"He that getteth wisdom loveth his own Soul." Proverbs 19:8

At first thought this appears to be neither more nor less than pure selfishness. However, there is a wide gulf between the self and that of wholly self interest or selfishness.

This pertinent statement was made by one who avoided the almost universal "snap" judgment of those who have sought, and found, an excuse for not making personal effort to become free from the gross self. By opening his vision to the Spiritual side of his being, man learns to comprehend most clearly the distinction between the Spiritual "self" and material "selfness":

"Those who mistrust the new interpretation of the Divine edict which commands men to develop all their talents often believe that the deification of self is an attempt to equate God with the human personality, to depose Deity in order to enshrine a part of His creation. Whosoever enters into the experience of contacting the depths of his own inmost being, will emerge only with deeper reverence for God. He will realize his helplessness and dependence when he thinks of that Greater Being from whom he draws every breath that gives him existence. Instead of deifying the personal or gross self, HE HAS COMPLETELY CHANGED OR TRANSMUTED HIMSELF, becoming humble and devotional. The self, in the ordinary sense, must indeed be set aside so that the God man may enter."

Contrary to popular opinion, the first command is that man, not as an individual, but as personality, shall make every effort to change his personality, into an individuality. This requires, above all, that the "talents" which are a part of the God self, the Soul, inbreathed at the first breath of life, shall be, must be, fully developed. This CANNOT possibly be accomplished if the self is in any way neglected.

Moreover, this is obligatory upon every normal human being. There is NO SELFISHNESS IN THIS, UNLESS IT BE DONE FOR A SELFISH PURPOSE. If it is in compliance with the Law and in the spirit (intent and feeling) of the Law, then it is in harmony with God's Will and the end thereof is the change of the gross personality into the individuality, the selfish "son of man" into the unselfish "Son of God."

"He that getteth wisdom loveth his own Soul."

Is not this Soul the inner Spiritual self? Does not this command instruct man to love his own Soul, the Spark of God? Above all else, does it not imply that he must so love this Inner Self as to be willing to make every possible effort to learn all about it and, having gained the wisdom enabling him to make the necessary effort, to develop this Inner Self into the God likeness with all earnestness? This is not selfishness. It is the fulfillment of the Law under which the Soul comes into the world of matter.

Solomon, King of Magi, is the classical example of what a man should do if he seeks to fulfill the complete Law. Solomon found favor with God and the gods because in his choice of all that was offered him he chose understanding and Wisdom. Appreciating this unselfishness, God gave him the possession of all other things so that he "became wise and mighty" in the sight of both God and man. Wisdom is the complete comprehension of Law, and the application the Law leads to Soul Consciousness, or At-one-ment with God, i.e., Sonship.

Tracing back throughout the centuries, it will be found that the word "church" was not originally interpreted as a building wherein god was worshipped, but as referring to a man who had individualized himself, - or become conscious of the indwelling Divinity; man was taught to be the , or "A" church. The use of the word "church" and "man" had a common origin. Both were common to the Coptic and Gnostic Fathers; the Christos was the indwelling Spirit; part of God: "Ye are [may be] the temples of the Living God."

The Nazarene accepted the Arcane teachings of these early Fathers who were Initiates and made frequent reference to their teachings in only a slightly different form. While the Fathers taught that by obedience to the Divine Law man could awaken the Christos within himself and thus deify his innate, dormant Spiritual self, the Nazarene called man's personal conscience the "indwelling Spirit," the "Spirit of God."

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of the Living God and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in You." __Corinthians 3:16.

In the establishment of the formal church, the word Christos was changed into "Christ." The church became something to belong to instead of A BECOMING. The Christ was something to believe in, and to petition to be "saved," rather than something in which man must not only believe, but must also, by his thoughts, desires and efforts, BECOME. In the Arcane, man purifies the self to become a fitting place in which the Christ can dwell. This Christos awakens and brings into Consciousness the Divine Spark, the Christ and this accomplished, the Christos, or Christ is in his church or the "temple."

"Ye are the temple of the Living God." __II Corinthians 6:16.

