“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Such bonding provides a sense of safety and focus. The belief system may in fact be negatively attuned while still providing that overall value. The bonding is not meant to be permanent, however, and after a while the child begins to question its affiliations, the ways and means vary according to cultures. Some cultures provide symbols, or symbolic steps within the system itself, that allow for a steady “progression,” in which a young person’s curiosity and accelerated adolescent rebellion is subtly directed from within the society itself.

(Long pause.) All societies basically need the insertion of fresh challenge and knowledge, however, or they stagnate. At the same time, of course, the society wants to maintain its familiar stance. For centuries Christianity served to preserve old frameworks while still allowing for transforming elements and symbolic activities that allowed individuals to assert some independence and originality by moving from one religious symbol, say, to another—still, however, within that larger framework.

Many people go through several such transformations, using symbolic transformations then that still serve to focus wonder and curiosity while keeping them well within the accepted picture.