Re: Sharing pain
Have you investigated the Gnostic Christian material, the Dead Sea scrolls and Nag Hammadi library? That was the first place I turned when I realized how empty my fundamentalist Christian "faith" was. And that propelled to me to study just about everything else. Now, almost 30 years later, I'm looking at the Gnostic material again--it's kind of a full circle moment for me--and it's like I can see a whole new level of meaning now.
Cheers
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I have a teacher working with me in studying two vols. by G. de Purucker, " The Esoteric Tradition." I'll probably be at it for a few years at least. Gnosis comes up often. As does Buddhism. Theosophists suggest that Buddhism is actually older than the Hindu religion, which is not the belief that many people hold. As many people also believe that Buddhism is atheistic, when it is actually a very esoteric religion. If you read any books in the New Testament by the Apostle Paul, which is almost all of the New Testament - Mark was a student of Paul btw - I think you are reading a lot of Gnosis. St. Peter was more in line with Judaism.
I kind of see Theosophy as necessary instruction to possess before getting involved in any decision that I am not going to turn back from. America, for a long time was made up of a lot of Old Testament readers and only recently it seems that we are solely New Testament. I like reading about the Sephira on the Tree of Life, how they are described as gates. How there is a veil between Yesod and Tipharet - VERBUM DIMISSUM CUSTODIAT ARCANUM - the lost word keeps the secret. This seems to mean that the veil cannot be pierced from the side the Ego is residing, it must come from the other side of the veil. Tipharet.
Anyway, I can only think of one reason why a Theosophist would attack any religion, and that is when a religion claims to be the sole possessor of Truth and all other religions are false. That is why H. P. Blavatsky was a bit harsh against Christianity in her "Isis Unveiled" volumes. She was around in the late nineteenth century. If she were present today, she would be lambasting another religion as well, I assume.
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You have to believe in the impossible in order to become.