Article September 14, 1918 Issue

"Truth," says Mrs. Eddy, "comes from a deep sincerity...

The Christian Science Monitor

"Truth," says Mrs. Eddy, "comes from a deep sincerity that must always characterize heroic hearts; it is the better side of man's nature developing itself" (Message for 1901, p. 1). Truth, then, is a demand of righteous integrity or sincerity. "All that is true," to quote again from the same page, "is a sort of necessity, a portion of the primal reality of things."

Humanity recognizes the necessity for universal sincerity, and often forgives grave mistakes because the perpetrator's motives were sincere. A familiar instance of this may be found in the life of Paul the apostle. In the days when he was still known as Saul no one seemed to believe in God nor serve Him more faithfully than he did, and his sincerity has never been questioned; yet he was the chiefest among those who persecuted the early followers of Christ Jesus, even consenting unto their death. Had Saul had his way there would be no Christianity to-day. All this, inconceivable as it may seem, was done in the name of God, and there can be no doubt that Saul thought he was a devout man, in high favor with the Lord. Saul's sincerity, however, did not prove that he was a true worshiper of God, that is, of good; rather did it show, in unmistakable evidence, the total depravity and unreliability of the mortal mind. What Saul was really worshiping was his own false concept of God,—a man-projected God, the outcome of ages of human theories expressed in rabbinical traditions rather than in unselfish lives. The demand of God, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself," was set aside as impracticable in the effort to be a strict Pharisee.

Now, given the opportunity, the human or mortal mind will always prove itself to be incapable of distinguishing good from evil, though often doing evil in the name of good. It is a hopeless nonentity in the realm of good, or of right thinking, and the very word "sincerity," when applied by mankind, will often be found to prove this, for when the reasoning of the human mind is followed in obstinate sincerity, only a Saul, that is to say, a Pharisee, persecuting true Christianity, true Christlikeness, results. As Mrs. Eddy says: "Pharisaism killeth; Spirit giveth Life" (Retrospection and Introspection, p. 65). Saul showed the effect of a sincere human desire to go to the very end of his conclusions about God and man, and the result is interesting; for this ignorant sincerity led Saul into trouble. His education in human theories about God instead of helping him made him all the more susceptible to the autosuggestions of spiritual ignorance or human misconceptions about God.

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