Article February 27, 2006 Issue

DO THE spiritual MATH

Where did error come from? A mathematics allegory

BY LAURANCE R. DOYLE

Christ Jesus said, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matt. 5:48). He did not say that we would become perfect but that we are perfect. Mary Baker Eddy writes: "Truth is immortal; error is mortal. Truth is limitless; error is limited. Truth is intelligent; error is non-intelligent. Moreover, Truth is real, and error is unreal. This last statement contains the point you will most reluctantly admit, although first and last it is the most important to understand" (Science and Health, p. 466).

In Sunday School classes the question usually comes up, "But where did error come from?" A mathematics analogy we are all familiar with has always helped me better understand how to answer this question. We can perhaps explore this analogy in more detail by making an allegory of it—the allegory of the new Christian Science mathematician.

One day, a math student notices that, somehow, 2+2=5 has appeared on the blackboard, written in chalk. Somewhat alarmed, he asks himself, "Where did this error come from?"