In one of our hymns we are admonished, "Put on the whole armor of pure consecration" (Christian Science Hymnal, No. 292). The Christian Scientist knows that the armor of consecration is a defense against the fears and machinations which seem rampant in the world, because it means communion with the one divine Mind. To put on a spiritual armor one must necessarily be free from the material weights and appendages that might prevent the armor from fitting neatly and securely. Reliance on any other armor must be laid aside for the one that is tried and true.

An armor is a covering worn to protect one in battle. Therefore a pure, consecrated thought is, indeed, a mighty defense for one who is carrying the banner of Truth. Christians throughout all ages have been called upon to hold high Truth's standard and fight the holy wars. They have been called upon to stand, both mentally and physically, midst fiery trials. They have found that they must wear the armor of pure consecration, which has been proved impregnable.

Consecration means the dedicating of one's thought to the worship and the glorification of God. It means bringing into obedience every thought to the service and honor of Spirit. Mary Baker Eddy says in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (pp. 261, 262): "Good demands of man every hour, in which to work out the problem of being. Consecration to good does not lessen man's dependence on God, but heightens it. Neither does consecration diminish man's obligations to God, but shows the paramount necessity of meeting them. Christian Science takes naught from the perfection of God, but it ascribes to Him the entire glory." Christian Science teaches the student how to don this spiritual armor. It shows him how to serve the Lord with all his heart and thus bring forth the fruits of holiness.

That the armor of consecration is not a material covering, David, the beloved Bible character, proved when he went forth to fight the giant. Goliath of Gath. King Saul brought forth his material armor and put it on David and also put a helmet of brass on his head; then he armed him with a coat of mail. But David said to him, "I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them" (I Sam. 17:39), and he put off the armor. He said to the Philistine, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied." Thus a shepherd boy went forth in the armor of pure consecration to God and prevailed.

The victory is sure for the one who goes forth clad in this spiritual armor. Thinking from the standpoint of God's omnipotence and omnipresence, he is demonstrating that God is the only presence, and this means true protection. The Apostle Paul declares, "In him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). The realization and understanding of man's true being constitutes a mighty fortress and a stanch protection. Divine Love and man are never separated. One who understands his true sonship and oneness with Love truly dwells "in the secret place of the most High" and will always abide "under the shadow of the Almighty."

The material weights which would keep the armor of consecration from fitting securely and well often appear as traits of character: impatience, possessiveness, human will, and self-interest, propensities with which one is sometimes unwilling to part; pleasures of material sense which seem too glamorous to leave behind; or human attachments which have an attraction away from Spirit and good. True consecration is evidenced in a willingness to leave all for the Christ, Truth, and joyously travel the road from sense to Soul unemcumbered by the obstructive beliefs of materiality. Mrs. Eddy says (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 328): "Therefore, give up thy earth-weights; and observe the apostle's admonition, 'Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those which are before. Then, loving God supremely and thy neighbor as thyself, thou wilt safely bear thy cross up to the throne of everlasting glory."

There is a wide difference between consecration and concentration, and they should not in any way be confused. The word concentration has to do with the focusing of thought and effort on a human purpose and is far removed from conforming all thinking to the will of God, whereby true consecration is expressed. Pure consecration and devotion to the study of Christian Science enables one to be the expression of Mind's purpose. True knowing reflects the Christ-consciousness and brings reality to light. A continual maintenance of pure and holy thoughts, which find their origin in God, is scientific and therefore brings healing and salvation to humanity. Such consecration inevitably furthers the unfolding of spiritual ideas in consciousness and bespeaks the power and presence of God. The armor of right endeavor is a sure defense to the one who wears it.

In "The People's Idea of God" Mrs. Eddy writes (p. 14): "O Christian Scientist, thou of the church of the new-born; awake to a higher and holier love for God and man; put on the whole armor of Truth; rejoice in hope; be patient in tribulation,—that ye may go to the bed of anguish, and look upon this dream of life in matter, girt with a higher sense of omnipotence; and behold once again the power of divine Life and Love to heal and reinstate man in God's own image and likeness, having 'one Lord, one faith, one baptism.'"

Every sincere seeker of Truth may use and prove the armor of pure consecration. Spiritual understanding furnishes a defense which is certain and sure. As the words of a hymn declare,