“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

The God concept, however, is true and not true. Myths and symbols are often closer to reality than what are called hard facts, since so-called hard facts are often distortions of the outer senses. These distortions however are necessary frameworks for existence of the inner self in the material universe.

–large enough to contain within it room for what may seem to be utterly opposing data. Myths and symbols often are closer to reality, again, than so-called hard facts.

This is true. But so-called hard facts, that may seem opposed to symbols and myths, are not necessarily untrue, since they may be necessary distortions without which the inner self could not survive in the material universe.

The myth of God, as given in Christian theology, is too clearly seen by the intelligent adolescent to have evolved and changed from the Old Testament to the New Testament.

To the intelligent, even the symbolism of the Crucifixion is abhorrent. Does this mean, however, that such a crucifixion did not occur? It may not have occurred, in one place and in one time, and to one called Christ; but because man has created the myth, he created the Crucifixion out of his own need; and this Crucifixion, which historically did not occur, as the myth says it occurred, nevertheless has as much reality, and more, than it would have had, had it occurred in so-called hard fact.

So the hard fact would seem to be that there is no God. There would seem to be a point of departure. Either you believe in the myth or you believe what would seem to be hard fact.

The hard fact, to all intelligent minds, must be that there is no God. The myth insists that a God exists, and the intelligent man finds himself in a dilemma that does not exist for the unintelligent. This is merely coincidence.

The fact is that the myth comes nearer to reality than the fact.

The myth represents man’s psychic attempt to understand facts that he must distort in his existence on the material plane.

The truth behind the myth still exists. Mankind has been engrossed in dreams of a god who is like himself, except that he was considered to be superior and possessed of the highest qualities that man admires in himself.

The God myth enabled him, man, to give his higher so-called instincts an objectivity, and the God concept represented and still represents a link with the inner self.

He is not human in your terms, though he passed through human stages; and here the Buddhist’s myth comes closest to approximating reality. He is not one individual, in your terms, but is a psychic gestalt, an energy gestalt.

I will at another time go into the Crucifixion myth and its strong element of truth. Since you, Joseph, seem slightly restive, I will close the session. You have learned much, and this material will stand many in good stead.