The Urantia Book
PAPER 133
THE RETURN FROM ROME
133:0.1 WHEN preparing to leave Rome, Jesus said
good-bye to none of his friends. The scribe of Damascus appeared
in Rome without announcement and disappeared in like manner. It
was a full year before those who knew and loved him gave up hope
of seeing him again. Before the end of the second year small
groups of those who had known him found themselves drawn together
by their common interest in his teachings and through mutual
memory of their good times with him. And these small groups of
Stoics, Cynics, and mystery cultists continued to hold these
irregular and informal meetings right up to the time of the
appearance in Rome of the first preachers of the Christian
religion.
133:0.2 Gonod and Ganid had purchased so many
things in Alexandria and Rome that they sent all their belongings
on ahead by pack train to Tarentum, while the three travelers
walked leisurely across Italy over the great Appian Way. On this
journey they encountered all sorts of human beings. Many noble
Roman citizens and Greek colonists lived along this road, but
already the progeny of great numbers of inferior slaves were
beginning to make their appearance.
133:0.3 One day while resting at lunch, about
halfway to Tarentum, Ganid asked Jesus a direct question as to
what he thought of India's caste system. Said Jesus: "Though human
beings differ in many ways, the one from another, before God and
in the spiritual world all mortals stand on an equal footing.
There are only two groups of mortals in the eyes of God: those who
desire to do his will and those who do not. As the universe looks
upon an inhabited world, it likewise discerns two great classes:
those who know God and those who do not. Those who cannot know God
are reckoned among the animals of any given realm. Mankind can
appropriately be divided into many classes in accordance with
differing qualifications, as they may be viewed physically,
mentally, socially, vocationally, or morally, but as these
different classes of mortals appear before the judgment bar of
God, they stand on an equal footing; God is truly no respecter of
persons. Although you cannot escape the recognition of
differential human abilities and endowments in matters
intellectual, social, and moral, you should make no such
distinctions in the spiritual brotherhood of men when assembled
for worship in the presence of God."
1. MERCY AND JUSTICE
133:1.1 A very interesting incident occurred one
afternoon by the roadside as they neared Tarentum. They observed a
rough and bullying youth brutally attacking a smaller lad. Jesus
hastened to the assistance of the assaulted youth, and when he had
rescued him, he tightly held on to the offender until the smaller
lad had made his escape. The moment Jesus released the little
bully, Ganid pounced upon the boy and began soundly to thrash him,
and to Ganid's astonishment Jesus promptly interfered. After he
had restrained Ganid and permitted the frightened boy to escape,
the young man, as soon as he got his breath, excitedly exclaimed:
"I cannot understand you, Teacher. If mercy requires that you
rescue the smaller lad, does not justice demand the punishment of
the larger and offending youth?" In answering, Jesus said:
133:1.2 "Ganid, it is true, you do not
understand. Mercy ministry is always the work of the individual,
but justice punishment is the function of the social,
governmental, or universe administrative groups. As an individual
I am beholden to show mercy; I must go to the rescue of the
assaulted lad, and in all consistency I may employ sufficient
force to restrain the aggressor. And that is just what I did. I
achieved the deliverance of the assaulted lad; that was the end of
mercy ministry. Then I forcibly detained the aggressor a
sufficient length of time to enable the weaker party to the
dispute to make his escape, after which I withdrew from the
affair. I did not proceed to sit in judgment on the aggressor,
thus to pass upon his motive -- to adjudicate all that entered
into his attack upon his fellow -- and then undertake to execute
the punishment which my mind might dictate as just recompense for
his wrongdoing. Ganid, mercy may be lavish, but justice is
precise. Cannot you discern that no two persons are likely to
agree as to the punishment which would satisfy the demands of
justice? One would impose forty lashes, another twenty, while
still another would advise solitary confinement as a just
punishment. Can you not see that on this world such
responsibilities had better rest upon the group or be administered
by chosen representatives of the group? In the universe, judgment
is vested in those who fully know the antecedents of all
wrongdoing as well as its motivation. In civilized society and in
an organized universe the administration of justice presupposes
the passing of just sentence consequent upon fair judgment, and
such prerogatives are vested in the juridical groups of the worlds
and in the all-knowing administrators of the higher universes of
all creation."
133:1.3 For days they talked about this problem
of manifesting mercy and administering justice. And Ganid, at
least to some extent, understood why Jesus would not engage in
personal combat. But Ganid asked one last question, to which he
never received a fully satisfactory answer; and that question was:
"But, Teacher, if a stronger and ill-tempered creature should
attack you and threaten to destroy you, what would you do? Would
you make no effort to defend yourself?" Although Jesus could not
fully and satisfactorily answer the lad's question, inasmuch as he
was not willing to disclose to him that he (Jesus) was living on
earth as the exemplification of the Paradise Father's love to an
onlooking universe, he did say this much:
133:1.4 "Ganid, I can well understand how some
of these problems perplex you, and I will endeavor to answer your
question. First, in all attacks which might be made upon my
person, I would determine whether or not the aggressor was a son
of God -- my brother in the flesh -- and if I thought such a
creature did not possess moral judgment and spiritual reason, I
would unhesitatingly defend myself to the full capacity of my
powers of resistance, regardless of consequences to the attacker.
