The world has long admired strength. Strong bodies and strength of character are considered estimable qualifications for successful living. The ancient Greeks laid great stress upon physical prowess. Our own Olympic games are an outgrowth of this admiration for physical strength and endurance. Much time and effort go into building what are called strong bodies and healthy minds. Humility, on the other hand, is not always admired, because it is often coupled with weakness instead of with strength. A humble person is sometimes thought to be one who is easily imposed upon rather than one who is free from pride and arrogance.

Christian Scientists accede to the advantages of strong bodies and strength of character, but they approach the desired result from a standpoint different from that generally taken. Their premise is that since in reality we are made in the image and likeness of God, we derive our true strength from cultivating spiritual resources rather than from concentrating on building up physical bodies and exercising human minds. Christian Scientists find authority for their position in Jesus' words (John 6:63), "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." The life-giving, health-giving Word of God is the same in all ages, and we may always draw upon Spirit for our life and strength.

In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" Mary Baker Eddy writes (p. 393): "Rise in the strength of Spirit to resist all that is unlike good. God has made man capable of this, and nothing can vitiate the ability and power divinely bestowed on man." How shall we best avail ourselves of this strength of Spirit? We can begin by gaining a right understanding of humility.

Since Christ Jesus was the Way-shower in all things, let us turn to him for enlightenment. In John's Gospel we are told that Jesus said (5:19), "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." Here we see that Jesus took no personal credit for what he had accomplished. Perhaps he was emphasizing that, as a human being, he could do nothing of himself, but that the Son of God—the real man, or spiritual manifestation of God—can through reflection do whatever the Father does.

True humility, then, demands the relinquishment of belief in the false material creation with its fears and limitations and the acceptance of the spiritual truth of man made in God's image and likeness. As we grasp this kind of humility, accept the real man as our true selfhood, and give up belief in material power or personal accomplishment, we can approximate the works which Jesus did. As we look to God for strength and freedom we shall see our capacities enlarged and our endurance increased.

In Matthew another saying of Jesus is recorded in which he brings out the necessity of humility in order to gain entrance into God's kingdom, or a state of harmonious being. He said (19:24), "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." It is obvious that Jesus was not condemning the mere possession of wealth, but rather the wrong attitude—the pride of possession. Jesus knew that his hearers would understand the lesson he was teaching when he used the example of a camel going "through the eye of a needle." These listeners must have seen that before they could enter the kingdom of God, or a harmonious state of peace and freedom, they would have to put off personal pride or arrogance and attain the true sense of humility by giving God the glory due Him for all good.

Mrs. Eddy also brings out this point. She says (Science and Health, pp. 241, 242), "It is 'easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle,' than for sinful beliefs to enter the kingdom of heaven, eternal harmony." And she continues farther on, "Denial of the claims of matter is a great step towards the joys of Spirit, towards human freedom and the final triumph over the body."

A little boy of eight demonstrated to a degree the strength of Spirit by denying the claims of fear and human weakness. At dusk one evening he and his mother were rowing on a lake. Suddenly a high wind came up, and it became quite dark. The mother, who was rowing, seemed unable to make headway back to the shore. The boy, who had been attending the Christian Science Sunday School, reminded his mother that Jesus had calmed the storm when he was in a boat with his disciples. "All Jesus said was, 'Peace, be still' and that's all there was to it," he said.

The child's perfect confidence that God was as available to them as He had been to Jesus and his disciples calmed the mother's false sense of personal responsibility. She bent to the rowing with renewed vigor. In a short time there seemed to be no resistance to her efforts, and the boat was skimming along easily. She looked around and saw that she had rowed behind a promontory, which she had not seen before. This completely shielded them from the wind. By following along behind it and skirting the shore the rest of the way they were able to reach the cottage without further difficulty.

Here was an instance where human resources were entirely inadequate for the situation, but where through childlike trust in the infinite source of all protective strength the problem disappeared. Mrs. Eddy says (Science and Health, p. 167), "Only through radical reliance on Truth can scientific healing power be realized."

By realizing the unreality of matter and the fruitlessness of merely relying upon human resources we express true humility and acquire the strength of Spirit. We must therefore gain a clear understanding of the perfect man, who, as Jesus said, is one with the Father. With this understanding we have the ability and power to resist whatever is unlike good. Man has but one Mind and is the embodiment of right ideas. He is invulnerable, irresponsive to any so-called influence contrary to Principle, Truth, or Love. This real man is the complete, perfect, and unlimited expression of his Maker, conscious only of dominion, harmony, abundance, boundless strength, and freedom.

Jesus pointed out the qualifications necessary for admission into the kingdom of heaven when, after calling a little child unto him, he said (Matt. 18:4), "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven." The humbleness of which the Way-shower spoke is not a weak trait, but a strong virtue, heroic in its selflessness, It is much more desirable than pride of race, power, intellect, or material magnificence. It is a deep and solid conviction that the things of the Spirit are strong and eternal; that they are ever available and have an inexhaustible source upon which to draw; and that therefore mere human concepts of power and prestige are unimportant and fade into insignificance.

Thus when all praise is given to God, the source of all good, true humility is expressed, and the strength of Spirit is gained. In one of the hymns in the Christian Science Hymnal we find these reassuring words (No. 320):