The Hon. William E. Brown, C.S.B., of Los Angeles,
California
Member
of the Board of Lectureship of The Mother Church,
The
First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts
The following lecture entitled "Christian Science: The Science of Spiritual Causation," was given a number of years ago by the Hon. William E. Brown, C.S.B., of Los Angeles, California. Mr. Brown, a member of the Board of Lectureship of the Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., spoke substantially, as follows:
Let us rejoice together at the opportunity which is mine tonight, to bring you the Christian Science message of emancipation — the way of escape from the house of bondage, from the slavery of materiality. Through the teaching and demonstration of Christian Science we are beginning to understand the meaning of the words of Christ Jesus when he said to his disciples, "For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
In order that I may present this subject to you in an orderly and logical manner let me say that Christian Science is a deductive science, and that I shall follow the manner of the Scriptures; that is, I shall begin with the premise that God is infinite Mind, who created all and pronounced all very good.
As you are well aware, this method of reasoning is quite the opposite of that employed in developing the material sciences. However, even now, we are hearing the requiem sounded on many long accepted conclusions, often founded on empirical knowledge. For through tireless research and experimentation in the fields of physics, chemistry, and the natural sciences in general, the physical scientists are proving the fallibility of many hitherto supposedly fixed laws. Some one has said that the discovery of radium made waste paper of whole libraries; the atom, felt to be fixed forever as the final and irreducible bit of matter, finds itself broken into elections, or ions of energy.
Step by step, the world is being led to the Science of all sciences, the Science of Christianity, whereby we recognize and demonstrate the ultimate truth, regarding God and man; whereby we establish through proof the religion of spiritual causation.
From the Scriptures we learn that the Science of Christianity, as taught by Jesus, is purely deductive, and this was, foretold by Isaiah, who, while referring to the coming of the Messiah, said, ". . . and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge . . ."
It is my desire to present this subject in the spirit of helpfulness and service to humanity; otherwise its presentation would be unnecessary. It is not my intention to appeal to mere faith or emotion, but rather to reason and logic. It has sometimes been said that Christian Science is difficult to understand and that some of its statements are far-fetched, but as we proceed I am sure you will think otherwise.
Naturally, in the discussion of any exact science the logical thing to do is to consider first its premise, foundation, or principle; this, of course, in Christian Science is God, or to use Mrs. Eddy's oft-repeated and eloquently qualifying descriptive term, is infinite Mind.
The terms employed by Christian Science to define the nature of God, such as Mind and Principle enable us to conceive of an infinite God and to enlarge the limiting sense of God as personal, a view which really prohibits a right understanding of God as omnipresent and omnipotent. The term personal, as generally used, includes the conception of form or outline, and it is impossible to conceive of an infinite form or person.
Here let me call your attention to a most important and interesting matter. All Bible students are aware that in the book of Genesis there exist two separate and distinct accounts of creation; one which refers to the Creator as God, and the other referring to the Creator as Lord God, or Jehovah. In considering the character of God, it will be helpful to know the distinctions made in His character by these accounts. In the first account God is described as ALL, the infinite I AM; in the second account God is represented as a tribal deity. Of these separate accounts of creation, James Warwick Price writes in his work, "The One Book": "About the year 875 B.C., the Jehovistic version appeared, so called because God is called Jahve, or Jehovah. About 750 B.C., appeared the Elohist version, because God is called Elohim." He continues, "About a century later these documents were in some way compiled, and in many essentials these documents are directly contradictory."
In the Jehovistic concept we have a tribal God who manifests the human qualities of anger, hatred, revenge, etc.; quite the opposite of the Elohistic concept of the I AM who declared all to be good and very good. And then note the sweeping repudiation of the Jehovistic concept given in Exodus. "And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them."
A spiritual sense of the Scriptures plainly shows God to be omnipresent Spirit, filling all space and within which all things exist. This view is sustained by the Scriptural declaration, "In him we live, and move, and have our being." In other words, God is not in us, but we are in Him. Of this Mrs. Eddy writes (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 331): "God is individual, incorporeal. He is divine Principle, Love, the universal cause, the only creator, and there is no other self-existence. He is all-inclusive, and is reflected by all that is real and eternal and by nothing else. He fills all space, and it is impossible to conceive of such omnipresence and individuality except as infinite Spirit or Mind. Hence all is Spirit and spiritual."
