Article September 11, 1976 Issue

Realism—What Is It?

WILLIAM MILFORD CORRELL

One of the demands of the time is to be realistic—to "tell it like it is." We get "fed up" with indirection, subterfuge, with hypocritical positions, public and private. We hunger for a direct, candid, open attitude toward life.

But what is realism? In our daily pursuits how do we know if we are taking the direct road to natural harmony and happiness? If we define the real simply as that which is evident to the physical senses, we are bound for disillusionment. The merely physical approach to love and happiness is strewn with disappointment, misdirection, and contradictions. The fact is that it doesn't lead to a real and firm basis for harmony and so fails to supply fulfillment. Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, says, "We must look deep into realism instead of accepting only the outward sense of things." ^{Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 129;}

Certainly there is a practical way of coming into harmony with the natural, divine Principle of all existence. But we must look beyond material appearances to get at the intelligent cause. This cause is divine Spirit, infinite Love. And the outcome of this one cause is man made in God's likeness. It's only through a deep spiritual sense of being that we can arrive at an accurate estimate of what is essential and real.

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