Lectionary Reading for Tuesday, May 7th, 2019

Book of Wars Against Jehovih Chapters VI and VII

Chapter VI

1. The O-yra, the four angels with their thousands of assistant angel hosts, dwelt on the
earth, with the Faithists; inspired them in peace, and rites, and ceremonies; inspired them
in prayers, and psalms, and sacred dances; dwelt with them day and night; talked to their
spirits when they slept; led them by inspiration to happy marriages, that they might beget
offspring capable of the Voice.

2. And in each of the four countries the Faithists became as bands of brothers and sisters.
And there came to them from the kings’peoples tens of thousands, and joined them,
living as Faithists, casting their wealth into the rab’bah’s hands, for the benefit of the poor.

3. In two hundred years there were in Jaffeth three million Faithists. In Arabin’ya there
were two million Faithists. In Vind’yu there were four million Faithists. In Guatama there
were one million Faithists.

4. But the Faithists were mostly poor people, and inhabited many far-apart regions.

5. But the kings’peoples were rich, and had large cities, an abundance of elephants, and
horses, and camels, and asses, and cheetahs.

6. The Faithists had little learning as to books and instruments for measuring the stars,
and moon, and sun; they derived their knowledge from the angels of the Lords.
The Faithists’knowledge pertained mostly to perfecting the soul; but the knowledge
of the kings’peoples pertained mostly to earthly matters, and to the gratification of self.

Chapter VII

1. The Anubi’s labor on earth was to win the disaffected of the kings’peoples into
association; and as far as possible bring them to the rites of Faithism.

2. Anubi sent tens of thousands of angels into all the regions of the earth. By inspiration
and otherwise these angels established the rites of Anubi.

3. By these rites even kings were converted to Faithism and the full ceremonies of the
brethren.

4. And by the same means were the Maichung, of Jaffeth, made into Faithists; and by the
same rites were the Effins, of Vind’yu, converted into Faithists, adopting all the rites and
ceremonies of Emethachavah afterward.

5. And it came to pass in course of time that there were no suffering poor in all the
world. The Faithists had gathered them all up and made brethren of them; and the
contributions to the Faithists by the kings’peoples rendered all the people comfortable.

6. For the degree of Anubi any one (who desired to learn heavenly things) was
eligible. The rites and ceremonies were in dark chambers; and the angels of heaven,
clothed in sar’gis, took part therein. And the angels taught mortals by the voice the
mysteries of spirit communion; how to sit in circles and in crescents; taught the four
dark corners, and the four bright sides; taught them how to ascertain from what grade
in heaven the spirits came; how to keep off evil spirits; how to attract righteous
spirits; taught them how to develop in su-is and sar’gis; the secrets of falling water;
the application of lotions to the skin, that would make poundings and rappings.

7. The second degree taught the people of the Great Spirit and His secret names; taught
them His high holy heavens, where all is rest and happiness forever. Whoever took the
second degree had to live one year with the poorest of the poor, going about soliciting
alms, reserving only the poorest of things for himself. And if he found a person naked he
must take off his clothes and give them to that person. Men and women alike served the
same conditions.

8. The third degree taught the dominions of God and the Lords, and the place of their
abiding, and the irrespective labors in heaven. And the members must learn the names of
the God or Gods, Lord or Lords, and the Divan laws; the words of salutation; the
anthems; the prayers; the praise; the positions of utterance; the orders of marching; to
write sacred names; the secret of begetting pure offspring, and the key to the two
preceding degrees.

9. The fourth degree taught the arrangement of the heavens; the places of the sun and
stars and moon; the places and grades of the unseen worlds; the localities of the lower and
higher heavens; the places and dominions of false Lords and false Gods; the places in
hada, and of hells and knots; of familiar spirits, and also of fetals, both the harmless
and the destructive vampires, that live on mortals and in swine and cattle, that induce
mortals to eat flesh food for that purpose; the key to the place of the north star; the
position of the earth’s vortex; the vortices that move the corporeal worlds, and hold them
in place; and the rules for building temples and pyramids, with their spirit chambers.

10. Besides this there was the fifth degree, which reached the secret of life in the flesh;
the power of will and how to use it far and near; how to rule over others without their
knowing it; to cast spells; to enter the prophetic state; to estimate numbers without
counting; to find proportions and distances without measuring; to forecast the time of
things; to find the weight of things without weighing; to find the power of the
capstan before it is made, and of the lever and screw; to find the friction of things before
they were moved, in order to know the power required. The fifth degree was called
the degree of prophecy; and the place of initiation was called the college of prophecy.

11. In this degree the angels came in sar’gis and taught these things orally, and mortals
initiated thus learned them. But no one could take the fifth degree without having become
proficient in all the four preceding degrees, and without the recommendation of the
rab’bah (or priest) who had charge of the college.

12. And such was the wisdom of God that only Faithists could receive the degrees, save
the first degree; and, therefore, the greatest knowledge of the earth was kept in secret with
the Faithists. And the kings’people, even the richest and most powerful, were beholden to
the sons and daughters of the Faithists. To build a palace or a temple, or an aqueduct or
canal, or a ship or any great affair, the kings and the kings’people were obliged to employ
Faithists of the fifth degree to superintend the work.