Article May 9, 1931 Issue

Correct Perception

CLAUDE WALLACE WOODRUFF

An artist does not examine a painting with a microscope in order to appreciate it; neither does he go too far away, nor turn his back upon it. A correct estimate of the picture can best be obtained from a point of view which admits of seeing the various elements of the subject in their proper relation to the whole. Likewise, in viewing a broad valley or a beautiful mountain, one does not place his face against a rock or a tree within the range of vision, for that would hide the general view and distort the immediate object. From a detached point one scans the whole scene in proper perspective, and thus is enabled to comprehend the beauty and grandeur spread before him.

The human self, so called, is properly appraised, and its relationship properly adjusted to the satisfaction of the thinker, only when true selfhood is seen in proper perspective, that is, from the vantage ground of divine Science. When viewed from a standpoint outside of Science, that is, from the assumption that body is the residence of mind, the human self appears in proportions such as the tree assumes to the one whose face is against it. This distorted picture, making the human self first and foremost in everything, disrupts the harmony of the individual and causes fear, with its attendant evils. These evils—sin, sickness, and death—are corrected by adjusting the viewpoint; that is, by seeing man as God's spiritual reflection, apart from matter or a mortal body.

Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, in her textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," and in her other writings, has written so much of value regarding self that one would do well to turn to these books and find out authoritatively what Christian Science reveals.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

Correct Perception

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access