The Urantia Book
PAPER 132
THE SOJOURN AT ROME
132:0.1 SINCE Gonod carried greetings from the
princes of India to Tiberius, the Roman ruler, on the third day
after their arrival in Rome the two Indians and Jesus appeared
before him. The morose emperor was unusually cheerful on this day
and chatted long with the trio. And when they had gone from his
presence, the emperor, referring to Jesus, remarked to the aide
standing on his right, "If I had that fellow's kingly bearing and
gracious manner, I would be a real emperor, eh?"
132:0.2 While at Rome, Ganid had regular hours
for study and for visiting places of interest about the city. His
father had much business to transact, and desiring that his son
grow up to become a worthy successor in the management of his vast
commercial interests, he thought the time had come to introduce
the boy to the business world. There were many citizens of India
in Rome, and often one of Gonod's own employees would accompany
him as interpreter so that Jesus would have whole days to himself;
this gave him time in which to become thoroughly acquainted with
this city of two million inhabitants. He was frequently to be
found in the forum, the center of political, legal, and business
life. He often went up to the Capitolium and pondered the bondage
of ignorance in which these Romans were held as he beheld this
magnificent temple dedicated to Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. He
also spent much time on Palatine hill, where were located the
emperor's residence, the temple of Apollo, and the Greek and Latin
libraries.
132:0.3 At this time the Roman Empire included
all of southern Europe, Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and northwest
Africa; and its inhabitants embraced the citizens of every country
of the Eastern Hemisphere. His desire to study and mingle with
this cosmopolitan aggregation of Urantia mortals was the chief
reason why Jesus consented to make this journey.
132:0.4 Jesus learned much about men while in
Rome, but the most valuable of all the manifold experiences of his
six months' sojourn in that city was his contact with, and
influence upon, the religious leaders of the empire's capital.
Before the end of the first week in Rome Jesus had sought out, and
had made the acquaintance of, the worth-while leaders of the
Cynics, the Stoics, and the mystery cults, in particular the
Mithraic group. Whether or not it was apparent to Jesus that the
Jews were going to reject his mission, he most certainly foresaw
that his messengers were presently coming to Rome to proclaim the
kingdom of heaven; and he therefore set about, in the most amazing
manner, to prepare the way for the better and more certain
reception of their message. He selected five of the leading
Stoics, eleven of the Cynics, and sixteen of the mystery-cult
leaders and spent much of his spare time for almost six months in
intimate association with these religious teachers. And this was
his method of instruction: Never once did he attack their errors
or even mention the flaws in their teachings. In each case he
would select the truth in what they taught and then proceed so to
embellish and illuminate this truth in their minds that in a very
short time this enhancement of the truth effectively crowded out
the associated error; and thus were these Jesus-taught men and
women prepared for the subsequent recognition of additional and
similar truths in the teachings of the early Christian
missionaries. It was this early acceptance of the teachings of the
gospel preachers which gave that powerful impetus to the rapid
spread of Christianity in Rome and from there throughout the
empire.
132:0.5 The significance of this remarkable
doing can the better be understood when we record the fact that,
out of this group of thirty-two Jesus-taught religious leaders in
Rome, only two were unfruitful; the thirty became pivotal
individuals in the establishment of Christianity in Rome, and
certain of them also aided in turning the chief Mithraic temple
into the first Christian church of that city. We who view human
activities from behind the scenes and in the light of nineteen
centuries of time recognize just three factors of paramount value
in the early setting of the stage for the rapid spread of
Christianity throughout Europe, and they are:
1. The choosing and holding of Simon
Peter as an apostle.
2. The talk in Jerusalem with Stephen,
whose death led to the winning of Saul of Tarsus.
3. The preliminary preparation of
these thirty Romans for the subsequent leadership of the new
religion in Rome and throughout the empire.
132:0.6 Through all their experiences, neither
Stephen nor the thirty chosen ones ever realized that they had
once talked with the man whose name became the subject of their
religious teaching. Jesus' work in behalf of the original
thirty-two was entirely personal. In his labors for these
individuals the scribe of Damascus never met more than three of
them at one time, seldom more than two, while most often he taught
them singly. And he could do this great work of religious training
because these men and women were not tradition bound; they were
not victims of a settled preconception as to all future religious
developments.
