Jesus: It has been said that the only constant on planet Earth is constant change. Both common sense and scientific investigation should have proven beyond doubt that there is a process of change which is constantly taking place on this planet. Both science, if interpreted correctly, and common sense reveal that this change, this evolutionary process, is not simply random or unguided. It has a clear sense of direction, and direction demonstrates an underlying purpose.
When you transfer this to the world of religion, it should be easy to see that religion is affected by this constant process of change. Religions that cannot adapt to change will eventually fail to meet the needs of their members, and therefore they will fade away. This has already happened to numerous religions that were once powerful and had millions of followers.
If you are concerned about the future of your religion or church, then you need to gain an understanding of the underlying mechanism that demands change. In this discourse, I will briefly describe this mechanism and then relate it to what needs to happen to religion in this day and age.
I am aware that many Christians look at science with great suspicion. I must tell you that from my viewpoint the hostility between science and religion is completely unnecessary. Furthermore, I will prophesy that within the next few decades the hostility between science and religion will gradually fade away until people can scarcely understand how the current state of hostility could ever have developed.
Science has correctly demonstrated that there is a gradual process of change, a gradual process of evolution, which is constantly occurring on planet earth. However, the current scientific understanding of evolution is incomplete, because it is based on certain incorrect assumptions. I will not go into further details here, because I desire to focus on one of the problems with current evolutionary theory.
Current evolutionary theory cannot correctly explain the observed fact that evolution is not a smooth process. Any unbiased observer will note that evolution occurs in two ways.
Normally, evolution is a gradual process, but at certain times evolution takes a giant leap into a new phase or stage. The correct interpretation of this fact is that the process of life, the process of growth, is driven by two complementary forces. One force is a gradual, evolutionary force that creates smooth and steady progress. Another force is a sudden, revolutionary force which causes growth to temporarily speed up and take a giant leap forward.
Growth happens in cycles
Another way to explain this phenomenon is to say that growth and progress happen in cycles. At certain times, the revolutionary force comes into play and brings life to a new level, a new phase. After a revolutionary leap has occurred, the evolutionary force takes over and for a certain time or cycle progress happens at a steady pace.
When you transfer this fact to the world of religion, you will see that there are cycles in the religious life of planet Earth. These cycles last approximately 2,000 years. During a 2,000 year cycle, the evolutionary force brings a gradual progress in people’s understanding of the spiritual side of life. This gradual process is based on and evolves from the pattern that was set when the cycle was initiated.
When a spiritual cycle comes to a close, we of the Ascended Host release a very concentrated stream of spiritual energy. This stream of energy is the revolutionary force which brings planet Earth, and the consciousness of humankind, to a new level. Some people are able to immediately sense the shift in spiritual energy. They embrace the new energy and begin to express it through their individualized consciousness. These people become the forerunners of a new age, a new spiritual cycle. They run with the revolutionary force.
Other people are unable to sense the shift in spiritual energy, and the evolutionary force will, over the next 2,000 years, gradually bring these people to at deeper understanding of the spiritual energies that govern that spiritual cycle. Unfortunately, some souls resist both the revolutionary and the evolutionary force, and they end up calcifying in a lower state of consciousness.
Spiritual cycles, an overview
Let me give you a brief overview of the spiritual cycles that have been occurring for some time. Let us begin at the lowest level, as represented by the stage of the caveman. Primitive humans were in a state of consciousness in which they had very little understanding of themselves or the world around them. They were passively reacting to changes in their environment without understanding what caused such changes. In other words, they had no way to see any connection between themselves, between their own state of consciousness, and their outer situation.
After the caveman stage, people moved into a stage that was dominated by what one might call a magic consciousness. At this stage, people had begun to understand that there were certain forces working in their environment. These forces caused the phenomena that people observed and experienced. Because people had no way to explain or understand what they observed, they saw natural phenomena as a result of some kind of magic force. People were in such a low state of consciousness that they had no way to clearly understand this force. Therefore, they could not see a pattern in the operation of the force and thought it was completely random and unexplainable. It had to be magic.
After the magic state of consciousness, people progressed in their ability to think in abstract terms. They realized, correctly, that the forces behind natural phenomena were not random. There seemed to be some kind of intelligence or purpose behind it. During this stage, people began to see this intelligence in the form of non-material beings. People began to develop the concept of God.
People then started believing that the forces in their environment were the results of the actions of one or numerous gods. Yet, at this stage people still had no clear understanding of the connection between God and human beings. In other words, they did not clearly understand that their own actions had an impact upon their outer situation.
During the next phase, which roughly began around the time of Abraham, people developed the concept of a God who interacts with human beings. In other words, instead of simply being the passive victims of the actions of the gods, people now began to understand that there is a connection between their own actions and the actions of God.
Because people were still in a relatively low state of consciousness, they gradually developed the concept of an angry and punishing God. However, contrary to previous ages, the anger and punishment of God was not random and unintelligible. The major progress that happened, for the Israelites it happened as a result of the exodus and the law of Moses, was that people began to understand that God’s actions are determined by certain laws. In other words, God only punishes people if they violate his laws. The concept is that if you understand and follow certain laws, you will improve your situation, whereas if you violate or ignore those laws, your situation will get worse.
