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The author developed this booklet from talks that were held for
members of the Anthroposophical Society. These became occasions for
many to question potential membership of the First Class in a more
conscious way, and for some to take the decisive step of entering
the Michael School. 'This experience gave rise to the occasion for
printing this lecture separately for interested individuals, as a
stimulus to consider their relationship to the Michael School on
Earth against the background of the karma that guides human beings
in their present incarnation to anthroposophy. In this sense, the
present text may well be an aid for some interested individuals to
grasp to its full extent the unique significance of the
establishment of the Esoteric School - carried out as it was by
Rudolf Steiner based on the Michael Spirit - so as to gain the
courage and will to become a member out of full inner conviction.'
(From the Preface)
The author developed this booklet from talks that were held for
members of the Anthroposophical Society. These became occasions for
many to question potential membership of the First Class in a more
conscious way, and for some to take the decisive step of entering
the Michael School. 'This experience gave rise to the occasion for
printing this lecture separately for interested individuals, as a
stimulus to consider their relationship to the Michael School on
Earth against the background of the karma that guides human beings
in their present incarnation to anthroposophy. In this sense, the
present text may well be an aid for some interested individuals to
grasp to its full extent the unique significance of the
establishment of the Esoteric School - carried out as it was by
Rudolf Steiner based on the Michael Spirit - so as to gain the
courage and will to become a member out of full inner conviction.'
(From the Preface)
Some people's path to anthroposophy leads them directly to Rudolf
Steiner's early work and The Philosophy of Freedom, and this
becomes the philosophical basis for their future exploration.
Rudolf Steiner referred to this as a 'safe' approach.But many
people's destiny leads them directly to anthroposophy itself, or
via one of its practical initiatives, making it difficult sometimes
for them to relate to the cognitive basis of anthroposophy. In this
unique study Sergei O. Prokofieff offers fresh means of access to
Rudolf Steiner's crucially important book, The Philosophy of
Freedom. Prokofieff indicates why The Philosophy of Freedom is so
important to anthroposophy. It is here that Rudolf Steiner lays the
foundations for his method of research. In Steiner's own words:
"One who is willing can indeed find the basic principles of
anthroposophy in my Philosophy of Freedom". Prokofieff discusses
the Christian nature of the anthroposophical method of cognition,
and how it is integrally related to freedom and love. This in turn
reveals the deeply Christian roots of The Philosophy of Freedom and
its importance for modern Christian esotericism. In fact, says
Prokofieff, the book holds a 'central position ...in the spiritual
history of the Occident'. In considering its multifaceted
'cosmic-human dimension', the author discusses The Philosophy of
Freedom in relation to the Mystery of the Resurrection, the Working
of the Hierarchies, the Being Anthroposophia, the Fifth Gospel,
Rudolf Steiner's Path of Initiation, the Rosicrucian and Michaelic
Impulses, the Life Between Death and Rebirth, the Foundation Stone,
the Christian Mysteries of Karma and the Science of the Grail.
Describing the environment into which Saul was born, his education,
his conversion before Damascus and his subsequent journeys, Bock's
study gives a spiritual dimension to Paul's background, providing a
deeper understanding of this great Christian figure and his
teaching. Above all he shows that Paul was the apostle who carried
Christianity beyond the Jewish communities to humanity at large. As
a zealous Jew, Paul was convinced he was serving the coming Messiah
in his persecution of the followers of Jesus. When the light
suddenly came to him before Damascus, his innermost being was
opened. Paul shows that the time of the Law of Moses had run its
course and conscience as 'inner jurisdiction' was now to replace
the rules and laws imposed from without.
During the time of Moses a fundamental change in people's
consciousness took place. Moses himself still had the ancient
faculty of natural clairvoyance while a new, intellectual faculty
was awakening. Bock describes the symbols and myths of the
Osiris-Isis mysteries, the Messianic hopes concerning the young
sun-Pharaoh, Akhenaton, and the spiritual twilight of the Egyptian
mysteries that led Moses to leave Egypt for the desert. Bock
interprets the imagery of the Bible in detail: the unconsumed
burning bush, the miracles of staff and spring, the revelation on
the Mount Sinai. He finds an inner history running parallel to the
outer, linking far past and distant future. In its trials and
temptations, the history of this people follows the same stages and
crises as the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Emil Bock brings his wide
reading of the occult and mythological traditions to bear on one of
the central Old Testament texts.
