Ecopsychology/6. What Religious Associations Should Do 6. What Religious Associations Should Do6:1. Ritual forms of religious practice can be well used by beginners. But one should understand that rituals are useful only for helping people remember about God’s existence. Participating in rituals — whatever they are called or whatever value people assign to them — cannot by itself solve the task of realization of our purpose of life. 6:2. Activities of religious associations should not be limited just to performing rites. It is necessary to explain to people what God is, tell them about the meaning of their lives and the way of its realization. Great focus should be on ethical work involving discussions on ethical principles, practice of conscious and sincere repentance, and collective analysis of ethical problems — using specific examples from life, books, newspapers, films, and other sources. Esthetics, including attunement to the subtlest manifestations of living nature and to certain works of art, can be extremely helpful. Sublime and inspiring beauty of human body may also play an important part in this work. Spiritual work becomes much more effective when complemented by lessons on ecology, sport training, and discussions about healthy lifestyle, as well as mastering healing and self-healing methods. The methods of psychic self-regulation should be taught with the emphasis on mastering the functions of the spiritual heart. 6:3. Serious meditative techniques must not be taught to children and ethically and intellectually immature adults, especially the methods related to the power aspect of the development of the consciousness. Breaking this rule can result in serious mental disorders that stop positive evolution of the soul. Initiations into spiritual knowledge must be done strictly on a step-by-step basis — new stages must be given only after disciples have mastered the previous ones. 6:4. The main qualities of God are Love, Wisdom, and Power. Thus, the one who seeks Perfection has to develop these qualities in oneself. For this purpose, there are three closely related directions of spiritual work: ethical, intellectual, and psychoenergetic ones. The ethical aspect of the development is the main one on the spiritual Path. Therefore, it is the basic ethical principles of a religious organization that serve as the criterion for judging whether its religious orientation is correct or incorrect. The motto “God and Love!” is true. Hatred towards anyone, preaching of violence, making killing of people and animals a “norm”, alcoholism and using other kinds of drugs, as well as self-interest, aggressiveness, self-admiring, falsity, and arrogance of leaders — this is wrong, this is evil, is not of God and does not bring one to God. 6:5. Thus, the main principle of the evolutionary development of man is multi-aspect LOVE which — begins with compassionate attitude to all manifestations of life, — is guided by the true understanding of the religious and philosophic aspect of our existence, — is based on the development of oneself as a spiritual heart, — guides us — through love for the Creation — to love for the Creator. 6:6. Love for the Creator allows us to cognize God in all of His aspects and Manifestations and merge with the Creator. 6:7. This Victory concludes the individual evolution of the soul on its human stage of development. All Those Who Achieved this continue to live as Integral Parts of the Creator. 6:8. One of the Manifestations of the activity of Those Who Achieved is help which They as Holy Spirits provide to incarnate beings. In some cases Representatives of the Creator incarnate in human bodies again — to help embodied people more successfully.
|
| ||||||||
|