Article May 22, 1915 Issue

You were kind enough to find space in a recent issue for...

Duncan Sinclair—Annan, Scotland

The Annandale Observer

You were kind enough to find space in a recent issue for a letter of mine dealing with one or two points raised in a review in the Observer of earlier date. I notice that a note follows my letter, in which several new points are raised to which I should like to make reference.

The writer of the note admits—to use his own words—"that God did not create evil." We should have thought that the admission would have been sufficient to warrant the deduction which Christian Science makes, that evil is unreal. "And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good," is a statement of absolute truth from which it is impossible to deviate without stultifying the name of the altogether good and perfect Being, the omnipotent and omnipresent Mind, or Spirit, whom men call God.

But the writer of the note goes on to say, referring to the man created by God, "To make man in His image and likeness is to make him free, and the gift of freedom implies the possiblity to sin." That is to say, he believes that God did not create evil, but that man, whom He did create, is capable of knowing that which was not created. The position needs only to be stated to show how utterly untenable it is. Since God is infinite Mind, all that really can exist is the manifestation of Mind; and consequently the only will that exists is the divine will. Since man exists in God, as Jesus implied in his words, "I can of mine own self do nothing;" "the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works," the only "free will" possessed by man is in doing the will of God, which is precisely the same as saying that there is no freedom in the belief in and practice of evil; the only freedom is in the knowledge and practice of good.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

You were kind enough to find space in a recent issue for...

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access