Editorial May 24, 1930 Issue

Divine Government

Clifford P. Smith

The divine Principle of man and the universe always acts through divine law, which is the means of divine government. All that the real man is, all that he does, and all that he experiences is determined or governed by infinite Principle acting by means of spiritual law. It is for these reasons that the entire experience of the real man is good. It is for these reasons that he is subject to nothing else than the government of divine Love. Every person, then, should know and obey the divine law. He should learn to keep his thoughtlife subject to the divine government. As the author of the epistle to the Hebrews has said (12:9): "We have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?"

Concerning this subject, Mrs. Eddy has given the warning that human belief may seem to constitute a law. A person's own belief may seem to govern him. Further, a belief held by the majority of mankind may seem to control those who assent to it or do not free themselves from it. Likewise, the experience of any person who does not dissent effectively may seem to be determined by circumstances and conditions which are nothing else than products of general human belief. Indeed, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science has made the broad statement that "it is a law of so-called mortal mind, misnamed matter, which causes all things discordant." Then she has stated the efficient remedy in these words: "The Christianly scientific man reflects the divine law, thus becoming a law unto himself" (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, pp. 387, 458).

One of the common convictions of mankind can be described by the expression cycles of adversity. A cycle is defined as a regular order or succession in which things recur; a regularly recurrent order of events, series of phenomena, or the like. Almost everybody believes that everything in human life is subject to cycles of better and worse; that advance will be followed by recession; that a period of good business will be followed by a period of poor business; that full employment must be followed by unemployment; that improvement in health or any condition must be followed by relapse. In short, mortal mind asserts as law that human life is a round or series of ups and downs.

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