When I appeared on this planet 2,000 years ago, I brought a new concept of God. Instead of portraying God as an angry and judgmental God, I portrayed God as a loving father figure. The purpose was to make people see a more direct connection between themselves and God. My mission was to preach and, through my own union with the Christ consciousness, demonstrate that all people have the potential to develop a new sense of identity. By developing this new sense of identity, people can attain a correct understanding of their relationship to God, namely that all people are sons and daughters of God.
However, developing the identity that you are a son or daughter of God is not the end of spiritual growth. There is a higher stage and, during the next 2,000 years, humankind must begin to fully understand that higher stage.
Planet Earth is now moving into a new spiritual cycle, and we of the Ascended hosts are releasing certain energies that will produce a revolutionary leap in the spiritual evolution of humankind.
People must now come to the realization that they are not meant to passively follow God’s laws. Instead, they are meant to internalize those creative principles so that they can become co-creators with God.
Necessary changes in religion
To fully embrace the spiritual changes that are occurring, spiritually interested people must develop an understanding of what is happening. They must understand what was supposed to happen during the last 2,000 year cycle and what is supposed to happen during the next 2,000 year cycle.
If you consider the explanation given above, you will see that what has been happening for thousands of years is that humankind has gradually been brought to a deeper and clearer understanding of their relationship to God. Humankind has been lifted from a very primitive state of consciousness, in which they had no clear understanding of the concept of God, into a state of consciousness in which they are ready to fully understand, accept and embrace a correct relationship to God.
To further describe the evolutionary process of religion, let us talk about the two previous ages and the coming age. As a matter of practicality, let us name these ages by using the precession of the equinoxes, as demonstrated by modern astronomy. The 2,000 year cycle that was dominated by the law Moses is the Age of Aries.
During the Age of Aries, people were meant to come to an understanding of the law of God. Therefore, the main role of religion was to give people an understanding of this law. Every age has a positive and a negative potential. The positive potential for the Age of Aries was that by getting to know the law of God, people would develop the intuitive understanding that it was in their own best interest, it was enlightened self-interest, to follow the law of God. The negative potential was that religion would set itself up as being the source of that law and the police force that was supposed to enforce that law.
In other words, while knowledge of the law of God was meant to free people from a primitive state of consciousness, religion could abort this goal by taking on the role as the source of the law and the enforcer of the law.
During the last 2,000 years, namely the Age of Pisces, the purpose of religion can be illustrated in my concept of the good shepherd. Religion was meant to go after the lost sheep and raise them into a new understanding of their own identity and their relationship to God. The positive potential of Pisces was that the church would be a shepherd that gently herded the sheep to a protected pasture, where they could develop a sense of identity as God’s children. The negative potential was that the church would start acting as a prison guard seeking to force the sheep into a fold defined by human beings.
Unfortunately, the Catholic Church turned away from the role as shepherd and instead took on the role as prison guard. During the Age of Pisces, people were meant to develop an understanding of their relationship to God and of God’s law. Therefore, people would gain a still deeper understanding of how their own actions, through the impersonal laws of God, have created their current situation.
Understanding how God creates
I earlier said that what has happened over thousands of years is that people have been raised to a higher understanding of their relationship to God. Part of this understanding is the recognition of how God creates. We of the Ascended Host have gradually been raising humankind to a clearer understanding of the fact that God has created the world by using certain principles or laws.
When people understand these principles, and use their free will to align themselves with the law of God, then people can stop the self-destructive spirals that humankind has created and reinforced for thousands of years.
However, the true goal is not to simply raise people to a state of consciousness in which they will stop destroying themselves. The true goal is to raise humankind to a state of consciousness in which people see themselves as co-creators with God. People must come to an understanding of the very principles that God uses to create the world, and then they must realize that they too have the potential to use these principles and thereby help create the kingdom of God. Only by acting as co-creators with God can people become the instruments for bringing God’s Kingdom to Earth.
What I am saying here is that the true goal of the Ascended Host is to bring the kingdom of God, which truly is a state of consciousness, into the material universe . We want the inhabitants of this universe to see this world as being one pocket in God’s creation. We desire people to understand that my Father’s house has many mansions and that this world, including planet Earth, is one mansion in the House of God.
One might say that in previous ages, people did not see any connection between their own actions and their outer situation. They thought they were victims of forces beyond their control. People have gradually been raised to a higher understanding that the world is guided by certain laws and that violating those laws leads to undesirable consequences.
Today, humankind needs to take another leap and realize that human beings have always been co-creators with God. People create through the the power of their attention. Therefore, people must realize that the current limitations on planet Earth were not created by God, but by human beings. The only way to improve the conditions on this planet is that people decide to create God’s perfection instead of human imperfection.
