Written
by Andrew J. Manuse on April 17, 2001
- An essay on Christianity, as I see it -
The
tee shirts that we wore on the family trip out west are now rags used for washing
floors and other jobs of the sort. But, that family trip is alive and well in
my mind’s eye. Not as a memory, but as a vision present in the Eternal
Now.
This vision, combining history and imagination, is based on greater truths than
memory could ever unveil. Memory is only present in the rags that I can see
in their old form, as shirts clothing my family members in old pictures. With
imagination added, the out-west trip becomes an experience of communion: My
Mother, Father, Brother Joe, and I were bonded together with familial love in
the light of God’s Omnipresence.
God was inside of us, and we in him, as we viewed another product of imagination
(or Word): nature. This includes the immense redwood trees in California that
smiled down on us with understanding, having seen Man’s progress and failures
of the past 1,000 years. The Pacific Ocean serenaded us with the rhythms of
the Universe, exhibiting the Almighty in all His grandiose unity. And we were
there, a part of everything, together.
Using
the imagination in this way is bringing the past into the Eternal Now. For that
vacation was one that built foundations for each family member that remain with
us today. God has always been with us whether we knew it or not. Now, when in
God, in the Eternal Now, we can bring those events to the present and see them
in the Light of God with a new understanding that makes us more perfect. And
so too, can all who read this and understand it in their hearts.
We know, that any hardships we had during those times, including times when
we might have stepped off our path in God, are forgiven. We are now made righteous
in Jesus Christ. Now in the Eternal, Here at this time (as far as our perception
is concerned) we are either living up to our greatest potential, or God’s
will, and in Heaven, or becoming dependent on the earthly desires of the ego,
against God’s will, and in Hell. As Jesus said, we are either with him
or against him.
Of course, to follow God’s will is only to subordinate the body to the
will of the Spirit. This does not mean that the body cannot enjoy the physical
world that surrounds it, for matter and Spirit are one, or Earth and Heaven
are united. Therefore, whenever we realize that God is our King and Lord, we
can be kings and lords ourselves, and please God by making good with the Earth,
and enjoying it.
The husband and wife are thus united in one, and in God, living with the perception
of the Eternal Now. They live in Eden, the Kingdom of Heaven, the un-fallen
world, as we all can do. But, to live in this Eden, one must perceive it first.
The Word of God says, “be renewed in the spirit of your mind.”
We
must recognize that the perception of Heaven in the Now is not the same thing
as the perception of a darker, fallen reality right now. The state of the world
is the same for both perceptions, but the former sees pain, sorrow, suffering,
mediocrity, pleasure, joy, and euphoria as part of a perfect system, wherein
its members are geared toward spiritual growth. Thus, they can become infinitely
closer to the Almighty.
The body of Christ is the Children of God. Jesus, the first-born son of the
Father, is the head, the King of kings, the Lord of lords. We can be and are
kings and lords. We have been given authority in God, and the keys to the Kingdom
of Heaven. We are constantly being renewed in God, and with clear vision, constantly
moving closer into Him. This does not mean that we are not in Him now, because
we are.
If however, we choose the latter perception, then pain, sorrow, and suffering
are the results of our fall and our sins against God, these sins being disbelief
and only that. This is a way of seeing only. The Ego is in charge of this state
of mind and seeks self-gratifying pleasures such as power, riches, or fame.
In these three pleasures will arise other selfish desires, which, when fulfilled,
will be against God. Joy would be very temporary and insufficient in this state.
It would be like an addictive drug that commands dependence. Eventually, depression,
self-doubt, and death will occur as joy becomes harder to grasp. Ecstasy will
be reached by abusing the body in all ways, with extremes rather than moderation,
which is the proper approach. This State of Mind can easily develop into a hell,
whereas the first is and always will be Heaven and Earth combined as one, or
Man and God as one.
If one is in the latter state, he or she can recognize that a wrong turn has
been taken, and return to God. This is called repenting. Our sins have all been
forgiven: past, present, and future. So, the repenting process is acknowledgement
of this: God’s Mercy and Love! From there, understanding will come under
God’s reign in our hearts, will in our minds, and creating power, or Word,
in our imaginations and intuitions. Yes, one can stray from this path, but should
stay fast, and remain on the strait path throughout the Eternal Now. This can
only be accomplished within our True Selves, not in our egos, under the direction
of God’s will.
The future is an idea that also must be brought into the Now. Although we may
have general goals to approach, these goals will and should change quite often
so that they reflect who we are in the Now. As described above, the will of
God, or the Holy Spirit, will guide us.
For
example, I have a goal to get married. I know that God’s Will, shall be
done, and I know that a woman shall make me whole. This is only because Adam
was man and woman in the beginning. A person is complete when male and female,
as Man is complete when Man and God. My soul mate is already known. Not the
specific person, but the specific idea. My imagination, in the Eternal Now,
has created a wife for me that will take form in an actual woman, whose imagination
has created my form in God. This was done at creation when God (The Elohim,
which is the same as the Body of Christ) created Man in Their image. And so,
in the Now, I realize that change will bring about the person I need to be so
that I can marry the person my wife needs to be. I also realize that the change
that needs to take place first will be the process of growth that I secure in
the light of God.
Right now, everything is perfect in my perception, as it should be in all of
our perceptions. This includes my knowledge that change will make us more perfect
as we grow closer to God, in God.
It is only right to
live in the Eternal Now!