Friday 23 March 2018

England Led the World Into Materialism

England was probably the first country to adopt the mindset that led to the materialisation of consciousness and the present-day attitudes in which God has no place. It was a pioneer in many areas that formed the contemporary world. You can't trace this back to any single formational event or time but Protestantism was certainly one step towards the separation of the natural and supernatural worlds, and then the English Civil War was another. One religious, the other political. The fact that both of these things may have had positive elements to them is beside the point. The basic truth is that they opened up a gap between the spiritual and the material which, once opened, could be expanded exponentially until the point was reached at which the spiritual was so far removed it no longer existed in any real sense and could just be denied reality. That is now. Consciousness has effectively contracted to the material which is not just perceived as primary but as all there is. This has affected even religion which is largely earthbound and moribund these days. That contraction may have been beneficial in some areas, such as the development of certain qualities of selfhood and the exploration and dominance of the physical world, but these cannot be said to compensate for the spiritual loss that has accompanied them.

It might be pointed out that these external events were just the manifestation of inner changes in consciousness which brought them about and therefore they were secondary, and that is perfectly true. Nevertheless, they also hastened the process of materialisation and grounded it in a way that enabled it to proceed and spread much more rapidly. And it was in and through England that this largely (though not exclusively, of course) came about.

The development of the physical sciences really started to take off in England in the 17th century with the founding of the Royal Society a seminal moment, and thereafter there are too many English scientists at the leading edge of their disciplines to count. Newton and Darwin are obvious examples of people whose work changed the world but there are many more. Again, this was not something that was limited to England but if anywhere was the centre of this work then it was England which was also where the industrial revolution first took hold. The same is true with regard to the new socialist political movements. When I lived in France I used to enjoy teasing the French, still viewing their Revolution through rose tinted spectacles, that the English had killed their king long before they had killed theirs.

So, blame England for the modern world!

But there is another side to this story. Alongside the prosaic, matter of fact qualities of Englishmen of the 18th and 19th centuries there existed the romantic Englishman, best exemplified by her poets whose names are too well known to require mentioning, but also appearing in other forms of literature and perhaps too in a special concern with landscape and natural beauty. And I would say that it was chiefly in England in the 19th and 20th centuries that new approaches to spirituality began to be explored, often in clumsy ways, it is true, but the intentions were generally good, and the aspiration to higher things real. The reaction against materialism first took place in the country that was principally responsible for it.

At present, any opening to spiritual awakening that seemed possible at various times over the last 150 years appears to have gone away. We are currently more locked into materialistic attitudes than ever. Even the revivals of the New Age, self-indulgent and foolish as they often were, seem to have faded away. Perhaps the damp squib that was 2012 was responsible for that. Some people look to Brexit as indicating a stirring of some sort but that seems wildly optimistic to me. Brexit is a patriotic reaction to the destruction of this country's individuality but in the vast majority of cases the people who voted for it were not considering spiritual factors.

Nevertheless, I do consider that Britain still has a part to play in the spiritual awakening of the world. As does America which is one reason why these two countries are relentlessly attacked and their inner integrity constantly undermined by the powers dedicated to the destruction of spiritual truth. Sometimes great light and darkness are to be found in the same place which makes sense when you consider that the devil would naturally focus his guns on the areas of greatest threat to him. So, although there is much darkness in this country there is also light but, paradoxically, that is less easy to see largely because it is a spiritual thing and works mostly behind the scenes. But it is there and we have to do our best to foster it, both in ourselves and in the world around us. Even if a few little candles of light remain that will eventually be enough to light others and eventually banish the darkness.

England led the world into materialism. That had a purpose at the time but its time is past. It is now time for England to remedy the situation and try to lead the world back out of the materialistic despond. She must rediscover the spiritual light at her heart and set it up on top of a hill so that it can be seen by and inspire all. She will not be alone in this but it is possible that, just as Rome was first the centre of an empire and then became a spiritual centre, so the pattern might be repeated in England or the United States, the destinies of both countries being intertwined to a degree, I believe.




8 comments:

Unknown said...

And you said, these two countries UK and USA are relentlessly attacked and their inner integrity constantly undermined by the powers dedicated to the destruction of the spiritual truth. I would have liked you have named these powers in line with your intention of naming things by their names. There are so many players in our world and fixing the future spiritual trend with one or two player does not run well with the multipolar nature of our world,nor with the unknown factor that enters the human and the cosmic equation effectively. It is the non-human, non-neutral god whose light pervasive essence gives life and consciousness to everything to see and to navigate through the paradoxical existence of light and darkness giving ample freedom to choose either path of the paradoxical equation of our existence. As we can not know darkness without the light we also can not know the light without the darkness.It is a well known truth now that god program is a long term set up built on the day after to give the humans all the length of their life span to choose the color with which they want to paint their pictures. It is not England but the people who sat on the thrown of England who chose to raise the materialistic flag high in the English sky and as you said, in the world at large. Do you think this has taken place without a preordained divine plan which I have referred to in a former comment and which I find difficulty in understanding,but have no choice but to submit to his will that does do whatever he wishes. William you may have something to help me to clarify this ordained and preordained puzzlement. I hope I am not heavy in my comment but I want you to rest sure it is the urge to understand in this world whose doors have been widely opened on each other where the light of clarity will shine on all the dens of darkness.It is a human game under the watch of god until the individual or the collective departure strike.

