The Ether of Science ~ Ernest Holmes
"Science is rapidly proving that there is much more in the Universe than we can see with the naked eye. We are now being taught that ether is more solid than matter. We know that the ether penetrates everything; it is in our bodies, at the center of the earth, and throughout all space. This means that within our present bodies there is a substance more solid than the body which we see. This idea is very far-reaching, for it shows that we might have a body within the physical one, which could be as real as the one of which we are accustomed to think. If Instinctive Man has molded the outer body in form, why should It not mold the inner one into definite form? There is every reason to suppose that It does and no reason to suppose the opposite. In all probability, there is a body within a body to infinity.
We do not depart from reason when we assume this, for while we say that two bodies cannot occupy the same space simultaneously, we must remember that we are talking about only one plane of expression; and the plane upon which we are now living with its form of matter is probably but one of innumerable planes, each having its own matter with its corresponding form. The new idea of matter and ether has proved that form can lie within form without interference, for it has been shown conclusively that there is a substance which can occupy the same space which our body does. Once this theory is accepted, it enables us to better understand the saying, "There are celestial bodies and bodies terrestrial."..."There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body." No doubt, as time goes on, it will be proved that there is something still finer than the ether. This may go on to infinity. There is every reason to suppose that we have a body within a body to infinity, and it is our belief that we do have.
The "resurrection body," then, will not be snatched from some Cosmic Shelf, as the soul soars aloft. It is already within and we may be certain that it will be a fit instrument for the future unfoldment of the soul. If this is true, and if remembrance links events together, in a continuous stream of consciousness and form, then the future body will resemble this one, except that it will be free from disease, old age, or whatever hinders a more complete flow of the Spirit.
It would seem then, that we have a spiritual body now, and need not die to receive one. We now remember the past, and have outlived many physical bodies during this life. So it looks as if we were already immortal and need not die to take on immortality. If there are many planes of Life and consciousness as we firmly believe, perhaps we only die from one plane to another. This thought makes a strong appeal and seems reasonable.
Some think that death robs us of the objective faculties, and that we pass out in a purely subjective state, but personally we are unable to follow the logic of such an assumption. To suppose that the objective faculties die with the brain, is to suppose that the brain thinks and reasons. This is provided to be false through the experience of death itself, for if the brain could think, it would think on and on forever. No, it is not the brain that thinks. The thinker thinks through the brain perhaps, but of itself the physical brain has no power to think or feel. Detach the brain and it will not formulate ideas nor work out plans. THE THINKER ALONE CAN THINK!
It is not merely pleasing and satisfactory to suppose that we pass from this life to the next, in full and complete retention of our faculties: it is logical. Jesus revealed himself to his followers after his resurrection, to show them that death is but a passing to a higher sphere of life and action. TO KNOW THAT WE MAINTAIN AN IDENTITY INDEPENDENT OF THE PHYSICAL BODY IS PROOF ENOUGH OF IMMORTALITY. This, together with the fact that remembrance maintains a constant stream of recollection; and the realization that mentality can operate independently of the body - performing all of its normal functions without the aid of the body - and that the new theory of matter and ether furnishes proof of the possibility of a body within a body to infinity and that the inner man is constantly forming matter into the shape of a body; all of these evidences should prove to us that we are not going to attain immortality, but that WE ARE NOW IMMORTAL! Our contention is not that dead men live again, but that a living man never dies."
"Science is rapidly proving that there is much more in the Universe than we can see with the naked eye. We are now being taught that ether is more solid than matter. We know that the ether penetrates everything; it is in our bodies, at the center of the earth, and throughout all space. This means that within our present bodies there is a substance more solid than the body which we see. This idea is very far-reaching, for it shows that we might have a body within the physical one, which could be as real as the one of which we are accustomed to think. If Instinctive Man has molded the outer body in form, why should It not mold the inner one into definite form? There is every reason to suppose that It does and no reason to suppose the opposite. In all probability, there is a body within a body to infinity.
We do not depart from reason when we assume this, for while we say that two bodies cannot occupy the same space simultaneously, we must remember that we are talking about only one plane of expression; and the plane upon which we are now living with its form of matter is probably but one of innumerable planes, each having its own matter with its corresponding form. The new idea of matter and ether has proved that form can lie within form without interference, for it has been shown conclusively that there is a substance which can occupy the same space which our body does. Once this theory is accepted, it enables us to better understand the saying, "There are celestial bodies and bodies terrestrial."..."There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body." No doubt, as time goes on, it will be proved that there is something still finer than the ether. This may go on to infinity. There is every reason to suppose that we have a body within a body to infinity, and it is our belief that we do have.
The "resurrection body," then, will not be snatched from some Cosmic Shelf, as the soul soars aloft. It is already within and we may be certain that it will be a fit instrument for the future unfoldment of the soul. If this is true, and if remembrance links events together, in a continuous stream of consciousness and form, then the future body will resemble this one, except that it will be free from disease, old age, or whatever hinders a more complete flow of the Spirit.
It would seem then, that we have a spiritual body now, and need not die to receive one. We now remember the past, and have outlived many physical bodies during this life. So it looks as if we were already immortal and need not die to take on immortality. If there are many planes of Life and consciousness as we firmly believe, perhaps we only die from one plane to another. This thought makes a strong appeal and seems reasonable.
Some think that death robs us of the objective faculties, and that we pass out in a purely subjective state, but personally we are unable to follow the logic of such an assumption. To suppose that the objective faculties die with the brain, is to suppose that the brain thinks and reasons. This is provided to be false through the experience of death itself, for if the brain could think, it would think on and on forever. No, it is not the brain that thinks. The thinker thinks through the brain perhaps, but of itself the physical brain has no power to think or feel. Detach the brain and it will not formulate ideas nor work out plans. THE THINKER ALONE CAN THINK!
It is not merely pleasing and satisfactory to suppose that we pass from this life to the next, in full and complete retention of our faculties: it is logical. Jesus revealed himself to his followers after his resurrection, to show them that death is but a passing to a higher sphere of life and action. TO KNOW THAT WE MAINTAIN AN IDENTITY INDEPENDENT OF THE PHYSICAL BODY IS PROOF ENOUGH OF IMMORTALITY. This, together with the fact that remembrance maintains a constant stream of recollection; and the realization that mentality can operate independently of the body - performing all of its normal functions without the aid of the body - and that the new theory of matter and ether furnishes proof of the possibility of a body within a body to infinity and that the inner man is constantly forming matter into the shape of a body; all of these evidences should prove to us that we are not going to attain immortality, but that WE ARE NOW IMMORTAL! Our contention is not that dead men live again, but that a living man never dies."
