true, and that I, being what I was, must have been deluded. But all they had said to me was destroyed by the first word, or recollection, or vision that came, and I was able to resist no longer, and believed it was from God. [16]


29. However, I can think that Satan now and then may intermeddle here, and so it is, as I have seen and said; but he produces different results, nor can he, as it seems to me, deceive any one possessed of any experience. Nevertheless, I say that, though I do certainly believe this to be from God, I would never do anything, for any consideration whatever, that is not judged by him who has the charge of my soul to be for the better service of our Lord, and I never had any intention but to obey without concealing anything, for that is my duty. I am very often rebuked for my faults, and that in such a way as to pierce me to the very quick; and I am warned when there is, or when there may be, any danger in what I am doing. These rebukes and warnings have done me much good, in often reminding me of my former sins, which make me exceedingly sorry.


30. I have been very long, but this is the truth,--that, when I rise from my prayer, I see that I have received blessings which seem too briefly described. Afterwards I fall into many imperfections, and am unprofitable and very wicked. And perhaps I have no perception of what is good, but am deluded; still, the difference in my life is notorious, and compels me to think over all I have said--I mean, that which I verily believe I have felt. These are the perfections which I feel our Lord has wrought in me, who am so wicked and so imperfect. I refer it all to your judgment, my father, for you know the whole state of my soul.



1. Fra Anton. a Sancto Joseph, in his notes on this Relation, usually published among the letters of the Saint, ed. Doblado, vol. ii. letter 11, says it was written for St. Peter of Alcantara when he came to Avila in 1560, at the time when the Saint was so severely tried by her confessors and the others who examined her spirit, and were convinced that her prayer was a delusion of Satan: see the Life, ch. xxv. § 18. The following notes were discovered among the papers of the Saint in the monastery of the Incarnation, and are supposed to refer to this Relation. The Chronicler of the Order, Fra Francis a Sancta Maria, is inclined to the belief that they were written by St. Peter of Alcantara, to whom the Relation is addressed, and the more so because Ribera does not claim them for any member of the Society, notwithstanding the reference to them in §§ 22, 28.

"1. The end God has in view is the drawing a soul to himself; that of the devil is the withdrawing it from God. Our Lord never does anything whereby anyone may be separated from Him, and the devil does nothing whereby any one may be made to draw near unto God. All the visions and the other operations in the soul of this person draw her nearer unto God, and make her more humble and obedient.


"2. It is the teaching of St. Thomas that an angel of light may be recognised by the peace and quietness he leaves in the soul. She is never visited in this way, but she afterwards abides in peace and joy; so much so, that all the pleasures of earth together are not comparable to one of these visitations.


"3. She never commits a fault, nor falls into an imperfection, without being instantly rebuked by Him who speaks interiorly to her.


"4. She has never prayed for nor wished for them: all she wishes for is to do the will of God our Lord in all things.


"5. Everything herein is consistent with the Scriptures and the teaching of the Church, and most true, according to the most rigorous principles of scholastic theology.


"6. This soul is most pure and sincere, with the most fervent desires of being pleasing unto God, and of trampling on every earthly thing.


"7. She has been told that whatever she shall ask of God, being good, she shall have. She has asked much, and things not convenient to put on paper lest it should be wearisome; all of which our Lord has granted.


"8. When these operations are from God, they are always directed to the good of the recipient, to that of the community, or of some other. That she has profited by them she knows by experience, and she knows it, too, of other persons also.


"9. No one converses with her, if he be not in evil dispositions, who is not moved thereby to devotion, even though she says nothing about it.


"10. She is growing daily in the perfection of virtues, and learns by these things the way of a higher perfection. And thus, during the whole time in which she had visions, she was making progress, according to the doctrine of St. Thomas.


"11. The spirit that speaks to her soul never tells her anything in the way of news, or what is unbecoming, but only that which tends to edification.


"12. She has been told of some persons that they were full of devils: but this was for the purpose of enabling her to understand the state of a soul which has sinned mortally against our Lord.


"13. The devil's method is, when he attempts to deceive a soul, to advise that soul never to speak of what he says to it; but the spirit that speaks to this soul warns her to be open with learned men, servants of our Lord, and that the devil may deceive her if she should conceal anything through shame.


"14. So great is the progress of her soul in this way, and the edification she ministers in the good example given, that more than forty nuns in her monastery practise great recollection.


"15. These supernatural things occur after long praying, when she is absorbed in God, on fire with His love, or at Communion.


"16. They kindle in her a most earnest desire to be on the right road, and to escape the delusions of Satan.


"17. They are in her the cause of the deepest humility; she understands that what she receives comes to her from the hand of our Lord, and how little worth she is herself.


"18. When they are withheld, anything that occurs is wont to pain and distress her; but when she is in this state, she remembers nothing; all she is conscious of is a great longing for suffering, and so great is it that she is amazed at it.


"19. They are to her sources of joy and consolation in her troubles, when people speak ill of her, and in her infirmities--and she has fearful pains about the heart, sicknesses, and many other afflictions, all of which leave her when she has these visions.


"20. With all this, she undergoes great penances, fasting, the discipline, and mortifications.


"21. All that on earth may give her any pleasure, and her trials, which are many, she bears with equal tranquillity of mind, without losing the peace and quiet of her soul.


"22. Her resolution never to offend our Lord is so earnest that she has made a vow never to leave undone what she knows herself, or is told by those who understand the matter better, to be the more perfect. And though she holds the members of the Society to be saints, and believes that our Lord made use of them to bestow on her graces so great, she told me that, if she knew it would be more perfect to have nothing more to do with them, she would never speak to them again, nor see them, notwithstanding the fact that it was through them that her mind had been quieted and directed in these things.


"23. The sweetnesses she commonly receives, her sense of God, her languishing with love, are certainly marvellous, and through these she is wont to be enraptured the whole day long.


"24. She frequently falls into a trance when she hears God spoken of with devotion and earnestness, and cannot resist the rapture, do what she can; and in that state her appearance is such that she excites very great devotion.


"25. She cannot bear to be directed by any one who will not tell her of her faults, and rebuke her; all that she accepts with great humility.


"26. Moreover, she cannot endure people who are in a state of perfection, if they do not labour to become perfect, according to the spirit of their rule.


"27. She is most detached from her kindred, has no desire to converse with people, and loves solitude. She has a great devotion to the saints, and on their feasts, and on the days on which the Church celebrates the mysteries of the faith, is filled with most fervent affections for our Lord.


"28. If all the members of the Society, and all the servants of God upon earth, tell her that her state is an effect of the operations of Satan, or were to say so, she is in fear and trembling before the visions occur; but as soon as she is in prayer, and recollected, she cannot be persuaded, were they to tear her into a thousand pieces, that it is any other than God who is working in her and speaking to her.


"29. God has given her a most wonderfully strong and valiant spirit: she was once timid; now she tramples on all the evil spirits. She has put far away from herself all the littleness and silliness of women; she is singularly free from scruples, and most sincere.


"30. Besides, our Lord has given her the gift of most sweet tears, great compassion for her neighbours, the knowledge of her own faults, a great reverence for good people, and self-abasement; and I am certain that she has done good to many, of whom I am one.


"31. She is continually reminding herself of God, and has a sense of His presence. All the locutions have been verified, and every one of them accomplished; and this is a very great test.


