• Preface
  
• The Foundering of Nations and its Causes
  
• What we know about the Coming of Christ
  
• A new Orientation and the Natural Sciences
  
• Two Kinds of Reality
  
• An Appeal to Mankind
  

PREFACE

With the publishing of this book, the Norwegian author and researcher in social science, B.Dybwad Brochmann, is introduced to the English reader. He started his work during World War I, and in the following years he published many books and gave a great number of lectures, not only in Norway, but in other countries as well.
The five lectures reproduced in this book were given in Oslo in 1954, only a couple of years before he died. This small book cannot fully reveal B.D.Brochmann's far-sighted vision of society, but it is our hope that it may give a glimpse of the new light on problems of mental and social nature which was presented by him.
Although he was constantly met by bitter opposition during his intense campaign to reform society, he had many supporters. His movement took 45.000 votes in the Parliamentary elections in 1936. For him it was imperative that people should understand that the potential for the salvation of mankind lies in our way of thinking.
As long as we are not conscious of the uncontrolled forces of psychological nature at work behind the tragedies and disasters in history, we are only fumbling like children playing with symbols in an invented reality. B.D.Brochmann applied Freud's psychology of the individual to the phenomena in collective mentality, and in this field he made many essential discoveries.
He demanded an attitude of mental hygiene in society as well as in private life, and he was of the opinion that this was of outmost importance as the only solid foundation on which to build peace between nations.
There is no doubt that B.D.Brochmann's ideas are of increasingly current interest and we feel strongly that his vision can prepare the way for a widespread spiritual and mental revolution.

Anders Ryste, Bondes Forlag, N-6150 Ørsta, Norway

The Foundering of Nations and its Causes

Ladies and Gentlemen:

By way of introduction, I would like to point out the obvious difference between the advances within technology and the natural sciences, and our knowledge about ourselves and questions of social nature. Whenever one is confronted with the imposing developments within the fields of physics abd chemistry, one is tempted to say that nothing is impossible for God's creative spirit in man. We gamble all our intelligence and attention on these subjects, but when it comes to solving social problems or illuminating the mechanisms of collective life, we are in opposition, and would rather run away from the responsibility. This seems to be a pattern which is constantly repeating itself. Therefore, it's not strange that there are so many pessimists who find it difficult to believe in peace, order and justice. Many feel that the future is without hope. They have nothing to believe in, and they see no way out. Everything has been tried, time and time again. Everything ends in failure, anyway. And they usually add that if we want order, we will have to have a dictator. We won't get anywhere without coercion and regimentation of thought. This is how they reason.

I'm not one of these pessimists. On the contrary, I believe that quite the opposite is the case. When I see how intelligent people solve technological problems, I'm filled with admiration ant anticipation. When we have been able to make such advances - when we have been able to reach such heights from such a low starting point - as the author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson said - what shall we not later win! - I am of the opinion that only when people get to know themselves, and learn to come to grips with their own identity, first then, will the new light be able to shine through quickly. There is much to indicate that a situation like this can erupt simultaneously all over the world. Christ speaks of the Coming of the Son of Man. The Son of Man will come to his own, just as the lightning flashes in the heavens from east to west.
The French philosopher Rousseau says that if people want peace on earth, the political systems must come to an end, as no political party can create world peace. These systems will always create discord, and there will always be unrest and war. If we want peace, this can only come about if humanity dedicates itself to a uniform philosphy of life which complies with the common interests of all people.
But this can hardly be a realistic way of thinking, will my listeners no doubt say. Is it really possible that a world so full of subjective opinions and points of view, prone to uncontrolled tempers and moods, can ever find peace through an understanding of itself?
I will try to give some instances which can show that man is already far on the road towards a reasonable outlook.

