Circle of Christhood
The Study of Joel Goldsmith's Infinite Way
Freedom
Certainly, spiritual students of Truth hold freedom high above many human attributes. The desire for freedom burns in our hearts and is paramount in the principles we support and uphold.
That said, it has been a challenge to uncover the reason many new IW students misunderstand Joel's teaching on freedom and how it continues to be one of the greatest obsticles in the path of students in The Infinite Way. A close look at the teachings of Lorraine Sinkler and other teachers of the first generation disciples, begins to show how and why current and new students behave as they do and understand the principles of freedom incorrectly.
Joel's Lesson On Freedom
Freedom, The Laws, Grace
Joel Goldsmith
Some think of freedom or liberty as license: the freedom to do anything they want to do forgetting that freedom means the freedom to live so that all may be One. This idea of a free citizen does not mean an individual is free in his own being to do anything he wants to do! It means they are free to unite for the good of all, and it is that very point that is often lost sight of.
That is why these people who publish obscene literature feel they are doing it as part of the guarantee of the Constitution – freedom of the press – and they construe that to mean the freedom to be corrupt and to corrupt others. Freedom doesn’t mean that!
“Liquor sellers keep on selling no mater how stupid-drunk their customer may be-'because this is a free country' and they have the right to do anything they like and that the alcoholic has the right to do anything he likes. That isn’t true! That is not a right sense of liberty or freedom.
“Liberty and freedom mean the right to uphold each other, the right to stand in freedom of rightness with each other. With it comes the responsibility of spiritual freedom. It doesn’t mean that we are free to do anything we like or to ignore the laws of God or Grace. On the contrary, it places a deep responsibility upon us t not only love our neighbor but also to even be our brother’s keeper. “ - Joel S. Goldsmith--1955 Kailua Study Group, Tape No. 15, Side No. 1
“[You have] the freedom to study a spiritual teaching, the freedom to study and practice any spiritual teaching you choose and the freedom to leave any teaching [when] you choose and seek another. All these are your rights. “- Joel S. Goldsmith -1958 London Closed Class, Tape 1, Side 1
“By virtue of having been born, we are under the law of cause and effect, of environment, of heredity, of infection and contagion, of sin and desire, of wealth and poverty. We are subject to [the law of] every human belief that exists anywhere on earth.
Emma Goldsmith:
Joel never indicated that bringing ourselves out from the law applied to the judiciary laws of any country. Those laws are designed to protect the rights of every individual when those rights are threatened by those who are not living under Grace. To give you an example, in his 1960 England Open Class, Tape No. 8, Side No. 1, Joel has this to say on the subject of stealing:
“The bread that you cast upon the waters s the bread that comes back to you. That’s why you find many people with burned fingers; they tried to get the bread that someone else placed on the waters. As you heard, I am going to Dartmore Prison (England) on Sunday to speak to the men. I am sure that some of them have burned fingers from trying to reach out for some of the bread that belonged to someone else. Life does not permit our taking from another that which belongs to him.”
In Joel S. Goldsmith’s taped recording of his 1963 Kailua Private Class, Tape No. 5 Side 2, he had this to say on the subject of bearing false witness:
“Always remember that if a teacher lies to a student, that teacher has lost his or her power. If the student lies to a teacher, that student has lost his or her connection.”
Lorraine Sinkler's Teaching on Freedom
White Affidavit: "I have further listened to the following tapes of Lorraine Sinkler and have also examined the transcripts of these tapes;
Tape 1 – Catalog No. 8101 - 1981
Tape 1 – Catalog No. 8106 – 1981 San Rafael Closed Class
Tape II- Catalog No. 8107 –1981 San Rafael Closed Class
TapeI – Catlaog No. 8109 – 1981 Pasadena Closed Class
***
“ Many of you are wondering where Horizons in Consciousness is and this I must explain to you, but before I get into the full explanation, ....
"He [Joel] says, The IW teaching is this: that you cannot rise higher than your own state of consciousness. And there is no use of anyone setting up a law for you to follow or a rule.”
