The Washington herald., 1915-02-07
By DIR. w. w. BAKER.
CONTINUED from Last Week.


Continuing our analysis Of prayer we
| find that the result aimed at could be
obtained equally well by a deliberate eX-
ercise of the will. without any prayer,
by person who understood the mechan-
ism concerned, and the way to put it in
| motion. Such a man would think clearly
OF what he needed, would draw TO him
| the kind of subtle matter best suited to
his purpose to clothe the thought, and by
a deliberate exercise of his will would
either send 1t to a definite person to rep
resent his need, or to range his neigh
| borhood and be attracted by a charitably
disposed person. There is here no prayer,
but a conscious exercise of the will and
knowledge.
In the case Of most people, however.
ignorant OF the forces OF the invisible
worlds and unaccustomed to exercise
their wills, the concentration of mind
and the earnest desire which are neces-
sary for successful action are far more
| easily reached by prayer than by a de-
liberate mental effort to put forth their
own strength. They would doubt their
own power even il they understood the
theory. and doubt is fatal 10 the eXer-
else OF the will. That the person who
prays does not understand the machin-
cry he sets going in no wise affects the
result A child who stretches out his
hand and grasps an object need not un-
derstand anything of the working Of
| the muscles, nor Of the electrical and
chemical changes set up by the move
ment in muscles and nerves, nor need he
elaborately calculate the distance of the
object by measuring the angle made by
the optic axes: he wills TO take hold of
the thing he wants. and the apparatus
of his body obeys his will though he does
not even know of its existence. So is ii
with the man who prays, unknowing of
the creative force of his thought, of the
living creature he has sent out to do his
bidding. He acts as unconsciously as the
child. and like the child grasps what he
wants In both cases God Is equally the
primal Agent. all power being from Him;
in both cases the actual work is done by
the apparatus provided by His laws.
But this Is not the only way in which
prayers of this class are answered. Some
one temporarily out of the physical body
and at work in the invisible worlds, or a
passing Angel may hear the cry for
help. and may then put the thought OF
sending the required aid into the brain
of some charitable person. The thought
OF so-and-so came into my head this
morning." such a person will say. II
dare say a check would be useful to
him." Very many prayers are answered
in this way, the link between the need
and the supply being some invisible In
telligence. Herein is part of the min
istry of the lower Angels, and they will
thus supply personal necessities. as we'll
as bring aid to charitable UNDERTAKINGS.
The failure of prayers of this class is
due to another hidden cause. Every man
has contracted debts which have to he
paid; his wrong thoughts. wrong desires.
and wrong actions have built up ob-
stacles in his way, and sometimes even
hem him in IS the walls of a prison.
house. a debt of wrong is discharged by
a payment of suffering; man must bear
the consequences of the wrongs he has
wrought. 4 man condemned to die of
starvation by his own wrong doing in
the past may hurl his prayers against
that destiny in vain. Tho desire-form
ne creates will seek but will not find: it
will be met and thrown back by the cur
rent of past wrong. Here, as every
where, We are living in a realm of law,
and forces may be modified or entirely
frustrated by the play Of other forces
with which they come into contact. Two
exactly similar forces might be applied
TO two exactly similar balls; in one case,
no other force might be applied to the