Article November 13, 1909 Issue

THE BEST WAY

WALTER M. DIXON.

ABOVE all the many contradictory opinions about physical, mental, moral, social, civil, political, religious, national, and international reform movements, there must be a best way; and it must be best for mankind to walk in this best way, which must necessarily transcend all other ways because it is based on truth, and all other ways must lack in some degree the faultlessness of truth. It has been called the straight and narrow way for the very reason that it is based on the straight and narrow line of truth. It is straight because it leads direct to God. It is narrow to mortal sense because it admits of no error in premise or conclusion; but to spiritual sense it is as broad as the universe, for truth is all there is, all there ever can be.

This best way has been the world's quest throughout the past ages, and yet to mortal sense there was never more unrest, uncertainty, dissatisfaction, and distress in every walk of life than there is today, and why? Why has mankind failed to attain to its high ideals? Because their quest has been carried out on the line of worldly wisdom— the traditions of the elders have led them astray like sheep. We have occasion to be thankful, however, that in our day there has been found one, pure, humble, and true enough to perceive this best way, unselfish and courageous enough to give it to the world. This way is open to all who will approach it with purity of motive, with honesty and humility, and to them its every step can be demonstrated. But how, it may be asked, is one to know that Christian Science is the best and only way? In reply it may be said that Christian Science does not ask the inquirer to place any impossible faith in its teachings, but only to make reasonable investigation into the subject, as he would in regard to any other that he was anxious to learn about. Christian Scientists know that if this is done with honesty and humility and without prejudice, all will find in Christian Science the pearl of great price.

The writer met a gentleman the other day who said he had read the books on Christian Science, but he was sorry to find he could not accept all its teachings. I said, "Do you accept all that mathematics claims to be able to do?" "Yes." "Why?" "Because I can work out some of its minor problems and am thereby encouraged to believe that all its claims are true." "That is quite all that Christian Science asks of you," was my reply. People say they cannot accept all that Christian Science teaches for the reason that they open their eyes to spiritual facts for a moment and say, "I believe what Christian Science says about God, that He is all-mighty, all-presence, all-science, in a word, infinite being;" then they close their eyes to spiritual facts and open them to matter, thereby letting in material sense, which impels them to say, "We cannot believe that there is no matter;" but Christian Science tells them they will never see that matter is non-existent while they keep their gaze fixed upon that which is temporal. People believe that the planets are spherical, that they rotate on their axes and revolve around the sun, because there is nothing in this beyond their reasoning power, but when they are told that the diameter of the sun, which is ninety-two million miles away, can be measured, they may say they cannot accept the statement, and the reason for incredulity lies in the fact that they have not sufficiently investigated the science of astronomy. The text-books on physical science tell us that there is no such thing as color or sound as we understand these words; that if a cannon could be fired in the center of a desert out of the range of hearing it would go off in perfect silence, and yet the mortal sense of hearing seems very convincing and we are led to believe in it.

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