May 2007

Spiritual Climate Newsletter APRIL 2007 : INTRODUCTION

_____________________________________________________

The Institute of Spiritual Climate

Is proud to present

Its newsletter

of Social & Spiritual Commentaries:

SPIRITUAL CLIMATE®

Thursday, April 26th, 2007

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people

and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics

and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty,

to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better,

whether by a healthy child, a garden patch,

or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life

has breathed easier because you have lived.

This is the meaning of success!"

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

_______________

We are not a rich corporation, so this publication is a labor and gift of love that is solely supported by donations from its readers. You may freely forward or redistribute it to whomever you wish. No donation is required. All donations are greatly appreciated. Just Click on the secured-link below, it will accept your Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover or Paypal to make a donation.

MAKE A DONATION TO SPIRITUAL CLIMATE CLICK HERE

This Newsletter can be viewed on the AlcyoneMagi ® web log at the following link:

http://alcyonemagi.spaces.live.com

Want SPIRITUAL CLIMATE NEWSLETTER delivered right into your Email Box?

Click here SPIRITUAL CLIMATE and in the subject line type in ADD ME

( It is permissible to translate this publication into other languages as long as the translated version and link to the translated version is sent to SPIRITUAL CLIMATE. Full permission is granted for forwarding/sharing this publication with other persons. No part of the articles in this newsletter can be quoted or used for any other publication without first in advance obtaining the express written permission of SPIRITUAL CLIMATE®. Please include the final version of the article you are writing, a link of where it will be available along with a highlighted and/or underlining quote of the text from any of our article’s you wish to use, upon review and decision you will then be notified of our answer for permission of use in your publication. Permission can be obtained by emailing a request in English by clicking SPIRITUAL CLIMATE , please put TRANSLATION in the Subject Line )

____________________________________

Welcome Friends, Students, and Readers of Spiritual Climate!

Yes, we’re back! Rev. Strickler halted the publication of the newsletter for a few months. I asked him if there was anything I could say or send off to the readers of the newsletter and he said “Not until I decide whether we are going to publish again or not, I have been called into contemplation about my life, my work and relationships and I have some choices to make this year.” He has also expressed that he is coping with some new peculiarities due to the ongoing effects of the embolic stroke his body suffered the late evening of August 22, 2004.

We, the contributors for the newsletter, have been busy maintaining a monthly writing schedule, but he did give us March off. You will likely see a May Edition within a few weeks. I am happy to say, since you are reading this, Rev. Strickler has given the “all systems go”, so welcome to our new look and expect to hear more from us. To quote Rev. Strickler as of recent it’s a “Time for change”.

Dr. Strickler asked me to extend a note of appreciation to Patty for her generous Donation to the Institute of Spiritual Climate and he would also like to extend a warm thank-you for My Favorite Ezines for counting our Newsletter in their Directory of listings and the beautiful summary they included.

IN THIS EDITION:

Dr. Strickler blasts open some creaky old doors, shedding light on the subject of Occult Blinds and the insidious damage that can be produced by the misuse and misrepresentation of spiritual principles and laws in his article: “IT’S A MATTER OF KNOWELDGE, NOT PERCEPTION”.

Adam Crosthwaite explores the confusion of Polarity in his articled entitled: “ESCAPING THE REALM OF UNIPOLAR EXISTENCE”.

Wendy Ford presents her views and opinions on the release of the secrets contained within the Law of Attraction: “TRUTH: PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY. FICTION: LAW OF ATTRACTION”.

Christine Ford expresses her frustration with the changing of words and meanings of interpretation in her article: “THE 1^st CORINTHIANS MYSTERY”.

The Staff of Spiritual Climate would like to welcome you to the wonders of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness available to all who seek.

Welcome to the APRIL 2007 EDITION of the SPIRITUAL CLIMATE NEWSLETTER

Best of Love and Life to You and your Family

Christine Ford

Editor, SPIRITUAL CLIMATE NEWSLETTER

About the Photo above:

The Sombrero Galaxy (M104) The disk displays dark dust lanes, where many young and bright stars reside. The Hubble telescope also shows that the glowing central bulge of stars harbors nearly 2,000 globular clusters of stars, 10 times as many as orbit our Milky Way galaxy! … HubbleSite NewsCenter.

____________________________________________________

you know you want to do it:

Spiritual Climate Newsletter APRIL 2007 ~ part 1 IT’S a MATTER of KNOWLEDGE, NOT PERCEPTION by Rev. David Strickler

_____________________________________________________

IT’S A MATTER OF KNOWLEDGE, NOT PERCEPTION

By Rev. David Strickler

Ashes sometimes drift on the wind and carried afar, by movements of air and then perhaps dissolved into the watery confines of the oceans or seas. Residue our bodies cast adrift into the biosphere of this planet that we call earth. The energies created by the principles emanated by our consciousness also move through a three fold process of disintegrating, equilibrating, and integrating; the basic modulation in these aspects of the principles that exist within our consciousness is that which enables us a tertiary ‘layered’ form of macrocosmic scripting of ourselves via this trinity of Spirit, Soul and Astral envelope which contributes fully to the functional bio-aspect aperture you express and identify through called your physical body.