God then, or infinite Mind, is our starting point. With this premise before us, the first logical deduction is that God, infinite Mind, being the only Cause or Creator, the universe must be like its cause, mental. I would like to fix this basic fact firmly in your consciousness, because when one grasps the fact that the universe is a thought universe, the rest of the road is comparatively easy. My meaning is well illustrated in a statement made by Professor J. A. Fleming, who declares, "The physical universe is a thought rather than a thing."
At this juncture we are face to face with the chief stumbling block which causes the materialist to say that while Christian Science can cure mental troubles it cannot cure physical troubles. This is because he does not yet understand that man is wholly a mental being; in other words, he mistakenly thinks that man is part matter, a theory now largely discredited by eminent physicists. It is evident that since the universe is wholly mental mankind is also wholly mental, and from this it will be seen that any agency which is truly remedial in one instance will be equally efficacious in every instance.
The methods of Christ Jesus, the Great Physician, did not classify disease into functional and organic divisions calling for different modes of treatment. His record shows that he cured all manner of disease and discord, ranging from financial lack to the death of Lazarus, and he did these works by one and the same method — through an understanding and an application of divine Principle.
Permeating the teaching of Jesus is the basic truth that God is All and that God does not know, cause, nor permit disease of any kind. This is illustrated by his declaration that a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit. Deducible from this, is the fact that God's perfect universe could not deteriorate in any way. Here someone may say, "Suppose that all is perfect from God's viewpoint, if I do not know it, or cannot know it, what good does your logical statement of fact do me?" Ah! but you can see it and know it if you know how, and it is the mission of Christian Science to show you how. Your question resolves itself into this: How can one become conscious of God's perfect universe? This is accomplished by acquiring the Mind of Christ.
But how acquire the Mind of Christ? Let me tell you right here, today, you can begin to acquire that Mind; in other words, the knowledge of how to think as Christ Jesus thought. Are you weary and heavy laden? Then turn, as Nicodemus was bidden to turn away from the contemplation of man as mortal. Are you sorrowing, or is there illness in your family? Recall what Jesus did for the Syrophenician woman when he healed her demoniac daughter; first he ascertained that she was firm in her purpose to receive healing from this divine source. In short she was turning to the Christ Mind, and with this ascertained, the healing came. Immediately. Do you lack supply? In the Sermon on the Mount the Master admonished us to seek the kingdom of God first, and promised that when we did this all else should be added to us; and he proved his precept when he fed the multitude.
The importance of gaining a spiritual understanding of the Scriptures is revealed in Christian Science and is shown in its interpretation of the life and mission of Jesus — an interpretation which corrects those false and popular theological views which prevent seekers from following the commands of the Master. To illustrate: the word atonement is generally believed to refer to Jesus' death on the cross, whereby he is supposed to have atoned for the sins of the world, and that the world was saved by his death. Christian Science maintains that this conception is erroneous, and Mrs. Eddy defines atonement as "the exemplification of man's unity with God, whereby man reflects divine Truth, Life, and Love." She continues, "Jesus of Nazareth taught and demonstrated man's oneness with the Father, and for this we owe him endless homage. His mission was both individual and collective. He did life's work aright not only in justice to himself, but in mercy to mortals, ‒ to show them how to do theirs, but not to do it for them nor to relieve them of a single responsibility" (Science and Health, p. 18).
This is not an arbitrary
definition by Mrs. Eddy, but is also shown by the eminent philologist, Richard
Trench, when he declares that the true meaning of the word atonement is "at-one-ment."
Christian Science emphasizes that it is the life of Jesus which is the
essential thing and not his death.
With the wonderful record of accomplishment left by Christ Jesus in overcoming sin, disease, and death, and all of their various ramifications, together with his assurance that all who truly understand and follow him will be endowed with his ability to do the same works, it was inevitable that someone would arise who would fulfill his requirements and would demonstrate how to duplicate his achievements. Such a one was Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, its Revelator to this Age.
This revelation came to her, as it did to Paul, who declared of the gospel preached by him, "For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." Herein Paul emphasized the difference between mere intellectualism and spiritual understanding, and established the fact that revelation is superior to human reason.
Christian Science may attract the attention of the wise and philosophical, but only the Christian can understand it. Here arises a most important point: most of those who criticize Christian Science are not really acquainted with it. Only the one who understands Christian Science and can demonstrate its teachings is competent to pass judgment on it. Christian Science comes to the world in the manner described by Paul, "not with excellency of speech or of wisdom . . . but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power."