132:0.7 Many were the times in the years so soon
to follow that Peter, Paul, and the other Christian teachers in
Rome heard about this scribe of Damascus who had preceded them,
and who had so obviously (and as they supposed unwittingly)
prepared the way for their coming with the new gospel. Though Paul
never really surmised the identity of this scribe of Damascus, he
did, a short time before his death, because of the similarity of
personal descriptions, reach the conclusion that the "tentmaker of
Antioch" was also the "scribe of Damascus." On one occasion, while
preaching in Rome, Simon Peter, on listening to a description of
the Damascus scribe, surmised that this individual might have been
Jesus but quickly dismissed the idea, knowing full well (so he
thought) that the Master had never been in Rome.
1. TRUE VALUES
132:1.1 It was with Angamon, the leader of the
Stoics, that Jesus had an all-night talk early during his sojourn
in Rome. This man subsequently became a great friend of Paul and
proved to be one of the strong supporters of the Christian church
at Rome. In substance, and restated in modern phraseology, Jesus
taught Angamon:
132:1.2 The standard of true values must be
looked for in the spiritual world and on divine levels of eternal
reality. To an ascending mortal all lower and material standards
must be recognized as transient, partial, and inferior. The
scientist, as such, is limited to the discovery of the relatedness
of material facts. Technically, he has no right to assert that he
is either materialist or idealist, for in so doing he has assumed
to forsake the attitude of a true scientist since any and all such
assertions of attitude are the very essence of philosophy.
132:1.3 Unless the moral insight and the
spiritual attainment of mankind are proportionately augmented, the
unlimited advancement of a purely materialistic culture may
eventually become a menace to civilization. A purely materialistic
science harbors within itself the potential seed of the
destruction of all scientific striving, for this very attitude
presages the ultimate collapse of a civilization which has
abandoned its sense of moral values and has repudiated its
spiritual goal of attainment.
132:1.4 The materialistic scientist and the
extreme idealist are destined always to be at loggerheads. This is
not true of those scientists and idealists who are in possession
of a common standard of high moral values and spiritual test
levels. In every age scientists and religionists must recognize
that they are on trial before the bar of human need. They must
eschew all warfare between themselves while they strive valiantly
to justify their continued survival by enhanced devotion to the
service of human progress. If the so-called science or religion of
any age is false, then must it either purify its activities or
pass away before the emergence of a material science or spiritual
religion of a truer and more worthy order.
2. GOOD AND EVIL
132:2.1 Mardus was the acknowledged leader of
the Cynics of Rome, and he became a great friend of the scribe of
Damascus. Day after day he conversed with Jesus, and night upon
night he listened to his supernal teaching. Among the more
important discussions with Mardus was the one designed to answer
this sincere Cynic's question about good and evil. In substance,
and in twentieth-century phraseology, Jesus said:
132:2.2 My brother, good and evil are merely
words symbolizing relative levels of human comprehension of the
observable universe. If you are ethically lazy and socially
indifferent, you can take as your standard of good the current
social usages. If you are spiritually indolent and morally
unprogressive, you may take as your standards of good the
religious practices and traditions of your contemporaries. But the
soul that survives time and emerges into eternity must make a
living and personal choice between good and evil as they are
determined by the true values of the spiritual standards
established by the divine spirit which the Father in heaven has
sent to dwell within the heart of man. This indwelling spirit is
the standard of personality survival.
132:2.3 Goodness, like truth, is always relative
and unfailingly evil-contrasted. It is the perception of these
qualities of goodness and truth that enables the evolving souls of
men to make those personal decisions of choice which are essential
to eternal survival.
132:2.4 The spiritually blind individual who
logically follows scientific dictation, social usage, and
religious dogma stands in grave danger of sacrificing his moral
freedom and losing his spiritual liberty. Such a soul is destined
to become an intellectual parrot, a social automaton, and a slave
to religious authority.
132:2.5 Goodness is always growing toward new
levels of the increasing liberty of moral self-realization and
spiritual personality attainment -- the discovery of, and
identification with, the indwelling Adjuster. An experience is
good when it heightens the appreciation of beauty, augments the
moral will, enhances the discernment of truth, enlarges the
capacity to love and serve one's fellows, exalts the spiritual
ideals, and unifies the supreme human motives of time with the
eternal plans of the indwelling Adjuster, all of which lead
directly to an increased desire to do the Father's will, thereby
fostering the divine passion to find God and to be more like him.
132:2.6 As you ascend the universe scale of
creature development, you will find increasing goodness and
diminishing evil in perfect accordance with your capacity for
goodness-experience and truth-discernment. The ability to
entertain error or experience evil will not be fully lost until
the ascending human soul achieves final spirit levels.
