Towards Spiritual Encounter

Towards Spiritual Encounter: Everyday Sacramental Meetings

“The basis for all free religious feeling that will unfold in humanity in the future will be the acknowledgement—not merely in theory but in actual practice—that every human being is made in the likeness of the Godhead…. For then every meeting between one person and another will of itself be in the nature of a religious rite, a sacrament.” — Rudolf Steiner

In his general practice as a doctor, Albert Smit observed numerous psychological issues in his patients—issues that often caused existential crises for them. Those experiences led Smit to change his career and begin a path of research to discover how genuine inner healing could be achieved. In this succinct and inspiring study, the author offers a clear way forward that allows individual and social transformation.

Smit points to a statement by Rudolf Steiner—that human relationships could become something of a social art. We can begin on this work today, through free and conscious choice. Engaging the forces of the heart, we can meet others beings as true individuals—as equals—and ultimately as brothers and sisters. Such work could help to heal the individual alienation and social divisions of our time. Eventually, human encounters could evolve into spiritual events—even sacramental acts. Towards Spiritual Encounter is a valuable text for meditation and reflection.

C O N T E N T S:

Introduction

1. The Spiritual Has to Be Borne Down from the Spirit World by Human Beings
2. The Way toward Heaven Begins in Yourself
3. Be Yourself the Change You Want to See in the World
4. How Do We Bring Spirituality into Life Today?
5. We Are not at the End but at the Beginning of Christianity
6. The Creation is Imperfect
7. As the Old World Once Came into Being out of the World Word

Notes

About the Author

Albert Smit (1940–2020) was an anthroposophical doctor, teacher and biographical counsellor. He began his working life as a tropical physician in Zambia and subsequently worked in The Netherlands as a general practitioner. In the second half of his life he changed his career to become a counsellor and teacher of the human condition at a number of professional training insti­tutes (including in the UK). The rea­son for this change was his observation of the pain in the souls of human beings of the present. He wanted to make a positive contribution to this through the aid of anthroposophical insights and true human encounter.