If human opinions or human views, including those connected to the subject of earthly justice, are to be spoken of, then one must not expect them to be the same as Divine Justice, or even to come near to it. On the contrary, it must unfortunately be said that in most cases they are as far apart as heaven and earth. In this connection the popular expression “as far apart as heaven and earth” is appropriate in the literal sense. This difference can often be explained as being due to the human intellect, which is limited to space and time and because of this limitation it is unable to recognize the actual wrong and distinguish it from right, because this can rarely be perceived clearly by outward appearances, as it really lies deep within each human being, and cannot be sufficiently interpreted by the rigid paragraphs of the law or by book learning. It is saddening that for this reason so many sentences passed down by earthly courts are bound to be in stark contrast to Divine Justice.
We need not talk about the time of the Middle Ages, of the sad times of excruciating tortures, as well as of the so-called witch burnings and other juridical crimes. Nor need we touch upon the numerous burnings at the stake, the tortures and murders which have to be charged to the accounts of the religious communities; and their reciprocal actions for such crimes must be doubly terrible upon those who carried them out, because in so doing they abused the Name of the Perfect God, committing all these crimes in His Name as if they were supposed to be agreeable to Him, and thereby stamping Him in the eyes of men as answerable for them. These abuses and cruelties should not be so quickly forgotten, but should always be recalled as a warning when handing down sentences today, particularly since those who practiced such evils at the time did so enthusiastically, under the pretext of acting in good faith and of having every right to do so.
Much has changed since then. But inevitably the time will also come when one will look with similar horror upon today’s administration of justice, just as with our present state of enlightenment we now look upon the times mentioned above in which so much injustice was done. That is the way of the world, and a certain kind of progress.
If we look deeper though, we find that the apparently great progress made between then and now lies merely in the outward forms. The immense power held by some individuals, which cuts so deeply into the whole existence of many a man without the one wielding it being held responsible here on earth, is still the same in many respects. Nor have men and the motives which dictate their actions changed very much. And where the inner life is still the same the reciprocal actions contained in the Divine Judgment will also be the same.
If mankind suddenly became seeing in these matters the result would be one great cry of despair. Horror would come over all peoples. No one would then raise his hand in reproach against his neighbor, for in one way or another each individual would be bound to feel the same burden of guilt oppressing him. Indeed no one has the right to rebuke his neighbor because up till now everyone has wrongly judged from appearances only, ignoring all real life.
If the first ray of Light could penetrate them without them being prepared for it many would despair, while others, who have hitherto never taken the time to reflect, would be embittered beyond words at having been asleep for so long.
Therefore it is appropriate now to urge man to reflect calmly and to develop his own impartial power of judgment, which will refuse to lean blindly on the opinions of others but will only accept, think, speak and act according to its own intuitions!
Man must never forget that he personally must take full and complete responsibility for everything he perceives, thinks and does, even if he has accepted it from others without question!
Blessed is he who reaches this height and weighs every judgment he is confronted with, and then acts in accordance with his own intuitions. By so doing he will not become so deeply implicated as thousands of others who often burden themselves with heavy karma through mere thoughtlessness and sensationalism, or by showing prejudice and slandering, which will lead them into regions of suffering and torment they need never have experienced. Thus they often allow themselves to be deterred from a great deal that is really good here on earth, and thereby they not only miss much for themselves but perhaps gamble away everything, even their whole existence.
Such was the case with the senseless and blazing hatred against Jesus of Nazareth the real reason for which was known to only a few of the malevolent loudmouths, while all the others, who had never come into personal contact with Him, merely worked themselves up into a completely blind and ignorant frenzy and joined in the general outcry. Just as lost are all those who turned their backs on Him because of the false opinions of others, and who did not even listen to His words, much less troubled themselves to examine them objectively, whereby they might have recognized their value after all.
Only thus could the insane tragedy develop in which, of all men, the Son of God was being charged with blasphemy and brought to the cross! He Who alone came directly from God and proclaimed to mankind the Truth about God and His Will!
This happening is so grotesque that it reveals with glaring clarity all of mankind’s narrow-mindedness.
And mankind has by no means progressed inwardly since then, but expecially in this they have retrogressed even further, in spite of all their other discoveries and inventions.
The only thing that advanced because of their outward successes is mankind’s conceit which, borne of and cultivated by this very narrow-mindedness, is indeed its mark of distinction.
And it is from this soil, which has become more and more fertile in the last two thousand years that man’s present worldviews have developed with determining and devastating effects, while men themselves, without realizing it, continue to get entangled more and more in their views, thus preparing their own terrible doom.
Until now, it has very rarely become clear to anyone how many have attracted the evil effects of reciprocal currents, that is to say, how many, in good faith, have transgressed against the Divine Laws through their false views. Their number is large and indeed many, with unsuspecting arrogance, are even proud of it until the day when, to their agonizing horror, they will have to face the Truth, which is so entirely different from the conceptions they formed through their convictions.
Then, however, it is too late. The guilt with which they have burdened themselves must be expiated in a laborious struggle with themselves, often lasting decades.
The way to recognition is long and arduous for a man who has wasted the good opportunity of being on earth, and either willfully or through ignorance even burdened himself with new guilt.
Excuses never carry any weight in these matters. Everyone can know if he so wishes!
He who feels the urge to distinguish between Divine Justice and earthly views in the process of reciprocal actions should make the effort of taking any example from earth-life and examining it with the above in mind to find out which side is right and which side is wrong. He will find many examples every day.
Soon his own intuitive capacity will unfold more strongly and actively, until he finally casts off all the learned prejudices of faulty views. Thereby a sense of right and wrong will arise which can depend upon itself because, in recognizing all the reciprocal actions, it will absorb the Will of God, stand in It and work in It.