Ward began life as the son of an Anglican minister from whom he acquired an interest in religion that was to persist
throughout his life. He began his spiritual seeking when still a young man at Cambridge University, where he majored in
history, receiving a B.A. in 1908.
Thereafter he spent some time as a high school teacher until the death of his uncle Henry Jones Lanchester (H.J.L.) in
January 1914. It was H.J.L., whom Ward used to call "Boss" that first made him aware that he was psychic, or as he himself
puts it "Mediumistic".
Only a few days after his death, H.J.L. began to make contact with Ward, and the two of them tried several means of communication
before coming to the conclusion that Ward was most receptive to contact from beyond when he was asleep or in a trance.
Under his uncle's tutelage, Ward came to learn much of the Afterlife, which, he discoverd was a vast realm subdivided
in a number of ways. This is a subject that will be re-visited at another place in this website, but at this time Ward
was only just beginning to learn.about the spiritual realms.
This learning process continued for most of 1914, but after the outbreak of World War I, Ward was asked to leave
England. Unable to join the army because of his poor eyesight, he ws sent out to Burma to take charge of the Diocesan High
School in Rangoon.
He spent rather more than a year in Burma, Ceylon and India during which he continued his spiritual research. He
made many contacts among Buddhists and Hindus, learned much of their temple rituals and was eventually initiated as a Hindu
High Priest in the temple at Madras. Although he had been quite familiar with the doctrine of reincarnation before
this time, it seems to have been his experiences in the East, and in particular his meetings with a number of persons who
claimed to remember previous lives that convinced him of its validity.
In his book "Life's Problems" he relates the story of one little girl who was able to provide convincing details of life
at the great city of Pagan at least 500 years before. Ward's extensive knowledge of history rendered him uniquely capable
of vouching for the validity of the information given and for him to have related it again so many years afterward, it seems
clear that it impressed him at the time.
Ill health forced him to return to England early in 1916 and then when his brother Rex was killed in the Trench Warfare
in Flanders, Ward once more joined with H.J.L. to assist him to adapt to life on the Other Side. Combining his Eastern
knowledge with the results of his own psychic experiments, Ward became an extermely able guide but he also continued to study
here on earth.
He took a position with the Federation of British Industry in 1918, and rose to become their Director of Intelligence
befoe retiring in 1930. Between these two dates he became a leading authority on Freemasonry and other secret societies, both
modern and ancient. His own spiritual knowledge and psychic ability grew considerably during this period until he found that
by his own unaided efforts he could not travel any higher. Thus it was that he began his mystical journey - at least partly
as a simple extension of his Psychic experiments.
After the death of his first wife, Carrie, in 1926, he married Jessie Page, with whom he was later to assail the heights
of mysticism and it was in company with her that one day in 1927 he found himself called into the presence of Christ the King
and asked to work for Him.
Both John and Jessie Ward accepted this great initiation and thereafter dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to the service
of God for the rest of their lives. Their subsequent mystical experiences confirmed many of their long-held ideas about spiritual
matters, but they also found that there were many beliefs that could not be substantiated and so they found themselves led
to accept others that were often very different from those of their contemporaries. Yet they followed the Eternal Truths that
were revealed to them to their lives' ends.
They founded a community that was dedicated to preparing for the Return of Christ and over the decades that have passed
since then many people have participated in this Work, which continues to the present day.
His life touched some of the best-known figures of his era, as well as thousands of ordinary people and through
his writings he has continued to influence a widely varying army of supporters throughout the world, many of whom have, life
him dedicated their lives to preparing the way for the return of Christ. This website is presented as just one more aspect
of that work, which its authors believe will persist until at length Christ does come again - not this time to die on the
Cross, - but rather to reign as King over all the earth and establish a new revelation that will provide the spiritual basis
for the New Age that is even now beginning to dawn across the world.
Beliefs and Teachings of J.S.M. Ward and his Followers
John Ward's philosophy of life was simple. He was a seeker after Truth, and very early he recognised that Truth in some
form was to be found in all faiths. He was in his late 20's when his newly awakened psychic ability enabled him to explore
the Afterlife and at the same time his knowledge of history enabled him to uncover the threads of wisdom that linked the various
belief systems of the past with the spiritual teachings of modern religions. In the early 1920's he published some of the
results of his studies in a number of books that sought to link modern groups, such as the Freemasons, the Rosicrucians and
the Order of the Eastern Star with their ancient predecessors, the Mystery Rites of Isis, Eleusis, Mithra and others.
He then traced these links back beyond Roman times to the very earliest civilisations and even to prehistoric man revealing
that God has always had some contact with man albeit often imperfect and easily corrupted. Nevertheless by comparing
commonly-held themes he was able to demonstrate that the same basic Philosphy of Life lay behind each of them and in the mid
1920's he sought to persuade his brother Freemasons to accept this Universal Philosphy and use it to establish a new world
order of universal brotherhood.
