Editorial January 11, 1969 Issue

Positive Thinking

Helen Wood Bauman

Positive thinking as ordinarily practiced has its virtues. It is better than a negative state of mind, which is destructive. But Christian Science shows that unless positive thinking—or any other kind of thinking—has its basis in divine Spirit, Truth, God, it becomes merely a human exercise without a reliable purpose or a certain outcome. Often so-called positive thinking attempts to control matter, and it thus loses its positive intention because matter is negative in the first place. Matter denies Spirit since it has none of the attributes of Spirit: infinity, harmony, intelligence, indestructibility, love, wisdom.

Mary Baker Eddy says in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: "Neither the substance nor the manifestation of Spirit is obtainable through matter. Spirit is positive. Matter is Spirit's contrary, the absence of Spirit." Then she adds, "For positive Spirit to pass through a negative condition would be Spirit's destruction."^{Science and Health, p. 173;}

Learning to live positively, constructively, harmoniously, is an aim of the student of Christian Science. This kind of living leaves no place for assertions of disease or unhappiness or cruelty in thought or experience. Every negative thought takes its toll of spiritual freedom and progress. Every positive thought, when it is based upon the knowledge of Spirit's allness and man's perfection as Spirit's offspring, has a definite, uplifting influence on one's life.

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