Esoteric Spiritual Books

Stott's death stirs local response

He was soft-spoken Anglican priest who in his later years lived in a two-room apartment above a garage. He had a small cottage in Wales without electricity until 2001, where he did some writing.

So when the Rev. John Stott died Wednesday in Lingfield, England, at the age of 90, the last thing you'd imagine is that Kings County would take notice.

You'd be wrong.

Stott's death inspired fond recollections and admiring comments from local pastors across denominational lines who were influenced by more than 50 books Stott wrote promoting traditional Christian beliefs but challenging believers to critically engage with secular culture.

Anglicans, Pentecostals, Presbyterians and others praised Stott for being a staunch but sensitive defender of Christianity who helped generations of Christians to embrace intellectualism and pursue a deeply Scriptural understanding of their faith.

Though he rejected the limelight, Stott's influence has been compared to Billy Graham and C.S. Lewis. In 2005, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine.

"He's a giant of the faith, and the church is going to sorely miss him," said Tony Winterowd, pastor of First Presbyterian Church. "I think for me, he held the line on an orthodox take on the faith, but he did so graciously."

Stott is credited with leading an evangelical resurgence in England after World War II. Gradually, through his accessible yet academically respectable books, he achieved a major influence in the United States and around the world. One of his most popular books, "Basic Christianity," sold more that 2.5 million copies and was translated into more than 60 languages.

Many local pastors and Christians read the book and were heavily influenced by it.

"Like C.S. Lewis, he was such a clear thinker, and could reduce the most esoteric thoughts into sheer nuts and bolts so that even a Texan like me could understand it," said the Rev. Bruce Taylor, pastor of Christ Church in Lemoore. "He was just monumental in my spiritual formation, as he was for probably thousands of priests."

Stott is also credited with renewing an evangelical emphasis on social responsibility as an integral part of spreading the Gospel.

Combining academic rigor with a simple, readable style wasn't the only thing notable about Stott. He was also a lifelong bachelor - unusual in the evangelical Christian community, where almost all the leading figures are married.

Rudolf Steiner – La Science occulte – French (Esoteric ...

Ription:

Un des ouvrages majeurs de la spiritualité au XXe siècle. Steiner y développe une approche rigoureuse des réalités spirituelles qui restent cachées (occultes) à la perception et à la conscience ordinaires. Il décrit la nature de l’être humain, la vie après la mort, puis l’évolution du cosmos et de la Terre. Un dernier chapitre traite du développement spirituel de l’homme et comporte des exercices de méditations.

Desc ription:

Given his energetic involvement in practical initiatives and extensive lecturing, Rudolf Steiner had very little time to write. Of the books he found time to write, four titles are considered indispensable introductions to his teaching as a whole: How to Know Higher Worlds; An Outline of Esoteric Science; Intuitive Thinking As a Spiritual Path; and Theosophy. With the exception of his Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts and his Autobiography, Steiner’s important writings belong largely to his earliest work. The anthroposophy of Rudolf Steiner is not a theoretical system but the results of research based on direct observation. Because his research was so vast and conducted over such a long period of time, no single book can be said to contain the whole of his spiritual teaching. However, of all his books, this one perhaps comes closest. Steiner even referred to it as "an epitome of anthroposophical spiritual science." In a systematic way, he lays out fundamental facts concerning the nature and constitution of the human being and, in chronological order, the history of the universe and humankind.

Whereas the findings of natural science are derived from observations made through the senses, the findings of spiritual science are "occult," inasmuch as they arise from direct observation of realities hidden to ordinary human perception. Although Occult Science is not all-inclusive, it is indispensable to any serious student who wishes to master Steiner’s extraordinary philosophy and methods of inner development.

RUDOLF STEINER (1861-1925) became a respected and well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, particularly known for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings.

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