"Come near unto me"

JOSEPHINE HOFFMANN

Elijah's summons to the Israelites, "Come near unto me," as given in the eighteenth chapter of I Kings, has a deep significance for Christian Scientists; and we all would do well, in our pilgrimage out of the darkness of materiality into the light of spirituality, to pay more heed to the admonition. The request to "come near" was made to all the people on the occasion of Elijah's prayer, which was based on so firm a trust in God that it brought forth an answer and the required help, in contradistinction to the ineffective ceremonies and cries for aid on the part of the Baal followers, as recorded in this chapter.

That this coming near could not have consisted merely of a stepping closer in a physical way must be clear to all. There must, also, have been a spiritual meaning contained in the invitation to all the people to draw nigh,— a loving, although energetic, admonition to those present to give up their uncertain, false position and, like the prophet, place themselves on God's side. The Israelites of that time who were obedient to Elijah's call were privileged to witness the prophet's remarkable demonstration, which was a demonstration of God's omnipotence.

In the Glossary, that wonderful chapter in the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, the metaphysical interpretation of "prophet" is given thus (p. 593): "A spiritual seer; disappearance of material sense before the conscious facts of spiritual Truth." Almost all the spiritual seers who are mentioned in the Bible have issued a summons similar to Elijah's to those who have longed, and to those who now long, for deliverance from the bondage of wrong thinking. Christ Jesus, who possessed the greatest knowledge of God that has been demonstrated in any age, gave this call in the most loving way. He said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. . . . And ye shall find rest unto your souls." Should not we, then, at all times heed this call, which has been going out for so long, and which comes directly to us to-day? For the call has not diminished in intensity for those who have ears to hear.

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