SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18888, 14 October 1929, Page 9

SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS.

To the Editor. Dear Sir,—“G.R.B.” has the temerity to refer in cynical vein to certain extracts from the Vale Owen Script, and to give his opinion that the whole work is far fetched, childish and ridiculous, in fact “bunk.’ ’ It may be of interest to those of your readers who noticed “G.R.B.’s” effusion to quote the opinions of a few intellectual men regarding the Rev Vale Owen and his work. In an appreciation of Vale Owen the late Lord Northcliffe wrote, “ During the brief interview I had with him, I felt that I was in the presence of a man of sincerity and conviction. He laid no claims to any particular psychic gift. He expressed a desire for as little publicity as possible, and declined any of the great emoluments that could easily have come to him, as the result of the enormous interest felt by the public all over the world in these Scripts.” In the course of a review of the first volume of “ Life Beyond the Veil,” Sir William Barrett, F.R.S., wrote: “ Here we have a beloved and honoured clergyman whose saintly and devoted life, is known to all his parishioners, retiring to the vestry of his church, and in the solemn silence of the place, finds his hand guided by some unseen power, whilst evening after evening, there is swiftly written down the record of a pilgrim’s progress in the spiritual world.” *

The mind of “G.R.8.” cannot grasp the description of the spirit world given to us through Vale Owen and therefore his review of the work is the one word, “ bunk.” If he can offer your readers no more intelligent comment than this, ’twere better far, that he should refrain from comment altogether. : Let me now quote the attitude taken up by the Rev Vale Owen himself to those people like “G.R.8.” who ridicule these writings. He says. “ Let us treat our anonymous postcarders, and other revilers gently and with patience. They are following not in a very high-mindt d way truly, the course they believe to be right. Some are not prepared to make sacrifices for their cause, to the extent of backing up their opin ions and convictions, by coming out into the open with their names. But. viewing the whole matter generally, I cannot but realise what a joy it will

be some day somewhere to take them by the hand as brothers, and to tell them that we were not too bitter against them when their rather cruel words of misjudgment came from them.” He is a man indeed, who can meet ignorant criticism in that spirit. During the last few years there has been flowing from the ‘‘Higher Spheres’* on the other side, a river of spiritual enlightenment for the benefit of humanity, and it is to such men as Sir A. Conan Doyle, Sir Oliver Lodge, the Rev Vale Owen, Dennis Bradley, Hannen Swaffer and others that humanity is indebted for allowing that river to flow through them to us. It is inevitable of course that along the banks of this spiritual river there are to be found small frogs sitting on the cold stones of “ spiritual blindness and unbelief ” who spend their days croaking “Bunk!” “ Childishness! ” “ Bunk! ” and others, whose empty voices croak, “It is Satanic! ” “It comes from demons.” “ Beware T” But the river still flows on, increasing in power and enlightenment, and bj' and by the small frogs become tired of the monotony of listening to their own empty croakings, the river looks vitalising and refreshing, so with a last despairing croak or two, they plunge in, and realise something of the beauty and divinity of this great new spiritual awakening.—l am, etc., Oct. 13. 1929. J.P.