Let us, for instance, imagine that we are going to build a large electric power station with capacity of many thousands horsepower. What do we do then? Do we go to the Parliament or turn to the government to ask whether the power station is to be built by communists or concervatives? No, we advertise for competent engineers - preferably with long experience and insight into the problems involved - so that we can achieve our goal, i.e. to harness the waterpower and make it serve us.
When the operation of the power station is to begin, we advertise for clever experts. A warning sign will also have to be set up, proclaiming with big letters: HIGH VOLTAGE! DANGER! ENTRANCE FORBIDDEN FOR UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS!
No one speaks of dictatorship then. It is only natural that we should have common interests and a common point of view. Everyone knows that it would be impossible to operate the power station properly with Supreme Court lawyers, bishops or political parties as leaders. Naturally, the power station can only be operated by competent engineers and electro-technicians who are objective and have insight. This is not because we want a dictator-ship, but because it is obvious that the expert must rule here.
Let us pursue this thought a little further.
When a certain volume of water, which has a certain drop, represents a power station - what immense source of energy does not man's economic urge represent? Isn't this a power station as well? Let us think further and imagine that every living person here on earth represents a certain quantity of economic energy. If we were to multiply this energy with the population of Norway, you would see that this power station is even more powerful than the electric power station. This is a train of thought which is difficult to make people understand. We have been taught that man is evil, materialistic, egoistic and greedy, and this is why we have problems of social nature. We have never reflected that there is, invested in every living person, an economic energy, which in itself represents the basis of life in society. It is this power which we must get to know, so that we may harness it for the benefit of society.

These great technical advances would never been made if we still believed in the troll in the waterfall, or if we saw electricity as an evil power. It is only when we become completely sane in our ideas about the forces of nature that it is possible for us to utilize them completely.This is exactly what I would like to do, with regard to economic life. It is not possible for everybody to understand the tensions of economic life. There are many who can't follow when the talk turns to economics. But it's not really necessary to understand all this to be able to buy and sell, and use our money as we wish. But if you have some connection with the collective economy, you must also have a good knowledge of these things. Everyone who lives in Oslo does not have to become electro-engineers in order to switch on the electric lights in their homes. It is quite enough to have a switch and a power point. The rest has been taken care of by the experts. We don't all of us have to become professors in economics, but everyone must learn to respect the danger sign which proclaims: high voltage economics!
Also here it is natural that we who share common interests must arrive at a common life philosphy which complies with the realities. The real point is how long man needs before he realizes that he cannot continue to play games or practice quackery with forces as dangerous as society's economic powers.

I can mention another example. Let us imagine that our doctor tells us that we are suffering from a serious abdominal disease, and that we have a dangerous tumor. It may be a question of life and death, and the tumor must be operated on as quickly as possible. What do we do then, ladies and gentlemen? Do we visit our minister or the bishop and ask them to read the Lord's Prayer? Or do we visit a Supreme Court attorney or a member of Parliament, or the leader of the Conservative or Labour party and ask them to wield the scalpel and remove the tumor? We only wish to entrust our life to the truly competent surgeon. One can hardly imagine anything more foolish than a lawyer or a theologian handling the scalpel. And why? Because we understand that a person who is to operate on a human body must know anatomy. He has to understand the function of the body, and must also know exactly what he is to do.
It is a pleasure to see a clever surgeon operating. Here we, once again, see the human spirit and man's ability to think, separating him from the animals. This is what we call God's image, or God in man. Isn't it exactly this which makes it possible for the doctor to use the scalpel correctly and enables the engineer to build a power station which can easily harness so much energy? He directs the force of nature in whatever direction he wishes. What else could this be due to if it were not man's spiritual equipment? I define spirit as exactly what spirit means: the ability to think. When it comes to the concept of the spirit, I do not think theologically, theosophically or anthroposophically. Neither do I think of ghosts or of spiritism. I am merely thinking of the world spirit as God's image in man -the talents which Christ speaks of as being buried in the fields of the world, and which he time and again mentions in his parables. More than anything else, it is of the utmost importance that you take care of your divine individuality - your God-given intellect - and make use of it.

