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Cherished Children of My Heart,
We would ease tension and not create it. Yet the appalling waste of time that is engaged in by mankind in the pursuit of trivial affairs may one day be regretted. People say that they do not have time to pursue spiritual studies, prayerful intercession on behalf of those in need, meditation, and the things of the Spirit. And many shun faith in spiritual endeavors until they themselves come to the place where they are sorely in need of assistance from on high.
Last week Lord Maitreya delved into one of the problems that is currently facing humanity on a world scale, that engages their energies not in producing the miracle love of the kingdom of the Christ but in spreading the blight of division and hatred across the face of the earth. At this time I would like to deal with certain problems which arise in the field of religion that are often most disturbing to the children of men.
Many of you will recall my son's words to Peter "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat."1 The phenomenon of sifting the spiritual man or woman as wheat has often been observed, even in your time. This sifting of men's devotions does hurt to the children of God who yearn to pledge their faith not only to him but also to embodied men and women who are about their Father's business.2
When those who are supposedly engaged in the business of serving the spiritual needs of man - whether in the East or in the West - do not uphold the principles of truth and honor, when they manifest a spirit of criticism toward individuals or segments of society and their own lives afford meager example of Christly virtue, those who look to them to set the example for the age are often keenly disappointed.
Most spiritual seekers have at some time in their lives manifested great idealism. This idealism causes them to yearn to bring into their lives elements of spirituality that will draw them very near to God and to their fellowmen. When they see those who claim to espouse the divine cause, those who profess to be teachers of righteousness - ministers, priests, learned pundits, or church officials - engaging in practices that are unkind, unholy, unethical, or that compromise in any way the true teachings of the Christ, these idealists are sometimes driven, almost in a spirit of despair, to discontinue their own search for God or to reject the reality of God in themselves and in others.
The damage that is done by these would-be leaders who go forth in my son's name but carry not his Spirit is incalculable. Yet I would speak to those who have suffered the pangs of disillusionment; and I would say to one and to all, "Remember, in order to have disillusionment you must first have illusion. Look only to the real which God has implanted in every man, and then you will not be disappointed in the unreal which man himself has unwittingly created or accepted in his world."
Strange as it may seem, there are some individuals who have consciously sought to manifest evil. These dark spirits, pursuers of luciferian tendencies, mistakenly think that the knowledge of the world is the brilliance of reality which they seek, and they look upon the kingdom of God and his wisdom as though they were foolishness.
Observing the great caravan of lives returning to the heart of the Father, we are concerned that the simple beauty of the pure in heart shall be the goal of every man. If man looks for purity of heart in himself, he will also look for it in others. And if he does not find it, he will want to invoke it. Yet in this strange drama of living to rise in an ever-ascending spiral of cosmic reality, men must also understand the importance of true discrimination. My son said, "By their fruits ye shall know them. ... Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"3
Whereas we have, again and again, stressed that men ought not to speak ill of one another or to gossip, pointing out the corrosive dangers involved in such activities which border on condemnation and judgment, we have also said that spiritual people should realize the importance of learning to discern the difference between good and evil. How else shall the follower of the Christ understand the meaning of the words spoken by Paul to the Corinthians, "What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?"4
Evil deeds are self-declaring, whether they are practiced by saint or sinner. And if the saint be truly all that the name implies and he commit one or more mistakes while his life is filled with good deeds, if he is a saint, if he is truly a child of God, he will be grateful to have pointed out to him the error of his ways. But if he stand behind the shield of personal egoism, defending himself as one who can do no wrong, he will not retain the purity of heart that will enable him to see clearly the path that lies ahead.5
In this connection may I say to all, to those of learning and to those who are struggling to master their worlds, bear in mind that the love of God is tangible and real. You should strive continually to express it, but you should also realize the difference between the divine character and the character of human creation. It is not wrong to be able to discern the difference between good and evil; in fact, it is absolutely essential that one develop spiritual discernment, for these differences are often most subtle and difficult to perceive.
There is a certain danger even in the statement "All is love." For whereas all is love as it exists in the highest consciousness of God, love, in order to be practical in the world below, must be willing to recognize the weeds in the garden that are to be plucked out. Those who are blind to these facts of life and those who lead the blind will personalize the weeds and defend them as though they were their own. For many, through pride, have fallen from lofty positions; but the pure in heart shall see God within themselves and within others. They shall be unafraid to name the condition that is acting in their worlds, and they shall be careful to differentiate the real from the unreal in their discernment of others.
Yet courage is needed, for evil is not personal. It is simply magnetized to the world of men by reason of their own lack of faith in themselves. If men had faith in themselves, they would find it easier to have faith in God. We seek, then, to generate greater faith in the children of the light and in all men, knowing that in the simplicity of their faith will be born that devotion to service and that understanding which will ultimately create a new sense of worth in the people of the world.
How wonderful it is for individuals to be able to have and to hold a sense of worth about themselves and about their lives. The self is the gateway to God. When God is found, doubt and fear vanish. And if a friend does not measure up to one's ideals or to one's expectations - or even if the self falls short of the mark - faith in God and in his leading, in his ultimate purpose made manifest for all, will strengthen the bond of reality in the consciousness of men and enable each one to realize that the Christ is the true worth and the only measure of a man. Faith will bring peace midst turmoil and spread the balm of healing truth that, in plucking out the thorn of error, desires only the manifestation of health and wholeness in the body of God on earth.
The hierarchy warns that there are wolves in sheep's clothing,6 that some of these know they are wolves and that some know it not. Notwithstanding, all can rely upon the Christ of their own being, upon that great reservoir of celestial light that pours out the precious nectar of his holy wisdom, the oil of his anointing, and the waters of purification upon all who will receive him.
May I ask that you keep the bond of faith in the midst of turmoil, serene yet actively aware of the need to know the truth that is above persons, places, conditions, or things, the truth that alone can make and keep you free.7
I remain your Benefactress in Cosmic Diligence, representing the light of the world.