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Cogent Validity: A Book About Life, Religion and Spirituality in the Third Age

by Gilbert Fayette

580 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #05-1999; ISBN 1-4120-7088-0; US$34.00, C$39.10, EUR27.93, £19.55

Humankind has entered a new era, the Age of Aquarius. It can be experienced everywhere. Throughout this book, the essence of this new age is illuminated.

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About the Book About the Author Excerpts Catalogue Information

About the Book

INTRODUCTION
The reader may find some of the information in this book very new and different, perhaps controversial. It is intended to reach those who have open minds in the way they view matters of religion and spirituality. In this vein, the author's experience has been quite instructive and enlightening.
The author's search for cogent validity in spirituality and religion was stirred by a philosophy course he took shortly before he graduated from the University of Kansas in 1960. This newfound interest soon led him to participate in seminars at the Sequoia Seminar Institute in Northern California where he received his inspiration for this book. Shortly thereafter the Creative Initiative Foundation developed as an outgrowth of Sequoia Seminar. For over a decade the author played an active roll in both Sequoia Seminar and Creative Initiative. After many years of pursuing a career in other fields, his first book, The Book of Thomas was published in 2004.
There is not space enough to go into the phenomena of Sequoia Seminar and the Creative Initiative Foundation here, but for those who are interested in more information, a book published in 1990 describes the history and the people that made up these two remarkable groups.
The Creative Initiative Foundation was truly a new religious and philosophical endeavor. It could not have been compared with any extant religion because it was entirely new. We stood for individual responsibility acted out in accordance with the highest educational and religious principles. We believed that education and responsible action were the only avenues to a more responsible society. We sought to change no one but ourselves. We believed that the principle of individual change and creative initiative were required if there was to be any real change in the moral character of our society.
This was not a new concept, but we made an attempt to bring it into being by developing a "critical mass" of a thousand souls dedicated to those principles. The Creative Initiative community wasn't an end in itself. It was a community of highly motivated people seeking a way to communicate our message with others, while at the same time seeking a more perfect union with God. In that sense it was religious. Our work was based on an incredibly rich heritage of insight and teaching and was a call for more enlightened, more correct choices in continuing humankind's evolution toward Life.
The substance of this book is based on the author's studies in that environment along with his experience of close involvement with those who were his teachers in the venture. The material related to religion and the religious life came from the author's personal notes written over several years and from his memory of the events and experiences that formed the essence of his belief system. Some of his exceptional teachers were mystics and highly dedicated spiritual guides. As the information unfolded for him, the author had strong feelings that he had heard these words before and even though he was hearing them for the first time, he somehow felt that he already knew what he was hearing. At the same time, it was as if he had been waiting an eternity to hear what was being taught. What's more, he felt as if he had been with these particular teachers before. He was not alone in this feeling. Others in these groups had similar feelings as if they had all been together before. This is mentioned because it seems significant that the timing for the work we did was right; that we were in the right place at the right time.
That knowledge and those mystical feelings are now being shared with the readers of this book. The author's epistemological involvement with his teachers in the two closely-knit groups, Sequoia Seminar and Creative Initiative Foundation, helped form his metaphysical approach to the material. His need to know, together with his life experience, set him on the path that led to many of the remarkable conclusions found in this book.
COGENT VALIDITY
Truth is self-evident and should be obvious, but this isn't always so. According to Webster's New World Dictionary, the word cogent means convincing because of logical and clear thought. "Cogent" also implies plainness and simplicity.
"Cogent," as it applies to validity, implies such a powerful appeal to the mind that it would appear conclusive, as in "cogent reasoning." For something to be valid, it must be well grounded on principles or evidence and able to withstand criticism or objection. It's the highest and best use of the human intellect to seek this kind of truth.
Using cogent validity as his guiding principle, drawing on his life experience and using the Holy Bible and the Holy Qur'an as his guides, the author is creating his essential work on spirituality and religion.
The author's goal in writing this book has been to interpret religion in a modern context, using intelligent analysis, accepting what is plausible, and rejecting what is not. He has no interest in trying to justify classical interpretations based on faith in things that have no basis in fact or scientific knowledge. This is with the understanding, however, that there is much mystery in Creation that cannot be explained using the intellect alone. The author's goal has been to separate myth from historic events. Relevant to this issue are M. Scott Peck's words from his book, The Road Less Traveled: "The purpose of religion should not be to teach one to become obedient to a dogma which denies intelligence, but to become unresisting to the laws of creation. One must exercise reason and study all aspects of the questions."
