A Cosmic View Of The Price Of Progress
Uranda April 18, 1948 Gabilan Ranch, Salinas, California
The converging lines of force that come to a focus tonight suggest that we might well consider a subject we have touched upon before; but the necessities of consideration in this focalization as it appears tonight require that we view this matter with a high degree of impersonality, to let comprehension become aware of a vast scope of meaning without allowing personal reactions or concerns to enter therein. This particular consideration we might classify as A Cosmic View of the Price of Progress.
We recognize the movement of irresistible force. We recognize the existence of a Cosmic Plan, and that that Plan is not subject to change by man's actions or reactions. It is not influenced by man's fancy or belief or desire. The imperious nature of the Divine Decree, dimly recognized without understanding, appears to be that which is called fate. Some, dimly recognizing my expression of the fundamental, basic factors of reality which are not subject to change according to man's desire or idea, have interpreted my attitude on a basis of personal action or reaction, and conceived my expression or function to be arbitrary. There have been times when it has appeared to some that I have functioned with a high disregard of the personal element, or of human beings as such. Such a criticism or judgment is, in my estimation, false; and yet, with respect to the particular recognition that is essential in this hour, it must be mentioned as a means of assisting the focalization of consciousness to a perspective vision of our subject. We recognize the Price of Progress from the standpoint of the individual, and we have considered it in times past; and we recognize it with respect to the development of spiritual understanding, and spiritual progress made manifest in the world — but tonight, the emphasis rests in the field of progress for the world as a whole, to consider the world-body of humanity as a unit.
This consideration does not disregard the sacredness of the individual human life, although, interpreted from some narrow or prejudiced state of consciousness, it might appear that individuality and the sacredness of the individual life are being ignored. You have a background of recognition, from the standpoint of the teaching of the Third Sacred School, which emphasizes the reality of individuality, the necessity of individual progress, and the sanctity of human life. It is important that that point be firmly fixed in consciousness, for that which I would say tonight does not deny these things. Each individual is inclined to look at the expression of life primarily from the standpoint of his own life span as a human being, his own experience, his own progress — and these things must be considered — but from the standpoint of unified consciousness in the Unit, there must come a recognition that transcends such a level of consideration, at times at least, so that the consideration may be comprehensive enough to view the world-body as a whole.
Considering the developments in the world up to this time, we may take certain specific phases of outworking with respect to war or pestilence, and, disregarding the human elements, the machinations of human minds, disregarding the greed and the traitorous conduct by which human beings sell their own countrymen into a state of war and slaughter, we recognize that these things have worked out as pressure points in the fulfilment of the whole, and that certain results, certain outworkings, were essential, one way or another, and if they did not appear in the world-body by means of the easy way of harmonization with the currents of the Pattern outworking, then they came, regardless of the rebellions in the hearts of men, the hard way — and, in warfare for instance, human life becomes, in one sense, cheap. Certain outworkings have come in the world, one way or another — usually, in this world, the hard way — but my point is that they come, regardless of the cost.
To illustrate in another way, we could look back to the time of the development of the railroads in this country in the early days, how immigrants came into this country by the boatload and became, primarily, laborers in the construction gangs building railroads. Those men, taken out of what had been their homeland and brought here, received little for their labors but they labored under the most rigorous conditions, at the hardest possible manual labor. By the tens of thousands they gave their very lives, that the railroads might be built. I think one could say that there is hardly a mile of railroad in this country that does not represent the tombstone of some man. A country was growing; the railroads were being built. The necessity of the railroads, from the standpoint of the national growth, is evident enough — and yet it could be classified on the basis of the greed of the railroad companies themselves, although it could not be kept in that sphere entirely, for, if the conditions in the country had not required the railroads there would have been no profit in such function to the railroad companies. The point is that the outworking in this country, for which no single individual could be held responsible, required the development of those railroads, and they were built; and, as a result, tens of thousands of men gave their very life-blood to that building. When the railroads were first coming across the plains, in that terrific struggle, life was, in one sense, cheap.
Again, we consider the opening up and development of this new country. Somehow, the work must be done, not only by immigrants from Europe, but slaves from Africa — thousands upon thousands of them, rooted out of their natural environments, chained and carried across the ocean and sold upon the auction block; human beings, though their skin was dark, human beings captured and sold, bought and sold like cattle, that the development of the country might be a reality — whole life spans, not just a few, but by tens of thousands, and so part of that price was the blood of uncounted negro men, women and children. Let us go further back in history for a moment. You can examine the growth and development of the Spanish Empire, which placed its mark upon the world and wrought certain changes. One could dwell long, in this regard, upon the galley slaves, or one could carry the story to South America and consider the treachery, the manner in which untold numbers of those who were members of an ancient civilization were slaughtered. A change was coming; new worlds were opening up; there was movement toward a oneness of the world, and if that oneness could not come the easy way, nevertheless the oneness of the world must come — and so untold thousands died, and in that day, under that Spanish program, human life, in one sense, was cheap. Did the Spanish Empire gain, itself, by reason of its dastardly deeds? It did not. It came to an end. Nevertheless, regardless of that, regardless of the fact that it forfeited any right to share in that outworking of fulfilment, it had a part therein.
