Article June 21, 1958 Issue

"MY BROTHER'S KEEPER"

EDNA MAY EVANS

In the fourth chapter of Genesis is recorded the story of Cain and Abel. We read that these men, who were brothers, offered unto the Lord gifts as sacrifices. Because Abel's type of gift was more acceptable to the Lord than Cain's, Cain was overcome with jealousy and slew his brother. The account continues: "The Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?"

What does it mean to be "my brother's keeper"? The ministry of Christ Jesus furnishes the answer to this question. In John's record of Jesus' directives to his disciples before the crucifixion, we read that the Master said (15:12), "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." Each individual can keep this commandment in the proportion that he is willing to exchange the false mortal concept of his fellow men for the true, spiritual concept of man, made in God's image. To be our "brother's keeper" is to hold him in consciousness as spiritual and immortal, as never lapsing into imperfection or mortality.

Christ Jesus was subjected to all sorts of human abuse, but never did he actually attach evil to a person. Rather, he saw the unreality of the error and nullified it. Thus he kept his concept of man, God's idea, perfect and uncontaminated. He was truly keeping his brother.

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