Editorial June 27, 1925 Issue

The Perfection of Man

Duncan Sinclair

The teaching of Christian Science with regard to man is of the greatest importance. Mortals think of man as partially material and partially spiritual, a more or less reasonable being who is born into the world, lives there for a number of years, and then passes away. Some believe that his life is limited to the space between human birth and death, and that it is determined largely by matter and its so-called laws. Others surmise that although his life begins at birth, it does not end with death, but goes on thereafter—even eternally.

What is the teaching of Christian Science with regard to man? The question will best be answered by first of all gaining an understanding of what it teaches about God; for unless one knows something very definite about God, he cannot know anything about the real nature of man. Christian Science then, teaches that God is infinite Spirit, and that He is the cause of all that really exists. In other words, God and His creation alone exist. And since God is Spirit, His creation must be spiritual. Moreover, since God is perfect, His creation must likewise be perfect. Furthermore, since individual man exists, he must be part of God's creation, and, therefore, be spiritual and perfect.

The conclusions of Christian Science on the perfection of God's creation, including individual man, cannot be refuted. If God is Spirit and perfect,—and to deny that He is would be tantamount to denying His existence,—then God's creation must be like Him, a conclusion entirely in agreement with these words, to be found in the first chapter of Genesis: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.... So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him." Thus, when Mrs. Eddy writes in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 475), "Man is spiritual and perfect; and because he is spiritual and perfect, he must be so understood in Christian Science," she is in complete accord with the description of the real or spiritual man given in the Elohistic record of creation in the Bible.

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