THE AGE OF AQUARIUS
Humankind has entered a new era, the Age of Aquarius. In this book, the principles of cogent validity are applied to religion and spirituality in order to determine their relevance in this New Age. Fresh insight is used to unlock the startling significance of the myths of the Old Testament and the richness of the meaning hidden within them. The amazing, and often misconstrued, mysteries of the Book of Revelation are brought forth in the clarity of modern language as their relevance to the New Age is made apparent, especially for women. The records of the life of Jesus are carefully examined using the best contemporary insight available to uncover the beauty and power of Jesus' incredible mission for God. At the conclusion of this book, the essence of the Third Age is illuminated through a look at the new religious journey, while a Declaration for the New Millennium epitomizes the author's hope for the future of humankind. Let's begin with Abdullah Yusef Ali's footnote comment to Sura II, Iyyat 62, of the Qur'an. Footnote 77 reads as follows:
Islam does not teach an exclusive doctrine, and is not meant exclusively for one people. The Jews claimed this for themselves, and the Christians in their origin were a sect of the Jews. Even the modern organized Christian churches, though they have been, consciously or unconsciously, influenced by the time-spirit, including the historical fact of Islam, yet they cling to the idea of Vicarious Atonement, which means that all who do not believe in it or who lived previously to the death of Christ, are at a disadvantage spiritually before the Throne of God. The attitude of Islam is entirely different. Islam existed before the preaching of Muhammad on this earth and the Qur'an expressly calls Abraham a Muslim. This teaching (submission to God's will) has been, and will be, the teaching of Religion for all peoples. Those who believe (in the Qur'an) and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabians, and all who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work with righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.
THE OLD TESTAMENT
Using current evidence, this book will add to the efforts of others in an attempt to clear the record and get to the truth about religion. One major cornerstone of modern Western religion has to do with the Old Testament, which is often quoted as a substitute for independent thinking. In the following pages, there will be a thorough critical examination of the myths found in the Old Testament. The interpretation of these myths arises from the author's experience studying the Old Testament under the late Mrs. Emilia Rathbun at Sequoia Seminar. She possessed sharp intelligence and an uncanny insight into religious mysteries . The author, and many others, believed her to be a true mystic. She never proclaimed to be one, but all knew she was. Clergymen who visited Sequoia Seminar confirmed this belief in her gift as well. These assumptions were also based on stories she related about her life experience, which included a visitation from Jesus regarding the religious work being done at Sequoia Seminar . Later, after that visitation, she made a commitment to be God's agent in establishing a head for the body of a group of educated, intelligent persons willing to step out of the boundaries of organized religion. "A group of one mind (and) so identified with the purpose of God in this age that they will work to gain the numbers (needed) to shift the balance of history by a great event."
The significance of the Old Testament myths is certainly worth consideration. The interpretations that are revealed in this book are far from mainstream Christian thinking. However, those who seek the truth and are open to what can be discovered will probably be as delighted as the author was as these truths unfolded for him.
THE NUMBERS THREE, SEVEN AND TEN
There are three significant numbers found frequently in the Bible, the Qur'an and in our realm of consciousness. They are the numbers 3, 7 and 10. The number 3 appears repeatedly in this book because it is the number of entirety (another aspect of completion). It is the basis for gaining an understanding of creation as seen through the triad of the opposites: good and evil, life and death, male and female. From the book, The Fourth Turning: It takes two generations to make a transition and a third to perfect it. With 3 generations there is no memory of the old.
In the Old Testament, the number 3 is emphasized in the story of Noah and the flood. In Genesis 8:13, the flood ended on: "The first month, the first day of the month of the six hundredth and first year" is 3 firsts. Noah had 3 sons. When Moses was born in Egypt, his mother kept him hidden for 3 months. Later, Moses asked Pharaoh for 3 days journey into the wilderness. Later in that story locusts darkened the Egyptian sky for 3 days. After their escape from Egypt, the Israelites spent 3 days in the wilderness.
In the New Testament, Jesus said: "To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? It is like yeast, which a woman put in 3 measures of meal, until it was all raised." There are the 3 synoptic gospels drawn from the source Q. In the year 1917, there were 3 girls involved in the revelation of Fatima, Portugal (see Chapter 40).
Teilhard de Chardin envisioned 3 levels of consciousness: the earth, itself made up of 3 entities, barysphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere; above this the biosphere; and above all, the 3rd, the noosphere, the sphere of thought. In our contemporary vernacular, many things come in sets of 3. When we say oaths or promises, we often say them 3 times. We have the saying: "the 3rd time is a charm." In fairy tales, there are often 3 "little pigs" or "3 Billy goats gruff."
The heads of mythological beasts are inclined to come in multiples of 3. There 3 dimensions in our physical world: in geometry, the x, y and z axes, or more commonly, length, width and depth. And finally, most colors can be mixed from the 3 primary colors.
