AN ERRONEOUS IDEA OF SAINTHOOD

Also: UNION OR COMMUNION WITH DIVINE LOVE (overwhelmed with love for God)

A particular modern-day "Literalist" interpretation of sainthood claims that no matter how Christ-like a person is, he or she is not a saint unless he or she accepts the Literalist dogma which presents itself as narrow, elitist and disuniting. However, when people who think like that drop the garment of flesh and pass into the World of Spirit, they hold firmly to the conviction that they are the only ones to whom God has revealed Himself, and unbeknown to themselves even then, they have built a containing wall around themselves and must remain on the plain, failing to realise that many good people have long since departed for the spiritual heights of the mountains.

A deep look into the past and the attitudes which prevailed at that time will help to fathom this subject. The Gentle Stranger taught a loving kindness alien to a people who knew only wickedness and cruelty inconceivable today. His truths became slightly tainted by the prevailing indoctrinated thought of his hearers.

The Christ had to address His teaching to people steeped in superstition, and who had a God who demanded animal sacrifices to atone for sins. It came naturally to His followers that Jesus was a "sacrifice" to somehow absolve them from the consequences of their wrongful actions. This was a natural, but unfortunately, misleading interpretation of Christ's life, death and resurrection.

Forgiveness of sin does not mean removal of the effects of sin attributable to the sinner - "saint" or not. The message of Christ is life everlasting, but also one of warning as well as hope; for what a man sows that he must assuredly reap. A person is not an instant saint; he rectifies the results of his own sins by expiation, not God.

A person does not instantly become "separated unto God" by following a man-made theory or dogma, nor do all others who do not follow such a theory remain not "separated unto God". Certainly, there may be a brush with the a supernatural power which leads many people to think, because their minds are so impressed by it, that they have achieved some type of instant transformation from a soul destined for an eternal damnation into a soul fit to reside in the awesome purity of the highest heaven. But being "separated unto God" means striving to always seek the things of God as demonstrated so clearly by the life of Christ, and leaving behind the attractive toys of the earth which do not last and the desire for earthly power and the adoration of the masses.

However, there is an important consideration to be made here, and it concerns a certain spiritual phenomenon where the soul is brought into a mutual loving communion with God (*see [1] below).

According to Dogma, an initial call to accept a metaphysical concept (human blood sacrifice), conversion and repentance makes a saint. However, no character, because of the necessity for unique experience, can ever achieve perfection in so short a time as the earth-life provides (although time on earth is essential), and the progressive goal of perfection continues long after the pilgrim has passed into the Better Land.

God cannot learn our lessons or gain experience of right or wrong for us, although He would if He could. The Great Parent wants to give His own children of His own gifts, but without the experience and wisdom to use those unimaginable gifts, He cannot do so. To think that such gifts shall be used with perfection and without error due solely to a life on Earth in a physical body, is short of outrageous.

A saint who sins occasionally is a contradiction in terms. Sainthood comes not overnight; it is easy to claim, but hard to attain.

*[1]INTIMATE UNION WITH GOD
(overwhelmed with love for Divine Love)

Firstly, it is worth mentioning that the following description of union with God or Divine Love (for God is Love) is not dependent upon the knowledge of the mind.

The love of God (Divine Love) is poured into the souls of some people in a powerful manner and they enter into an extremely intimate and often overpowering Divine Union. It is the nature of human language that an explanation in words would only leave a partial impression of the power and feelings involved - it is not a psychological or emotional self-creation but a so-called "supernatural" (non-physical) and spiritual act performed upon a soul while still encased in a fleshly body. The experience is of pure, tender, intense, unyielding love - the love which is truly Divine and which is unconditional. Often, in its more powerful appearances, this Divine Love can be felt as a bittersweet "pain" on a physical level within the body. The experience may last for different periods of time and may happen frequently and unexpectedly. In its more powerful form the experience is one of almost perfect unity or union with Love (God) where the individual soul seems "lost" to itself and yet at one with Love.