132:2.7 Goodness is living, relative, always
progressing, invariably a personal experience, and everlastingly
correlated with the discernment of truth and beauty. Goodness is
found in the recognition of the positive truth-values of the
spiritual level, which must, in human experience, be contrasted
with the negative counterpart -- the shadows of potential evil.
132:2.8 Until you attain Paradise levels,
goodness will always be more of a quest than a possession, more of
a goal than an experience of attainment. But even as you hunger
and thirst for righteousness, you experience increasing
satisfaction in the partial attainment of goodness. The presence
of goodness and evil in the world is in itself positive proof of
the existence and reality of man's moral will, the personality,
which thus identifies these values and is also able to choose
between them.
132:2.9 By the time of the attainment of
Paradise the ascending mortal's capacity for identifying the self
with true spirit values has become so enlarged as to result in the
attainment of the perfection of the possession of the light of
life. Such a perfected spirit personality becomes so wholly,
divinely, and spiritually unified with the positive and supreme
qualities of goodness, beauty, and truth that there remains no
possibility that such a righteous spirit would cast any negative
shadow of potential evil when exposed to the searching luminosity
of the divine light of the infinite Rulers of Paradise. In all
such spirit personalities, goodness is no longer partial,
contrastive, and comparative; it has become divinely complete and
spiritually replete; it approaches the purity and perfection of
the Supreme.
132:2.10 The possibility of evil is
necessary to moral choosing, but not the actuality thereof. A
shadow is only relatively real. Actual evil is not necessary as a
personal experience. Potential evil acts equally well as a
decision stimulus in the realms of moral progress on the lower
levels of spiritual development. Evil becomes a reality of
personal experience only when a moral mind makes evil its choice.
3. TRUTH AND FAITH
132:3.1 Nabon was a Greek Jew and foremost among
the leaders of the chief mystery cult in Rome, the Mithraic. While
this high priest of Mithraism held many conferences with the
Damascus scribe, he was most permanently influenced by their
discussion of truth and faith one evening. Nabon had thought to
make a convert of Jesus and had even suggested that he return to
Palestine as a Mithraic teacher. He little realized that Jesus was
preparing him to become one of the early converts to the gospel of
the kingdom. Restated in modern phraseology, the substance of
Jesus' teaching was:
132:3.2 Truth cannot be defined with words, only
by living. Truth is always more than knowledge. Knowledge pertains
to things observed, but truth transcends such purely material
levels in that it consorts with wisdom and embraces such
imponderables as human experience, even spiritual and living
realities. Knowledge originates in science; wisdom, in true
philosophy; truth, in the religious experience of spiritual
living. Knowledge deals with facts; wisdom, with relationships;
truth, with reality values.
132:3.3 Man tends to crystallize science,
formulate philosophy, and dogmatize truth because he is mentally
lazy in adjusting to the progressive struggles of living, while he
is also terribly afraid of the unknown. Natural man is slow to
initiate changes in his habits of thinking and in his techniques
of living.
132:3.4 Revealed truth, personally discovered
truth, is the supreme delight of the human soul; it is the joint
creation of the material mind and the indwelling spirit. The
eternal salvation of this truth-discerning and beauty-loving soul
is assured by that hunger and thirst for goodness which leads this
mortal to develop a singleness of purpose to do the Father's will,
to find God and to become like him. There is never conflict
between true knowledge and truth. There may be conflict between
knowledge and human beliefs, beliefs colored with prejudice,
distorted by fear, and dominated by the dread of facing new facts
of material discovery or spiritual progress.
132:3.5 But truth can never become man's
possession without the exercise of faith. This is true because
man's thoughts, wisdom, ethics, and ideals will never rise higher
than his faith, his sublime hope. And all such true faith is
predicated on profound reflection, sincere self-criticism, and
uncompromising moral consciousness. Faith is the inspiration of
the spiritized creative imagination.
132:3.6 Faith acts to release the superhuman
activities of the divine spark, the immortal germ, that lives
within the mind of man, and which is the potential of eternal
survival. Plants and animals survive in time by the technique of
passing on from one generation to another identical particles of
themselves. The human soul (personality) of man survives mortal
death by identity association with this indwelling spark of
divinity, which is immortal, and which functions to perpetuate the
human personality upon a continuing and higher level of
progressive universe existence. The concealed seed of the human
soul is an immortal spirit. The second generation of the soul is
the first of a succession of personality manifestations of
spiritual and progressing existences, terminating only when this
divine entity attains the source of its existence, the personal
source of all existence, God, the Universal Father.