"32. Her visions are a source of great clearness in her understanding, and an admirable illumination in the things of God.


"33. It was said to her that she should lead those who were trying her spirit to look into the Scriptures, and that they would not find that any soul desirous of pleasing God had been so long deceived."

3. De la Fuente thinks she means the religious state.

8. See § 3, above.

9. St. Matt. vi. 31: "Nolite ergo solliciti esse, dicentes: Quid manducabimus. . . . aut quo operiemur?"

12. § 2, above.






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LIFE OF ST. TERESA
Chapter XL. Visions, Revelations, and Locutions. 1. One day, in prayer, the sweetness of which was so great that, knowing how unworthy I was of so great a...


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~*~ Ambrosial Blessings In Christ! ~*~


~*~ Reverend Celestial ~*~

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Tuesday, April 3, 2007

~*~ The Essene Gospel Of Peace ~ Book Four ~*~




The ESSENE GOSPEL OF PEACE

The Teachings of the Elect

Book Four

The Original Hebrew and Aramaic Texts
Translated and edited by
EDMOND BORDEAUX SZEKELY
MCMLXXXI
INTERNATIONAL BIOGENIC SOCIETY
Book Design by Golondrina Graohics
Copyright @ 1981, by the International Biogenic Society
Printed In the United States of America-All Rights Reserved







PREFACE

It was in 1928 that Edmond Bordeaux Szekely first published his translation of Book One of The Essene Gospel of Peace, an ancient manuscript he had found in the Secret Archives of the Vatican as the result of limitless patience, faultless scholarship, and unerring intuition, a story told in his book, The Discovery of the Essene Gospel of Peace. The English version of this ancient manuscript appeared in 1937, and ever since, the little volume has traveled all over the world, appearing in different languages, and gaining every year more and more readers, until now, still with no commercial advertisement, over a million copies have been sold in the United States alone. It was not until almost fifty years after the first French translation that Book Two and Book Three appeared, and these also have now become classics of the Essene literature.

Book Four, The Teachings of the Elect, will come as a surprise to those readers who are aware of Dr. Szekely's death in 1979. if I were also a philologist, or scholar, or archeologist, I might be able to provide some explanation. But I am only his faithful famulus amanuensis, and the instructions he left me were clear and explicit: "Two years after my death, you shall publish Book Four of The Essene Gospel of Peace. " That was all, and I am now carrying out his wish.

This Book Four, The Teachings of the Elect, represents yet another fragment of the complete manuscript which exists in Aramaic in the Secret Archives of the Vatican and in old Slavonic in the Royal Library of the Habsburgs (now the property of the Austrian government). As to the reason for the delay in its publication, I can only surmise that Dr. Szekely wanted the vivid reality of these ageless truths to stand alone, unobscured even by the presence of the translator. He did say in his Preface to the first London edition of Book One in 1937 that "we have issued this part before the rest, because it is the part of which suffering humanity has most need today." Perhaps, in the same way, the troubled world of forty-four years later needs this fourth volume of The Essene Gospel of Peace.

Again the words of Dr. Szekely: "We have nothing to add to this text. It speaks for itself. The reader who studies the pages that follow with concentration, will feel the eternal vitality and powerful evidence of these profound truths which mankind needs today more urgently than ever before."

"And the truth shall bear witness of itself."


THE ESSENE COMMUNIONS

And it came to pass that Jesus gathered the Sons of Light by the shore of the river, to reveal to them that which had been hidden; for the space of seven years had passed, and each one was ripe for truth, as the flower opens from the bud when the angels of sun and water bring it to its time of blossoming.

And all of them were unlike one to the other, for some were of age, and some had still the dew of youth on their cheeks, and some had been raised according to the traditions of their fathers, and others knew not who their father and mother had been. But all shared in a clearness of eye and a suppleness of body, for these were signs that for seven years they had walked with the angels of the Earthly Mother and obeyed her laws. And for seven years the unknown angels of the Heavenly Father had taught them through their sleeping hours. And now was the day come when they would enter the Brotherhood of the Elect and learn the hidden teachings of the Elders, even those of Enoch and before.

And Jesus led the Sons of Light to an ancient tree by the side of the river, and there he knelt at the place where the roots, gnarled and hoary with age, spread over the river edge. And the Sons of Light knelt also, and they did touch with reverence the trunk of the ancient tree, for it was taught to them that the trees are the Brothers of all Children of God. For their mother is the same, the Earthly Mother, whose blood runs in the sap of the tree and in the body of the Son of Man. And their father is the same, the Heavenly Father, whose laws are written in the branches of the Tree, and whose laws are engraved in the forehead of the All Creatures, All Beings, All Life, All Nature.

And Jesus reached out his hands to the tree, and said: "Behold, the Tree of Life, which stands in the middle of the Eternal Sea. Look not only with the eyes of the body, but see with the eyes of the spirit the Tree of Life at a source of running streams; at a living spring in a land of drought. See the eternal garden of wonders, and at its center the Tree of Life, mystery of mysteries, growing everlasting branches for eternal planting, to sink their roots into the stream of life from an eternal source. See with the eyes of the spirit the angels of day and the angels of night which protect the fruits with flames of Eternal Light burning every way.

"See, oh Sons of Light, the branches of the Tree of Life reaching toward the kingdom of the Heavenly Father. And see the roots of the Tree of Life descending into the bosom of the Earthly Mother. And the Son of Man is raised to an eternal height and walks in the wonders of the plain; for only the Son of Man carries in his body the roots of the Tree of Life; the same roots that suckle from the bosom of the Earthly Mother; and only the Son of Man carries in his spirit the branches of the Tree of Life; the same branches that reach to the sky, even so to the kingdom of the Heavenly Father.

"And for seven years have you labored throughout the day with the angels of the Earthly Mother; and for seven years you have slept in the arms of the Heavenly Father. And now your reward shall be great, for it shall be given unto you the gift of tongues, that you may draw to you the full power of your Earthly Mother, and have command over her angels and dominion over all her kingdom; and that you may draw to you the blinding glory of your Heavenly Father, that you may command his angels and enter into life everlasting in the heavenly kingdoms.

"And for seven years these words were not given unto you, for he who uses the gift of tongues to seek after riches, or to hold sway over his enemies, he shall no longer be a Son of Light, but a whelp of the devil and a creature of darkness.

For only the pure water can mirror forth the light of the Sun; and that water which has become dank with filth and murk can reflect nothing. And when the body and the Spirit of the Son Children of God have walked with the Angels of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father for seven years, then is he like the running river under the noonday sun, mirroring forth dazzling lights of brilliant jewels.

"Hear Me, Children of Light, for I will impart to you the gift of tongues, that by speaking to your Earthly Mother in the morning, and to your Heavenly Father in the evening, you may go closer and closer to Oneness with the kingdoms of Earth and Heaven, that oneness for which the Children of God, All Creatures, All Life, are destined from the beginning of the times.

"I will make known unto you deep and mysterious things. For I tell you truly, all things exist by God and there is none beside him. Direct your hearts, therefore, that you may walk on the right paths, where his presence is.

