Christianity in the Evolution of Mankind

Leading Individualities and Avatar-Beings

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Leading Individualities and Avatar-Beings

By ,udolf Steiner -ranslated by .rances E/ 0a1son 2A !*"
This lecture was originally given in Berlin on February 15, 1909. This version was translated by Frances E. Dawson for the ntro!oso!hic "ress in 19##. $t has since a!!eared as lecture % of 11 in & 109 Das Prinzip der spirituellen konomie, The "rinci!les of '!iritual Econo(y
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Esoteric 'tudies
"rinted in .anuscri!t for the (e(bers only of the 'chool of '!iritual 'cience, &oetheanu(, /lass 0ne. 1o !erson is held 2ualified to for( a 3udg(ent on the contents of these wor*s who has not ac2uired 4 through the 'chool itself or in an e2uivalent (anner recogni,ed by the 'chool 4 the re2uisite !reli(inary *nowledge. 0ther o!inions will be in so far disregarded, as the authors of the wor*s in 2uestion are not willing to ta*e the( as a basis for discussion.

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A lecture delivered in Berlin February 15, 1909

Published from a stenographic report not edited by the lecturer with permission of

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Translated from the original by F5 1/E' E. D ='01 19##
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Authorized nglish translation! printed in agreement with "arry #ollison! $%A% &'(on%) /o!yright+ Anthroposophic Press! *nc. 19## "rinted in the 6. '. .

/hristianity in the Evolution of .odern .an*ind 7eading $ndividualities and vatar<Beings

+ecture by ,udolf -teiner Berlin, February 15, 1909 have been able to see fro( the one lecture given here on (ore co(!licated 2uestions of reincarnation that, with further !rogress in the s!iritual< scientific world<view, what we could give in the beginning as ele(entary truths beco(es (odified 4 we gradually rise to higher and higher truths. 'till it was right to !resent the general cos(ic truths at first in as si(!le and ele(entary a for( as !ossible. $t is, however, necessary also to advance slowly ste! by ste! fro( the abc to the higher truths, for only through these higher truths will that gradually be attained which, a(ong other things, s!iritual science is intended to give+ na(ely, the !ossibility of understanding and !enetrating the world which surrounds us in the !hysical, sense<!erce!tible s!here. 1ow it is true that we have a long way to go before we shall be able to coordinate the s!iritual lines and forces e)isting behind the sense world. But because of (uch that has been said in recent lectures. >/o(!are+ &eisteswissenschaftliche .enschen*unde? various !heno(ena of our e)istence will already have beco(e clearer, (ore understandable. Today we shall !roceed a little farther in this regard, and here also we shall s!ea* again about (ore co(!licated 2uestions of reincarnation, of re< e(bodi(ent.
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To that end we (ust today clearly reali,e first of all that differences e)ist a(ong the beings who occu!y a leading !lace in the earth@s hu(an evolution. =e have to distinguish in the course of our earth evolution those leading individualities who fro( the beginning,

