Jack and I had a two hour coffee yesterday at Bell’s books, where we had not met for several years. It’s in a neighbourhood I - with family - visited often, when we lived as a family at 3610 Tenth street, SW. I drove by that location and took a photo of the new house there that has replaced our old bungalow, but the underdrive garage is still there, albeit transformed no doubt.

We lived in that location from 1974 to about 1982 and I think back of it with fond memories. Jack’s family house too has been razed and replaced, which is the lot of many a house in that area, just above Elbow Park and south of Mount Royal.

We lived in that location from 1974 to about 1982 and I think back of it with fond memories.

Last night I spent two hours after supper on my sorting project. I came across a letter from my late sister in law Henske. I had no recall of this letter what so ever, occupied as I was back then with my divorce from Ina and had to clean out our family home to make it market ready.

What was a little eerie about reading this letter now, was that Henske took her own life a little over two years after the letter‘s date of June 1 1994. I am discovering that when some one close to you takes his or her own life, it is difficult to achieve the peace of closure about a life so ended. It is a bit as if I still grieve about this happening, possibly implying the wish that I might have had the power to prevent it. Such events must be accepted, but that does not always come easy or quickly.

This afternoon I’ll make my way to meet up with John for a tea, which has not happened for a few weeks, in part on account of the past cold weather.

During the sorting last night I came across a letter from Jeltsje with a clipping from the daily paper Trouw of 1999? (Dutch daily). It reviews a book on the Cathars titled “Unde malum. Dualisme bij de manicheeers en katharen.” by John van Schaik. Jeltsje and I discovered our common interest in the Cathars back in 1999 and still exchange views on this on occasion.

The book puts paid to the notion that there is a historical theological connection between these two groups, this in spite of the popular notions held to the contrary in some popular movements.

However, from the article I deduce that both movements were rooted in the earlier Gnostic notion about ‘humans’ being trapped or hindered by their physical embodiment. This entrapment could be redeemed through human actions.

The Cathars (1200AD) saw themselves - that is humans - as escaping from this despised physical existence. The followers of the final prophet Mani (ca. 230AD), held that they were engaged in redeeming the divine light present in the physical world, which included humans as well as nature.

Reading yesterday about the Gnostic and Manichean idea of light being trapped within our human body, reminded me of my study of the Gnostic teachings. That was during the summer of 2004 in preparation for my talk on this subject for September the 5th of that year.

Looking back over all the various presentations I made since then on religion and belief frameworks, gave me a new insight. It is that we can discern a development from the Gnostic notion of ‘light’ in the human body to what we call ‘consciousness’ today. This is illustrated by the fact that the word ‘consciousness’ appeared in the English language in 1629, according to my Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11ed!

My other point is that such an increase in awareness is acquired and not just a given. It must be sought out with intent and perseverance in order to be achieved.

By viewing this ‘light within’ of the Gnostics as an early notion of what developed into the modern notion of ‘consciousness’, we are able to make a connection over time. Such a perspective illustrates the developmental increase in our human capacity to make clear differentiation and analyse problems that we encounter.

My other point is that such an increase in awareness is acquired and not just a given. It must be sought out with intent and perseverance in order to be achieved. This view we should apply to the processes that we moderns are engaged in, when resolving our societal conflicts and clashing interests. It would make us a bit more patient with ourselves as human beings and not send the first available drone or rocket, but learn about each other first.
<11:40am, with interruptions and editing.