THEOSOPHY AND CHRISTIANITY.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20092, 22 November 1930, Page 16

THEOSOPHY AND CHRISTIANITY.

TO TUX EDITOR OF THE PRK3S Sir, —Mr Colonna, in replying to Archdeacon Taylor, makes a very ingenious use of the word ''gnostic." I>'irst he usos it in a purely general sense, when he says "were not the early Fathers of the Church gnostics—that is, knowers and not mere believers?" In this sense, of course, they were gnostics, just as any Christian who has a personal knowledge of the Lord is a gnostic. "I know whom I have believed" can be oaid by any of these. Gnosticism of

this kind is not bv ~ monopoly of ® ans th ® Then, having de.fiti..,i . . tliis quite harmless an/1 B^°® tlclsm m Mi Colon,ia goes on £J , wa - v ' sophic.il Society tcaclies' lis a truth in i\'atur 6 not reincarnation taught K a +v, ain W ? S gnostic fathers of tile A car - Y and l»y no loess than the crent 'n 'li? Here the word 'VnostPr" ; ° ri^ n • a much narrower sense de* S I"®° m certain sect or heresy ?° sc > bl »Z » Christian Church, which !»i; n 1 . ua y incarnation. The doctrines ofYhhUrt were condemned l>y the I«\h,L" f f , early Christian Church; e £°_ t-rs lmve never been <W , ■T.thcr, „f a. I'.vcn some writings of ti, : Orison (who by the way, did nofbein&Sr r { - for from the Fathers, because theTcmdd that he This double use of the word "gnostic w more ingenious than ingenuous; ? if hj„ ? 7"" W ?'" d I,avc dotu ' ,)et- ! ll a employed a capital totter foi it in the second part of his argument. Just Uv wav of an illustration: Mr McDougall might go down to posterity as a liberal man Ik>cnuse he gnveusthe wherewithal to f"n W **tbn+ V, G l a "T, V b "t it doesn't follow that he should go down to posterity a« a member of the Liberal I arty. And. imywny, reincarnation was never one of the tenets of tho l'V ar £ f n ,mßtlan Clir.rcl.- a fact which Mr Colonna ought to laiow. Ag-un, Mr Colour,a tells- „ s that "one of the planks of the Thcosonhical Society is thus ..xpre.«cd: 'To encourage the study of comparative religions philosophy, and science,' :,n.l "tha<" the only teaching to which they must subscribe is the recognition \>f the universal brotherhood of humanity without distinctions of race, creed, caste, or colour." Quite so; but an-,' ordinary person, even an orthodox Christian, could walk that plank and subscribe to lhat teaching without troubling to become n Tlieosophist. Theosnphiste. apparently, do not deny the Divinity of Christ. "How wild they," says Mr Colonna, "when they maintain that man also is divine?" And echo answers "Define!" What does Mr Colonna mean bv "divinity" in cither case?

All Mr C.'olonna's arguments for Theosophy are, ».s it were, the labels on the tin, but he hasn't let us see what is in the tin—except, perhaps, in the ease of reincarnation. But the ordinary Christian usually suspects that the flavour of the contents is niorw Buddhist than Christian, nnd that Theosophy is, at best, nn attempt to mingle Christianity with Buddhism. By the way, Theosophists call reincarnation (which is not a Christian doctrine) a truth of Nature. But forgiveness {which is n Christian doctrine) is disowned by Mrs Besnnt. "There is no escape," she snvs. "There is no such thing in Nature as forgiveness." Will Mr Colonna open tho tin and Itt us pee what is inside?— Yours, etc., TREMAYXE M. CURNOW. Tho Vicarage, New Brighton. November 21st, 1930.