Philosophy of Jesus [Paperback]

This book, as with many other Holmes works, is deep and mystical; and to those interested in truly finding themselves and understanding what makes themselves "tick", the book is a salvation, a book full of grace. The chapter names are as follows and I'll give a succinct quote from each chapter just to give you a little idea of what treasures of thought the chapter holds in store for you.

Chapter 1 - "The Power That Jesus Used". "So Jesus told us that there is a Divine Presence that will guide us if we let it." "God is love and God is good, therefore Divine Power is delivered to us only in such degree as we love and as we are constructive." Recall one of Holmes' insights: "Persistent, constructive thought is the greatest power known, and the most effective."

Chapter 2 - "One Man with God". "One man with God - and you are that man and I am that man. Just one, for in that silent inward precinct of our own minds, no one enters but ourselves. Something within us stands halfway between heaven and earth - the child who is not afraid and the man of wisdom who has overcome fear. There is one side of us that has never entered the shadow of doubt. This is what we must develop if we are to prove that one man with God can be supreme in whatever is right, just, or true - just one man with God." We can be that man.

Chapter 3 - "The Science of Prayer". "I believe that we pray aright when there is nothing in our prayers that would hurt anyone. I believe we pray aright when we pray unselfishly. This does not mean that we should exclude ourselves. It does mean we should include others. Then surely our prayers will be in accord with Divine Love and Wisdom."

Chapter 4 - "Effective Prayer". "There is no doubt but that there is a Power for good in the universe which we can and should use." "We are all united with invisible forces which are creative, we are already one with a universal Law of Mind which can do anything, and we are one with the Divine Intelligence which knows all things." He tells us to "change our thinking, and, in so doing, cause the Law to act affirmatively for us instead of negatively."

Chapter 5 - "Spiritual Healing". "We are all rooted in pure Spirit, whether or not we know it. We did not have anything to do with this. We did not create ourselves. But we do seem to have pretty well messed up what God has made, and we seem to have this privilege. However, it so happens that our roots do lie in the Spirit, and in most cases what we really need is a healing of the mind even more than a healing of the body."

Chapter 6 - "The Spirit Within". "...personality is the flowering of the Spirit within us, the coming forth of a secret relationship that we have with God." "Personality is not an external thing at all, for everything we think and say and do, and everything that we appear to be outwardly, is always a result of some hidden fire burning at the center of our being, some Divine Reality which we did not create but which we may discover."

Chapter 7 - "Heal Thyself". "The Great Physician (Jesus), too, had a certain prescription - instruction - that we should follow, leading back to the one central thought: Get rid of your doubts and fears; discharge from your thought every negative attitude that denies you a right to live in harmony with life and with people; through faith tie your mind back to the Mind of God, and in action live as though you were guided by a supreme intelligence."

Chapter 8 - "Intuitive Wisdom". "This is why it is necessary, as never before, that a great new vision come to us, a hope and an assurance that right is might, that the power of good can vanquish its foes, and that truth crushed to earth will rise again."

Chapter 9 - "Invisible Forces". "Our life must be lived constructively, in unity and love and sympathy with everything around us if we expect to live it to the full. God never makes mistakes. We are the ones who err."

Chapter 10 - "Successful Living". "As we learn to think in an affirmative manner, we find that the subconscious content of negation gradually slips away and the day comes when it is no longer there. Then it is that the winds of God blow clear from the kingdom of heaven on earth and fill the sails of our hope with a power that takes us into the haven of our desire."

Chapter 11 - "God Meets Your Needs". "The first thing we have to learn to do, then, is to convert every negative mental attitude into a positive one, every fear into a faith, and every uncertainty into an assurance. The one who does this the best is the one who has the deepest conviction and the most simple and child-like belief in a Power greater than he is."

Chapter 12 - "Complete Acceptance". (Jesus said)..."Because I have done this, you can do it also. The Presence that is around and within me is around and within you. The Power that is with me is with you. The Law that I am using you can use. Give, and to you will be given. Love, and you will be loved. Enter into peace and you will become peaceful. Find the joy that I have found and you will be joyful. Arrive at the faith that I have arrived at and you will 'know the truth, and the truth shall make you free'. Get rid of the burdens of your own mind. Get everything out of your thinking that is afraid or doubts or is uncertain, and then you will find that you already have entered into that kingdom which is forever at hand and within you."

Chapter 13 - "The Eternal Search". "We have separated religion from everyday life; we have tried to separate Life from living, and God from nature. God means that invisible Presence in the universe, that Divine Power which animates everything, and that Law of Mind which controls everything. But we have come to feel that the kingdom of God is not really at hand, that it is to transpire in a dim and unknown future." We are to listen to the command of Jesus to become as children. "Remember, childlike does not imply being childish, silly, or foolish. Rather, it implies the attitude a scientist must have as he stands in awe before the majesty and might of the laws of nature. It is the wonder that a great mathematician must have as he contemplates the infinity of numbers. It is the reaching out toward the essence of beauty which every artist feels when he captures the glory of a sunset or the soft, radiant pathway of the moon across the water. We need not be afraid of being childlike. Rather, we should fear not to be childlike, for only through an attitude of faith and trust in the Universe can we ever hope to recapture our lost paradise."

Chapter 13 ends, "So let us try to find God in ourselves and in each other, and not be afraid to look for Him in human events. And just as surely as we do this, we shall find Him. 'Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and he shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.'"

This book has touched my soul and I thought that rather than give you my paltry and meager summation of the content, that you should read the partial-quotes from the book and the majesty of it would reveal itself to you.

Ernest Holmes attempts to take the reader into what he perceived as the consciousness of Jesus as to his relationship with the Father. He was keenly aware that the father was within him. The awareness of this power within, is the primary emphasis of the book. Holmes book "The Science of Mind" is more complex and some parts of it with the various diagrams are quite challenging to the seeker of spiritual truth. Yet this book and many of his other books such as " This Thing Called You" are much easier to absorb and their principles more easily applied in one's life. All of his writings are alive with a certain energy of faith, and most of them touch at some point on scriptural references that support his reasonings. The chapter headings alone are enough to excite one's curiosity, "The power Jesus used", "One Man With God","Effective Prayer","Invisible Forces", and "God Meets Your Needs" are all very interesting insights and well worth reading. A full orbed reading of his works gives a clearer picture of his thought and faith. I would recommend this book as a start for a first reader of Holmes works, and for those who have read some of his more well known works this just might be a particular delight.
Thurman L Faison, Author "To The Spiritually Inclined"

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