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Dynamics for Living
Transfiguration
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[Dynamics for Living]
[Charles Fillmore's Works] [Unity on the Web Home Page]
TRANSFIGURATION is always preceded by a change of mind. Our
beliefs must be lifted from the material, the physical, to
the spiritual. But first we need to realize that it is
possible for us to be transfigured as well as to understand
the law by which transfiguration is brought about.
The meaning of the Transfiguration has never been
understood by those who read the Scriptures as history. The
Transfiguration of Jesus has always been considered a
historical event, and its allegorical meaning overlooked.
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To get the real meaning of the Transfiguration, we must
regard the experience of Jesus on the Mount as typical of
what often takes place in those who are growing in
spiritual consciousness.
Evidences
We have evidences every day of the power of thought to
transfigure the countenance. We know that it is possible
for a person to be transformed in a degree by the thoughts
that flit through his mind from moment to moment, but we do
not know his capacity for transfiguration, which is
unlimited, nor the part it plays in his attainment of the
Christ consciousness and the Christ body.
The real object of existence is to bring forth the perfect
man and attain eternal life. Eternal life must be earned.
It is usually assumed that man does not die, and this is
true of the I AM; but how about the consciousness, the
soul? "The soul that sins shall die" is the testimony of
the Scriptures. That only lives which conforms to the
principle of eternal life.
Consciousness
Spirit exists eternally in God-Mind, of which we must
become conscious. This consciousness is soul and is the
tangible part of soul. God-Mind gives us the opportunity to
incorporate into our
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soul or consciousness His attributes. These attributes are
spiritual life, love, wisdom, strength, power, in fact the
essence of all good, which we realize first in the mind,
then in body and affairs. Thus God gives us the spiritual
perfection that we are to manifest and retain eternally in
consciousness. This is His Son or Christ.
Jesus taught that we must attain the consciousness of
eternal life, that we have no life in us until we have
attained this consciousness. Until we demonstrate over
death, the death of the body, we are in a transitory state
of existence.
Realization
The real object of existence is to attain the consciousness
of eternal life and to manifest all that is potentially
involved in us by our Creator. The Spirit--I AM or ego--in
man is eternal, but there must be a consciousness of this
quality of eternity; there must be a consciousness of the
image-and-likeness man.
There must be in every one of us a realization of that
Spirit which has in it--involved in its being--all that
exists in the universal. If we do not realize this, if we
do not make it ours, we must eventually go back to the
universal. Jesus was the great Way-Shower to the attainment
of this realization of Spirit. We shall miss "the
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prize of the upward call" if we do not enter the path that
He trod and that He pointed out in many parables,
illustrations, and experiences.
The overcoming or lifting up of man is a process through
which we are all passing if we have been converted to the
Christ way of life. Transfiguration plays a part (and an
important part) in this evolution of the soul. When we see
the parallel between our experiences and the
Transfiguration of Jesus we gain confidence to go forward.
Three Virtues
In our study and application of the Christian life we all
have times when we are spiritually uplifted. Such a time is
marked by a form of spiritual enthusiasm, which is brought
about by statements of Truth made by ourself or others
--prayers, words of praise, songs, meditations--any
statement of Truth that exalts the spiritual realms of the
mind. Jesus was lifted up by Peter, James, and John (faith,
judgment, and love). Whenever we dwell upon these virtues
and try to live up to them, they are exalted in
consciousness, and they go up with us to the Mount of
Transfiguration. You may not always realize this. You may
think that the uplifting was just a passing exaltation, but
it stamps itself upon your soul and body and marks the
planting of
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a new idea in the upward trend of the whole man.
What is your attitude toward these times when you feel the
mighty uplift of Spirit? Do you give them their due
importance; or when you again come down into the valley, do
you groan and question and wonder why you do not abide in
your exaltation, why there seems a falling away of the mind
from it?
Essential Unity
Right here we must be wise and understand the relation of
the higher principles of man and their action in the
redemption of soul and body. Do not lose sight of the fact
that the whole man must be spiritualized. Some people get
into the habit of going up in spirit to the Mount of
Transfiguration, and they find it so enticing that they
refuse to descend to the valley again. Then soul and body
are left to go their own way, and a separation ensues. Such
persons dwell continually on the heights and ignore the
essential unity of spirit, soul, and body. Many delusions
arise among Christians because they lack understanding of
the law of the idea and its manifestations. All things, all
actions, all principles, are working toward the unity of
God, man, and the universe. But there must be a
readjustment and a cleansing of the whole mass.
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If there are things, whether mental or physical, that are
not up to the high standard of Spirit, they must die. Jesus
on the Mount spoke of His death which was to follow. This
death is of the material perception of substance and life,
which is reflected in man's body of flesh. This must
perish. The limited concept of matter and of a material
body must be transformed so that the true spiritual body
may appear.
Salvation
Some teach the saving of the soul and the perishing of the
body. Jesus taught the saving of both soul and body. It is
true that this mortal body must be transfigured. It is but
a picture or symbol of the real, the spiritual body, which
is the "Lord's body." The "Lord's body" is the body of
Spirit, the divine idea of a perfect human body. When one
realizes this new body, the cells of the present body will
form on new planes of consciousness. They will aggregate
around new centers, and the "Lord's body" will appear.
When the body is devitalized by excessive labor,
dissipation, or any loss of vital force, its aura shrinks
away and a consciousness akin to that of being unclothed is
evident. When the mind is adjusted to the divine law, all
the vital forces flow harmoniously and the aura glows about
the body as a beautiful white light, protecting
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it from all discord from without and purifying it
continually from within.
True prayer brings about an exalted radiation of energy.
The word of Truth bursts forth in a stream of light that,
when held in mind, illumines, uplifts, and glorifies.
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[Dynamics for Living]
[Charles Fillmore's Works] [Unity on the Web Home Page]
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