so to s!ea*, have develo!ed with the hu(anity of our earth 3ust as it is 4 only that they have (ade (ore ra!id !rogress. =e (ight !ut it this way+ $f we go bac* into the !ast to the very re(ote 7e(urian ti(e, we find a(ong the hu(an beings then incarnated the (ost varied stages of develo!(ent. ll the souls e(bodied at that ti(e have again and again e)!erienced reincarnations, re<e(bodi(ents, during the succeeding tlantean and our !ost< tlantean !eriods. These souls have develo!ed with varying ra!idity. 'o(e have (ade relatively slow !rogress through the various incarnations, and still have long distances to travel in the futureA but there are also souls who have develo!ed ra!idly, who, one (ight say, have utili,ed their incarnations to better advantage, and are therefore at a stage of soul<s!iritual develo!(ent which will be attained by the nor(al (an only in a very, very distant future. But, continuing to s!ea* of this soul s!here, we (ay say nevertheless that however advanced these individual souls (ay be, however far they (ay tower above the nor(al (an, still they have followed the sa(e !ath in our earth evolution as the rest of hu(anityA they have (erely advanced (ore ra!idly. Besides these leading individualities, who in this sense are li*e the rest of hu(anity, only at a higher stage, there are also in the course of hu(an evolution other individualities, other beings, who have by no (eans gone through various incarnations 3ust as other (en have. =e can !erha!s illustrate what lies at the botto( of this by saying+ There were beings in that very ti(e of the 7e(urian evolution to which we have alluded who no longer needed to descend so dee!ly into !hysical e(bodi(ent as other (en, as all the beings who have 3ust been described 4 there were beings who could have acco(!lished their develo!(ent in higher, (ore s!iritual regions, who, in other words, did not need for their own further !rogress to descend into bodies of flesh. $t is nevertheless !ossible for these beings, in order to intervene in the course of hu(an evolution, to descend vicariously, so to s!ea*, into 3ust such hu(an bodies as ours. t any ti(e therefore a being (ay a!!ear of who(, if we (a*e the clairvoyant test, we cannot say, as we can of other hu(an beings, that we trace the soul bac* in ti(e and find it in a !revious fleshly incarnation, trace it farther bac* and find it again in another incarnation, and so on 4 but we (ust say instead+ $f we trace the soul of such a being bac* through the course of ti(e, !erha!s we do not find it at all in any for(er fleshly incarnationA but if we do, it is only because the being in 2uestion is able to descend re!eatedly, at intervals, and incarnate vicariously in a hu(an body. s!iritual being who descends thus into a hu(an body in order to intervene in evolution as a hu(an being, without gaining anything fro( this e(bodi(ent for hi(self, so to s!ea*, without e)!eriencing anything here in the world of s!ecial significance for hi(self 4 such a being is called in oriental wisdo( an Avatar. nd this is the distinction between a leading being who has s!rung fro( hu(an evolution itself and one called an vatar+ na(ely, that an vatar<being rea!s no benefits for hi(self fro( his !hysical e(bodi(ents, or fro( the one !hysical e(bodi(ent to which he sub3ects hi(self, for he enters into a !hysical body for the blessing and advance(ent of (an*ind. Therefore, as we have said, such an vatar<being can either enter into a hu(an body 3ust once, or several ti(es in successionA and he is then so(ething entirely different fro( other hu(an beings. The greatest vatar<Being =ho has lived on earth, as you can gather fro( the s!irit of all the lectures given here, is the #hrist 4 that Being =ho( we designate as the /hrist, =ho too* !ossession of the bodies of Besus of 1a,areth in the C0th year of his life. This Being, =ho first ca(e in contact with our earth at the beginning of our era, =ho was incarnated for three years in a body of flesh, and =ho since that ti(e has been connected with the astral s!here, that is, with the s!iritual s!here of our su!ersensible world 4 this

Being is of uni2ue significance as an vatar<Being. =e should see* the /hrist<Being 2uite in vain in an earlier hu(an e(bodi(ent, whereas other, lower vatar<beings could be e(bodied (ore than once. They incarnate re!eatedly, but they obtain for the(selves no benefit fro( the earthly e(bodi(ents. They only giveA they ta*e nothing fro( the earth. But if you wish to understand these things !erfectly, you (ust distinguish between such a lofty vatar<Being as the /hrist and lower vatar<beings. The latter can have the (ost varied (issions on our earth, but we can s!ea* first of one such (issionA and in order not to flounder about in s!eculation, we shall at once give a concrete instance to illustrate this *ind of (ission. 9ou all *now fro( the story of which 1oah is the center that in the ancient 8ebrew narrative a great !art of the !ost<1oah hu(anity derives fro( the three ancestors, -hem, 8a(, and .apheth. Today we shall not go into what 1oah and these three tribal ancestors are intended to re!resent in another res!ectA we shall si(!ly reali,e clearly that the 8ebrew literature which s!ea*s of 'he(, one of the sons of 1oah, traces bac* the whole tribe of the 'e(ites to 'he( as its ancestor. genuinely occult view of such a (atter is always based u!on the dee!er truths. Those who are able to carry on occult research into such things *now the following facts concerning 'he(, the ancestor of the 'e(ites. $n case of such a !ersonality, who is destined to be the ancestor of an entire tribe, care (ust be ta*en fro( the very ti(e of his birth to (a*e it !ossible for hi( to be 3ust this ancestor. 1ow in what way will care be ta*en that a !ersonality 4 li*e 'he(, for e)a(!le 4 can be the ancestor of a whole !eo!le, or of a tribal co((unityD $n the case of 'he( it was brought about through his receiving a 2uite s!ecially !re!ared etheric body. =e *now that when the hu(an being is born into this world he fashions about his individuality his etheric or life body, with the other (e(bers of his being. For such a tribal ancestor a s!ecial etheric body (ust be !re!ared which is the (odel etheric body for all the descendants in the following generationsA so that we have in such a tribal !rogenitor a ty!ical etheric body, a (odel etheric bodyA and then through blood relationshi! this !asses through the generations so that in a certain sense the etheric bodies of all the descendants who belong to the sa(e tribe are co!ies of the etheric body of the ancestor. Thus in all the etheric bodies of the 'e(itic !eo!le there was inwoven so(ething li*e a co!y of 'he(@s etheric body. 1ow by what (eans is such a thing brought about in the course of hu(an evolutionD $f we observe this (an 'he( a little (ore closely, we find that his etheric body received its archety!al for( because into this very etheric body an vatar had woven hi(self. lthough he was not so e)alted as certain other vatar<beings, still it was a lofty vatar< being who descended into his etheric body. This being was not united with 'he(@s astral body nor with his ego, but was woven, as it were, into his etheric body alone. $n this very e)a(!le we are able to study what the e)act significance is when an vatar<being !artici!ates in the constitution, the co(!osition, of a hu(an being. =hat does it (ean, then, that a (an li*e 'he(, who has the (ission to be the ancestor of a whole !eo!le, should have an vatar<being woven into his bodyD $t (eans that whenever an vatar< being is woven into a fleshly hu(an body, so(e one (e(ber, or even several (e(bers, of the su!ersensible constitution of this hu(an being are ca!able of being (ulti!lied, of being s!lit into (any !arts. $t was really because an vatar<being was interwoven with 'he(@s etheric body that it