This is a phenomenon that can have extreme spiritual purgation (purification) accompanying a heartbreaking and undying love for Love (God), and in its most powerful manifestation this phenomenon is comparatively rare and yet occurs in such a powerful form more than most people would expect; yet there are many varying degrees of Divine Love which can be experienced by many people. This can happen due to the strong desire to have Love in the heart during the earthly stage and is not confined to dogma or doctrine for it has been observed in those named by man as "saints" (eg. John of the Cross, Teresa of Avila) of the West and "saints" and "seers" of the East (eg. some Indian and Himalayan "yogis", and ancient Kamal Posh "mystics"). The deep and personal fire of love between the Beloved and the child of God, which does not consume and yet is all-consuming, occurs to people both in the Old and New Testaments, as well as ancient eastern scriptures, although there may be slightly different manifestations of this intimate contact with (and knowledge of) the Personality of Love (for Divine Love is one with the Personality of the Supreme Being - Love). In followers of the Cross, for instance, on very rare occasions, there can be a communion of this Divine Spirit throughout the individual's soul and on into the physical body, sometimes manifesting as "the marks of Christ" (stigmata - Gal. 6:17). It should be noted, regardless of indoctrinated references to spiritual perfection, that there are aeons of evolution in front of such revered and highly spiritual figures, for the awesome Purity of God is known in It's absolute fullness by none except God.

As has been said, the love which is Divine and pure, and which enters into union with an individual in the form of recognisable and tangible personal love, comes when the strong desire to know and experience the love of God is in the heart, although this union is not dependent upon conscious desire for it is given by grace also to those who have not been consciously seeking it. The Contemplative will be desiring the love of God as his or her main goal, and working towards that end. For instance, this may involve forsaking all else except God, and may involve spiritual practices such as prayer, contemplation and meditation with the aim of fulfilling the overwhelming desire of receiving this wonderful gift. It should be noted that one does not have to be a "Contemplative" in order to desire God to come in this form of Divine Love, but the desire for the receiving of this priceless gift and the willingness to make regular time to pray and meditate for it, will most certainly reap rewards towards this end although it may not be realised during the short Earth life. However, by the grace and pleasure of God, the bestowal of this Divine Love can come to one who is not following a similar path to the Contemplative - by no means does Love restrict this personal and intimate union to those who follow similar structured paths to the Contemplative.

Once this phenomenon occurs within an individual soul, the human being of that soul undergoes powerful changes by nature because of this most intimate contact with the Source of Life - Love. The person will be more conscious within himself or herself of the spiritual qualities which emanate from Love such as humility, compassion, tenderness, kindness, selflessness and the desire to give without taking. However, receiving such a wonderful gift does not make a soul instantly prepared for the inconceivably powerful Realms of spiritual Perfection on departure from the earthly body; indeed, the pilgrim's journey continues long after this life on Earth as a human being in the flesh.

It is worth remembering that it simply is not possible in these vibrations to experience more than just a part of Divine Love, and while a person may be completely overwhelmed by Divine Love and wish to die to this world to be with his or her Beloved in Another World, the Divine Love which can be experienced by each individual when free from the physical body is far greater than can be experienced on while in a body of flesh. To one experiencing Divine Union while still in the flesh, it might seem to them that there could not possibly be a more powerful love than they feel, and yet they, and each one who follows the path laid down, will experience a stronger and ever stronger love. This is because it is God's Will that to each one created out of Himself, shall come all that He has prepared for them. Love is eternally giving, therefore when one is in God's Spiritual World and that one spiritually evolves a little more, then there is even more Divine Love awaiting that one. And this goes on forever!

It is part of God's Plan that some have this experience while still here in a body of flesh, and it must be remembered that some who have this experience while in a body of flesh can sometimes feel very sad because they cannot be with their Beloved. It must also be remembered that God does not interfere with the courageous desires of the individual spirit, and some spirits - out of love for God - choose a hard and difficult path while the opportunity for a physical body is theirs, and so they choose experiences which will test their faith in the most potent way, and this may involve choosing not to encounter the experience of Divine Love while walking in a body of flesh because the spirit knows that faith with "blindness" is so much more beneficial to the soul than faith with "proof" (John 20:29). Anyone who has known a form of love where the object of desire is absent, knows that the person is real - and to someone in Divine Union, God is more real than a physical body which shall return to the dust of the earth from which it came.

While attempting to summarise this subject, there is no conscious intention to describe what is, and what is not correct from a spiritual viewpoint. Nobody is truly in the position to be an authority on the phenomenon of Divine Union, not even those who experience it. Neither should anyone limit the power of the Holy Spirit and confine it by laying down boundaries. Tomorrow there could be something in this world from the Holy Spirit that has never been known by human minds on this plane before. Or the Holy Spirit could do something that is the complete opposite to anything known about so far.

