Article June 12, 1937 Issue

The Simplicity of Giving

ANGELICA L. FAULKNER

On page 9 of her book "Unity of Good" Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, writes, "The talent and genius of the centuries have wrongly reckoned," adding, "They have not accepted the simple teaching and life of Jesus as the only true solution of the perplexing problem of human existence." Does not the explanation of the simple living and teaching of Jesus lie in the fact that they were always based upon the undderstanding of true being and the thought of givine? Jesus said, "Give, and it shall be given unto you;" and his life was the most perfect example of consistent giving the world has ever seen.

Christ Jesus gave men the most precious of gifts—the knowledge of how to save themselves from the sin, suffering, and death which to human sense seem so real and inevitable. And his disciples were sent out to give health and peace through the understanding that "the kingdom of God is at hand." He imparted to them the spiritual truth and understanding, which he knew to be God's free gift, and then instructed them to "heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils," adding, "Freely ye have received, freely give."

How simple our living would be if we could have no other thought than that! But when personal sense sets out to get material things, it sometimes indulges in intrigues and crooked ways to gain its ends. It believes that since matter belongs to the realm of finiteness and limitation, it is necessary for one to take from others in order to have for oneself. Further, mere material getting results from selfishness, and selfishness is unprincipled, unscrupulous.

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