132:3.7 Human life continues -- survives --
because it has a universe function, the task of finding God. The
faith-activated soul of man cannot stop short of the attainment of
this goal of destiny; and when it does once achieve this divine
goal, it can never end because it has become like God -- eternal.
132:3.8 Spiritual evolution is an experience of
the increasing and voluntary choice of goodness attended by an
equal and progressive diminution of the possibility of evil. With
the attainment of finality of choice for goodness and of completed
capacity for truth appreciation, there comes into existence a
perfection of beauty and holiness whose righteousness eternally
inhibits the possibility of the emergence of even the concept of
potential evil. Such a God-knowing soul casts no shadow of
doubting evil when functioning on such a high spirit level of
divine goodness.
132:3.9 The presence of the Paradise spirit in
the mind of man constitutes the revelation promise and the faith
pledge of an eternal existence of divine progression for every
soul seeking to achieve identity with this immortal and indwelling
spirit fragment of the Universal Father.
132:3.10 Universe progress is characterized by
increasing personality freedom because it is associated with the
progressive attainment of higher and higher levels of
self-understanding and consequent voluntary self-restraint. The
attainment of perfection of spiritual self-restraint equals
completeness of universe freedom and personal liberty. Faith
fosters and maintains man's soul in the midst of the confusion of
his early orientation in such a vast universe, whereas prayer
becomes the great unifier of the various inspirations of the
creative imagination and the faith urges of a soul trying to
identify itself with the spirit ideals of the indwelling and
associated divine presence.
132:3.11 Nabon was greatly impressed by these
words, as he was by each of his talks with Jesus. These truths
continued to burn within his heart, and he was of great assistance
to the later arriving preachers of Jesus' gospel.
4. PERSONAL MINISTRY
132:4.1 Jesus did not devote all his leisure
while in Rome to this work of preparing men and women to become
future disciples in the oncoming kingdom. He spent much time
gaining an intimate knowledge of all races and classes of men who
lived in this, the largest and most cosmopolitan city of the
world. In each of these numerous human contacts Jesus had a double
purpose: He desired to learn their reactions to the life they were
living in the flesh, and he was also minded to say or do something
to make that life richer and more worth while. His religious
teachings during these weeks were no different than those which
characterized his later life as teacher of the twelve and preacher
to the multitudes.
132:4.2 Always the burden of his message was:
the fact of the heavenly Father's love and the truth of his mercy,
coupled with the good news that man is a faith-son of this same
God of love. Jesus' usual technique of social contact was to draw
people out and into talking with him by asking them questions. The
interview would usually begin by his asking them questions and end
by their asking him questions. He was equally adept in teaching by
either asking or answering questions. As a rule, to those he
taught the most, he said the least. Those who derived most benefit
from his personal ministry were overburdened, anxious, and
dejected mortals who gained much relief because of the opportunity
to unburden their souls to a sympathetic and understanding
listener, and he was all that and more. And when these maladjusted
human beings had told Jesus about their troubles, always was he
able to offer practical and immediately helpful suggestions
looking toward the correction of their real difficulties, albeit
he did not neglect to speak words of present comfort and immediate
consolation. And invariably would he tell these distressed mortals
about the love of God and impart the information, by various and
sundry methods, that they were the children of this loving Father
in heaven.
132:4.3 In this manner, during the sojourn in
Rome, Jesus personally came into affectionate and uplifting
contact with upward of five hundred mortals of the realm. He thus
gained a knowledge of the different races of mankind which he
could never have acquired in Jerusalem and hardly even in
Alexandria. He always regarded this six months as one of the
richest and most informative of any like period of his earth life.
132:4.4 As might have been expected, such a
versatile and aggressive man could not thus function for six
months in the world's metropolis without being approached by
numerous persons who desired to secure his services in connection
with some business or, more often, for some project of teaching,
social reform, or religious movement. More than a dozen such
proffers were made, and he utilized each one as an opportunity for
imparting some thought of spiritual ennoblement by well-chosen
words or by some obliging service. Jesus was very fond of doing
things -- even little things -- for all sorts of people.
132:4.5 He talked with a Roman senator on
politics and statesmanship, and this one contact with Jesus made
such an impression on this legislator that he spent the rest of
his life vainly trying to induce his colleagues to change the
course of the ruling policy from the idea of the government
supporting and feeding the people to that of the people supporting
the government. Jesus spent one evening with a wealthy
slaveholder, talked about man as a son of God, and the next day
this man, Claudius, gave freedom to one hundred and seventeen
slaves. He visited at dinner with a Greek physician, telling him
that his patients had minds and souls as well as bodies, and thus
led this able doctor to attempt a more far-reaching ministry to
his fellow men. He talked with all sorts of people in every walk
of life. The only place in Rome he did not visit was the public
baths. He refused to accompany his friends to the baths because of
the sex promiscuity which there prevailed.
