Editorial May 9, 1936 Issue

Spiritual Revival

George Shaw Cook

Nowadays one finds much space in the public press devoted to the subjects of demilitarization and remilitarization—disarmament and rearmament—but there is not much said about dematerialization. And yet in the latter lies the final solution of all problems involved in the former. This fact is becoming more and more evident to students of Christian Science, and in thinking about it they may remember that on page 10 of "No and Yes" Mary Baker Eddy said: "The feasibility and immobility of Christian Science unveil the true idea,—namely, that earth's discords have not the reality of Mind in the Science of being; and this idea—dematerializing and spiritualizing mortals—turns like the needle to the pole all hope and faith to God, based as it is on His omnipotence and omnipresence."

What is it, after all, that causes "wars and rumours of wars" and keeps mortal thought focused on the possibility or inevitability of military conflict? Is it not materiality? Did anyone ever hear of war resulting from truly spiritual thinking? History reveals the fact that wars, more often than not, have come to pass by reason of failure on the part of men and nations to keep the First Commandment, "Thou shalt have no others gods before me." Wars frequently are engendered by idolatry of one kind or another—worship of matter in various forms. For example, because of supposed material necessities, wars may be fought for the acquisition of territory, or for the extension of political or personal domination and dictatorship, or for the expansion of trade, or for other kinds of material gain. Wars may be the outcome of greed and avarice, or the worship of temporal power, or the gratification of selfish ambition, the desire for prestige and aggrandizement. All these causes of war have their genesis in the belief that matter is real, and consequently that material gains are substantial and satisfying.

This being true, it follows logically that the best antidote for war is spiritualization of thought, and the students of Christian Science are grateful to have made some progress in the direction of discerning Spirit as the only real and enduring substance. It is their constant endeavor to realize and prove more fully the allness and ever-presence of God, Spirit, Mind. To acknowledge Spirit as supreme, as the only real source of all good ideas, as the only power governing the real universe and spiritual man, is to find oneself in the realm of true spiritual thinking, where war and strife have no place. As mankind gains a more spiritual viewpoint, thoughts that make for war will decrease and eventually disappear. Then shall the nations be ready to "beat their swords into plowshares" and not to "learn war any more."

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