Becoming a Holy Man
 

In this letter I’m going to show you where mainstream Christianity has misinterpreted a particular extremely important point concerning the teachings of Christ.  I know I am theologically correct here and if you hear me out I’ll  prove this, as our Lord insists I do so for the love of His church.

As we all know Christ advised (never commanded):

“If you wish to be perfect go sell all you have give to the poor and follow Me”

Most of Christendom believes and teaches that Christ was only advising that rich young man. . . but I will prove that is not the case; Christ was advising him, true,  but this advice also pertains to everyone. Please thoroughly read this essay, through it I will prove my case to you (One reason Christendom has been wrong on this subject is because all those who speak and teach on the subject have never followed this road themselves and experienced the priceless spiritual blessings it reaps in the soul of the man who walks it> I have.).

Please hear my proof:

One of the greatest disciples of all time lived 800 years ago. His name was  Francis of Assisi (city of San Francisco was named after him, he was founder of the Franciscan Order, plus he has many, many outstanding spiritual credentials too lengthy to list here).

When he first started accepting disciples he wasn’t sure on exactly how to proceed, thus the Holy Spirit instructed him to open the Bible up to three different places. Having made the sign of the cross, it was opened  three times in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

At the first opening there appeared the words that Christ said in the gospels to the young man about the way of perfection: “If you wish to be perfect go sell all you have give to the poor and follow Me.”

As a consequence of them obeying that ‘heavenly instruction’ all the early Franciscans (in the beginning they only accepted unmarried people in the Order) made this material sacrifice, and as incredible as it may sound, God gave them the similar powerful anointing that He gave the original Apostles and the first church (with all the miracles!). It was as though the glory of the Apostolic age returned anew!

Consequently, these men where responsible for the greatest revival of the middle ages.

>Why not obtain and read this spiritual classic and check it out for yourself?

(“Little Flowers of St. Francis” by Raphael Brown.).

Additionally, I am qualified to speak on this subject since I’ve walked this same road; God ordered me to follow this same directive of the Master. . . and I was never a rich man like that fellow in the Bible. . . in fact I was poor.  I did as the Master advised and I have quite a personal testimony to share, and God insists I share it, please listen!

It did a tremendous amount of good for my soul. . .more than words can adequately describe. . . it was so powerful it was just like being born again, all over again!

(I’ve discovered if one has bills to pay poverty is a curse because of all the worrying lack of finances bring; but if you go homeless for God’s sake this poverty becomes a priceless spiritual adventure.  It becomes as St. Francis coined it, ‘Holy-poverty’!

Doing Holy-Poverty in the streets is far higher than living it as monks do in monasteries. In the beginning the Franciscans had few places. During their frequent preaching tours, they as the Gospels dictates, took nothing for their journey, neither staff, nor wallet, nor bread, nor money).

Anyway, when I gave away my all my money to the poor (all $600 of it). . . the Lord blessed me immediately afterwards in this fashion.

 I was taken in a rapture up to heaven (paradise), for perhaps ½ minute.

(To describe it I’d rather use the word paradise, because that place is blissful beyond anything that human mind can conceive!)

While there the Lord revealed to me aspects of being  “Poor in Spirit” (Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven) that the church does not understand.  Additionally, the Lord personally showed me how to obtain the maximum spiritual benefit from developing this virtue. He showed me that by developing this one virtue it’s a formula to attain paradise!  I’m speaking of attaining paradise prior to bodily death!! - Just by fully developing this one virtue!!

(Note: God’s definition of ‘poor in spirit’ is far broader than what all Christians I've  spoken with believe and teach). By living in holy-poverty in the streets I personally experienced being ‘poor in spirit’.  This is my firm belief: None of the people who merely study it, understand the depths of it (I didn’t even come close before I took the plunge).

Now, I am going to be speaking pure common  sense in the next few paragraphs:

 Just as immediately after breaking a  fast, food tastes so special, in the same manner this  DEPRIVATION  is the key to becoming greatful to God for the many, many things that we take for granted. Thus, this deprivation is indelibly connected to experiencing becoming ‘Poor in Spirit’. . . instead of merely reading about it as most Christians do.

Sadly, Christians who don't fully understand teach and thus teach inaccurately, and it becomes as the Word states the blind lead the blind and they both fall into a ditch (the problem is almost the entire church is in the ditch concerning some very important matters).

