Editorial August 4, 1917 Issue

What God Hath Joined Together

Annie M. Knott

Students of Christian Science cannot do better than to study ofttimes their Leader's statements regarding the value of the Bible as these appear throughout her writings. It is both cheering and inspiring to note the high estimate which Mrs. Eddy places upon the Scriptures, and in Section 1 of Article IV of the Manual we learn that in order to become a member of The Mother Church one must use "for self-instruction in Christian Science" the Bible and Science and Health. In Section 1 of Article XIV we find that Mrs. Eddy ordained the Bible and "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" as "Pastor over The Mother Church;" and we surely cannot hold this Pastor in too great reverence, nor seek counsel therefrom too often.

In reading the Bible we find that Christ Jesus was a close student of the Scriptures. In his tremendous and decisive struggle in the wilderness, as given in the first three gospels, we find that he used the word of truth from the older Scriptures as each specific temptation presented itself; and through his understanding of this word the victory was gained. We are told that he used a statement from the ninety-first psalm respecting the ministry of angels, and again that at the close of the temptation the devil left him and "angels came and ministered unto him." It goes without saying that our Master did not depend upon the mere letter which "killeth," but upon the spiritual sense of the Word, which is always demonstrable. In the fourth chapter of Luke we are told that when he read from the prophecy of Isaiah he declared that this Scripture was being fulfilled in their midst, and that the truth therein contained could heal disease of every sort; and his ministry gave ample proof that the word of God is endowed with infinite power.

From Science and Health and all of our Leader's other writings we discover that she too was a close student of the Scriptures. On page 168 of "Miscellaneous Writings" we find extracts from a sermon given by her in Hawthorne Hall many years ago from the text, "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God." In this sermon she gave a strong tribute to the value of the Bible when she declared that she had found within its pages "all the divine Science" which she was preaching. Perhaps the most significant statement in this connection is as follows: "Whenever her thoughts had wandered into the bypaths of ancient philosophies or pagan literatures, her spiritual insight had been darkened thereby, till she was God-driven back to the inspired pages." She also said that her long years of invalidism resulted from "the misinterpretation of the Word" which had been given her in her early days, and which was not removed until the truth of being dawned upon her. With this divine revelation the Scriptures were illumined, and "physical rejuvenation" and "uplifiting of spirit" was the result.

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