Finally, another example which can illustrate my point og view; if we decide to go to New York we go on board a ship that we know is run by competent people. We do not need a dictator, who runs about with a revolver, and policemen. We want knowledgeable men to be in command, who have crossed the Atlantic numerous times, people who understand their navigation, and know what compass and magnetic deviation is. We want to be sure of reaching our destination. But if parliamentarians had command of the ship, I doubt whether we would arrive at our destination. Religion and politics have nothing to do with objective reality. When we embark on a trip like this it is natural that we require experts to be in command. We all agreed on this, and so can safely and calmly go to bed in our cabin at night, trusting that there are people of responsibility on the command bridge and in the engine room. However, if an accident should occur and the ship founders and human lives are lost, it will be necessary to have an investigation to determine the various elements which contributed to the foundering. This is not because we want the captain, the pilot or the mate to hang. Neither are we interested in seeking revenge on anybody. Everyone accepts this investigation as quite essential to prevent the recurrence of such accidents in the future. Why can't we treat great wreckage in society in the same way?

The German statesman, Kaiser Vilhelm, had the following motto: "I lead you to glorious days". Instead, he led 30 million people to destruction and ruin. This didn't happen because Kaiser Vilhelm intended it this way. He probably meant his motto just as sincerely and idealistically as our king did when he said:"All for Norway". And why did the Germans steer right into catastrophe so terrifying that one can hardly imagine it? The reason must be that they did not have a responsible captain on the command bridge.

We do not demand a clear vision and spiritual leadership in collectice life. We use votes and majority decisions instead. It's sheer weight - the majority - which decides. When a whole nation was foundering as in Germany, we all know how it ended. There, for instance, the people were cheated out of all their savings by inflation and economic failures. Later, more than 20 million Germans were killed on the battlefields or made invalids for life. Finally, the Jews were singled out as scapegoats. As so many times before in history, the Jews were attacked and blamed for all the thnings that went wrong. Everything they owned was taken away from them and great numbers were annihilated. Once again we were witnessing Jewish pogroms of frightening scale. The German people imagined they could be saved from furhter shipwreck by doing this.

Time passed, and a new struggle arose, which was worse than before. Hitler's motto was: "Der Fuhrer rettet Euch" - The Fuhrer saves you- . His motto helped no more than Kaiser Vilhelm's motto. Both of them meant well, but the German people sailed once again directly into destruction. Millions of people gave their lives. When the German nightmare was over in 1945 we had the Nurnberg Process. Representatives from the so-called higher cultures in England, France and America donned judge's capes and stiff wigs as they have done for hundreds of years and passed sentence on all German statesmen and condemned them to death or lifelong imprisonment. And then what? Many people believed that a holocaust like this could never happen again. The fundamental causes of the disaster were thought to have been revealed, and the sinners properly punished. First, the Jews were blamed, then it was the German statesmen. I wonder if there is anyone today who feels quite certain that widespread disasters involving whole nations may be avoided in the future in such a simple way. I don't believe that this is possible. I believe that we have to live through more holocausts on earth as long as we do not learn to understand what is actually taking place.

Here in Norway we sat playing cards and it was all very pleasant, but then Hitler suddenly came and turned the card table over. People turned white with anger. If only the Germans hadn't come, they said. When it was all over, it was naturally Quisling and his Hird boys who were blamed. After all these people had been punished, it was felt that the problem of the foundering of Norway had been solved once and for all, and nothing like this would ever happen again. But could it really be so simple? Shouldn't we have conducted an investigation into the reasons why the Nazi ideas had gained a foothold in our country at all? Perhaps the captain or the engineer on board had made some kind of mistake and that this could teach us something. It would be interesting to know what caused the brutal disruption of the idyllic conditions here in Norway.

