Post by a on Jun 30, 2005 12:34:59 GMT
Posted by Bod on bullying threadBod this is a difficult one to explain, but I will do my best.
Let me first say that I am not saying that one view is better than another. We are all on a journey, and we are all at our own stage of our journey. Some prefer to stay at a certain level, others may be forced there, some may want to progress faster than others, etc.
If you can visualise a construct.
You are born and come here, you die, reincarnate, reincarnate, learning lessons (hopefully) along the way.
Don't worry if you don't believe in reincarnation, just use this as a mental construct to aid understanding.
If you take your first incarnation as being totally physical in nature, and your final one as being as spiritual as you can get in physical form. Along the way as you learn your lessons, you gain new insights. These insights change and evolve as your journey(s) through life develop. Hence different people have different views or interpretations of things, due to the different paths of their individual journeys.
All views are equally valid, but some are more enlightened, and some more physical than others.
The difficulty comes in working out which is which, which is again one of the beauties of Freemasonry, as in theory, the WM and PMs should be quite enlightened people where their views are respected in this light.
Think about the candidate journeying toward the WM and the light, and the WM and PMs then journeying back spreading the light to those that come after them.
This is not academic as many appear to believe, but it is a very practical issue.
Now just imagine for a moment how much more fruitful Freemasonry would be, how much more beneficial to its members, if all Lodges not only recognised the practicality of this, but were also able to really initiate, and where its members could all feel themself make real progress on their individual journey? Esoterics would take on a whole new meaning for some - not an academic trivia but a practical means of taking a regular step.
It happens in some lodges I am sure (well as sure as a profane man can be).
which esoteric view do you take? 'Cos there are huge variations in interpretation within that field itself
Let me first say that I am not saying that one view is better than another. We are all on a journey, and we are all at our own stage of our journey. Some prefer to stay at a certain level, others may be forced there, some may want to progress faster than others, etc.
If you can visualise a construct.
You are born and come here, you die, reincarnate, reincarnate, learning lessons (hopefully) along the way.
Don't worry if you don't believe in reincarnation, just use this as a mental construct to aid understanding.
If you take your first incarnation as being totally physical in nature, and your final one as being as spiritual as you can get in physical form. Along the way as you learn your lessons, you gain new insights. These insights change and evolve as your journey(s) through life develop. Hence different people have different views or interpretations of things, due to the different paths of their individual journeys.
All views are equally valid, but some are more enlightened, and some more physical than others.
The difficulty comes in working out which is which, which is again one of the beauties of Freemasonry, as in theory, the WM and PMs should be quite enlightened people where their views are respected in this light.
Think about the candidate journeying toward the WM and the light, and the WM and PMs then journeying back spreading the light to those that come after them.
This is not academic as many appear to believe, but it is a very practical issue.
Now just imagine for a moment how much more fruitful Freemasonry would be, how much more beneficial to its members, if all Lodges not only recognised the practicality of this, but were also able to really initiate, and where its members could all feel themself make real progress on their individual journey? Esoterics would take on a whole new meaning for some - not an academic trivia but a practical means of taking a regular step.
It happens in some lodges I am sure (well as sure as a profane man can be).