Consider the British Empire. One might talk all night with respect to that historical outworking, naming instance after instance, showing that when, under world conditions, an empire was growing, and those channels were being opened up by which a world was being united, human life, in one sense, was cheap. If the instrument of accomplishment used the power wrongly, and was unworthy, as we have noted particularly with the Spanish Empire, the power was taken away, but that is beside the point. The point is that, by some instrumentality, one way or another, the result was achieved from the standpoint of the whole. Regardless of the price in human life, these things have been working out, moving irresistibly toward a unified world in an outer sense. We could go back through the whole range of history. We could talk about Babylonian Empires. We could talk about the Roman Empire. In all of these developments, in all of these progressive movements, which have marked the world so definitely, and have played so definite a part in that which now is, the results with respect to the whole were achieved, regardless of the cost in human life, regardless of who suffered, and regardless of who died. In all of these gigantic outworkings there have been untold instances where, in one sense, human life was cheap. We could carry it into the development of what is today called Christianity. Recognizing the persecutions of the early Christian period particularly — and numerous others on down through the centuries could be noted — perhaps one of the high points that was, in fact, a low point, was reached when, it is said, Nero lighted his garden, to please his guests and make possible their revelry in the night, by burning Christians alive — and, in one sense, human life was cheap.
Regardless of man's failure as a whole to comprehend the Divine Plan or the Divine Pattern, regardless of man's refusal to be obedient to the Divine Will, the imperious nature of the Divine Decree has never been successfully ignored, because the results have been obtained, step by step, surely, regardless of the cost in human life. That Cosmic Plan is still unfolding. The Law is, as we have noted, absolute. The results to be obtained are definite. Movement of the world toward that Goal is certain and sure. The world will move to that Goal, one way or another, either by the easy way of harmonizing with the Divine Currents, the Divine Pattern, or else by the hard way. When it came to a test in the outworking of things, an atom bomb was dropped over Hiroshima, and, in one sense, life — human life — was cheap. If that action had not been taken, some have argued that thousands of American soldiers would have had to die. One way or another, it is argued, human beings were going to die, and it was better this way than that. In any event, regardless of arguments, an atom bomb exploded, and in a moment a hundred thousand human beings ceased to live and breathe and walk upon the earth. The world is moving along a course which might, conceivably, at almost any time, cause other atom bombs to be unleashed — not just one or two, but many. If human beings, as they now are, do not coordinate sufficiently with that Pattern that is outworking to let the fulfilment appear the easy way, then it will be the hard way. It appears that it would be so easy for the leaders of nations to be sensible, for them to sit down and consider and to talk about their problems, to be honest with one another, and fair, so that each could trust the other, and a satisfactory arrangement might be developed; but it does not seem that human beings are going to take such an easy, natural way in working out a solution to their problems, and, sooner or later, if they do not take such a course, missiles of terrible destruction will be let loose, and life — human life — in one sense, will be cheap.
Progress — the progress of what? Looked at from the narrow standpoint, in those early day's, those men were dying for the progress of a railroad, but it was not for the progress of a railroad only — it was for the progress of a nation; and it was not for the progress of a nation only — it was for the progress of the world, that those men died. Could any undertake to look back in the range of history and say, “It were better if this nation or that, which came to a point of supremacy, had never existed.”? Would it have been better if there had never been any Babylonian Empires? Would it have been better if there had never been a Roman Empire? Would it have been better if there had never been a Spanish Empire? No. Regardless of the millions of lives that have been sacrificed in this progressive outworking with respect to the world as a whole, no one can say that, with human beings being what they are, we would be this near the Goal if those Empires never existed. The broad view allows true recognition as you admit that, regardless of the suffering, regardless of anything, all of these cycles — the rise and fall of empires — have had a part toward carrying forward the progress of the world to the point where we now are, to the point where we are privileged to sit here in a peaceful community and consider the things of reality at this level of consciousness.
Regardless of all the sacrifices and suffering of the past, human beings apparently are still not convinced of the imperious nature of the Divine Decree. They still think that they can get their own human ways, accomplish their own human purposes, and follow their own foolish fancies. They may seem to for a little time; they may think they are getting something by their bickering and their quarrelling, by their conduct that re-enacts on earth the first great crime when Cain slew his brother Abel — but it matters not. They will not gain their ends; in fact, there will be no permanency to their accomplishments except as they let themselves share in the outworking of the Cosmic Plan. There is One Plan that supercedes all other plans — there is a Force that is irresistible, and a Law that is absolute — and these things are working, moving forward, and there is progress, either with the willing help and cooperation of human beings or in spite of human beings. There is progress. Progress there is, and there must be!
