Article May 14, 1921 Issue

"The microscope of Spirit"

MARY INEZ DROKE

As the student of Christian Science becomes better acquainted with the writings of its Discoverer and Founder, Mary Baker Eddy, he is constantly struck by her remarkable insight and originality in the choice of words and in the use of metaphors. Often a sentence or even a phrase will open up to the reader a vast field of thought. This originality, however, is never attained at the sacrifice of accuracy. A business man of keen reasoning powers once said that the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," appealed to him because throughout the work Mrs. Eddy does not vary by one hair's breadth from her original proposition that God, good, is All, hence evil is nothing. To-day a vast number of people are realizing that for spiritual truth, accurate reasoning, and energizing vocabulary this work has never, with the exception of the Bible, been equaled.

All three of these elements are found in a sentence of but seven words occurring on page 264 of Science and Health, where we read, "Matter disappears under the microscope of Spirit." Now, as all know, a microscope is an instrument equipped with a lens of such a quality that an object examined through this lens appears many times enlarged. Hence if matter possessed a single enduring element, were in any way real, inspected through the instrument of Spirit it would appear magnified, its features and characteristics standing out more vividly. But if when thus examined matter disappears entirely, then we have the so-called material universe and material forces presented in their true light,—as nothing, occupying no place, possessing not a single real property, without entity or identity.

What, then, is made manifest through this lens of Spirit? In "Miscellaneous Writings" (p. 194) Mrs. Eddy says, "The lens of Science magnifies the divine power to human sight; and we then see the supremacy of Spirit and the nothingness of matter." Through the spiritual lens God's power and presence are magnified to the human understanding and there is presented in a clearer light and more commanding form His ability and readiness to destroy all seeming beliefs in any other power or presence. Again, in our Leader's work, "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" (p. 129), we read: "And how is man, seen through the lens of Spirit, enlarged, and how counterpoised his origin from dust, and how he presses to his original, never severed from Spirit!" This lens of Mind is so purely spiritual that through it the mortal cannot be seen even as a false concept, but the whole material belief disappears entirely; and in place of the false, the spiritual image and likeness becomes apparent as real and unique.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

"The microscope of Spirit"

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access