Article November 18, 1950 Issue

MASTERING FEAR

HAROLD MOLTER

One of the persistent enemies of mankind is fear. It presents itself in various forms: fear of lack, loss, separation, old age, sickness, death. Fear makes men liars, cheats, cowards, adulterers, impostors, and our Leader tells us that it is the source of sickness.

What is fear? In the third chapter of Genesis, after the temptation of Adam and Eve, it is recorded that the Lord God called unto Adam and said unto him, "Where art thou?" And Adam answered, "I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." Referring to this passage in the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," our Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, writes (p. 532), "Fear was the first manifestation of the error of material sense."

Fear is one of the products of material, or personal, sense—of the lie that there are life, substance, and intelligence in matter. It results from the belief that man is separated from God and that he exists outside of divine Love. Fear is the outcome of the belief that man is incomplete, insecure, and therefore subject to adverse circumstances.

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