Know ye not that this is so? Man should believe the Nazarene's statement that he is, or, more correctly, may BECOME this Temple and the God, i.e., of the Christos who as a part of God may dwell therein. Man cannot know this for a certainty until, by self effort, he has brought himself into this Consciousness. Broadly speaking, this is the deification of the self, both personal and Spiritual, and it is a Divine command.

From the moment of man's birth on earth, the impersonal spirit of God in the form of life, and the Spirit of God in the form of the unconscious Christos, dwell WITHIN him. Man possesses within himself all of the potentialities of a divinity, a Son of God. But this Divine Spark, the Divine Light, is only potential, It is man's earth-life duty, his mission by Divine decree, to bring this part of the Godhead, this Light from heaven, into full force and manifestation.

Just as the faintest spark of fire can be fanned into a flame that will consume all that is gross or material, so can man fan this Spark into a flame that will consume, or transmute, all that is gross within himself. In doing this, he becomes an individual church, the Nazarene's temple; and the Christos becomes the Christ, the "God" dwelling therein. If this be not true, then there is no basis for the statement:

"...Ye are [may become] the temple of the living God [The Christ]." __I Corinthians 3:16.

Gaining an understanding of the laws of nature, of life and of the Divinity, in relation to our personal self and the world at large, leads to wisdom governing all activities, both material and Spiritual. This is the Divine command. The man who becomes aware that he is more than material gross matter, and that there is within him a part of the Divine, a Soul, will gradually begin to "love" that Soul, because he at the same time becomes conscious that the Soul, the Spiritual, is the only reality; all things else being temporal and fleeting.

In the process of becoming conscious of even the possibility of the Spiritual self, there is born a desire to first awaken that Spiritual self and bring it into Consciousness; then into manifestation, and finally into an At-one-ment with the divinity itself. When this is accomplished, then and only then will man KNOW that he is:

"...the temple, the Church, of a living God."

So long as man is unaware of the presence of the divinity in the form of the Divine Spark, the Christos, within himself, he will be, to all intents and purposes, "dead" to the prompting of that Presence; he will be living in darkness, gross matter, a victim of all the forces surrounding him, including his fellow men who seemingly are more informed of life and its possibilities than he is.

God, in the creation of man, had a design and a definite purpose, and under the Law that purpose is revealed in these words:

"As above, so below."

This Law is imperfectly stated in the creed:

"In heaven as on earth."

Deep within man's nature is hidden amidst his longings, his uncertainties, his dissatisfactions, the divine urge for something better, greater and higher than a mere matter-of-fact existence. When this as yet undefined urge or longing becomes strong enough, the thoughts and desires will turn toward the as yet unknown, but inwardly sensed, Spiritual certainty. This is recognized as the Soul turning toward God. Actually it is as yet not the Soul, because that is still unawakened, but the unconscious urge of the sleeping Soul's divinity sending forth its rays from a slumbering Light - a spark that must ultimately become a Flame; the Living Soul that is to inhabit the Temple, or "Church of God." Those who have attained by becoming Soul-conscious, are the Illuminated; members, by right of attainment; a Church of Illumination.

All that man can bring into manifestation, his thoughts, desires and achievements, must be born within his own being. Words and opinions expressed by others may be incentives, but they find no lodgment within him unless harmonious desires already exist. A thought may attain such intensity that it will invade all space outside of its source, like the waves of a powerful radio station, but these waves will find no lodgment unless the "field" is prepared for them. It is thus that man, being a universe within himself, awakens the tiny flame of Divinity that will illuminate the whole man and, in time, increase to create a power or force that will lift him to the plane of Soul Consciousness.

The "still small voice" of man's conscious or awakened Soul, is also the voice of the Christos, standing, knocking at the door of the temple. The fully awakened Voice of Conscience is the directing voice of the Divine Law. Continued obedience to this Voice which may be in the form of an urge, an impression, a feeling, an incentive, or all of these in combination, will gradually develop to such a degree that it will be as a guide in all of man's activities.

