A loving term that Jesus often applied to God was the word "Father." In his teaching and in his prayers he used this term constantly. Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, also conceived of God as Father and added the word "Mother"' to her concept, thus making the parenthood of God complete.

Usually the words "father" and "mother" are considered as denoting only human parents, but these words have a spiritual significance which can lead thought up to a clearer understanding of God as our divine Father-Mother, in "Science and Health with Key-to the Scriptures," our Leader, Mrs. Eddy, writes (p. 518), "God gives the lesser idea of Himself for a link to the greater, and in return, the higher always protects the lower."

In considering the best in human parenthood, we find that it exemplifies the parenthood of God, Spirit. Before the first child is born, a couple may like children without having a sense of parenthood; but when the child is born, a new spirit is awakened in them. The man usually gains a great awareness of the spirit of fatherhood, expressed in love and compassion for the child. He desires to provide for it, to shelter it, to protect it, to plan its education and future, and to help it in every way. Is not this new spirit of fatherhood a reflection of divine Spirit, of God as Father? Also the new spirit of motherhood that the woman normally expresses in love, tenderness, care, and constancy—is it not the reflection of God as Mother?

The child grows to love this tender spirit of fatherhood and motherhood. He depends upon it and has great faith and trust in those who express it. If danger threatens, he turns to his parents and feels safe. He has a sense of security, peace, and happiness.

If the child becomes attracted to evil and sin, do not the parents pray for him and continue to help in every way possible, always hoping that the child will repent and reform? And if he seeks their help to get a new start, do they not give it unhesitatingly, rejoicing that this their son was lost and is found? Does not this constant love which the right kind of parents express illustrate God's tender love for all His children?

Jesus used the illustration of human parenthood to help us understand the unchangeable love of God toward man. He said (Matt. 7:11), "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"

Never does God's love vary or grow less, nor is His hand ever withheld from those who seek His help. In his parable of the prodigal son, Jesus illustrated that God, Love, is unchangeable Principle. The father gave the son his inheritance willingly and lovingly upon being asked for it. When the son returned after squandering the inheritance, he found the same love waiting for him. He was not condemned or criticized but welcomed as a beloved son. This transcended human love and justice and illustrates the unchanging love of God toward all His children.

This parable also illustrates that God never needs to be reconciled to man, for His love is constant; but men do need to be reconciled to God. If they have faith in their Father-Mother God and seek His guidance and help with the same simple trust that children express toward their parents, they will have more peace and security in their lives. Those individuals who are students of Christian Science will also find that this kind of trust is a great factor in the working out of every problem, because it overcomes fear, which, according to Science, is the main foundation of all discord and disease. To know God as Father-Mother is to love and trust Him.

God's help reaches mankind mentally through right ideas. One's thought must be spiritually attuned to divine Love in order that one may hear and be guided rightly. Failure to receive a quick answer to prayer does not mean that the Father is withholding the blessing, but that one's thought has not been spiritualized enough to receive it.

Study of the Bible, together with our Leader's writings, reveals that every righteous prayer is answered. However, it is only through patient, persistent study and application of the teachings of Christian Science that one can spiritualize his consciousness and become more fully reconciled to the Father as His son. Without this daily practice, growth will be slow and the solution to problems more difficult.

A young mother had a lovely example of answered prayer. Her little boy had a temper tantrum every evening about the time she was busy preparing the evening meal. This tantrum would come on suddenly and cause much discord, spoiling the supper hour. The mother worked very diligently in Christian Science for a long time, but the problem was not solved.

One evening she detected the spirit of evil descending on the child like a black cloud. He could not seem to resist it, and she seemed powerless to help him. Distraught, she turned away from him to God and asked, "Father, what shall I do?" Suddenly she found herself singing our Leader's hymn "The Mother's Evening Prayer," the first verse of which reads (Poems, p. 4),

She sang every verse softly to herself, and when she turned again to the boy, he was smiling and happy. That was the last tantrum he ever had, and the healing was complete. To think of God as Father was a simple, gentle, loving thought and brought the mother close to God. She had been working for more than a year trying to heal this situation, perhaps using more of the letter than the spirit of Truth. But when she turned wholeheartedly to God, His spirit flooded her consciousness and brought healing instantaneously.

The spirit of Truth always heals quickly. It is the unlabored action of Love. As Zechariah writes (4:6), "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts."

Christian Science teaches that man is spiritual, the image of God, reflecting all the qualities of his Father-Mother. If one is to practice this teaching, he must begin to refute suggestions to the contrary. If error suggests that man is a material mortal, the child of mortals, one must deny and correct this by understanding that man is spiritual and immortal, the image of Spirit. If error suggests that man is diseased or deformed, one must deny and then correct this by realizing that the spiritual reflection of God is forever healthy and perfect.

Whatever error may suggest about man that is unlike God, whether it is poverty, limitation, dishonesty, or failure, one must deny and then correct by holding to the truth that man is the son of his Father-Mother and is forever pure and complete. Our Leader tells us in Science and Health (p. 261), "Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true, and you will bring these into your experience proportionally to their occupancy of your thoughts."

The exchanging of erroneous concepts about God and man for true divine thoughts and the establishing of them in consciousness are not always accomplished quickly, but persistent mental practice will bring spiritual light and will lift one to the understanding of God as Father-Mother, Love. As the attributes of Love, such as kindness, gentleness, love, tenderness, goodness, mercy, are consistently expressed by any individual, God's parenthood is being reflected.