"When you open your eyes in the morning, even then before your body has been called by the Angel of Sun, say to yourselves these words, letting them echo in your spirit; for words are like dead leaves when there is no life in them of the spirit. Say, then, these words: 'I enter the eternal and infinite garden of mystery, my Spirit in Oneness with the Heavenly Father, my body in oneness with the Earthly Mother, my heart in harmony with my Brothers, the Sons of Men, dedicating my spirit, my body, and my heart to the holy, pure and saving Teaching, even that Teaching which of old was known to such as Enoch.'

"And after these words have entered into your Spirit, on the first morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'The Earthly Mother and I are One. Her breath is my breath; her blood is my blood; her bone, her flesh, her bowels, her eyes and ears, are my bone, my flesh, my bowels, my eyes and ears. Never will I desert her, and always will she nourish and sustain my body.' And you will feel the power of the Earthly Mother flowing through your body like the river when it is swollen with rains and courses mightily with a great noise.

"And on the second morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Earth, make fruitful my seeds, and with your power give life to my body.' Even as your seed creates new life, so courses through the earth the seed of the angel of Earth: in the grass, in the soil, in all living things that grow from the soil. Know, oh Sons of Light, that the same angel of Earth that makes your seed into sons also makes the tiny acorn into this mighty oak, and makes the seed-bearing wheat to grow for bread for the Son of Man. And the seed of your body need not enter the body of woman to create life; for the power of the angel of Earth can create the life of the Spirit within, as well as the life of the body without.

"And on the third morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Life, enter with strength the limbs of my body.' And with these words embrace the Tree of Life, even as I embrace this brother oak, and you will feel the power of the Angel of Life flow to your arms, and to your legs, and to all the parts of your body, as the sap flows in the Tree in the spring, even as it runs out of the trunk, so will the angel of Life flood your body with the power of the Earthly Mother.

"And on the fourth morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Joy, descend upon Earth, pouring forth beauty and delight to all the children of the Earthly Mother and the, Heavenly Father.' And you will go forth into the fields of flowers after rain and give thanks to your Earthly Mother for the sweet odor of blossoms; for I tell you truly, a flower has no other purpose than to bring Joy to the heart. And you will listen with new ears to the song of the birds, and see with new eyes the colors of the Sun in its rising and its setting; and all these gifts of the Earthly Mother will cause joy to well forth within you, as a spring wells forth of a sudden in a barren place. And you shall know that no one comes before the Heavenly Father that the angel of joy lets not pass; for in joy was the earth created, and in joy does the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father give birth to All this.

"And on the fifth morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Sun, enter my body and let me bathe in the fire of life.' And you will feel the rays of the rising sun enter into the center point of your body, there in the center where the angels of day and of night mingle, and the power of the sun shall be yours to direct to any part of your body, for the angels dwell therein.

"And on the sixth morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Water, enter my blood and give the Water of Life to my body.' And you will feel, like the rushing current of the river, the power of the angel of Water enter your blood, and like the rivulets of a stream, send the power of the Earthly Mother through your blood to all the parts of your body. And it shall be for healing, for the power of the angel of Water is very great, and when you speak to her, she will send her power wherever you command, for when the Angels of God dwell within all the Children of God, are all things possible. The Children of God are All Creatures, Beings, Angels, Living Things and Life
that is created by God. All are called to Live as Children of God.

"And on the seventh morning after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Air, enter with my breath and give the Air of Life to my body.' Know, oh Sons of Light, that the Angel of Air is the messenger of the Heavenly Father, and no one comes before the face of God that the angel of Air lets not pass. For we do not think of the angel of Air when we breathe, for we breathe without thought, as the sons of darkness live their lives without thought. But when the power of life enters into your words and into your breathing, then for every time you invoke the Angel of Air, so do you also invoke the unknown angels of the Heavenly Father; and you will go closer and closer to the heavenly kingdoms.

"And on the Sabbath evening, say these words: 'The Heavenly Father and I are One.' And close your eyes, Sons of Light, and in sleep enter into the unknown realms of the Heavenly Father. And you will bathe in the light of the stars, and the Heavenly Father will hold you in his hand and cause a spring of knowledge to well up within you; a fountain of power, pouring forth living waters, a flood of love and of all-embracing wisdom, like the splendor of Eternal Light. And one day the eyes of your Spirit shall open, and you shall know All Things.

"And on the first evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Eternal Life, descend upon me and give eternal life to my spirit.' And close your eyes, Children of Light, and in sleep contemplate the oneness of all life everywhere. For I tell you truly, in the daylight hours are our feet on the ground and we have no wings with which to fly. But our spirits are not tied to the earth., and with the coming of night we overcome our attachment to the earth and join with that which is eternal. For the Son of Man is not all that he seems, and only with the eyes of the spirit can we see those golden threads which link us with All Life everywhere.

"And on the second evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Creative Work, descend upon Earth and give abundance to all the Children of God.' For this most powerful of the Angels of the Heavenly Father is the cause of movement, and only in movement is life. Work, Sons of Light, in the garden of the Brotherhood to create the kingdom of the Heavens upon Earth. And as you work, so will the angel of Creative Work nurture and ripen the seed of your spirit, that you may see God.

"And on the third evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Peace, peace, peace, Angel of Peace, be always everywhere.' Seek the angel of Peace in all that lives, in all you do, in every word you speak. For peace is the key to all knowledge, to all mystery, to all life. Where there is no peace, there does Satan reign. And the sons of darkness covet most of all to steal from the Sons of Light their peace. Go, therefore, on this night to the golden stream of light that is the garment of the angel of Peace. And bring back to the morning the peace of God that surpasses understanding, that with this perfect peace you may comfort the hearts of the Children of God.

"And on the fourth evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Power, descend on me and fill with power all my deeds.' I tell you truly, just as there is no life on earth without the sun, so there is no life of the spirit without the Angel of Power. What you think and what you feel, these are like the dead scriptures, which are only words on a page, or the dead speech of dead men. But the Sons of Light will not only think, will not only feel, but will also do, and their acts will fulfill their thoughts and feelings, as the golden fruit of summer gives meaning to the green leaves of spring.

'And on the fifth evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Love, descend on me and fill with love all my feelings.' For it is by love that the Heavenly Father and the Earthly Mother and the Son of Man become one. Love is eternal. Love is stronger than death. And every night should the Sons of Light bathe in the holy water of the angel of Love, that with the morning he may baptize the Sons of Men with kind deeds and gentle words. For when the heart of the Son of Light is bathed in love, only kind and gentle words speak forth.

"And on the sixth evening after Sabbath, say these words: 'Angel of Wisdom, descend on me and fill with wisdom all my thoughts.' Know, Sons of Light, that your thoughts are as powerful as the bolt of lightning that stabs through th6 storm and splits asunder the mighty tree. It was for this that you have waited seven years to learn how to speak with the angels, for you know not the power of your thoughts. Use, then, wisdom in all you think and say and do. For I tell you truly, that which is done without wisdom is as a rider less horse, mouth foaming and eyes wild, running crazed into a yawning chasm. But when the angel of Wisdom governs your deeds, then is the path to the unknown realms established, and order and harmony govern your Lives.

"And these are the communions with the Angels which are given to the Sons of Light, that with bodies purified by the Earthly Mother and Spirits purified by the Heavenly Father, they may command and serve the angels, continually, from period to period, in the circuits of the day, and in its fixed order; with the coming of light from its source and at the turn of evening and the outgoing of light, at the outgoing of darkness and the coming in of day, continually, in all the generations of time.