Care must be exercised not to confuse this "voice" with desire. This is not a difficult distinction to make. God gave man reason. By reason he can analyze, and by analysis he will be able to differentiate between the voice that directs him toward good and away from evil, and the desires which may be purely of the flesh. The development of this Spiritual faculty, often called the "voice of the Soul," is comparable to the voice or desire of the personal self.

It opens to man the possibility of coming into touch or contact with the Hierarchies of the spaces, the "gods" of Biblical lore; whose one desire is to help and serve man; to guide him wisely and well, that he too, if he will, may become like one of them.

Only the transmutation of the gross self, the carnal passions, and the awakening and gradual development of the Soul, will lead man to Sonship with the father. Through desire and effort, the personal self will become a Christic personification, the rock or foundation of his church (temple) wherein the Christ may dwell. By this means he becomes an Illuminated Soul, of whom it may be said: "Thou art BECOME A Christ: the son of man changed into a Son of God." Those who accept and become, will be the "Rock" on which alone the Church of God can be built. In them will glow the "Light which is neither on land nor sea." And this Light always leads men in the same direction and to the same destination. Such men build the individual "church" of the Gnostic fathers, and in these churches will dwell the Christos, BECOME the Christ. These are:

"...the temples of the Living God."

It is the "living God" because Conscious Souls no longer merely believe in a God that gave them life and Light; they know Him by actually becoming "Sons of the Living God." __I Corinthians 3:16.

As the Acolyte gradually becomes conscious of the Light that proceeds from his own Awakening Soul, he feels the first thrill of a conscious unity with God. After experiencing this Spiritual birth, he will make every effort to continue to manifest in himself the likeness of the Divinity. He responds with mind, heart and inner feeling, makes efforts not only to improve his every condition, but at the same time to render help to others who may actually be in need of encouragement to advance themselves and improve their environments. His vision of new and wider fields of action increases as he becomes more aware of the struggles of humanity and the causes for them. He recognizes, in the masses, captive Souls desiring freedom, but unwilling to make the necessary effort. He sees around him those who have not only become slaves to others stronger than themselves, or more favorably placed but, most of all abject slaves to their own weaknesses, inertia and the appetites of the flesh.

Those in the process of awakening to the realities, begin to recognize the falsity of the glimmer of self-aggrandizement and temporal profits. Old doubts, prejudices, biased judgment, etc., are cast aside much as are old, worn-out garments. Gradually, and by slow degrees, they begin to think, desire, and direct their actions in harmony with the Divine Law. Slowly, the veil of ignorance and darkness is lifted, and they begin to glimpse the operations of nature "face to face" by becoming familiar with her secret workings.

In proportion as knowledge increases, so will love and adoration for the Giver and Director of all that is, and the developing Soul becomes the Church individualized. He will become the priest of God, and then the Voice of the Cherubim will inform him: "Thou art [become] the Christ [the Son] of the Living God; now do thou my works."

The Illumination of the Soul is brought about by the Fire, the Flame, the Light, the Christos made manifest - God in His Temple, thus dispelling all darkness. The passions of the carnal self - hate, jealousy, resentment, avarice, malice - these constitute the darkness that envelopes the mind. Man cannot continue to live in such darkness without inviting chaos and self-destruction. Man is never destroyed or even punished by God, but by these enemies that he harbors within his own being. Darkness (all of the evil passions) culminates in hades, the "bottomless pit prepared for the habitation of the devil [all evil] and all his angels [all evil works]." Created by the evil that envelopes the Soul, this hades, plus the sting (conscience) of judgment, constitutes man's real "hell" from which he is made to suffer. So long as man foolishly continues to dwell in his self-created hell, by countenancing the destructive, degrading passions within himself will he continue to meet with the misfortunes that bring misery upon his head.

Every attempt, whether successful or not, whether conscious or unconscious, to violate the Divine Law, will bring suffering and greater darkness upon man's inner Spiritual self, the Soul. This, in turn, is reflected upon his entire being, and in every activity and department of his life.

In full measure, each personality is the creator of his own destiny - his body, his environment, his condition and position in life. Wisely wrote the poet when he said: "I am the captain of my Soul." Man, in his first incarnation, was sent forth, or permitted to go forth, by the Supreme Creator, as a branch from the parent vine. A ray of Light followed him into his mundane sphere of existence. This ray was associated with all that was good, beautiful and harmonious in the Creative Law, and he was bound by, and charged with, the fulfillment of the Law.

