Biography
I am a teacher in the Western esoteric tradition.
Since my father was a physicist it was natural that my first degree was in science, majoring in pure mathematics. However, by the time of graduation I had become disillusioned with the soulless scientific worldview and, to use a Jungian expression, I went in search of my soul. In Indian spirituality there is a saying that when the pupil is ready the teacher appears, and this is literally what happened to me. In 1975 I encountered my spiritual teacher, Rev. Mario Schoenmaker (leading an independent Congregational Church), and embarked on an inner journey through his inspiring example as a Christed person and stimulating teachings rooted in the Bible. Through a challenging apprenticeship spanning twenty-two years, including one-on-one mentoring, I was gradually initiated into an oral tradition (known in Judaism as kabbalah) that discloses knowledge that cannot be learnt from books or the internet.
Stephen Cugley and Rev. Mario Schoenmaker, 1978
While my heart and soul were involved in the life of this vibrant Christian community, I also had to earn a living. I taught applied mathematics at tertiary level at WAIT (now known as Curtin University) in Perth (1975-80) and at RMIT University (1981-9). From 1987 I was the director of the college affiliated with our church, involved in teaching and curriculum development courses included metaphysics and positive thinking, meditation, spiritual development, symbolism and Christian esotericism. From 1990-8 I held a full-time post there.
Through involvement in a creative Christian community my scientific mindset was fertilized by an experience of Christ at the core of my being, fostered by study and devotional practices. In order to expand my repertoire as an esotericist and biblical scholar, I embarked on orthodox studies with the Uniting Church covering the Bible, the history of Israel and the church, and biblical Hebrew and Greek. In 1983 I graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity (Hons.).
Yet formal training in science and then theology left me dissatisfied with both systems, so I set about seriously studying the ‘spiritual science’ of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) from the mid 1980s. As a consequence I came to perceive and know the world through scientific knowledge woven into a larger theological or metaphysical whole.
In 2000 the course of my life changed and I began working full-time in isolation as an independent scholar engaged in exploring diverse research topics with two main branches. The first branch encompasses spiritual science related to biblical creation and astrophysics, world history understood in terms of the evolution of human consciousness, and a holistic understanding of human procreation. The second branch has to do with two periods in a secret history. The first is the history of Israel and the work aims to decipher factual history that has been encrypted in the legends of the Old Testament. The second period begins with the Christ event recorded in the New Testament and the theme is approached from the perspective of the Greco-Roman mysteries. The rise of esoteric Christianity is then tracked.
After fifteen years (at the end of 2015) I had developed a body of knowledge that remained concealed within my own archive. During that phase of intensive research and development of resource notes and manuscripts, I did little teaching and made no attempt to publish anything. Now I have entered into the final stage of my life and the mature fruits of my labours are being released for the first time. The avenues include teaching and presenting papers (I am open to invitations) as well as this website, books, videos, blogs and articles in academic journals and popular magazines.
Call to Action
Hopefully the vision behind the website and the calibre of the teachings presented will strike a chord with you and others, and encourage fruitful communications as we seek to understand ourselves and the world at a deeper level of knowing and experience. The website is a work in progress that will continue to grow over time. In part this will be in response to the feedback and interests of visitors to the site. Join the conversation by leaving your details below. I’m Stephen Cugley and I look forward to engaging with you.