All thinking persons who have had presented to them the spiritual facts of the allness of God are confronted with the question, What about evil? Perhaps I can better answer this question if you will let me talk to you for a few minutes about dreams. Did you ever experience a troubled dream and awaken the next morning with gratitude that it was only a dream? I want to have you realize clearly the possibilities of such dream experiences, as it will help me in elucidating what I shall tell you of the illusionary nature of evil. In dreams, mortals suffer, enjoy, and participate in experiences similar to those of their waking hours; yet upon waking they are aware that these events have never taken place. In like manner Christian Science teaches and proves that the evils of so-called human existence have no more actuality than the experiences of the night dream. The position of Christian Science is proved through demonstration of its premise — the allness of God; and the allness of God surely means no less than His omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. Does not this all-inclusive triad automatically shut out the possibility of evil having intelligence, place, or power?
The question is frequently asked, How can Christian Scientists be sure that evil is unreal? Because they prove it; every healing in Christian Science proves the unreality of evil, inasmuch as the healing work is wholly based on the premise of the allness of a supremely good God.
A simple bit of logic will show that evil is purposeless and causeless: If we assume that God permits or creates evil, we are forced upon the untenable platform of assuming that an all-wise God, after creating a universe which He pronounced wholly good, immediately proceeded to let loose upon His finished work a malign power which promptly began to destroy it. Evil does not create anything; its whole purpose is to destroy; it therefore could not have existed before creation, and with an infinitely good God as creator it certainly could not have come into existence after creation. It stands, logically, in the same relation as does disorder to order. It is plain that order must have existed prior to disorder, otherwise there would have been nothing for the latter to disarrange.
Evil, therefore, is not an entity, but merely an argument of the carnal mind. It presents its claim to consciousness through temptations of various kinds; the temptation to be angry is akin to the temptation to be ill. Christian Science teaches that true redemption does not consist merely in refraining from false and sinful desires (which is, to be sure, a preliminary step); true redemption goes much farther and includes the loss of false desires. This genuine redemption can be gained only through a knowledge of the unreality of evil, as taught in Christian Science.
Someone has wisely said that there is one best way to do everything, and this, of course, applies to healing as well as to all other activities. In all sincere efforts to achieve, mortals are constantly seeking for the perfect model, and there are found in all worth-while human undertakings authorities to whom they look for [help and inspiration. So there is in] Christian Science a perfect model, or authority, Christ Jesus, from whom the way of true healing may be learned. He never lost a case, and yet he knew absolutely nothing about the modern theories of germs, vaccines, or any of the modern medical so-called discoveries. Of his method, discovered and re-established by Mary Baker Eddy, the following well known medical authorities have said:
Dr. Richard Cabot, professor of clinical medicine and professor of social ethics at Harvard University: "The good effects of Christian Science I see on all sides. I have not the slightest doubt that it does good, that it cures disease, organic as well as functional."
Dr. Charles Hunter, associate professor of clinical medicine, University of Manitoba: "Christian Science has helped many persons suffering from diseases, which to the medical practitioner had defied diagnosis. Christian Science, furthermore, has brought relief to individuals who were victims of organic disorder."
In a general way Christian Science teaches that health is assured by spiritual understanding and living, and that disease is caused by sinful habits and practice. Here let me answer a question which usually arises at this point: It is frequently asked, If that which has been said about the cause and cure of disease is true, why does the sorrowing saint frequently suffer more than does the sordid sinner? The answer is: That the sorrowing saint is frequently influenced by the belief that he is suffering because God wills or permits it, and that it is his duty to submit patiently to the divine will. Then the question is asked about little children who are not sinners, but who frequently suffer in many ways. This is because the child is embraced in the thought or mentality of his parents and is governed and controlled by the parents' fears.
In addition to the diseases caused by sin and wrong living and thinking there are those which arise from what is termed race beliefs, or the beliefs which prevail in the general human consciousness, such as epidemics, contagion, etc. Such diseases belong to the class described by Job when he said, "The thing which I greatly feared is come upon me."
As a simple illustration of race beliefs may be cited the condition of fatigue. For centuries mortals have been taught that strength resides in the body, similar to a storage battery; when this strength is exhausted, the body, like the battery, has to be recharged. This is attempted in many ways: by rest, food, stimulants and other forms of recuperation. The study of Christian Science knows this to be a fallacy and that strength does not originate in nor reside in the body, but is expressed spiritually and flows eternally from God, who swings the spiritual or real universe forever through space. A knowledge of this fact is the only real cure for fatigue.
