Editorial November 2, 1968 Issue

Freedom from Animal Magnetism

William Milford Correll

In order to prove our freedom from animal magnetism, or the attraction to evil, we must understand the fact that man is not an animal. We must begin to comprehend the nature of man as the idea of God. If we concede that man is material and that he is born of the flesh, then we concede that he is liable to all the claims of materiality, animality, sin, disease, and death.

But if we understand through Christian Science that man is the product of Spirit, that he is created by divine Mind and maintained by divine Principle, then we can demonstrate that he has a higher spiritual nature, that he is not subject to hatred, envy, lust, jealousy, malice, and other destructive tendencies. Mrs. Eddy tells us: "In Science man is the offspring of Spirit. The beautiful, good, and pure constitute his ancestry. His origin is not, like that of mortals, in brute instinct, nor does he pass through material conditions prior to reaching intelligence. Spirit is his primitive and ultimate source of being; God is his Father, and Life is the law of his being."^{Science and Health, p. 63;}

How often and how clearly do we think of our individuality as purely spiritual—completely separate from matter, body, or physique? Do we see how distinctly mental identity is? It was necessary for Jesus to come in a human form so that people could understand him; but his true identity, or the Christ, was always the idea of God, the ideal of Truth and Love. Jesus' actions and motives, his compassion, wisdom, strength, and love, define the real man in God's likeness. We study Christ Jesus' life and activities in order to gain clearer views of the essence of true manhood. We see the reflection of God, good, and learn to identify the real man in the likeness of God.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Testimony of Healing

In October, 1965, my husband became very ill with jaundice