Elaborating on any of the systems becoming or manifestation, produced within consciousness can be at best, just a starting point toward the apprehension of knowledge which can only be adduced through a philosophy that properly dispels the inadequacy of empiricism and the philosophers that supported the idiotlogy that states what the senses grasp are the only thing that can be known. I would have to start the conversation pointing out that the essence of Genesis (ALEPH Bereshyt) was profoundly induced and brought into vibration of 7 (days) principles, that which can be heard produced from the sounds of sounds known as the voice of creation; thus vibrated (from sound) formed into light. Now please take into consideration that this is even before ANY physical manifestation comes into being.

Each of the Seven principles are expressed in the classic book called the KYBALION It was supposedly written by the three initiates, one of whom is considered to be Dr. Paul Foster Case one of the greatest practical Kabbalists of the past 50 or so years. Within his writing is contained much knowledge pointing towards truth which in turn acts as veils of the main principles behind which we find the principles of consciousness. One of the other initiates is believed to be Yogi Ramacharaka (aka William Walker Atkinson), while there appears to be a consensus (yet inconclusive) that the third person contributing to the book was a woman by the name of Mabel Collins (1851 – 1927) a gifted Theosophist and occult writer who was black listed by the Theosophical Society according to some accounts. In some circles it is stated that the real author’s names were never used for the publication of the book because the principles and the philosophies that the book that presents cannot be credited to any person.

There’s a wealth of knowledge to be explored, discovered and applied that one is to distill in practical daily use toward the discovery of that sentient nonphysical principle that consciousness uses as a latticework or a loom to bring from the subtle and into greater ranges of densification until the formation of the physical senses originate from non-physical principles. The five physical senses then stand in relation of their proximity and incomplete comprehension to form and begin creating a picture of the world around you. Part of the nature of your senses is only to give their relation point to the external world thus rendering a perspective of your relationship that your physical senses have in proportion to the external world. It is within these physical senses we find the lessons of the Allegory of Platonic Cave; that the shadows we watch ‘come to life’ and dance on the wall of the senses are nothing more than that-faithful reproductions based on the limitations of our remarkable physical senses of the external world and yet incomplete, the apple is not red it only appears to be red based on the vibrational range they are capable of reproducing. Amusing at times, to see how many people are as yet deluded by the illusion created by the senses, yet some use the very same habit of delusion in their interpretation of sacred text. It gets even less amusing when unskilled interpreters operating in their ‘Disney Mode’ interpret hermetically sealed ideations, principles and knowledge with little or no regard to anything but the use of their improperly used imagination and then sometimes justifying their behavior by saying their infantilism is generating money to substantiate the use of their fantasy is a reality.

Time and time again we watch the reappearance of components of the knowledge and principles intentionally confined into symbols by the hermeticists and held with in small groups of selected people who were chosen for their ability to hold onto, convey appropriately with lucid accuracy the nature of the major principles of consciousness and the agency’s (laws) resulting from these principles out of which arise the natural polarization of conditions within the physical mundane world called everyday life. The last large volume of work that the hermeticists produced whereby they sealed knowledge into symbolic content was during the period of time prior to and upwards a bit from 2 BCE during the compilation of the components of what is commonly referred to as the ‘old testament’, wherein the content of the origins of creation were preserved in the sacred language of Hebrew wherein each letter represents a principle and unit of measurement and contains no vowels, unlike our synthetic linear language called English whose letters represent nothing at all. It is not surprising in the least to watch the attempts of untrained, unskilled yet highly imaginative people vainly interpret alchemical and or spiritual writings into misleading and misrepresented disinformation, much like the arrogance of presenting human induced global warming – the idiocy of which Lucifer must be laughing his ass off at human gullibility divorced from knowledge!

Fascinating at times to watch the prance, parade and dance of the human ego. A good percentage of people are suckered into the apparitions of their senses and accept their senses as the only thing that can be known and support their erroneous irrationality by the writings of lunatics such as Hobbes, Kant and Thomas Malthus to name only a few. There must be some great overwhelming sensation to succumb to such wailing and gnashing of teeth offered by the Sophists who use small pieces of this knowledge and agencies and laws to create conditions in which they can extract cash to parasitically live their lives. How? Create a gospel by writing a book, never mind that the knowledge inside the book was truncated and pieced together to fit what is pleasing to the eye of the creative artist who is painting a picture which is nothing more than an abortion of the original tenets of fractured knowledge from which the structure of the book was drawn; as long as people ‘buy it’ that seems to be all that matters in an age where consumerism and making money along with the worship of the dollar, certainty and sensation is the modern religion of the day.

Next stage is quite simple: getting some metaphysicians jump on the bandwagon by providing them with an audience and a stage financed by the brothels that are simply gaining profit while experimenting on social engineering by mood creating solace in the in the mental atmosphere by giving out mother’s milk to unsuspecting overworked adults thereby adding insult to injury by laughing at the true spiritual consciousness that resides within all human beings. Sophistry arises once again to the forefront.

Such a simplification is usually released at the behest of a larger group of behavioral engineers that are seeking to provide distraction via some illusory form of higher hope while filling their pockets with whatever national currency is held by the nation that the so called book of secrets is being sold in; belief structures can create the perception of a reality, but that perception of reality may bear no resemblance to the real reality it is supposed to represent and therein lies the danger. For the sake of brevity in this article please read this statement once or twice: there is no law of attraction. Once again, there is no law of attraction.