beca(e !ossible for nu(berless co!ies of the original to be for(edA and these (any co!ies could be woven into all the descendants of the tribal ancestor in the successive generations. Thus, the descent to earth of an vatar<being has the significance, a(ong other things, that it contributes to the (ulti!lication of one or several (e(bers of the !erson in 2uestion who is ani(ated by the vatar. There e)isted in 'he(, as you can see fro( this, an es!ecially !recious etheric body, an archety!al etheric body, !re!ared by an e)alted vatar, and then woven into 'he(, so that it could then descend in (any co!ies to all those who were ordained to be related by blood to this ancestor. 1ow we have already said in the lecture (entioned at the beginning that there is also a s!iritual econo(y consisting in the fact that anything of es!ecial value is !reserved and carried over into the future. >/o(!are also+ The /ospel of -t% $atthew and The /ospel of -t% +uke about Earathustra, .oses, and 8er(es. ? =e have heard that not only is the ego re<e(bodied, but that also the astral body and the etheric body can be re<e(bodied. side fro( the fact that nu(berless co!ies of 'he(@s etheric body were for(ed, his own etheric body was also !reserved in the s!iritual worldA for it could later be very useful in the (ission of the 8ebrew !eo!le. $n this etheric body all the !eculiarities of the 8ebrew !eo!le had originally co(e to e)!ressionA and if at any ti(e so(ething of very es!ecial i(!ortance was to occur for the ancient 8ebrew !eo!le, if a s!ecial tas*, a s!ecial (ission, was to be assigned to so(e one, it could best be acco(!lished by one who bore the etheric body of the ancestor. t a later ti(e a (an who !layed an i(!ortant role in the history of the 8ebrew !eo!le actually did bear the etheric body of the tribal ancestor. $n fact, we have here one of those wonderful co(!lications in hu(an evolution which can e)!lain a great deal to us. =e have to do with a very e)alted individuality who was co(!elled to condescend, as it were, in order to s!ea* to the 8ebrew !eo!le in an a!!ro!riate (anner, and to give the( the strength for a s!ecial (ission 4 in so(ewhat the way a s!iritually advanced !erson would have to s!ea* to a lowly tribe. 8e would of course be co(!elled to learn the language of this tribeA but no one should (aintain on this account that the language is so(ething which would serve to advance hi( !ersonally, for the one concerned need only ta*e the trouble to learn the language. $n the sa(e way a lofty individuality had to (a*e the effort to use 'he(@s etheric body, in order to be able to give a very definite i(!ulse to the ancient 8ebrew !eo!le. This !ersonality is the one you find in the Biblical history na(ed .elchi,ede*. 8e too* u!on hi(self, as it were, the etheric body of 'he(, in order later to give to braha( the i(!ulse which you find so beautifully described in the Bible. nd so, aside fro( the fact that what was contained in the individuality of 'he( was (ulti!lied, because an vatar<being was e(bodied in it, and then beca(e woven into all the other etheric bodies belonging to the 8ebrew !eo!le, 'he(@s own etheric body was !reserved in the s!iritual world, so that it could be borne at a later ti(e by .elchi,ede*, who was to give to the 8ebrew !eo!le an i(!ortant i(!ulse through braha(. Thus delicately interwoven are the facts e)isting behind the !hysical world which alone (a*e e)!licable to us what occurs in that world. =e co(e to understand history only when we are able to !oint to such facts+ to facts of a s!iritual nature which lie behind the !hysical ones. 8istory can never be e)!lained out of itself, if we consider !hysical facts alone. =hat we have 3ust been discussing beco(es es!ecially significant+ na(ely, that through the descent of an vatar<being the essential soul<s!iritual (e(bers of the !ersonality who