"The truth is born out of the spring of Light, falsehood from the well of darkness. The dominion of all the children of Truth is in the hands of the Angels of Light so that they may walk in the ways of Light.

"Blessings on all the Sons of Light who have cast their lot with the Law, that walk truthfully in all their ways. May the Law bless you with all good and keep you from all evil, and Illumine your hearts with insight into the things of Life and Grace you with Knowledge of things Eternal."

And the crescent moon of peace rose over the mountain and slivers of light shone in the waters of the river. And the Sons of Light as one man knelt in reverence and thanksgiving for the words of Jesus, as he taught them in the ancient ways of their fathers, even as Enoch was taught of old.

And Jesus said: "The Law was planted to reward the Children of Light with healing and abundant Peace, with long life, with fruitful seed of everlasting blessings, with eternal joy in immortality of Eternal Light.

"With the coming of day I embrace my Mother, with the coming of night I join my Father, and with the outgoing of evening and morning I will breathe their Law, and I will not interrupt these Communions until the end of time."

THE GIFT OF LIFE IN THE HUMBLE GRASS

It was in the month of Thebt, when the Earth was covered with shoots of young grass after the rains, and the covering of emerald green was tender as the fine down of a baby chick. And it was on a bright Sun filled morning that Jesus gathered the new Ones of the Elect round about him, that they might hear with their ears and understand with their hearts the teachings of their seers, even as it was taught to Enoch of old.

And Jesus sat beneath a gnarled and ancient tree, holding in his hands a small earthen pot; and in the pot was growing tender grass of wheat, the most perfect among all seed bearing herbs. And the tender grass within the pot was radiant with life, even as the grass and plants which covered the hills far into the distant fields and beyond. And Jesus stroked the grass in the pot with the hands, even as gently as he would touch the head of a little child.

And Jesus said: "Happy are you, Sons of Light, for you have entered into the deathless way and you walk in the path of Truth, even as did your fathers of old, who were taught by the Great Ones. With the eyes and ears of the spirit do you see and hear the sights and sounds of the kingdom of the Earthly Mother: the blue sky where dwells the angel of Air, the foaming river where flows the angel of Water, the golden light which streams from the angel of Sun. And I tell you truly, all these are within you as well as without; for your breath, your blood, the fire of life within you, all are One with the Earthly Mother.

But of all these, and more, that most precious gift of your Earthly Mother is the grass beneath your feet, even that grass which you tread upon without thought. Humble and meek is the angel of Earth, for she has no wings to fly, nor golden rays of light to pierce the mist. But great is her strength and vast is her domain, for she covers the earth with her power, and without her the Sons of Men would be no more, for no Life can live without the grass, the trees and the plants of the Earthly Mother. And these are the gifts of the Angel of Earth to the Children of God.

"But now I will speak to you of mysterious things, for I tell you truly, the humble grass is more than food for humans and creatures. It hides its glory beneath a lowly aspect, as it was told of a ruler of old that he visited the villages of his subjects disguised as a beggar, knowing they would tell many things to such a one, but would fall down in fear before their King. So does the humble grass hide its glory under its coat of humble green, and the Sons of Men walk on it, plough it, feed it to their beasts, but know not what secrets are hidden within it, even those secrets of everlasting life in the heavenly kingdoms.

"But the Sons of Light will know what lies hidden in the grass, for it is given to them to bring comfort to the Chilldren of Men. Even so are we taught by the Earthly Mother with this -little handful of wheat in a simple pot, even the same earthen pot you use to drink milk and gather the honey of bees. Now the pot is filled with black soil rich with old leaves and moist with the dew of morning, even that most precious gift of the Angel of Earth.

"And I did moisten a handful of wheat, that the angel of Water entered into it. The angel of Air did also embrace it, and the angel of Sun, and the power of the three angels awakened also the angel of Life within the wheat, and sprout and root were born in each grain.

"Then I put the awakened wheat into the soil of the Angel of Earth, and the power of the Earthly Mother and all her angels entered into the wheat, and when the Sun had risen four times the grains had become grass. I tell you truly, there is no greater miracle than this."

And the Brothers looked with reverence at the tender blades of grass in the hands of Jesus, and one asked him: "Master, what is the secret of the grass you hold in your hands? Why is it different from that grass that covers the hills and the mountains?"

And Jesus answered "It is not different, Son of Light. All grass, all trees, all plants, in every part of the world, all are part of the kingdom of the Earthly Mother. But I have separated in this pot a small portion of your Mother's kingdom, that you may touch her with the hands of the Spirit, and that her power may enter into your body.

"For I tell you truly, there is a Holy Stream of Life which gave birth to the Earthly Mother and all her angels. Invisible is this Stream of Life to the eyes of the Children of Men, for they walk in darkness and see not the Angels of the day and of the night that surround them and hover over them. But the Sons of Light have walked for seven years with the angels of the day and of the night, and now they are given the secrets of communion with the Angels. And the eyes of your spirit shall be opened, and you will see and hear and touch the Stream of Life that gave birth to the Earthly Mother. And you will enter the Holy Stream of Life, and it will carry you with infinite tenderness to everlasting life in the kingdom of your Heavenly Father."

"How shall we do this, Master?" some asked in amazement. "What secrets must we know to see and hear and touch this Holy Stream of Life?".

And Jesus did not answer. But he placed his two hands around the growing blades of grass in the pot, gently, as if it were the forehead of a little child. And he closed his eyes, and around him were waves of light, shimmering in the sun, as the summer heat makes the light to tremble under a cloudless sky. And the Brothers and Sisters knelt and bowed their heads in reverence before the power of the angels which poured forth from the sitting figure of Yeshua Jesus Christ; and still he sat in silence, with his hands closed as if in prayer around the blades of grass.

And no one knew if an hour had passed, or a year, for time stood still and it was as if all creation held its breath. And Jesus opened his eyes, and the scent of blossoms filled the air as Jesus spoke: "Here is the secret, Sons of Light; here in the humble grass. Here is the meeting place of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father; here is the Stream of Life which gave birth to all creation; I tell you truly, only to the awakened Holy Creatures and Beings of God is it given to see and hear and touch the Stream of Life which flows between the Earthly and Heavenly Kingdoms. Place your hands around the tender grass of the angel of Earth, and you will see and hear and touch the power of all the Angels."

And one by one, each of the Brothers and Sisters sat in reverence before the power of the Angels, holding in his hands the tender grass. And each one felt the Stream of Life enter his body with the force of a rushing stream after a spring storm. And the power of the angels flowed into their hands, up into their arms, and shook them mightily, even as the wind of the north shakes the branches of trees. And all of them wondered at the power in the humble grass, that it could contain all the angels, and the kingdoms of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father. And they sat before Jesus, and were taught by him.

Andjesus said: "Behold, Children of Light, the lowly grass. See wherein are contained all the Angels of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father. For now have you stepped into the Stream of Life, and its currents will carry you in time to everlasting life in the kingdom of your Heavenly Father.

"For in the grass are all the angels. Here is the Angel of Sun, here in the brightness of the green color of the blades of wheat. For no one can look upon the sun when it is high in the heavens, for the eyes of the Son of Man are blinded by its radiant light. And it is for this that the angel of Sun turns to green all that to which she gives life, that the Son of Man may look upon the many and various shades of green and find strength and comfort therein. I tell you truly, all that is green and with life has the power of the angel of Sun within it, even these tender blades of young wheat.