We consider the outworking of Law in the realm of nature. A given end becomes essential; a given fulfilment becomes necessary. Whether it be in the field of plant life, in the field of insect life, or in the animal kingdom, the numbers of those things which must die in the outworking of the given fulfilment does not give nature pause for one moment. If it be a specie that must pass away, it is done. Nature is given to profusion, causing that which is required in the moment to appear in abundance, but in another moment something else appears, and that which was first profusely made manifest is sacrificed and done away with. Always, it is working out to a balance. If one type of insect becomes too numerous, some other type of insect, or condition, arises which brings a balance. Wherever anything tends to get seriously out of balance, something happens to force the balance to reappear, always on a higher scale, always moving forward.
Regardless of that which may appear for the moment, regardless of what may appear as terrible destruction, when the balance comes it becomes evident that, from the standpoint of the whole, there has been movement forward. We have the outworking to this point. Generations have lived and died, and even though they lived out their three score years and ten, they still died. They gave their lives. Whether upon the battlefield in youth, or through the span of life, they gave their lives, generation after generation, that a purpose might be served, that the world might progress, that a Goal might be achieved; and, whether human beings like it or not, they either help toward that fulfilment or they are wiped out. Or it may be that in the very fact that they are destroyed they help toward that fulfilment, as, for instance, in warfare — and by this I do not mean that warfare must come. It does not have to be the hard way unless human beings, as a whole, choose that it shall be so.
A Cosmic View Of The Price Of Progress, then, carries us to a point where we may comprehend the fact that the outworking is so certain, the fulfilment so sure, the progress so essential, that it matters not how many generations may live and die, or how many tens of thousands, or how many millions, may be wiped out by warfare or pestilence or any other thing — the price is not prohibitive. The price that is required does not prevent the progress. The progress is certain. Either human beings work with those currents of progress and share in the blessings, or they become unwilling instruments of progress, even though it shall mean that their lives are cut short. They may be ignorant of the part they play, from the standpoint of their own vision, and in the eyes of their neighbors their lives may seem to be meaningless, or to have come to some sad end that accomplishes little or nothing, but lives do accomplish something. Every individual life has meaning. The sanctity of individual life is a reality, and each individual, one way or another, willingly or unwillingly, is an instrument of progress. If unwillingly, then there is no credit to that individual, but the price that is paid by humanity itself is never so great that it prevents progress. The absolute nature of the progress, the absolute necessity of it, makes any price cheap. Yet, we would that all individuals should become so aware of the Law, and of the outworking of the Divine Pattern, that they would harmonize consciously, participate joyously, and share in the freedom of reality, that they might share in the rewards of progress, and live, and not die.
In the outworking of world patterns, the time comes when old forms must pass away — an empire is wiped out, nations are brought low, old customs and patterns of idea, habits, national or world-wide, must be changed. Somehow they will be changed. No matter how many lives must be sacrificed, no matter how many tens of thousands must suffer, because of rebellion against change, still changes come! If the new idea essential to the certainty of progress is not readily accepted, then the old idea that is crystallized, and to which human beings cling, must be broken down and destroyed, even though it means the breaking down and destroying of lives, young or old, the breaking down of one person or of a nation. The progress of the whole body of humanity is essential, the progress of the outworking of the Divine Pattern by which humanity as a whole may be blest. Then we see that, regardless of the sanctity of human life, human life is, in one sense, cheap, and will continue to be so until human beings learn — until some remnant of human beings learns to let God's Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven
All of this consideration makes me think of the Master's Word, as found in Verses 37-39 of the 23rd chapter of Matthew: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you. Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
It seems to me that those words have tremendous significance in relationship to all of this, because we could just as easily word it this way: “O people of the world, all ye people of the world, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you. Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” So, until the people of the world accept the instruction and direction of those who truly come in the Name of the Lord, the house of the world must be desolate, in the sense of the sufferings and sorrows, in the sense of death and destruction that comes. Until human beings are ready to say, “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord”, so that the Word of the Lord is accepted, and the direction of the Lord is followed, how can there be fulfilment?
I might mention, apropos of all of this, that in this world at the present time, when a nation accepts hate as its motivating impulse, in the face of what we recognize in a consideration of the words just expressed, we see that something is going to happen. When a nation dedicates itself to hate, and sows the seeds of hate and suspicion and dissension and conflict, functioning in a current of heedless greed, on a basis of arrogant and deliberate hypocrisy, we know that something is going to happen.
I just mention that in recognition of the fact that changes come, and I mention it to emphasize the fact of our responsibility as Emissaries, that we live in a complete dedication to the One Law, which is the Law of Love, and that we so function that the Unit that is already a reality may become so blended in the Fire that it shall be an effective Nucleus in the release of the Power of God on earth. We have no time to waste, no time for dilly-dallying. We recognize this Law as it applies to the world — that progress comes. So, also, for ourselves, and if we do not let that progress come the easy way, under easy circumstances, so that we may function effectively when times of pressure come, then, most assuredly, we will have to achieve the Goal of true Unity, effectiveness as a Nucleus, under conditions that are not so pleasant, because, even at this level, it is possible for human beings to take the hard way — and it need not be! Let us remember the truth of the Word spoken by our KING when He was on earth, “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
© Emissaries of Divine Light
