Religion is traditionally termed a set of precepts, a code of ethics, which enables the soul to live as it should live. All religions have a grain of truth, and to use an analogy, not all of the wheat is used to feed the multitude.
Unfortunately, in days gone by, there was a clash between the instrument of the spirit (the medium) and the priest--whose task originally was to concern himself with the function of the temples or Church buildings. The two first worked side by side, and then the priest resented the attention paid to the one through whom the inspiration came. There began that long process of theology, of the classification and creed, of ritual, of ceremony, of dogma, of doctrine, none of which has any real connection today with the gifts of the spirit or its life or its development.
Real religion has become obscured today. Many who think of religion, think of it in terms of a certain set of ceremonies, the reading from books regarded as sacred, the chanting of hymns, and the wearing of vestments. People give their allegiance to certain forms of words and cling to them long after reason has dictated they are fallacious.
It is not religious to declare that God is Three in One or One in Three. That does not increase the growth of the spirit one iota. People can sing hymns, read the Bible, Talmud, Bhagavad-Gita, Koran, or any sacred book until the eyes grow weary, but this will not increase the growth of spirit.
People may do all the things that men regard as religious, but unless they inspire you to lead better lives, unless they enable the spirit within to find greater expression, then these people are not religious as viewed from the world of spirit. Real religion involves seeking further truths and exercising the spirit to provide service--deeds which are unselfish and altruistic. True religion involves the attempt to help those less fortunate than yourself, giving strength to the weak, removing the load off the shoulders of those who have too much to carry.
Religion is living in a way that brings one closer to the Great Spirit. Religion is when the power of spirit is expressed in one's actions. Religion is service. The purpose of religion should be to unite everybody in a common brotherhood and sisterhood because of their unbreakable fundamental spiritual relationship.
When dealing with people who have certain benefits of spirit world communication, but still adhere to fundamental theological beliefs, we must recognize that they are on the lower rungs of the evolutionary ladder or have not yet been able to shed doctrines received in childhood.
There are those who refuse to allow the power of spirit to reach them. They hide themselves in the secluded convents of theology and enclose themselves in the monasteries of creedalism. They are afraid, for they know that once spiritual truths are available to every child of the Great Spirit, there will be no need for priest, clergyman, bishop or archbishop. Everyone can learn to become instruments of the Great Spirit.
Those who embrace the metaphysical concepts, were at some stage believers of a similar creed, whether in this life or a previous one. With time, Wisdom allows us to abandon strict beliefs, but none of us attains perfection. We need to be tolerant and help fundamentalists. It is useless to argue, for as the poet said, "they leave by the same door by which they came in."