'It depends on the human being whether he merely conceives of
anthroposophy or whether he experiences it.' - Rudolf Steiner
During the Christmas period of 1923-4, Rudolf Steiner refounded the
Anthroposophical Society at its headquarters in Dornach,
Switzerland. This important event, which has come to be known as
the Christmas Conference, can be studied on many levels, and its
many mysteries have been central to Sergei O. Prokofieff's
anthroposophical research over the years. His beginning point has
been an enduring question: What did Rudolf Steiner mean when he
called the Christmas Conference the 'start of a World-Turning-point
of Time'? In this far-reaching work, the author - working from
several different viewpoints - guides the reader towards an answer.
Prokofieff suggests that the impulse of the Christmas Conference
can only be reenlivened today through conscious action by
individuals to experience its spiritual essence. Rather than
offering dogmatic conclusions, he opens up paths of approaching
this goal by throwing light on different aspects of the Conference
and what lies at its heart: the Foundation Stone and its
Meditation. In particular, Prokofieff explores three key
perspectives: the connection of the Christmas Conference with
humanity's evolution; the inner relationship of each individual
anthroposophist to the Christmas Conference; and the significance
of the Conference to Rudolf Steiner himself. Although this is major
work of some length, the individual chapters of May Human Beings
Hear It! are complete in themselves, and can therefore be studied
independently of each other.
Beginning at the turn of the century, Rudolf Steiner began to
express a passionate interest in Christianity. For him, the event
he called the "Mystery of Golgotha" is more than the central event
of Christianity; it is, in fact, the turning point in time for all
human and earthly evolution. In his Autobiography, Steiner
clarified his views on Christianity: "Some of what I said and wrote
during that period 1890s] seems to contradict the way I described
Christianity later on. This is because, when I wrote the word
Christianity, I was referring to the teachings of a "world beyond"
that was active in all Christian doctrines at the time. The whole
meaning of religious experiences pointed to a world of spirit, one
that was supposed to be unattainable by human intellect. Whatever
religion might have to say and whatever precepts for moral life it
might offer arise from what is revealed to human beings from
outside. My own direct, inner perception of spirit objected to
this; it wanted to experience the worlds of both spirit and the
physical in perceptions of the human being and nature. And my
ethical individualism objected to this. It rejected the external
support of commandments for morality; such support came instead as
the result of spiritual soul development within the human being,
where divinity lives. That was a trying time for my soul as I
looked at Christianity. This period lasted from the time I left the
Weimar work until I wrote my book Christianity as Mystical Fact.
These kinds of tests are obstacles, placed in one's path by destiny
(or karma), and they must be overcome through spiritual
development. In these talks, Rudolf Steiner offers his profound
insights into the essential truths behind the Christ event, as well
as the historic and prehistoric events-on Earth and in the
spiritual worlds-leading up to the turning point in time. He shows
that the ancient mysteries of the East, the Persians, the
Egyptians, the Greeks, and the streams behind those impulses-going
back to Atlantis and Lemuria-all lead to the event of Christ's
incarnation and the Mystery of Golgotha, through which the Earth
became the body of Christ. Further, Steiner talks about what those
events mean for the future of humanity and the Earth." The Gospel
of St. John and Its Relation to the Other Gospels is an essential
document in the literature of Christology and for understanding the
central place of esoteric Christianity in Anthroposophy.
In the same way that the entire plant is contained in germinal form
in its seed, so the totality of anthroposophy can be discovered in
Rudolf Steiner's central work The Philosophy of Freedom, a book
that lays the foundation for the modern scientific path to the
spiritual world. Given the centrality of the Guardian of the
Threshold to modern initiation, one may therefore ask where this
theme is to be found in The Philosophy of Freedom. Prokofieff
presents his insights to this little researched question in the
first part of this volume. In the second part, he investigates The
Philosophy of Freedom's connection to the content of Rudolf
Steiner's research relating to the Fifth Gospel. Through
Prokofieff's thoughtful commentary, new light is shed on the
connection between Rudolf Steiner's early and late work. Study of
the relevant texts reveals that the roots of Steiner's early work
lie in the same spiritual reality - the Christ Impulse - as those
of the later anthroposophy he was to develop.
These are perhaps Steiner's most exciting lectures on the
fundamentals of social renewal. Among the themes he considers are
spiritual science as a knowledge of action; the twelve senses of
the human being in their relation to Imagination, Inspiration, and
Intuition; the science of initiation and the impulse for freedom;
and viewpoints on the forming of healthy social judgments. This
volume provides a wealth of inspiration showing that healing will
come to social life when the inner mobility of soul acquired
through spiritual science is allowed to mold new social forms.
These lectures trace the subtle changes in people's ideas and
feelings in connection with the development of natural science.
Through this, Steiner shows the significance of scientific research
and the mode of thinking that goes with it. As we look at what
technology, has brought us, we can have a feeling akin to the one
of pain over the death ora person. This feeling, Steiner says, will
become the most important impetus to seek the spirit.
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