David said (August 12, 2011):

Dear Henry: In regards to CM, it's past time there were articles that promote the benefits of Christianity compared to obsessing on the ills of our nemesis. To me, the best "religion" is the most simple. Jesus was asked what is the greatest commandments. He answered: "To love God with all your heart, soul and mind and to love others as yourself." Unfortunately, I thought the article wrote by the young man was promoting a form of elitism which we have too much in the world. To me, adherents of Yeshua need to do at least two things: Help their fellow man and provide for human needs. Much joy is received through acts of love and giving.

Chris said (August 11, 2011):

This perspective of Christian prayer is immature and somewhat misdirected. But that is very common for people that have recently found that God has called out to them. I suggest this individual find a qualified spiritual adviser to help guide him. Ideally, it would be a Catholic priest that is experienced with this type of prayer. Not all priests understand it, and thus are not qualified to guide people. There are also tremendous amounts of evil and distortions that occur on this path, and at times, only a third perspective can bring clarity to what is being experienced. The book Fire Within, by Thomas Dubay is excellent at explaining several teachings. There are other books trying to link Buddhist teachings to Contemplative prayer, and I would suggest staying away from them, unless you want to be a Buddhist or New Ager.

With regards to what happens during the process, rather than being a 3 step procedure, it is seven, and is called Contemplative Prayer. The first three levels, or kingdoms, are indeed about purging ones heart and soul of the distractions of this world. The higher levels are beyond what people would think possible, and result with great amounts of responsibility. Usually much more than a person could endure, which is why so few have experienced them.

When truly taking the Contemplative path one does not reach a point of "blissful 'nothingness'". They reach a point of great joy in Gods Love, which is everything. It is a process of internal pain from suffering caused by the recognition of the the differences between God's way's and the lesser ones of yourself and this world. These moments are called "dark nights". They are followed by a vision providing unbelievable Love and Warmth, and then peace. This process repeats 3 times, each time increasing in intensity. The higher 4 levels contain even greater sufferings. The dark nights are dry and empty, with the deepest pain being the inability to recognize God's presence. (I imagine it's how souls in purgatory feel.) At this point, it is fully up to the mind to hold on to Him. What is actually happening is that God is working deep within the person to bring them closer to Himself. They can last for a few moments, or many years, depending on the person. The Virgin Mary is also extremely important on this journey, and denial of her will halt all works.

Finally, one does not begin the journey by choosing to enter into this relationship. A person can only make themselves available to the opportunity by opening their heart. God decides when the journey begins. When walked, the path results with learning who God has made you to be. The short coming of the individual is replaced with the fullness of union with the Trinity.

Erica said (August 11, 2011):

Mr. Richards, that was an interesting article. You also seem to be very young. If you want to really feel like the mystics and connect completely with God and nature, just drop some acid or take mushrooms. Everything you quoted describes my past experience with psychedelics. You'll find out how the universe is totally connected. Good article though, my compliments...

Glenn said (August 11, 2011):

Fantastic article by David Richards. This young man truly astounds me. Wise beyond his years, and a maturity level which compliments his wisdom. Refreshing !

EJ said (August 11, 2011):

I agree with Wave (...there is simply no substitute for intelligence.)

Just because someone is a "Satanist" doesn't validate that it exists. Just because someone is a Christian doesn't validate that a God exists. Faith isn't fact, fact is fact.

Richard's said:

"Without God as a reference point, modern man is locked into a state of animal consciousness."

That is the justification for one's belief in God and not a true statement of "fact." Until white people began to travel the Earth in conversion agendas bringing "the Lord" to the "heathens," millions of humans did quite well without that belief system. In an unbiased look at history, we lived for thousands of years without organized religion and without weapons of war.

It was the Kurgans of Russia who developed the short sword and tamed horses and then brought their dark agenda of a vindictive, jealous, off planet "God" to the masses of civilized old Europeans who were living quite well in peace and prosperity.

Richard's has spent 3 months reading about CM. I have spent 40 years studying humanity's folly of organized religion, sin, the devil, etc. We do much better as a species without labels and divisions of belief and just a simple spiritual acknowledgment of the miracle of sentience.