132:4.6 To a Roman soldier, as they walked along
the Tiber, he said: "Be brave of heart as well as of hand. Dare to
do justice and be big enough to show mercy. Compel your lower
nature to obey your higher nature as you obey your superiors.
Revere goodness and exalt truth. Choose the beautiful in place of
the ugly. Love your fellows and reach out for God with a whole
heart, for God is your Father in heaven."
132:4.7 To the speaker at the forum he said:
"Your eloquence is pleasing, your logic is admirable, your voice
is pleasant, but your teaching is hardly true. If you could only
enjoy the inspiring satisfaction of knowing God as your spiritual
Father, then you might employ your powers of speech to liberate
your fellows from the bondage of darkness and from the slavery of
ignorance." This was the Marcus who heard Peter preach in Rome and
became his successor. When they crucified Simon Peter, it was this
man who defied the Roman persecutors and boldly continued to
preach the new gospel.
132:4.8 Meeting a poor man who had been falsely
accused, Jesus went with him before the magistrate and, having
been granted special permission to appear in his behalf, made that
superb address in the course of which he said: "Justice makes a
nation great, and the greater a nation the more solicitous will it
be to see that injustice shall not befall even its most humble
citizen. Woe upon any nation when only those who possess money and
influence can secure ready justice before its courts! It is the
sacred duty of a magistrate to acquit the innocent as well as to
punish the guilty. Upon the impartiality, fairness, and integrity
of its courts the endurance of a nation depends. Civil government
is founded on justice, even as true religion is founded on mercy."
The judge reopened the case, and when the evidence had been
sifted, he discharged the prisoner. Of all Jesus' activities
during these days of personal ministry, this came the nearest to
being a public appearance.
5. COUNSELING THE RICH MAN
132:5.1 A certain rich man, a Roman citizen and
a Stoic, became greatly interested in Jesus' teaching, having been
introduced by Angamon. After many intimate conferences this
wealthy citizen asked Jesus what he would do with wealth if he had
it, and Jesus answered him: "I would bestow material wealth for
the enhancement of material life, even as I would minister
knowledge, wisdom, and spiritual service for the enrichment of the
intellectual life, the ennoblement of the social life, and the
advancement of the spiritual life. I would administer material
wealth as a wise and effective trustee of the resources of one
generation for the benefit and ennoblement of the next and
succeeding generations."
132:5.2 But the rich man was not fully satisfied
with Jesus' answer. He made bold to ask again: "But what do you
think a man in my position should do with his wealth? Should I
keep it, or should I give it away?" And when Jesus perceived that
he really desired to know more of the truth about his loyalty to
God and his duty to men, he further answered: "My good friend, I
discern that you are a sincere seeker after wisdom and an honest
lover of truth; therefore am I minded to lay before you my view of
the solution of your problems having to do with the
responsibilities of wealth. I do this because you have asked for
my counsel, and in giving you this advice, I am not concerned with
the wealth of any other rich man; I am offering advice only to you
and for your personal guidance. If you honestly desire to regard
your wealth as a trust, if you really wish to become a wise and
efficient steward of your accumulated wealth, then would I counsel
you to make the following analysis of the sources of your riches:
Ask yourself, and do your best to find the honest answer, whence
came this wealth? And as a help in the study of the sources of
your great fortune, I would suggest that you bear in mind the
following ten different methods of amassing material wealth:
"1. Inherited wealth -- riches
derived from parents and other ancestors.
"2. Discovered wealth -- riches
derived from the uncultivated resources of mother earth.
"3. Trade wealth -- riches obtained as
a fair profit in the exchange and barter of material goods.
"4. Unfair wealth -- riches derived
from the unfair exploitation or the enslavement of one's fellows.
"5. Interest wealth -- income derived
from the fair and just earning possibilities of invested capital.
"6. Genius wealth -- riches accruing
from the rewards of the creative and inventive endowments of the
human mind.
"7. Accidental wealth -- riches
derived from the generosity of one's fellows or taking origin in
the circumstances of life.
"8. Stolen wealth -- riches secured by
unfairness, dishonesty, theft, or fraud.
"9. Trust funds -- wealth lodged in
your hands by your fellows for some specific use, now or in the
future.