About now I should hear the gripe that the law of attraction is found in print (therefore it’s gospel) from many sources; I am aware of that, I am aware to cite one example, it is referenced in the Kybalion, where it calls attention to the law of attraction. I think is brought into the writing about ten times: you are correct it is right there in print and it is an occult BLIND. I’m going to say to you that the language that the three initiates operated within during that day and time was restricted by the knowledge and their ability to express that knowledge within the language of their milieu. One might also include the science of their time if one can refer to a genuine science, not science working at the behest of marketing which makes it nothing more than junk science. That aside, the authors used this BLIND employing the word attraction, blinds are a common occurrence in spiritual and alchemical essays and that is done intentionally. This intentionality is there to prevent those who would use the power that hidden knowledge can put into the hands of psychologically damaged people. Locking up the knowledge by hermetically sealing it with a ‘blind’ prevents perversion of its use. IF used at just its coded face value it will generate negative karma (law of compensation) if it is used as is, in other words, just the use of the word attraction leads to effects of misapplication and those responsible for generating its misuse will incur negative karma in this life or in their next.

Seven basic principles consciousness uses toward the ends manifestation and of those seven principles are as follows:

THE PRINCIPLE OF MENTALISM.
THE PRINCIPLE OF CORRESPONDENCE.
THE PRINCIPLE OF VIBRATION.
THE PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY.
THE PRINCIPLE OF RHYTHM.
THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.
THE PRINCIPLE OF GENDER.

From the seven principles are generated laws which are agencies that enable the universe to produce a reflection in many aspects towards a physical representation that resembles some range of activity that the originating principle intends to bring about, some recognition of the consciousness that it represents.

The so called artificial law of attraction doesn’t exist as a law, but as an effect within the physical mundane world. That’s right, I said an effect and I am not talking about the principle of effect—if there is one, provided that ‘effect’ is not a blind being used within the principle of Cause, that being stated and not within the scope of this current article or argument for consideration. So what is being proclaimed as a law of attraction is BULLCRAP from the position of my tradition because attraction is an effect streaming from the principle of polarity using the law of desire. I would agree that there is a law of desire and that there is an effect known as Attraction that emerges as a condition in relationship to the law of desire. The question may arise as to why I am making such a deal about this and it is quite simple.

There are those who are blatantly bastardizing information while masquerading this information as knowledge when in fact it is not knowledge, it is only information and speculation from the realm of fancy circular reasoning and profiting from it at the same time. Problems are created by this type of irrational speculation in that it creates a form of the ‘emperor’s new clothes’ behavior being expressed verbally by a few people in pockets of mainstream idiocy which results in the parlance of “you attracted, it is your fault” another way of rationalizing the blame the victim lunacy which is being passed around quite actively by people from different tiers of life and seemingly more active from those within higher financial echelons to support their illegal and/or morally, ethically bestial behavior to justify and protect their cash flows. What a load of crap. Anyone who believes in the ‘blame the victim theory’ is a mentally disturbed person; they are insane-money does not justify or guarantee a person’s saneness.

Accountability I hear being shouted from some quarters; true I would say but what determines accountability? My first question to those who support the lunacy of blame the victim idiotologies is: should I hold your lack of sanity accountable for such flights of delusion which creates deviants who further tragedies such as Jerry Miller who served 25 years behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit, the 200 person exonerated by post conviction DNA testing by the Innocence Project? Where is the shout for accountability of those and the system that sentenced him? Isn’t the shout for accountability more than just a convenient conclusion for lynch mob mentality? It is complete lunacy to create a Tower of Babel that gives credibility to Idiotologies suggesting such things that the murder of innocent children or that the students at Virginia Tech ‘attracted’ themselves to the situation, that is beastialization from my view and you are in need of serious psychological intervention to believe such rubbish.

For Christ sake, some of you better find the light switch in your heads.

That is one of the reasons why there are ‘blinds’ put within written and oral traditions of spirituality and process, in this way, those who know and who have the keys to interpret correctly can distinguish genuine spiritual articulation from that of the jackasses who are making money by selling disinformation and profiteering from the Sophistry of their lunacy inside the temple. It’s as bad as the Nut Cases who are still waiting for the Second Coming of the Great One who are being guided by some slime bag preacher backed by a Hedge Fund convincing them that the Second Coming hasn’t occurred, when the fact of the matter is that the Second Coming has been happening since the appearance of the Great Rabbi known by the mainstream as Jesus.

Alongside Truth, not falsehood, it is a matter of knowledge, not perception.

Gratia vobis et pax a Deo Patre nostro et Domino Iesu Christo

( Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus )

Rev. David Strickler, Ph.D.