It is certain that the world in general, even after 2,000 years, is not ready for large-scale spiritual phenomena to be made manifest. Two main reasons can be considered: Firstly, there would be desecration of what is Divine through self-denial of spiritual reality by many, bringing untold misery not only to the ones unwilling to face the Truth, but also to those who turn to the darkness of the lesser self after spiritual reality has been revealed to them as the repercussions would be many times worse than if they had not witnessed the Holy Spirit at work. Secondly, the spiritual immaturity of those speaking in the name of God would bring about harm because of desires belonging to the lesser self as they seek to sensationalise, or even commercialise, what should only be taken in its spiritual sense alone; for example, they might seek to take people who experience the gift of Divine Union and force it upon a world which is not ready to understand (John 6:30; Mark 8:11; Matt.12:36-40). The world must first become spiritualised in God's way.

Every individual spirit is different and requires different experiences for it's own happiness Hereafter. One who experiences this Divine Union may be experiencing it because God wants that person to play a particular part in His Plan for the redemption of al His children. Or perhaps that person needs to know the absolute agony caused by separation. Conversely, perhaps the spirit has chosen not to be given too much proof while sojourning this planet in the flesh and so God abides by that spirit's wishes and does not initiate this Divine Union while the spirit is in the flesh. There are many angles to consider and only God knows them.

It might be true to say that more often than not this spiritual Union is unexpected by the person - they had not been seeking it consciously. It will have something to do with the position of the soul before taking on a physical body. It may also be true to say that humility beforehand is not a prerequisite for this to take place.

The phenomenon of Divine Communion: unity of spirit/soul with the Divine Spirit/Supreme Person/Love, while still in a body of flesh, obviously has a profound effect on the person. It is a changing phenomenon and the individual does seem to be able to adjust. At first the person may be unaware of what is happening as that person may never have even had more than a childhood interest in religion; there may be an excited anticipation of "the Something" happening. This does not mean that they did not have a natural love for others, children, partner, parents, animals etc. - it just means that they may not have been seeking God consciously yet the tenderness gains in strength and intensity and knowledge of Divine Love is firmly embedded on the level of experience - perhaps a strange feeling at first and then an agonising and overwhelming wish to die just to be with Love. It should be noted that for someone whose agonising love for God changes his or her outlook on life in a drastic manner, that person is still human and has common human feelings.

This does not mean this does not happen to those who are seeking God consciously either. However, there are those who genuinely seek but never get what it is they are seeking but God's laws are just and when they pass into another world they shall find that their highest hopes are superseded many times over. It is the same law that applies, for instance, to the childless mother who desires so much to have children but the Earth life does not provide the fulfilment of her desire; but when she passes over she will find herself surrounded with more children than she could have ever dreamed of, to cherish, nurture and love as her own.

When contemplating this subject it is important to keep things in perspective. It may be a fascinating subject but there are already many fascinating things available to us that we take for granted. Take, for instance, a tiny babe. Is this not as fascinating a subject as Divine Communion, but how many people seek the spiritual truth about the origin of the tiny babe cradled in their hands? From God came the babe, it might be said, and then it is left at that. But there is a whole discourse of Love surrounding the tiny babe that can enlighten and uplift spiritually, and therefore bring joy to the Mother and Father Heart as the soul reaps the benefit of the instruction received. Divine Union/Communion is a gift from God, it is a spiritual gift manifesting on the Earth plane. But so is the little babe a spiritual gift manifesting here.

The main Home of those who have Love in their hearts is full of Divine Love. Physical bodies are only inhabited on a daily basis, as it were, and for a very short time in comparison to life in Reality. Real Life is elsewhere. Now, that "Elsewhere", for those who have God in their hearts, contains all the love experienced by someone on the Earth who experiences the phenomenon of Divine Union - and more. There are many, many different Spheres and everyone inhabits a Sphere until they are able to enter one of more purity, which they then inhabit, and so on - and one is not confined to that Sphere but is able to enter any previously inhabited. In each Sphere there is work to undertake because Service is the only way a soul can satisfy its love for God - that soul wants to help Him because of its overwhelming love for Him.

To one in Divine Commuinion with God while still in the flesh, it may seem that he or she will never have the will to ever be separated from that Union, but they will see that they do not need to be separated from that Union even though they can be an active part of His redemptive force through Service. All are His children and the more a child of God frees himself or herself from the lesser self, the more like one of His children that soul becomes - and His children are made out of God.

