Anthony J. Fisichella...
The Core of Religion
One of the fundamental purposes of the esoteric doctrine is to provide the essential navigational coordinates for this profound religious pilgrimage, a geography of inner space, as it were. I speak of a religious pilgrimage, not in the normally accepted sense, but rather as the ultimate journey of awakening and liberation that each of us must take, culminating in our return to the Father. Is this not the purpose of all religion?
The word "religion" is taken from the Latin, religare, to bind back again. As with yoga (union), one of the primary goals of any religious system should be to provide its practitioners with the means by which integration may be achieved. First, integration of the mental, emotional, and physical faculties, getting it all together, if you will - it's called character building. Then integration of the Soul and personality, making - of twain, one new man (Ephesians, 2:15). And finally, union with God. The occult doctrine phrases it thusly: know thyself, know the Self, know the One. This is the ultimate intent of the Ageless Wisdom, to establish a divine order of living for all of God’s creatures, and also to provide the bridging process between man and God. It has always done this in an attempt to nourish the seeds of spirituality in man - if we would but listen! As I scan the environment, do I detect some ears perking up? Perchance some among us are consciously responding to the latest evocation of the Ageless Wisdom, as the "Aquarian Age" approaches note this.
This ancient doctrine, appearing periodically as it does, spurred into manifestation by the demands of a given age, has provided the essential principles of all the world’s profound philosophies. It is this factor of cyclic manifestation that prompted Aldous Huxley to label it “The Perennial Philosophy.”
St. Augustine once commented, “The one true religion has always existed and became known as Christianity with the advent of Jesus.” Permit me to paraphrase his statement—the one true religion, the Ageless Wisdom, has always existed and became known as Hinduism with the advent of Krishna, and became also known as Judaism with the advent of Abraham, later to be reformed by Moses. With the appearance of Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammed, this timeless teaching adopted the aliases Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam. Each of these and other enlightened religions has expressed that aspect of the Divine Mysteries appropriate to the period of its appearance. In essence they are one, though in expression they are diverse.
Setting aside their obvious superficial differences, a probe of their underlying esoteric principles and an overlay of their essential mystical doctrines will disclose many common denominators and a discernible pattern that links them to a common source—the Ageless Wisdom. Their differences may be attributed to cultural and social mores, the demands of the time, the aspects of esoteric wisdom emphasized by the luminary around whom the school of thought was established, and, finally, the depth of understanding and the idiosyncrasies of those who must pick up the torch after the departure of its progenitor. “Therein lies the rub” (Shakespeare)—if you get my meaning. Each church is composed of an outer organized and structured man-made form, constructed around a core of pure pristine mysticism. On the surface, man has managed to accomplish the questionable task of creating the elaborate systems of ritualistic pomp and ceremony that are the world’s religions, complete with inflexible dogma, enigmatic credos, and the often extravagant and ostentatious physical plant and regalia that are so much in evidence, not to mention the repressive fear tactics of hellfire, brimstone, and a vengeful personal deity.
Ah, but beneath the opaque garments of superstition there beats the golden heart of the sacred mysteries, eternally pumping the vital life-blood of wisdom’s teachings through the arteries of the religious body. If you listen carefully, you can hear echoes of the Ageless Wisdom reverberating throughout each and all of the member churches that constitute the religious soul of our planet. Man’s foolishness and organizational decay in abeyance, the religions of the world have served the beautiful and vital purpose of providing a channel for the unfolding of the mysteries before the awakening eye of humanity. For some the church is as close to God as they will experience in the present incarnation. Beneath a surface of forms, creeds, rituals, prayers, hymns, sacred books, and discourses, there burns eternally the fires of true spirituality.
All of man’s political and theological chicanery have not, nor will they ever, dim the flames that nurture and sustain the religious hunger in man. It is this inner body of true spiritual knowledge, the core of all religions that holds the key to mankind’s eventual illumination and that man responds to instinctively, in spite of the outer corruption and decay. Let us state it simply and succinctly: the churches of the world have always had the “Truth” in their possession, if they would only open their eyes and hearts. Instead, their history shows that, more often than not, they have surrendered to expediency, organizational needs, pragmatic demands and the pressures of theological tenets as opposed to the cry of the human heart. Even so, regardless of your religious persuasion and the apparent distortions you may perceive in the organizational aspects of religion, look into the heart and soul of your church and you will discover the Ageless Wisdom.
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