142. A little later I saw some of the other spirits from the same world, who were to be seen at a lower level than those with whom I had been talking. These, however, were idolaters, worshipping an idol of stone, resembling a human being, but not a beautiful one. It should be known that on arrival in the next life all begin by practising worship like that they had in the world, but they are by stages withdrawn from it. The reason for this is that all worship remains implanted in a person's inner life, and it can only be withdrawn and uprooted by stages.
On seeing this I was able to tell them that they ought not to worship what is dead, but what is alive. They replied to this, saying that they knew that God is alive and is not a stone, but that when they view a stone which resembles a human being they think of a living God. They found it impossible any otherwise to concentrate the ideas of their thought and direct them to an invisible God. Then I was able to tell them that the ideas of thought can be concentrated and directed towards an invisible God, when they are directed towards the Lord, who can be thought of as God visible in human form. By this means man can be linked to an invisible God by thought and affection, and so by faith and love, when he is linked to the Lord, but not in any other way.
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