I hate neither Russians, Germans nor Americans. I have no enemies of flesh and blood. On the contrary, my enemies are the false life philosophy and concept of society, represented by the church and the state in Germany. The whole German people were taught and confirmed in the ideology of state heathenism. This is why I can't see the Germans as anything but victims of the same kind of misunderstandings which threaten both our people and our nation and the rest of the world.
In my opinion it should soon be possible to find the reasons which contribute to the foundering of nations. This is, however, only possible if we demand an investigation into the matter whenever something occurs which does not seem right. We must now, for instance, mobilize all our research and intellect in this country towards discovering the reasons for what happened in Norway in 1940. I want an explanation, but I do not want to ridicule or punish those who made mistakes. We must learn from our mistakes, so that we don't make them again - causing disaster for ourselves and our country.

I do not think that there are people who consciously want to do evil. I believe that everyone does what they can, trying to see and understand. I believe that everyone does what they can, trying to see and understand. Those who are at the helm in America and Russia, Germany and Norway are striving to give their very best. The situation was the same in Jesus' time, but Jerusalem was demolished anyway. The Jews crucified the truth about themselves, just as we do today. I constantly see that people are becoming martyrs, and if I believed this was the best way to serve my country, I would gladly face a firing squad. My enemies could shoot as many bullets as they wished into my body, but I don't think this would benefit my country. I think I can serve my country better by trying to find an explanation of society's disappointment and misunderstandings, and of why people hate and persecute one another. I really don't think it helps to set up gallows. Because we have acquired an irrational view of man we are dealing with the problems of the earth so irrationally.

You know man, you know the people, they are evil, they say. This is the theological way of looking at man and it is forever being repeated.
However, when we see millions of Russians voluntarily giving their lives for communism and the Bolshevik ideals, it is difficult to claim that these people are doing it because they are evil. They are sacrificing their lives for what they believe to be good and true. When we so often see that they die for their ideologies, it can't be that they are devils. Do you think that any soldier would serve his king and country if he thought that he was helping the evil forces in the world by doing so? He does his duty and gives his life because he believes it to be good and expedient that he fights to the bitter end. He leaves wife and children and home at a young age in order to sacrifice himself for the ideals which are a part of his inner being. Is it really possible to say that a person like this desires evil?

The theological portrayal of man is something we must cast aside. This is the first requirement if we are going to achieve peace. As long as people in America, in their propaganda, try to depict people in the east as devils, it is obvious that war and hate will be the outcome. On the other hand, when we constantly hear cries from the east, spreading throughout the world, telling what terrible warmongers and profiteers the Americans and the people in the west are - then there can be no peace either. No one asks why it is like that and why people hate and fight one another. It is the answer to these questions I am lokking for. I believe that these questions are closely related to the fact that we, in a collective sense, are living in an unconscious and dreamlike state, in an imagenary world far from reality. I find that these questions are dealt with at great length in the Bible. I find that the Bible teaches us more about the problems of society than any other book, also from a modern psychological point of view.

On the other hand there are people who are inclined to believe in the life philosophy of the natural sciences. I am of the opinion that this is determinism in its most banal form. The natural sciences today claim that it is the glands and the hormones which decide what we think and what we do. There is a lot of truth in what these physiologists are advocating, but if we follow this train of thought further we will discover that these teachings do not always correspond to reality. Do the Russians and Americans have different kind of glands? If we were to dissect ten fanatic communists and ten conservative Europeans, I don't think that anyone seriously believes that any difference would be found. I do not believe that glands decide whether we are going to become communists or not. It is rather a question of spiritual power, and a way of thinking. It was due to a new spirit when the Norwegian constitution of 1814 was written. And if the members of Parliament are now distancing themselves from this constitution, it is not because their inner secretory processes differ from those of the men who wrote it. If people could only begin to think independently, and were willing to work on themselves and their spiritual talents - we would soon see how fantastically deceptive the natural scientist view of life is. Scientists have made striking progress in physics, but when faced with the problems of human and psychological nature, they are rather helpless.

