Editorial September 2, 1967 Issue

Give Up Personal Sense

Helen Wood Bauman

Personal sense is a term often lightly used, although it needs to be understood in depth. Christian Science uses this term and makes clear that it concerns a false sense of man, which must be given up. A material, personal sense of man would substitute itself for the true man, who, according to Scriptural teaching, is the likeness of God, or Spirit. The problem of mankind is to become conscious of the spiritual sense of man.

In Genesis, the allegory of Eden depicts Adam as made of dust—matter—and Eve as listening to the first whisper of the serpent, evil. Its subtle suggestion was that if they would eat of the forbidden fruit "of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,"^{ Gen. 2:17;} the tree "pleasant to the eyes," that is, agreeable to the personal, material senses, they would "be as gods."^{ 3:5, 6;}

In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures Mary Baker Eddy interprets this allegory with profound and scientific insight. She says: "Man is the likeness of Spirit, but a material personality is not this likeness. Therefore man, in this allegory, is neither a lesser god nor the image and likeness of one God."^{ Science and Health, p. 544;}