Freedom from disease comes from a knowledge of the truth; it is knowing which counts, and someone has said that one does not have to struggle, nor to strive, one simply has to know.
In speaking of the effects of evil thinking all are more or less familiar with the effects which evil thoughts produce in face, carriage, conduct and demeanor. One could go on indefinitely quoting instances to corroborate further the fact that disease has a mental origin; every case healed under Christian Science treatment establishes this fact. Mrs. Eddy advises her students to take possession of their bodies and dictate the terms which shall govern them. Here it will be well to remember that true healing, permanent healing, most be predicated upon the allness of God, the truth of being, which destroys the seeming cause of the trouble about which we have just been talking. It is also important to know the difference between disease caused by sin or wrong-doing and that which is the result of race beliefs.
Students of the Bible are aware that all are frequently exhorted to pray and to expect results — the manifold blessings which are promised to the faithful. In fact, they are commended to pray without ceasing. There can be no doubt that multitudes have striven and are striving to comply with these admonitions regarding prayer, and the question is frequently asked why the prayers of some consecrated Christians do not seem to be answered. The failure to receive the blessings prayed for is due to some misapprehension as to the nature of prayer, for it is certain that our heavenly Father is not one who grants the petitions of some and refuses to grant the prayers of others equally sincere.
Confronting this perplexing question Christian Science comes, rendering humanity a most important service in teaching it how to pray aright, and in accordance with the instruction of Jesus, who said, "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them," supplemented by the warning of James, who reminds that when we ask and do not receive it is because we ask amiss, to consume it upon our lusts. The instruction of the Master clearly shows that true prayer is one of realization, rather than petition, and silent prayer, as taught in Christian Science, makes possible obedience to the command that we pray without ceasing — a constant affirmation expressed in life practice, that perfection is infinite and ever present.
Said Pope, "The proper study of mankind is man." But what is man? According to the Scriptures, man is the image and likeness of God, having dominion over all. However, it is not amiss to call attention to what man is and what man is not. Concerning the man whose origin is considered in the second chapter of Genesis, who is said to have been created from dust, Isaiah warns us, when he says substantially that we must cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils; but as to that which man really is we are told in the book of Ecclesiastes, "Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." Now this word "duty" does not appear in the original text, therefore the definition of the real man is obedience to God, in other words, man is the expression of God. It may be said that one understands the real man in the proportion that he expresses the divine qualities.
In contemplating the dust man which Isaiah tells us to reject, it is discernible immediately that he is a slave, dwelling continuously in the house of bondage. How much longer shall we, who have been taught that we are the offspring of Adam, or the dust man, sit down in our chains? How long are we to stand by helplessly and submit to the claims of the carnal mind — sin, disease and death? Who told us that these conditions are inescapable? Did God or Christ Jesus give us this information? No! No! a thousand times, no! On the contrary, Christ Jesus did emphatically show, by precept and parable, that such conditions do not proceed from God, and with equal emphasis admonishes us that it is our business to annihilate them.
It is high time to arouse ourselves — high time to assert our spiritual sonship and dominion. Through the revelation of Christian Science the Satanic claim of a carnal mind which attributes to an omnipresent God of love its hideous program of sin, disease, and death, is proved to be absolutely false.
Christian Science shows the unreality of all the so-called laws of the carnal mind; take, for instance, the so-called law of heredity. How we have been mesmerized by this illusion! How we have feared it; trembled before it, and yielded in abject submission to an unholy and unnecessary doom! Yet our guidebook to eternal Life has been telling us all the time that this supposed law is null and void. The eighteenth chapter of Ezekiel says in the second and third verses, "What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying. The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge? As I live, saith the Lord God, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel."
Have we accepted the belief that normal life is limited to three score years and ten? Then we have the blessed privilege of repudiating today this lying claim and of rejoicing that, through the understanding given us by Christian Science, we have the ability to annihilate the claims of old age, decrepitude, and death, thus to establish the fact that we are indeed the sons of God.
Man believing himself to be a mortal, born but to die, is dwelling in the house of bondage; but when, through the teaching of Christian Science, he is informed that in truth he is the son of God, he is in position to begin the work of ceasing to be a mortal. This he does through the realization that he is a spiritual being, and this realization causes the dream of mortality to disappear.
The mission of Christian Science was aptly defined by a street car motorman, whose car stopped in front of a large auditorium where a Christian Science lecture was about to be given. A passenger asked him where all of the people were going, and he replied that they were going to a Christian Science lecture. The passenger said, "What is Christian Science?" And the motorman replied, "Christian Science is telling people who they are."