Debra said (August 11, 2011):

The hallmark of the True Mystic is bringing The Kingdom of God to Earth for the benefit of others. God's Will is unclear to most, thus few can "see", and this applies to some Mystics lacking rightful direction. The topic and study of Mysticism should be approached with caution.

Dan said (August 11, 2011):

The three step approach given here leaves out the need for med-i-a-tion / intercession between ego and God.

Mysticism that believes that God may be known or approached without any mediation or intermediate help shouldn't be confused with Christian mysticism. The Christian mystics firmly believed in the necessity of reconciliation through Jesus Christ to approach God. I don't mean to sound like the Church Lady here, but if there's no intercession in it, it's not Christian mysticism.

"Illuminati' means inner enlightenment. Looking for Godhead within is their way, not Christian. Don't let them lead you astray. Christians are reading everything under the sun except the words of Jesus. He wasn't teaching enlightenment or how to find Godhead within. He was teaching us that Paradise is when we forget ourselves and care for each other.

I'm glad to see so many readers are on the ball. They're referring to the same errors as I did. I fell into exactly the same errors 41 years ago. If the writer were talking about the Vedas or the Bardo Thodol, or Helena Blavatsky, it wouldn't be erroneous, but he's wanting to think it's the 'real' Christianity.

You've said you wish you could write yourself a letter when you were in your early 20's. Well, that's why I bothered to write. I don't challenge Fozdyke because he knows exactly what he's following. I wrote from concern that David has strayed into the same misunderstandings that I did. .If I didn't say it well enough, I'm relieved to see others got through. They're giving the right advice.

Nobody here is talking about becoming a 'sheeple' in organized religion.

Tony - The notion of each and every individual finding their own God could act as a dogmatic conceptual trap the social engineers want us in. A new universal concept in the name of finding common ground among all faiths to help usher in the New World Religion by each and everyone of us subscribing to our own self defined version of "Godhead".

DF - David Richards mentions all the writings by these mystical Christians, but doesn't mention the Bible.

LG - Our salvation, in short, is not in idolatry of the instrument of violence, but in Christ's overcoming it through God's grace in the resurrection, which is the real meaning of the Easter/ Christian Passover celebration.

Marcos - The mysticism of Meister Eckart is not a solace against the new world order, it is THE religion of the Illuminati (and Oprah!). It is part of the Hermetic tradition, alongside Kabala, alchemy, etc.and ultimately, new age. Eckart was one of Hegel's (a NWO guru) inspirations.
---

Dan

The Illuminati are not referring to the same thing as Christian mystics. Their enlightenment is strictly Luciferian. Man is God; he doesn't change his behavior. His lowest, not highest self is deified.

h

Neil said (August 11, 2011):

Henry, lets cut to the chase here...
Firstly become a Christian; pray to God, and read the Gospel of Thomas--not exactly mysticism but short and sweet with the strong prospect of expiation.

Wave said (August 11, 2011):

On the other hand the religious establishment could never survive, let alone enjoy its power of religious blackmail, without its mystics. To the non-religious observer many of the Christian mystics are co-conspirators of the NWO: they invented the 'just war' doctrine; the divine right to rule; Original Sin; the equation of a moral fault to a break with God/Divinity; revived and elaborated the logic of blood atonement centuries after its abnegation, and vindicated on the most profound subconscious level the occult cannibalism of the ruling elite (the eucharist). Aquinas, who you cite, was a guiding light for the Inquisition. You see, lurking behind the beautiful ontological wisdom of a St. Julian or Meister Eckhardt are a few blatant teachings that, to qualify as a Christian, you must either accept or reject. They cannot be 'sublimated' in mystical concepts for moral and rational reasons. For the same reason the Christian mystical tradition seems to constitute the most spectacular example of 'bad faith', a way of justifying - or avoiding altogether - the 'hard teachings' of Christianity. Tertullian the psychopathic lawyer, who some would argue was the first Christian mystic, sought to justify those hard teachings by dressing propaganda in epistemological garb (credo quia absurdum - "I believe it because it's so incredible!"). Try as he and others may, there is simply no substitute for intelligence.