"And so does the angel of Water bless the grass, for I tell you truly, there is more of the angel of Water within the grass than any of the other angels of the Earthly Mother. For if you crush within your hands the grass, you will feel the water of life, which is the blood of the Earthly Mother. And all through the days when you touch the grass and enter into the Stream of Life, do you give to the soil a few drops of water, that the grass may be renewed by the power of the Angel of Water.

"Know, also, that the angel of Air is within the grass, for all that is living and green is the home of the angel of Air. Put your face close to the grass, breathe deeply, and let the angel of Air enter deep within your body. For she abides in the grass, as the oak abides in the acorn, and as the fish abides in the Sea.

"The angel of Earth is she who gives birth to the grass, even as the babe in the womb lives from the nourishment of his mother, so does the earth give of itself to the grain of wheat, causing it to shoot forth to embrace the angel of Air. I tell you truly, each grain of wheat that bursts forth upward to the sky is a victory over death, where Satan reigns. For Life always begins again.

"It is the angel of Life that flows through the blades of grass into the body of the Son of Light, shaking him with her power. For the grass is Life and the Son of Light is Life, and Life flows between the Son of Light and the blades of grass, making a bridge to the Holy Stream of Light which gave birth to all creation.

"And when the Son of Light holds between his hands the blades of grass, it is the angel of joy which fills his body with music. To enter into the Stream of Life is to be one with the song of the bird, the colors of the wild flowers, the scent of the sheaves of grain, newly turned over in the fields. I tell you truly, when the Son of God feels not joy in his heart, he labors for Satan and brings hope to the sons of darkness. There is no sadness in the kingdom of Light, only the angel of Joy. Learn, then, from the tender blades of grass the song of the angel of joy, that the Sons of Light may walk with her always and so comfort the hearts of the Children of God.

"The Earthly Mother is she who provides for our bodies, for we are born of her, and have our life in her. So does she provide for us food in the very blades of grass we touch with our hands. For I tell you truly, it is not only as bread that wheat may nourish us. We may eat also of the tender blades of grass, that the strength of the Earthly Mother may enter into us. But chew well the blades, for the Son of Man has teeth unlike those of the beasts, and only when we chew well the blades of grass can the angel of Water enter our blood and give us strength. Eat, then, Children of Light, of this most perfect herb from the table of our Earthly Mother, that your days may be long upon the Earth, for such finds favor in the eyes of God.

"I tell you truly, the angel of Power enters into you when you touch the Stream of Life through the blades of grass. For the angel of Power is as a shining light that surrounds every living thing, just as the full moon is encircled by rings of radiance, and as the mist rises up from the fields when the sun climbs in the sky. And the angel of Power enters into the Son of Light when his heart is pure and his desire is only to comfort and teach the Children of God. Touch, then, the blades of grass, and feel the angel of Power enter the tips of your fingers, flow upwards through your body, and shake you till you tremble with wonder and awe.

"Know, also, that the angel of Love is present in the blades of grass, for love is in the giving, and great is the love given to the Sons of Light by the tender blades of grass. For I tell you truly, the Stream of Life runs through every living thing, and all that lives, bathes in the Holy Stream of Life. And when the Son of Light touches with love the blades of grass, so do the blades of grass return his love, and lead him to the Stream of Life where he may find life everlasting. And this love never exhausts itself, for its source is in the Stream of Life which flows into the Eternal Sea, and no matter how far does the Son of Man stray from his Earthly Mother and his Heavenly Father, the touch of the blades of grass will always bring a message from the angel of Love; and his feet shall bathe again in the Holy Stream of Life.

"Lo, it is the angel of Wisdom that governs the movement of the planets, the circle of the seasons, and the orderly growth of all living things. So does the angel of Wisdom ordain the communion of the Sons of Light with the Stream of Life, through the tender blades of grass. For I tell you truly, your body is holy, because it bathes in the Stream of Life, which is Eternal Order.

"Touch the blades of grass, Sons of Light, and touch the angel of Eternal Life. For if you look with the eyes of the spirit, you will truly see that the grass is eternal. Now it is young and tender, with the brightness of the newborn babe. Soon it will be tall and gracious, as the sapling tree with its first fruits. Then it will yellow with age, and bow its head in patience, as lies the field after the harvest. Finally, it will wither, for the small earthen pot cannot contain the full lifespan of the wheat. But it does not die, for the brown leaves return to the angel of Earth, and she holds the plant in her arms and bids it sleep, and all the angels work within the faded leaves and lo, they are changed and do not die but rise again in another guise. And so do the Sons of Light never see death, but find themselves changed and risen to everlasting Life.

"And so does the angel of Work never sleep, but sends the roots of the wheat deep into the angel of Earth, that the shoots of tender green may overcome death and the reign of Satan. For life is movement, and the angel of Work is never still, even does he labor without ceasing in the vineyard of the Lord. Close your eyes when you touch the grass, Sons of Light, but fall not asleep, for to touch the Stream of Life is to touch the eternal rhythm of the everlasting kingdoms, and to bathe in the Stream of Life is to feel more and more the power of the angel of Work within you, creating on earth the kingdom of Heaven.

"Peace is -the gift of the Stream of Life to the Children of Light. Wherefore do we always greet each other, 'Peace be with you. Even so does the grass greet your body with the kiss of Peace. I tell you truly, Peace is not just the absence of war, for very quickly can the peaceful river turn into a raging torrent, and the same waves that lull the boat can quickly break it to pieces against the rocks. So does violence lie in wait for the Sons of Man, when they keep not the vigil of Peace. Touch the blades of grass, and thereby touch the Stream of Life. Therein you will find Peace, the Peace built with the power of all the angels. Even so with that Peace will the rays of Holy Light cast out all darkness.

"When the Clildren of Light are one with the Stream of Life, then will the power of the blades of grass guide them to the everlasting kingdom of the Heavenly Father. And you shall know more of those mysteries which is not yet time for you to hear. For there are other Holy Streams in the everlasting kingdoms; I tell you truly, the heavenly kingdoms are crossed and crossed again by streams of golden light, arching far beyond the dome of the sky and having no end. And the Sons of Light shall travel by these streams for ever, knowing not death, guided by the eternal love of the Heavenly Father. And I tell you truly, all these mysteries are contained in the humble grass, when you touch it with tenderness and open your heart to the angel of Life within.

"Gather, then, the grains of wheat and plant them in small earthen pots; and every day with glad heart commune with the angels, that they may guide you to the Holy Stream of Life, and you may bring back from its eternal source comfort and strength for the Children of God. For I tell you truly, all that you learn, all that your eyes of the spirit see, all that your cars of the spirit hear, all this is as a hollow reed in the wind if you do not send forth a message of truth and light to the Sons of Men. For by the fruit do we know the worth of the tree. And to love is to teach without end, without ceasing. For so were your fathers taught of old, even our Father Enoch. Go now, and Peace be with you."

And Jesus held forth the little pot with the blades of young grass, as if in blessing, and walked toward the sun-filled hills, along the shore of the river, as was the custom of all the Brothers. And the others followed, each holding to him the words of Jesus, as it were a precious jewel within his breast.


