Yes, he frequently uses this form of contact.
I have read that Buddha brought Light, Christ brought Love, and that the next Avatar will bring Power. Is this the aspect which the Christ Maitreya is attempting to bring forth at this time, or is there yet another Avatar to come?
The Christ does indeed bring the Power or Will aspect of God into the world. In the last two thousand years since his advent in Palestine through Jesus, he has become the Embodiment of the Will, as well as the Love and Light, of God. Through his advocacy, humanity’s little separate self-will will come into correct alignment with the Will of God for the first time. As far as the individual disciple is concerned, this Will aspect only makes itself felt around the time of the third initiation. Its energy comes from the monad or divine spark, whereas the energies of Love and Light come from the soul. To the purist, of course, all three aspects come from the monad, but at-one-ment with the soul brings in Light and Love alone. Quite apart from this, of course, there will be many further Avatars in humanity’s long evolution to perfection.
Could you explain the relationship between the disciple Jesus and the Christ?
The disciple Jesus, who is now the Master Jesus, was born in Palestine as a third degree initiate. The five major Initiations which take one to Liberation have their symbolic enactment in the life of Jesus. That is what the Gospel story is really about. It is a very ancient story and has been presented to mankind again and again, in different forms, long before the time of Jesus.
He was, and still is, a disciple of the Christ and made the great sacrifice of giving up his body for the use of the Christ. By the occult process of overshadowing, the Christ, Maitreya, took over and worked through the body of Jesus from the Baptism onwards.
In his next incarnation, as Apollonius of Tyana, Jesus became a Master. He lives now in a Syrian body which is some 600 years old, and has his base in Rome. He has, in the last 2,000 years, worked in the closest relation to the Christ, saving his time and energy where possible, and has special work to do with the Christian Churches. He is one of the Masters who will very shortly return to outer work in the world, taking over the throne of St Peter, in Rome. He will seek to transform the Christian Churches, in so far as they are flexible enough to respond correctly to the new reality which the return of the Christ and the Masters will create.
I am afraid that the Churches have gone very far away from the religion which the Christ inaugurated; which is to do with sharing, with love, with brotherhood and right relationship. But this monolithic institution has grown up in the name of that simple man and transformed his simple teaching into … well, you know what it has taught.
Don’t you think we have advanced enough for the (Christ) Principle without needing the form (the man)?
Take a look at the world and decide for yourself. How do you think we are doing with the Christ Principle, given the nuclear threats, the starving millions, the thousand million poor? We are indeed fortunate that, for the love of humanity, the man, the Son of Man, has graced us with his presence. Furthermore, the primary reason for his physical return is to lead his group, the Spiritual Hierarchy of Masters, back into the world.
Why does the Avatar have to be personified by one human individual?
This question, I think, arises from the mistaken idea that an Avatar (in this case the Christ) is some kind of abstract Principle which might embody itself in many individuals simultaneously. Many people see the Christ in this sense, separating the man ― Maitreya ― from the Christ Principle which he embodies, and looking for a multiple manifestation of the Christ. The Christ Principle does indeed manifest through millions today, but this is only one of the three ways in which Maitreya promised to appear ― on mental, astral and dense physical levels. My submission is that all three forms of his manifestation have taken place.
If Maitreya is the Christ, then who or what is the anti-christ?
According to the Ageless Wisdom, the anti-christ is not one individual who lives at a certain point in time, but is an energy released before the advent of the Christ. It comes to pave the way for the building forces of the Christ by destroying the old crystallized ways that block new growth for society. While the anti-christ is an energy, it does manifest through individuals and has done so at different times throughout history, most notably through the emperor Nero in Roman times, and more recently through Hitler and some of his closest associates. With the defeat of the Axis powers during World War II, the work of the anti-christ energy was completed for this age and will not manifest again for over 3,000 years.
The anti-christ does exist, not as an individual who comes before the Christ, but as an energy. Fundamentally, the anti-christ is the First, or Will aspect of God, in its destructive form. It is that energy which destroys thus making way for the new energies of the Christ. The anti-christ energy sweeps away the old, outworn forms and prepares the way for the incoming, creative energy.
This destructive force has already worked out through the disasters which have devastated the planet: world wars; the starvation of millions every year; earthquakes and other natural disasters.
How do we know ‘your’ Christ is who you say he is and how do we know he is not someone who is trying to obtain some form of powerful position in the world with the purpose of world domination?
This is a question often put to me by fundamentalist Christians. A tree is known by its fruit, and the Christ must be known by his words, his deeds, and, above all, his energy. If one man could achieve world domination (which, in today’s world, I very much doubt) then it could only be someone of the stature of the Christ. The fundamentalists, of course, are afraid that Maitreya might be the anti-christ, a fallacy with which I have dealt many times, here and elsewhere. On the Day of Declaration, I submit, everyone ― even the fundamentalists ― will know, through the overshadowing of the minds of all humanity ― a Pentecostal experience for all ― that Maitreya is the Christ.
How can we be sure that he, the Christ, will not be rejected?
The answer, of course, is that we can’t be sure. But it’s up to us to make sure he is not rejected. His is the task to lead and guide, but we willingly must follow. Otherwise he can do nothing. His hands are tied by Law. The decision rests with humanity. The decision is ours, but as I explained, we have no alternative but to go forward through sharing and cooperation, and this is what the Christ will teach. Humanity is now absolutely up against it. It is in an impasse and there is no way out; it is staring mankind in the face. So much so, that all the uneducated and most of the educated peoples of the world are now terrified of the future. They see ahead of them nothing but destruction of one kind or another: destruction through pollution, ecological destruction; through famine; destruction through over-population; through nuclear war; or a combination of all of them.
There is no way out at all. The Christ comes with a set of proposals which entail a complete redirection of human thinking and feeling. If we follow these, we go forward. We can reject them. It’s up to us. He said recently: “Many will accept me, but not all. Nevertheless, my Army of Light will surely triumph.”
And a long time ago, he said: “The end is known from the beginning,” and you can assume that, though one cannot say (I cannot say, with any authority), “Yes, he will not be rejected, this time. He will be accepted by mankind,” I know that he has come at the earliest possible moment ― but not too soon. There has been preparation going on for many years. The externalization of the Hierarchy actually started as far back as 1860. Certain disciples came in, such as H.P. Blavatsky and others, who have been releasing to the world the New Age teachings. I don’t mean just the occult teaching. I mean new ideas of philosophy, of politics, of economics, etc. Mankind is now adult, and is prepared in an altogether different way than before (when Christ came in Palestine). The Piscean experience, the spread of education throughout the world, modern communications, have made it possible for a Teacher to come and speak to a really adult world for the first time. So the hope is ― and I would say the almost certain fact is ― that mankind will not reject him.
Note from Benjamin Creme: In many of the Messages, since the above answer was given, Maitreya himself makes it clear that he is in no doubt about man’s response. In Message no. 11, he says: “My heart tells me your answer, your choice, and is glad.” In Message no. 65, he is explicit: “Therefore, my friends, have no fear that mankind will reject me, my plans are safe in your hands.” In Message no. 77: “I know that within men sits a divine Being, whose Plan it is that love and justice should triumph. This being so, the end is assured.” In Message no. 78: “But, my friends, I know beforehand your answer and choice. Through your love ― the love in your heart for your brothers ― have no fear, my dear ones, you will choose correctly.”
Will the Christ have a long ministry compared to the three years Jesus had?
Yes. The whole of the Age of Aquarius (the next 2,350 years).
