Reincarnation (or, you can't get there from here, again)

Let's talk about the much beloved subject of reincarnation; apparently beloved by many who pursue metaphysics, in that it appears to be an easily accepted premise (as inherently a part of Western metaphysical Christianity?), a convenient justification (although intrinsically subjective) for many of life's experiences, and appears to be included on the ‘sacred cows’ list of many New Thought folk. So let's start with some basic definitions.

According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, reincarnation is "the idea or belief that people are born again with a different body after death," or more specifically, “rebirth in new bodies or forms of life; especially: a rebirth of a soul in a new human body." According to The Revealing Word, the metaphysical meaning of reincarnation is, "when a soul leaves the body, it rests for a season. Then innate desire for material expression asserts itself, and the ego seeks the primal cell and builds another body. Reincarnation will continue until the ego awakens to the Christ Mind and through it builds an imperishable body.” And interestingly enough, reincarnation does not appear to have merited consideration as a theological term by Van Harvey, because it is not included in his A Handbook of Theological Terms.

Thus, while the concept of reincarnation seems to be prevalent in New Thought, quite arguably innately subjective, and not theological in Western thought, the belief in reincarnation appears to have originated in the Eastern world, more specifically the Hindu religion. Reincarnation is one of the jewels of knowledge of Hinduism, is closely tied with the concept of karma, and is considered a law of the cosmic order. The purpose of reincarnation is to provide the opportunity for the soul to live many lives and undergo many experiences until it attains perfection and reunites with its Divine source.

Although easily included in Western metaphysical Christianity, there is no actual biblical basis for the concept of reincarnation, and although it was a common religious belief of many ancient traditions at that time, reincarnation was not a popular concept in the early Christian church. It was also not included in the letters of Paul that have been discovered to date, and Paul in his writings presents himself as an extinctionist on the heaven – hell question.

The Transcendentalists in their eager search for new meaning and understanding and rebellion against the prevailing dogmatism of contemporary Christian thought (think Harvard Divinity school), ‘re-discovered’ reincarnation in their study of Eastern literature (Emerson read and studied sacred texts from Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sufism along with many of his peers), and though it did not develop into a primary premise of transcendentalism, brought this concept into the fold of the emerging Christian sciences. It fit comfortably with the new passion for and necessity of personal intuition of religious truth.

It seems that there is a broad enough concept of reincarnation in metaphysical Christianity for it to be defined personally and subjectively; and for me at this point in my life experience what fits most comfortably is the understanding that there is certainly life after death, but we do not reappear in physical bodies on this time – space Earth, but progress forward in a never ending adventure characterized in Jesus Christ’s words as "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you." (John 14:2 KJV)