Article March 12, 1979 Issue

The armor of heaven

[Original in German]

Claire Roselius

Have you sometimes seen on summer evenings what looks like a little prickly ball rolling briskly along at the edge of the road? You can't take hold of it, because its back is covered all over with sharp spikes. That is a hedgehog, rolled up in a ball, using its armor to defend itself from danger. With the sharp spikes that cover its back standing out, the hedgehog feels safe.

There's an even better protection—and you have it. You never have to be afraid, because you too have strong armor. It's not made of little spikes, but of good thoughts from Truth and Love, which are names for God. No one is hurt by this armor, but with this strong defense we can feel even safer than the hedgehog.

Mary Baker Eddy tells us, "Clad in the panoply of Love, human hatred cannot reach you." ^{Science and Health, p. 571;} Not only hatred but every kind of evil bounces off this armor. The lie of evil is always unreal and powerless. No matter what disguise evil uses— whether jealousy, envy, fear, or pain—the armor of Love is strong, and nothing can get through it. How do we put on the armor of Love and Truth? By knowing that because God is Love and Truth and because God is all-powerful, nothing else, nothing bad, has power, and by being sure to think and act as God's child. There's a hymn that says of our heavenly armor: "Wear it ever night and day;/... Watch and pray." ^{Christian Science Hymnal, No. 67.}