is the bearer of this vatar<being are (ulti!lied and trans(itted to other hu(an beings, and a!!ear in co!ies of the original. This fact assu(es very s!ecial significance through the a!!earance of the #hrist on earth. Because the vatar<Being of #hrist dwelt in the body of Besus of 1a,areth, it beca(e !ossible for the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth to be (ulti!lied innu(erable ti(es, as well as the astral body, and even the ego, 4 that is, the ego as an i(!ulse, as it was *indled in the astral body when the /hrist entered into the threefold sheath of Besus of 1a,areth. But first we will ta*e into account the fact that through the vatar<Being the etheric body and the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth could be (ulti!lied. 1ow 3ust through the a!!earance of the /hrist "rinci!le in the earth evolution, there occurred in hu(anity one of the (ost significant !heno(ena. =hat $ have told you about 'he( is funda(entally ty!ical and characteristic for the !re</hristian ti(e. =hen in this way an etheric body or an astral body is (ulti!lied, the co!ies of it are trans(itted as a rule to those !eo!le who are related by blood to the one who had the originalA hence, the co!ies of 'he(@s etheric body were trans(itted to the (e(bers of the 8ebrew tribe. That was changed by the a!!earance of the /hrist vatar<Being. The etheric body and the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth were (ulti!lied, and these co!ies were !reserved as such until, in the course of hu(an develo!(ent, they could be used. They were not, however, li(ited to any one nationality nor to any !articular !eo!leA but when in the course of ti(e a hu(an being a!!eared who 4 irres!ective of nationality 4 was ri!e, was fitted to have interwoven with his own astral body an astral co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth, or an etheric co!y of his etheric body, these could be woven into his being. Thus we see how it beca(e !ossible in the course of ti(e 4 let us say 4 for all sorts of !eo!le to have woven into the( co!ies of the astral body or of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth. The inti(ate history of /hristian develo!(ent is connected with this fact. =hat is ordinarily described as the history of /hristian develo!(ent is a su( of entirely e)ternal occurrencesA and therefore far too little consideration is given to a fact of very great i(!ortance+ na(ely, to the distinction of actual !eriods in /hristian develo!(ent. nyone who can loo* (ore dee!ly into the evolutionary !rogress of /hristianity will easily !erceive that in the early centuries of the /hristian era the (anner in which /hristianity was s!read was entirely different fro( that of later centuries. $n the first /hristian centuries the s!read of /hristianity was connected, as it were, with everything that could be !rocured fro( the !hysical !lane. =e need only to ta*e a loo* at the early teachers of /hristianity to see how at that ti(e !hysical recollections, !hysical relationshi!s, and !hysical relics are e(!hasi,ed. Bust consider what great i(!ortance was given by *ren0us, who in the first century contributed (uch to the s!read of /hristian teaching in various lands, to the fact that recollections e)tended bac* to those who had the(selves listened to the !u!ils of the !ostles. &reat value was set u!on being able to !rove by (eans of such !hysical recollections that /hrist 8i(self had taught in "alestine. $t was es!ecially e(!hasi,ed, for e)a(!le, that "a!ias hi(self had sat at the feet of the !ostles@ !u!ilsA even the !laces were !ointed out and described where those !ersonalities had sat who were still eyewitnesses of the fact that /hrist had lived in "alestine. The !hysical continuance of re(e(brance is what was es!ecially e(!hasi,ed in the early /hristian centuries. =hat great !ro(inence was given to everything of a !hysical nature that still e)isted can

