What is Theosophy?

From here.
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WHAT IS THEOSOPHY?

Theosophy: A philosophic and religious “gnostic” current, a continuation and synthesis of ancient neo-Platonism and gnosticism which, in its newer form, was put forth mainly by the Theosophical Society (founded in 1875) by its founder Helena Petrovna Blavatski, a Russian “medium,” and now offered by the “New (Aquarian) Age” movement.

The main aim of theosophy is, on one hand the, development of a global core of a humanity free of discrimination based on religion, race, sex, class and colour, but on the other hand, in relation to the previous objective, to prove that all the different religious faiths and heresies are substantially the same, with a common beginning and minor variations. Based on these aims, theosophy set out from the beginning to advance “comparative religion” as a means of demonstrating the origin of religions from common primary religious myths. However, characteristic of the theosophic understanding – due to its basically Hinduistic (and Buddhist, as concerns ethics) character – is the belief in rebirth and reincarnation, its denial of the existence of a personal God, spiritual pantheism (and in particular the presence of the divine essence in man; namely, man is in essence a god, a spark and rendering of godly essence with hidden divine powers), “evolutionism,” communication with already advanced beings of earlier periods (Spiritual Hierarchy) through spiritism (“mediumism”) and the expectation of a future teacher “Christ” (Maitreya), “Christ of the Aquarian period,” which will surpass all the previous “teachers” (“Avatars”), even Jesus.

After Blavatski, Annie Besant became the leader of theosophy. She was head of the British sec-tor of the mixed (male and female) Masonic Order “Le Droit Humain” and after her came Alice Baily, who set out to create a particular theosophical group, the “Arcane School” (1923). She created and advanced the familiar modern day “New Age” movement, which has an intense messianic and anti-Christian character. The influence of theosophy on the mystic Masonic religion is evident, the most important characteristic of which is Masonry’s adoption of the theosophic teaching of a future, final “World Teacher.” Based on many writings of Blavatski, the praiser of the Satan-serpent, as much as on the title of one of her magazines “Lucifer,” it evident that the term “theosophy” is derived in truth from the term “θεος-οφις” (Theos-ofis =god-serpent) and not from “θεου-σοφια” (Theou-sophia = Wisdom of God).

One branch of Theosophy, after its breakup in 1913, is “Anthroposophy” (wisdom of man) or “Rosicrusian” Theosophy founded by Rudolf Steiner.

Helena Blavatski characteristically wrote in her work, The Secret Doctrine: “Satan is the angel who was quite proud to believe that he himself was God; and he was quite brave to pay for his independence the price of suffering and eternal torment... Satan, the serpent of Genesis, is the true creator and benefactor, the father of the spiritual humanity... And he who whispered, ‘on the day you eat of it you will be as Elohim, knowing good from evil” may only be honoured under the light of a saviour”….