Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Mysticism?


As mentioned previously, I am a student of mysticism. Mysticism "is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight. Mysticism usually centers on a practice or practices intended to nurture those experiences or awareness." (Wikipedia) The mystic is one who endeavors to have those experiences and awareness of the Divine.

By being L.D.S. (Mormon) I inherently believe that we can have those experiences which bring us into a direct awareness of Divinity and the Ultimate Reality; the First Vision, The Restoration of the Priesthood, the Kirtland Temple, etc. With that belief, I have taken and am currently taking different paths to achieve that end. This is not to suggest that I have left the Faith, rather I am trying to open up every avenue possible to achieve Divine communion while grounding myself in the Faith.

I am a Freemason, Alchemist, Astrologer, Philosopher. I study Rosicrucianism, Kabbalah, and all esotericisms. And how do I reconcile this with my religion? Two scriptural references should answer that question precisely. The first is found in the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 91:

Verily, thus saith the Lord unto concerning the Apocrypha - There are many
things contained therein that are true, and it is mostly translated
correctly;
There are many things contained therein that are not true, which are not
true, which are interpolations by the hands of men.
Verily, I say unto you, that it is not needful that the Apocrypha should be
translated.
Therefore, whoso readeth it, let him understand, for the Spirit manifesteth
truth;
And whoso is enlightened by the Spirit shall obtain benefit
therefrom;
And whoso receiveth not by the Spirit, cannot be benefited. Therefore
it is not needful that it should be translated. Amen.

The Apocrypha is a set of non-canonical writings which the early Catholic Church deemed important even if their legitimacy could not be authenticated. The Apocrypha, esoterica, was revealed by the Lord to be a valid study and benefit to those who study it. This argument can be made for all esotericism.

Also, in the 13th Article of Faith,

We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing
good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul - We
believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to
be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of
good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.
The many avenues of mysticism are virtuous, lovely and of good report. And they are congruous with being a thoughtful member of the L.D.S. Faith.

I truly enjoy the study of mysticism, and will be posting here on the any small things that I learn through my studies.

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