(Asceticism was merely one facet of the early-Franciscan’s secret to sanctity. Also, they were masters at the art of humiliating themselves. . .  following the example of Christ who made Himself the ‘reproach of men and the outcast of the people’.  Additionally, the gospel directive to be ‘partakers in the  sufferings of Christ’  because ‘those who suffer  with Him  will  glorified with Him’.

If one lives a humble life of service for many years this lifestyle makes the soul humble and pure.  What takes many years of humility to accomplish for the soul, through humiliation it can be accomplished in but a handful of months!  Why? Because humiliation is lower). To learn more of this spiritual mystery (humiliations) you will have to first read the book I suggested, then contact me, as the book is an introduction to humiliations and I’ve written an in-depth paper on this subject.

And without doing both you may think you understand God’s message through this vessel, but I guarantee that you do not.

Additionally speaking of faith in God:

 If a person renounces all visible means of support  and places their full trust in God (living by Divine Providence>DP), that person’s virtue of faith has got to improve, use you common sense!!

(Shockingly, I’ve discovered that many homeless people have more faith in God than Christians, for the simple reason that they are poor and naked before the Lord. 

Note: Love of God is one virtue, faith in God is a completely different virtue. To develop it is akin to learning a different language!).

The path to heaven is the path of self-negation (dissolving oneself), for God’s sake {I must decrease and He must increase}.  Voluntary- Poverty  (Holy-Poverty) is self-negation! My experience is that when one reaches a certain advanced point in this self negation process your life becomes a sacred ‘play of consciousness’; you enter into the realm of miracles. Why? Because He has increased greatly because you have dissolved yourself for His sake.

Additionally, walking this path you become “the least of them” and  thus see through the eyes of the least of them (what you see is that almost all Christians are walking in pride and thus are blind, they may speak eloquently and appear spiritual because of their knowledge of scripture, but they lack humility and love for all. . . which is the purpose of the  learning of scripture knowledge to begin with!).  Also, voluntarily becoming the least of them for God’s sake is a sacred undertaking. . . as the least of them is connected with extreme humility, need I say more?

>Haven’t you ever heard that the way up is the way down?

Plus, all the suffering that you endure walking this road becomes suffering for God!

What you learn seeing through this new perspective will shock and astound you!!!!  I’d like to tell you more. . . but perhaps I told you too much already.

These spiritual blessings are only reserved for those who pay the price. . . and that is also how the Master intended it from the beginning, that is the reason He merely points in the direction. . .and says no more about it.  To learn more you must pay a price for it!

One can’t understand the deep things of God  without the personal experience. . . . and without the personal experience parts of the word of God are misunderstood and in turn this misunderstanding is taught in Bible studies until it becomes institutionalized!

Not good at all!!

If you take Christ’s advice and make the sacrifice your eyes will open up, if you don’t make the sacrifice you think that you see, but most likely you don’t. . . most people who call themselves disciples are blind to much. I speak from experience because I used to be one of them!

{Bible- “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds “(John 12:24)}

One person’s objection to me was -- if people follow this directive how can they take care of their parents when through old age they are in distress?  My answer is this: to follow this road you don’t have to make a lifelong commitment as one who marries.  If the situation merits it one can always come out of holy poverty and return to a conventional lifestyle.

“Blessed are those who suffer for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”

Suffering for righteousness as Paul did is yet another path to glory. For that reason towards the end of his ministry Paul proclaimed, “Oh death where is thy sting!” His reason for making this statement is because  since he was already residing in heaven how could death touch him? You have probably been taught wrong here also.

(I can show you other places!)

The first Church  received  their grace because of their association with the radiance of the Apostles (who experienced the close association with Jesus for three years), plus the radiance of the120 believers who where baptized by fire on the day of Pentecost.   Additionally, this church was birthed in an environment of persecution. All these factors illumined the first Church.

The persecuted church of modern times earn their glory because of the spiritually hostile environments they are raised up in. The early Franciscans, who had comparable glory, paid for it through Holy-Poverty and practicing the art of humiliation. 

For the church of today to inherit the tremendous good that God desires to give them, they will have to pay a price for it, just like the others paid. A price greater than studying and debating. . . a price in suffering.

Sadly, most Christian disciples in our society  are in the eyes of God like a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal. On account of their scripture  knowledge they have an amazing eloquence while uttering heavenly words. They even beget great multitudes of spiritual offspring by showing to others the fountain of life. But since they refuse to suffer for the cross they themselves are arid within without interior grace.  Thus sadly they  have the glorious words but not the spirit. This is the case because they live off too much milk and not enough meat. . . ie. for God’s sake getting their hands dirty too infrequently. They are a people of the mind (studying and discussing) and not of the heart (fruitful in good works).  After all, God is love.

