An excerpt from the
introduction to
the New Clairvoyance
The Unfolding of a
Spiritual Gift
by Rev Mario Schoenmaker
Clairvoyance
is often associated with gypsies, crystal balls, tarot cards and the like, but
these are only remnants of a type of clairvoyance which existed many thousands
of years ago when humanity was still in direct contact with the heavens. Today,
we are no longer in contact with the heavens; in most cases, we are not even
aware that the spiritual worlds exist, so these remnants of the “old”
clairvoyance have little value for the modern world. The clairvoyance spoken of
in this book has nothing to do with the lower psychic levels, fortune-telling,
trances or other unconscious states. The clairvoyance spoken of in this book is
new. The word “clairvoyance” literally means “seeing clearly” and the
term “new clairvoyance” describes a new kind of perception that is opening
up in humanity. In the beginning, it will be involuntary. It will come with a
flash of memory here and there. With training and the right motivation, it can
be developed into a spiritual gift which will be of much blessing to the person
and to those around them.
My
own experience has taught me that such a consciousness is born out of a longing
to perceive the spirit behind the physical appearance of things. All my life I
have had a strong love for the Christ and I have longed to see him, know him,
and understand him. A natural consequence of this love for Christ is a love for
people also, for one can see the Christ reflected in people everywhere. To love
is to grow more perceptive; the person who loves another is always gazing at
that person and trying to perceive the other’s needs. Therefore from love
comes greater sensitivity. Love is the, perhaps unexpected, source from which
clairvoyance flows.
The
way in which clairvoyance then grows varies from one person to another. My gift
became apparent when I was just over thirty-five years of age. From the
spiritual point of view thirty-five is the turning point in a person’s life in
one way or another. People either carry on in the pattern they are used to, or
they take a decisive step in response to a challenge presented to them. A person
is spiritually ready at this stage to express the mission for which they came
into the world. In my case I had been prepared for thirty-five years to receive
the mission of portraying Christ in terms relevant to the modern age.
The
preparation involved long years of training within the Catholic Church where I
became acquainted with the Bible and liturgy. I was disciplined in such a way
that I learned to direct my mind and apply realistic thinking and observation.
Because of this strict training I can now concentrate and get straight to the
point. This did not just happen, for one needs to be willing to be trained and
willing to put in the effort. Then there was the training of the emotions so
that I could control my emotional needs and wants, and lastly there was the
learning to associate with people on an ordinary social level.
I
am not at liberty to divulge all the details of the unfolding of my clairvoyant
perception, but one incident in particular will shed some light on this. After
certain spiritual experiences in Europe, I left Holland in 1955 and came to
Australia where I trained to become a minister of the Congregational Church in
Perth, Western Australia. In Perth I had an experience which enabled me to begin
to realise the potential of my clairvoyant abilities.
One
night in 1966 I was sitting in front of the fire in the lounge room with my wife
and a few friends. Although I was not even consciously meditating I was taken
out of my body into a cathedral-like building. In this spiritual atmosphere
burning coals were placed on my forehead and stomach which actually left burns
on the flesh at these two points. When I came back into the body I could see
colours. Nothing was defined, but colours were streaming from all directions
towards me.
This
continued for days and weeks until I learnt to control my perception of the
colours so that it did not interrupt my normal daily routine. Part of learning
to work with my clairvoyance was the ability to switch it on and off. If a
person cannot do this the eventual result is insanity, because the person does
not live in the reality of the flesh. Even though I saw that reality for the
human soul lies in the heavens, we are nevertheless in the flesh and have to
deal with material things. Therefore we must control our spiritual levels and
gifts.
I
then set about learning how to understand the meaning of each colour so that I
could interpret its symbolic language. I studied colour symbolism and also
carefully observed the subtle colours which spirit revealed to me. I began using
my gift for friends and those I encountered who were in need of help. Very
gradually I was able to associate a colour in a person’s aura with a
particular past life, so that I could tell from a colour the century and life
experience which had contributed to the building of that colour in the auric
field. From an experiential knowledge of colour there came the reading of the
records of the soul in certain incarnations. This process, which commenced in
1966, was not complete until about 1975, by which time I could use the gifts to
the extent that I could do a Spiritual Reading in the form described here.
I
cannot talk about my work without also talking about my Lord, for in doing a
Spiritual Reading I see the way in which Christ works in a person’s life.
Christ is part of the Godhead which set creation into motion. Christ is that
divine individuality which entered this earth almost two thousand years ago in
the man called Jesus. But, since the incarnation, Christ is also the inner self
of humankind. So, Christ is at work cosmically in the universe and he is also at
work mystically within each soul. The purpose of world evolution is the growth
of the soul into a Christ-like being, and this is what I have always tried to
express in my Spiritual Readings. Even though I may never actually say the word
“Christ”, my ideal is that I speak as Christ would have spoken to that soul
had he been physically present.
When
I call myself a clairvoyant, a clear-seeing person, then I stress that this is
on a spiritual rather than psychic level because it is only through the
spiritual level that the Christ force can pour out from someone. I always see
myself as subject to the force of Christ. I do not go to any of the beings in
the spiritual hierarchies, be they angels or archangels. I go to Christ, but the
exact way in which he comes to me I am unaware of. All I know is that when I
speak I speak from a lofty level. This level is acquired, firstly, by compassion
for the client and, secondly, through the realisation of my utter dependence on
the higher worlds to give me that knowledge. If one opens oneself to the higher
forces through the meditation of Christ, negative forces may be near but they
cannot take hold. Therefore a constant relationship with Christ is of great
importance.