The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1926-05-07

Of Detroit, Michigan
in Boston, Massachusetts,

somewhere called heaven. Some may
go 50 far as to believe that Jesus is
God, or, even, that there is no God
at all. In fact, all Of these beliefs
about God are held by some people,
but the Bible, spiritually interpreted,
gives no excuse for believing any of
the things about God I have just
enumerated, and we will cease to de-
lude ourselves with these and other
mistaken concepts concerning God and
man in just the proportion that we
do our own reading Of the Bible and
cur own thinking rather than depend
upon creeds and dOgmas for our in
formation, or allow others to do cur
reading, u thinking, and our in
terpreting for US.
God.
Now just what is God and how is
He to be made vital in our individual
lives-in our homes, in our business,
in the sick room, and so forth? One
Of the terms used by Mrs. Eddy in
her definition Of God is "LONe."
Christian Science teaches that God is
Love. "Oh, yes!" some one may
say. 'That's not new, that's old. We
have always known that" Let US
see. Have we always known that &?
In I John we read, "God is love; and
he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in
God, and God in him." Now, how do
we dwell in love, or God? Why, OBJ
viously, by loving, not by hating or
faultfinding or fearing. st. Johns
explanation that "God is love" is
plain and unequivocal. He does not
say that God is a loving God. He
says that God is Love itself and that
to know God-that is, to express God
as His image and likeness-is to re-
fleet Love. To think is purely a func-
ton Of the mind, is it not? Hence,
] to love mankind is to know or reflect
God as His image and likeness, and
is wholly an exercise of right think.
ing, and is not a product Of the five
physical senses. Love, in the sense
in which it is used in the Bible and
in Christian Science to define God
does not involve a personal, senti-
mental type of affection. It has tC
do with that sense only which sees
man as the image and likeness Of
God-pure, upright, and undefiled by
sin and mortality. And it is only as
We see our brother man to be a child
Of God, regardless of what the out.
ward evidences may bear witness
that We establish ourselves as His
children and thereby come into cul
G~od-given heritage of freedom from
the ills and woes Of the worlds Civ
ing.
If the fact that "God is love" is al
abiding conviction with us we cal
never for n instant harbor an,
sense of hatred towards brothe
man; we car never for a momen
look with envy upon the coed for
tune of u neighbor; we can neve
be conscious of any sense of resent
ment or Indignation at a seeming af
front or insult at the hands of an
other; we can never be guilty 0
criticizing our brother man or .
| finding fault with him regardless o
the nature of his Offense against Us
We most %assuredly will not be fouu
speaking i'll Of any che if we waite
our thinking. We govern our health
7 our happiness, and our prosperity b
our W thinking, and while it ma
/ not be of great concern to OU
I neighbor what We think about hin
1 it matters a whole lot to us whs
we think about him, because GU
!, own thinking about our brother ma
has to do largely with what happen
= to us. We might hate another eve
so much and not do him a partic.
0 Of harm but that very act of hatin
1 our brother might bring on US dii
aster and disease. From the stant
d point of our own self protection "
should never think anything abOl
another We would not wish to be trU
l. about ourselves.
: Now, another term employed b
Mrs. Eddy, in her definition Of Go
n is "good." Christian Science do,
not teach simply that God is a goo
n God. It affirms, as does the Bib
Z that God is good. Christian Scien,
teaches that God is good itself,-n
that good is simply a quality Of G.
n but that good is God. What is goo
y ness? Is it physical OF mental?
is primarily and finally ment'
Therefore, to express good in o.
u thinking is to express or reflect G.
as His image and likeness, is it not
IT Jesus said, 'Why callest thou n
r good? there is none good but OF
that is, God"
y In Deuteronomy we are told th
? "he (GOd) is thy hfe' and Jesus sd
y that to know God is life eternal.
i God is Life, and life consists in knor
II ing God, and knowing God is pure
N mental, then life is not physical b
g is, rather, spiritual, for spiritual al
20 means mental. Hence, Mrs. Edd!
definition Of God as "Life" and b
assertion that Life is Mind, or G,
Life, then, if the Bible is to be TAX
as authority, resolves itself into
n. ! 49,