Daniel said (August 11, 2011):

I am not sure where you want to go with an article like this, and I am sure you are aware of infiltrator activity. David Richards is a young person who has only stydied CM for 3 months and is apparently somewhat mesmerized by it's verbiage. This post sounds more like a salespitch for a nice blend for hinduistic yoga, doctrines of 'the law of attraction' Illuminism, etc.

I have only one piece of advice here, for real solace and consolation for those who are bruised and battered, get back to Jesus Christ, (not Catholisism) and make Him your base. He is all you need.

Marcos said (August 11, 2011):

The mysticism of Meister Eckart is not a solace against the new world order, it is THE religion of the Illuminati (and Oprah!). It is part of the Hermetic tradition, alongside Kabala, alchemy, etc.and ultimately, new age. Eckart was one of Hegel's (a NWO guru) inspirations.
While it is true that sometimes we can "feel" God's presence in praise and nature, more often than not we are commanded as Christians to believe in God's faithfulness and His word, even when we feel He is away. Moses didn't "feel" that challengig Pharaoh was good, David didn't "feel" bliss when he was hiding in the desert. The whole Bible is about trusting God against adverse feelings, the "valley of the shadow of death".

Mysticism is dangerous for three reasons:

-Because it creates false expectations in new believers, who will be crushed when the first trouble comes and they don't "feel" God.
-Feelings can be easily fabricated by Satan or by one's own imagination, especially when people dabble into occult meditation.
-Because it leads into hermetic thinking, which is a heresy that tells us we can somehow manipulate spiritual forces.

Eckart used to say that there is nothing but the "now", while the Bible tells us that rewards are in the future. The new world order, just like Eckart, will promise the paradise today.

See also:
http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/en/magee.htm (secular article)
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/08/tolle.htm (Christian perspective)

Specially, see the use of Eckart's doctrine by the UN in order to bring a new world order !
http://www.peacethroughunity.info/archives_UNANZ93.html

Gary said (August 11, 2011):

I can relate to the writer about waking up to the "propaganda matrix" of the NWO. While I had previously had some basic knowledge about a push for a global government, I really woke up politically when I saw that both George Bush and John Kerry, supposingly opponents in that presidental race, were both members of the same NWO fraternity "Skull and Bones" and realized the NWO has been "stacking the deck" with wolves in sheep's clothing on both "sides" so that whoever got elected would still be a NWO puppet.

I have also learned that ultimately this is a spiritual battle, the NWO would love for opponents to use physical violence so they would have an excuse to delcare martial law, so we must be careful not to fall for their tricks. This battle can be fought spiritually, and also by educating people to the truth so they can also wake up from the "matrix" and stop being used as unwitting dupes and pawns of the NWO. Here are a few web pages with info relating to it being a spiritual battle as well as the starting point for spiritual warfare:

http://kenraggio.com/KR-NatureOfTheBattle.htm

http://kenraggio.com/KR-BelievingTheWholeGospel.htm http://kenraggio.com/KR-BaptismInJesusName.htm

I agree that man made organized religious rituals are not the answer, but rather for each individual to have a personal experience with the Creator, and the Creator being all powerful has enabled His Word to stay intact so that we can know the way He made for us to have a personal experience with God. I can testify from personal experience that God is very real and the plan He made is not complicated, check put those web pages and see for yourself and put it to the test. We are getting more and more into troubled times because of the NWO, and individuals need to have a personal relationship with God to have the strength to endure what will happen.

LG said (August 11, 2011):

Thank you for the lovely spiritual missive. I think the more mature we become in our faith, the more we come to understand your quote from Christ that "the kingdom of God is within." We come to realize that everything - even the unpleasant or ugly- mysteriously works together to complete a greater picture, and then it becomes possible to love even the unloveable. It even becomes possible to tolerate chaos, as we begin to realize from quantum physics that chaos can be used by God creatively.