Qabalistic Minister

_____________________________________________________

you know you want to do it:

Spiritual Climate Newsletter APRIL 2007 ~ part 2 ESCAPING THE REALM of UNIPOLAR EXISTENCE by Adam Crosthwaite

_____________________________________________________

Escaping the Realm of Unipolar Existence

By Adam Crosthwaite

From the past to the present and on through the future it is impossible to track the growth one experiences without the contrast afforded to us by time as it fuels our momentum in the space we operate in throughout this process. One way of looking at this is to think about a garden. From seeds to flowers, and in time even fruit, the contrast in form and function continually change from the first stages of growth to the final harvest, be it roses for a loved one or vegetables to feed a family. Over time the growth process takes place within the physical forms that started as seeds produced by the growth process of the previous generation. Still, a garden does not grow all by itself. Someone has to nurture and aid in the growth process to insure a healthy harvest. This is much like the mentoring process (only after another fashion) experienced by students in schools of spiritual development. Without someone to tend the process there is no harvest. For that person to watch over, nurture, guide, and teach they must have been guided through the same process by another mentor brought up within the same tradition, whatever that tradition may be.

Through the mentoring process many people find themselves opening doors to find themselves. Through a true spiritual tradition one finds their true self and learns to unlock the secrets of an ever unfolding universe. Within these traditions there are many manuscripts that are written records for the tradition leaving instructions and methods to future students. Many of these manuscripts are encoded. For obvious reasons it takes a mentorship process to properly develop in any tradition, but with the traditions themselves there is an oral tradition which holds the keys to the encrypted messages of the tradition as well as a system of checks and balances. There are several reasons for this double blind approach to mentoring in a spiritual tradition. One of the biggest and most overlooked reasons is human error in the form of our own personal IGNORANCE.

Now remember we are living in a world of truncated views. This world is full of feel good happy sunshine people who think life is like Saturday morning cartoons, people who perhaps need to learn that the Care Bears are not real! Imagine that one or a group of these people get their hands on a bit of information and decide to start the latest “feel good movement” in a country of individuals who feel they are running for cover with targets painted on their backs. The ignorance resulting from a society pacified by truncated versions of the truth coupled with the need for security and a sense of control, an illusion almost as grand as the one presented in the theory of attraction being paraded around as the latest form of the emperor’s new clothes in the media, would give anyone an opening to manipulate and persuade vast numbers of people. Of course there is a plethora of plausible explanations other than being manipulated by a hunger for the illusion of control. As a side note I would like to point out that this illusion is not a defense for people who “lose control” over their own behaviors, just like the Law of Attraction is being misused as a defense as victim precipitation.

Now it may be a process of miscommunication or perhaps an attempt at control by misinformation or any number of “reasonable” explanations for people to accept what sounds good, but there truly is no good reason or explanation for the ignorant behavior of accepting theories because they simply sound good. If the human race has evolved out of the darkness of the Middle Ages and the Sophist’s contempt for discomfort, we should all look to expand our processes in reasoning and discernment.

If there is to be a contrast to the maladjusted adolescent stage of development one must undergo a growth process and learn to examine the whole picture without disregarding that which is hidden beyond the senses. In many cases it would take a very small degree of adjustment to expand a perception. Look at it as if you were watching a sunset through a window. If there is a tree in the middle of your view you can’t see the full sunset, but if you sit down or step to the side you may see the sunset clearly with out looking through the tree branches. You can see all of the colors and shadows at the same time, yet people still take small bits of information and form theories. They do not take the time to evaluate the full context of the situation. We live in an age where all you need is an hour on the internet to research different opinions and views on any subject, yet many people are content to accept truncated views and perceptions. They are choosing to behave as if this were the Middle Ages and only the privileged are allowed to read and comprehend.

There has been a growing awareness in this world and it has been cultivated by several traditions and by many trials in the lives of those who tread the harsh terrain of Truth. Anyone who has spent the time and cultivated a reasoning faculty even in some of the beginning stages of a truly Spiritual Tradition would know better than to accept half a picture. It would appear that the only valid reason for the acceptance of truncated perceptions would be a lax reasoning faculty. With a mentorship process that monitors and facilitates the true learning curve of the universe people develop skill and knowledge in order to discern a clearer and far more accurate picture of a situation. I don’t know how many times Rev. Strickler has told me in the middle of a lecture that he will answer my question after I come back from doing a little background research on a topic, or two, or three.

One of the first lessons and perhaps the most basic concept I learned in my process was the art of examining the full spectrum of any given situation. This was taught by the A and not A approach to examination. It means literally asking the question “what is this” followed by “what is this not”? This opens the mind to examine the full spectrum or rather POLARITY of the situation. The tradition of Qabala examines the full spectrum of polarity in order to find balance within a world that finds itself polarized to extreme points of difference. How does a person find balance without first examining the extremes in order to lend a point of contrast which allows that person to find a centered position and come to understand the truth of a situation?

Ironically people are already taught this concept particularly in the business world under the heading: Cultural Diversity. In short people are told not to take things for granted that there are multiple views and ways of approaching life. The contrasting of different cultures increases the sensitivity of people toward varied cultural experiences by teaching that them that there are alternative means of accomplishing tasks and living, that other ways are just as effective if not more so if applied properly. Talk about drawing people’s attention to contrasting differences! If people would use this same formula of contrasting differences and similarities in other situations on a regular basis this world would run a lot smoother than it has been.

People are encouraged to live in acceptance of one another through contrasting differences and honoring the fact that there is more to a person than meets the eye but they rarely extend that contrast to other areas of discernment. If we are truly a society of tolerance and acceptance then why is it so difficult to tolerate the acceptance of truths when it appears as if society is so accepting of ignorance?

