Lesson 1 -- Solutions

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5 points per item

1. We live only once, therefore, we should live life to the fullest.
   
   D. In pursuit of spiritual development, we live again and again in different physical bodies in order to learn and gain experiences. This is Reincarnation.
   
   
2. All men are born equal.
   
   D. All spirits were created equal. Since then however, each of us through our own efforts has attained to varying levels in the order of evolution. When we are born on earth, we bring with us the essence of all that we have already learned in our past incarnations. This explains why, even in our early years, some of us are more developed in knowledge and talents than others.
   
   
3. It cannot be true if it cannot be confirmed by scientific investigation.
   
   D. Science, as a general rule, accepts only what the five senses can perceive and those that can be perceived by the most advanced scientific instruments. However, there is so much more in nature that lie beyond the realm of the physical. These non-material vibrations are as yet undetectable by our most powerful scientific instruments and hence, cannot be accepted by science. However, the more spiritual things and higher spiritual laws exist and, in fact, take precedence over those matters and concerns that are purely physical.
   
   
4. Occult practices are of the Devil.
   
   D. Occult practices are simply put, those practices which are subject to natural laws but which laws are hidden or largely unknown. Therefore, we need only to study them to better understand their operation. Occult practices are neither good nor bad but take on such a character depending on the use to which they are applied.
   
   
5. We are humans with spirits or souls.
   
   D. We are spirit beings with a soul (causal self) which distills the essence of all that we are learning. In our journey to perfection, we make use of many different bodies (vehicles) that enable us to manifest and learn our lessons in the appropriate plane of nature. Humanity is just one of the elementary stages that we undergo in our pursuit of spiritual perfection.
   
   The soul survives death and is the temporary repository of all that we have learned and all the pending karmic consequences incurred from our past incarnations that we will have to meet and resolve in future incarnations.
   
   However, once all the lessons of the lower planes are learned or the soul is perfected, then the soul, itself, will be merged and assimilated into the spirit consciousness.
   
   
6. Ghosts are figments of the imagination.
   
   D. A ghost is a spirit entity that is no longer attached to its physical body but is now clothed, instead, in its astral body. A ghost is very real, indeed, and can be seen by those who are clairvoyant.
   
   Usually, we use the word ghost to refer to discarnate entities and earthbound spirits that are unable to immediately transition to the Spirit World because they are still very much attached to matter or because they feel the need to attend to some unfinished business.
   
   They are allowed to stay here a while longer mainly to prove the survival of the Spirit and the reality of the Spirit World. Especially, they are the most qualified to apprise us of the conditions of life immediately after death. The added insights enable us to be better prepared for the time when we ourselves will be transitioning to the Greater Reality.
   
   
7. Whites are superior to blacks.
   
   D. Spiritual attainment does not depend on the color of one’s skin. Character is the true basis of spirituality and superiority.
   
   
8. Diseases are outward physical manifestations of character deficiencies.
   
   A. Spiritual defects or character deficiencies lie at the root of all physical disorders. They are due to ignorance and underdevelopment and manifest outward in the physical body in the form of diseases and ailments. By studying our own particular ailments, we should be able to discover our faults and weaknesses.
   
   
9. Diseases should be totally eradicated.
   
   D. Our spiritual deficiencies should be eradicated or our character should be reformed and refined. However, diseases serve a very useful purpose by awakening us to our deficiencies in character. Without them, it may be very much harder for us to realize our faults. Diseases have very great instructional value and are very necessary for those of us still here on Earth, and so should and cannot be totally eradicated.
   
   
10. Death is the end of life.
    
    D. At death, we cast aside our gross physical body and we transition into a far greater reality. Life then continues in the Spirit World. It is, in fact, a resumption of the true life, a return to our true home.
    
    
11. A healer can heal our bodies but only we can heal ourselves.
    
    A. To effect a complete healing, the root causes at the spiritual level must also be addressed. Otherwise, even if the healer is able to heal the body, the ailment will recur over and over again. Regarding the spiritual, everything must come as a result of our own efforts and strivings. In the final analysis, only we can heal ourselves.
    
    
12. There is no life on other planets.
    
    D. According to clairvoyants and astral travelers, there is life on other planets but not necessarily in the form to which we are accustomed. In fact, we were previous occupants and students and, in the future, we will be continuing with our development in these other worlds.
    
    
13. Psychic powers won’t work if used for evil purposes.
    
    D. The law operates whether used for good or bad. However, if we sow evil, then evil will return to us. We reap what we sow.
    
    
14. Even an inept healer can heal if God so wills.
    
    A. Nothing is impossible to God. He makes do with what is available, even an inexperienced and bumbling medium-healer. In fact, God can heal even without any physical counterpart healer.
    
    
15. Psychic surgery is the highest form of healing.
    
    D. All methods of healing are equal in value. What is important is that the patient gets healed.
    
    
16. Healers and mediums are not entitled to material compensation, as God’s gifts should be given freely.
    
    D. Mediums and healers attained to their level of proficiency only after continuous development in past incarnations. Therefore, their skills are definitely not freely gotten gifts. In addition, they render a valuable service for which they are entitled to fair compensation. Moreover, the time that a medium or a healer spends in pursuit of a normal occupation is time wasted, because such should have been best utilized in the development of his mediumship or in the service of those in need.
    
    Jesus agrees and so he instructed his disciples to freely accept the hospitality of the people in return for their spiritual services. He told them, "Those you help should feed and care for you. A laborer is worthy of his hire."
    
    
17. Healers are always in the service of God.
    
    D. They are if they serve with God or service to their fellowmen foremost in their minds and hearts, but not if they are merely into healing to serve their own selfish material interests or if they put their own interests first above that of their patients.
    
    
18. The ability to heal is a gift from God.
    
    D. The ability to heal, like any other skill is the result of development even in past lives and, therefore, it is not a gift and neither is it freely gotten.
    
    
19. Psychic development is necessary before we can advance spiritually.
    
    D. Spiritual development relates to character development and does not depend on the possession of psychic faculties. These two are distinct and separate and their development may proceed independently from one another.
    
    
20. The physical body is just as important as the spirit self.
    
    D. The spirit is what is important. The physical body is expendable and disposable. Once it has served its purpose, it is discarded like any used clothing, and is replaced with another that is new and more appropriate when we next reincarnate.