November 2, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
Of course, the scenes in which I was represented (from the movie "Civilization") are creatures of the imagination, and intended to impress upon the observers of these scenes the belief or thought, that because of my teachings of peace and good will to men, I would necessarily be interested in those things that violate my teachings, and, consequently would be present at the fields of battle and the destruction of human life. But I may surprise you when I tell you that I do not visit these scenes, because my mission as a spirit is not to help those who fall in battle and come to the spirit world as the result of war's destruction and murder of human beings. There are many spirits whose duty it is to look after the spirits of those who are so suddenly ushered into the spirit world, and to help them to a realization of their changed conditions, and to lead them to the knowledge that they are no longer mortals. These spirits are specially designated for this work and they comfort the unfortunate spirits and help them to recover from the shock of their violent and sudden transformation.
This work, as you may say, is a material one, that is the one that helps these spirits come into possession of their spiritual faculties, irrespective of the question as to whether they are fitted for heaven or for hell. In other words, they work to make the coming of these spirits as free from the terrors which such sudden transformation might cause, as is possible. This work is a necessary one, and one which is a part of the plan of the Father for the welfare and happiness of His children, without regard to the fact that they know not His love and mercy.
But my work is different. I deal only with the souls of men irrespective of their spirit condition, that is of the condition of spirit as mere spirit. On the field of battle the souls of men are not generally open to the influence of my teachings, and my work is not among the physically dead, but among the living who are in that state of mental and soul equipoise to receive the influences of my suggestion and love. No, the field of battle is not my place of work, and the killing of men and the carnage of war do not attract me or have for me the opportunities to do the great work, that I am leading the spirits who know the reality and the necessity of the Divine Love, to do.
I am interested in the peace of mankind and the love of one brother for another, and my teachings on earth and in the spirit world are given for the purpose of bringing about this peace. But the wars of nations or the hatred of battles will never result in bringing peace, merely because of the horrors and desolation that flow from such wars and battles. Men may think that when mankind looks upon these things of destruction, it will also look upon them with such horror and dread, that never again will war take place, and that only peace will follow and forever remain the heritage of men. But I tell you that in this they are mistaken, for in the passing of a few years all these things will be forgotten, and then, men's hearts being the same, with all the hatred and envy and ambition that existed in the hearts and minds of those who were responsible for the forgotten wars, these things will be repeated, and the fact that men are of the same carnal minds and desires will be demonstrated.
As long as men remain in their condition of sin and have only what some may call the brotherhood of man to restrain them from seeking to satisfy their ambitions or to gratify their desires to punish fancied wrongs, wars will ensue and the horrors of such conflicts will reappear on the face of the earth. Men will cry peace, peace, but the world will know no peace, and poor man will suffer the recurrence of the results of the workings of his evil nature.
And hence, you may understand that I am not so much interested in having peace come to man as a result of the horrors of war as I am in having it come as the necessary result of the transforming of men's hearts and souls from sin to purity, from the merely natural love to that of the Divine Love, for when this latter love is in men's souls, they will not cease from war and hatred, and carnal appetites will not be satisfied, because of the horrors that may attend these things, but because of the love that exists in their souls, which will not permit wars. Love will rule and men will forget hatred and all things which now form a part of their very existence. My work is to change men from the fallen man to the possessor of the Divine Love.
Also, am I trying to teach men that originally they possessed a love that in its pure state would lead them from these things of hatred and war, and that their only salvation, outside of the possession of the Divine Love, is to again obtain this pure love - the purified natural love. But strange as it may seem to some, it is more difficult for a man to regain the state of the purification of his natural love, than to obtain that greater purification which comes with the possession of the Divine Love. I see that many centuries may pass before man will attain to this state of purification of his natural love, that will enable him to say that because of his love, wars cannot come again and peace must reign: and hence, the great necessity for him to know that only with the coming of the Divine Love will come the impossibility of war and strife - individually and nationally.
So, when it is written or portrayed in pictures that I am on the fields of battle trying to show mankind the horrors of war, or that I am weeping over the slaughter of men, such writings or portrayals are not true. My mission is to reach the souls of men, as individuals, and turn them to the Love of the Father, and my weeping or sorrow is, when men will not listen to the voice that comes to them all, as it calls them to turn to the Father and Live. A dead body is of small consequence as compared to a dead soul, and there are so many that pass into the spirit world bring with them their dead souls. As the dead bodies lie on the fields of carnage, I know that there is nothing there that needs my help or sympathy: and the souls that leave these bodies are not in condition, at that time, to listen to my ministrations or consider their future existence. So you see there is no reason why I should visit the battlefields or try to help these newly born spirits, as I may describe them. No. Jesus, the elder brother, is not the physician for the mangled or wounded bodies or for the souls that come into the spirit world filled with hatred and antagonism at the time of their coming.
Physical death in view of eternity is not of much moment, and while I know that to the ordinary mortal it is one of the most momentous of their existence, yet as I say, it is of comparatively little importance. But, oh, the importance of the death of the soul, and the great necessity of striving to awaken that soul to life! Well, I have written enough now, and will stop.
I see your friend with you and I must say to him that I am with him very often, and am pleased that he has arisen from death to life, and that the battle field on which he has fought the fight of the soul is larger and more terrible in its aspects and evidences of carnage and destruction than the field of battle that is now destroying the physical bodies of so many of mankind. I mean that the whole world is the battlefield of the soul's fighting, and if men could only see the results, as they see the results of the war that is now shaking the whole earth, they would understand that the great war is not the one that is causing so many dead souls to enter the spirit world. Give him my love and blessings. I will come soon and write you a message of truth. So with all my love and blessings, I am
Your brother and friend,
Jesus.