be seen in the words of the ancient ugustine, who says+ F=hy do $ believe in the truths of /hristianityD Because the authority of the /atholic /hurch co(!els (e to.G The !hysical authority for the e)istence of so(ething in the !hysical world is to hi( the i(!ortant and essential thing+ that a cor!orate body has been (aintained which, lin*ing !ersonality with !ersonality, reaches u! to one who was a co(!anion of the /hrist 4 such as "eter. For hi( that is the deter(ining factor. Thus we can see that in the s!read of /hristianity during the early centuries it was the docu(ents, the i(!ressions of the !hysical !lane, to which the greatest i(!ortance was attached. 1ow the situation changes after the ti(e of ugustine u! to, let us say, the 10th, 11th, or 1%th century. During that !eriod of ti(e it was no longer !ossible to a!!eal to the living re(e(brance, nor to draw u!on the docu(ents of the !hysical !lane, for they lay too far in the !ast. t that ti(e also so(ething entirely different ca(e into e)istence in the whole (ood and dis!osition of the hu(anity which was then e(bracing /hristianity A and es!ecially was this the case a(ong Euro!ean !eo!les. During that ti(e there was actually so(ething li*e a direct knowledge that a /hrist e)ists, that a /hrist died on the cross, and that 8e continues to live. Fro( the #th or 5th century u! to the 10th or 1%th there were a large nu(ber of !eo!le who would have considered it the greatest folly had they been told that the events of "alestine could even be doubted, for they *new better. They had always been able to e)!erience inwardly a *ind of "auline revelation in (iniature 4 what "aul, who u! to that ti(e was a 'aul, e)!erienced on the road to Da(ascus, and through which he beca(e a "aul. 8ow did it ha!!en that in those centuries a nu(ber of !eo!le were able to receive revelations which were in a certain sense clairvoyant concerning the events in "alestine D $t was !ossible because in those centuries the (ulti!lied co!ies of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth, which had been !reserved, had been woven into a great nu(ber of !eo!leA because it was granted to the( to wear these as a gar(ent, so to s!ea*. There was inwoven with their etheric bodies, not Besus@ own etheric body, but only a co!y of the inborn original one of Besus of 1a,areth. $n these centuries there were those who could !ossess such an etheric body, and who could thereby have a direct *nowledge of Besus of 1a,areth, and also of the /hrist. This was the reason also that the /hrist !icture beca(e dissociated fro( e)ternal, historical, !hysical e)istence. nd the (ost e)tre(e dissociation is shown to us in that wonderful !oe( of the 9th century, *nown as the "eliand poem, which originated in the ti(e of 7udwig the "ious, who reigned fro( H1#I H#0, and which was written down by an outwardly si(!le (an of 'a)ony. 8is astral body and his ego could by no (eans e2ual what his etheric body contained, for into his etheric body was woven a co!y of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth. The si(!le 'a)on !astor who wrote this !oe( had the certainty through direct clairvoyant vision that the /hrist e)ists on the astral !lane, and that 8e is the sa(e as 8e who was crucified on &olgotha- nd because this was a direct certainty for hi(, he no longer needed to cling to the historical docu(ents. 8e no longer needed the !hysical (ediation to assure hi( that the /hrist e)isted. 8e described 8i(, therefore, as detached fro( the whole "alestinian setting. 8e described 8i( as so(ething li*e a leader of a .iddle<Euro!ean or &er(anic tribeA and those who surrounded 8i( as 8is followers, the !ostles, he described as vassals of a &er(anic !rince. ll the e)ternal scenery was changedA only the actually essential, the eternal, in the /hrist Figure re(ained, 4 only what constitutes the structure of the events. 8aving such a direct *nowledge, built u!on such an i(!ortant foundation as the co!y of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth, it was not necessary to hold hi(self rigidly to the i((ediate historical events when he was s!ea*ing of the /hrist. 8e invested what was for hi( direct *nowledge with a different e)ternal setting. nd 3ust as in the

case of this writer of the 8eliand !oe( we have been able to describe one of the strange !ersonalities who had a co!y of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth interwoven with his etheric body, so we could find other !ersonalities in this !eriod who had si(ilar co!ies. Thus we see how the (ost i(!ortant occurrences of all, which are able to e)!lain history to us in an inti(ate way, ta*e !lace behind the !hysical events. $f we now follow /hristian develo!(ent farther, we co(e, let us say, into the !eriod between the 11th or 1%th century and the 15th. 8ere there was an entirely different (ystery, which now carried the whole evolution forward. First it was, so to s!ea*, the memory of what had ta*en !lace on the physical !laneA then it was the etheric element which was directly inwoven with the etheric bodies of the bearers of /hristianity in .iddle<Euro!e. $n the later centuries, fro( the 1%th to the 15th, it was es!ecially the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth which in nu(erous co!ies was woven into the astral bodies of the (ost i(!ortant bearers of /hristianity. 'uch !eo!le then had an ego which as ego was ca!able of for(ing very false notions of all sorts of thingsA but in their astral bodies there e)isted i((ediate sources of strength, of devotion, a direct certainty of sacred truths. There e)isted in such !eo!le dee! fervor, absolutely direct conviction, and also in so(e circu(stances the ability to !rove this conviction. =hat (ust so(eti(es see( so strange to us in these very !ersonalities is that in their ego their develo!(ent by no (eans e2ualled what their astral body contained, because the latter had a co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth woven into it. =hat their ego did often see(ed grotes2ueA but the world of their (oods and feelings, of their fervor, was grand and e)alted. 'uch a !ersonality, for e)a(!le, was Francis of Assisi. nd when we, as !eo!le of the !resent ti(e, study Francis of ssisi and are not able to understand his conscious ego, but are nevertheless co(!elled to have the dee!est !ossible reverence for the entire world of his feelings and for all that he did, 4 that fact beco(es e)!licable fro( such a !oint of view. 8e was one of those who had a co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth inwoven. Because of this he was able to acco(!lish 3ust what he did acco(!lish, and (any of his adherents fro( the 0rder of Franciscans, with its servants and (inorites, had si(ilarly such co!ies interwoven with their astral bodies. ll the strange and otherwise (ysterious !heno(ena of that ti(e will beco(e lu(inous and clear to you, if you bring !ro!erly before the eyes of your soul this (ediation in world evolution between !ast and future. The i(!ortant 2uestion was whether what was woven into these !eo!le of the .iddle ges fro( the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth was (ore what we call the sentient soul, or (ore the intellectual soul, or (ore what we call the consciousness soul. For the astral body of (an (ust of course be considered in a certain sense as so(ething containing all thisA that is, it (ust be thought of as enclosing the ego, and containing sentient soul, intellectual soul, and consciousness soul. ll that was in Francis of ssisi was wholly sentient soul of Besus of 1a,areth, so to s!ea*. =holly sentient soul of Besus of 1a,areth was contained in that re(ar*able !ersonality who( you will follow biogra!hically with the soul when you *now the secret of her life+ lizabeth of Th1ringen, born in 1%0J. 8ere we have a !ersonality who had a co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth woven into the sentient soul. The riddle of the hu(an being is solved for us by (eans of 3ust such *nowledge. bove all, one !heno(enon will be understandable when you *now that during this ti(e the (ost diverse !ersonalities had sentient soul, intellectual soul, or consciousness soul woven into the( as co!ies of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth. 9ou will be able to