"10. Earned wealth -- riches derived
directly from your own personal labor, the fair and just reward of
your own daily efforts of mind and body.
132:5.3 "And so, my friend, if you would be a
faithful and just steward of your large fortune, before God and in
service to men, you must approximately divide your wealth into
these ten grand divisions, and then proceed to administer each
portion in accordance with the wise and honest interpretation of
the laws of justice, equity, fairness, and true efficiency;
albeit, the God of heaven would not condemn you if sometimes you
erred, in doubtful situations, on the side of merciful and
unselfish regard for the distress of the suffering victims of the
unfortunate circumstances of mortal life. When in honest doubt
about the equity and justice of material situations, let your
decisions favor those who are in need, favor those who suffer the
misfortune of undeserved hardships."
132:5.4 After discussing these matters for
several hours and in response to the rich man's request for
further and more detailed instruction, Jesus went on to amplify
his advice, in substance saying: "While I offer further
suggestions concerning your attitude toward wealth, I would
admonish you to receive my counsel as given only to you and for
your personal guidance. I speak only for myself and to you as an
inquiring friend. I adjure you not to become a dictator as to how
other rich men shall regard their wealth. I would advise you:
132:5.5 "1. As steward of inherited wealth you
should consider its sources. You are under moral obligation to
represent the past generation in the honest transmittal of
legitimate wealth to succeeding generations after subtracting a
fair toll for the benefit of the present generation. But you are
not obligated to perpetuate any dishonesty or injustice involved
in the unfair accumulation of wealth by your ancestors. Any
portion of your inherited wealth which turns out to have been
derived through fraud or unfairness, you may disburse in
accordance with your convictions of justice, generosity, and
restitution. The remainder of your legitimate inherited wealth you
may use in equity and transmit in security as the trustee of one
generation for another. Wise discrimination and sound judgment
should dictate your decisions regarding the bequest of riches to
your successors.
132:5.6 "2. Everyone who enjoys wealth as a
result of discovery should remember that one individual can live
on earth but a short season and should, therefore, make adequate
provision for the sharing of these discoveries in helpful ways by
the largest possible number of his fellow men. While the
discoverer should not be denied all reward for efforts of
discovery, neither should he selfishly presume to lay claim to all
of the advantages and blessings to be derived from the uncovering
of nature's hoarded resources.
132:5.7 "3. As long as men choose to conduct the
world's business by trade and barter, they are entitled to a fair
and legitimate profit. Every tradesman deserves wages for his
services; the merchant is entitled to his hire. The fairness of
trade and the honest treatment accorded one's fellows in the
organized business of the world create many different sorts of
profit wealth, and all these sources of wealth must be judged by
the highest principles of justice, honesty, and fairness. The
honest trader should not hesitate to take the same profit which he
would gladly accord his fellow trader in a similar transaction.
While this sort of wealth is not identical with individually
earned income when business dealings are conducted on a large
scale, at the same time, such honestly accumulated wealth endows
its possessor with a considerable equity as regards a voice in its
subsequent distribution.
132:5.8 "4. No mortal who knows God and seeks to
do the divine will can stoop to engage in the oppressions of
wealth. No noble man will strive to accumulate riches and amass
wealth-power by the enslavement or unfair exploitation of his
brothers in the flesh. Riches are a moral curse and a spiritual
stigma when they are derived from the sweat of oppressed mortal
man. All such wealth should be restored to those who have thus
been robbed or to their children and their children's children. An
enduring civilization cannot be built upon the practice of
defrauding the laborer of his hire.
132:5.9 "5. Honest wealth is entitled to
interest. As long as men borrow and lend, that which is fair
interest may be collected provided the capital lent was legitimate
wealth. First cleanse your capital before you lay claim to the
interest. Do not become so small and grasping that you would stoop
to the practice of usury. Never permit yourself to be so selfish
as to employ money-power to gain unfair advantage over your
struggling fellows. Yield not to the temptation to take usury from
your brother in financial distress.
132:5.10 "6. If you chance to secure wealth by
flights of genius, if your riches are derived from the rewards of
inventive endowment, do not lay claim to an unfair portion of such
rewards. The genius owes something to both his ancestors and his
progeny; likewise is he under obligation to the race, nation, and
circumstances of his inventive discoveries; he should also
remember that it was as man among men that he labored and wrought
out his inventions. It would be equally unjust to deprive the
genius of all his increment of wealth. And it will ever be
impossible for men to establish rules and regulations applicable
equally to all these problems of the equitable distribution of
wealth. You must first recognize man as your brother, and if you
honestly desire to do by him as you would have him do by you, the
commonplace dictates of justice, honesty, and fairness will guide
you in the just and impartial settlement of every recurring
problem of economic rewards and social justice.
