Reincarnation

While we await more evidence, i.e. verifiable information on Reincarnation there is a long list of scientific studies making a good case for an afterlife. Maybe they just give us a glimpse into the eternity Gary speaks about, that the Bible says exists.

The first of these was published in 1975, by the now famous Dr. Raymond Moody, in his book "Life After Life", which describe "actual case histories that reveal there is life after death". Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, famed pioneer for her work with the terminally ill, provided the foreward. In this timeless little tome Dr. Moody describes the experience many of his patients reported to him, the common stages and the impact the experience had on those who underwent the experience. This work became known as the Near-Death Expereince wherein persons clinically, but not actually, dead revived and told of their experiences of going thru a tunnel into the light, meeting dead relatives or a religious figure and being told it was not yet their time to transit from this plane to the next.

Of interest here is that several people reported meeting Jesus, or a Christ-conscious being. At the end of his book Dr. Moody describes parallels between the experiences of his patients and the Bible, Plato, The Tibetan Book of the Dead and Emanuel Sewedenborg. The result of his research was to instill in him a deep sense of an afterlife.

First off, let me say that I honor Steve’s decision. I did the same thing on my first website. Way back when a Guest Book was the only means of posting individual comments, I removed the Book due to undesirable comments.
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I contributed blogs on Crossleft regarding the topics of reincarnation and our galactic family because, from the years of research I have done, I believe them to be topics that churches will have to face head on in the very near future. So much has been covered up from the time of Constantine and the early ecumenical councils on down through the ensuing 1500 years. Along with the internet came opportunities for thousands to research on their own. What has been covered up is now coming into the open and being shared on numerous websites.

Christians will increasingly encounter the need to discern truth for themselves … to research and find answers on their own … and to determine for themselves what impact these heretofore hidden facts have on their faith and spiritual journey. By introducing the subjects in blogs, I was inviting Christians to begin to think of their lives in a broader sense and to recognize that God’s world contains far more life and wonders than we have suspected.

What difference does it make?

There is no doubt in my mind that reincarnation was an accepted explanation of life for the early Christians and that it is biblical. I have introduced the concept with the hope that those readers who are interested will pursue their own research and find out what difference it makes for them. I see no real changes resulting from simply debating a topic … for modern day Americans, “debate” connotes competition, a winner and a loser. What is important is the meaning reincarnation may hold for the individual. Knowledge of reincarnation can grant meaning, purpose, and understanding to our lives. But, that is for each individual to seek out on his/her own.

There is no doubt in my mind that contact with our galactic family has taken place throughout Earth history and that it is depicted in the Bible. I offer the following for your own research if interested. See if it makes a difference to you.

“And Enoch found favor in the presence of God, and disappeared; for God took him away.” (Genesis 5:24) Did Enoch disappear in a space ship? Earth humans considered the extraterrestrials to be “gods” because they are far more advanced in knowledge and technology than we are.

The purpose of this and succeeding posts is to introduce some of our early church fathers and, with some their lost contributions to the development of modern day Christianity, to recover their wisdom and show how the church might have looked had not their wisdom been "lost."
Simply because their wisdom does not appear in the present day Bible does not negate their value. Their contributions were negated by church politics more than anything. We are, IMO, all the lesser for the loss.

Having now come to the surface after a deep dive into a vast area of research, at the risk of oversimplification, I'll try to be as brief as I can.

I'll begin with Origen, a Greek philosopher (ca. 185-ca. 254), considered by many to have been one of two of the most important early Christian theologians, the other being Augustine. His great work, the Hexapla, is a synopsis of six versions of the Old Testament. He is said to have authored 6,000 manuscripts. It is important, for this discussion, to note that Ancient Greek belief systems of his time commonly accepted preexistence of the soul.

SOUL TALK - How Reincarnation Plays Out In Life

For background information on reincarnation, please go to my blogs entitled “Have I Lived Before?” and “Who Sinned? This Man or His Parents.”

Several years ago, I had a regular 2-3 minute segment on a radio talk show called SOUL TALK, based on questions submitted by our listeners. SOUL TALK is based on a recognition of reincarnation as a means of advancing on the spiritual path. Questions relating to personal experiences are an excellent avenue for revealing how reincarnation plays out in our earth plane lives. With this understanding, we can make more enlightened decisions about how we want to live our lives and how to go about assisting others.

I am supplying some of the actual listener questions with SOUL TALK’s answers.

SOUL TALK #22:
Q: Please explain the concept of “karma.”
A: Karma is the basis for reincarnation on the physical plane. It represents the positive and negative energy we create by the way in which we live our lives. In biblical terms, “we reap what we sow.”

In very simplistic terms, humanity has forgotten that, in actuality, we live and move and have our being within the energy of God. Instead, we believe ourselves to be separate from God. We have also forgotten all the powers that are ours as god beings.

Theology Panel,

I think we will add interest to Crossleft if we proceed to write on the topics Rich has listed. Jim wants to write on meditation.

I would like to write on reincarnation.

Writing on the theological topics will be one way of tuning into the right brain hemisphere.

Supporting social justice and actively caring for others will be a way to activate the left brain hemisphere.

As a woman, I am forever wanting to understand the dynamics behind behavior. I perceive the man as most often wanting to fix the problem, to do something.

We can accomplish much by consciously using the Whole Mind Approach to activities on Crossleft.

Plus, metaphysicians teach that achieving the state of androgyny is essential for progression on the spiritual path.

SOUL JOURNEY: FROM LINCOLN TO LINDBERGH, Revealing the Mysteries of Karma & Rebirth, by Richard Salva, is an excellent book.

Salva places historical facts about Lincoln and Lindbergh, plus their own words, side-by-side to reveal the journey of one soul. The comparison between the two men is fascinating; in addition, their soul journey reveals much about the process of reincarnation and karma.

Salva presents the facts, then allows you to come to your own conclusions and to learn about your own soul journey at the same time.

CHAPTER #2 - “WHO SINNED? … THIS MAN OR HIS PARENTS? John 9:2

Endnotes may be found on my website under the title of “Reincarnation in the Bible.”
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"What does the Bible have to say about reincarnation?" Nothing, if we expect to find the word reincarnation.

A lot, if we read the Bible through the lens of belief in reincarnation. In Chapter 1, I discuss the early Church Fathers’ efforts to establish a worldwide church subscribing to one and the same doctrine. A very serious repercussion has been heresy trials resulting in excommunication, burning of books, even death for expounding a different doctrine.

A second devastating consequence has been the forced reading of and interpretation of the Bible according to the established church creeds. Any portion of the Scriptures that is contrary to the established creed (or, for those churches not subscribing to a creed, the traditional facets of the Christian doctrines) are ignored. Much within the gospel of John, which many scholars believe to be based in Gnosticism, is an excellent example. Another illustration is Jesus’ statement, found twice in the gospel of Matthew, that John the Baptist is Elijah.

CHAPTER #1 - HAVE WE LIVED BEFORE?
In response to a question about resources relating to reincarnation, I include excerpts from my book, A New Christian: My Spiritual Journey. These two chapters are posted on my website under the title of “Reincarnation In the Bible.” There you can see the Endnotes.
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"Why does our Western culture choose to ignore the valuable contributions the concept of reincarnation can make in our understanding of life?"

"Why is the Church so hesitant to give credence to a belief in reincarnation?"

One reason is that Christian historians have failed to give reincarnation its rightful place in Church history. Western Christian historians have simply not reported the role of reincarnation. With the dawn of the New Age of Aquarius, ancient books are being translated into English. The layperson can now catch glimpses into what really happened.