understand that science, otherwise so little understood, which we ordinarily designate as scholasticism. =hat *ind of a tas* did the scholastics set for the(selvesD The tas* of finding, on the basis of 3udg(ent and intellect, verifications, !roofs, for that with which there was no historical connecting lin*, and concerning which there was no direct clairvoyant certainty, such as e)isted in !revious centuries because of the interwoven etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth. These !eo!le had to set the(selves the tas* in this way+ They said to the(selves+ $t has been co((unicated to us through tradition that in history that Being a!!eared =ho is *nown as /hrist BesusA that other s!iritual beings of who( the religious docu(ents bear witness have intervened in hu(an evolution. 4 Fro( their intellectual soul, fro( the intellect ele(ent of the co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth, they set the(selves the tas* of !roving with subtle and clearly develo!ed conce!ts all that e)isted in their literature as (ystery truths. Thus arose that strange science which tried to achieve what was !erha!s the ulti(ate in sagacity, in intellect, that has ever been reached by hu(anity. 0ne (ay thin* of the content of scholasticis( as one wishes, but through several centuries, si(!ly by (eans of this very delicate discri(ination and e)act outlining of conce!ts, the ca!acity for hu(an reflection was develo!ed and i(!ressed u!on the culture of the !eriod. $t was between the 1Cth and 15th centuries that hu(anity had i(!lanted into it through scholasticis( the ca!acity to thin* with acute and searching logic. (ong those who, in turn, were (ore i(bued with the consciousness soul 4 that is, the co!y of what had constituted the consciousness soul of Besus of 1a,areth 4 there a!!eared the s!ecial conviction 4 because the ego functions in the consciousness soul 4 that the /hrist can be found in the ego. nd because they the(selves had within the( the ele(ent of the consciousness soul fro( the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth, the inner /hrist rose res!lendent in their souls. These are the individuals who( you *now as $eister ckhart, .ohannes Tauler, and all the bearers of (ediKval (ysticis(. Thus you see how the very diversified !hases of the astral body were (ulti!lied because the e)alted vatar<Being of /hrist had entered into the body of Besus of 1a,arethA and they wor*ed on in the following age and brought about the real develo!(ent of /hristianity. $n other res!ects also this was an i(!ortant transition. =e see how in the course of its develo!(ent hu(anity is de!endent in other ways also u!on having incor!orated within it these frag(ents of the Besus of 1a,areth being. $n the early centuries there were !eo!le who were entirely de!endent u!on the !hysical !laneA then in the following centuries ca(e those who were accessible to the interweaving with their etheric bodies of the ele(ent of the etheric body of Besus of 1a,areth. 7ater !eo!le tended (ore, so to s!ea*, toward the astral bodyA hence the co!y of the astral body of Besus of 1a,areth could now li*ewise be incor!orated in the(. The astral body is the bearer of the !ower of 3udg(ent, which awa*ened !articularly between the 1%th and the 1#th centuries. 9ou could observe this fro( another !heno(enon also. 6! to that ti(e it was es!ecially well understood what de!ths of (ystery the "oly #ommunion contained. t (ost there was only slight discussion about it, but it was acce!ted in a (anner that enabled one to feel all that lay in the words + This is .y body and this is .y blood, 4 because the /hrist indicated that 8e would be united with the earth, would be the !lanetary '!irit of the Earth. nd because the (ost !recious thing co(ing out of the !hysical earth is grain, bread beca(e for (an the body of /hristA and the sa! which flows through the !lants beca(e for hi( so(ething fro( the blood of

