I understand the waffling of Cal on the inevitability of world culture chaos leading to some sort of collapse. For one, Americans are optimistic; we don't take doom for an answer. We may be proud of this, but we must also understand that this is due in part to our history. Unlike most of the rest of the world, we have not experienced the horrors of political and social collapse in warfare (the South did to an extent, but they were quickly welcomed back as Americans, which they were, only divested of the right to own African slaves). For another, the way I wrote the last piece was so, well, certain! Is Cal's reaction another sign of the pervasiveness of relativity, or only a realistic look at the uncertainties in predicting the future?
Yesterday's blog was written in the spirit of Frithjof Schuon, a German (Swiss) metaphysician schooled in the early 20th century, and he was every bit the temperament of his national origin and time - hard-core and no nonsense to the extreme. However, he has based his reasoning not only on his own insight, but on the holy scriptures of several traditions. We Christians know that the world as we know it is destined to end in a rather dramatic way - to make room for the reign of Christ. For the Hindus, the world moves through stages, and most would agree that we are in the final of the primary 7 - that is, the age of Iron, or the Maha-Yuga. While the end is taken on faith by Christians, for the Hindus, whose roots stretch back 2000 years before Christ, the passage of the human world through stages is seen as a science - much as I described it yesterday. This is not to say that God has built in a doomsday mechanism, but that human nature, through the summation of individual choice, proceeds along specific lines. For instance: in the Golden Age, Man stands as he truly is, the image of God, and the realization is as natural for him as it is for us to see the blue sky and white snow. But the mirror of this reflection becomes clouded. As it does, Revelation is given to humanity to help clean this mirror, but in time fewer and fewer do so because with the dimming of the divine reflection, the Separateness of the world seems more and more real. At one point, towards the end of the Iron Age, most are blinded. Materialism wins the day. The reflected image becomes only a reflection itself, something seldom seen but only talked about (in Religion). At some point, even the reflection of the reflection becomes clouded; even the exoteric forms of knowledge dispensed by religious dogma become incomprehensible to most. Religion as a living body withers, Materialist science dominates, and, as the poet said, "the center cannot hold," for no center is recognized. All is particularized, taken from its place in the cosmic whole to serve a particular, atomized purpose (technology). There is no Truth anymore, only relative viewpoints, all more or less equal, limited, and transient, subject to the whims of the elite or the vox populus.
Sound familiar? However, what I say is nothing new - the "end" has been predicted since the death of Jesus. So I do agree with Cal to a degree - we do NOT know the time, only that it may come at any time - we are certainly set up for it. But there have been revivals and new Revelations in historical time - perhaps we have a while to go yet. Even Rene Guenon, another of the founders of the Traditionalist school, stated that, although it was likely that world culture would shatter, it was not absolutely inevitable - and that each of us must work to that end that believes it is not inevitable. In the end, we do not know what the "end" will really look like - and there is always divine grace.
Yesterday's blog was written in the spirit of Frithjof Schuon, a German (Swiss) metaphysician schooled in the early 20th century, and he was every bit the temperament of his national origin and time - hard-core and no nonsense to the extreme. However, he has based his reasoning not only on his own insight, but on the holy scriptures of several traditions. We Christians know that the world as we know it is destined to end in a rather dramatic way - to make room for the reign of Christ. For the Hindus, the world moves through stages, and most would agree that we are in the final of the primary 7 - that is, the age of Iron, or the Maha-Yuga. While the end is taken on faith by Christians, for the Hindus, whose roots stretch back 2000 years before Christ, the passage of the human world through stages is seen as a science - much as I described it yesterday. This is not to say that God has built in a doomsday mechanism, but that human nature, through the summation of individual choice, proceeds along specific lines. For instance: in the Golden Age, Man stands as he truly is, the image of God, and the realization is as natural for him as it is for us to see the blue sky and white snow. But the mirror of this reflection becomes clouded. As it does, Revelation is given to humanity to help clean this mirror, but in time fewer and fewer do so because with the dimming of the divine reflection, the Separateness of the world seems more and more real. At one point, towards the end of the Iron Age, most are blinded. Materialism wins the day. The reflected image becomes only a reflection itself, something seldom seen but only talked about (in Religion). At some point, even the reflection of the reflection becomes clouded; even the exoteric forms of knowledge dispensed by religious dogma become incomprehensible to most. Religion as a living body withers, Materialist science dominates, and, as the poet said, "the center cannot hold," for no center is recognized. All is particularized, taken from its place in the cosmic whole to serve a particular, atomized purpose (technology). There is no Truth anymore, only relative viewpoints, all more or less equal, limited, and transient, subject to the whims of the elite or the vox populus.
Sound familiar? However, what I say is nothing new - the "end" has been predicted since the death of Jesus. So I do agree with Cal to a degree - we do NOT know the time, only that it may come at any time - we are certainly set up for it. But there have been revivals and new Revelations in historical time - perhaps we have a while to go yet. Even Rene Guenon, another of the founders of the Traditionalist school, stated that, although it was likely that world culture would shatter, it was not absolutely inevitable - and that each of us must work to that end that believes it is not inevitable. In the end, we do not know what the "end" will really look like - and there is always divine grace.
In a completely different vein - I still mean to go into other areas, including the oft-promised UFOs as well as ghosts and extra dimensions and all that very interesting stuff. For another few weeks, though, I suppose I will continue on as I have - I have not finished my reading list for it yet. Also, I hope to add another essay this week. Thanks for the comments, Cal and Rooson. "Only the Father knows the time and day." FK
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