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Leadbeater & Besant in the same load with Prophet et al.

Jan 13, 2003 02:05 PM
by Phillip Lindsay " <phillip@esotericastrologer.org>


Daniel, Of course not, they are aeons removed from the likes of 
Clare Prophet. They have their distortions (mainly CWL in my 
experience) but are on the whole quite sound. P.

--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "D. H. Caldwell <info@b...>" 
<info@b...> wrote:
> Phillip, do you include Leadbeater & Besant in the same "load" 
with 
> Prophet et al.?
> 
> Phillip, you wrote:
> 
> "Loads of them! Clare Prophet and Summit Lighthouse,I Am Movement, 
> and much other 'channelled' material. All make a travesty of the 
> Masters and distort." 
> 
> Do you include Leadbeater and Besant in the SAME "load," too? Do 
CWL 
> and AB also "make a travesty of the Masters and distort"?
> 
> I wonder if you are aware of the following:
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> In regards to C.W. Leadbeater's and Annie Besant's Theosophical 
> teachings, Dr. Alvin Boyd Kuhn in his book Theosophy: A Modern 
> Revival of Ancient Wisdom (published 1930) wrote the following 
> relevant statement: 
> 
> "Certain schools of his critics assert flatly that he [C. W. 
> Leadbeater] has only succeeded in vitiating her [H.P. Blavatsky's] 
> original presentation [of Theosophy]. Two years ago [starting in 
the 
> March 15, 1928 issue] The Canadian Theosophist, a magazine 
published 
> under the editorship of Mr. Albert Smythe at Toronto, published a 
> series of articles in which parallel passages from the writings of 
> Madame Blavatsky and the Mahatma Letters on one side, and from the 
> books of Mrs. Besant, Mr. Leadbeater, Mr. C. Jinarajadasa, on the 
> other, give specific evidence bearing on the claims of perversion 
of 
> the original theories by those whom they call Neo-Theosophists. 
The 
> articles indicate wide deviations, in some cases complete 
reversal, 
> made by the later interpreters [Besant, Leadbeater, Jinarajadasa] 
> from the fundamental statements of the Russian Messenger 
[Blavatsky] 
> and her Overlords [the Mahatmas]." 
> 
> "The differences concern such matters as the personality of God, 
the 
> historicity of Jesus, his identity as an individual or a 
principle, 
> the desirability of churches, priestcraft and religious 
ceremonial, 
> the genuineness of an apostolic succession, and a vicarious 
> atonement, the authority of Sacraments, the nature and 
nomenclature 
> of the seven planes of man's constitution, the planetary chains, 
the 
> monad, the course of evolution, and many other important phases of 
> Theosophic doctrine. This exhaustive research has made it apparent 
> that the later exponents have allowed themselves to depart in many 
> important points from the teachings of H.P.B." (pp. 330-331)
> 
> Dr. James A. Santucci, professor of religious studies at 
California 
> State University, Fullerton and editor of Theosophical History 
> <http://www.theohistory.org/>, confirms Kuhn's statements:
> 
> "The two [Besant and Leadbeater] were largely responsible for the 
> introduction of new teachings that were often in total opposition 
to 
> the Theosophy of Blavatsky and her Masters. These teachings were 
> designated by their opponents as Neo-Theosophy . . . or less often 
> Pseudo-Theosophy. The differences between Theosophy and Neo-
Theosophy 
> are too numerous to mention in the context of this paper. . . . An 
> extensive overview [of the differences] is given in the 
unpublished 
> booklet, Theosophy or Neo-Theosophy by Margaret Thomas. . . . The 
> booklet was written around 1925." Quoted from: 
> http://www.theohistory.org/aquarian_foundation.pdf
> ---------------------------------------------------
> The above quoted from:
> http://www.blavatskyarchives.com/contradictionslatermessengers.htm
> 
> Daniel H. Caldwell
> BLAVATSKY ARCHIVES
> http://hpb.cc



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