THE SEVENFOLD PEACE

"Peace be with you," spoke the Elder in greeting to the Brothers who had gathered for the teachings

"Peace be with you," they answered; and they walked together along the bank of the river, for so was their custom when an Elder taught the Brothers, that they might share the teachings with the angels of the Earthly Mother: of air, of sun, of water, of earth, of life, and of joy.

And the Elder said to the Brothers: "I would speak to you of peace, for of all the angels of the Heavenly Father, peace is that for which the world most yearns, as a tired babe longs to put his head on his mother's breast. It is the lack of peace that troubles the kingdoms, even when they are not at war. For violence and warfare may reign in a kingdom even when the sounds of clashing swords are not heard. Though no armies march one against the other, still there is no peace when the Sons of Men walk not with the angels of God. I tell you truly, many are those who do not know peace; for they are at war with their own body; they are at war with their thoughts; they have no peace with their fathers, their mothers, their children; they have no peace with their friends and neighbors; they know not the beauty of the Holy Scrolls; they labor not through the day in the kingdom of their Earthly Mother; nor do they sleep at night in the arms of their Heavenly Father. Peace reigns not within them, for ever do they thirst for that which in the end brings only misery and pain, even those trappings of riches and fame which Satan uses to tempt the Sons of Men; and they live in ignorance of the Law, even that Holy Law by which we live: the path of the angels of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father."

"How, then, may we bring peace to our brothers, Master?" asked some of the Elder, "for we would that all the Sons of Men share in the blessings of the angel of Peace."

And he answered: "Truly, only he who is at peace with all the angels can shed the light of peace on others. Therefore, first be at peace with all the angels of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father. For the winds of a storm stir and trouble the waters of the river, and only the stillness that follows can calm them once again. Take care when your brother asks you for bread, that you give him not stones. Live first in peace with all the angels, for then your peace will be as a fountain that does replenish itself with the giving, and the more you give, so the more you will be given, for such is the Law.

"Three are the dwellings of the Son of Man, and no one may come before the face of God who knows not the angel of Peace in each of the three. These are his body, his thoughts, and his feelings. When the angel of Wisdom guides his thoughts, when the angel of Love purifies his feelings, and when the deeds of his body reflect both love and wisdom, then does the angel of Peace guide him unfailingly to the throne of his Heavenly Father. And he should pray without ceasing that the power of Satan with all his diseases and uncleannesses may be cast out of all of his three dwellings; that Power and Wisdom and Love may reign in his body, his thoughts, and his feelings.

"First shall the Son of Man seek peace with his own body; for his body is as a mountain pond that reflects the sun when it is still and clear; but when it is full of mud and stones, it reflects nothing. First must Satan be cast out of the body, that the angels of God may enter again and dwell therein. Truly, no peace can reign in the body unless it is as a temple of the Holy Law. Therefore, when he who suffers with pains and grievous plagues asks for your help, tell him to renew himself with fasting and with prayer. Tell him to invoke the angel of sun, the angel of water, and the angel of air, that they may enter his body and cast out of it the power of Satan. Show him the baptism within, and the baptism without. Tell him always to eat of the table of our Earthly Mother, spread with her gifts: the fruits of the trees, the grasses of the fields, a bit of the milk of dearly loved animals good, and the honey of bees which overflows and drips outside of the beehive. He shall not invoke the power of Satan by eating the flesh of beasts, for he who kills, kills his brother, and whoso eats the flesh of slain beasts, eats the body of death. Tell him to prepare his food with the fire of life, not the fire of death, for the living angels of the living God serve only truly living Beings and living Nature.

"And though he sees them not, and hears them not, and touches them not, still is he every moment surrounded by the power of God's angels. While his eyes and ears are closed by ignorance of the Law and thirst for the pleasures of Satan, he will not see them, nor hear them, nor touch them. But when he fasts and prays to the living God to cast out all the diseases and uncleannesses of Satan, then will his eyes and ears be opened, and he will find peace.

"For not only he suffers who harbors the diseases of Satan within him, but his mother, his father, his wife, his children, his companions, these suffer also, for no man is an island unto himself, and the powers that flow through him, whether they be of the Angels or of Satan, truly these powers do unto others for good or for evil.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Sons of Men your angel of Peace; and send to our body the angel of Life to dwell therein forever.'

"Then shall the Son of Man seek Peace with his own thoughts; that the Angel of Wisdom may guide him. For I tell you truly, there is no greater Power in Heaven and Earth than the thoughts of the Son of God Jesus Christ - Yeshua. Though unseen by the eyes of the body, yet each thought has mighty strength, even such strength as can shake the Heavens, and every Being's thoughts are extremely Powerful.

"For to no other creature in the kingdom of the Earthly Mother is it given the power of thought, for all beasts that crawl and birds that fly, live not of their own thinking but of the one Law that governs all. To All Beings is it given the power of thought, even that thought that can break the bonds of death. Do not think because it cannot be seen, that thought has no power. I tell you truly, the lightning that cleaves the mighty oak, or the quaking that opens up cracks in the earth, these are as the play of children compared with the power of thought. Truly each thought of darkness, whether it be of malice, or anger, or vengeance, these wreak destruction like that of fire sweeping through dry kindling under a windless sky. But man does not see the carnage, nor does he hear the piteous cries of his victims, for he is blind to the world of the Spirit.

"But when this power is guided by holy Wisdom, then the thoughts of the Son of God lead him to the heavenly kingdoms and thus is paradise built on earth; then it is that your thoughts uplift the souls of men, as the cold waters of a rushing stream revive your body in the summer heat.

"When first a fledgling bird tries to fly, his wings cannot support him, and he falls again and again to earth. But he tries again and one day he soars aloft, leaving Earth and his nest far behind. So is it with the thoughts of the Sons of Men. The longer he walks with the angels and keeps their Law, so do the stronger his thoughts become in holy Wisdom. And I tell you truly, that day will come when his thoughts will overcome even the kingdom of death and soar to everlasting life in the heavenly kingdoms; for with their thoughts guided by holy Wisdom do all Beings build a bridge of Light thereby to reach God.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Beings your Angel of Peace; and send to our thoughts the Angel of Divine Power, that we may break the bonds of death.

"Then shall the Son of Man seek peace with his own feelings; that his family may delight in his loving kindness, even his father, his mother, his wife, his children, and his children's children. For the Heavenly Father is a hundred times greater than all fathers by seed and by blood, and the Earthly Mother is a hundred times greater than all mothers by the body, and your true brothers are all those who do the will of your Heavenly Father and of your Earthly Mother, and not your brothers by blood. Even so, shall you see the Heavenly Father in your father by seed, and your Earthly Mother in your mother by the body, for are not these also children of the Heavenly Father and the Earthly Mother? Even so shall you love your brothers by blood as you love all your true ones who walk with the Angels, for are not these also children of the Heavenly Father and the Earthly Mother? I tell you truly, it is easier to love those newly met, than those of our own house, who have known our weaknesses, and heard our words of anger, and seen us in our nakedness, for they know us as we know ourselves, and we are ashamed. Then shall we call on the angel of Love to enter into our feelings, that they be purifiers And all that was before impatience and discord, will turn to harmony and peace, as the parched ground drinks in the gentle rain and becomes green and soft, tender with new Life.

