244
THE STAR IN THE WEST
energy , and then , curious to say , they discovered
he
had given them , as a slight reward , an immortal soul
for
all
the trouble they had taken
in
turning
him out
a
really nice
,
amiable
,
and respectable Deity
.
Having
magnified their friend into
a
God
,
they then
proceeded
to
enlarge
their
enemy
into
a
Devil
.
This
gross
materialism
in
accordance with
the universal
law
of
polarity
,
set
in
motion
by
the hand
of
Idealism
,
pro
duced
as
effect
a
fanciful
spiritualism
,
which sought
in
the mysteries
of
life
an
answer that lay still
on
the
cold lips
of
Death
.
These two powers
,
the Pantheonic
materialism
and
the Gnostic
spiritualism
,
bore
the
hybrid
-
Christianity
.
As
all
religions
have finally become
subservient
to
an
interested priesthood
,
so
have
all
religions
(
how
ever spiritual
they may have
been
in
their youth
)
been
materialized
and
sacrificed
on
the altar
of
gain
.
To
this rule Christianity
forms no exception
;
once crudely
and
sincerely
spiritual
,
it
has
become
deceitfully
materialistic
.
God
,
who was formerly
an
Almighty
Pleroma
,
is
now but the moke which carries
the priest's eggs
to
market
;
and
Christ
,
the
Saviour
and
Redeemer
,
the
stick
with
which
the
wretched old jennet
is
beaten
along
.
Christianity
is
no
longer what
its
name implies
,
the
system
of
doctrines
as
taught
by
Christ
,
but
diametrically
the
reverse
,
the
system
of
desires
as
wrought
by
Man
.
It
is
no
longer
“
Sell
all
,”
but
“
Seize
all
”;
or
“
Give all
,”
but
“
Get all
.”
Mammon
is
the God
of
to
-
day
,
and modern Christianity
is
ab
solute and
unadulterated
materialism
.
As such
it
is
not necessary
to
look
far
for
its
antithesis
.
Religions
decay
through
materiality
,
and
whenever
religions
decay mysticism arises
;
for materiality cannot explain