Beryl Pogson quote

I don't want to pick on Beryl Pogson, not having read her books to a sufficient degree, but a quote by her is at the front of the Eureka Editions 'Simple Explanation of Work Ideas' by Maurice Nicoll which is very new age (shallow):

"The Teaching is to prepare people for the Aquarian Age where all religions can be united - united by the fundamental truths contained in every religion." - 'More Work Talks 1966' pg. 93, Beryl Pogson

This way of thinking can put other religions at the same level of Christianity when Jesus is merely seen as a teacher or great Master, and not as Saviour and Lord. To see the latter you need to see things like original sin, your situation under the curse of the law, your inability to save yourself, etc... - C.

An email on Work knowledge and its relation to Work practice

Just to remind you all, I have written some good reminders and insightful things lately. Especially the realization that Work effort without taking in Work knowledge is surprisingly not kosher. I mean, one might think Work practices are universal and can be done by themselves just fine, but you find that they really are married to the Work knowledge in a real structural way that effects development of being itself. This forces one, if one sees this, to value the Work knowledge even higher.

(A note: a practical reason Work knowledge must accompany Work practice is to keep one on the straight and narrow with it.)

I do think though that the Bible can take the place of the Work for knowledge, but considering the Work is a language of the Holy Spirit given on top of the foundation of the Word of God then it is more proper to see Work knowledge itself as needed in the Knowledge + Being = Understanding equation.

On book reading goals

I think what can hamstring book reading goals for a new year is being too limited in how you go about it. For instance, I have a list a seven books I'd like to read complete (complete readings is the subject here, we all read a thousand books a year in other ways, for other purposes than a complete download), but I always tend to put the most important up first, even if I'm not currently moved to read it first.

I think once I have my seven, then I should realize I'll read them all *at some time* during the upcoming year, so just hit the one I'm most eager to hit first and get through it.

Create momentum for them *all*, including the more difficult ones (the ones that require more effort of attention, i.e. they don't draw you as easily, even though you have interest in them).

You do have to finish what you start, though.

Recurrence insight

Here's an insight regarding Recurrence. When you see it non-linearly (i.e. not as a line, birth to death, or beyond that as a circle) then the interval that is death/birth has to be seen non-linearly as well.

I see that interval as defining the entire breadth of your living time. If you are in Hades in that interval that means you are in Hades in all your living time. In biblical language: dead in sin. In the devil's kingdom.

Yet when you begin to awaken and leave Hades your entire living time is effected. You experience unique friction. The general law - which is the manifestation of the spiritual reality of what is happening in that interval - notices you and works on you. It is a mechanical force, of course, and needed for development (unbeknownst to itself, but the devil is the same, he plays a needed role, unbeknownst to himself -- or maybe he knows, but he can't do anything else, being under the sovereignty of God).

So, Recurrence as 'fulness of time', or, as a sphere in which develops the fulness of time (individuals and history develop 'in the fulness of time'), again, Recurrence as 'fulness of time' is our living time in a sphere, and the inside of that sphere is colored by that interval of death/birth.

Notice also that birth and death are 'shocks' in the process. Mechanical shocks on a larger scale than food intake and air intake. We transcend them with conscious shocks. The two conscious shocks and all they entail regarding awakening and development and connection with what is higher (Jesus, Triune God, conscious influence) effect the two shocks of birth and death and lift us out of Hades and all that follows can be seen in that context.

The others in Hades, mechanical presences, don't like seeing any one else leaving...

When you truly connect with what is higher you of course leave your time and are in the Kingdom of God.

I'm re-learning basic Work teachings

I've said I'm in a major effort for 2009 (started in Dec. '08) regarding self-remembering, non-identifying effort. I've just today realized, or re-remembered, something. My effort has been strangely 'strange' making me think I was maybe in some new state, or new territory, or something. I still may be (I am regarding my limits), but what is strange is I havn't been giving myself the knowledge 'substance' you need when you make such efforts.

Knowledge + Being = Understanding

Being (or effort to awaken) alone is not enough. You need Work knowledge for 'substance' (I call it that intentionally because understanding becomes your higher bodies, and substance is needed for that understanding, and Work language is that substance. It is a lively language, and probably only the Bible could take its place, but I havn't been reading the Bible much either.)

It came to me today when I was pondering Recurrence and came to an insight regarding the interval between death and birth. I might write about that later, but just the fact of pondering the Work reminded me that I was lacking the 'Knowledge' part of the great equation:

Knowledge + Being = Understanding...

Observe these 7 things when in an active theater

When in an active theater in life (i.e. where you are on the battlefield, in an event, etc.) observe these 7 things:

1. Yourself
2. The person(s), place, thing(s), event your attention is on
3. Place, or surroundings
4. Your aim and conscious role
5. The different points-of-view, intents, self-interests and motivations of others around you
6. The unspoken and spoken communications and the web of relationships between others and with others around you; and forces and laws in effect
7. Active reasoning, conscious labor, and intentional suffering

Conscious labor, intentional suffering

I heard this guy arguing with his girlfriend over the phone (long-distance relationship of some sort). I wouldn't try to reason with him, but if I did (he's a Christian who goes to a church) I'd say it's silly, isn't it? Give it up. "Give her up?" Why not. At least the fighting and nonsense. (She screws around with him long distance.)

