A Genealogy of the Extraterrestrial in American Culture
A Genealogy of the Extraterrestrial in American Culture
A Genealogy of the Extraterrestrial in American Culture
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one was privy to cosmic secrets, with <strong>the</strong> primary secret be<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> source and tim<strong>in</strong>g <strong>of</strong> perhaps<br />
<strong>the</strong> most momentous occasion <strong>in</strong> history s<strong>in</strong>ce <strong>the</strong> rise <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> bipedal hom<strong>in</strong>id—<strong>the</strong> “next th<strong>in</strong>g.”<br />
Not only was one privy to such imm<strong>in</strong>ent events, one was an active participant <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>m.<br />
Thus, <strong>in</strong> short, all <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> basic elements <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Space Bro<strong>the</strong>r contactee appeared <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
case <strong>of</strong> Dorothy Mart<strong>in</strong>: elements <strong>of</strong> cont<strong>in</strong>uity with earlier occult traditions found <strong>in</strong> members’<br />
beliefs, <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> content <strong>of</strong> messages, and <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> messages’ modes <strong>of</strong> communication; <strong>in</strong>timations<br />
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> cosmic importance <strong>of</strong> both message and recipient; warn<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> imm<strong>in</strong>ent disaster based<br />
upon negative human affect (hatred, violence, greed, selfishness) and/or <strong>the</strong> rapid pace <strong>of</strong><br />
technological development (particularly atomic weaponry); and lastly <strong>the</strong> promise <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
potential for accelerated evolutionary growth - mov<strong>in</strong>g to <strong>the</strong> “next level” <strong>of</strong><br />
consciousness/existence. As noted earlier, <strong>the</strong> millennialism <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> space bro<strong>the</strong>rs was an odd<br />
amalgam <strong>of</strong> secular and religious modalities. Clearly <strong>the</strong> m<strong>in</strong>dset <strong>of</strong> those who followed <strong>the</strong><br />
space bro<strong>the</strong>rs was one prone to magical th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g and <strong>the</strong> prevalence <strong>of</strong> occult <strong>the</strong>mes clearly<br />
<strong>in</strong>dicated a predilection for matters spiritual. But just as Spiritualism strove toward fram<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong><br />
afterlife as a material phenomenon, so did <strong>the</strong> space bro<strong>the</strong>r religions attempt to materialize <strong>the</strong><br />
spiritual. They did so by <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> pseudo-scientific jargon—<strong>the</strong> alcetope and <strong>the</strong> earl<strong>in</strong>g<br />
timer—and by mak<strong>in</strong>g outer space <strong>the</strong> spiritual realm. Ascended masters lived on Venus and<br />
Mars or Clarion and Cerus. Christ was still present, only his ascension was not <strong>in</strong>to heaven, but<br />
to ano<strong>the</strong>r planet. His centrality to Earth’s fate was still understood, he was “Lord Jesus<br />
Sananda, Earth’s Christ Teacher dur<strong>in</strong>g this time <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Planetary Ascension <strong>in</strong> his Mission to<br />
reclaim Earth as a Planet <strong>of</strong> Light.” 235 But he did so not as <strong>the</strong> only Son <strong>of</strong> God, but as member<br />
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> galactic command. Mart<strong>in</strong> and her followers exemplified <strong>the</strong> tendency <strong>in</strong> post World War<br />
235 Rev. August Star, “About <strong>the</strong> Ashtar Command” <strong>in</strong> 11:11 Ashtar Command Ascension Network,<br />
(www.staresseenia.org/About/abt.ashtr.com.htm)<br />
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