Messages 2006
The World is Good.
April 14th, 2006
Santa Cruz, California
Received by F.A.B.
I am here, Mani [the founder of Manichaeism].
I know you have no idea what I want to say. Often we spirits have “coached” you by giving you thought impressions of what is to follow, but since you have arrived at a new level in your mediumship, we thought we would give you a “trial run.”
Yes, I founded a new religion, and I did indeed receive a vision from an Angel. My goal was to integrate the various religions. My background caused me to look with disfavor on the world, and thus I formulated the concept of a dual world of good and evil, light and darkness.
Dear Arthur, you know exactly what I will now say. Don’t think it’s a projection of your own thoughts because it is not.
I was wrong. How could a loving God create a world which is bad? The logic of this is so very simple. Yet I felt wise in my own knowledge, and thus erred grievously. I eventually came to really regret all the harm I caused by in effect blaspheming the loving God. Yes, that’s exactly what it was - blasphemy. And how I suffered for it! I am so grateful that Manichaeism has gone the way of the dodo.
Let me address a concern you have. You want so much to not interject your own thoughts in your channeling. You felt that the above phrase, “has gone the way of the dodo,” is a very American idiom, and could not have been said by a spirit who lived in ancient Persia on Earth. And there have been other instances like this, as when Louis XIV called himself “the VIP of France.” Not exactly a classical French phrase!
So let me put your mind to rest. It is we spirits who purposely use these American idioms. It is not a fault of your mediumship. To the contrary, it’s a proof of its authenticity, because you are faithfully recording what we say. We do this so readers can feel close to us and not feel distant. After all, for example, Louis XIV has been quite capable of learning contemporary idiomatic American English. He wanted his readers to feel close to him so they could comprehend the ideas he wished to express. I know how happy this makes you.
Let me get back to my earth life. I was passionate about my beliefs. I had, in fact, a missionary zeal, because I really thought I had perceived a very important revelation from God.
The truth is that certain aspects of my beliefs were authentic. But I did exactly what Swedenborg did - I imposed unwittingly my own distorted and erroneous beliefs.
But all that is past. I will conclude by letting you know that I am a Celestial Angel.
Love, Mani.
Manichaeism was a major religion that was founded by the Iranian prophet Mani ( c. 216–276 AD) in the Sasanian Empire. Manichaeism taught an elaborate dualistic cosmology describing the struggle between a good, spiritual world of light, and an evil, material world of darkness. Through an ongoing process which takes place in human history, light is gradually removed from the world of matter and returned to the world of light whence it came. Its beliefs were based on local Mesopotamian gnostic and religious movements. Manichaeism was quickly successful and spread far through the Aramaic-Syriac speaking regions. It thrived between the third and seventh centuries, and at its height was one of the most widespread religions in the world. Manichaean churches and scriptures existed as far east as China and as far west as the Roman Empire. It was briefly the main rival to Christianity in the competition to replace classical paganism. Manichaeism survived longer in the east than in the west, and it appears to have finally faded away after the 14th century in southern China contemporary to the decline in China of the Church of the East during the Ming Dynasty. While most of Manichaeism’s original writings have been lost, numerous translations and fragmentary texts have survived. (Source: Wikipedia)