/hrist. Through this *nowledge the value of the 7ord@s 'u!!er was not di(inished, but was on the contrary heightened. 'o(ething of these li(itless de!ths was felt in these centuries, u! to the ti(e when the !ower of 3udg(ent awa*ened in the astral body. $t was only fro( then on that dis!utes began about the 7ord@s 'u!!er. Bust consider how a(ong the 8ussites, a(ong the 7utherans and the dissenting Ewinglians and /alvinists, there was discussion as to what the 7ord@s 'u!!er is intended to be. 'uch discussion would not have been !ossible earlier, because there was still a direct *nowledge of the 7ord@s 'u!!er. But we see verified here a great historical law which should be of s!ecial i(!ortance for s!iritual scientists+ na(ely, that as long as people knew what the +ord2s -upper was they did not discuss it% *n general you can consider it a sign that people really have no knowledge of a certain matter %when they begin to discuss it% 3here there is knowledge! knowledge is imparted! and no particular desire for discussion e(ists% 3here there is desire for discussion! there is as a rule no knowledge of the truth% Discussion begins only when there is a lack of knowledge! and it is always and everywhere the sign of a decline as regards the seriousness of a sub4ect when discussion begins% Disintegration of a particular trend is always proclaimed by discussions% *t is very important that in the spiritual5scientific field we come to understand more and more that the wish for discussion may really be taken as a sign of ignorance6 on the other hand! that which is the opposite of discussion! the will to learn! the will gradually to comprehend what is in 7uestion! should be cultivated. 8ere we see a great historical fact verified by the develo!(ent of /hristianity itself. But we can learn so(ething else besides, if we see how in these centuries of /hristendo( 3ust described the !ower of 3udg(ent 4 which resides in the astral body 4 this acute intellectual wisdo(, is develo!ed. $ndeed, if we fi) our attention u!on realities, not dog(as, we can learn how (uch /hristianity has acco(!lished in the course of its !rogress. =hat has beco(e of scholasticis(, if we consider it, not as to its content, but as a (eans of cultivating and disci!lining the facultiesD Do you *now what beca(e of itD $t beca(e (odern natural science. .odern natural science is entirely unthin*able without the /hristian natural science of the .iddle ges. $t is not only that /o!ernicus was a canon, and &iordano Bruno a Do(inican, but that all the thought<for(s e(!loyed in the natural sciences since the 15th and 1Lth centuries are nothing but what was develo!ed and nurtured by the scholastic science of the .iddle ges. Those !eo!le do not live in reality, but in abstractions, who loo* u! !assages in the boo*s of the scholastics, co(!are the( with the state(ents of (ore recent natural science, and then say+ 8aec*el and others (aintain so(ething entirely different. 5ealities are what (atter8aec*el, a Darwin, a DuBois<5ey(ond, a 8u)ley, and others, would all have been i(!ossible if the /hristian scholastic science of the .iddle ages had not !receded the(. For the very fact that these (odern scientists were able to thin* as they did they owe to the /hristiani,ed science of the scholastics of the .iddle ges. That is the reality. By this (eans hu(anity has learned to thin* in the true sense of the word. 4 The (atter goes further still. 5ead David Friedrich 'trauss. Try to observe the (ode of his thin*ingA try to analy,e his thought !ictures+ 8ow he insists u!on re!resenting the whole life of Besus of 1a,areth as a (yth. >/o(!are+ 5udolf 'teiner, #osmic and "uman "istory, :ol. $llA *nner volutionary *mpulses of "umanity M7ecture $$N Mnot yet available in English translationN.? Do you *now whence he has the *eenness of his thin*ingD 8e gets it fro( the /hristian scholasticis( of the .iddle ges. Everything by (eans of which /hristianity is so radically co(bated today has been learned fro( the /hristian scholastic science of the .iddle ges. ctually