The number 7 appears many times in the Old and New Testaments as well as in the Holy Qur'an. The number 7 is symbolic of completion. For instance, Jesus is said to be the seventh son of the seventh son of Adam. The six perfect male and female attributes found in Jesus plus one, unification with God, equal 7. In Islam, it is said that there are seven levels in heaven and seven doors within (to Hell). The first Sura in the Qur'an contains the 7 most frequently repeated verses.
In Christianity there are the seven deadly sins: 1) avarice, 2) envy, 3) gluttony, 4) lust, 5) pride, 6) sloth and 7) wrath.
It has been said that the human undergoes a new cycle of life every seven years and the seventieth year is a completion of the tenth cycle (see chapter 45). In matters other than religious, it is said that the amount of information people can process and remember is limited to about 7 concepts. In gambling, 7 means finality and is probably based on some forgotten superstition about the number. In aerospace, Apollo 7 was the perfection and completion of NASA's manned capsule moon landing technology.
Among other things that come in sevens are the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, Shakespeare's Seven Ages of Man, Dante's Seven Levels of Hell and we can't forget 7up and the Seven Dwarves. The Japanese film, The Seven Samurai, by Akira Kurosawa, ranks among the best ever made.
It would appear that the number 7 comes out of a nature deep within our being to recognize and name completion. Subconsciously, or consciously, the number seven seems to be embedded in our spiritual being.
In the Old Testament, there are numerous references to the number 10. In Judaism, 10 is a significant number because it is the foundation of their religion i.e., the Ten Commandments.
In Islam, the last 10 days of Ramadan are spiritually significant for the Muslim because it has been revealed in the Qur'an that on one of those nights, by Allah's permission, the angels and the Spirit will come down on every errand. This, the Night of Power, is better than a thousand months.
THE NEW TESTAMENT
It should come as no surprise to many readers that much of what Christianity is founded upon is actually based on the theology that Paul developed, and John reinforced. This is apparent in Paul's numerous letters and in John's Revelation. This is not new information, and the subject will be examined more thoroughly in the following chapters on the New Testament. The letters written by Paul are not a part of the Old Testament, but comprise the majority of the New Testament. Much of the New Testament will receive a similar critical examination that will, for many, separate the truth from the chaff. Because of the objectiveness of the Qur'an, this remarkable holy book will also be used as a reference concerning much of the material to be examined. In the chapters about Jesus, there will also be references to The Book of Thomas because it consists of abundant new material that is not contained in the familiar Bible.
The author is neither a biblical scholar nor a theologian. He is writing this book because he feels it is his obligation to pass on what he has learned. Let the reader determine the value of this work for him or herself. Albert Einstein said, "If you are out to describe the truth, leave elegance to the tailor." In the New Testament, the dead that Jesus referred to are those whose intellects are dead. Today we would say they are "out of it." They are those who are either not able to understand because of ignorance, or those who refuse to listen and learn. They are those who are not living their lives with the inquisitiveness that they were given when they started life as children. Children are teachable. Jesus saw this further value in being a child: ...These children...are like those who enter the kingdom. . There are plenty of unteachable people. This book, however, is for those who are teachable, or at least inquisitive. Perhaps you are one of them yourself, and this book will awaken you. That is the author's sole purpose for writing this book. If one person is enlightened as the result of reading this book, then it will have been worth the long hours of writing, editing and rewriting.

About the Author

For more than ten years, from about 1960 to 1970, the author was involved in religious study with the Sequoia Seminar Institute and the Creative Initiative Foundation in northern California. The substance of this book is based on the author's studies in this seminar environment along with his experience of close involvement with the people who made up the Creative Initiative Foundation. The material related to religion and the religious life came from the author's personal notes written over several years and from his memory of the events and experiences that formed the essence of his belief system. A few of his remarkable teachers were mystics and deeply religious.
As the information unfolded, the author had the feeling that he had heard it before. It was as if he had been waiting an eternity to hear what was being taught. What's more, he felt as if he had been with these teachers before. He was not alone in this feeling. Others in these groups had a similar feeling they had all been together before. This is mentioned because it seems significant that the time is right for us to gather again.
A new world of knowledge was opened up, and the author began to receive knowledge that, even though he was hearing it for the first time, he somehow felt that he already knew. That knowledge and those mystical feelings are now being shared with the readers of this book. His epistemological involvement with his teachers in the two closely-knit groups, Sequoia Seminar and Creative Initiative Foundation, helped form his metaphysical approach to the material. His need to know, together with his life experience, set him on the path that led to many of the remarkable conclusions found in this book.

Excerpts

Catalogue Information