When I was riding horseback with my riding instructor one day, he told me a joke I have never forgotten. It was about two old men disagreeing on the cause of pain in the leg of one of them.

The first man says, "My right leg keeps hurtin' and hurtin'," to which the second man replies, "'Tain't nothin' but old age."

"No, it ain't."

"I tell you it is old age. That's what it is."

"I know it ain't," insists the first man.

"How?"

"Because my other leg's just as old and it ain't hurtin'!"

Christian Science teaches that matter does not exist as a reality but only as a false belief and, therefore, it can neither age nor feel pain nor originate beauty or ugliness. Matter is not an intelligence capable of creating pain, and we can prove this. Actually, since Spirit, God, is infinite, All, and matter is unlike Spirit, there is no room for matter—it cannot exist.

Have you been thinking that the physical body is real, and that one part could age faster than another? The eyes, perhaps? The memory function of the brain? Some so-called vital organ? Such suggestions are inconsistent—lies! In truth there is no such thing as a material body, for man is God's reflection, and therefore his individuality is entirely spiritual. Created and governed by Spirit, God, every function of the real man is forever perfect.

Matter, being the opposite of Spirit, could not exist where Spirit is, and Spirit is everywhere and the only substance. Because matter is not substance, there is no life or intelligence in matter. What to the material senses appears as aging matter is only a false concept of mortal mind—not reality, not truth, not anything.

In Science man is never young or old but always his spiritually mature, complete self.

The appearance of age in either animate or inanimate matter is an illusion. Webster defines "illusion" in part as "a misleading image presented to the vision." Man's real being, the eternal image, the likeness of divine Principle, Spirit, established in Mind, is definite, distinct, the ageless reflection of Soul, Truth.

Christ Jesus, our Way-shower, proved the agelessness of mental activity. When he was a youth of twelve, and for that reason was thought to have only an immature human intellect, Mary and Joseph "found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers." ^{Luke 2:46, 47;}

Later, when Jesus was an adult, but not old enough, according to mortal mind's determination, to depart this earth, he had overcome every material so-called law—every belief that there is life and substance in matter—and was ready to ascend, and he did. Expressing the scope of his uplifted thought before he ascended, identifying himself with the eternal Christ, the true idea of God, Jesus said with comforting assurance to his eleven disciples, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth ... and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." ^{Matt. 28:18, 20;}

The belief of age is not a factor—either detriment or advantage—in overcoming sin, disease, and death. Jesus did not teach that it was easier to heal young people than the elderly. If matter is unintelligent, and if it is not substance, how can there be matter, either young or old, to cure? Mortal mind, a nonentity that would contrive untruths, would argue that there is a hardened sinner, a child's disease, a sickness reserved for the elderly, death at certain time and in particular situations—that everything about the body depends on age and is involved with it. These are all lies, never real, even for a moment. A lie disappears when truth takes its place, for a lie is the opposite of truth. Actually, there is no room for a lie in the omnipresence and infinity of divine Truth.

If matter can age, it can die. But matter cannot die, because it has never had life in and of itself, and we should begin now with daily spiritual activity to demonstrate the perpetuity of man's incorporeal being. Mrs. Eddy healed several persons who appeared to be at death's doorstep. And it is recorded in Historical Sketches by Clifford P. Smith that a member of her household, who, according to material sense testimony, had apparently crossed the boundary into death, was restored to life by Mrs. Eddy's demonstration of Truth. ^{See Historical Sketches (Boston: The Christian Science Publishing Society, 1941), pp. 85–86;}

There is no cause for weakness in the omnipotence of divine Life and Love. Mrs. Eddy writes that "scientific growth manifests no weakness, no emasculation, no illusive vision, no dreamy absentness, no insubordination to the laws that be, no loss nor lack of what constitutes true manhood." She continues, "Growth is governed by intelligence; by the active, all-wise, law-creating, law-disciplining, law-abiding Principle, God." ^{Miscellaneous Writings, p. 206;} Regardless of how weighty our problems may seem to us, we can learn to rise above them.

Julia S. Bartlett, one of the early workers in the Christian Science movement, said of Mrs. Eddy: "Her eyes had a wonderful spiritual expression, and she had the fair, delicate complexion of youth with often a pink color in her cheeks, but I have seen all this change to the appearance of an aged woman bearing the burden of the sins of the world which, however, would suddenly disappear as her thought was lifted above it." ^{We Knew Mary Baker Eddy, Fourth Series (Boston: The Christian Science Publishing Society, 1972), pp. 70–71.}

Since God is the only lawgiver, there are no material laws to erase beauty and make it the victim of age. Nor can matter lose beauty it never really had. Outside ugliness drops off and disappears when the true beauty within shines forth, and is expressed. When we see wrinkles we used not to see, we need not think unhappily that whatever beauty we had is fading because of age. We need to know that because beauty was never truly in matter, it cannot disappear from matter, that naturally radiant, Soul-awakened beauty is a quality of Mind forever and man eternally reflects the beauty of Soul.

Spiritual beauty is permanent and belongs to each one of us—is coincidental with our true immortal individuality. Spiritual beauty cannot fade with age, is never touched by it, but remains bright and complete forever, composed of superb grace, harmony, and loveliness, reflected constantly.

Man, the reflection of God, the exact image of divine Principle, forever expresses maturity, completeness, vitality, purity, agelessness.