132:5.11 "7. Except for the just and legitimate
fees earned in administration, no man should lay personal claim to
that wealth which time and chance may cause to fall into his
hands. Accidental riches should be regarded somewhat in the light
of a trust to be expended for the benefit of one's social or
economic group. The possessors of such wealth should be accorded
the major voice in the determination of the wise and effective
distribution of such unearned resources. Civilized man will not
always look upon all that he controls as his personal and private
possession.
132:5.12 "8. If any portion of your fortune has
been knowingly derived from fraud; if aught of your wealth has
been accumulated by dishonest practices or unfair methods; if your
riches are the product of unjust dealings with your fellows, make
haste to restore all these ill-gotten gains to the rightful
owners. Make full amends and thus cleanse your fortune of all
dishonest riches.
132:5.13 "9. The trusteeship of the wealth of
one person for the benefit of others is a solemn and sacred
responsibility. Do not hazard or jeopardize such a trust. Take for
yourself of any trust only that which all honest men would allow.
132:5.14 "10. That part of your fortune which
represents the earnings of your own mental and physical efforts --
if your work has been done in fairness and equity -- is truly your
own. No man can gainsay your right to hold and use such wealth as
you may see fit provided your exercise of this right does not work
harm upon your fellows."
132:5.15 When Jesus had finished counseling him,
this wealthy Roman arose from his couch and, in saying farewell
for the night, delivered himself of this promise: "My good friend,
I perceive you are a man of great wisdom and goodness, and
tomorrow I will begin the administration of all my wealth in
accordance with your counsel."
6. SOCIAL MINISTRY
132:6.1 Here in Rome also occurred that touching
incident in which the Creator of a universe spent several hours
restoring a lost child to his anxious mother. This little boy had
wandered away from his home, and Jesus found him crying in
distress. He and Ganid were on their way to the libraries, but
they devoted themselves to getting the child back home. Ganid
never forgot Jesus' comment: "You know, Ganid, most human beings
are like the lost child. They spend much of their time crying in
fear and suffering in sorrow when, in very truth, they are but a
short distance from safety and security, even as this child was
only a little way from home. And all those who know the way of
truth and enjoy the assurance of knowing God should esteem it a
privilege, not a duty, to offer guidance to their fellows in their
efforts to find the satisfactions of living. Did we not supremely
enjoy this ministry of restoring the child to his mother? So do
those who lead men to God experience the supreme satisfaction of
human service." And from that day forward, for the remainder of
his natural life, Ganid was continually on the lookout for lost
children whom he might restore to their homes.
132:6.2 There was the widow with five children
whose husband had been accidentally killed. Jesus told Ganid about
the loss of his own father by an accident, and they went
repeatedly to comfort this mother and her children, while Ganid
sought money from his father to provide food and clothing. They
did not cease their efforts until they had found a position for
the eldest boy so that he could help in the care of the family.
132:6.3 That night, as Gonod listened to the
recital of these experiences, he said to Jesus, good-naturedly: "I
propose to make a scholar or a businessman of my son, and now you
start out to make a philosopher or philanthropist of him." And
Jesus smilingly replied: "Perhaps we will make him all four; then
can he enjoy a fourfold satisfaction in life as his ear for the
recognition of human melody will be able to recognize four tones
instead of one." Then said Gonod: "I perceive that you really are
a philosopher. You must write a book for future generations." And
Jesus replied: "Not a book -- my mission is to live a life in this
generation and for all generations. I -- " but he stopped, saying
to Ganid, "My son, it is time to retire."
7. TRIPS ABOUT ROME
132:7.1 Jesus, Gonod, and Ganid made five trips
away from Rome to points of interest in the surrounding territory.
