Editorial September 2, 1950 Issue

CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM

Robert Ellis Key

A PROVINCE under the control of a king is named a realm. It is administered by a government giving certain rights and privileges to its citizens. The kingdom of God is the realm or region in which the laws of God operate; therefore it is the realm of law, order, and harmony. In the Christian Science text-book, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 590), Mary Baker Eddy defines the kingdom of heaven in part as "the reign of harmony in divine Science; the realm of unerring, eternal, and omnipotent Mind."

When Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God should come, he answered (Luke 17:20, 21), "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." Many believed at that time that Jesus had come to set up an earthly kingdom, a kingdom that would overthrow the despotism of Rome, but his reply to the Pharisees indicated a mental or spiritual kingdom, a state of mind, or realm of consciousness. Jesus was not interested in establishing an earthly or political kingdom. His reply to the Pharisees pointed to the presence of the universal spiritual kingdom, which the spiritually minded could enter, enjoy, and understand.

The mental or spiritual realm is a realm of achievement, a kingdom in which spiritual activity is always taking place. Moreover, this kingdom is within us, that is, within reach of our consciousness; in other words, everyone is capable of understanding it.

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