For the Love of Humanity

From the early days of his existence, man began to wonder about the nature of the world around him. It was a matter of course to him that he should want to judge and evaluate the real character of the universe. Inevitably, man's first questions were 'how' and 'why'.

To answer these questions man turned to philosophy. The study of philosophy or the love of wisdom, as the Greeks regarded it, is vast and all-inclusive. The history of philosophy reaches back over thousands of years and covers every aspect of human existence.

The search for knowledge about man, his environment, and the unknown vastness which includes God, has been conducted through the study of various philosophies and religions.

Yet man continues to ask the same questions of 'how' and 'why'.

The history of philosophy shows that various philosophers have proposed different solutions. Some complement each other, yet others differ greatly.

Broadly speaking, today's philosophers are divided into two camps: the rationalists, headed by Descartes, who contend that the highest truths are discovered through reason; and the empiricists, led by Locke and Hume, profess to find these truths by observation and experimentation in the world outside our individual selves.

Have you ever asked yourself the simple question why you are on earth, and what is your mission here?

Today's man seems to have a difficult time saying, 'I don't know'. He usually knows what he does, however, he doesn't always know why he does it. Man has gained vast knowledge about many things, but he hasn't necessarily fulfilled the standards of a true man.

Unfortunately, most of our actions do not derive from our own volition since the majority of us seem to react towards other people. However, there are those who can act towards others. When we see one who is master of himself and who 'acts' towards others, we notice that he knows who he is, what he stands for and how he should behave. He refuses to return incivility for incivility, simply because then he would no longer be in command of his own conduct.

When we are exhorted in the Bible to return good for evil we look upon this as a normal injunction - which it is. But it is also a psychological prescription for our emotional health.

No one is less happy than the perpetually reacting man. The centre of his emotional gravity is not rooted within himself, where it belongs, but is in the world outside of him. His spiritual temperature is constantly raised or lowered by the climate around him and he stands a mere creature at the mercy of this element.

Praise gives the reacting person a feeling of emphasis, which is false because it does not last and does not come from self approval criticism depresses him more than it should because it confirms his own secretly shabby opinion of himself. Snubs hurt him and any hint or suggestion of his unpopularity in any field rouses him to bitterness.

Serenity of soul cannot be achieved until we become the masters of our own actions and attitudes. To let others determine whether we should be rude or gracious, elated or depressed is to relinquish control over our own personality. Ultimately, our personality is all we possess.

To complicate matters, we live in a society in which we are not necessarily free since we simultaneously experience happiness and unhappiness, modesty and boldness, humility and pride, truth and falseness, good and evil, freedom and oppression, reality and delusion, as well as free minds and stubborn prejudices Furthermore, we are dominated not only by nationalism but also racial and religious prejudices.

It is evident that man is not free to do what he feels and wants. There are other forces inherent in nature which will also not allow him to reach the realm of the absolute. Therefore, his freedom is relative and corresponds with the laws that have been established for man He is free to live and act only within these boundaries. For example: 'I am free, but I have to eat, breath and sleep'.

A civilised man is free to feel and love, but it does not mean that he has the right to hinder someone else's feelings or love. We must learn to respect other people's freedom of action. Defiance of the above rule can bring immediate and destructive results. And for other truths and laws that man trespasses whether through deceit or innocence, the destructive results are equally harmful even though they may be delayed.

The spirit of man has a need to be free of dogmatic faiths and beliefs and for those who pursue this freedom they find it logical to hunt for truth and knowledge. This practice arose in the seventeenth century with Descartes who started from doubt. He began by distrusting and abandoning philosophical systems through the method of 'thinking', in order to rid his mind of prejudices. Since lie had been motivated by his doubt of everything he had been told to 'accept' on faith, he used his personal experience to arrive at the significant premise of his whole philosophy. The self evident truth that he discovered was the fact that he had doubted, which indicated that lie had also thought Upon this basis lie made his famous assertion:

'As long as I can think it means that I exist; this, therefore, is something I cannot doubt'. The ways of faith are not to be condemned, on the contrary one should believe in order to know.

The plight of man might not interest you. Yet if we are to find the answers to our questions and govern our own destiny, we must stop and analyse ourselves. We have to start by applying reason so that we can examine man and his environment. Through reason we will start to learn and begin to truly love our fellowman. In reality we are our 'brother's keeper'.

There are many societies or associations that profess to hold truths that pre for the benefit of mankind. The majority have a tendency towards dogmatism, especially those societies addicted to occult science. The Order of the Lily and the Eagle is not one of these societies as it is an organisation which has no dogmas, but offers its truth through the use of reason, freedom and the perseverance of the individual.

The purpose of the Order of the Lily and the Eagle is to assist man in achieving his spiritual and physical evolution and, through rational thought, help him to answer satisfactorily his many complicated questions about the existence of himself and of creation. This is accomplished by systematically studying theorems that have as their basis man and his environment, Man is used as the axis to correlate with the universal laws that govern both himself and his environment.

Through this methodical study, man develops his character and demonstrates his true personality. Thus, he becomes a better man in his community and is in a position to do good and help his fellowman.

The basic purpose of the Order is: 'Mutual love and respect within mankind'

God does not create love among men. Men must create love amongst themselves. God only helps them. Man must think in order to create something in his life? This is the error of man today - he doesn't think.

The Order's principle and motto is: 'LOVE AND RECIPROCITY ESTABLISHED IN THE BOSOM OF HUMANITY'

The Order of the Lily and the Eagle considers the LIBERTY AND INDEPENDENCE OF THE INDIVIDUAL TO BE MAN'S INDISPUTABLE RIGHT. Basing itself on this principle, the Order leaves absolute freedom and independence to all its members. All people are considered equal regardless of sex, caste, race or nationality and everyone is permitted to retain his or her own religious and political beliefs.

The Order is opposed to all forms of subjection or coercion whether mental, psychic or physical, and it strongly urges its members to respect the liberty of others.

The Order bases itself on morality, ethics, justice and loyalty and requires all its members to adopt these social virtues in their future conduct.

The Order of the Lily and the Eagle acknowledges the existence of a spiritual hierarchy in mankind, but this should in no way influence the material conditions of life in society.

The Order considers prejudices, superstitions and certain social conventions such as flattery, secrecy and promises, as elements having the tendency to enslave the individual as well as the masses. The Order is adverse to these social vices and guides its members through the process of relinquishing them.

The teachings of the Order require that there be a correlation between theory and man's life. Why? Because no one has the right to influence one's neighbour if he himself cannot live by those truths. It is only through this correlation that one can gain one's own personality and thereby evolve.