Article December 11, 1920 Issue

The Holy Place

LESLIE CHARLES HUGHES-HALLETT

In the fifteenth verse of the twenty-fourth chapter of Mathew's gospel we find these words: "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand)." Here is a direct command given by Jesus at a time when he was telling his disciples of the final phases of error which would rise to the surface to be eventually destroyed by the omnipotence of Truth. This direct command is for us to-day every whit as much as it was for those fishermen nearly two thousand years ago. Surely nothing could more nearly approximate to the "abomination of desolation" than the state of the world during these latter years. On every hand one is met by mortal mind arguments that "the world is upside down," "civilization is roots," "disease is rampant," and the like. To mortal sense these things appear as very evident facts, and unless one understands and follows implicitly Jesus' commands, one is apt to be overwhelmed by a sense of impending calamity. Now, just what is the meaning of those words, "stand in the holy place"? Obviously, before we can "stand in the holy place" it is necessary for us to be sure that we have entered into that place. Mrs. Eddy says that "to discern the rhythm of Spirit and to be holy, thought must be purely spiritual" (Science and Health, p. 510). By deduction, therefore, the holy place to which Jesus referred was a state of spiritual consciousness, a realization of the omnipotence and omnipresence of God, good.

In order to enter into this holy place, we must indeed come out from the world and be separate. We must enter first into our closet, but not in any material sense. Mrs. Eddy tells us (Science and Health, p. 15): "We must close the lips and silence the material senses. In the quiet sancturary of earnest longings, we must deny sin and plead God's allness." In other words, we must realize that the sense world of matter, which tries so hard to intrude into our thoughts, is nothing but a lie and hence a negation of Truth. "God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." The evidences of discordant disease presented by the material senses are anything but good, and any admission that they are true is idolatry, for are we not then believing in another creator? If these things are not true, then they have no reality and therefore have no power. We cannot really fear them, for one cannot fear anything that does not exist; in fact, whatever one seems to fear is not real, for all reality is created by God, good, and everything that He made "was very good."

Realizing this, we have in fact entered into the "holy place," and we are in a position to follow out the remainder of our Master's command, that is to "stand." This standing means that one is to be steadfast in the spiritual consciousness of good. To do this one does not have to give up one's daily occupations, "for in him we live, and move, and have our being." If we stand always in this holy place into which we have entered, we shall be able to go about our daily tasks with that "peace of God, which passeth all understanding," and no arguments of mortal mind that disaster is impending will touch us. Oh, what a glorious thing to know that in the face of every seeming discord Christ, Truth, is always available. "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." What more could we ask? What more could we want? "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place."

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