Fortunately, we have many examples nowadays of modern scientists all over the world leaving the old materialistic view of life. As proof, I suggest that everyone read the book: "Human destiny" by Lecomte du Nouy (1947). Recent literature seems to move in a similar direction, away from a shortsighted pshycological and materialistic life philosphy. We are embarking on a period when it seems as if people are now becoming much more conscious and aware of the potentialities of their spritiual equipment. This is, by no means, synonymus with becoming mystics, gnostics, or metaphysicists for that matter. This must be made perfectly clear, because none of these philosphies are part of the true reality. On the contrary, they serve to obscure and delay the development.

Nowadays, many people are very interested in nutrution and material things. I believe that this interest is drawing our attention away from the mental equipment which is so important if society is to be healthy. Jesus said to Nicodemus that he had to be born again. But I'm an old man, answered Nicodemus. How can I enter my mother's womb for the second time and be born again? Jesus explained to him that it is in spirit and in truth that he can be born again. There is nothing wrong with the body. It is rather our whole way of thinking which must be altered. Jesus says on another occasion that it is not what enters your mouth which makes you unclean, but that which comes out of your mouth when you speak to your fellow beings. Every time you open your mouth and speak of egoism and evil desire - then you are helping to polute the whole society of which you are part. Just think, if we could only learn to understand a simple thing like this. Then people might not care to read sensational articles in the press about poor individuals who commit different types of crime and immoral behaviour. If only people could realize what they are doing when they devour this kind of reading matter. What if people understood that by spreading dishonesty they are poisoning their own society. We know that this is happening in all parts of the world. It may be possible that a press like this can have been an important factor contributing to the downfall of the British Empire. One result of the deterioration was, for instance, the Oxford Movement which was imported to Norway. Once again we saw the condemnation of the minor sinner and street prostitute, while the great public crimes were ignored. Attention is focused on evil in the individual, while one is blind to collective legal devilry. It is not strange that society deteriorates when an attitude like this prevails.

We are being asked to sift out the mosquitos and eat the camels. One day we condemn a man who has commited murder, and the next day we hand out medals to men who have bombed big cities and killed thousands of women and children. Any sensible person would find it strange that such a mentality should be allowed to prevail. A society will anihilate itself if it continues to organize and worship collective evil, while at the same time, it continues to slander the small private individual. I don't pray to God for peace for a civilization which is so rotten. I would rahter say as it is written in the Bible: Let us rejoice, prophets and holy men. The God our Lord is strong, who condemns her, the spiritual prostitute, mother af all evil and malevolence here on earth.

These are strong words, but I must speak out. We can't call ourselves Christians if we aren't willing to do anything about it. We have both feet planted on the ground of the State Church instead of the evangelical ground. There is an infinite gulf betveen the two - the evangelical Christianity and that of the State Church. The sooner we are willing to take the consequences of this the better. The eight commandment is a social and mental regulation, which is of the greatest importance for every society.

I wonder how long it will take befor people realize that they must revise their Christianity. I'm not so absolutely certain that the western culture and Christianity sholud be held in such high esteem. Our good and well-meaning missionaries go to Madagascar to teach the people there about our form for Christianity. But is it so absolutely certain that the imagery and idolatry they meet there is so much worse than the idolatry of Europe? Are we so much better here, where we sacrifice millions of boys and girls in great wars for our modern idols - state budgets and state capitalism?

Jesus says: - Woe to him who travels over land and sea to win adherents, and when they have been won, makes them twice as bad as they were before -.

We know how much easier it is to see the splint in our brother's eye than the beam in our own. This is why many people become offended when we try to expose their idols. Freud says that human nature is against every new acknowledgement on the intellectual leve. I also wonder how long it will take before we understand that we must investigate closely who are the worst sinners -we in Europe or the natives living in Madagascar.

(to be continued...)

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