A rational understanding of God’s laws
To fully understand the laws and principles used by God, people must rise to a more rational state of consciousness. Over these past 2,000 years, humankind has indeed risen to a more rational state of consciousness, and the best proof is the evolution of science. Unfortunately, the split between science and religion prevents people from reaching the full benefits of the rational state of consciousness.
When God created the world of form, God used two different sets of laws. There is a higher law, a spiritual law, which guides the creation of the entire world of form, including the spiritual world. There is also a lower or material law which guides the creation of the material universe.
To fully understand their relationship to God, people must understand both the spiritual law and the material law. Likewise, only by understanding both sets of laws can people fulfill their roles as co-creators with God.
During the past 2,000 years, religion was meant to bring forth a clear understanding of the spiritual law. Because religion, specifically the orthodox Christian Church, turned away from the original intention, humankind does not currently have a clear understanding of the spiritual law of God. Virtually all of the spiritual laws have been made known to humankind, but currently no single religion embraces and describes all of these laws.
The vehicle for giving humankind a deeper understanding of the material law is science. We of the Ascended Host sponsored the origin of science, and we have continued to inspire scientists even though science has turned away from our original goal and intention. It was our original intention that science would describe the material law and that religion would describe the spiritual law.
We want people to realize that science and religion are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they are not even in competition. They are simply two sides of the same coin.
Religion describes the spiritual law, but without science there is no way to put that spiritual law into practice in people’s everyday lives. Science describes the material law, but without an understanding of the spiritual law people have no vision of how to use material law without destroying themselves. Furthermore, when people sink into materialism they have no sense of purpose or meaning to life.
Unifying science and religion
What would I like to see happen to both religion and science in the coming 2,000 year cycle, namely the Age of Aquarius? I would like to see both religion and science fulfill their proper roles.
Let us begin with religion. In the Age of Pisces, religion was meant to be the good shepherd and bring people to a level of consciousness where they could fully accept their true identity as sons and daughters of God. In the age of Aquarius, people must go beyond that sense of identity. People must realize that by rising above the carnal mind and putting on personal Christhood, they can serve as the instruments for bringing God’s kingdom to Earth. They can serve as co-creators with God.
Therefore, the true role of religion in the new age will be to bring people to a sense of identity as being individualizations of God who have chosen to come into this universe for the specific purpose of helping to bring God’s kingdom to Earth. When people have attained this understanding, religion must assist them in building their new sense of identity. When people accomplish this goal, religion must give them an opportunity to express their personal Christhood and their God-given individuality.
In other words, in the Age of Pisces religion was meant to be the shepherd that gently guided the sheep to greener pastures. In the Age of Aquarius, religion must become the vehicle for the expression of people’s new-found identity as co-creators with God.
Now let us look at science. The true role of science in the Age of Pisces was to free people from many of the limitations of the material world. When I walked the Earth, most people spent all of their time and energy on mere survival. During the past 2,000 years, technological progress has allowed a large number of people to gain free time and energy.
Unfortunately, most people are not using their free time according to the original purpose. Because of the split between science and religion, so many people have fallen victims to a materialistic state of consciousness. In this state of consciousness, people think that their lives have no higher purpose. Therefore, they spend their free time in a meaningless pursuit of pleasure and entertainment.
In reality, we of the Ascended Host gave humankind the gift of science and technology in the hope that when people attained free time, they would use that free time to pursue spiritual growth. Indeed, millions of people in the Western world have used their free time to focus their attention on the spiritual side of life, whether it be through religion, spirituality or the self-help movement. Unfortunately, millions more have not yet realized the incredible opportunity they have been given by having free time.
The true purpose of giving people free time is to give them the opportunity to direct their attention away from the mechanics of making a living and towards spiritual growth. You cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve God, meaning spiritual growth, and mammon, meaning the pursuit of pleasure and entertainment. Therefore, the call to “choose this day whom you will serve” is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago.
In the Age of Aquarius, the true role of science is to give people ways to express the perfection of God in the material world. Science must also continue to raise the quality of life, so that people can gain greater freedom to pursue spiritual and personal growth. Furthermore, science must serve as a balancing force for religion by removing the subjectivity and superstition that has dominated religion for thousands of years. However, science must do this without destroying people's faith in God (as it has done for centuries).
The necessary paradigm shift
The ideas described above demonstrate the need for a major paradigm shift in the fields of both science and religion. When I appeared 2,000 years ago, I came to bring a similar paradigm shift into the religious life of ancient Israel. As you know from history, I was rejected by the orthodox religion of the time. I do not expect that the orthodox forces of today, be they in the field of science or in the field of religion, will voluntarily embrace the paradigm shift that I have outlined above. Therefore, how could this paradigm shift possibly happen?
It can only happen from the grassroots level, which is exactly the way Christianity spread through the ancient world. It can only happen if individual people begin to embrace and embody the paradigm shift and a higher state of consciousness. A higher understanding is the only key to bringing about that paradigm shift. The shift can only happen if millions of people will consciously recognize their potential to rise above the relativity of the carnal mind and to put on their personal Christhood.
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