The Rudolf Steiner Archive

4. The New Spiritual Age and the Second Coming of Christ

[ 1 ] If, as an anthroposophist, a person were to occasionally step back from everyday life, looking beyond what he or she has to do in daily life, and ask himself or herself: Is there, apart from what everyday life consists of—apart from the daily toil and burdens that life brings—anything else connected with human happiness and human striving?—then, as an anthroposophist, they would be able to give themselves a rich answer. He knows, for example, that he does not take in everything he absorbs through anthroposophy merely to give his soul something to occupy itself with—as it were—because it feels unsatisfied in everyday life—but rather that what he takes in through the experience of anthroposophy can become a source of strength in his soul. He is always able to say to himself: “As a human being, I am something other than what I am in the outer world.”

[ 2 ] When we have such thoughts, we should take it deeply to heart that, as human beings, we are always caught between two currents: one current that places us within everyday life, and another current through which the soul looks upward into a realm of the future, enabling it to fulfill the meaning it is meant to have within the greater context. This idea must never lead us to regard any outward occupation—however unappealing it may seem—as less significant for the life of the world as a whole than any other profession. We must be clear that, from a certain point of view, the smallest and the greatest things we can do are equally important for the whole. Life presents itself as a mosaic picture pieced together from individual stones. The person who adds a single stone is no less important than the one who conceived the plan for the mosaic. In relation to what might be called the divine-spiritual world order, the smallest is just as significant as the greatest. If we recognize this, it will spare us from much of the dissatisfaction that might otherwise easily arise in life.

[ 3 ] Only such an attitude toward what we have to do in life can give us the right understanding of our inner work in the soul. Only then can we relate to the highest spiritual aspirations in the right way. For anthroposophists, such a matter should never be a mere thought, never just theory. Rather, the anthroposophist does well to frequently remind himself, in moments of inner contemplation, how inappropriate it would be within the great order of the world if dissatisfaction were to arise from any position in life. The very essence of the world’s development could not follow its course if we did not carry out even the seemingly most insignificant aspects of life correctly. Then we will also develop the right feelings toward the great phenomena of existence. Only then will the greatness and significance of the following statement become clear to us: Each of us, in addition to what we represent on the physical plane, should, in the spirit of the wisdom of the world, make the most of ourselves as much as possible. We should regard anthroposophical development itself as something necessary. Some say: What good is anthroposophical development if I cannot make myself useful in life through it?—But let us consider: What we are meant to do in life will be shown to us by the karma of life, once we learn to understand the promptings of that karma. Our task is not merely to do this or that, but we truly have the task of making the most of ourselves. We must rise to the thought: Within us are infinite powers and abilities; we must not allow them to wither away in our soul. What the divine-spiritual world order will do with what we have made of our soul, we must leave to the divine-spiritual world order. If we work on our soul and pay attention to the signs of karma, we will see what we have to do here and there.

[ 4 ] We should not spin out theories. One might easily think that the best anthroposophist is the one who works on himself for a time and then engages in an outward, beneficial activity. But it may be that, in our external circumstances, we are unable to apply to the world what we have developed within our souls. This idea—that only those who put what they have learned into practice in the world are good anthroposophists—could be the most mistaken notion imaginable. It could be, for example, that for decades we would be unable to apply anything of the anthroposophical impulse within us. Perhaps we will then meet someone at a train station and be able to say just the right important word to them—something we otherwise would not have been able to say. This single act might be more important for the fabric of life than a grand undertaking. We must realize what we are capable of doing, and that the opportunity to apply it at the right moment will be brought to us by a hint from karma.

[ 5 ] When one feels and senses this, then anthroposophy becomes something whose purpose one does not even question at first, because it is of absolute value. Only then does one gain the proper perspective on what connects us to the great, life-changing events of life. It is sometimes assumed that all development proceeds only step by step. But the life of the whole does not proceed in such a way that one can say nature makes no leaps. That is not correct. Nature is constantly making leaps. Let us consider a plant. It constantly makes leaps in its development: in the transition from root to leaf, from leaf to calyx, from calyx to flower, and from flower to fruit. Just as here, rapid transitions occur in the life of the individual and also in the collective life of humanity. Everywhere we find that humanity lives on and develops successively for a time, like leaf after leaf on a plant. Then comes the time when humanity takes a tremendous leap forward, just as the plant leaps from leaf to calyx, from calyx to petal, and from petal to fruit. Thus, rapid transitions—leaps—occur everywhere in the course of humanity’s development. The most tremendous leap in the history of humanity on Earth is the leap that took place as a result of the events in Palestine. There, a truly tremendous leap forward occurred.

