Article July 9, 1921 Issue

Human Relationships

KATE BERKMAN

Unless human relationships pattern the divine, they are wholly mortal and temporal, as opposed to the immortal, eternal substance of that spiritual relationship, or unity, which exists between God and His idea, man, this spiritual relationship being the standard by which to judge the soundness of the relations between individuals. Intelligence, love, and fidelity, divine qualities which promote friendship and companionship, are infinitely reflected, but if we are looking to one person, place, or thing in the belief or hope that through that one source only can our need for congenial, satisfying intercourse and helpfulness be supplied, we close the door upon ourselves to the immeasurable good which a loving Father has already created for all His offspring, the sons and daughters of God, good which is being expressed, without interruption or limit, through a countless variety of avenues. It remains for us only to be willing to accept the will of God.

Certain activities and interests may bring us in touch with others similarly interested for the time, and we should be grateful that whatever good or progress may have been accomplished during the period of such relationship is for the benefit of mankind, not merely the persons directly concerned. Or if the experience has been a trying one and we have risen above it so that it has no disturbing effect whatsoever upon us, we indeed have cause for rejoicing and can look back with thanksgiving over the road we have traveled. Then we should hold ourselves ready for fresh opportunities to cooperate in the expression of God's will, not retarding our further development by clinging to that which gave us the opportunity for the progress it afforded. As we mentally work loose from and then abandon altogether the old beliefs or duties outgrown, we are more alert to the guidance of divine intelligence, knowing positively that this guidance is unerring and that we can perform whatever task is presented to us as the result of our following the divine directing. The ability and capacity bestowed upon man by infinite intelligence must be made manifest in continued and greater usefulness in the way of His appointing.

As one human prop after another collapses, we perceive the wisdom and necessity for loving the Lord our God with our whole heart and soul and strength and mind. Recognizing man as idea and not as person, looking continually to God in every need, we are spared the disappointment and sorrow which the severance of human friendships and relationships brings. Realizing the unity of God and His idea, we perceive the true unity maintained in absolute harmony and in the proper relationship, just as the ray of the sun is inseparable from its source, constituting a perfect, harmonious whole. Others may supplant us in the affection, confidence, or association of our erstwhile friends or helpers. Mortal man and mortal conditions may prove fickle and changing, but we have the Scriptural assurance that God is unchanging wisdom and Love. He is constant, and we know that man, His image, must reflect constancy and appreciation. When we are continually about the Father's business, serving Him, not endeavoring to serve or please persons; praising Him, not seeking praise or glory; representing Him, not courting recognition, there is no opportunity for the suggestion of desertion, neglect, separation, failure, to present itself to us.

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