"The Christian Scientist cherishes no resentment"

Duncan Sinclair

What magnanimity, what tolerance, what humility, what depth of desire that Christian Scientists should possess the Christian spirit in fullest measure, do these words of Mrs. Eddy in her Message to The Mother Church for 1902 (p. 19) evince: "The Christian Scientist cherishes no resentment; he knows that that would harm him more than all the malice of his foes. Brethren, even as Jesus forgave, forgive thou;" and also the following, which, a sentence farther on, she adds: "Meekness is the armor of a Christian, his shield and his buckler"! Their whole sentiment is based upon the words of the Master, recorded by John in his Gospel: "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."

The very essence of Christianity is love—love which springs from the spiritual understanding of God as Love, even as Christian Science teaches. Let us think of this for a moment. God is Love, infinite, unchangeable, eternal Love. Do we comprehend even in a slight degree what this means? If so, we are sensing the fact that the entire universe, the entire spiritual universe of God's creating, is perfectly governed and has, therefore, not a vestige of aught about it that is unlovely or unlovable. Moreover, every idea—and spiritual ideas alone constitute God's universe—every idea, being perfect, is endowed with qualities which are adorable because they reflect God and are therefore divine.

Actually there exists only one real universe, the spiritual; and this real spiritual universe is perfectly harmonious because it is the universe of Love's creating. But even while we are thus thinking, material sense may be suggesting that there is another real universe, the material, wherein dwell men and women who love and hate, forgive and resent, by turns. And that suggestion of a dual existence is precisely what Christian Science is bringing the full force of its divine revelation to bear upon, to the end that the true knowledge of God and His creation may destroy all the erroneous material beliefs of the so-called human mind. For in this manner only will mankind be saved from evil in its every form.

The real creation, the spiritual universe of ideas, then, is governed by perfect Mind. Here Love reigns supreme. Here are no conflicting forces: good holds sway over all. As the truth is revealed to one he becomes aware of evil's unreality and impotence, and begins to cease harboring evil in his thoughts or practicing it. In other words, he is beginning to be a true Christian. The Christian Scientist knows the truth of the allness of good and the unreality of evil; and with this knowledge he is endeavoring constantly to deny, and thus to destroy, every suggestion or argument of material sense or evil, which may present itself to him. And he is successful in the overthrowing of evil belief proportionably to his steadfast adherence to the fact of God's—good's—allness.

Resentment is the child of the belief that evil is real. Destroy that false belief, and resentment is impossible. How marvelously was resentment rebuked by Jesus! Mrs. Eddy writes on page 48 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures": "Judas had the world's weapons. Jesus had not one of them, and chose not the world's means of defence. 'He opened not his mouth.' The great demonstrator of Truth and Love was silent before envy and hate. Peter would have smitten the enemies of his Master, but Jesus forbade him, thus rebuking resentment or animal courage. He said: 'Put up thy sword.'" And was not final proof given of his complete mastery over resentment when on the cross he prayerfully uttered these sublimely Christian words: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do"? The Master knew how utterly devoid of reality is so-called evil because he was so entirely convinced of the allness of God, good; and that understanding gave him the power to conquer the belief of death and finally to rise completely above the fallacy of materiality.

"The Christian Scientist cherishes no resentment"! May we in all humility take ourselves into our confidence and inquire how far that can be said to be true of us. What a relief to be rid of its enervating poison, its mental pain, its withering influence! And how foolish to continue to harbor even a trace of it, now that the great revelation is ours of the allness of God, good, and the nothingness of evil!

Duncan Sinclair

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