Artwork "Floral in Pink" by Sandy Jones

From the personal unpublished journals of William Samuel

The CORNERSTONE By William Samuel 1984 Woodsong

There has been much speculation about the "corner stone which the builders rejected." Who hasn't wondered exactly what the Christian Master meant? Mystics of the world are certain they know--the churches from whom they removed themselves had omitted the major mysteries. Some doubted that the church ever knew them. To the mystic, the "cornerstone" was surely one of those esoteric mysteries, if not the body of them.

Western metaphysical groups have the same idea. They also say that subjectivism is the cornerstone rejected by the builders of "old theology"--omitted by the creeds to whom the discovery had never come.

An unbiased search of Jewish and Christian theology, however, reveals that subjectivism is included in the Bible, hidden in arcane symbolism and esoteric figures of speech. Indeed, subjectivism is present in the holy books of the west provided one gets far enough along with just the "correct teacher" capable of eliciting the proper mode of mind that subjectivism demands. It is certainly true that the subjective idea has been shunted or short-circuited by churchdom, not the least reason being that the "experience" doesn't happen through teaching but by those modes of mine and God's grace.

A metaphysician recently said to me, "Subjectivism was missing in the teachings of Jesus's day and that is what he was railing about when he denounced the Pharisees and scribes." But the Priests and Rabbis of Christ's era weren't dummies. They had been exposed to subjective thinking and much else believed to be secret. "The Subjective Experience” is faithfully recorded many times in the Talmudic teachings to those with eyes to see it. It is there to be studied and discussed--albeit, then as now, the study of subjectivism was undertaken cautiously by the Jews, if at all. Metaphysics cannot be understood by everyone, they insisted. It wasn't even for all the rabbis. They cautioned against the study "of the mysteries" unless done with teachers who knew their mysticism and had lived it successfully in the world. This was tantamount to telling a Jew that he could study metaphysics only with a bonifide prophet. It was not something he should undertake by himself.

The cabalists were convinced that the prophets came from a priestly caste that had the subjective idea. The Essenes were believed to have taught forms of subjectivism and there is fair evidence that John the Baptist and Jesus were familiar with the teachings of the Essenes, if not actual members of that esoteric community. The Apostle John was familiar with their works as well as those of the Gnostics, both Christian and Jewish. There is circumstantial evidence aplenty that the first people attracted to the messages of Jesus and John were the Essenes of the period. The fact that all mention of that group has been stricken from the cannonical works is a powerful indication that the assemblers of the scriptures considered the Essenes and gnostics a threat to the new organizations growing in the world.

The Gnositcs of the first century made no secret of the power of subjectivism and insisted that the words of Jesus as Messiah could not be understood outside its context. Indeed, the Jews, generally unfamiliar with the mystery teachings, didn't comprehend Jesus as Messiah but those who had knowledge of "the mysteries" reverently welcomed him as Messiah.

Metaphysicians of this era are in agreement with the Gnostics of yore that the words of Jesus can't really be understood without interpreting them subjectively.

Now, having considered these things, what was meant by the messianic comment of the missing cornerstone? Was this an allusion to subjectivism, as metaphysicians insist? Could there have been another meaning, a greater meaning applicable to this day and time as it was then?

I would suggest something new--and very old. While metaphysics wasn't emphasized by the priesthood of the first century, it was certainly present. The subjective idea was sufficiently established to allow such leaders as Jesus and John, the apostles, Paul and the early Church Fathers to attract large followings.

There is no question that "religion"--the desire to be bound back to Godhead--was present in those days. Then what was missing that Jesus came to add? It seems to me, the entire ministry of Jesus was about the Child--the need to acknowledge the Child, the need to return to the Child, the need to allow the Child to be up and out again in the affairs of the individual.

Presently, neither of the groups--religious or metaphysical {non-dual} --address themselves to the Child-one-is. Knowledge of the Child is missing in the western metaphysical literature. With all the metaphysical talk of oneness, allness, God as all in all, there is no evident discovery of the Child within metaphysical ranks, nor even a knowledge that the Child LIVES.

In religion, there is talk of "the immortal soul" or "the soul that survives" et al. The Child of us IS the soul of us--the building block, the cornerstone which the builders of the creeds and subjective schools have either overlooked or rejected.

In the process of living subjectively for a very long time, here is what I have found. I look out and do, indeed, see how theology has ignored the subjective idea. But subjectivism is present within the experience of all "who feel the working of the holy Spirit" wherever those people come from and regardless of their philosophy or theology.

What I see missing isn't missing in theology, but in the present generation of metaphysicians who think of themselves as first in their knowledge of Truth. I see the workings of the Child, the "holy spirit," much more often outside the subjective organizations than in them.

Something else. Though subjectivism is one of the mysteries "given to the few to fully understand," subjective thought isn't the whole of the mystery to which Jesus speaks. The greater mystery--"the simple Mystery"--to which Jesus gave his full attention, had to do with The Child and the Child's Equation. That "equation" is Love, spelled with the capital letter. Love is also called the "pathway of the Child."

I look at the present Christian metaphysical groups and find they know nothing whatever of that aspect of the Christ message. The REST of the mystery--the Child and the Child's equation--are nowhere to be found in the subjective teachings of the west.

There is little evidence of Love in organized western subjectivism, a strange and sad sight to behold for those institutions that insist that each of their sanctuaries have a sign stating that "God is love."

There is no easy way to tell a metaphysician that something is missing in HIS philosophy. But the moment one discovers the Child of himself and hears of the simple guideline of the Child, from that moment he can look and plainly see that much is missing in the world's subjective presentations. He sees to his surprise--listen, listen—that the Child is not missing from ordinary religion! Even the so called 'heathen' statements the world over include the Child and living the Child's natural equation.

It will be the discovery of the Child in us that finally brings the world alive and forever eliminates the need for churches and spiritual instructors in the land as John foresaw.

Listen carefully. The student of Truth who finds the child becomes the Christ Itself within his subjective view of things.

If you would like further guidance in understanding any of William Samuel's work based on Self discovery - you are welcome to contact me, Sandy Jones -- samuelandfriends@gmail.com - Ojai, California -