Editorial June 3, 1939 Issue

"The last shall be first"

George Shaw Cook

The parable of the workers in the vineyard was told by Jesus to illustrate the nature of the kingdom of heaven. In this parable it is related that certain men were employed by the owner of the vineyard, early in the day, to work at an agreed price. Later, others were engaged at the same price, and finally, at "the eleventh hour," still others were employed. When evening came, those who were employed last were paid first, and at the same rate as those who had "borne the burden and heat of the day." To this there was objection, but the lord of the vineyard replied, "The last shall be first, and the first last."

Some readers of this parable, because of a keen human sense of justice, may have rebelled at what appeared to them to be unfairness on the part of the employer in paying all the workers the same amount, regardless of the length of time they had labored. This, it may have been argued, is entirely contrary to equity and is not in harmony with approved human methods. Thus they have missed the lesson Jesus intended to convey when he related the parable.

Viewed in the light of Christian Science, the parable in question is understood as an apt illustration of the nature of God's kingdom. On page 590 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, gives the following definition: "Kingdom of Heaven. The reign of harmony in divine Science; the realm of unerring, eternal, and omnipotent Mind; the atmosphere of Spirit, where Soul is supreme." This shows plainly that heaven is a state of consciousness governed absolutely by Mind, Spirit, Soul—the Principle of harmony, justice, and righteousness. Such a state, obviously, can be attained only through understanding the divine facts of being. When these spiritual facts are revealed to individual consciousness, the accompanying sense of harmony, which constitutes heaven, immediately appears. It does not matter in the least whether the individual has gained this conscious state of harmony later than others, or whether others have seemed to enjoy it longer than he. It is the understanding of divine Love's impartiality and universality which at once establishes a perfect sense of equality and unity.

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