If I were to answer this question with the same logic as the people accepting the Law of Attraction as a “Law” I would have to say that it is choice of ignorance that allows its acceptance in society. If I were to answer this question as a person who has a basic understanding of the Principle of Polarity I would say that it is the ignorance of a society that allows the furtherance of ignorance. The latter of the two responses would be my starting point for the application of the A and not A formula.

The acceptance of truncated perceptions by a society leads to a UNIPOLAR society with a small number, usually one, of the people controlling the vast majority. Unipolar is a term used to describe the diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder in contrast to Bipolar Disorder in clinical terminology. Basically a person who suffers from this disorder will stay at the depressive end of the spectrum. Polarized toward depression they will have difficulty with a balanced perception, not too dissimilar to the difficulty one faces in life with a Unipolar view of the world. It is the effect of attraction to this end of the spectrum by the Principle of Polarity that is expressed in the physical world. Attraction itself cannot be a Law as it is an Effect in the physical world or rather a perception of some who are stuck in the realm of truncated perception and self deception having been polarized toward ignorance by choice.

It would seem fitting to end on a clinical definition to lend contrast to the behaviors exhibited by members of today’s society, but we would all do well to remember that we can only view the behavior itself. There is a lot more going on within the situation than what may be perceived from a distance.

May the evolution of human consciousness guide you to brighter sunsets of contrasting light and color.

Blessings,

Adam Crosthwaite

_____________________________________________________

you know you want to do it:

Spiritual Climate Newsletter APRIL 2007 ~ part 3 TRUTH: PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY, FICTION: LAW OF ATTRACTION by Wendy Ford

_____________________________________________________

Truth: Principle of Polarity. Fiction: Law of Attraction

By Wendy Ford

So the secret is out, eh? The Law of Attraction is the key to it all. The key to unbridled success and riches. But there is a flaw in this. One major, gigantic flaw: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS THE LAW OF ATTRACTION. Nope. Nowhere. No how – yet where you do find it in print it is an obvious ‘Occult BLIND’ when its use is found in writing from a genuine Hermeticist, Occultist or Spiritual Orator. Dr. Strickler opened class recently stating this and the floodgates were opened. The amount of energy that was pumping through him from Above was astounding. Those of us in the room at the time fortunately recognized the movement of the energy and were able to withstand it. Our ears were ringing and the paint practically blistered off the walls from the heat and intensity of the message being conveyed. Made us wonder if Rev. Strickler had some “Hell fire and brimstone” background! The Above is not amused with this falsity and misinterpretation/misrepresentation. The Above is not entertained by the creation of Law in Its name. Talk about libel and slander.

How can anyone in physical manifestation who has been created in the image and likeness of and by the ONE be so egotistical as to presume to know the Mind of the One? To come up with a Law in its name is playing with the ultimate of Karmic fire in my opinion. Yes, people have referred to the Law of Attraction for many years. But it has been inaccurately interpreted and extrapolated from. As Dr. Strickler quite intensely put it, “This Law of Attraction” concept has the potential to generate a belief system that will turn into the ugliest thing imaginable.”

It has the potential to proliferate the mindset of BLAME THE VICTIM. This has the ominous possibility being adopted by our society and changing the faces of politics, healthcare, insurance and the like. It carries the prospect of pervading every layer and segment of our society like a cancer. It could have the power to destroy lives for generations to come if it is not stopped. People need to be made aware of the Truth and individuals who are brave enough and strong enough to speak up need to prepare themselves to do battle.

In an interview on Larry King Live several weeks ago he asked his guest if the child who was murdered in Florida attracted that to herself. The answer was, “Yes.” Dr. Strickler almost threw the television through the wall. WHAT? WHAT? HOW? What happened was that the Principle of Polarity was in action. The higher vibration (the adult who is physically larger and stronger) will always overpower a lower vibration (the young girl). The adult’s negative polarity of desire to do harm overpowered the child’s positive polarity of youthful innocence. It had NOTHING to with an innocent child attracting a murderer to her!

Insurance companies and lawyers might be able to take this concept of the Law of Attraction and run with it. The idea would be, “Well, the client attracted the illness or accident or incident. It is the victim’s fault the illness or accident or incident happened because they ATTRACTED it.” The question would follow of why should the insurance company pay or the perpetrator of an injustice be punished if everything is brought on by the individual? The individual (victim) is now being put in the totally impossible position of being responsible for every single little thing that happens to them. Logically this of course makes no sense.

Politicians might be able to incorporate the concept of the Law of Attraction into legislation and public funding. If the Law of Attraction works it must be that the single mother who is on welfare because her husband died in a car accident and she is unable to make ends meet ATTRACTED that situation to herself. Likewise she should be able to extricate herself from that situation by ATTRACTING the solution and should not need public assistance. Nor should the innocent child born with mental retardation qualify for any publicly funded program because it is, after all, the child’s fault and they should be able to ATTRACT something better. All of the victims of the horrific hurricanes that swept away our Gulf Coast almost two years ago ATTRACTED that to themselves? They should likewise just be able to ATTRACT funding and housing now? Should we shut down all of the public assistance, food banks, soup kitchens and shelters because all of the homeless on our streets should be able to ATTRACT housing, shelter, employment, and food to themselves?