Thus, His children too shall thirst for lost and lonely souls and seek them out, bringing a cup of the waters of eternal life to their lips, yearning for them to sup and so cast out the darkness which causes such misery all around. One cannot rest while His children need help to cross the barrier they themselves have built up between themselves and Him. This may take one of a million different forms of Service, ranging from travelling in spirit with a band of others into war zones on Earth and seeking to influence the warmongers to cease their aggression, to working in the children's Spheres where those taken from their worldly guardians at a tender age need caring, guidance and loving.

We can be in powerful loving Union with God whenever we desire in God's World of Spirit, and we can do this for as long as we like, He will not stop that. But there will be a time when we will want to work for Him and relieve Him of His pain and agony as He watches and feels His fallen children stumbling around in blindness and ignorance in the grey regions and dark planes. If we just wanted to be in Union with Him and not do anything to help His pain, would this not be selfish? We have our guidance in the Example set by him when He left His own Godhead and came to suffer with us - and many other forms of sacrificial redemption by the Divine there are too.

Brave spirits are really missionaries. They leave their beautiful Homeland and enter dangerous and vile localities to bring the Light to others. This is the correct perspective to take from the point of view of Spirit; traditional religion encourages us to think that once this life on Earth is over we shall spend eternity doing nothing but revolving around the Throne Room gazing in awe. A person experiencing Divine Union on this Earth has no greater desire than to be forever with God, and so it shall be, so it is. However, when the fuller, more real Life is seen after the limitations of these physical senses are left behind with the dropped physical body, then that person will not be content to ignore God's children and not play a part in their redemption. Someone in the flesh who is experiencing Divine Union has a love for God that is literally overwhelming, and indeed it shall be overwhelming for each and every one whether on Earth or in the Next Life; it will be even more potent in the Hereafter because sensitiveness is released once the confining physical body is no more. But how can one truly love God and not do something to bring to Him some amelioration for the unimaginable sadness and sorrow caused to Him through the separation of His wayward and self-injurious children from Himself?

The Mansions in God's World offer a thousand-fold opportunities to be of Service compared to anything available here on Earth, and the love that exists there is beyond our imagination, even to those who wish to die to be with Love through the Divine Love felt now. The Summerland immediately adjacent to this Earth is for those who have no wickedness in their hearts but who desire "beauty" that is akin to Earth beauty; the Summerland is in fact a temptation to be overcome and those who think they are content there have much to learn because they seek to take all that is around them without giving anything in return, thinking it is their earned right. Then there is the beauty of the Spheres beyond the Summerland and it is not the same kind of beauty at all. Those Spheres are bright with the beauty of sacrifice, enhanced with the melody that has been culled from faithful hearts and minds undertaking the mundane task. And then there is that which is beyond those Spheres of spiritual beauty and it could be termed Heaven, so vast, so all-embracing that it would be impossible to convey anything of it to those in the Summerland of temptation, let alone to those those on Earth.

When the significant phenomenon of Communion with the Divine happens to a person, with some it can be so strong as to make them unable to perform their daily duties properly, and may find they have to retreat to somewhere quiet where they can lay their body down, perhaps feeling crushed, until after hours or perhaps a day, they can arise again. They may feel alienated from this world and will feel that they belong to another world. This does not mean that they have no feelings but they could be feeling numb to previously felt emotions. Agony and despair in varying degrees will be felt. As the individual becomes accustomed to this phenomenon of Love, it may become even stronger for them but they are able to gain some measure of control and can perform in the world once again, regaining their interest but with a completely different outlook. It might be said that words mean little to such people and anything which does not equate with the Love they know exists is seen for what it is - the devices of the human mind.

The "Union with God" experience has a similar basic underlying set of experiences for those who have this experience here in the flesh. However, there do appear to be differences, some more potent than others, some with accompanying effects and others without. It should be noted that while the experience may have similarities, the interpretations of what is happening to the individual by the individual, might vary greatly. The philosophy that comes from the individual as a result of Divine Union may be markedly different because of religious background, characteristics and personality, and degree of spiritual release.

Such an experience is not as uncommon as might be expected, it is just that most of the time such experiences are undocumented and remain as a personal and intimate relationship between the person and the Supreme Person, and the individual would rather keep it that way. Some might term people having such experiences as mystics, but perhaps many of the people having the experience would call themselves just "ordinary" people like everyone else, each being a child of God. Others might term such people as saints but perhaps the people having the experience would be the first to claim that they are far removed from sainthood and would be fully aware that they are not perfect - they are simply overwhelmed with a spiritual and very real unity with the Divine Being where they are as one and yet remain individual in order to experience that unity.