[ 6 ] We must remember that the human soul, as it is today, has developed only slowly and gradually. Today, human beings live in such a way that they receive stimulation from the external world through their senses. Even someone like Helen Keller could only undergo development by receiving external stimulation. Today, human beings live in such a way that the entire development of their soul depends on external stimulation through the senses. For their judgment and the development of ideas, they rely on the brain as an instrument. Human beings were not always this way. There was once a state of the soul in which human beings were not dependent on such external impressions, in which they possessed an ancient, dark, dreamlike clairvoyance. In those days, clairvoyant images arose within them that reflected and expressed an external reality—but not the kind of external reality we have around us today. Everything we have around us today—plants and animals, air and water, clouds and mountains—was not yet perceived by humanity at that time as having distinct boundaries; at most, people back then saw things as if through a mist. In those days, during a dreamlike, twilight state of consciousness, human beings gazed up toward the next realm, the realm of the angels. In an even higher state of consciousness, they looked up toward the realm of the archangels and the realm of the spirits of personality. Just as we look up at the Steinteich today, so did people in those days look up to the hierarchies they perceived in their dreamlike, twilight consciousness. Just as human beings today know that they are composed of mineral substances, so they knew back then: “My soul has descended from the realm of the spirits of personality and is composed of the substances of the realm of the archangels and angels.” They looked up to what stood above them as their spiritual homeland. From there he descended into existence in the physical world and into the perception of the physical external world. First, his vision of the spirits of personality faded, and he became aware of the animal kingdom. Then his vision of the archangels faded, and he became aware of the plant kingdom; then his vision of the angelic realm faded, and he became aware of the mineral kingdom. For a long time afterward, people were still able to look upward at certain times and knew that such higher beings existed. Only slowly and gradually was their gaze directed toward the mere external world. The gate to the spiritual world was closed. But that was not the only thing.

[ 7 ] For people who could still glimpse into the spiritual worlds themselves, illness and health meant something entirely different than they do for us today. When an illness afflicted a person in those times, it was possible for that person to induce a state—an intermediate state between waking and sleeping—through which they became clairvoyant to the spiritual world. In such states of clairvoyance and clairsentience, they were permeated by the spiritual. This permeation by the spiritual acted as a remedy, as a healing force. The sick person had to fully immerse themselves in the power of the spiritual; this had a thoroughly healing effect on their illness. Today, human beings have descended into the physical world. As a result, the physical body has gained the greatest power, but the soul, on the other hand, has become powerless in relation to the physical body. Consider, for example, soft wax and wax that has hardened. The latter is difficult to indent. The former is malleable. In ancient times, the human physical body was a malleable material that the soul could shape. When the soul connected with the spiritual, it could shape the physical. A strong devotion to the spiritual can cause the spiritual to have a healing effect. In ancient times, human beings could immerse themselves in the spiritual not only for the sake of knowledge, but also for the sake of healing. In ancient times, people lived in communion with high spiritual beings. When human beings descended into the physical world but still maintained a connection with the spiritual worlds, they were unable to protect themselves from harmful spiritual beings. They could also be infiltrated by evil spiritual forces—for example, those that dwell on the astral plane as elemental beings. At that time, human beings could surrender themselves to beneficial spiritual influences, but they were also exposed to malevolent spiritual beings. Today, we have less to do with such evil, demonic entities. In ancient times, these demonic entities acted upon the malleable human nature in such a way that they caused people to become possessed. All of this was necessary because human beings had to descend to the physical plane in order to attain self-awareness. Human beings could not have attained true self-awareness if they had always been devoted to the spiritual world. They would then have been outside themselves. The “I” has been at work in human nature since ancient times. It was only through the Christ impulse that human beings were to become fully conscious of themselves—to know what the “I” means. The Christ impulse first manifested in the fiery lightning in which Jehovah appeared to Moses. It was reflected in the fiery lightning, just as moonlight reflects sunlight. Jehovah is nothing other than the reflected Christ, who first appears as a reflection.