But I would not thus assault a fellow man of sonship status, even
in self-defense. That is, I would not punish him in advance and
without judgment for his assault upon me. I would by every
possible artifice seek to prevent and dissuade him from making
such an attack and to mitigate it in case of my failure to abort
it. Ganid, I have absolute confidence in my heavenly Father's
overcare; I am consecrated to doing the will of my Father in
heaven. I do not believe that real harm can befall me; I do
not believe that my lifework can really be jeopardized by anything
my enemies might wish to visit upon me, and surely we have no
violence to fear from our friends. I am absolutely assured that
the entire universe is friendly to me -- this all-powerful truth I
insist on believing with a wholehearted trust in spite of all
appearances to the contrary."
133:1.5 But Ganid was not fully satisfied. Many
times they talked over these matters, and Jesus told him some of
his boyhood experiences and also about Jacob the stone mason's
son. On learning how Jacob appointed himself to defend Jesus,
Ganid said: "Oh, I begin to see! In the first place very seldom
would any normal human being want to attack such a kindly person
as you, and even if any one should be so unthinking as to do such
a thing, there is pretty sure to be near at hand some other mortal
who will fly to your assistance, even as you always go to the
rescue of any person you observe to be in distress. In my heart,
Teacher, I agree with you, but in my head I still think that if I
had been Jacob, I would have enjoyed punishing those rude fellows
who presumed to attack you just because they thought you would not
defend yourself. I presume you are fairly safe in your journey
through life since you spend much of your time helping others and
ministering to your fellows in distress -- well, most likely
there'll always be someone on hand to defend you." And Jesus
replied: "That test has not yet come, Ganid, and when it does, we
will have to abide by the Father's will." And that was about all
the lad could get his teacher to say on this difficult subject of
self-defense and nonresistance. On another occasion he did draw
from Jesus the opinion that organized society had every right to
employ force in the execution of its just mandates.
2. EMBARKING AT TARENTUM
133:2.1 While tarrying at the ship landing,
waiting for the boat to unload cargo, the travelers observed a man
mistreating his wife. As was his custom, Jesus intervened in
behalf of the person subjected to attack. He stepped up behind the
irate husband and, tapping him gently on the shoulder, said: "My
friend, may I speak with you in private for a moment?" The angry
man was nonplused by such an approach and, after a moment of
embarrassing hesitation, stammered out -- "er -- why -- yes, what
do you want with me?" When Jesus had led him to one side, he said:
"My friend, I perceive that something terrible must have happened
to you; I very much desire that you tell me what could happen to
such a strong man to lead him to attack his wife, the mother of
his children, and that right out here before all eyes. I am sure
you must feel that you have some good reason for this assault.
What did the woman do to deserve such treatment from her husband?
As I look upon you, I think I discern in your face the love of
justice if not the desire to show mercy. I venture to say that, if
you found me out by the wayside, attacked by robbers, you would
unhesitatingly rush to my rescue. I dare say you have done many
such brave things in the course of your life. Now, my friend, tell
me what is the matter? Did the woman do something wrong, or did
you foolishly lose your head and thoughtlessly assault her?" It
was not so much what he said that touched this man's heart as the
kindly look and the sympathetic smile which Jesus bestowed upon
him at the conclusion of his remarks. Said the man: "I perceive
you are a priest of the Cynics, and I am thankful you restrained
me. My wife has done no great wrong; she is a good woman, but she
irritates me by the manner in which she picks on me in public, and
I lose my temper. I am sorry for my lack of self-control, and I
promise to try to live up to my former pledge to one of your
brothers who taught me the better way many years ago. I promise
you."
133:2.2 And then, in bidding him farewell, Jesus
said: "My brother, always remember that man has no rightful
authority over woman unless the woman has willingly and
voluntarily given him such authority. Your wife has engaged to go
through life with you, to help you fight its battles, and to
assume the far greater share of the burden of bearing and rearing
your children; and in return for this special service it is only
fair that she receive from you that special protection which man
can give to woman as the partner who must carry, bear, and nurture
the children. The loving care and consideration which a man is
willing to bestow upon his wife and their children are the measure
of that man's attainment of the higher levels of creative and
spiritual self-consciousness. Do you not know that men and women
are partners with God in that they co-operate to create beings who
grow up to possess themselves of the potential of immortal souls?
The Father in heaven treats the Spirit Mother of the children of
the universe as one equal to himself. It is Godlike to share your
life and all that relates thereto on equal terms with the mother
partner who so fully shares with you that divine experience of
reproducing yourselves in the lives of your children. If you can
only love your children as God loves you, you will love and
cherish your wife as the Father in heaven honors and exalts the
Infinite Spirit, the mother of all the spirit children of a vast
universe."
133:2.3 As they went on board the boat, they
looked back upon the scene of the teary-eyed couple standing in
silent embrace. Having heard the latter half of Jesus' message to
the man, Gonod was all day occupied with meditations thereon, and
he resolved to reorganize his home when he returned to India.
133:2.4 The journey to Nicopolis was pleasant
but slow as the wind was not favorable. The three spent many hours
recounting their experiences in Rome and reminiscing about all
that had happened to them since they first met in Jerusalem. Ganid
was becoming imbued with the spirit of personal ministry. He began
work on the steward of the ship, but on the second day, when he
got into deep religious water, he called on Joshua to help him
out.
133:2.5 They spent several days at Nicopolis,
the city which Augustus had founded some fifty years before as the
"city of victory" in commemoration of the battle of Actium, this
site being the land whereon he camped with his army before the
battle. They lodged in the home of one Jeramy, a Greek proselyte
of the Jewish faith, whom they had met on shipboard. The Apostle
Paul spent all winter with the son of Jeramy in the same house in
the course of his third missionary journey. From Nicopolis they
sailed on the same boat for Corinth, the capital of the Roman
province of Achaia.
3. AT CORINTH
133:3.1 By the time they reached Corinth, Ganid
was becoming very much interested in the Jewish religion, and so
it was not strange that, one day as they passed the synagogue and
saw the people going in, he requested Jesus to take him to the
service. That day they heard a learned rabbi discourse on the
"Destiny of Israel," and after the service they met one Crispus,
the chief ruler of this synagogue. Many times they went back to
the synagogue services, but chiefly to meet Crispus. Ganid grew to
be very fond of Crispus, his wife, and their family of five
children. He much enjoyed observing how a Jew conducted his family
life.
133:3.2 While Ganid studied family life, Jesus
was teaching Crispus the better ways of religious living. Jesus
held more than twenty sessions with this forward-looking Jew; and
it is not surprising, years afterward, when Paul was preaching in
this very synagogue, and when the Jews had rejected his message
and had voted to forbid his further preaching in the synagogue,
and when he then went to the gentiles, that Crispus with his
entire family embraced the new religion, and that he became one of
the chief supports of the Christian church which Paul subsequently
organized at Corinth.
133:3.3 During the eighteen months Paul preached
in Corinth, being later joined by Silas and Timothy, he met many
others who had been taught by the "Jewish tutor of the son of an
Indian merchant."
133:3.4 At Corinth they met people of every race
hailing from three continents. Next to Alexandria and Rome, it was
the most cosmopolitan city of the Mediterranean empire. There was
much to attract one's attention in this city, and Ganid never grew
weary of visiting the citadel which stood almost two thousand feet
above the sea. He also spent a great deal of his spare time about
the synagogue and in the home of Crispus. He was at first shocked,
and later on charmed, by the status of woman in the Jewish home;
it was a revelation to this young Indian.
133:3.5 Jesus and Ganid were often guests in
another Jewish home, that of Justus, a devout merchant, who lived
alongside the synagogue. And many times, subsequently, when the
Apostle Paul sojourned in this home, did he listen to the
recounting of these visits with the Indian lad and his Jewish
tutor, while both Paul and Justus wondered whatever became of such
a wise and brilliant Hebrew teacher.
133:3.6 When in Rome, Ganid observed that Jesus
refused to accompany them to the public baths. Several times
afterward the young man sought to induce Jesus further to express
himself in regard to the relations of the sexes. Though he would
answer the lad's questions, he never seemed disposed to discuss
these subjects at great length. One evening as they strolled about
Corinth out near where the wall of the citadel ran down to the
sea, they were accosted by two public women. Ganid had imbibed the
idea, and rightly, that Jesus was a man of high ideals, and that
he abhorred everything which partook of uncleanness or savored of
evil; accordingly he spoke sharply to these women and rudely
motioned them away. When Jesus saw this, he said to Ganid: "You
mean well, but you should not presume thus to speak to the
children of God, even though they chance to be his erring
children. Who are we that we should sit in judgment on these
women? Do you happen to know all of the circumstances which led
them to resort to such methods of obtaining a livelihood? Stop
here with me while we talk about these matters." The courtesans
were astonished at what he said even more than was Ganid.
133:3.7 As they stood there in the moonlight,
Jesus went on to say: "There lives within every human mind a
divine spirit, the gift of the Father in heaven. This good spirit
ever strives to lead us to God, to help us to find God and to know
God; but also within mortals there are many natural physical
tendencies which the Creator put there to serve the well-being of
the individual and the race. Now, oftentimes, men and women become
confused in their efforts to understand themselves and to grapple
with the manifold difficulties of making a living in a world so
largely dominated by selfishness and sin. I perceive, Ganid, that
neither of these women is willfully wicked. I can tell by their
faces that they have experienced much sorrow; they have suffered
much at the hands of an apparently cruel fate; they have not
intentionally chosen this sort of life; they have, in
discouragement bordering on despair, surrendered to the pressure
of the hour and accepted this distasteful means of obtaining a
livelihood as the best way out of a situation that to them
appeared hopeless. Ganid, some people are really wicked at heart;
they deliberately choose to do mean things, but, tell me, as you
look into these now tear-stained faces, do you see anything bad or
wicked?" And as Jesus paused for his reply, Ganid's voice choked
up as he stammered out his answer: "No, Teacher, I do not. And I
apologize for my rudeness to them -- I crave their forgiveness."
Then said Jesus: "And I bespeak for them that they have forgiven
you as I speak for my Father in heaven that he has forgiven them.
Now all of you come with me to a friend's house where we will seek
refreshment and plan for the new and better life ahead." Up to
this time the amazed women had not uttered a word; they looked at
each other and silently followed as the men led the way.
133:3.8 Imagine the surprise of Justus' wife
when, at this late hour, Jesus appeared with Ganid and these two
strangers, saying: "You will forgive us for coming at this hour,
but Ganid and I desire a bite to eat, and we would share it with
these our new-found friends, who are also in need of nourishment;
and besides all this, we come to you with the thought that you
will be interested in counseling with us as to the best way to
help these women get a new start in life. They can tell you their
story, but I surmise they have had much trouble, and their very
presence here in your house testifies how earnestly they crave to
know good people, and how willingly they will embrace the
opportunity to show all the world -- and even the angels of heaven
-- what brave and noble women they can become."
133:3.9 When Martha, Justus' wife, had spread
the food on the table, Jesus, taking unexpected leave of them,
said: "As it is getting late, and since the young man's father
will be awaiting us, we pray to be excused while we leave you here
together -- three women -- the beloved children of the Most High.
And I will pray for your spiritual guidance while you make plans
for a new and better life on earth and eternal life in the great
beyond."
133:3.10 Thus did Jesus and Ganid take leave of
the women. So far the two courtesans had said nothing; likewise
was Ganid speechless. And for a few moments so was Martha, but
presently she rose to the occasion and did everything for these
strangers that Jesus had hoped for. The elder of these two women
died a short time thereafter, with bright hopes of eternal
survival, and the younger woman worked at Justus' place of
business and later became a lifelong member of the first Christian
church in Corinth.
133:3.11 Several times in the home of Crispus,
Jesus and Ganid met one Gaius, who subsequently became a loyal
supporter of Paul. During these two months in Corinth they held
intimate conversations with scores of worth-while individuals, and
as a result of all these apparently casual contacts more than half
of the individuals so affected became members of the subsequent
Christian community.
133:3.12 When Paul first went to Corinth, he had
not intended to make a prolonged visit. But he did not know how
well the Jewish tutor had prepared the way for his labors. And
further, he discovered that great interest had already been
aroused by Aquila and Priscilla, Aquila being one of the Cynics
with whom Jesus had come in contact when in Rome. This couple were
Jewish refugees from Rome, and they quickly embraced Paul's
teachings. He lived with them and worked with them, for they were
also tentmakers. It was because of these circumstances that Paul
prolonged his stay in Corinth.
4. PERSONAL WORK IN CORINTH
133:4.1 Jesus and Ganid had many more
interesting experiences in Corinth. They had close converse with a
great number of persons who greatly profited by the instruction
received from Jesus.
133:4.2 The miller he taught about grinding up
the grains of truth in the mill of living experience so as to
render the difficult things of divine life readily receivable by
even the weak and feeble among one's fellow mortals. Said Jesus:
"Give the milk of truth to those who are babes in spiritual
perception. In your living and loving ministry serve spiritual
food in attractive form and suited to the capacity of receptivity
of each of your inquirers."
133:4.3 To the Roman centurion he said: "Render
unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things
which are God's. The sincere service of God and the loyal service
of Caesar do not conflict unless Caesar should presume to arrogate
to himself that homage which alone can be claimed by Deity.
Loyalty to God, if you should come to know him, would render you
all the more loyal and faithful in your devotion to a worthy
emperor."
133:4.4 To the earnest leader of the Mithraic
cult he said: "You do well to seek for a religion of eternal
salvation, but you err to go in quest of such a glorious truth
among man-made mysteries and human philosophies. Know you not that
the mystery of eternal salvation dwells within your own soul? Do
you not know that the God of heaven has sent his spirit to live
within you, and that this spirit will lead all truth-loving and
God-serving mortals out of this life and through the portals of
death up to the eternal heights of light where God waits to
receive his children? And never forget: You who know God are the
sons of God if you truly yearn to be like him."
133:4.5 To the Epicurean teacher he said: "You
do well to choose the best and esteem the good, but are you wise
when you fail to discern the greater things of mortal life which
are embodied in the spirit realms derived from the realization of
the presence of God in the human heart? The great thing in all
human experience is the realization of knowing the God whose
spirit lives within you and seeks to lead you forth on that long
and almost endless journey of attaining the personal presence of
our common Father, the God of all creation, the Lord of
universes."
133:4.6 To the Greek contractor and builder he
said: "My friend, as you build the material structures of men,
grow a spiritual character in the similitude of the divine spirit
within your soul. Do not let your achievement as a temporal
builder outrun your attainment as a spiritual son of the kingdom
of heaven. While you build the mansions of time for another,
neglect not to secure your title to the mansions of eternity for
yourself. Ever remember, there is a city whose foundations are
righteousness and truth, and whose builder and maker is God."
133:4.7 To the Roman judge he said: "As you
judge men, remember that you yourself will also some day come to
judgment before the bar of the Rulers of a universe. Judge justly,
even mercifully, even as you shall some day thus crave merciful
consideration at the hands of the Supreme Arbiter. Judge as you
would be judged under similar circumstances, thus being guided by
the spirit of the law as well as by its letter. And even as you
accord justice dominated by fairness in the light of the need of
those who are brought before you, so shall you have the right to
expect justice tempered by mercy when you sometime stand before
the Judge of all the earth."
133:4.8 To the mistress of the Greek inn he
said: "Minister your hospitality as one who entertains the
children of the Most High. Elevate the drudgery of your daily toil
to the high levels of a fine art through the increasing
realization that you minister to God in the persons whom he
indwells by his spirit which has descended to live within the
hearts of men, thereby seeking to transform their minds and lead
their souls to the knowledge of the Paradise Father of all these
bestowed gifts of the divine spirit."
133:4.9 Jesus had many visits with a Chinese
merchant. In saying good-bye, he admonished him: "Worship only
God, who is your true spirit ancestor. Remember that the Father's
spirit ever lives within you and always points your soul-direction
heavenward. If you follow the unconscious leadings of this
immortal spirit, you are certain to continue on in the uplifted
way of finding God. And when you do attain the Father in heaven,
it will be because by seeking him you have become more and more
like him. And so farewell, Chang, but only for a season, for we
shall meet again in the worlds of light where the Father of spirit
souls has provided many delightful stopping-places for those who
are Paradise-bound."
133:4.10 To the traveler from Britain he said:
"My brother, I perceive you are seeking for truth, and I suggest
that the spirit of the Father of all truth may chance to dwell
within you. Did you ever sincerely endeavor to talk with the
spirit of your own soul? Such a thing is indeed difficult and
seldom yields consciousness of success; but every honest attempt
of the material mind to communicate with its indwelling spirit
meets with certain success, notwithstanding that the majority of
all such magnificent human experiences must long remain as
superconscious registrations in the souls of such God-knowing
mortals."
133:4.11 To the runaway lad Jesus said:
"Remember, there are two things you cannot run away from -- God
and yourself. Wherever you may go, you take with you yourself and
the spirit of the heavenly Father which lives within your heart.
My son, stop trying to deceive yourself; settle down to the
courageous practice of facing the facts of life; lay firm hold on
the assurances of sonship with God and the certainty of eternal
life, as I have instructed you. From this day on purpose to be a
real man, a man determined to face life bravely and
intelligently."
133:4.12 To the condemned criminal he said at
the last hour: "My brother, you have fallen on evil times. You
lost your way; you became entangled in the meshes of crime. From
talking to you, I well know you did not plan to do the thing which
is about to cost you your temporal life. But you did do this evil,
and your fellows have adjudged you guilty; they have determined
that you shall die. You or I may not deny the state this right of
self-defense in the manner of its own choosing. There seems to be
no way of humanly escaping the penalty of your wrongdoing. Your
fellows must judge you by what you did, but there is a Judge to
whom you may appeal for forgiveness, and who will judge you by
your real motives and better intentions. You need not fear to meet
the judgment of God if your repentance is genuine and your faith
sincere. The fact that your error carries with it the death
penalty imposed by man does not prejudice the chance of your soul
to obtain justice and enjoy mercy before the heavenly courts."
133:4.13 Jesus enjoyed many intimate talks with
a large number of hungry souls, too many to find a place in this
record. The three travelers enjoyed their sojourn in Corinth.
Excepting Athens, which was more renowned as an educational
center, Corinth was the most important city in Greece during these
Roman times, and their two months' stay in this thriving
commercial center afforded opportunity for all three of them to
gain much valuable experience. Their sojourn in this city was one
of the most interesting of all their stops on the way back from
Rome.
133:4.14 Gonod had many interests in Corinth,
but finally his business was finished, and they prepared to sail
for Athens. They traveled on a small boat which could be carried
overland on a land track from one of Corinth's harbors to the
other, a distance of ten miles.
5. AT ATHENS -- DISCOURSE ON SCIENCE
133:5.1 They shortly arrived at the olden center
of Greek science and learning, and Ganid was thrilled with the
thought of being in Athens, of being in Greece, the cultural
center of the onetime Alexandrian empire, which had extended its
borders even to his own land of India. There was little business
to transact; so Gonod spent most of his time with Jesus and Ganid,
visiting the many points of interest and listening to the
interesting discussions of the lad and his versatile teacher.
133:5.2 A great university still thrived in
Athens, and the trio made frequent visits to its halls of
learning. Jesus and Ganid had thoroughly discussed the teachings
of Plato when they attended the lectures in the museum at
Alexandria. They all enjoyed the art of Greece, examples of which
were still to be found here and there about the city.
133:5.3 Both the father and the son greatly
enjoyed the discussion on science which Jesus had at their inn one
evening with a Greek philosopher. After this pedant had talked for
almost three hours, and when he had finished his discourse, Jesus,
in terms of modern thought, said:
133:5.4 Scientists may some day measure the
energy, or force manifestations, of gravitation, light, and
electricity, but these same scientists can never (scientifically)
tell you what these universe phenomena are. Science deals
with physical-energy activities; religion deals with eternal
values. True philosophy grows out of the wisdom which does its
best to correlate these quantitative and qualitative observations.
There always exists the danger that the purely physical scientist
may become afflicted with mathematical pride and statistical
egotism, not to mention spiritual blindness.
133:5.5 Logic is valid in the material world,
and mathematics is reliable when limited in its application to
physical things; but neither is to be regarded as wholly
dependable or infallible when applied to life problems. Life
embraces phenomena which are not wholly material. Arithmetic says
that, if one man could shear a sheep in ten minutes, ten men could
shear it in one minute. That is sound mathematics, but it is not
true, for the ten men could not so do it; they would get in one
another's way so badly that the work would be greatly delayed.
133:5.6 Mathematics asserts that, if one person
stands for a certain unit of intellectual and moral value, ten
persons would stand for ten times this value. But in dealing with
human personality it would be nearer the truth to say that such a
personality association is a sum equal to the square of the number
of personalities concerned in the equation rather than the simple
arithmetical sum. A social group of human beings in co-ordinated
working harmony stands for a force far greater than the simple sum
of its parts.
133:5.7 Quantity may be identified as a fact,
thus becoming a scientific uniformity. Quality, being a matter of
mind interpretation, represents an estimate of values, and
must, therefore, remain an experience of the individual. When both
science and religion become less dogmatic and more tolerant of
criticism, philosophy will then begin to achieve unity in
the intelligent comprehension of the universe.
133:5.8 There is unity in the cosmic universe if
you could only discern its workings in actuality. The real
universe is friendly to every child of the eternal God. The real
problem is: How can the finite mind of man achieve a logical,
true, and corresponding unity of thought? This universe-knowing
state of mind can be had only by conceiving that the quantitative
fact and the qualitative value have a common causation in the
Paradise Father. Such a conception of reality yields a broader
insight into the purposeful unity of universe phenomena; it even
reveals a spiritual goal of progressive personality achievement.
And this is a concept of unity which can sense the unchanging
background of a living universe of continually changing impersonal
relations and evolving personal relationships.
133:5.9 Matter and spirit and the state
intervening between them are three interrelated and
interassociated levels of the true unity of the real universe.
Regardless of how divergent the universe phenomena of fact and
value may appear to be, they are, after all, unified in the
Supreme.
133:5.10 Reality of material existence attaches
to unrecognized energy as well as to visible matter. When the
energies of the universe are so slowed down that they acquire the
requisite degree of motion, then, under favorable conditions,
these same energies become mass. And forget not, the mind which
can alone perceive the presence of apparent realities is itself
also real. And the fundamental cause of this universe of
energy-mass, mind, and spirit, is eternal -- it exists and
consists in the nature and reactions of the Universal Father and
his absolute co-ordinates.
133:5.11 They were all more than astounded at
the words of Jesus, and when the Greek took leave of them, he
said: "At last my eyes have beheld a Jew who thinks something
besides racial superiority and talks something besides religion."
And they retired for the night.
133:5.12 The sojourn in Athens was pleasant and
profitable, but it was not particularly fruitful in its human
contacts. Too many of the Athenians of that day were either
intellectually proud of their reputation of another day or
mentally stupid and ignorant, being the offspring of the inferior
slaves of those earlier periods when there was glory in Greece and
wisdom in the minds of its people. Even then, there were still
many keen minds to be found among the citizens of Athens.
6. AT EPHESUS -- DISCOURSE ON THE SOUL
133:6.1 On leaving Athens, the travelers went by
way of Troas to Ephesus, the capital of the Roman province of
Asia. They made many trips out to the famous temple of Artemis of
the Ephesians, about two miles from the city. Artemis was the most
famous goddess of all Asia Minor and a perpetuation of the still
earlier mother goddess of ancient Anatolian times. The crude idol
exhibited in the enormous temple dedicated to her worship was
reputed to have fallen from heaven. Not all of Ganid's early
training to respect images as symbols of divinity had been
eradicated, and he thought it best to purchase a little silver
shrine in honor of this fertility goddess of Asia Minor. That
night they talked at great length about the worship of things made
with human hands.
133:6.2 On the third day of their stay they
walked down by the river to observe the dredging of the harbor's
mouth. At noon they talked with a young Phoenician who was
homesick and much discouraged; but most of all he was envious of a
certain young man who had received promotion over his head. Jesus
spoke comforting words to him and quoted the olden Hebrew proverb:
"A man's gift makes room for him and brings him before great men."
133:6.3 Of all the large cities they visited on
this tour of the Mediterranean, they here accomplished the least
of value to the subsequent work of the Christian missionaries.
Christianity secured its start in Ephesus largely through the
efforts of Paul, who resided here more than two years, making
tents for a living and conducting lectures on religion and
philosophy each night in the main audience chamber of the school
of Tyrannus.
133:6.4 There was a progressive thinker
connected with this local school of philosophy, and Jesus had
several profitable sessions with him. In the course of these talks
Jesus had repeatedly used the word "soul." This learned Greek
finally asked him what he meant by "soul," and he replied:
133:6.5 "The soul is the self-reflective,
truth-discerning, and spirit-perceiving part of man which forever
elevates the human being above the level of the animal world.
Self-consciousness, in and of itself, is not the soul. Moral
self-consciousness is true human self-realization and constitutes
the foundation of the human soul, and the soul is that part of man
which represents the potential survival value of human experience.
Moral choice and spiritual attainment, the ability to know God and
the urge to be like him, are the characteristics of the soul. The
soul of man cannot exist apart from moral thinking and spiritual
activity. A stagnant soul is a dying soul. But the soul of man is
distinct from the divine spirit which dwells within the mind. The
divine spirit arrives simultaneously with the first moral activity
of the human mind, and that is the occasion of the birth of the
soul.
133:6.6 "The saving or losing of a soul has to
do with whether or not the moral consciousness attains survival
status through eternal alliance with its associated immortal
spirit endowment. Salvation is the spiritualization of the
self-realization of the moral consciousness, which thereby becomes
possessed of survival value. All forms of soul conflict consist in
the lack of harmony between the moral, or spiritual,
self-consciousness and the purely intellectual self-consciousness.
133:6.7 "The human soul, when matured, ennobled,
and spiritualized, approaches the heavenly status in that it comes
near to being an entity intervening between the material and the
spiritual, the material self and the divine spirit. The evolving
soul of a human being is difficult of description and more
difficult of demonstration because it is not discoverable by the
methods of either material investigation or spiritual proving.
Material science cannot demonstrate the existence of a soul,
neither can pure spirit-testing. Notwithstanding the failure of
both material science and spiritual standards to discover the
existence of the human soul, every morally conscious mortal
knows of the existence of his soul as a real and
actual personal experience."
7. THE SOJOURN AT CYPRUS -- DISCOURSE ON MIND
133:7.1 Shortly the travelers set sail for
Cyprus, stopping at Rhodes. They enjoyed the long water voyage and
arrived at their island destination much rested in body and
refreshed in spirit.
133:7.2 It was their plan to enjoy a period of
real rest and play on this visit to Cyprus as their tour of the
Mediterranean was drawing to a close. They landed at Paphos and at
once began the assembly of supplies for their sojourn of several
weeks in the near-by mountains. On the third day after their
arrival they started for the hills with their well-loaded pack
animals.
133:7.3 For two weeks the trio greatly enjoyed
themselves, and then, without warning, young Ganid was suddenly
taken grievously ill. For two weeks he suffered from a raging
fever, oftentimes becoming delirious; both Jesus and Gonod were
kept busy attending the sick boy. Jesus skillfully and tenderly
cared for the lad, and the father was amazed by both the
gentleness and adeptness manifested in all his ministry to the
afflicted youth. They were far from human habitations, and the boy
was too ill to be moved; so they prepared as best they could to
nurse him back to health right there in the mountains.
133:7.4 During Ganid's convalescence of three
weeks Jesus told him many interesting things about nature and her
various moods. And what fun they had as they wandered over the
mountains, the boy asking questions, Jesus answering them, and the
father marveling at the whole performance.
133:7.5 The last week of their sojourn in the
mountains Jesus and Ganid had a long talk on the functions of the
human mind. After several hours of discussion the lad asked this
question: "But, Teacher, what do you mean when you say that man
experiences a higher form of self-consciousness than do the higher
animals?" And as restated in modern phraseology, Jesus answered:
133:7.6 My son, I have already told you much
about the mind of man and the divine spirit that lives therein,
but now let me emphasize that self-consciousness is a reality.
When any animal becomes self-conscious, it becomes a primitive
man. Such an attainment results from a co-ordination of function
between impersonal energy and spirit-conceiving mind, and it is
this phenomenon which warrants the bestowal of an absolute focal
point for the human personality, the spirit of the Father in
heaven.
133:7.7 Ideas are not simply a record of
sensations; ideas are sensations plus the reflective
interpretations of the personal self; and the self is more than
the sum of one's sensations. There begins to be something of an
approach to unity in an evolving selfhood, and that unity is
derived from the indwelling presence of a part of absolute unity
which spiritually activates such a self-conscious animal-origin
mind.
133:7.8 No mere animal could possess a time
self-consciousness. Animals possess a physiological co-ordination
of associated sensation-recognition and memory thereof, but none
experience a meaningful recognition of sensation or exhibit a
purposeful association of these combined physical experiences such
as is manifested in the conclusions of intelligent and reflective
human interpretations. And this fact of self-conscious existence,
associated with the reality of his subsequent spiritual
experience, constitutes man a potential son of the universe and
foreshadows his eventual attainment of the Supreme Unity of the
universe.
133:7.9 Neither is the human self merely the sum
of the successive states of consciousness. Without the effective
functioning of a consciousness sorter and associater there would
not exist sufficient unity to warrant the designation of a
selfhood. Such an ununified mind could hardly attain conscious
levels of human status. If the associations of consciousness were
just an accident, the minds of all men would then exhibit the
uncontrolled and random associations of certain phases of mental
madness.
133:7.10 A human mind, built up solely out of
the consciousness of physical sensations, could never attain
spiritual levels; this kind of material mind would be utterly
lacking in a sense of moral values and would be without a guiding
sense of spiritual dominance which is so essential to achieving
harmonious personality unity in time, and which is inseparable
from personality survival in eternity.
133:7.11 The human mind early begins to manifest
qualities which are supermaterial; the truly reflective human
intellect is not altogether bound by the limits of time. That
individuals so differ in their life performances indicates, not
only the varying endowments of heredity and the different
influences of the environment, but also the degree of unification
with the indwelling spirit of the Father which has been achieved
by the self, the measure of the identification of the one with the
other.
133:7.12 The human mind does not well stand the
conflict of double allegiance. It is a severe strain on the soul
to undergo the experience of an effort to serve both good and
evil. The supremely happy and efficiently unified mind is the one
wholly dedicated to the doing of the will of the Father in heaven.
Unresolved conflicts destroy unity and may terminate in mind
disruption. But the survival character of a soul is not fostered
by attempting to secure peace of mind at any price, by the
surrender of noble aspirations, and by the compromise of spiritual
ideals; rather is such peace attained by the stalwart assertion of
the triumph of that which is true, and this victory is achieved in
the overcoming of evil with the potent force of good.
133:7.13 The next day they departed for Salamis,
where they embarked for Antioch on the Syrian coast.
8. AT ANTIOCH
133:8.1 Antioch was the capital of the Roman
province of Syria, and here the imperial governor had his
residence. Antioch had half a million inhabitants; it was the
third city of the empire in size and the first in wickedness and
flagrant immorality. Gonod had considerable business to transact;
so Jesus and Ganid were much by themselves. They visited
everything about this polyglot city except the grove of Daphne.
Gonod and Ganid visited this notorious shrine of shame, but Jesus
declined to accompany them. Such scenes were not so shocking to
Indians, but they were repellent to an idealistic Hebrew.
133:8.2 Jesus became sober and reflective as he
drew nearer Palestine and the end of their journey. He visited
with few people in Antioch; he seldom went about in the city.
After much questioning as to why his teacher manifested so little
interest in Antioch, Ganid finally induced Jesus to say: "This
city is not far from Palestine; maybe I shall come back here
sometime."
133:8.3 Ganid had a very interesting experience
in Antioch. This young man had proved himself an apt pupil and
already had begun to make practical use of some of Jesus'
teachings. There was a certain Indian connected with his father's
business in Antioch who had become so unpleasant and disgruntled
that his dismissal had been considered. When Ganid heard this, he
betook himself to his father's place of business and held a long
conference with his fellow countryman. This man felt he had been
put at the wrong job. Ganid told him about the Father in heaven
and in many ways expanded his views of religion. But of all that
Ganid said, the quotation of a Hebrew proverb did the most good,
and that word of wisdom was: "Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do
that with all your might."
133:8.4 After preparing their luggage for the
camel caravan, they passed on down to Sidon and thence over to
Damascus, and after three days they made ready for the long trek
across the desert sands.
9. IN MESOPOTAMIA
133:9.1 The caravan trip across the desert was
not a new experience for these much-traveled men. After Ganid had
watched his teacher help with the loading of their twenty camels
and observed him volunteer to drive their own animal, he
exclaimed, "Teacher, is there anything that you cannot do?" Jesus
only smiled, saying, "The teacher surely is not without honor in
the eyes of a diligent pupil." And so they set forth for the
ancient city of Ur.
133:9.2 Jesus was much interested in the early
history of Ur, the birthplace of Abraham, and he was equally
fascinated with the ruins and traditions of Susa, so much so that
Gonod and Ganid extended their stay in these parts three weeks in
order to afford Jesus more time to conduct his investigations and
also to provide the better opportunity to persuade him to go back
to India with them.
133:9.3 It was at Ur that Ganid had a long talk
with Jesus regarding the difference between knowledge, wisdom, and
truth. And he was greatly charmed with the saying of the Hebrew
wise man: "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom.
With all your quest for knowledge, get understanding. Exalt wisdom
and she will promote you. She will bring you to honor if you will
but embrace her."
133:9.4 At last the day came for the separation.
They were all brave, especially the lad, but it was a trying
ordeal. They were tearful of eye but courageous of heart. In
bidding his teacher farewell, Ganid said: "Farewell, Teacher, but
not forever. When I come again to Damascus, I will look for you. I
love you, for I think the Father in heaven must be something like
you; at least I know you are much like what you have told me about
him. I will remember your teaching, but most of all, I will never
forget you." Said the father, "Farewell to a great teacher, one
who has made us better and helped us to know God." And Jesus
replied, "Peace be upon you, and may the blessing of the Father in
heaven ever abide with you." And Jesus stood on the shore and
watched as the small boat carried them out to their anchored ship.
Thus the Master left his friends from India at Charax, never to
see them again in this world; nor were they, in this world, ever
to know that the man who later appeared as Jesus of Nazareth was
this same friend they had just taken leave of -- Joshua their
teacher.
133:9.5 In India, Ganid grew up to become an
influential man, a worthy successor of his eminent father, and he
spread abroad many of the noble truths which he had learned from
Jesus, his beloved teacher. Later on in life, when Ganid heard of
the strange teacher in Palestine who terminated his career on a
cross, though he recognized the similarity between the gospel of
this Son of Man and the teachings of his Jewish tutor, it never
occurred to him that these two were actually the same person.
133:9.6 Thus ended that chapter in the life of
the Son of Man which might be termed: The mission of Joshua the
teacher.
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