The herald., 1921-03-17
Christian Science
THE TRUE STANDARD OF
RIGHT
By Bliss Knapp, c. S. B.
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Christian Science
Continued from Page -
Rasic RuIe of Christian Science.


Christian Fathers, those who had re-
ceived some proof of Gods power ana
willingness to heal almost invarlapiy
lost the CLEAN that their pure s1allh
had brought them; and they droppeu
back. as did Luther, into dependence
on material means and remedies ac-
cording to the custom of their times.
But Mrs. Eddy's purpose was 10 seek
something more than faith, even the
understanding which would enaple
her TO heal all manner of sin and dis
ease with the directness and regular
ity of a Science; for that which one
really understands can never be lost.
Possibly the first step in gaining the
Science of Christian healing came with
her ability to detect in her own mind
the difference between the thoughts
which come from divine Principle, ana
the aggressive suggestions of the nesh,
which st. Paul classified as the carnal
mind: for he said, ITO be carnally
minded is death; but to be spiritually
minded is life and peace" Here are
two opposite sources of thinking, as
opposite as God and Satan. The
thoughts coming from God express the
iov and harmony of life; but the sug-
gestions of the carnal mind seek to
drag one down to sin and death.
knowing that opposites can never
abide together in ones thought at the
same time, Mrs. Eddy was impelled to
work from the single viewpoint that
Ito be spiritually minded is life and
peace" This, of course, involved
search into the understanding OF the
divine or spiritual Mind, in order to
lay hold of that life and peace. Such
a scientific segregation of thought is
the first step in learning to pray
Alright.
or all the systems of religion or
philosophy known to men, none but
the teachings of Christ Jesus and of
Christian Science ever have held con-
sistently to the one spiritual view
point. These teachings, moreover,
are the only religions that have
]
to heal physical sickness as well as
sin. A single sentence in Science
and Health with Key to the Scrip
lures, presents the process of rea-
soning by which Mrs. Eddy gained
that healing power. 1t is as fol-
lows: Reasoning from cause to
effect ~ the Science of Mind, we
begin with Mind, which must be I'M
derstood through the idea which
expresses it and cannot be learned
from its opposite, matter" This is
indeed the rule of logic which bases
the teachings of Christian Science.
Reasoning from the viewpoint of
God, or. divine Principle, one must
naturally see all things as God sees
them,-complete, harmonious and
eternal His true nature can be I'M
derstood through the idea which ex-
presses that nature, even as the idea
of honesty reveals the nature of an
honest God, but that nature can
never be understood from its oppo-
site, dishonesty. Since Jesus proved
that healing, like honesty, expresses
the nature of God, one needs. only
to recognize and heed Gods prom
ises to heal in order to experience
that healing power. Like honesty
and goodness, this healing power
must be obeyed from the heart and
not the head, and only as it is thus
lived can it properly be understood
and demonstrated.
Jesus Early Experiences.
Mrs. Eddy has declared in her
book, Science and Health, that "the
Sermon on the Mount is the essence
of this Science" Let us now apply
the test of our rule of logic to that
standard of Christian teaching. At
ter Jesus was baptized by John the
Baptist, a voice from heaven was
heard to, say, This is my beloved
Son, in whom l am we'll pleased. y
When Jesus received that testimony
and it was noised abroad that he was
the Son of God, there MUST have
hurst upon his vision the full mean
ing of unlimited power,-the undis-
puted heritage of the Son of God
Has not every one at some time
wished for unlimited wealth OF
power? If ones widest dreams
were suddenly realized, how would
he act? Would he not be tempted
to use his power selfishly? 1t is
not surprising therefore that Jesu:
was Immediately driven into the will.
derness, and tempted to use his
power for selfish ends. Satan Of
fered him all the Kingdoms of the
earth, if only he would bow down
to the claims of evil. but Jesu:
knew the impossibiIIty of obeyine
two such opposites as God and Satan
When he realized that impossibility
the temptation ceased. Then thu