On their visit to the northern Italian lakes Jesus had the long
talk with Ganid concerning the impossibility of teaching a man
about God if the man does not desire to know God. They had
casually met a thoughtless pagan while on their journey up to the
lakes, and Ganid was surprised that Jesus did not follow out his
usual practice of enlisting the man in conversation which would
naturally lead up to the discussion of spiritual questions. When
Ganid asked his teacher why he evinced so little interest in this
pagan, Jesus answered:
132:7.2 "Ganid, the man was not hungry for
truth. He was not dissatisfied with himself. He was not ready to
ask for help, and the eyes of his mind were not open to receive
light for the soul. That man was not ripe for the harvest of
salvation; he must be allowed more time for the trials and
difficulties of life to prepare him for the reception of wisdom
and higher learning. Or, if we could have him live with us, we
might by our lives show him the Father in heaven, and thus would
he become so attracted by our lives as sons of God that he would
be constrained to inquire about our Father. You cannot reveal God
to those who do not seek for him; you cannot lead unwilling souls
into the joys of salvation. Man must become hungry for truth as a
result of the experiences of living, or he must desire to know God
as the result of contact with the lives of those who are
acquainted with the divine Father before another human being can
act as the means of leading such a fellow mortal to the Father in
heaven. If we know God, our real business on earth is so to live
as to permit the Father to reveal himself in our lives, and thus
will all God-seeking persons see the Father and ask for our help
in finding out more about the God who in this manner finds
expression in our lives."
132:7.3 It was on the visit to Switzerland, up
in the mountains, that Jesus had an all-day talk with both father
and son about Buddhism. Many times Ganid had asked Jesus direct
questions about Buddha, but he had always received more or less
evasive replies. Now, in the presence of the son, the father asked
Jesus a direct question about Buddha, and he received a direct
reply. Said Gonod: "I would really like to know what you think of
Buddha." And Jesus answered:
132:7.4 "Your Buddha was much better than your
Buddhism. Buddha was a great man, even a prophet to his people,
but he was an orphan prophet; by that I mean that he early lost
sight of his spiritual Father, the Father in heaven. His
experience was tragic. He tried to live and teach as a messenger
of God, but without God. Buddha guided his ship of salvation right
up to the safe harbor, right up to the entrance to the haven of
mortal salvation, and there, because of faulty charts of
navigation, the good ship ran aground. There it has rested these
many generations, motionless and almost hopelessly stranded. And
thereon have many of your people remained all these years. They
live within hailing distance of the safe waters of rest, but they
refuse to enter because the noble craft of the good Buddha met the
misfortune of grounding just outside the harbor. And the Buddhist
peoples never will enter this harbor unless they abandon the
philosophic craft of their prophet and seize upon his noble
spirit. Had your people remained true to the spirit of Buddha, you
would have long since entered your haven of spirit tranquillity,
soul rest, and assurance of salvation.
132:7.5 "You see, Gonod, Buddha knew God in
spirit but failed clearly to discover him in mind; the Jews
discovered God in mind but largely failed to know him in spirit.
Today, the Buddhists flounder about in a philosophy without God,
while my people are piteously enslaved to the fear of a God
without a saving philosophy of life and liberty. You have a
philosophy without a God; the Jews have a God but are largely
without a philosophy of living as related thereto. Buddha, failing
to envision God as a spirit and as a Father, failed to provide in
his teaching the moral energy and the spiritual driving power
which a religion must possess if it is to change a race and exalt
a nation."
132:7.6 Then exclaimed Ganid: "Teacher, let's
you and I make a new religion, one good enough for India and big
enough for Rome, and maybe we can trade it to the Jews for
Yahweh." And Jesus replied: "Ganid, religions are not made. The
religions of men grow up over long periods of time, while the
revelations of God flash upon earth in the lives of the men who
reveal God to their fellows." But they did not comprehend the
meaning of these prophetic words.
132:7.7 That night after they had retired, Ganid
could not sleep. He talked a long time with his father and finally
said, "You know, father, I sometimes think Joshua is a prophet."
And his father only sleepily replied, "My son, there are others --
"
132:7.8 From this day, for the remainder of his
natural life, Ganid continued to evolve a religion of his own. He
was mightily moved in his own mind by Jesus' broadmindedness,
fairness, and tolerance. In all their discussions of philosophy
and religion this youth never experienced feelings of resentment
or reactions of antagonism.
132:7.9 What a scene for the celestial
intelligences to behold, this spectacle of the Indian lad
proposing to the Creator of a universe that they make a new
religion! And though the young man did not know it, they were
making a new and everlasting religion right then and there -- this
new way of salvation, the revelation of God to man through, and
in, Jesus. That which the lad wanted most to do he was
unconsciously actually doing. And it was, and is, ever thus. That
which the enlightened and reflective human imagination of
spiritual teaching and leading wholeheartedly and unselfishly
wants to do and be, becomes measurably creative in accordance with
the degree of mortal dedication to the divine doing of the
Father's will. When man goes in partnership with God, great things
may, and do, happen.
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