Editorial January 13, 1934 Issue

Protection and Strength

Duncan Sinclair

What a precious promise is contained in these words of the ninety-first Psalm: "Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling"! They are free from doubt; a ring of certainty runs through them. They must have been written by one who had proved for himself the protecting power of God. We rejoice that in the far-off time when the Psalm was written there was knowledge of God and faith in Him sufficient to enable His power and goodness to be demonstrated.

According to the words of the Psalm the protection of God vouchsafed to men is conditional: they must make their habitation with Him. What does this mean? Mrs. Eddy points to the answer when she writes, on page 83 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," "Mortals must find refuge in Truth in order to escape the error of these latter days." That is to say, they must understand God, Truth, even as Christian Science reveals Him, and allow this understanding to rule in their lives. Blind belief will not suffice. Indeed, blind belief will be a stumblingblock to the acquiring of the spiritual understanding which Christian Science gives; for as our Leader says, immediately after the words just quoted, "Nothing is more antagonistic to Christian Science than a blind belief without understanding, for such a belief hides Truth and builds on error."

Understanding, then, must supersede blind belief if divine protection is to be assured. And here Christian Science comes in with its revelation of God and man. God, Christian Science tells us, is Mind—infinite Mind, and man is Mind's idea or reflection. As this becomes known blind belief is swept away, and he who understands finds himself on a foundation which cannot be shaken. For as he perceives that man is God's idea, he is certain that there can never be any separation between God and man, and that, therefore, he will always be perfectly protected, perfectly safe. Moreover, the truth concerning the spiritual nature of man reveals the unreal nature of so-called mortal man, thus lifting thought above material sense and its fictitious beliefs. And so, "Man's refuge is in spirituality, 'under the shadow of the Almighty'" (Unity of Good, p. 57).

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