Then he thinks, but if I give it up, what do I have left? What takes its place?

Answer: suffering.

G.'s brilliantly foundational formula (more foundational than self-remembering/non-identifying, though that is the means) is: conscious labor, intentional suffering.

Non-identifying is at its base intentional suffering (easy to forget or not see). To build our spiritual body we have to be awake and to suffer. If we avoid that then we don't value the goal to begin with.

But it's good to know that when you come down to philosophical hard pan intentional suffering is there as an answer.

I'm in the world, not of the world, so what do I do? You intentionally suffer.

Conscious labor, intentional suffering.

Active reasoning

Look at how this theologian gets at the Work practice of active reasoning:

Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Take those thoughts that come to you the moment you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them, but they start talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc.

Somebody is talking. Who is talking? Your self is talking to you. Now this man’s treatment was this; instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says: "Self, listen for a moment, I will speak to you . . ."

The main art in the matter of spiritual living is to know how to handle yourself. You have to take yourself in hand, you have to address yourself, preach to yourself, question yourself. You must say to your soul: "Why art thou cast down" -– what business have you to be disquieted?

You must turn on yourself, upbraid yourself, condemn yourself, exhort yourself, and say to yourself: "Hope thou in God" -– instead of muttering in this depressed, unhappy way. And then you must go on to remind yourself of God, Who God is, and what God is and what God has done, and what God has pledged Himself to do.

Then having done that, end on this great note: defy yourself, and defy other people, and defy the devil and the whole world, and say with this man: "I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance, who is also the health of my countenance and my God.” - Martin Lloyd Jones, Spiritual Depression

Apostolic doctrine taken to visionary heights

I've been saying there's no book I can learn from now, but I've just re-noticed the Kline books (God, Heaven and Har Magedon and Kingdom Prologue). If you already understand Federal Theology, these books are 'step beyond' while still being orthodox. They are like #5 Man level in the realm of Reformation era biblical doctrine.

It is revolutionary for instance to realize the presence of heaven all around you, invisible. To get that frame of reference all the time your thoughts, words, and deeds change.

Kline also sparks higher emotional insights and understanding. And it's foundationally biblical.

One is this: his explication of 'pilgrim politics' (a section from his GHHM) makes you see what is going on today in the world. The people of God are called on to exercise pilgrim politics with the people of the devil surrounding us. The devil and the people he influences *know this* hence their rhetoric and demands. If they sense a Bush, for instance, is going over the line, in the context of the 'rules' laid down by God in His plan of redemption, they scream bloody murder and accuse and accuse and stamp their feet. But it's all ridiculous because Bush could incinerate them all if he - we - wanted to. It's all drama. And they lose in the end, but sin is irrational to the core.

So the sign: "Hands off Saddam!!" being carried in a protest in San Francisco is part of this Devil-inspired demand to stay within the rules. "Iraq is the devil's domain!! It's against the rules of the game for you to mess with it!!"

The Israelites were in the same 'pilgrim politics' phase in Canaan. They were called on to deal with the people of darkness surrounding them with diplomacy, etc. This example needs more context (read the book!).

But this is a higher-emotion type thing to 'see.' To be able to see the spiritual reality behind phenomena going on around you. To have the ultimate big context that is the plan of redemption from one pole of eternity to the other is what you get from Kline's book, which is apostolic doctrine taken to visionary heights.

I repeat, though, that the foundation is Classical Covenant - Federal - Theology. The Bible itself.

A good line on prayer

I like the succinctness of this statement:

>God answers prayers in one of two ways: "Yes," or "I have something better."

Don't know who said it. It was on a person's signature on a forum without a reference to author. It's deeper than it may look at first.

On an atheist forum I gave an example of how a prayer can be answered but in a way a person didn't expect: a woman is treated badly by her husband, she asks in prayer to God for it to be better; so God answers the prayer by opening up the possibility for the woman to move out and away from her abusive husband. Not what the woman expected when she said her prayer.

An atheist responded: "Or the husband beats her to death. This prayer stuff is just way too arbitrary. Good luck with it though." In so many words.

Well, in that case the woman would be getting something arguably better: she would be going to heaven. Not something you ask for (the death part), but a good result nevertheless.

Status report

I'm in a different stage with higher energy now.

When I started this latest serious round of effort I started it in a new stage of development. It's not at all like the past. I can feel the energy inside me, but I don't lose it. Not even in the less dramatic ways. You know, like laughing at your own thoughts for six hours.

I can also see when I'm walking around in this new environment, more cut loose from a base, that it's a higher environment even though it is experienced as mundane as usual.

There is a group of people around me experiencing God knows what due to it. They havn't turned on me (and I won't even say 'yet' because I'm too good at controlling myself and environment now). If one of them does make a step in that direction I give them zero oxygen for their flickering flame.

I'll have to be led into something, but I also feel I could die too. Like, if there is no more reason to be here. I had a half-sleeping dream where I keeled over and died (went black, though I was conscious of 'going black') then awoke (saying prayers, believe me).

Well, there's always the crown level (Man #7) to reach. My current stage of efforts calls for much more intensive awakeness as I go on.

Could be death in the offing...

Parzival blog

Some good comments over here.