Let us talk a few minutes about books. What a sense of weariness must come to any observer who stands in a library and realizes that it would take more than the average span of life to read even a small proportion of the books contained there! In contradistinction, how grateful must the Christian Scientist be to know that through the discovery of Christian Science he has been given a spiritual understanding of the One Book, which comprises within itself all the real wisdom of the ages. It is related that when Sir Walter Scott, after a lifetime of making books, requested his friend and companion to read to him, and his friend asked him what book he should read, the famous author replied, "Need you ask, there is but one."
The world has longed for an infallible guide; for a universal measure of rectitude, and how the Christian Scientist rejoices that he is now in possession of it, for he now has learned how to utilize the Bible through the light which Christian Science sheds upon it. Through misinterpretation and misunderstanding the Bible has been largely discredited as a practical guide in the affairs of life, but has now been restored to humanity with the Key, Science and Health, which makes its teachings of practical service.
Christian Science is now turning men again to the Bible and giving them added ability to understand and use it. It is a veritable guidebook to heaven and shows that the experiences of the Bible characters, when spiritually understood, are a great aid in working out one's salvation, today.
Christ Jesus understood the importance of giving his disciples a correct understanding of the Scriptures, for it is related that on their walk to Emmaus he expounded the Scriptures to them until their hearts burned within them. Paul referred to this important work as the "veil [which] is done away in Christ." The importance of this spiritual understanding of the Scriptures culminated in the vision of John on the Island of Patmos, in which he beheld a new heaven and a new earth.
In the rush of everyday activities it will be helpful to pause occasionally and ask ourselves whence and whither. In this mad rush for commercial success and achievement we are apt to lose sight of the real purpose in life. In answer to the fundamental question, What am I? which is ever demanding an answer, Mrs. Eddy gives us this scientific response, "I am able to impart truth, health, and happiness, and this is my rock of salvation and my reason for existing" (Miscellany, p. 165).
To the ever recurring questions whence, why and whither Christian Science replies that we are all the sons of God; that we exist for the purpose of expressing God; that we are on our way to an understanding of the universe, as God understands it. Keep in mind, therefore, the real business of life; namely, to express God. Do not become misled by the modern discussions of fundamentalism, evolution, etc., which are but so many blind alleys leading one away from the consideration of the real purpose in life — to express the divine nature in everyday life.
It is a helpful sign to realize that the great commercial leaders are beginning to recognize that business and commerce are but means to an end — the attainment of human happiness; for the tendency of business activity in the past has been to consider the successful achievement of great projects the all-important thing, and the individuals connected therewith, cogs in the wheels to be replaced when useless, even as the Pyramids of Egypt overshadowed their builders.
This materialistic supremacy loses sight of the spiritual fact of man made in the image and likeness of God, who was given dominion over all. Through the revelation and practice of Christian Science this condition of bondage is being reversed and man is regaining his dominion, and in so doing is bringing blessings to all creation. This great desideratum is being brought into the experience of men through the realization of the facts of spiritual being and this realization is being established through love.
Let me show you how simple and practical this method is when understood: in my early days of investigation of Christian Science a practitioner said to me, "Love is the fulfilling of the law." This arrested my attention and I replied, "Well, if that is so, it is a most important thing, a mighty truth; anything which can fulfill the law is a solution of the entire problem of living." Continuing, I said, "I wish you would tell me what it means to love, in Christian Science." She replied that Christian Science teaches and proves that from God's viewpoint all is perfect and that its practice consists in spiritually discerning and expressing this divine perfection; that this is accomplished by loving — that is, knowing that truth about yourself and every other living creature. This practice will manifest itself in a Christianity described by a Chinese friend, who, upon being asked if he had read the gospel of Jesus Christ, replied that he had not read it, but he had seen it. He said: "I knew a man, a neighbor of mine, who was all that he ought not to be — an unkind husband, an improvident father, a dishonest business man, an undesirable citizen. Through an awakened interest in Christianity this man was transformed into a loving husband, a considerate parent, an honest business man, an upright, and honored citizen. No, I have not read the gospel of Jesus Christ, but I have seen it."
While I was lecturing in England, a gentleman who introduced me at one of the lectures, in speaking of the happy relationship existing between England and America, made gracious and loving reference to Mrs. Eddy's achievement thus: It was England who gave the world the King James version of the Bible but it was America who gave it the Key.