Should we have no need for as many doctors or the healthcare system because folks should just be able to ATTRACT good health for their entire lifetime? Should our elderly be able to ATTRACT adequate housing and health? There would be no sudden infant deaths or stillbirths or birth defects because all parents would be able to ATTRACT perfect and brilliant children. Fantastic! Hooray! Then no one would ever die because they would be able to ATTRACT health and immortality.

Oh, and about the weather. I will ATTRACT only sunny days with temperatures between 70 and 80 degrees, nice cool evenings because I like to snuggle under the covers, rain only at night and on the days when I don’t have to go anywhere, no snow on the streets or sidewalks, just the lawns and oh, yes an occasional thunder and lightening storm because I like to watch them. What? Weather can’t be ATTRACTED? Why not? If there is the Law of Attraction I should be able to do that. The Law of Attraction says I can. By merely putting my mind to it anything can be ATTRACTED.

Just think about it people, it makes no sense that an individual ATTRACTS everything. It just makes no sense. Then an individual should be able to attract only the good stuff because, after all who in their right mind would want to attract the ugly, painful and icky stuff to themselves, right?

In truth, it is the PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY that has been so misinterpreted. Because it is in manifestation all energy is polarized. It is either positive or negative. Like a magnet this energy is not Good (positive) and Bad (negative). There is no “good” end or “bad” end to a magnet is there? No. Each end of the magnet is a different expression of the same energy. Likewise energy is either negative or positive. Putting positive energy to negative USE or negative energy to negative USE is a different story. An individual does have the choice in how an energy is used by having the choice of where to focus attention.

It is in the focusing of attention that a field of focus or field of energy is formed, then, once a field of attention has been formed from the pulling of units of consciousness together into a focused arena that collection begins to whirl. It is the whirling that generates a gravitational field. It is this gravitational field’s POLARITY that will appear to ATTRACT like fields of gravities toward it. So to say that attraction occurs is correct in this sense of the word. The attraction is the EFFECT of the generation of a gravitational field of collective units of attention and thus has a positive AND negative pole, but the attraction is not a Law only an effect.

The Seven Hermetic Principles are the foundation of Creation. There are seven and only seven. Everything else is just an effect generated by any one of the seven Principles in action. Granted the effects are consistent, reproducible and measurable, but Effects are not Laws. To those who have not been trained these effects have been interpreted as Laws because of their consistency and predictability but the effects are only reflections generated by reality and picked up by the senses. By the very definition of manifestation they are only imperfect reflections imperfectly transmitted to the brain.

Remember the red apple? Our senses tell us the apple is red. But in truth the apple is everything except red. The red is the wavelength of color reflected by the object and picked up by our vision. There is no way for our senses to transmit to us the true nature of the color of the object. By consensus we have all agreed to call it a red apple.

Since there is NO Law of Attraction it would behoove folks to think very carefully about the recent mushrooming and presentation of this idea. It is a very enticing concept. That by having the right attitude and thinking the right thoughts good things can come your way. Of course we would like wonderful things to come our way! Having a positive attitude is a place to start the focusing of attention on something but too many folks are going to stop there.

It is going to be very dangerous for folks to truly believe, “If I think positive thoughts I will be happy and the world will be mine. It is all up to me.” They will not go on to take the necessary actions required over a period of years to develop and hone the skills required that will lead to the ability to more accurately and completely focus attention. Rude awakenings are going to come crashing down on many when the concept of the Law of Attraction is turned around on them. Fine. If all these wonderful things don’t come to pass then it’s your own fault.

It is going to be too easy for blame the victim mentality (no require thought or discernment need in blame the victim) to get an even stronger foothold than it has now. Remember the years of battling it has taken for rape victims to finally be regarded as victims of the crime and not the ones who “asked for it”? This idea of the Law of Attraction has the potential for causing immeasurable harm. Be very careful about blindly accepting this concept. Please. Do some of your own research and thinking.

May the Lord of Life provide you with the ability to think this through, the bravery to speak up and the strength to stand up for your insights. The phrase “if it seems too good to be true, it is too good to be true” absolutely applies to this nonexistent Law of Attraction. The Principle of Polarity on the other hand is one of the Seven Hermetic Principles and is Truth. Maybe the people who have enough naiveté who believe attraction is a law should study the Principle of CAUSE and EFFECT.

Pax Vobiscum,

Wendy Ford

_____________________________________________________

you know you want to do it:

Spiritual Climate Newsletter APRIL 2007 ~ part 4 THE 1st CORINTHIANS MYSTERY by Christine Ford

_____________________________________________________

The 1^st Corinthians Mystery

By Christine Ford

Times change, people change. Faces move in and out of our lives just as surely as the sun rises each day in the East, and sets in the West. Our jobs change, our age changes, hairstyles, weight, opinions, understandings, seasons, moods and weather, name it, it changes! None of it is fixed, indeed I have come to know that the only constant in this sometimes desolate plane of existence IS change. In my naiveté, (which still sneaks up from the basement where I profess it is tethered every once in a while and bitch-slaps me) however, I figured the quotations from the Bible that I had memorized as a child would remain the same. Come on, I’m not THAT old, not in this physical present lifetime anyway!