[ 8 ] We can only understand the Gospel of John if we realize that the Christ impulse is, in fact, the most significant work within human evolution concerning self-consciousness.

[ 9 ] Human beings should be freed from the influences that flow into them without their self-awareness. In this way, they could acquire self-awareness and prepare themselves to regain the clairvoyance of ancient times. But they must be freed from demonic influences. The more power they have in their “I,” the more they can keep themselves free from demonic influences. Only then can one understand the healings of the demons. A number of sick people were brought near to Christ precisely at the time when the spiritual Christ could work most powerfully. It was not the physical sunlight—the garment of the spiritual light—that was to act, but the spiritual light itself. When the sun had set, those sick people were brought to Christ. Now we must create a mental image of the actual process of healing as follows: The people who came had the firm faith, the firm conviction, that through Christ the impulse capable of driving back the demons was at work. If this had been accomplished through an external means, then Christ would not have worked through the “I.” One recognizes Christ only when He unfolds all His power within one’s own inner being. He can work only where this power finds expression in the human “I.” From all this we see that, back then during that crucial period, humanity stood at a momentous turning point. It was the final phase of an old era and, as it were, the emergence of a powerful impulse that led people into a new era. People could look back and see: In the past, human beings were even more closely connected to the spiritual world. They could find the path to the spiritual world through ecstasy. Now, however, we must find the point of connection within the “I” in order to enter the spiritual world. This impulse was given through the powerful call of John the Baptist and through Christ himself: “Change the disposition of your souls, for the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near.” Within yourselves you must seek the bond that connects you to the Kingdom of Heaven.

[ 10 ] To those to whom one could say this with complete sincerity, one could say: There was a time in the past when human souls were such that, when they stepped out of their “I,” they entered a spiritual realm. There, the spiritual was bestowed upon them for their healing. They had become rich—that is, possessors of the spirit. Then a turning point came. Now it is precisely those who have become beggars for the spirit who are called to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Those who are beggars for the spirit can now become divine and blessed. The spiritually poor will receive the Kingdom of Heaven within themselves.

[ 11 ] Even those who are suffering will become blessed or divine if they receive the Christ impulse. By seeking the connection to the spiritual world within their “I,” they will be healed. Those who once raged out of their passions could formerly be pacified when they became spiritualized in ecstasy. By now finding the connection with Christ within themselves, in the “I,” they are to pacify their raging passions and wild impulses. The destiny of the earthly mission is that it falls to those who curb their passions through the “I.” Those who suffer will be freed from their suffering by receiving Christ within the “I”; those who receive Christ within the “I” can become equanimous, and they will rule the earth.

[ 12 ] The first sentence of the Sermon on the Mount refers to the physical body; the second, to the etheric body; the third, to the astral body; and the fourth—the statement that a person should not develop a conscience focused solely on the physical—refers to the sensory soul. Those in the sensory soul who hunger and thirst for righteousness can now become godlike or blessed.

[ 13 ] What a person can find in the intellectual or emotional soul is expressed in the sentence: “Those who are merciful can become divine.” What must occur when we ascend from the sensory soul to the intellectual or emotional soul? First, the “I” ascends. Human beings must develop this by perceiving themselves as an “I” and perceiving everyone else as an “I,” so that what lives in the soul is conveyed from “I” to “I.” That which passes from one human being to another—the subject and predicate—must be the same. In the first sentences of the Beatitudes, the subject differs from the predicate. Now, in the sentence referring to the intellectual or emotional soul, we find that the subject and predicate are the same. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy or love.”

[ 14 ] Here we see a document so magnificent that there is scarcely any other document that is as profound. It is marked by that momentous transition brought about by Christ. By then, the Kali Yuga—the Dark Age—had already lasted 3,000 years. The Kali Yuga, in the strictest sense, began in 3101 B.C. That is the year when the spiritual world began to close off. Before the year 3101, we still find a direct awareness of the spiritual worlds. Then the spiritual world grew increasingly dark. After the Kali Yuga had reigned for 3,101 years, that impulse occurred through which humanity was led back into the spiritual world. But how could that impulse have come about? Only through a God descending into the physical world. That is when the first step was taken toward returning to the spiritual world. A tremendous leap in human evolution was made because humanity gained the ability to ascend once more into the spiritual world from the “I.” Humanity needed Christ, so to speak, because it had ascended as far as the “I.” The descent of Christ was necessary so that the human “I” would not wither away or fall out of the course of evolution.

