The Evangelical Universalist Forum

Sword to the Heart: The Story of Passion and Atonement

Theology Philosophical
#21

What happened to those people when they died? The same that happens to all of us when we die: the synthetic chrysalis falls free, leaving us in some other, higher Nature (for there is no point to undoing our creation, and so we must have a distinctive natural system in which to be); and the consuming fire of the eternal Holy Spirit works upon us, as He always has done, as He is doing this very moment to you and to me, as He always wishes to work even more with us. The Holy Spirit, the 3rd Person of the Trinity, is not separate from the 1st and 2nd Persons; the Father and the Son are there as well, God Self-Begetting and God Self-Begotten, as they are now with us, as they were with the people at the beginning of recorded history, and before the beginning.

Does this mean we will exist in some merely mental fashion without a body? Perhaps–we already exist in a merely mental world at night when we dream, while our sleeping bodies exist in the fuller reality of Nature. But this natural system is a fuller reality than a merely mental one–would anything be gained by restricting our existence afterward to that which was merely mental?

But if it is physical, too, we must either be supplied with new bodies, or else our old ones must be transformed and raised from their corruptibility into incorruptibility.

This, to put it mildly, clearly does not currently happen! But would it happen someday? And why would that be, if so?

I do not think it is likely that the new Nature we shall enter will be corrupted as our current Nature has been corrupted–there would be no point in God making such a translation of our spirits into an equal corruption. Then again, how much of our nature, and of our Nature, shall be done away with, and how much shall be saved and redeemed?

We shall put off corruption, and will (if we choose to accept the gift) put on incorruption: a new body, whether or nor redeemed from the old one. Perhaps there we will meet–perhaps our ancestors did meet–creatures born into that Nature, unfallen. Perhaps they can come to this Nature on occasion, as messengers, or merely as travelers to the dangerous and exotic and beautiful land of this world that we should love.

These are but speculations: the ‘elves’ of our world are already here–you and I are two of them. Yet, we do have stories of other elves…

#22

I only speculate about what might be in the ‘next’ world, or in other worlds, and whether any of it trickles or gushes or travels to this world; I heartily wish it to be true, for I love true magic, and our souls are suffused with it already: the breath of God. I think we have grounds to honestly hope that anything good that can be done, has been or will be done. If it can be good to have elves, or unicorns, then have them we shall!–though always with the dangers that accompany any good thing, for there always must be consequences to any action.

Again, only speculation. I trust what I do know: and I do know God exists, and is committed to His creations, which includes this Nature, and which includes us as people. When we have finished the evil dying, then something new will happen, and new adventures will begin, for us as individual people–and I expect also for us corporately, as families or nations, for these are outgrowings of our lives as individuals. I trust that sooner or later–and I have no reason to suspect it would be much later–we will reach a Nature, a country, itself uncorrupted; whether new or, more likely, itself redeemed from our current field of reality, where our synthetic shape shall not hamper our hearts and minds.

(Why would that be more likely? Because God is already so committed to the current field of Nature that He allows it to affect us with suffering! To simply throw it away afterward and replace it with something else would leave victims of Nature without a victory over Nature–and without reconciliation to that which God has created but which has been since perverted.)

Yet, even in the new Nature to come, our hearts and minds will have already been partly shaped, not only by this Nature, but by other hearts and minds acting within this Nature–not least, by our own selves as we make our choices. This is true for us today; and was equally true in ancient Sumaria, China, India, Egypt, Africa, Ireland, Peru.

Specifically what God has done for those people in their own cultures, I do not know, although I hope for the best.

But I also know that although He excuses what I do when I do have excuses (for He will be just to me), He does not excuse what I do when I have no excuses (for He will be just to me). Nor does He simply negate the results of my mistakes, whether I have excuse for them or not.

Forgiveness is necessary; atonement is necessary. And it cannot happen without my own willed choice of action, as a person. Nor can it happen without God’s own willed choice of action, as a Person.

And the action of God, including His most primary basic action of self-existence, is God the Self-Begotten.

#23

There is no salvation, apart from the Son of God.