"Now, you all know that, I’m sure, but I think it’s important to call it to your attention, that we have no rules or regulations or laws governing any person in The Infinite Way. We have, as it says in the front of every IW book, only the discipline of the soul. Something that flows forth from within us.
"Actually, it is one of the reasons that we have no organization so that we may have no rules, so there may not be a “me”, meaning Joel, laying down laws for “you” to follow. So that there may not be a group of people following me, making rules for you or your family to follow. Is that clear?
"Please do not forget that, that there is no one to lay down any rule or any law for you. The IW is a setting forth of spiritual principles. You do with it as you wish. You develop along the lines in accordance with your own unfoldment. Some of you can, through your readiness, mount high quickly in spiritual awareness. And with some, it will take a long long time, but there is no one to make rules or laws for you. To tell you how fast to progress or where you should be at any given moment."
"Actually, I was bearing my soul ‘cause there was nothing between us but perfect and complete trust. And yet, I felt that I should share it with all the students who wanted to read it. That was on Sept. 9.
"...Now, I told you you would have a wonderful opportunity here to prove the degree of your non-reaction, for I can assure you and my sister and the two or three people who have known about this can assure you, that it[being fired by Emma from editing IW] brought forth no reaction from me. None whatever. I think what happened to me was a feeling of blankness...
"But we have an opportunity now to use this particular situation as a take off field for an understanding of the principles of the IW, it gives us a marvelous opportunity. It pinpoints these principles as nothing else possibly could, and drives them home to every person.
"And the first principle I have already spoken of is that there is no organization. Now, Mrs. Goldsmith and Mrs. MacDonald who will inherit the copyrights has the legal right according to the law as it now appears to be, not to permit this book to be published. That law may have to have further clarification. But that’s the way it stand now. Now, is the book lost? Is it a failure. Oh, no.
"Look, here’s a book. That’s so many pages of paper and some ink. That’s not really the book. That’s a material thing, a form. But the book, the essence of the book is the consciousness . Consciousness is that book and that book is in consciousness and nothing can ever stop it having its way in the world. Maybe not as a book, and maybe not just in this form, but what that book gives will go forth, has already gone forth. Some of you felt something here, you felt this is going to be a very special experience, and so it is. The most glorious experience that we’ve ever had together because we have an opportunity now to prove that we deal entirely now with cause and cause is consciousness, God consciousness. We are working entirely on the level, not of the problem, but on the level that my kingdom is not of this world. I live in and as, invisible consciousness. And that consciousness knows no law, no barriers, no blockage to its activity...
Lorraine Sinkler San Rafael 8107 side 2
"There is a book, here it is, but it’s not bound and those are the proofs of it, but not the final bound edition. Probably many of you have heard some things about why it is not out and so it came to me very strongly to present the facts very quickly and briefly so that we can get on with the important part of our work here which is of course, always to deal with the principles of The Infinite Way, for the IW is an experience as you all know, an inner experience of conscious awareness of that Presence that is always with you guiding and directing you.....
"Now, those are the facts, or shall we say, “this world,” the appearances of this world and where to we go from here?
"Well, let’s go right to what is one of the basic principles of the IW. That is of course that the IW is not an organization but that it is an activity of consciousness and Joel emphasized that over and over. You people who know those wonderful tape recordings that Joel has given us as a heritage forever which will always be our great blessing. Just as the words of the New Testament, even though they weren’t written down at the time, as a heritage and a blessing, so will the recordings of Joel last throughout all time because it is a spiritual message and a spiritual activity and nothing can ever touch that...
“ In me, you have only and individual like yourself. You have nobody set apart. You have nobody of distinction. But you have certain principles, and that is the foundation, not only of this work but of religious work in centuries to come. The world can and will forget the identity of Joel Goldsmith because there will be no organization left to memorialize him, but it will never forget the principles that have come into the world through this work.”