[ 15 ] We can see that for a long time, many people knew nothing about the fact that Christ had lived over there in the small land of Palestine. Tacitus, for example, knew very little about it. About a hundred years later, it was said that a sect was living in a narrow alley in Rome, teaching about Jesus. At that time, this most powerful impulse—the Christ impulse—passed many people by. It could have passed all people by. But that did not happen. Humanity accepted the Christ impulse back then. If a similar impulse were to arise again within humanity, then humanity must be capable of not letting such a leap in human development pass unnoticed.

[ 16 ] In 1899, the Dark Age, the Kali Yuga, came to an end. Humanity is moving along an upward trajectory. The Dark Age lasted 5,000 years. Today we are living at the beginning of an age in which entirely new powers and abilities are developing within humanity. Before the first half of the 20th century comes to an end, it will become apparent that a number of people possess special abilities as a result of natural development. With the “end of the Kali Yuga,” beginning in 1899, a certain kind of etheric vision is developing within humanity. Between the years 1930 and 1940, this etheric vision will have developed in a number of people. Two things may then be possible. Humanity may continue to live in the materialistic quagmire. Materialism may overwhelm everything. Humanity may miss this event just as it could have missed the Christ event. If people do not experience this etheric vision, it will come to pass that they will sink into the quagmire of materialism. Or a sufficiently large number of people will develop over the course of 2,500 years to the point where they become capable of etheric vision. This is the beginning of clairvoyance, which human beings will once again reclaim for their sense of self.

[ 17 ] There is something else to add here. When a number of people have developed a sense of this through an understanding of Spiritual Science, then it will come to pass that these people will be able to convince themselves of the truth of the Christ event just as Paul was able to convince himself of it during the Damascus experience. Between 1930 and 1940, there will be a small number of people who develop this ability, and then, over the course of 2,500 years, more and more people will see the Christ in His etheric body. As people evolve toward etheric vision, they will see the Christ in His etheric body—though they can attain this only through understanding and feeling based on Spiritual Science. This is the new descent of the Christ to the people of Earth. In truth, it is rather an ascent, for the Christ will no longer incarnate in the flesh. But those who develop themselves to reach him will be able to perceive him in his etheric body. They will know from direct experience that Christ lives. For those who wish to recognize Christ, he will appear again in his etheric body. They will know of Christ through vision.

[ 18 ] It is precisely through the development of the soul that we will gain an understanding of what constitutes the most important event for humanity in our time. If Spiritual Science did not guide humanity toward this, this event would pass humanity by unnoticed. Spiritual Science is meant to prepare us to make the most of this greatest event following the end of the Kali Yuga. Those who have prepared themselves to perceive this event will be significant, regardless of their profession. But the event will also be significant for those who find themselves in that world between death and a new birth. For this event also has an effect on the spiritual worlds, but only through the preparation that has taken place here on Earth. Here on Earth, we must prepare ourselves specifically for this event and develop the necessary faculties. The new Christ event of the 20th century—this is what we are now proclaiming. Later, it will be explained as an event whose effects will continue for all of humanity. This will be proclaimed in the near future. It will serve as a touchstone for Theosophy. It could be that materialism is introduced into the theosophical understanding of the Christ event itself. Only a materialistic consciousness could believe that the Christ could return in a physical form. It will become clear whether theosophy has been understood when the event occurs. In the first half of the 20th century, we will see false messiahs asserting themselves here and there. In our age, it would be a tragedy if people were unable to rise to a spiritual perspective sufficient to accept that the Christ will reappear in his etheric form. There would be no progress in human evolution if the Christ were to appear again in the flesh.

[ 19 ] Humanity is evolving to perceive the Messiah with higher faculties. This will be the litmus test of whether Theosophy has truly led humanity to understand this event correctly, so that humanity has elevated itself spiritually enough to comprehend the return of the Christ in his true form. For a number of people who will serve as forerunners, he will return in this century, just as he once came to Paul in the event at Damascus.

[ 20 ] Unbelief is becoming more and more widespread through the criticism of historical documents. The more historical evidence loses its power over people, the more the capacity within them will grow through which Christ can be seen. The true Christ will be given to those who, through Spiritual Science, can elevate themselves to an understanding and perception of the true return of the Christ.