While doing what I had conjectured would be no-brainer research for my April article for the Spiritual Climate Newsletter, I had quite an awakening! I came into stark confrontation with the vast array of interpretations of the Bible and found that even as we “know” it, in its incredible hodge-podge form of English misinterpretation, the words of the Bible are subject to change. Thus continues the alteration of the meaning of the already mis-stated text by transfiguring the words even within our modern day renditions. And I’m just talking about the simple current English stuff, not translations from Ancient tongues that Dr. Strickler so often refers to!

I have listened intently over the years to Dr. Strickler’s increasingly enlightening discourses on the Bible as we know it, as it has been misinterpreted, words misrepresented and ill-translated to suit the mode of the political times as it was passed down through the centuries. A small example was given publicly in Dr. Strickler’s January article in the Spiritual Climate Newsletter when he briefly examined Genesis 1:1, “In the Beginning. . .” Just simply look at the obvious! There are multiple English translations of each word written in those ancient tongues, the permutations and combinations become mind boggling! To become more complex, add insult to injury by the bastardized translations and re-translations of the original written text from the sacred tongues of Aramaic and Hebrew into Greek, Latin, German, and finally English, with a undoubtedly a few other random languages thrown in there for good measure. It’s not too much of a stretch to wonder if there is ANY similarity at all to that which was expressed genuinely “In the Beginning” and that which some ignore-antly take literally as THE WORD OF GOD! Dr. Strickler’s apologetic that Hebrew is a living language is well taken. Hebrew is a sacred tongue of principle and intelligence, a language in which thoughts, concepts and vibrations are conveyed with the utterance of a single letter. This is unlike our English ABC’s in which each letter represents a sound or two, or may be combined with other letters to make a new sound, but has no actual meaning ascribed to the symbol itself.

For example, WHAT is a “B” in the English language? It is a symbol that represents a sound, that when coupled with other letters creates printed words that we can string together making sentences and thoughts to be read either silently or orally. Letters create a printed version of that which we speak and think. That is not anyone’s definition of it but my own, but I know you get the drift. Pretty straightforward stuff, a “letter” in English represents a sound. I could, on the other hand, site VOLUMES on what the “Bayth” or “Beth” symbolizes in Hebrew, from principles, to color, to tonality, to numerical values, to planetary correspondences, to intelligence just to name a few, as well as representing the letter “B” in the English language. Take a leap herewith me! Come on! Is it not completely and perfectly obvious that the Bible as we know it was more, so much more than the weak, prosaic babble of text that has been printed, bound and presented to us to swallow whole as “The Word”? Of course that is fact, but that is just a side venture into one of the enlightening areas that we have been exploring in classes lately, a “teaser” if you will, designed to perhaps illicit a question or two from our varied readers out there. Back, however, to my modern day dilemma of “The 1^st Corinthians Mystery”!

As the old joke begins, “There I was, minding my own business”, inspired by the triad of words so often linked in class by Dr. Strickler, “Beauty, Truth and Love”. As I mulled the relationship of these words, turning them over in my mind, a barrage of memories assaulted me from my childhood. Biblical passages that I had diligently committed to memory to earn my prized white Bible with the gold edged pages and the little plastic framed picture of the Angel hovering over the kids crossing the bridge with the wind whipping and the darkness enveloping them whirled through my mind! Many snippets spun around in my head, but the phrase that took front row pushing out all others was “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” Hmmm, “faith, hope and charity, these three”, THREE, like the three I was pondering, beauty, truth and love! Must be on to something here! With my curiosity piqued, I followed the thread!

Since I couldn’t remember where in the Bible that came from, I started my Net search! After finding a whole bunch of Bible sites, I reached the stage of “Enter phrases or words” for search. Upon entering “Faith, Hope and Charity” my results kept coming back that there were no results, but I got lots of hits on Faith and Hope! 1st Corinthians 13:13 to be exact! Feeling somewhat like Alice in Wonderland, I went for the Faith and Hope pill, and was totally astounded to find that in the majority of the Bibles, the wording was “Faith, Hope and LOVE” not “Faith, Hope and CHARITY” as I remembered it. I kept searching until I did find one that used the words as I had been taught, and was satisfied that I hadn’t fallen down the rabbit hole after all! This discovery, however, struck a chord somewhere way deep inside me.

My initial reaction was that of Thumos, quaking, anger, of having to prove that my memory served me correctly, because the most Bibles I referred to did NOT present the passage as I had memorized it some 48 years ago. The discrepancy was not that of a minor nature either, it was the altering of a key word repeatedly throughout the entire passage that totally changed the fabric of that which was conveyed. Having been so blatantly lead to this discovery by the research for my article was like a big old red flag waving that my Soul and Spirit were speaking directly to me about SOMETHING that needed my attention and exploration. I quickly chose to get over my anger and do something productive with that energy!

Interestingly, I have found time and time again that that’s how agape and Spiritual progress works. Events don’t just happen randomly and without purpose, there’s a discovery to be made around every corner and in each exchange you have within your environment. The secret is to become discerning enough to ferret these hints out, and then wise enough to persistently follow the thread to the pot of gold (or shit!) at the end of that thread. Many times you are then lead to yet another thread, and another, and another, ad infinitum, and on you go, asking, seeking and knocking! Exhilarating? YES! Intriguing? YES! Exciting? YES! Occasionally, a pain in the ass? YES! THAT TOO! But never dull or boring!

