competition.

Those who realize the signs of the times, look for the birth of cosmic
consciousness as a race-consciousness, foreshadowing the new day; the
"second coming of Christ," not as a personal, vicarious sacrifice, but as a
factor in human attainment.

"For I am persuaded," said St. Paul, "that neither death nor life, nor
angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor
powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to
separate us from the love of God."

If we interpret this in the light of cosmic consciousness, we realize that
we shall know, and _experience_ that boundless, deathless, perfect,
satisfying, complete and all-embracing love which is the goal of
immortality; which is an attribute (we may say the _one_ attribute) of
God.

We are not looking for the birth of _a_ Christ-child, but of _the_
Christ-child; we are not looking for a second coming of _a_ man who shall
be as Jesus was, but we are anticipating the coming of _the_ man (homo),
who shall be cosmically conscious, even as was Jesus of Nazareth; as was
Guatama, the Buddha.

That there may be one man and one woman who shall first achieve this
consciousness and realization is barely possible, but the preponderance of
evidence is for a more general awakening to the light of Illumination.

"We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in the twinkling of an
eye," said St. Paul.