By Gerald B. Bryan
Clever leaders in political organizations know they must
be lavish in scattering political plums among their adherents. They must also
be prodigal in their promises, and wax eloquent in their statements concerning
the marvelous benefits resulting should these favored ones become full-fledged
members of the party.
Is similar with astute leaders of some metaphysical
orders — and, certainly, the Ballard cult is no exception. Its metaphysical
plum tree has been a marvelously productive one, so far as promises go, bearing
luscious fruit and promising budlets within season and without. From a
never-failing material supply in this life to tremendous power and influence in
the life to come, the Ballard promises run the whole gamut of human desires.
Poor, struggling human mortals lost in the wilderness of
a great economic depression! Who among them wouldn’t want their “financial
freedom” as promised by the Ballard?
Hearing such statements as, “The precipitation of gold or
jewels from the invisible to the visible is as simple as breathing” (p. 97, D.)
— they flock to the meetings as moths to the flame.
Reading such statements as, “To you who have had a
struggle financially . . . if you will only make your earnest application, I
assure you that all obstruction will be removed from your pathway” (p. 7, Dec.,
1938, V.) — they buy the Ballard books, thinking that some magic formula will
give them the money they need.
Pathetic, weak, sickly individuals looking so earnestly
for health! How attracted they are to a cult which promises: “You can renew any
nerve, any organ, and build any member of the body into its perfection almost
immediately.” (p. 42, D.)
Or to the hopelessly old and decrepit, what a balm to
hear: “I say to you, beloved ones, who are in the neighborhood of sixty years
old . . . I tell you — any one of you — in six weeks CAN be as strong, firm and
active as you were in your fullest youth; but you must be determined.” (p. 16,
Sept., 1937, V.)
Oh, what a hope to the soul-sick individual who is tired
of life and yet afraid to die, to hear a great Master say: “There are quite a
number in this room, who with complete harmony maintained, would make their
Ascension in this embodiment.” (p. 4, March, 1938, V.)
These people were promised that if they made this
so-called “Ascension,” they would never die, or undergo physical death; that
they would become “Ascended Masters” —or “Lady Masters”— immediately.
And so the frustrated and buffeted individual held down
in the heavy morass of lie, what an infinite blessing to hear: “When this class
at the Pan-Pacific Auditorium (at Los Angeles) is completed, there will be
hundreds of you precious ones who will not again know limitation.” (pp. 141-2,
A.M.D.)
How credulous these students are to believe these, and
many other, promises made so glibly, such as: “There is not a single thing your
heart can desire to do with this Instruction it cannot do . . . to cause the
storm to cease and become obedient . . . to cause the rain to fall . . . to
hold in abeyance the frost . . . etc., etc.,” (pp. 28-33-34, March, 1937, V.)
In this way, by promises, and not by works, have the
Ballards and their deceiving band of “Masters” attracted credulous people into
their network of unreality.
What a cruel deception! These poor people give their
money, their time, and their energies. They neglect their families and their
opportunities, their health and perhaps even their spiritual salvation, by
following a movement which will inevitably lead to sad disillusionment. And
along the Ballard pathway there are hundreds of broken lives, wrecked homes,
and an alarming number of insanity cases.
For over five years now the mills of these “Ascended
Masters” have been grinding and turning out unbelievable promises. And the more
they turned, the more the appetites of their people were whetted for the
promised miracles.
Still, even among the unduly credulous, there is a limit
to what people will take, as even the great Barnum discovered. So as time went
on in the early days of the movement there was a noticeable restlessness among
some of the students at the non-appearance of the scheduled miracles. Cleverly,
to satisfy these people, the Ballards decided to make a few specific instances
of attainment under the high promotion system of the great Ascended Master
Saint Germain.
Therefore, preceding the Christmas holidays of 1936 there
was circulated among the faithful veiled allusions as the marvels that would
take place at the coming “Shrine Class” in Los Angeles.
Word went forth that this was to be a “closed” class,
open only to the elect. Transcendental things would occur. there were rumors of
“group Ascensions,” precipitated dinners, and some of the more popular
“Ascended Masters” were scheduled to make tangible appearances. It was to be
the outstanding metaphysical event of all time.
This had the effect, many months ahead, of giving the
desired impetus and solidarity to the movement, which was then like a
loose-jointed adolescent going through the teen age.
All roads led to the Los Angeles mecca, and around the
middle of December, 1936, the pilgrimage was on. So great was the expectancy of
the students for the promised miracles that many coming from eastern states
brought along their Ascension Robes! A little precautionary measure which, by
the way, was observed also rather widely in the City of the Angels among the
faithful who did not want to be caught like the “foolish virgins” of a bygone
age.
Of course all this was a good advertising build-up for
the Accredited Messengers of Saint Germain, but it was a bit tricky. Realizing
their inability to deliver the promises they had made, the leaders apparently
became a little panic-stricken as the reaction this might have if the scheduled
miracles should be a little timid about showing up.
Therefore, there was a sudden change of plans. Edna
Ballard, who usually can rise to the occasion, let it be know at a special
meeting called just previous to the big “Shrine” opening, that it was not to be
a “closed” meeting after all.
“All may come,” she generously stated. “Fill the
auditorium — but don’t expect anything!”
And, of course, nothing did happen — other than more
promises. Altogether it was a most tame affair. Not a single Ascended Master or
precipitated dinner put in an appearance.
It was rumored around, however, that an “Ascended Master”
was seen in the audience, and that he had talked privately to several of the
Ballard staff members!
This is quite understandable in dear old Los Angeles
where at any large heterodox meeting there is likely to be found one or more
bewhiskered, longhaired, hermit-looking individuals who appear the living
prototype of John the Baptist or Elijah the Prophet.
