Article November 24, 1951 Issue

NOT GUILTY!

ELIZABETH BICE LUERSSEN

What would be thought of a courtroom in which judge, juror, witness, counsel, and defendant were all the same person? The justice of such a court might well be questioned. Such a courtroom, however, may be found in the human consciousness. There mortal man hears the evidence of material sense testimony—his own five senses —decides whether or not he will accept this evidence, and then sentences himself to a certain period of suffering or deprivation.

What can be done about closing forever the doors of such an undesirable courtroom? Christian Science has come to show mankind how to base thinking on divine Principle and thus authoritatively plead "Not guilty" to all the various charges of material sense, on the basis that in reality man is wholly spiritual and thus not affected by sense testimony. This spiritual status of man is claimed for him now, not postponed to some distant hereafter. Christian Science declares with Jesus (Matt. 5:48), "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect," and with John (I John 3:2), "Beloved, now are we the sons of God."

Since God, Spirit, Life, substance, intelligence, is All, and there cannot be more than all, matter must be understood as inanimate, unintelligent, and substanceless. It cannot testify for itself, but must have a witness. This false witness is always material sense, which is accepted or believed by the human consciousness. When we silence— put off or destroy—this witness, then matter can no longer testify that it is sick, unhappy, discouraged, dissatisfied, or anything else. As Mary Baker Eddy expresses it in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 417), "When you silence the witness against your plea, you destroy the evidence, for the disease disappears." The writer was quickly freed from a binding claim of infected throat by understandingly reading the above passage. She reasoned: "Why, my throat can't testify to anything. I'm testifying for it. When I stop testifying, the witness will be silenced; and I'm going to stop right now!" Her healing was permanent.

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