Article November 23, 1918 Issue

A child should be able to understand evolution, for the...

The Christian Science Monitor

A child should be able to understand evolution, for the subject should be considered only from a single viewpoint, namely: What is real and eternal, God, good, or evil; Spirit or matter; the law of infinite Mind and Principle or the so-called law of finite belief? It is plain that there must be a right or reasonable basis for thought, if right and honest conclusions are to be reached. Because matter has been taken as a basis for the theory of evolution the subject has been brought into disrepute, so that nearly every one who is identified with Christianity has felt morally bound to deny the doctrine of evolution, though forced to admit, because of a belief in the reality of matter, that the theory seemed plausible enough. Their position reminds one very much of the recantations of Galileo, who, when forced by scholastic theology to deny his astronomical discoveries, still declared under his breath that they were true. Mrs. Eddy must have settled this dilemma and, in her usual masterly way, settled the question in one sentence. "Spiritual evolution," she says on page 135 of Science and Health, "alone is worthy of the exercise of divine power." It is, however, on page 475 of Science and Health that she makes a statement concerning evolution, as it is related to man, that should be remembered by every one who wishes to understand this subject. "The real man cannot depart from holiness," she declares, "nor can God, by whom man is evolved, engender the capacity or freedom to sin." If, therefore, man is evolved by divine Principle, God, then evolution is something that concerns man only as it concerns God, and a theory of evolution that does not take Principle, or God, into account is worthless. Herein, then, is our safety from possible pitfalls, for if we consider evolution only as it first of all concerns divine Principle we shall make no mistakes. The evolution of man, therefore, is the activity of God, Spirit, reflected by man. It is the revelation to human consciousness of the working of the infinite law of good, or of Mind, whereby spiritual understanding is gained, causing mankind to forsake material beliefs and discern the real, immortal man and his creator, God. In a word, it is the displacement of material concepts with the truth of being.

No one will be sorry, of course, when the material theory of evolution shall have passed away, for the scheme of creation or evolution based upon matter, or upon the evidence of the material senses, is dishonest with divine Principle and unkind to mortal man. From the beginning it is full of sophistry, for it assumes matter to be real. If matter is real and intelligent, all that evolution can do for us is to reveal more and more of the conditions of matter or material experiences to us. Is such an outlook inviting? Does not such a prospect horrify every thinking person? For if anything is clearly set forth in the world's history it is the fact that the greater the materiality of the individual's or nation's sense of existence the nearer they are to suffering and destruction. Thus material evolution, so called, proclaims its doom on every hand and its unsound logic in every way in which it may be measured by truth. But a lesson may be learned from material evolution, for if the prospect of having more and more of matter's sin, sickness, and death revealed to us is uninviting, then, on the other hand, the prospect of spiritual evolution, whereby we may constantly look forward to more and more of the revelation of infinite good or Truth, is especially inviting.

Now the question that seems most practical at this moment is this: What has the spiritual evolution of man to do with me? Where does it begin in my life? Spiritual evolution will prove daily that it really is all there is to a man's life if God is its basis. It begins just where Christian Science begins and Christian Science begins the moment we realize, even though faintly, that God is All-in-all. As Mrs. Eddy states the case: "The starting-point of divine Science is that God, Spirit, is All-in-all, and that there is no other might nor Mind,—that God is Love, and therefore He is divine Principle" (Science and Health, p. 275). From the very moment when the unlimited glory, power, and goodness of God is revealed to us, carnal beliefs and limitations, such as disease, discord, and sin, begin to lose their power and fade away, and the true evolution, the revelation of man as God's own image and likeness, has begun for us. That this spiritual evolution of man should grow clearer and more dear to us as we become more willing to give up a false sense of self and enthrone the thought of Truth and Love, is not at all strange, for have we not begun to deal with realities instead of frightful mortal theories? Which picture is more desirable, for instance, matter with its concomitants of sin and disease, or Spirit with its gifts of life, truth, and love in infinite abundance?

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A child should be able to understand evolution, for the...

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