The Lord has directed me to interpret that directive of Christ . . .

Here goes:

“If you want to be perfect (IN THE IMAGE OF CHRIST), go sell all you have give to the poor and follow Me”.

{Isn’t that a good interpretation??}

Speaking of Holy-poverty a certain fellow once asked me why the first church did not do such things. The Lord gave me the answer to that question.  When Jesus spoke on this topic it was never a command.  It was > “If you wish to be perfect. . . “.  Now, since I know myself I know everyone else as well. Us human beings tend to pick the easy road / the least painful road to achieve an end.  Therefore, the early church members bypassed this advice (because it was never a commandment).  Additionally, since the Gospels were brand new to the world they had their hands full just getting the word out.

Twelve hundred years later Francis of Assisi came along.  When people first requested to follow this holy man, the Holy Spirit specifically instructed him to make that directive one of the pillars of his Order.

Mainly on account of them obeying this one spiritual directive, many of them became spiritual giants, not unlike the original Apostles and disciples of the first church.  Again, as a consequence of  these men paying this greater price they were responsible for the greatest spiritual revival of  the middle ages! (The first church received the rare grace of having the spiritual radiance of the Apostles plus being the beneficiaries of the 120 who experienced Pentecost (purification by fire). . . in their midst.  The persecuted church earns their glory because it exists in a hostile environment.  Our Church in the west doesn’t have that special grace of the first, nor do they live in a hostile environment. Thus for us to inherit that glory we must pay a price of it, as the early Franciscans did.). Aren't I speaking common sense?

>You ought to be able to see that  my experience following this one spiritual directive  had a domino-like effect. It has far-reaching implications in many aspects of one's spiritual walk (humility, faith, compassion).

>>More confirmation that this is of God, is all the goodness that comes about from following it!

God insists that I state this:

Once you have checked out all the evidence (including the suggested readings) I know I can easily prove that I am theologically correct.  Then, the Lord insists that His Holy Word becomes restored. The Church must restore the Word by teaching this as a holy-option. That way zealous disciples are taught a straightforward path to rapidly attain their full spiritual potential. . . their spiritual dreams!!

IN THE EYES OF OUR CREATOR ONE QUALITY DISCIPLE IS OF FAR GREATER VALUE THAN A HUGE NUMBER OF AVERAGE DISCIPLES

PS> Many sincere disciples may counter my argument concerning holy-poverty by saying, “Its important that we have finances or how can we support missions and help those in need?”  Great question! My answer to this question is that we all know that being generous with cash is the positive side to having money. Generosity is something great.

But on the other hand, there is an extremely spiritually damaging side to having money in your pocket, something that has never occurred to you prior to you reading this essay. 

>Money and what it can provide, insulates us from becoming poor and naked before the Lord. It insulates us from experiencing deprivation, suffering, and developing real faith. . . and thereby it can inhibit us from becoming holy as He is holy, understand?

For reasons such as these all societies with Christian roots saw it important to inscribe on their money “In God we trust”. From the beginning they realized the spiritual danger on how having money tends to rob our faith in the Lord. You’ve never thought about this because the present money system is all you knew. I never did either until I went on DP and tried to live without it.

Living on Divine Providence (DP). . . with scant or no money. . . has taught me to be greatful to God for the smallest and seemingly most insignificant things (that’s a big part of becoming ‘poor in spirit’).

Additionally,  it helped me to develop faith in God as the provider for ALL MY NEEDS (real faith!). 

 >Most Christians talk a good talk.  . but I’m speaking about the real thing!

Here is the million dollar question:

How as we as spiritual people glean the benefits of both worlds (having money to share with the church and with those in need, without the spiritual downside)?

Since I am a person who has walked both roads, the Lord has given unto me a solution. . .a sacred ‘primitive’ blue-print. . . so we can, as much as possible, have the best of both worlds. A solution that can bless the entire church.

I call it a ‘primitive’ sacred blue-print because it is ‘perhaps’ unfinished. 

When others walk this road (homeless street ministers)  for say . . .  5 consecutive months. . . .perhaps God will enlighten them to improve what is has thus far been conceived through this one flawed vessel.

Sincerely, Daniel Rosenblit