Gradually, because of ignorance or willfulness, he has fallen from his first innocent estate -- his residence in the Garden of Eden (innocence) to his present condition and position as a slave to his own weakness and the dictation of his fellow men. Even now, fallen as he is, he is bound only by his own stubbornness in refusing to purge himself - mind, heart and Soul - from the admittedly undesirable passions such as hate, malice, selfishness, jealousy, avarice and other of like nature; all degrading, debasing, depressing and the source of all he has labeled "fate" or "misfortune."

God is life. God is Law. God is all, or in all, that is desirable and able to make life worthwhile. It may truly be said that He exists in every form and every expression of life and activity that is constructive and exalting. WITHOUT HIM THERE IS NOTHING. Even all that is evil is merely good in REVERSE; a retrogression. Essentially, God is in matter, being all that is, though NOT in all its expressions of manifestations.

"I am the life," proclaims the voice of God. Therefore He must also be that in which life exists. In each grain of wheat there is the nucleus of life, a spark that springs into a creative flame the moment it is given the proper environment, and will then reproduce itself.

This spark of life that creates more of life, is the spirit of God. It is the same spirit, unpersonified, that dwell in man, and its expression in giving life, is the same as in man. Only the form is different.

The Divine Word has it that "God made all that was made" and "without Him there was nothing made." All that was made, or came into existence, was therefore an expression of an image within His Creative self.

All things that obey His Law, or work in harmony with it, are in unity; hence in harmony with His plan, except man and his activities. While man was a part of His plan, he was given free Will, the right to disobey His Law. By this disobedience man continuously retards the consummation of the Divine Plan and, as a consequence, suffers all the ills to which the flesh is heir, and which the Soul is capable of suffering.

Before the Divine Law in its operation can be made applicable by man in the awakening and development (the Rebirth in the Spirit) of the Soul, it must be accepted by the mind as a means to the betterment of the whole of man: body, mind, spirit (vitality, virility, health and strength). The activities of the mind are never secret, because they are made manifest by the actions of the physical man.

This was recognized by the Nazarene and expressed in his statement: "There is nothing hidden that shall not be made manifest." All action has it birth or beginning in ideas; ideas take form in desire; desire, if intense enough, is the incentive, the Will to action, and action makes the whole man.

In like manner is the Christ idea born, or accepted by the mind of man. Life and all its activities then begins to be governed in harmony with the desire until Soul or Christ Consciousness is finally attained. The Christos is a reality, as much so, far more so, than the body. The Christ is the Ideal into which the Christos must be awakened, become conscious.

The mind is the director of action; the guide that must watch every step of the way. By right, i.e., constructive thinking, by the vision of the Ideal, by action in harmony with the thought and the Ideal, the Spiritual creative forces awaken and unfold, manifest and bring into manifestation the Christos as the Christ.

During the process, step by step with progress, every avenue of the physical being is regenerated; the carnal self is purged of evil and becomes the medium for the expression of the Divinity in man; the son of mortality, taking upon himself Immortality; not by faith alone, but by works; by being a faithful servant in the "vineyard of the Lord."

The Divine Spark in every personality is ordained to become a well-rounded, fully defined center of pure, white, radiant Light; a dynamic nucleus, or center of fire that is the expression of love and compassion; kindliness and generosity; devotion and adoration.

By means of this process of becoming through the transmutation of the undesirable, the personality is gradually changed into an individuality; a temple, i.e., church, in which God, that is, the Awakened, Conscious Soul, will dwell. To repeat:

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of the living God." __I Corinthians 3:16

However, man is not the temple, cannot be such, until he has fulfilled his part of the Divine Law. He must rid his physical house of the thieves and money changers," and make it a fit dwelling place for the Divine. During this process he must succeed in awakening the inert Christos within himself into the Christ - as a Son of God.