The writing of this article served as an opening of awareness for me to perhaps THE core belief, indoctrinated into me as a child that has molded and shaped my actions and reactions, responses and choices that I have made from the time of memorizing that quote. In innocence, as a child, I took those words as “Gospel” (all puns totally intended) truth, right up through the present moment when I recognized that pot of SHIT for what it was, simply because I had accepted the statement in blind faith because “The Bible Tells Me So”. Are you ready for me to expose myself right out here naked and in print in front of you? Here it goes!

Here is what I have discovered thus far on my agape hunt! The reason I was lead down this path of exploration by the screaming and nudging of my Soul and Spirit, the reason for my initial very strong response of anger to the switching of the words lies in the definitions of Charity versus Love. There was a marked influence indoctrinated into my belief structure as a child by the statement “The greatest of these is CHARITY”. This had a major impact on my patterns, the choices I made and the direction that I followed from that point forward in my life.

Okay, so what, you say. Sounds real simple, big deal. It IS simple, and yet, it is profoundly complex! This illustrates exactly how those suggestions you unconsciously and unwittingly give to your subconscious duplicate and replicate, whether those suggestions are the truth or not! This is the mechanism by which patterns of whole lifetimes are put into motion. If never questioned and allowed to multiply unchecked, the created chaos and misunderstood repercussions replicate until the monster gets so enormous it just swallows you up and there is no “you” left, no destiny to be reached. You become monster food to be eaten and pooped out, only to start all over again next time, unless you open to and welcome the intervention of the whisperings and shouts of those unseen cheerleaders, Soul and Spirit and follow that thread to the discovery!

A composite definition of Charity is “provision of help or relief given to the poor, something given to help the needy, generosity and helpfulness especially toward the needy or suffering; aid given to those in need, lenient judgment of others.” Charity is defined as giving, giving, giving, and then giving even more to the wretched masses, the poor, the needy, the suffering, those less fortunate or less blessed than oneself, even to the point self sacrifice and suffering. In the definitions I found there was no hint of charity being reciprocal in nature, it was just an eternal outpouring of energy and aid given without question to anyone found “needy”. Let’s face it, in this world there certainly are an abundance of those in need, whether that need be emotional, physical, intellectual, instinctual or spiritual. The Bible told me at the tender, impressionable age of 10 or so that the GREATEST of these was charity and I memorized and repeated the chant. So did my Subconscious mind.

As the wheels turned, I could literally SEE my life progress and unfold in front of my eyes, how I became an enabler, a caregiver, a pushover, a teacher of those kids who were needy and suffering. The ultimate mom who gave up her life for her family, a peacemaker and bleeding heart taker in of stray dogs and stray human beings to the degree that I had no time, energy, love or strength to give back to myself. I merely existed for the sole (Soul, NOT!) purpose of sacrifice. The exquisite martyr, I functioned isolated in my loneliness and sorrow, awaiting the golden time when I would reap my reward after I shuffled off this Mortal Coil, for I had lived The Word, The greatest of these is charity. Man! Major slap in the face to find out some 50 years later that the GREATEST of these has changed and is now Love, and I’ve based my whole pattern of my life on a mistruth, huh? Sucks to be me! No WONDER the initial reaction of my Ego was to be genuinely pissed off!

Love, on the other hand, is defined as “strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties, affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interests, warm attachment, enthusiasm, or devotion.” Can you feel the flow moving back and forth as you read those words? I can, especially in stark contrast to the definition of charity. Love is a two way street, a compromise, an ebb and flow, a giving and taking, not a drain or infinite feed line from you to another that saps you of your vitality. Love is revitalizing and replenishing, it springs from a deep well that is ever nourished and sustained by the Soul and Spirit, and it is okay for you to receive back, not just give until there is nothing left to squeeze out. Even within the impersonal form of unconditional love of the Spirit and Soul there is a warmth and a quality of livingness that envelopes you like wings, taking you to a place where you KNOW you are incredible for the simple fact the you were created in the likeness and image of The One.

How different might my journey have been had I committed to memory as a child “The greatest of these is love” rather than “The greatest of these is charity”? Perhaps my entire sojourn was forged on the discovery of this hidden gem, waiting for this precious pivotal point of understanding and comprehension as the veil was lifted. Where lie the other keys to the path that I blazed with truncated messages passed on to my subconscious as I sought to become what I am growing to today? What vast webs of half-truths and blatant lies did I feed to my developing psyche before beginning to embrace the truth my Spirit and Soul speak along my trek towards enlightenment?

The questions abound, and the answers elude me as of the closing of this article. These are areas to be explored within my journey and myself. You have your journey and explorations as well. It is my fervent hope that by sharing my discovery, you too will be encouraged to delve into the depths of that which replicated and multiplied to make you what you are today, and the inconsistencies and lies upon which much of it was based. By the way, the NEXT most predominant quote I remembered, other than the 23^rd Psalm, was “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.” I don’t think I even want to go there!

May you be granted the strength and the honesty to explore the foundations of the half-truths you are living and open to the full Beauty, Truth and Love of that which you are in Spirit and Soul.

Praise be YHVH,

Christine Ford

Editor

_____________________________________________________

you know you want to do it:

The 1st Corinthians Mystery

By Christine Ford

The 1^st Corinthians Mystery