Synopsis
Containing a wealth of material on a variety of subjects, Light for the New Millennium tells the story of the meeting of two great men and their continuing relationship beyond the threshold of death: Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925)―the seer, scientist of the spirit, and cultural innovator―and Helmuth von Moltke (1848-1916)―a renowned military man, Chief of the General Staff of the German army during the outbreak of World War I.
In 1914, following disagreements with the Kaiser, Moltke was dismissed from his post. This led to a great inner crisis in the General, that in turn drew him closer to Steiner. When Moltke died two years later, Steiner maintained contact with his excarnated soul, receiving communications that he passed on to Moltke’s wife, Eliza. These remarkable and unique messages are reproduced here in full, together with relevant letters from the General to his wife. The various additional commentaries, essays and documents give insights to themes of continuing significance for our time, including the workings of evil; karma and reincarnation; life after death; the new millennium and the end of the last century; the hidden causes of World War I; the destiny of Europe, and the future of Rudolf Steiner’s science of the spirit.
Also included are Moltke’s private reflections on the causes of the Great War ("the document that could have changed world history"), a key interview with Steiner for Le Matin, an introduction and notes by T. H. Meyer, and studies by Jürgen von Grone, Jens Heisterkamp and Johannes Tautz.
About the Authors
Rudolf Steiner (b. Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner, 1861–1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe’s scientific writings. Steiner termed his spiritual philosophy anthroposophy, meaning “wisdom of the human being.” As an exceptionally developed seer, he based his work on direct knowledge and perception of spiritual dimensions. He initiated a modern, universal “spiritual science” that is accessible to anyone willing to exercise clear and unbiased thinking. From his spiritual investigations, Steiner provided suggestions for the renewal of numerous activities, including education (general and for special needs), agriculture, medicine, economics, architecture, science, philosophy, Christianity, and the arts. There are currently thousands of schools, clinics, farms, and initiatives in other fields that involve practical work based on the principles Steiner developed. His many published works feature his research into the spiritual nature of human beings, the evolution of the world and humanity, and methods for personal development. He wrote some thirty books and delivered more than six thousand lectures throughout much of Europe. In 1924, Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches around the world.
Helmuth Johannes Ludwig Gra von Moltke (1848–1916), also known as Moltke the Younger, was a German general who served as the Chief of the German General Staff from 1906 to 1914. General von Moltke was also a follower of Theosophy.
T. H. Meyer was born in Switzerland in 1950. He is the founder of Perseus Verlag, Basel, and is editor of the monthly journal Der Europäer. He has written numerous articles and is the author of several books, including Reality, Truth, and Evil (2005) and major biographies of D.N. Dunlop and Ludwig Polzer-Hoditz. He also edited Light for the New Millennium (1997) describing Rudolf Steiner’s association with Helmuth and Eliza von Moltke.
Johannes Tautz (1914–2008), born in Dortmund, Germany, was a historian, religious scholar, anthroposophist, author, and Waldorf teacher. He concerned himself with a better understanding of National Socialism and with matters of education in the twentieth century. Tautz took up Eastern studies, religion, and the history of philosophy when "the National Socialist demon had not taken these over yet." He studied ancient spiritual texts in their originalHebrew, ancient Greek, and Sanskrit. At the start of World War II, Tautz was called for military duty but was dismissed on account his incompleted studies. His was occupied with the later philosophy of Schelling and submitted his dissertation, "Schelling's Philosophical Anthropology," in which he used two citations of Rudolf Steiner that led to the official prohibition of Anthroposophic work in Germany at the time. Together with a young friend, Thomas Meyer, he visited the daughter of Walter Johannes Stein, Clarissa Muller, in Ireland, where she was assessing her father's literary estate. They found a copy of Stein's dissertation annotated by Rudolf Steiner, letters and meditations from Steiner for Stein, his mother and for his brother, who fell in a mysterious way in World War I. Letters and notes of Ludwig Polzer-Hoditz, Eliza von Moltke, Ita Wegman, D.N Dunlop and many other personalities were discovered and formed the basis of Tautz's biography of Stein in 1989.
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