there could not be today an o!!onent of /hristianity concerning who( it could not easily be !ointed out that he would not be able to thin* as he thin*s at all, had he not learned the thought<for(s fro( the scholastic science of the .iddle ges. This, indeed, would (ean to observe world history in its reality. =hat then has ha!!ened since the 1Lth centuryD 'ince the 1Lth century the ego itself has co(e (ore and (ore into !ro(inence, and with it hu(an egotis( also, and with egotis(, (aterialis(. =hat the ego had ac2uired as content has been unlearned and forgotten. $t was therefore necessary for (an to li(it hi(self to that which the ego can observe 4 to that which the !hysical sense<instru(ent is able to give to the ordinary intelligence 4 and that alone could it ta*e into the inner sanctuary. The civili,ation since the 1Lth century is a civili,ation of egotis(. =hat (ust now enter into this egoD /hristian evolution has !assed through a develo!(ent in the e)ternal !hysical body, a develo!(ent in the etheric body, and also in the astral body, and has !enetrated as far as the ego. 1ow it (ust ta*e into this ego the mysteries and secrets of #hristianity itself. Following a ti(e when the ego learned to thin* through /hristianity, and a!!lied the thoughts to the outer world, it (ust now be !ossible for the ego to be (ade into a /hrist<rece!tive organ. This ego (ust now rediscover the wisdo( which is the !ri(ordial wisdo( of the &reat vatar, of /hrist 8i(self. nd by what (eans (ust this co(e to !assD By a !rofounder understanding of /hristianity through s!iritual science. /arefully !re!ared through the three stages of !hysical, etheric, and astral develo!(ent, the (atter of concern should now be that the organ within (an be o!ened, so that he (ay henceforth see into his s!iritual environ(ent with that eye which the /hrist can o!en for hi(. s the greatest vatar<Being, the /hrist descended to earth. 7et us get a !ers!ective view of thisA let us try to loo* at the world as we shall be able to see it when we shall have received the /hrist into ourselves. =e then find the whole !rocess of our world<beco(ing illu(inated and !ervaded by the /hrist< Being. That is to say, we describe how u!on 'aturn (an@s !hysical body gradually ca(e into e)istence, how on the 'un the etheric body (ade its a!!earance, on the .oon the astral body, and then on the Earth the ego is addedA and we find how everything tends toward the goal of beco(ing ever (ore inde!endent and individual, in order to incor!orate in the Earth evolution that wisdo( which !asses over fro( the 'un to the Earth. $n other words + for the liberated ego of (odern ti(es the /hrist and /hristianity (ust beco(e the !ers!ective center of the cos(ic view. Thus you see how /hristianity gradually !re!ared itself for what it is to beco(e. $n the early centuries the /hristian received /hristianity with his !hysical ca!acity for *nowledgeA then later with his etheric ca!acityA and throughout the .iddle ges with his astral ca!acity for *nowledge. Then for a ti(e /hristianity in its true for( was re!ressed, until the ego had been trained by the three bodies in the course of /hristian develo!(ent. But since this ego has learned to thin* and to direct its vision to the ob3ective world, it is now ca!able also of seeing in all !heno(ena in this ob3ective world s!iritual facts which are inti(ately connected with the /entral Being, with the /hrist Being+ it is ca!able of beholding the /hrist everywhere in the (ost various for(s as the foundation. =ith this fact we stand at the starting !oint of s!iritual<scientific co(!rehension and *nowledge of /hristianity. =e begin to understand what tas*, what (ission, has been assigned to this .ove(ent for '!iritual ;nowledge, and we reali,e at the sa(e ti(e the reality of this (ission. Bust as the individual hu(an being has !hysical body, etheric body, astral body, and ego, and gradually rises to ever (ore lofty heights, so is it also in

the historical develo!(ent of /hristianity. =e (ight say that /hristianity has also a !hysical body, an etheric body, an astral body, and an ego 4 an ego which can even deny its origin, as in our ti(e, since the ego can in any case beco(e egotistic 4 but still an ego which can at the sa(e ti(e receive the true /hrist Being into itself, and can gradually rise to ever higher stages of e)istence. =hat the hu(an being is in !articular, the great world is in its totality, as well as in its course of historical develo!(ent. $f we observe the (atter in this light, there o!ens before us fro( the s!iritual<scientific view!oint a !ers!ective far into the future. nd we *now how this can lay hold u!on our heart and fill it with (eaning. =e co(!rehend (ore and (ore what we have to do, and we *now also that we are not gro!ing in the dar*A for we have not devised any ideas which we intend arbitrarily to !ro3ect into the future, but we intend to harbor and to follow only those ideas which have been gradually !re!ared through the centuries. Bust as it is true that the ego (ust first a!!ear and be develo!ed little by little u! to '!irit 'elf, 7ife '!irit, and '!irit .an, after the !hysical body, the etheric body, and astral body were already in e)istence, so is it true that the (odern (an with his ego<for(, with his !resent<day thin*ing, could only be develo!ed out of the astral, the etheric, and the !hysical for( of /hristianity. /hristianity has beco(e go. s it is true that this was the develo!(ent in the !ast, 3ust so true is it that the ego<for( of hu(anity can a!!ear only after the astral and etheric for( of /hristianity has been develo!ed. /hristianity will develo! on into the futureA it will offer hu(anity far greater things, and the /hristian develo!(ent and the /hristian standard of life will arise in new for(+ the transformed astral body will a!!ear as the /hristian -pirit -elfA the transfor(ed etheric body as the /hristian +ife -pirit. nd in a radiant !ers!ective of the future of /hristianity, -pirit $an glea(s forth before our souls li*e a star toward which we strive, illu(inated and glowing through and through with the s!irit of /hristianity.