Article December 27, 1930 Issue

Using the One Talent

Marjorie N. Buffum

In the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew there is a story which is wonderfully helpful. It tells of three servants to whom were delivered certain talents by their lord. Two of the servants doubled their talents during the long absence of their lord; while the third, who had one talent only, buried it in the earth, and on his lord's return was severely rebuked for unfaithfulness. The writer can well remember how, as a child, she would listen to this story read in church, and feel a sense of uneasiness and wonderment as to how one might escape the fate of the man with one talent. It was not until years later, when Christian Science unfolded to her the real meaning of this parable, that the vague sense of dread formerly aroused by it was destroyed.

It was obviously not right for the servant with the one talent to bury it in the earth. Why, then, did he do it? Because he was afraid. A familiar sound that reason has, one that has been dinned into the ears of humanity since time seemed to begin! And why was he afraid? In his own words: "Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man." This, indeed, was the root of the trouble. Over and over again do we see unsuccessful servants and employees, and the difficulty is often the same: fear is lurking about, for the employer is thought to be "an hard man."

And what of the children of men who have thought of the Almighty One, the infinite God, as hard and cruel? There is no doubt that an incalculable number of lives have been spoiled, right purposes defeated, and untold suffering unnecessarily endured, owing to this utterly wrong concept of God. In spite of the fact that from time to time prophets caught glimpses of God's true nature, the concept of a God of vengeance was very prevalent in the thought of the people of Old Testament record. Even the teachings of Christ Jesus, through being misunderstood, have not altogether disabused the human mind of the conviction that God is on the alert to punish hapless wrongdoers. But the discovery of Christian Science by Mary Baker Eddy has revealed God as Love itself, incapable of punishing, and man, Love's pure creation, as incapable of doing anything deserving punishment.

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