Article August 7, 1948 Issue

INDIVIDUALITY VERSUS PERSONALITY

A. LINCOLN ROTHBLUM

To ascertain what constitutes true individuality as revealed in Christian Science, it is essential to know what God really is. In the measure that we understand God, we understand man. To mistaken personal sense, man is conceived of as material personality. To infallible spiritual sense, man is the image and likeness of God. Personal sense erroneously claims that physical elements and characteristics identify the material personality. Unerring spiritual sense knows that the spiritual individuality of man is one with Spirit. Mary Baker Eddy makes this scientific distinction in the declaration (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 544), "Man is the likeness of Spirit, but a material personality is not this likeness."

From what false premise stems the belief that material personality is the identity of man? According to the supposititious law of opposites every genuine and real idea resident in divine Mind has its counterfeit in some material concept of the carnal mind. "Counterfeit" is defined by one dictionary as "fabricated in imitation of something else with a view to defraud." That definition aptly describes the attempt of material personality to simulate spiritual individuality.

Through Christian Science one can detect and nullify the claim of the counterfeit, or material personality, to be lifelike, by discernment of man's genuine spiritual individuality, which is Godlike. Material personality is the antipode of spiritual individuality. The former is a deflection of the carnal mind; the latter is the reflection of divine Mind. In the degree that material personality is subordinated in thought and action, spiritual individuality is increasingly realized and demonstrated. The spiritual process of such regeneration is indicated on page 91 of Science and Health, where our Leader says, "The denial of material selfhood aids the discernment of man's spiritual and eternal individuality, and destroys the erroneous knowledge gained from matter or through what are termed the material senses."

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