In speaking of the coming of truth to the world, Mrs. Eddy wrote: "Christian Science has overshadowed all human philosophy, and being is understood in startling contradiction of human hypotheses; and Socrates, Plato, Kant, Locke, Berkeley, Tyndall, Darwin, and Spencer sit at the feet of Jesus" (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 361). Mrs. Eddy's discovery is being attested by recent conclusions of eminent scientists in various parts of the world. In her "scientific statement of being," written in 1870, Mrs. Eddy makes the following apparently revolutionary declaration, "All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all" (Science and Health, p. 468). For years this fundamental statement was considered by a materialistic world to be absurd and illogical. Notwithstanding, this premise has repeatedly been demonstrated to be true by healing the sick by its means, ever since its utterance by Mrs. Eddy. Now as a corroboration of this epoch-making statement, "All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation," I ask you to consider the following declaration by an eminent authority of today, Borden P. Bowne, professor of philosophy in Boston University, who writes in his book, "Metaphysics, A Study in First Principles": "All things depend in some way upon one basal being which alone is self-existent. The infinite must be viewed as the sole and determining ground of the system of things. It is the source of all law, of all manifestations in the system."
It is interesting to note that the major trend of the most recent conclusions is toward the endorsement of Mrs. Eddy's discovery of a universe which is an emanation of God, infinite Mind.
The importance of Mrs. Eddy's discovery of the true spiritual creation is illustrated in the experience of a friend of mine who said that one day, a number of years ago, a fellow shopmate, for no apparent reason, began to tell him of Mrs. Eddy's discovery of the perfect creation, as recorded in the first chapter of Genesis. He said that as he listened to the story he was instantly healed of the desire for tobacco, which was so intense that he often arose at midnight to light his pipe; he also said that he lost his desire for alcoholic drinks at the same time. He was so surprised at this that he went home and told his wife, who immediately declared that a story so potent must be a true story, and thereupon they began the study of Christian Science.
As to Mrs. Eddy's discovery concerning the mental cause and cure of disease, it may be said that a tree is known by its fruits.
Religion is also adding its testimony through the report of a committee to the general convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church, which declared, "Christian healing has passed beyond the stage of experiment and its value cannot be questioned." The conclusions of this committee were drawn after six years of study, and the report asks the general convention to "thankfully recognize the deepening of the spiritual life of the church which has come through the growing recognition of the healing power of God."
Facts are stubborn things, and when they confront theories the latter are immediately either established or extinguished. This point is shown by the story of a well-known professor who had been working for some time on a thesis concerning some particular species of fish in which he proved to his satisfaction that this particular species could not attain, beyond a certain size and weight. He had just put the finishing touches on his essay when a knock came at the door. Upon opening the door he found a neighbor who had just returned from a fishing trip and who presented him with one of that very species far exceeding in size and weight the limit established by the professor. Mournfully, the professor gazed, first at the fish, then at the man, and said, "The theory of a lifetime kicked to death by a single fact!"
A few moments ago I told you of the beautiful tribute paid Mrs. Eddy by the English introducer who, in speaking of the Bible, said, "And America gave us its Key." Upon this gift, Mrs. Eddy's Key, rests the salvation of the race. How comforting to realize that only two books are necessary for salvation, the Bible and Science and Health, its Key. How it simplifies the way! I recall a number of years ago a friend said to me, "Why do you not study Socrates, Plato and other great philosophers?" And I recall the satisfaction it gave me to be able to reply, What these worthies knew in part and dimly discerned, Christ Jesus knew in its entirety.
Go home today with the conviction that in truth you are now a perfect child of God, and that through the revelation of Christian Science you will be enabled to prove it by manifesting better health, higher standards, and increased prosperity. Do not forget that if you so desire, it is possible to attain and enjoy these wonderful blessings in this present time. It is for you to decide.
In this endeavor do not be
sidetracked by arguments of the carnal mind; do not waste any time as to how
your misfortunes may have come about. Rejoice in the fact that there is now
available a demonstrable Science which will meet your every need. "I call
heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you
life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and
thy seed may live" (Deut. 30:19).
[Published in The
Brooklyn (New York) Daily Eagle, Sept. 11, 1937. In the section on healing
above, seven words missing from the Daily Eagle's account, set off in brackets,
were supplied from a briefer report published in The Jamestown Evening Journal,
of Jamestown, New York, Sept. 29, 1931.]