I was surprised at your quote of Jonathan Edwards - this quote must have been from a later and spiritually more mature point in his life. I was only familiar with his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," an unfortunate Puritan relic describing God as dangling sinners gleefully like spiders over an open pit of fire. That sermon and description of God -widely published in 11th grade U.S. English texts- may be partly responsible for Christians who have come to the faith to "buy fire insurance," rather than have their hearts set on fire with Divine love.

I was also interested that you named both Thomas Aquinas and C.S. Lewis in the same sentence. Wiki has an interesting article explaining some very opposite theological points that each one of them holds that are quite irreconcileable - see "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" discussion about who required the death of Christ (with helpful links to follow more deeply). Aslan required immediate and unconditional forgiveness of Edward, while it was the Satanic witch who demanded sacrificial blood-satisfaction. In making such distinction, it is possible to become freed from an unintentional dogmatic assumption that results in conflation of good and evil, in which torture and murder of Christ are attributed to God for a slippery-slope end that justifies the means. Our salvation, in short, is not in idolatry of the instrument of violence, but in Christ's overcoming it through God's grace in the resurrection, which is the real meaning of the Easter/ Christian Passover celebration.

anon said (August 11, 2011):

God has communicated his character, and thus revealed His will and purpose for us, through the Bible. He loves us enough that He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross for our sins. He wants us to know Him. How do you know somebody that you are not familiar with? You read a biography, or Facebook, or read somebody's writing's to be able to get inside their heads. God has done that, writing through more than 40 different people, including murderers, ranchers, fishermen, tax collectors, physicians, extremely wealthy people, and those that were extremely debased.

David Richards mentions all the writings by these mystical Christians, but doesn't mention the Bible. The Bible teaches doctrine, not dogma. Dogma is a man-made institution, biblical doctrine is not. Is it because through his Catholic upbringing he was taught that the priest is the mediator between God and him?

If you want to know God, David, read the Bible, just as these mystic writers did, and trust that Christ is the truth, and the life, and the way to knowing peace and eternal security.

God is love. THAT is how you defeat the NWO.

DF said (August 11, 2011):

God has communicated his character, and thus revealed His will and purpose for us, through the Bible. He loves us enough that He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross for our sins. He wants us to know Him. How do you know somebody that you are not familiar with? You read a biography, or Facebook, or read somebody's writing's to be able to get inside their heads. God has done that, writing through more than 40 different people, including murderers, ranchers, fishermen, tax collectors, physicians, extremely wealthy people, and those that were extremely debased.

David Richards mentions all the writings by these mystical Christians, but doesn't mention the Bible. The Bible teaches doctrine, not dogma. Dogma is a man-made institution, biblical doctrine is not. Is it because through his Catholic upbringing he was taught that the priest is the mediator between God and him?

If you want to know God, David, read the Bible, just as these mystic writers did, and trust that Christ is the truth, and the life, and the way to knowing peace and eternal security.

God is love. THAT is how you defeat the NWO.

Tony said (August 11, 2011):

"I haven't looked too much into Christian mysticism, but there were ideals in the article I liked.

I agreed that when we separate ourselves from sin we become closer to God. I also believe that when we isolate and distance ourselves from this fake, plastic, materialistic, degenerate culture is the beginning to any relationship with God, especially considering how anti God our culture is in its fruits and habitual practices.

However, the following concept could be seen as potentially dangerous and in accordance with New Age Spirituality, thus laying the down the framework for the One World Religion. That concept was this...

"We can counter the Illuminati's Satanism by finding our own Godhead."

The notion of each and every individual finding their own God could act as a dogmatic conceptual trap the social engineers want us in. A new universal concept in the name of finding common ground among all faiths to help usher in the New World Religion by each and everyone of us subscribing to our own self defined version of "Godhead".

It leaves us at the disposal of us defining and laying the pathway to God, which can greatly vary depending on each individual. One may claim to find God while lost in sexual euphoria while another may claim to find God at the peak of their narcotic induced high(people acctually believe this to be possible). While the concept of finding your own Godhead at face value sounds lavish, there are many who would undoubtedly distort it into something corrupt if examined through virtuous lens.

Overall it was a good piece. Food for the soul to say the least."