Mrs. Eddy's declaration that life is not contingent upon...

Alfred Farlow

Shreveport (La.) Journal

Mrs. Eddy's declaration that life is not contingent upon the heart, blood, etc., means simply that life is above and beyond material organism, that God is the life of the universe, as is set forth in the Master's declaration, "It is the spirit that quickeneth," — it is Spirit that gives life and existence. If our Master's teaching is carefully observed, we learn to anchor our hope beyond the evidence of the sense and to rely primarily upon God in compliance with Paul's teaching: "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." On one occasion Jesus said, "This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent," meaning that a true and correct understanding of God and His Christ, His "express image," gives an understanding of the Science of being whereby existence can be made more permanent and substantial.

While our critic finds opportunity for ridicule in the theories and experiments of scientific men, thousands upon thousands of cultured and thinking persons are waking to the fact that there is something more worthy of the supreme attention of man than materiality. Why should it be thought a matter of ridicule that an implicit reliance upon God, who created man in the first instance, should give occasion for the instantaneous reproduction of a lost member? To ridicule such a proposition is to ridicule the sacredness of divine cause and effect, to ridicule the teaching and practice of our Lord.

The most important matter is that we shall understand and live according to the kingdom of God; that we shall attain unto righteousness and thereby rise above the unnecessary anxieties of mortal existence; and since man in the full stature of manhood in Christ is wholly spiritual and not even partly material, it is evident that nothing short of spiritual perfection will do away with all anxiety. We may, by diverting our thoughts to God, in our present condition, escape a part of the anxiety which usually attends the life of the individual. To escape all anxiety means to rise to a point where the body does not have to be considered at all from a material point of view, but where perfect harmony of the body is vouchsafed in the divine presence; and such a climax is the ultimatum of Christianity.

Our Lord said: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." It is certain that it is quite as impossible to be perfect in a moment of time as it is in a moment of time to attain to that degree of spirituality where it is not necessary to take thought for the body. The command is sweeping, and yet our Lord knew that nothing short of perfection could meet with the divine requirement. He must have known that perfection is attained by gradual growth and not by any instantaneous process.

Reverting again to the text in regard to taking thought for the body, I desire to call attention to the context : "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them." The text points to an implicit reliance upon God, in contradistinction to any human dependence whatever, and this is the point for which we contend. Note the statement: "And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unot you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." The lily is left entirely to the care of God, and we are asked to consider its beauty and perfection. It takes no thought for its clothing. The meaning of this text is unmistakable. It points to a growth entirely above material conditions into that state wherein man is governed alone by the power of God.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit