I’m feeling an inclination to write about another previously unentertained thought I had on the second day of the New Message from God Encampment. But I have to set up a little history.
“I was born here and I’ll die here,
Against my will.
I know it looks like I’m moving,
But I’m standing still.” – Bob Dylan – “Not Dark Yet”
The Christian Church (and by “Christian Church” I mean the Church Universal, the Body of Christ, the Christian community) contemplated and rejected, for both scriptural and practical reasons, the idea of reincarnation or rebirth. I recall someone asking me about it, and responding, without missing a beat, “Well, the Bible says it is appointed for men to die once, and after this comes judgement.” (Hebrews 9:27, NASB) On the other hand, I was unaware of the amount of debate the Church engaged in on the subject. I was also unaware of the number of other faith traditions which contemplate this idea.
“Riders on the storm
Riders on the storm
Into this house we’re born
Into this world we’re thrown.” – The Doors – “Riders on the Storm”
A Course In Miracles pointed out that some people use the belief in reincarnation as a weapon in the service of their own self-loathing. They say “Oh, I must be suffering now because of something I did in a previous life.” Such a statement is highly disempowering, an exercise in learned helplessness. So the Course decided, for better or for worse, to not take a position on the subject. I understand that many people might have been helped by this, but I was dissatisfied. I considered it a “Muhammad Ali shuffle”, a skillful dodging of the issue.
“Your mission, Jim, should you choose to accept it” – “Mission: Impossible”
While the New Message doesn’t divulge exact details on the subject, it teaches that instead of being a mere biological accident, instead of being thrown into this world against our will, we came to this world to serve its development, to meet certain people, to give certain gifts.
“YOUR LIFE IS NECESSARY. It is not a biological accident. It is not a mere chance circumstance that you arrived in this world. Your life is necessary. If you could but recall what you went through to come into this world and the preparation that was required—both within this world and beyond—for you to emerge here, then you would realize the importance of your being here and the importance of the Knowledge that you carry within you.” (Steps to Knowledge, Step 174, “My life is necessary”)
I make no claims of any experience of past lives. All I know is that this teaching puts me, and other people, in a position of strength to address the ups and downs of life.
I am now ready to share with you the previously unentertained thought I had. The thought was “If it’s true that we’ve come to this world, possibly many times, why should it be a shock to contemplate the possibility that we’ve come here at a time when our world is receiving a new message from God?”
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Good question to contemplate, Doug. Once we start to understand how much we don’t know about our life, our existence, our possible journeys, we open ourselves to the journey to discover our Knowledge, our possible past lives and any residue we may still carry from those lives. And of course, we can start to contemplate questions such as why me, why now, why here? The answers my friend, if I may quote again from Bob Dylan, are blowin’ in the wind.
If I hazard the guess (and I do) that my (everyone’s) soul is on an evolutionary journey and becomes wiser and more evolved/enlightened each time it comes into this world, then it stands to reason that I am (everyone is) here at this time when our world is receiving a new message from God (for the simple reason that I/they are ready/evolved enough to receive it). The only puzzling (perhaps even shocking) thing to me is why, if this is true, are there so many millions of souls here at this time who are still unable to receive (blind to) the new message of God?
I was very happy to read this post again this morning and focus on a different aspect of it. Now I see the folly, or rather naivety, of my comment above, specifically the question I posed. The point is not how many other people are in the world at this time who are unable to receive the New Message from God, but that I am here because I can. And there are many other people with me and we are all together and doing something, working in unison, and this is incredibly empowering.
“I make no claims of any experience of past lives. All I know is that this teaching puts me, and other people, in a position of strength to address the ups and downs of life.”
My sentiments precisely! Douglas, you are a wonder to me, the way you have of putting my own very thoughts into succinct clear language makes me want to skip for joy. And I am!