William Wildblood said...

I can't name those powers because they are supernatural powers, not of this world. That's their origin anyway. In the words of St Paul "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

I have to admit I don't completely understand the rest of your comment but, as far as I do, I am not saying that the whole spiritual destiny of this world lies with the UK and the USA, not at all, but I do think these countries have an important place and this blog concerns Albion so that is what I focus on here. But spiritual light exists in many places throughout the world.

As for whether all this is part of a divine plan I would say , yes and no. God has a plan but its workings out depend on human beings implementing it. He does not take away our free will. He knows all things but the way we respond to evolutionary energies is up to us. At the moment the response is not what it should be but I believe that eventually God will bring his plan to fruition, one way or another. Everything will work out for the good in the long run.

Anonymous said...

By Follow the Cross

It is the Christ principle wherever it appears in the world that will turn the tide. Wherever Christ leads and informs human thought, those places are destined to lead the world to God. This could include Albion and some of her children (the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, some African States). These are the countries of a protestant Christian diaspora. However, I don't discount the countries of the RC diaspora, or the Orthodox diaspora. But within each diaspora, there will be an antichrist impulse too. Angels and demons fighting to control the hearts and minds of men.

FtC

Edwin said...

I'm sure you would agree that we can have little foresight concerning Providence in any specific way, and that would include where and how materialism will be countered and defeated. There was a strong belief when I was a boy in the 1950s and early 1960s that the spiritual tide for the world would turn in Russia. This was based on the apparitions at Fatima in 1917. I suppose you are somewhat familiar with them and the prophetic message that accompanied them. The Blessed Mother is supposed to have said that with the consecration of that nation to Her Immaculate Heart by the pope and bishops, She would be the conduit for the miraculous conversion of Russia and a period of peace would follow. This has yet to occur and the Message is largely forgotten. But there is a persistent belief among small pockets of traditional Catholics in what is called the social kingship of Christ. This is understood to mean that no civil government can supersede the doctrines of the Faith and all laws and policies must align with those doctrines or else they will ultimately fail and bring misery instead of whatever happiness or justice they intended. It is, at the moment, impossible to envision any nation shifting its center of gravity from the material to the spiritual, at least in the West. Whatever the grand plan may be, it seems that we are now more or less on our own, without social or ecclesial support. Our religious and government structures are rotten and there appears to be no way to salvage them by any sort of external action. Perhaps it comes down to "..where two or more are gathered in my name..." If we can find another like-minded soul, we are blessed.

William Wildblood said...

I know a little bit about Fatima by which I mean I know of it and it seems to me, as far as one can judge these things, to be a genuine appearance of a high spiritual being, quite possibly Mary herself. But unfortunately as with practically all prophetic teachings not that much appears to have come of it, not yet anyway. But we are told that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night so we really can't expect any prediction of the future to be that revealing. It's just not meant that we should do. We have to have faith and watch and pray.

Outwardly we are on our own. That's an indication I think that we have to work out our own salvation, even if it is God that works in us as the scripture says. I do believe that there is a plan but our spiritual development requires that we grow from within without external support. All this was predicted by Christ so we do have the comfort of knowing that and therefore also knowing that all will (eventually!) be well.

William Wildblood said...

Just to add that, yes, the religious, social and governmental structures are all, in their varying degrees, rotten so we can't expect any help from them. That's probably as it should be so we are forced to go within though sometimes bit of outer support is also provided. That appears to be secondary though in these days.

Unknown said...

Thank you William, I am sorry I could not reach you with the later part of my comment. As you said in another comment that the role of the humans is crucial in the path of the spirit, after all the unseen forces negative or positive can not function without the conduit of the humans. It is surely a very difficult errand that can not be accomplished without his unseen grace. It is here is the puzzlement which I have sought more clarification as to the divine role and the human role in this spiritual process. Most mystics are aware of such dilemma, realizing they can not avoid it they surrendered and said, increase us in your blissful, joyful bewilderment. All humanity is under his grace and no one can claim monopoly to the path of his limitless benevolence and open, generous favor.

Unknown said...

Knowing you interest in the world of the spirit which the materialistic philosophy has eclipsed, the materialistic philosophy that have been vastly flourished after the readmission of the Jews at the time of Cromwell and in the words of Ben Israel to the English we shall make you wealthy and powerful. And thus the Jews have dominated the English commercial and the political scene and pushed the English in the world conquerors and exploiters and the story of colonization is well known. It is meeting god and not only the masters that have worked under his guidance to remind us of the necessity of returning to god in this one prior to the next . In that frame I like to translate some of the verses of Chapter 34 that run thus, Praise be to god the owner of heaven and earth and to him belongs the praise in the day after and he is the wise the expert.He knows what goes in the earth and what comes out of it and what descends from heaven and what ascends in it and he is the merciful the forgiver. The disbelievers said, the hour is not coming he said, yes it will definitely come, the knower of the unseen, that evades his attention not an iota of thing whether in heaven or in earth, whether smaller or bigger each has his own clear operating system book. This is to reward the faithful and good doer with forgiveness and generous return and reward the faithless the wrong doer that arrogantly thought they are out of his reach, with what they deserve. As you said as we spiritually progressively advanced we become nearer to him and thus our thoughts become more expressive of our feelings. It is a journey in higher and higher consciousness.