Although in the main, Freemasonry did not accept his views, he remained
undaunted and began to add studies in mysticism to his already considerable repertoire of interests. He was joined in this
work by a fellow seeker, Jessie Page, whom he married in 1927and the two of them, working together in this field formed a
team that may well be unique in history.
This is because although each developed into a mystic of outstanding ability, they had different styles and strengths,
so that one could often supply what the other lacked. In addition, because they worked closely together and constantly compared
experiences this provided a constant source of corroboration that has been lacking in most of the mystics of history
When from 1927 onward, he and Jessie began to assail the heights of mysticism he was able to clarify his previous theological
views in a number of ways by linking them with the spiritual knowledge that the two of them gained from their contacts with
Higher Planes
A Summary of the theology of John Ward and his followers is provided below. It is not claimed to be complete, but unlike
the creeds of many more formal belief systems, it does not contain inherent contradictions. It is based on the Ancient Wisdom
of the Past and is perhaps the most comprehensive presentation of Spiritual Reality given to mankind since Christ Himself
walked the earth, 2000 years ago. Nevertheless it is phrased in modern terminology and as such, his followers recommend it
to the world.
Summary of the Teachings of J.S.M. Ward
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1 |
We believe in One God, Unmanifested and Incomprehensible, from Whom and in Whom, all things
have their being, even Time and Space: Who in the Beginning, manifested forth as the Trinity of One Substance, namely, God
the Father, the Father of all souls, God the Holy Spirit, the Mother of all souls and God the Son, the Elder Brother of all
souls, Who in turn brought all Creation into being, from Whom descends continuously a stream of Divine Sparks that enter into
matter to gain therein experience, so they may ultimately return to enrich the Godhead. |
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2 |
We believe in God the Father, the Father of all souls, and Creator of Heaven and Earth who
has revealed Himself to Mankind in a myriad different ways, but Who has revealed Himself to us through the Holy Scriptures.
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3 |
We believe in God the Son, the Elder Brother of all souls, Who is also their Salvator, and
periodically descends into matter, in order to lead his brethren along the Path of Return, who most recently came to earth
as Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, who was born of the Virgin Mary and taught mankind the Way of Salvation, Who suffered
death on the Cross, descended into Hell to aid those who had failed, and then raising even His material Body out of the grave,
returned to earth life to teach His disciples and then ascended into Heaven. |
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4 |
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Mother of all souls, Who descended upon the apostles and
disciples of Our Lord in order to institute the One, Holy, Orthodox and Catholic Church on earth, and Who continues to inspire
and guide that Church even to this day through the spiritual descendants of the apostles, the clergy, saints and mystics. |
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5 |
We believe in the One Holy, Orthodox and Catholic Church founded by Christ through the power
of the Holy Spirit, led initially by the apostles of Christ, and ever after by their anointed successors and which teaches
His Way of Salvation and shall continue to do so until He comes again. |
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6 |
We believe in the Way of Salvation, whereby, following in the Footsteps of Our Lord, and making
use of the Sacraments of His Church, we are enabled to obtain forgiveness for our sins and assistance in paying our debts,
so that ultimately we may finish our round of earthly lives and take our place among the Saints of God. |
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7 |
We believe in life after death; that our loved ones await us on the further shore, that they
dwell initially on the Astral Plane in a condition determined largely by their standard of life when on earth, that they then
pass to the Spirit Plane in which their condition is determined wholly by their spiritual state, and which ranges from Hell
to Paradise; and that ultimately they will be reborn again on earth: and that this process shall continue until they earn
the right to end their round of earthly lives. |
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8 |
We believe in the Divine Spark within each one of us, Eternal and indestructible, whereby
alone we are enabled to break free from the shackles of material existence; that we gain experience on the Astral and Spirit
planes after death on earth, only to return again, life after life until we have learned all that earth life can teach us.
Even if at times we turn away from God, He will not abandon us, and ultimately we will be led to realise the folly of our
sin; and taking the opportunities afforded to us, pay off our past debts by sacrifice and service, and following the Way of
Salvation earn the right to end our lives on earth. |
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9 |
We believe that the Tester of Men and Angels, has been appointed by God to tempt and test
all who seek to follow the Way of Salvation, to ensure that none who are unworthy approach the Throne of God. |
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10 |
We believe in Heaven, the abode of the Three Planes of the Saints and Nine Choirs of Angels
and that it is the destiny of each Divine Spark to ascend this great spiritual ladder step by step until ultimately it returns
to God, the Source from whence it came. |
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11 |
We believe in the promised return of Christ to reign as King over all the earth. That the
time of His coming is drawing near and that it is the duty of all his followers to prepare themselves and others for that
great Day. |
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12 |
We believe in the ultimate salvation of all Creation, that through sacrifice, suffering, and
service all will eventually return to their Source, and the purpose of Creation thus accomplished, God will again become All
in All, and ultimately withdraw from Manifestation once again. And that this process has been, is, and ever shall be, continually
repeated throughout all Eternity. AMEN |
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