Theos-Talk Archives (April 2005 Message tt01850)

William Doss McDavid in his book "An Introduction 
to Esoteric Principles: A Study Course" writes:

"Should we take H.P.B. as an infallible authority? 
. . . Absolutely not. . . . But there is another 
side to the question. We have to remember that 
the modern Theosophical movement owes its very 
existence to H.P.B. and the Masters, whose faithful 
agent she claimed to be. It would be extremely 
unwise to reject the teachings given through her 
without understanding what those teachings really 
were in the first place. And how can we acquire 
this understanding if we do not study her writings? 
We don't have to blindly accept what she says or 
take her views as the last word, but at least we 
should become familiar with those views firsthand. 
Then we can reject or accept intelligently. When the 
works of other and later writers who claim to be 
continuing the work begun by H.P.B. present viewpoints 
and 'revelations' which are at direct variance with 
the original lines of teaching, we may feel justified 
in questioning the source of the newer pronouncements. 
A familiarity with the original writings, therefore, 
provides a criterion for intelligent judgment." p. 37