Formal Initiations

  As followers of the Master, we walk the Via Christa, the Way of the Christ, which is the initiatory Path of Ascension to become as perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect. On the way, we progress from degree to degree of ascension by tests and trials called initiations. An initiation is always an invitation to do better.

“You shall face initiation until your life follows the pattern set by Jesus Christ.”–Edna Lister

  We must undergo many sets of formal initiations, including those of the Seven Degrees, the Labors of Hercules, the Stations of the Cross, the Thirty-three Degrees of the Via Christa and lesser initiations on every principle, law, degree, virtue, taint and sin. While these experiences may seem like harsh challenges and grueling, rejoice, for they form the rungs on your ladder of ascension. You shall face initiation until your life follows the pattern set by Jesus Christ.

The Seven Sacred Degrees

Rebirth is not a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The rebirth in consciousness is perhaps the most common initiation you experience, hourly, daily. You are reborn in consciousness each time you say, “Aha!” When you see something new or make sense of what you have not understood before, you are reborn in consciousness. The goal is Christ consciousness: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.”–Philippians 2:5.

Baptism by Water is repentance, the initiation of the second Degree of the Disciple; you must walk on the waters of emotion. All emotional trials help you to overcome fears and threats to self. “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire.”–Matthew 3:11.

Baptism by Fire is the formal initiation of the third Degree of the Adept, and describes the descent of the Holy Spirit. A Baptism by Fire stops just short of a Crucifixion, which involves the “death” of something—a body, a desire, a hope or some cherished idea.

Transfiguration: During Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1–9), you stand in the golden silence to maintain constant contact with the Source, and name all things “Good.” When you balance Love and Wisdom perfectly, to stand in balance under the pure white Light of the Christ, the materiality of self falls from your soul and your face shines as pure joy. Transfiguration is the initiation of the fourth Degree of the Mystic.

Crucifixion of self is physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. You must willingly lay personal or self will on the transverse of the Master’s Cross until you respond only to the will of God for you. You must assume full responsibility for lifting everything, as you polish your standard of honor, ethics and morals. Crucifixion (Luke 19-23) is the initiation of the fifth Degree of the Master.

Resurrection is a law of doing under the principle of redemption: To redeem your own soul, you must resurrect all good from the dead in Spirit. Resurrection is the initiation of the sixth Degree of the Priest. (Matthew 28:1-20, Mark 16:1-20, Luke 24:1-53, and John 20:1–21:25.)

Ascension is the culmination of Jesus incarnation in a body of flesh; it portrays the central purpose of his life on earth: He was born, lived, conquered self, drew the multitudes to him and ascended his body and consciousness to prove that it could be done, that we can do it, too! (Luke 24:50-51 and Acts 1:9-11) Ascension is a continually growing consciousness and awareness, a continually increasing rate of vibration and a continually expanding aura. Ascension is the initiation of the seventh Degree of the Christos.

Other Sets of Formal Initiations

Bridging the Abyss is a series of initiations that involves sacrificing the known for the unknown. All the demons of self that can torment you live in the abyss. An abyss in consciousness is a passage into and through the unknown that elicits all possible fears, doubts and uncertainties. The abyss in this series of initiations is one of consciousness, considered in quality and in quantity. You know you face an abyss when you have no idea how you will make it through to the other side.

The Burning Bush initiation (Exodus 3:1–4) is the result of the personal desire to achieve and to know, which is great enough to consume the self-will. Becoming the burning bush is a culminating initiation that results from surrendering earthly earthy desires and will for the pure heavenly fire. To the spiritual eye, you appear as a bush, burning with spiritual light.

Burning Sands of the Desert: Navigating the dry, hot and barren burning sands of the desert is a series of grueling endurance tests as you walk the Via Christa to reach your full Path of Destiny. You must face and overcome the sheer drudgery of the same old hard, boring, job, the same old ugly conquering of self. The more you complain, the longer it lasts.

A Thousand Burnt Offerings of self is a formal initiatory series that leads to fully opened spiritual faculties. Solomon’s thousand burnt offerings (1 Kings 3:4–5, 2 Chronicles 1:6) symbolize a thousand days of loving God enough to declare everything in life good. Your thousand burnt offerings are one thousand days of perfection, complete sublimation and sacrifice of self.

Sacrifices are initiations in which you are asked to surrender something you do not really need, but may still believe you do. The more the self desires to hold onto the trait or taint that soul is offering up, the greater the sacrifice weighs in the balance. Your sacrifice must be dear to you, or is otherwise meaningless.

The Labors of Hercules is a series of twelve initiations that outline the soul’s advance in its ascent to God. The ancients used the stories surrounding the Labors of Hercules to describe the initiations that a candidate must face while traveling one full round on the spiral Path of Ascension. The information we provide here is highly symbolic.

The Marriage of the Lamb is a series of initiations in which you focus desire and will in a process of sublimation until the self becomes subsumed in the soul. You must consciously lift your expressions of desire and will to become love and wisdom, loving as God loves, thinking and choosing as God thinks and chooses. His will and desire for you is that you become perfect as He is.

The Stations of the Cross compose a series of fourteen representations that depict the events surrounding Christ’s crucifixion. They cover the time between when Pilate condemned Jesus until he was laid in the grave. The Stations of the Cross are the minimum levels of initiation required to pass the Gates of Light and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Surrender: The world misunderstands surrender, interpreting it as the passive action of a loser, not the dynamic act of an ascending soul. To surrender is to let go the thorny crown of selfishness for the crown of the conquering soul. By letting go of self-credits, self-doubts and all thoughts of self, you conquer the self by obedience to the law of surrender, knowing that the Light-as-power does the work through you. Surrender is breaking self’s hold to let soul take charge.

The Temptations in the Wilderness: (Matthew 4:1–11, Mark 1:12–13, and Luke 4:1–13.) While the Gospels describe these initiations as a single series of events, they are recurring and cyclic in your life. You face these tests annually, and each time you advance a step or degree in ascension. All temptations are initiations of Mind, Substance or Power.

The Yetzirah Paths: Yetzirah is the third of four worlds in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, following Assiah and Briah. It is called the World of Formation, because created beings and objects assume shape and form on this level. Every thought assumes some degree of form, not necessarily visible to the physical eye, but existent. Most people create an impressive mess of mental monsters before they realize the truth of this law.

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