But the Father will be begetting His action, and the Son will be surrendering in Unity to the Father, and the Holy Ghost will proceed; and the eonian fire will do every work He can do, to lead His children home.

This may require, to put it delicately, some ‘spanking’.

But I think it could easily be rather more delicate than the pictures we have invented of human kings and human gods tormenting with insatiable human vengeance. We should resist such images, on pain of our own damnation, insofar as they represent God setting aside His love, His justice, or both.

Yet, then again…

people are people; and we make our own choices.

I will not join with the doctrine of automatic damnation and hopeless torment; but neither will I join with the doctrine of automatic salvation and beatitude. I proclaim the active love and justice of God, however fiercely or gently such love and justice may need to blaze.

#24

And I testify to you: I can easily imagine, I have been sorely tempted, to do things for which I would heartily deserve the loving fearsome wrath of God Almighty.

I do not wish to be saved from God: there is no salvation apart from God!

I do not wish to be saved from a just and righteous and loving punishment: the discipline of God.

I want, and need, to be saved from my sins.

And I pray God, whatever it takes, please Lord do it! Save me–not some mere copy of me, but me, personally!

I trust Him to save me, whatever it takes, whatever it costs Him in His own anguish, or costs me in mine. I love Him that much.

And I tell you, my reader: such love is not an easy love for me to give. Sometimes I resent the fire. At this moment, while I write this chapter, my heart is being crushed into a bleeding mass and set on fire, out of sorrow and anguish and loss.

But however much it hurts me, for my heart to be pulverized, I also swear to you, my reader: it is far, far better, for myself and for those around me, for me to have a living bleeding heart, than to have a constricted little hole of a heart within a mountain of stone.

#25

So, the hope I have for myself, I also have for the people of antiquity, who though they may not have had my advantages of knowledge, did have and still have the same mighty advantage you and I have here and now:

God loves them, too!

I trust Him to save me. I trust Him to save them. Whether they trust Him to save them, sooner or later, is another matter. But God Himself will do everything He can, for them as for me–and for you, my reader.

We, all of us–past, present and future; human or angel or animal (if other sentient creatures have been or shall be)–all of us, as the children of God, are God’s chosen people: for we have been chosen by Love, the interPersonal foundational of all reality, to be people at all.

We still are chosen, all of us, even when we are sinners; chosen through birth and by Divine choice: for God, the Trinitarian Unity Who in His own Self-existence is Love, loves His children–even when they are His enemies.

So, what do we need? We need to see God loving His enemies, choosing His enemies, electing His enemies for salvation, working to bring them into readiness to accept the inheritance they were born for.

We need a symbol, of God’s love for all of us.

We, the chosen people, need to see a people chosen.

#26

[Note: I’ve been out sick this week with the stomach pseudo-flu. :angry: Providentially, I was led back on Friday or Saturday of last week to post up most of the remaining SttH material to auto-post at the Cadre Journal, where I’m paralleling the end of the book this week for Easter. I’m still too wiped out to do much toward posting the material [u]here, yet. But I figured I could at least post the links for each day as they’ve come up, now that I’ve recovered at least a little bit. :slight_smile: ]

CHAPTER 52 – “A People Chosen”

(posted Monday Easter week, the day Christ began final Temple teaching)

#27

Chapter 53 – “The Harmony Of Dissonance”

(posted Tuesday Easter week, the day of final opposition by religious leaders, after which they dared not say anything more)

#28

Chapter 54 – “The Son of God”

(posted Wednesday Easter week, the day the Presence of God left the Temple in rejection)

#29

Chapter 55 – “The Good News”

(posted Thursday Easter week, the day of the reception of the Gentiles and the night of the Lord’s Supper)

#30

Chapter 56 – “The Price For Our Sins”

(posted Friday Easter week, the day of the trials and the crucifixion and burial)

#31

Chapter 57 – “The Sword To The Heart”

(posted Saturday Easter week, the day when God Most High Himself rested from His labors)

#32

After Word, Fore Word

(Posted Easter Sunday 2011, the beginning of the Day of the Lord to come!)

#33

The thread is now unlocked for comments, questions, etc.