Editorial April 29, 1922 Issue

One Perfect Premise

Ella W. Hoag

Without a right beginning there can never be a right ending. If one starts with error, he is sure to find error in his conclusion. Good can never come out of evil; nor can right result from wrong. It is quite impossible to work out any problem properly except from a right premise. To attempt to prove the fundamentals of mathematics without understanding the basic truth about numbers would be as foolish as to expect that by dwelling in darkness one could win the brightness of light. All this is such simple truism that it might be considered too commonplace to need repetition. Sometimes, however, the plainest truths need to be reiterated, in order that their valuable lessons may not be lost sight of; and it seems to take mankind a long time to discover that the premise one starts with, and continues to adhere to, determines the conclusion one reaches.

To the Christian Scientist there is no subject of greater importance than the premise from which he must begin all his reasoning. Since it is the divine Science of being he is seeking to know and to prove, his premise must be absolutely correct,—it must be positive truth; else no right conclusions could possibly be reached, no true deductions could possibly be obtained. In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 262), Mrs. Eddy writes: "The foundation of mortal discord is a false sense of man's origin. To begin rightly is to end rightly. Every concept which seems to begin with the brain begins falsely. Divine Mind is the only cause or Principle of existence." Then all true reasoning must start with the one cause, or divine Principle. It also follows that to begin to reason from the standpoint of matter would necessarily leave one in matter. Whatever appears in the premise will inevitably be found in the conclusion.

Unlike all other religions, apart from all human philosophies, Christian Science comes presenting one perfect premise,—a premise so absolute, so complete, so flawless, that it leaves nothing to be desired in its perfection. Because this premise is unalterable, eternal, divine, nothing but perfect deductions can ever be drawn from it; and, therefore, it must include all that is scientific, true, reliable. In this is the great security of the student of Christian Science. He has a perfect premise to start with, a perfect premise by which to measure every step of his progress, a perfect premise with which to test every step result. Nothing belongs to it but that which is good; and it will tolerate nothing short of its own perfections. Therein lies its safety and its glory.

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