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January 9th, 1918.
Received by James Padgett.
Washington D.C.
I am here, Helen.
Well dear, I was with you tonight and saw that you were not much
benefited by Billy Sunday's sermon, and of course, could not be,
because the preacher said nothing to feed the hungry soul. He said
some things which were very good in the way of showing men and women
what they should do in order to make the earth lives more happy
and it will be well, if the hearers will heed and follow the advice.
But nothing much was said to help the progress of the soul.
I saw that you were not in much sympathy with the methods and sayings
of the preacher and thought that there was too much hilarity and
not enough reverence present, as a meeting for the opening up of
the soul and helping the development of those qualities that will
lead to the Father's love and the Celestial Heavens. But nevertheless,
some things that he said will do good to some people.
You must not forget that the teachings of the Master were twofold,
and for those who were not in a condition to hear and understand
his higher spiritual truths, he preached those things, which if
followed, would make them better men and women and cause them to
progress in the development of their natural love; and in this latter
effort the preacher will do good and his work must not be undervalued,
for all men are not alike in their conditions, intellectual or spiritual.
And besides, here and there in his preachings some truths that he
utters may by its influence upon the hearts of his hearers cause
such hearers to think more deeply about spiritual things of the
higher nature, and in thinking, their souls may be opened up to
the influence of the spirits who have the Divine Love in their souls,
and from which may follow the longings of these hearers for this
Love of the Father.
Everything said that tends to cause a spirit to progress towards
either of the conditions of love must be encouraged, for the Father
works in His own way, and frequently the Love comes into a man's
soul, and the man not being intellectually conscious of what the
Love is. Whoever is not against us in this work is, in a certain
sense, with us, for the salvation of men is the objects of all our
efforts; and if we or mortals cannot awaken dead souls to a life
in the higher condition, then we must work to bring them into that
condition that will cause them to get into a state of purified natural
love. They are all the children of God, and if they will not become
His beloved children in the divine sense, then He wants them to
become the pure spirits that the first parents were before the fall.
So do not criticize or look down upon the work of this preacher
because he does not show men the true way to the Celestial Heavens,
or because he says and does things that may not appear to be reverent.
God looks at the heart and the intentions and the forms of expression
used by the preacher are not important, except as they may have
the effect of causing some soul to turn away from the truths that
the preacher may communicate. All men are not alike and the preachings
of the man, while they may, as some say, disgust some hearers, yet
others will be affected by them and good will be done.
I write this because I see that you are inclined to criticize the
preacher and conclude that his teachings are not conducive to spiritual
progress. Well, as you have been told, the large
majority of men and spirits will never become inhabitants of the
Celestial Heavens, but that is no reason why they should not be
taught the way that will tend to purge them of their sins so far
as the natural love is concerned. Those who will not become angels
must become purified men, and any and everything that will help
them to become the latter is approved by the Father and is the object
of His favor.
Well dear, I will not write more now as I see that you are cold
and must go to bed. But remember this that while all men will not
become dwellers in the spheres of the soul in the Celestial Kingdom,
yet they are brothers, and the favored brothers must try and help
in every way possible the less favored brothers in obtaining that
which the Father has designed shall be their portion, even though
they refuse or neglect to seek for and obtain the great goal of
Divine Love and Immortality. So love me and pray to the Father for
His Love, and with all the sincerity of your soul, thank Him that
you have found the way to His Great Love and the mansions in the
Divine Heavens.
And what I have said to you I say to Dr. Stone, for I see that
his thoughts are somewhat similar to your own and that you both
think that unless a preacher can and does show the way to the Celestial
Kingdom, his work is not worthy of much consideration and falls
short of what he as a saviour of souls should do. And so it is,
but all cannot teach the higher truths, for they do not know or
understand them; but that fact must not cause you, or any who know
the truths, to think that this work when sincere and beneficial
in its moral teachings, should not be taught. I thought best to
write this tonight, so that you may not get a wrong conception of
what men who cannot teach the great truths should or should not
teach. All men are not in that condition of soul and love and they
should be taught the way that will lead them to those mansions in
the heavens that will be theirs by free will choice.
I love you my dear husband, and am closer to you in your thoughts,
and do not want you to think wrong in anything, even though you
think right in a great many and the most important things. Pray
and let your faith increase and believe that we are all with you
trying to direct you aright; and one who knows is more anxious than
any of us that your knowledge of the truths increase, and your experiences
arising from that knowledge bring to you with more convincing force
the truths, that God is Love, and your God. Good night.
Your own and true and loving,
Helen
This message is a composite of two, being published
in Volume III on page 303 and Volume IV on page 355. For more details
see this page.
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