Man is the architect who must build, or possibly more correctly speaking, Rebuild, the temple after the pattern followed by Solomon. He must create a Spiritual structure not built by hands, not the sound of hammer, but by the refined, exalted desire, devotion and adoration of all that is beautiful; by the love in his heart, and the wisdom he may obtain from the Divine Law. The light upon the Altar in the innermost Sanctum Sanctorum will be the Flame that is LOVE from God, who IS LOVE.

Man was created to be a reflection of the Divine who gave him being; possessing all of the powers, capabilities, possibilities and attributes of the Infinite, though naturally, in a lesser degree.

Few men have succeeded in attaining the ultimate because of innate selfishness, the unwillingness to make the necessary exchange of the temporal in their possession for the eternal to be gained. Men have lost the all-important key to their possible heritage as a result of this same selfishness and the failure to develop, bring into manifestation, the "talents" with which they are endowed at birth.

Men are not born equal, but they are endowed with equal possibilities, with Free Will, and the choice of what they will do with these possibilities, "talents," and opportunities.

In some, these "talents" are in a wholly latent state, entirely hidden under the debris we know as selfishness, dishonor, ignobility and depravity. But, even so, unless all of the unmanifested good has been utterly destroyed by persistent, degrading practices, they none-the-less remain potentialities awaiting unfoldment and application.

In another, they may not be so completely submerged and a little suffering, some loss and sorrow, may arouse the desire for better things and bring about constructive activity.

Instill another, these hidden qualities are in the process of becoming a dynamic expression of individualization; the inner Spiritual self, the Christos, has already become conscious of its inseparable affinity with the infinite and a radiating center of powers and forces for good - a perfect pyramidal Flame within, and an outer expression of what man may attain to.

To the exact degree of consciousness attained will the developing Soul radiate the qualities of love, compassion, forgiveness and kindliness to all who come within their sphere of action and who are open to receive. Such an individual has achieved, or is in a fair way to achieve, a state of individualized Consciousness, the Immortalization of the inner Spiritual self, the Soul. He is a personification of the Church" within which the Christos, the "living God," has come to dwell.

Such a man is no longer sufficient unto himself, because he has become, to the degree of his advancement, a co-worker with his Creator, and he is compelled by the Divine Law to express that which IS. He continuously, consciously and unconsciously, sends out though currents, radiations or vibrations of good-will, love, peace and kindliness to all who are ready and open to receive.

The habitual feeling of good will and generosity creates a nucleus of mighty power. Thought responds to thought. As one thinks of others so will they if of like nature, think of him. Thus is a dynamic center established.

In this way those of similar thought and feeling, though unknown to each other, are in communion, possibly unconsciously so, and increase each other's possibilities and capabilities. Such Souls become illuminated with the light of goodness (godliness) and greater life. All who are of like thought and desire, become part of the circle.

They become Temples (the Church) of the (living) God, Sons of God Illuminated by the Awakened Christos, the Spirit of the indwelling Christ.

Each and every personality not wholly given over to evil, is capable of becoming the Church of the Living God; a center of dynamic, all-pervading Light. Such a Soul brings blessings upon the less fortunate; serving them to the end that they, too, if desirous, may become manifestations of the Divine.

Thus in time will individuals of like mind and hearts become associated together as centers of light fulfilling the scripture:

"When two or more are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them."

They will band together as co-workers with the operating Divine Law whose ideals, aims and purposes urge them inward to greater efforts, to still further advance themselves and at the same time, serve their fellow men who truly deserve help in improving their position in life, both materially and Spiritually.

Such co-workers through their united efforts, their harmony or purpose, their concentration incited by pure noble thoughts, will start, and keep in motion, vibratory waves of great power. This will prove a blessing to the weary who are as yet not strong enough to stand alone.

The powerful vibrations generated by such groups will ultimately burn up the hatred and malice of unregenerate men who live in darkness and appreciate nothing other than that which momentarily serves their dwarfed, despicable, debased selves.

These, the as yet few, who have become, or are in the process of becoming, the Church, in whom dwells the living God, will stand as a beacon light, pointing the way to others of ever higher and higher realms of attainment. These are the followers of Manisis, the interpreter of the New Order to be established and made permanent among men.
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