Also, among some of the students, there was a report of
another transcendent happening. Looking around for anything that might even
give a semblance to a miracle, Guy Ballard suddenly stopped at a certain point
in his talk, and listened. Audible to some, sounds of music floated in through
the auditorium.
“If you will listen very carefully,” said the
heaven-gazing Messenger in an enraptured way, “you will hear something very
interesting.”
It was then reported among certain of the faithful in the
audience that the fabled “Music of the Spheres” had been heard.
Some of the least susceptible ones, however, said it was
merely syncopated jazz from a nearby skating rink. Others, even more skeptical,
said it was somebody’s radio played at a propitious time. It is a strange and
startling thing, however, and one which certainly shows the extent to which
credulity exists in the world today, that despite all these failures throughout
so many years the students are still waiting, waiting for the promised
miracles. The whole process readily reminds one of the Raven — in Poe’s poem of
the name — “sitting, sitting above the chamber door,” and forever quoting
“Nevermore.”
These Ballard miracles just didn’t happen, never have,
and it will take more than the Ballard family and all their king’s horses to
produce them.
However, the “Accredited Messengers” have learned to
bring the promised miracles closer home to the poor students by vaguely
referring to a certain number in each city who have made the grade in some way.
In one city, for instance, Guy Ballard said:
“In this room tonight there are 104 for whom the Divine
Director will consume the last vestige of human accumulation tonight.” (March
11, 1938, Ballard Group Letter to Class Leaders.)
In another city, Cleveland, Ballard said:
“In this small audience, the human creation of 346 has
been dissolved and consumed.” (March 11, 1938, G.L.)
And so on with other audiences in various cities.
Nobody, of course, ever knows who these fortunate
individuals are who have had their “human creation” —whatever that is— removed. It seems to have been kept a dark
secret, not at all like some appendiceal operations. Each hopes that this human
accumulation has been dissolved or extirpated in some way, but doubts must
assail him when he discovers, despite the operation, that some remnants of the
thing have been inadvertently left.
At the Kansas City class the statement was made:
“. . . For 373 of the students all human accumulation had
been completely dissolved . . . for 283 time and space had been set aside!”
(February 18, 1938, G.L.)
Kansas City, it appears, wins the “human creation”
honors; and, in addition, cleans up the entire running field in the Ballard
“Time and Space” classic. How wonderful it must have been for these two hundred
and eighty-three “Mighty I AM-ers” from Missouri to soar away —timeless and
space-less— into NOTHINGNESS, and be free from current bill collectors and
future evils they know not of!
For reasons which we shall later discover, the Ballards
for four long years did not hold public classes in their own home town after
leaving there in the fall of 1934 to “Save America.”
Although Chicago is undoubtedly a part of America and
needs saving perhaps as much as Los Angeles and Miami, there were good reasons
why the wise and cautious “Saint Germain” did not for four years include that
city in his Messenger’s itinerary. There he was, titular head of a flourishing
book concern — the “Saint Germain Press,” with a perfectly good Chicago post
office box number, and he was careless enough to forget to have his own
Accredited Messengers lecture there to boost book sales.
The nearest city he would permit them to come, for a
public ten-day class, was Detroit. As a result, the Chicago faithful had to go
to the automobile city to hear Saint Germain’s Accredited Messengers — a modern
instance, as it were, of the mountain going to Mahomet!
So in the spring of 1938 scores of the Chicago students
traveled down railway ties or across macadamized roads bound for Detroit, to
hear and learn from these modern prophets, whose symbol was the dazzling,
golden “Light” of the sun, instead of the pale, silvery crescent of Mahomet.
They descended upon that mechanized city in such numbers
that Prophet Ballard simply had to take notice of his people, It must have been
very complimentary to him, and, of course, one good compliment deserves
another.
So when they appeared in a festive body at the Scottish
Rite Cathedral in Detroit to attend the Ballard class —somewhat as native
Iowans congregate in Lincoln Park at Los Angeles for their annual get-together
meeting— he looked them over and seeing their eagerness for one of the long
promised miracles, was moved to say:
“Out of the number of Chicago people who have come to
this class, one hundred of that number have had their own human creation
dissolved and consumed in its completeness!” (p. 11, June, 1938, V.)
What joy there must have been among these pilgrims from
neglected Chicago who had sacrificed time and money for the journey. One hundred
of them had had their “human creation” dissolved into thin air, or extirpated
in some way by these miracle surgeons, the “Ascended Masters” — and not a
single patient had succumbed, or had even been discommoded by the operation!
Then this modern prophet and dispenser of miracles looked
away from the Chicago contingent, and gazed upon the Detroit gathering of the
faithful. They, too, deserved something, some reward for their services; but
some of them had been listening to things that all hundred-percent “I AM”
students had been warned not to listen to. So, counting very rapidly, he said:
“Of those in Detroit, twenty-seven have had their entire
human creation dissolved and consumed.”
Only twenty-seven, as compared to Chicago’s neat hundred.
It just didn’t seem fair, for Detroit too had turned out in large numbers. But,
it appears, it was Detriot’s own fault, for, said Prophet Ballard:
“Detroit has had a great opportunity; but because the
students listened to very vicious gossip they have deprived themselves of this
great, great opportunity.”
However, offering a little encouragement to the losing
team, he added:
“But still the Light shall claim Its own in Detroit! The
Light shall claim Its own in Detroit! I so decree it!” (p. 11, June, 1938, V.)
Poor Detroit! The Ballards wanted, for good reasons of their own as we shall
discover, to shake the plum tree for their Chicago visitors at this class, but
found it was a good opportunity also to penalize the Detroit students a little
for disobedience in this little game of human creation.
Thus while they graciously shake the metaphysical plums
off one limb, they none too graciously use another limb to whip the erring into
line.
(Psychic Dictatorship in America, chapter 8)
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