Theos-Talk Archives (February 1996 Message tl00034)

Response to Mr. Gregg Bartle from Fredrik  Montelius, Sweden:
Please do not despair on the basis
of this or that one single
fellow (?) Theosophist.
Your personal perception of the Theosophical body of work
 is as valid, nay, MORE valid
(to you) than any one other's.
Our various paths will necessarily vary.
If you let my opinion, or anyone else's, influence
your life in a negative way, it is better (I believe) to
 minimize their impact upon your mind,
and let your own viewpoint (and intuition) be your
guiding star(s). This I truly believe.
I also wish to apologize for any pain my e-letter
may have caused you.
Fredrik Montelius, Sweden.

 >On Tue, 6 Feb 1996 16:26:30 -0500, sge95fmo@lustudat.student.lu.se
>(Fredrik Montelius) wrote:
>
>>>Comment to the "Protest Unconstitutional Bill": The "Protest
>>Unconstitutional Bill" was sent to theos-buds pleading members of the TS to
>>"sign" the protest referring to the notion that freedom of thought is a
>>central belief among American Theosophists. But let's pause to think for a
>>moment what it all means before we jump to conclusions.
>
>snip out a lot.....................
>
>This response is much as I thought would come from *some* parts of the
>theosophical community, and beyond saying that I disagree, I will not
>comment on its content (except to say that the author should study
>paragraphing).
>
>However, the author makes a statement that I find profoundly
>distressing -
>
>Quote:
>
>>.....................................Did not HPB rage against
>>the media and did she not just hate all the "mental pollution" (my
>>expression) distributed by newspapers (and I am more than certain she would
>>include any other media operating today) saying that journalists were
>>responsible for spreading mental diseases by writing articles in an
>>unresponsible manner,
>>            and did she not say that the Masters had said there
>                                          ^^^^^^^
>
>>would some day in an unspecified future be neccesary to appoint an entirely
>>new police force, a "thought police" unit, to defend people against
>                      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>>destructive thinking?
>
>End Quote.
>
>As I have stated before, I did not join a theosophical organization
>out of "belief" in any doctrine proposed by HPB or her teacher, in
>fact, I openly admit that I do not hold such beliefs, but rather, I
>joined from respect for the principles and character of the founders
>as reflected in current organization. This quote, coming from an
>individual who identifies himself as a member of ULT - self-proclaimed
>guardians of the veracity and authenticity of the original thought of
>HPB - causes me to question whether the founders deserve my respect.
>
>I sincerely call upon any knowledgable theosophist to either
>authenticate or show to be false this assertion that HPB at any time,
>for any reason, entertained the idea that "thought police" to keep us
>fro "destructive" thinking was a reasonable proposition.
>
>This is deeply serious to me. I cannot respect any organization that
>honors a person who could promote such an idea. I hope this is just a
>misunderstanding. On the other hand, if it can be shown that HPB did
>hold and promote such an idea then I will feel compelled to resign
>from my affiliation from any TS organization I may belong to.
>
>             ********************************
>             *  gbartle@uclink.berkeley.edu *
>             *  gbartle@bdt.com             *
>             *  102670,1224@compuserve.com  *
>             ********************************
>