Concept of Religion, Church and Sect

Religion, which simply defined means humanity’s search for Truth i.e. for God, is an innate human need. It does not arise as confused atheists and agnostics claim from a need for a father figure or as an opium that lulls and satiates. It arises from inner spiritual movement that drives towards seeking a purpose for our existence. In its search for Truth, religion therefore naturally inclines towards a knowledge intrinsic in the Spirit about a home high above Matter, in a perfect kingdom ordered in the Will of the supreme Creator.

The fact is that the human being on Earth is a spiritual being cloaked in a material body. We are spiritual because, unlike all other beings in this sphere of matter where we need to experience[i], we came from a kingdom high above matter called the Spiritual Creation. The Spiritual Creation is also called Paradise, so called because it issued in perfection as a work of the Holy Spirit, the Creative will of God.

As highlighted in the book, ‘The Footprints of the Lord’[ii], left on their own, human beings as of necessity will always seek their origin and the purpose of their life. Whether we consciously believe it or not, our search revolves around a more or less vaguely perceived intelligent force as the source and sustainer of everything.

Genuine religion thus runs through the history of humanity and was not founded by any one individual or group. Therefore, religion as such stands above the rituals and dogmas of the various sects and organisations that arose in its practice. These rituals and doctrines, which today are generally accepted as defining religion, only reflect the path along which groups have sought. They represent the distortions imposed by various cultures and intellectual manipulations on a fundamentally simple search for God. In this sense, religion is not synonymous with the various churches andhould be the unifying culture of all human spirits.

The Creator of All does not belong to any church, sect or group no matter how edified, nor does He belong to any people no matter how religiously advanced. There is therefore only one religion as there is one God. Unsurprisingly, none of the Truth bringers, including the Son of God, Jesus, talked about bringing a new religion. They just brought the Truth, adapted to the level of maturity of the communities they were sent to. Invariably however, the people turn what little they understand of the Truth into their particular unique form of worship they call religion. These groupings are best regarded as churches and not religion. No church has the exclusive preserve of the Truth.

Nevertheless, these church groupings are eminently important, because they provide social and organisational support which humans need. Consequently, these supports tend to evolve and change with changes in social norms. Thus, churches and their forms and activities tend to change over time, but not so the Truth behind them or the need of the human spirits for God.This poses a fundamental challenge to the core purpose of the sects towards supporting the need of the human spirit, which is to recognise and live in the Will of its God. This is made doubly difficult in these times when individuals with intellectually driven agendas rather than spiritually motivated individuals take over the leadership of these organisations.

Nevertheless, each individual within the Churches remains responsible for their own beliefs and activities and must account for them personally. The Church only provides support but is not meant to take away the required personal effort. As the Grail Message puts it: “Only he who bestirs himself can advance spiritually. The fool who uses extraneous aide for this, in the form of the ready-made opinions of others, walks his path only as if on crutches, while ignoring his own healthy limbs…[iii] Therefore awake! Genuine faith lies only in conviction and conviction arises solely through an inflexible weighing and examining.”[iv]

Remember, as the Lord Jesus Christ emphasised, that the Truth is like a sword thrust between the individual and all significant others, whether these be parents, siblings, church leaders or church members! A husband has no share in the recognition of his wife and vice versa, nor a sister in that of a brother.

You are free to remain in any church that offers you spiritual support but you are also free, indeed required, to question any teaching, dogma, of belief that either does not or no longer resonates with your intuitive or spiritual movement. This is the only path to genuine progress and conviction. Without this freedom you will be stifled and reduced to the level of “Church socialite”, someone who has already stepped onto the broad and easy path Christ warned against. But of course, this is what many want. Only the young adults still retain sufficient spiritual drive to ask questions sometimes and this is because of the awakening generative power[v] that urges them to spiritual goals. And the voice of the youth must never be stifled. Those in their prime are often too pre-occupied with Material needs to allow spiritual questions to arise. They are then satisfied to leave such matters in the hands of so-called ‘men of God’.

We must be ready to always follow where the Spirit leads. Religion, stands above but also embraces the churches. Also the churches are limited by societal norms and expectation, while religion is not. Because religion charts the path of the spirit in Material Creation, the various guides and messages from God for humanity over the ages have always pointed to more spiritual enlightenment with more comprehensive exposition of the Truth. This structured guidance will culminate, according to Christ, in the coming of the Spirit of Truth, who will bring All Truth. ^vi

[i] What is this sphere of matter?The Spheres of Matter or Material Creation represents the entire Material world in which we dwell, both the physically visible and the invisible parts.

[ii] ‘The Footprints of the Lord’ by Uchenna Mezue

[iii] Lecture: For your guidance. ‘The Grail Message’ by Abd-Ru-Shin

[iv]  For your Guidance.  ‘The Grail Message’ by Abd-Ru-Shin

[v] This is covered in separate blog post

^vi John 16: The Bible.