"For many and grievous are the sufferings of the Sons of Men when they cleave not to the angel of Love. Truly, a man without love casts a dark shadow on everyone he meets, most of all those with whom he lives; his harsh and angry words fall on his brothers like fetid air rising from a stagnant pool. And he suffers most who speaks them, for the darkness that encloses him invites Satan and his devas.

"But when he calls on the angel of Love, then is the darkness dispersed, and the light of sunshine streams from him, and the colors of the rainbow swirl about his head, and gentle rain falls from his fingers, and he brings peace and strength to all those who draw near to him.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Beings your angel of Peace; and send to those of our seed and of our blood the angel of Love, that peace and harmony may dwell in our house for ever.'

"Then shall the Son of Man seek Peace with all other Beings, even with the deluded Pharisees and priests, even with beggars and the homeless, even with kings and governors. For all are Sons of Men, whatever be their station, whatever be their calling, whether their eyes have been opened to see the heavenly kingdoms, or whether they yet walk in darkness and ignorance.

"For the justice of men may reward the undeserving and punish the innocent, but Holy Law is the same for all Creatures, and whether beggar or king, whether shepherd or priest.

"Seek Peace with all the Beings, and let it be known of the Brothers of Light, that we have lived according to the Holy Law since the time of Enoch of old, and before. For we are not rich, neither are we poor. And we do share all things, even our garments and the tools we use to till the soil. And together we work in the fields with all the Angels, bringing forth the gifts of the Earthly Mother for all to eat.

"For the strongest of the angels of the Heavenly Father, the angel of Work, blesses each one who works in the way best for him, for then shall he know neither want nor excess. Truly is there abundance for all men in the kingdoms of the Earthly Mother and the Heavenly Father when each man works at his task; for when a one shirks his task, then another must take it up, for we are given all things in the kingdoms of Heaven and Earth at the price of labor.

"Always have the Brothers of Light lived where rejoice the Angels of the Earthly Mother: near rivers, near trees, near flowers, near the music of birds; where sun and rain may embrace the body, which is the temple of the spirit. Nor do we have ought to do with the edicts of rulers; neither do we uphold them, as our law is the Law of the Heavenly Father and the Earthly Mother; neither do we oppose them, for no one rules save by the will of God. Rather do we strive to live according to the Holy Law and strengthen always that which is good in all things; then will the kingdom of darkness be changed to the kingdom of light; for where there is light, how then can darkness remain?

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in Heaven, send to all Beings your angel of Peace; and send to all humankind the angel of Work, that having a holy task we should not ask for any other blessing.'

"Then shall the Son of Man seek peace with the knowledge of the ages past; for I tell you truly, in the Holy Scrolls is a treasure a hundred times greater than any of jewels and gold in the richest of kingdoms, and more precious, for surely they contain all the wisdom revealed by God to the Sons of Light, even those traditions which came to us through Enoch of old, and before him on an endless path into the past, the teachings of the Great Ones. And these are our inheritance, even as the son inherits all the possessions of his father when he shows himself to be worthy of his father's blessing. Truly, by studying the teachings of ageless wisdom do we come to know God, for I tell you truly, the Great Ones saw God face to face; even so, when we read the Holy Scrolls do we touch the feet of God.

"And when once we see with the eyes of wisdom and hear with the cars of understanding the ageless truths of the Holy Scrolls, then must we go among the Sons of Men and teach them, for if we jealously hide the holy knowledge, pretending that it belongs only to us, then we are as one who finds a spring high in the mountains, and rather than let it flow into the valley to quench the thirst of man and beast, buries it under rocks and dirt, thereby robbing himself of water, as well. Go among the Sons of Men and tell them of the Holy Law, that they may thereby save themselves and enter the heavenly kingdoms. But tell them in words they may understand, in parables from nature that speak to the heart, for the deed must first live as desire in the awakened heart.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Sons of Men your angel of Peace; and send to our knowledge the angel of Wisdom, that we may walk in the paths of the Great Ones who have seen the face of God.

"Then shall the Son of Man seek peace with the kingdom of his Earthly Mother, for none can live long, neither be happy, but he who honors his Earthly Mother and does her laws. For your breath is her breath; your blood her blood; your bone her bone; your flesh her flesh; your bowels her bowels; your eyes and your ears are her eyes and her ears.

"I tell you truly, you are one with the Earthly Mother; she is in you, and you in her. Of her were you born, in her do you live, and to her shall you return again. it is the blood of our Earthly Mother which falls from the clouds and flows in the rivers; it is the breath of our Earthly Mother which, whispers in the leaves of the forest and blows with a mighty wind from the mountains; sweet and firm is the flesh of our Earthly Mother in the fruits of the trees; strong and unflinching are the bones of our Earthly Mother in the giant rocks and stones which stand as sentinels of the lost times; truly, we are one with our Earthly Mother, and he who clings to the laws of his Mother, to him shall his Mother cling also.

"But there will come a day when the Son of Man will turn his face from his Earthly Mother and betray her, even denying his Mother and his birthright. Then shall he sell her into slavery, and her flesh shall be ravaged, her blood polluted, and her breath smothered; he will bring the fire of death into all the parts of her kingdom, and his hunger will devour all her gifts and leave in their place only a desert.

"All these things will he do out of ignorance of the Law, and as a man dying slowly cannot smell his own stench, so will the Son of Man be blind to the truth: that as he plunders and ravages and destroys his Earthly Mother, so does he plunder and ravage and destroy himself. For he was born of his Earthly Mother, and he is one with her, and all that he does to his Mother9 even so does he do to himself.

"Long ago, before the Great Flood, the Great Ones walked the earth, and the giant trees, even those which now are no more than legend, were their home and their kingdom. They lived many score of generations, for they ate from the table of the Earthly Mother, and slept in the arms of the Heavenly Father, and they knew not disease, old age, nor death. To the Sons of Men did they bequeath all the glory of their kingdoms, even the hidden knowledge of the Tree of Life which stands in the middle of the Eternal Sea. But the eyes of the Sons of Men were blinded by the visions of Satan, and by promises of power, even that power which conquers by might and by blood. And then did the Son of Man sever the golden threads that bound him to his Earthly Mother and his Heavenly Father; he stepped from the Holy Stream of Life where his body, his thoughts, and his feelings were one with the Law, and began to use only his own thoughts, his own feelings, and his own deeds, making hundreds of laws, where before there was only One.

"And so did the Sons of Men exile themselves from their home, and ever since have they huddled behind their stone walls, hearing not the sighing of the wind in the tall trees of the forests beyond their towns.

"I tell you truly, the Book of Nature is a Holy Scroll, and if you would have the Sons of Men save themselves and find everlasting life, teach them how once again to read from the living pages of the Earthly Mother. For in everything that is life is the law written. It is written in the grass, in the trees, in rivers, mountains, birds of the sky and fishes of the Sea; and most of all within the Son of Man. Only when he returns to the bosom of his Earthly Mother will he find everlasting life and the Stream of Life which leads to his Heavenly Father; only then may the dark vision of the future come not to pass.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Beings your angel of Peace; and send to the kingdom of our Earthly Mother the Angel of joy, that our hearts may be full of singing and gladness as we nestle in the arms of our Mother.

4 'At last, shall the Son of Man seek Peace with the kingdom of his Heavenly Father; for truly, the Son of Man is only born of his father by seed and of his mother by the body, that he may find his true inheritance and know at last that he is the Son of the King.

