Editorial October 27, 1917 Issue

"On the top of the mount"

William D. McCrackan

Those to whom it has been given to reach the summit of some great height know what a sense of exaltation may be experienced there. The sky seems near and the earth distant, the air is rarefied and keen, clouds trail their lengths far below, all pettiness is displaced by the grandeur of nature. Such impressions may be taken as symbolical of spiritual qualities. Indeed, the Scriptures contain many references to the mountains in this sense. We read that at the time of the giving of the Ten Commandments "the Lord came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the Lord called Moses up to the top of the mount." The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews represents God as admonishing Moses: "See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount." Is not this mount the pinnacle of spiritual vision where absolute security and joy reign evermore and suffering is necessarily absent? From this mount proceed first the Ten Commandments, then the Beatitudes, and in our day the Christian Science textbook. It was this spiritual exaltation which made Isaiah exclaim, "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace;" and drew from the psalmist the song, "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help."

The top of the mount is a position which the metaphysician can gain and hold through the practice of Christian Science. It is a spiritual point of vantage whence error looks insignificant and Truth near and friendly. When earthly beliefs are being surrendered and false burdens thrown aside, when reliance on material medicine, materialized religion, and material science so-called is being expelled by trust in God, then the Christian wayfarer is climbing into the heights and ready to be refreshed by the vision of limitless good. All the way up he will need perseverance and endurance and the willingness to advance step by step. In mountain climbing it is often impossible to see far ahead; on the lower slopes forests may impede the view, and further up there are apt to be steep, rocky places where it behooves the climber to watch carefully his foothold. Perhaps straying clouds cover the trail or sudden corners cut off the sight of the further ascent. It is necessary to trust in God, to realize that His path having once been chosen it will inevitably lead into serene heights, to the top of mount Zion. There may be moments of weariness or even exhaustion before the top is reached, when the scientific recognition must be steadfastly maintained that man is spiritual and mounts heavenward through spiritual impulsion only.

Mrs. Eddy tells us on page 511 of Science and Health, "To mortal mind, the universe is liquid, solid, and aëriform. Spiritually interpreted, rocks and mountains stand for solid and grand ideas." To bear this spiritual interpretation in mind means to be refreshed while climbing out of the mist of earth into the heights of Mind's "solid and grand ideas." On pages 323 to 328 of "Miscellaneous Writings" the Discoverer of Christian Science also illustrates the salvation of humanity by its ascent from valley to hilltop. She writes: "Picture to yourself 'a city set upon a hill,' a celestial city above all clouds, in serene azure and unfathomable glory: having no temple therein, for God is the temple thereof; nor need of the sun, neither of the moon, for God doth lighten it." This whole allegory pictures in descriptive language the joys, dangers, and victories of the climb to the top of the mount of vision. Nor is this ascent a mere theoretical exercise, for it has a very practical side, namely, the healing of the sick and sinning. As the scientific Christian mounts into the heights he sheds the impedimenta of earthly travel, attains freedom from self, is washed clean by the upper atmosphere of spirituality, and reflects more accurately the divine Being. Then it is that error sinks out of sight, the world, the flesh, and the devil become nonexistent to his state of consciousness, and he approaches the Mind of Christ which knows no evil. As a result the nothingness of sin, sickness, and death is made manifest and demonstration is reached. In the Church Manual of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, we read (Art. VIII, Sect. 24): "Testimony in regard to the healing of the sick is highly important. More than a mere rehearsal of blessings, it scales the pinnacle of praise and illustrates the demonstration of Christ, 'who healeth all thy diseases.'"

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