Article June 22, 1907 Issue

"THE WAY TO EXTRACT ERROR."

ARTHUR E. JENNINGS.

Our text-book tells us that "the demands of God appeal to thought only" (Science and Health, p. 182). I shall never forget the joy that came to me when I first caught a glimpse of the meaning of that statement. I had been a student of our text-book some considerable time, and no doubt had read this sentence over and over again, but I did not appreciate it until I arrived at a certain point in my demonstration over sense and self. Then I saw what an enormous amount of patience our Leader must have in proving to so many that "the way to extract error from mortal mind is to pour in truth through flood-tides of Love" (Ibid., p. 201).

What a vista of thought this opened out to me. It enabled me first of all to grasp the meaning of the passage from the Lord's Prayer: "Give us this day our daily bread," as interpreted by Mrs. Eddy: "Give us grace for to-day; feed the famished affections" (Ibid., p. 17). It is a help to know that this interpretation is correct according to the original language, and it is so comforting and healing to experience the understanding spiritually, and apply it to our daily life. Many times since then I have been able to rely upon divine "grace" and apply that prayer to my daily needs. We often hear the Bible quotation: "My grace is sufficient for thee," but what a substantial thing that grace becomes in Christian Science. It enables us to rely less and less upon materiality and personality for happiness and success. Now we know that happiness is spiritual, therefore we are not so easily disappointed or discouraged. We can affirm the truth about every real thing and every real individuality, in face of all seeming trouble and misunderstanding. Then we are truly relying upon His grace by making God first in our affections and in our aims.

One of the first lessons which I learned from our text-book was this: If I saw evil I realized that I must get it out of my own consciousness; and in order to do so I must understand the Principle and rules of Christian Science and be governed by them. I had a simple illustration of this one evening recently. I was riding along one of the beautiful lanes in this county on my bicycle, when I came upon some children playing in the road. I rang my bell, but in spite of that a little boy playing with a hoop ran across right in front of me, and I had to dismount quickly. I stopped and spoke kindly to the children without referring to the incident, and the little boy looked up and said smilingly to his playmates, "I did not hear that man's bell." I believed that child. He was so intent on his play that his ears were closed to everything else. I was thankful that I had enough understanding not to rely entirely upon the child's sense of hearing for his safety, and as I proceeded on my way I thought how much my experience in Christian Science had been like this. When I stopped relying upon material sense, and helped others through "flood-tides of Love," there was safety. When I learned not to wait for another to get out of the way, but to act myself and trust Principle, there was harmony.

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