"The Heavenly Father is the One Law, who fashioned the stars, the Sun, the light and the darkness, and the Holy Law within our souls. Everywhere is he, and there is nowhere he is not. All in our understanding, and all we know not, all is governed by the Law. The falling of leaves, the flow of rivers, the music of insects at night, all these are ruled by the Holy Law.

"In our Heavenly Father's realm there are many mansions, and many are the hidden things you cannot know of yet. I tell you truly, the kingdom of our Heavenly Father is vast, so vast that no man can know its limits, for there are none. Yet the whole of his kingdom may be found in the smallest drop of dew on a wild flower, or in the scent of newly-cut grass in the fields under the summer Sun. Truly, there are no words to describe the kingdom of the Heavenly Father.

"Glorious, indeed, is the inheritance of the Son of Man, for to hirn only is it given to enter the Stream of Life which leads him to the kingdom of his Heavenly Father. But first he must seek and find peace with his body, with his thoughts, with his feelings, with the Beings and Creatures of God, with holy knowledge, and with the kingdom of the Earthly Mother. For I tell you truly, this is the vessel which will carry the Son of Man on the Stream of Life to his Heavenly Father. He must have peace that is sevenfold before he can know the one peace which surpasses understanding, even that of his Heavenly Father.

"After this manner, therefore, pray to your Heavenly Father, when the sun is high at midday: 'Our Father who art in heaven, send to all the Sons of Men your angel of Peace; and send to your kingdom, our Heavenly Father, your angel of Eternal Life, that we may soar beyond the stars and live for ever."

And then the Elder was quiet, and a great stillness stole over the Brothers, and no one wished to speak. The shadows of late afternoon played on the river, still and silvery as glass, and in the darkening sky could faintly be seen the filigree crescent moon of peace. And the great peace of the Heavenly Father wrapt them all in deathless Love.


THE HOLY STREAMS

Into the innermost circle have you come, into the mystery of mysteries, that which was old when our father Enoch was young and walked the earth. Around and around have you come on your journey of many years, always following the path of righteousness, living according to the Holy Law and the sacred vows of our Brotherhood, and you have made of your body a holy temple wherein dwell the angels of God. Many years have you shared the daylight hours with the angels of the Earthly Mother; many years have you slept in the arms of the Heavenly Father, taught by his unknown angels. You have learned that the laws of the Son of Man are seven, of the angels three, and of God, one. Now you shall know of the three laws of the angels, the mystery of the three Holy Streams and the ancient way to traverse them; so shall you bathe in the light of heaven and at last behold the revelation of the mystery of mysteries: the law of God, which is One.

Now in the hour before the rising of the sun, just before the angels of the Earthly Mother breathe life into the still sleeping earth, then do you enter into the Holy Stream of Life. It is your Brother Tree who holds the mystery of this Holy Stream, and it is your Brother Tree that you will embrace in your thought, even as by clay you embrace him in greeting when you walk along the lake shore. And you shall be one with the tree, for in the beginning of the times so did we all share in the Holy Stream of Life that gave birth to all creation. And as you embrace your Brother Tree, the power of the Holy Stream of Life will fill your whole body, and you will tremble before its might. Then breathe deeply of the angel of air, and say the word "Life" with the outgiving of breath. Then you will become in truth the Tree of Life which sinks its roots deep into the Holy Stream of Life from an eternal source. And as the angel of sun warms the earth, and all the creatures of land and water and air rejoice in the new day, so will your body and spirit rejoice in the Holy Stream of life that flows to you through your Brother Tree.

And when the sun is high in the heavens, then shall you seek the Holy Stream of Sound. in the heat of noontide, all creatures are still and seek the shade; the angels of the Earthly Mother are silent for a space. Then it is that you shall let into your ears the Holy Stream of Sound; for it can only be heard in the silence. Think on the streams that are born in the desert after a sudden storm, and the roaring sound of the waters as they rush past. Truly, this is the voice of God, if you did but know it. For as it is written, in the beginning was the Sound, and the Sound was with God, and the Sound was God. I tell you truly, when we are born, we enter the world with the sound of God in our ears, even the singing of the vast chorus of the sky, and the holy chant of the stars in their fixed rounds; it is the Holy Stream of Sound that traverses the vault of stars and crosses the endless kingdom of the Heavenly Father. It is ever in our ears, so do we hear it not. Listen for it, then, in the silence of noontide; bathe in it, and let the rhythm of the music of God beat in your ears until you are one with the Holy Stream of Sound. It was this Sound which formed the earth and the world, and brought forth the mountains, and set the stars in their thrones of glory in the highest heavens.

And you shall bathe in the Stream of Sound, and the music of its waters shall flow over you; for in the beginning of the times so did we all share in the Holy Stream of Sound that gave birth to all creation. And the mighty roaring of the Stream of Sound will fill your whole body, and you will tremble before its might. Then breathe deeply of the angel of air, and become the sound itself, that the Holy Stream of Sound may carry you to the endless kingdom of the Heavenly Father, there where the rhythm of the world rises and falls.

And when darkness gently closes the eyes of the angels of the Earthly Mother, then shall you also sleep, that your spirit may join the unknown angels of the Heavenly Father. And in the moments before you sleep, then shall you think of the bright and glorious stars, the white, shining, far-seen and far-piercing stars. For your thoughts before sleep are as the music of the skillful heavenly Harp, that sends its melody where it wills. Let your thoughts before sleep be with the stars; for the stars are Light, and the Heavenly Father is Light, even that Light which is a thousand times brighter than the brightness of a thousand Suns. Enter the Holy Stream of Light, that the shackles of death may loose their hold for ever, and breaking free from the bonds of earth, ascend the Holy Stream of Light through the blazing radiance of the stars, into the endless kingdom of the Heavenly Father.

Unfold your wings of Light, and in the eye of your thought, soar with the stars into the farthest reaches of heaven, where untold suns blaze with light. For at the beginning of the times, the Holy Law said, let there be Light, and there was Light. And you shall be one with it, and the power of the Holy Light Stream will fill your whole body, and you will tremble before its might. Say the word "Light," as you breathe deeply of the angel of air, and you will become the Light itself; and the Holy Stream will carry you to the endless kingdom of the Heavenly Father, there losing itself in the eternal Sea of Light which gives birth to all creation. And you shall be one with the Holy Stream of Light, always before you sleep in the arms of the Heavenly Father.

I tell you truly, your body was made not only to breathe, and eat, and think, but it was also made to enter the Holy Stream of Life. And your ears were made not only to hear the words of humans, the song of birds, and the music of falling rain, but they were also made to hear the Holy Stream of Sound. And your eyes were made not only to see the rising and setting of the Sun, the ripple of sheaves of grain, and the words of the Holy Scrolls, but they were also made to see the Holy Stream of Light. One day your body will return to the Earthly Mother; even also your ears and your eyes. But the Holy Stream of Life, the Holy Stream of Sound, and the Holy Stream of Light, these were never born, and can never die. Enter the Holy Streams, even that Life, that Sound, and that Light which gave you birth; that you may reach the kingdom of the Heavenly Father and become one with him, even as the river empties into the far distant Sea.

More than this cannot be told, for the Holy Streams will take you to that place where words are no more, and even the Holy Scrolls cannot record the Mysteries therein.