Article July 19, 1919 Issue

Mount of Gilead

LOUISE ROBERTS

In reading the story of the life of Jacob, which actually seemed entirely new to me—since if I had ever read it before, it had long ago been forgotten—a lesson was learned and vain contemplation of the future was lost in the thought of eternal life as demonstrated by the Master. Perhaps others have had experiences of the past or apprehensions for the future recur and would be interested in reading as I did the whole story of Jacob's demonstration. I perceived the golden thread running through his experiences and making complete his demonstration, healing the fear and jealousy of childhood days. It is related that after Jacob had served his father-in-law for twenty years, he noted a change in Laban's manner toward him, and the angel of God spoke to him in a dream advising him to depart from Padan-aram. Jacob left without consulting Laban, but Rachel carried away the images or household gods of her father. This constituted Laban's excuse for pursuing Jacob. Although Jacob was ignorant of Rachel's act, nevertheless he was the one accused.

The record of Scripture is of no avail without the spiritual interpretation gained and applied to improve our thoughts and lives, and the study of Christian Science is giving this to us. So the understanding and application followed. Was I not carrying along some images of sense creation and wondering why phantoms of future or past sometimes pursued me? Was I searching my thoughts to find out these other gods so that I might give them up and have only the one God, the Father, eternal Life, Truth, and Love?

Reading further I noticed that Laban overtook them and admonished Jacob, as if "in consonance with the Scriptural demand in Matthew 18:15–17" (Manual, Art. xi, Sect. 2), showing that this law has always existed and that these two realized enough of the Christ-nature to apprehend and obey it. Laban stated his grievance, but was careful to obey the command. Jacob's reply showed that it was through his own higher understanding of God that this change had been wrought. I also saw that Laban listened patiently, and readily made the covenant with Jacob. What but fear would keep this demand from being fulfilled and harmony demonstrated in our own lives? In the following chapters we read of Jacob's fear and distress at the thought of again meeting Esau. Then comes his struggle, and on pages 308 and 309 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" our Leader has recorded for us its spiritual interpretation and application to our own life and experience.

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