Editorial April 10, 1976 Issue

The Importance of Right Reasoning

Peter J. Henniker-Heaton

Trying to assign a reason or rationale for evil is a waste of effort. Evil can't be fitted into an ordered, rational scheme of things. In attempting to find a reason for evil we become like the visitor to a magic show who says, "I saw the girl cut in half all right, but I'm still working on how they put her together again." He will never reason that one out, because he never really saw the girl cut in half. From beginning to end the whole thing was illusion and needs to be recognized as such.

No amount of supposed explanation can make evils, errors, and mistakes other than illusion. If they were otherwise, they would be part of the eternal order. Only what is good and true and eternal can be assigned a reason, can be explained. Evils and errors can only be explained away.

Spiritually correct reasoning has the effect of exposing and helping to destroy evil. Isaiah put it like this: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow."^{Isa. 1:18;} Christian Science healing employs this same spiritually rational method. In Science and Health Mrs. Eddy writes: "Spiritual rationality and free thought accompany approaching Science, and cannot be put down. They will emancipate humanity, and supplant unscientific means and so-called laws."^{Science and Health, p. 223;}