"And what a principle of freedom we have. I know that some of you are here today because that principle of universality and freedom which IS The Infinite Way attracted you and drew you to it.
"That can happen too. We can begin to think, ah, how great am I, and you and I know that that’s the beginning of the downfall, if we begin to think we, of ourselves, can ever be or do something, we are in for a great great shock. And this is from the Second New York Practitioner’s Class 1953:
"..There is nothing personal about the Christ except that the Christ appears personally as your consciousness and mine. It is personal in that sense that as we receive it, it is personal to us just as it was to Jesus and those of his disciples who received it. But it is not personal in the sense that it is something you and I can claim as of or for ourselves. Watch this very carefully.
Then from San Diego 1959:
"We have no organization, we have no memberships, we have not contributors, we have no promotions, we have no advertising. There is a presence that goes before this work and it assembles anything and everything necessary, not for its glory, for there never will be an Infinite Way organization to glorify or to be glorified. The only reason this is taking place in the world is to prove to the students, to you and to me, that you do not live by bread alone. That you do not have to have money to organize your life.You know what you have to have, consciousness. It’s the consciousness that does it. You do not have to have promotion or experience or advertising, what you need is conscious contact with God and then you are one with the infinite powers of grace and then you learn to live
"..If I had been in old metaphysics, I would say, “This book is of God and it must come out.” And I would be affirming the truth that this book had to be out and it had to be out on time, and I would know what the time was. That was Oct. 25, 1981. I would have been working on that very hard. But you see I couldn’t do that, that is not The Infinite Way. I have no right to have any concepts as to how the Spirit is to fulfill itself. And this book, after three years is in consciousness. You don’t that that those letters have failed, even now to fulfill themselves. It’s in the consciousness which knows no limitation and no boundaries. The form isn’t here yet, whether it will be, what it will be I do not know, for I have released the form in that sense. But I know that the message can never be stopped, that it goes forth to all those who are receptive.
After 32 years of working with these principles, I have learned to trust that Infinite Invisible and to know that it has never failed me in all these years, as long as I don’t have a concept as to how it is to fulfill itself, but am open and willing to let it have its way with me.
"So principle number one, there is no organization or structure to the IW.
Number Two, have no concepts as to how that divine wisdom is to fulfill itself as your experience, no concepts whatever, release them and be a beholder. Let it do the work.
"You know for a long time, since 1955, my sister and I have faced one deadline after another, this has to be in, this has to be done.Can you understand what a wonderful sense of freedom it is now? No timetable, no deadlines to be met. And yet, both Valborg and I were more than happy to do that."
..."I have to say I'm too close to my Viking ancestors who sailed the seas long before Columbus and explored new lands to let anyone tell me what I can write and what I can say. Yes, even my teacher, because that wonderful teacher that I had brought me to the point where I knew that the only real teacher there is is the teacher within, and that is the function of every spiritual teacher: to show the student that he needs no one whatsoever. Through those fifteen years of work came that tremendous realization of freedom until on one day in September, 1963, when I was sitting all day long in Joel's office in Doone Circle in Hawaii, I knew that I did not need anybody. I did not need any teacher any more..."
***
As we know, the Sinkler lawsuit was brought against Emma, and Lorraine continued to read and "perform" her book - "somehow" allowing copies to be circulated in the underground. By example, she was above human law, students were/are free to do as they want, no duty or repect for Joel and his directions. It is never about Joel, only his message. Joel can be ignored.
Four tapes were made discussing all the details of her struggle with the book's being turned down, her being fired, not reacting to the rejection, her feeling free from the office. Why do we witness this behavior if someone is not upset and in the fourth dimension treating all this humanhood with prayer and nothingizing, impersonalizing and DROPPING the problem?
We now have the consciousness revealed of the person in whose hands the teaching was left. By her example, others went on to tape, publish. The sanctity of the work, the respect for Joel and his wishes dissolved in the aftermath.
May you all see the importance of returning to the message as Joel taught it.
