Article July 12, 1947 Issue

COMPLETENESS FROM THE BEGINNING

LAURA CANFIELD LEE

Frequently in discussions on world affairs one hears the statement made, "We are living in a changing civilization," or, "Everything is in a state of flux." Life seems to many people to be rather experimental. Decisions often are made on a tentative basis. This is seen in international diplomacy as well as in the activities of individuals. The steps taken by one nation are conditioned by the moves of another. Suspicion of the motives of one or of the other often restrains both. Free interchange of confidence, leading to wise and peaceful decisions, seems difficult to attain.

Many individuals are restlessly looking for a change of occupation, home, or location to bring about the more settled and abundant sense of living which is called the full life. Whether universal or individual, such a restless state of mind is the result of considering life from the basis of human living instead of man's spiritual existence. Does God change? Is His law ever in a state of flux? The answer is obviously, "No." The progressive unfolding of God's law in the life of man must be in accord with His nature. This continuous unfoldment is humanly manifested in progressive, constructive developments in science, in art, and in all fields of human endeavor, including the individual's own experience. However, God's work is in reality done, because it has existed forever. Referring to the eternality of the Christ, Jesus said(John 8:58), "Before Abraham was, I am." Truth might be thought of as declaring, "Throughout eternity, I am," since the true idea of Life and man never began and will never end.

A sculptor working with a piece of stone senses the intactness of the finished work of art, even though his hands may take time to work it out. Michelangelo made this plain when he said, "The statue is contained in the stone from the beginning in its finished state, and is merely laid bare by the chisel, as one strips the husk from the kernel." There is the masterpiece poised and enduring, hidden from the sight of the layman, but standing clear and whole to the discerning thought of the artist. His sensitivity permits him to see through the superfluous shell of hard, lifeless matter and guides his hand to "penetrate to the figure in the deeps of the stone." So also the Christian Scientist recognizes the perfect man of God's creating, complete from the beginning, when "God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).

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