Will B. Davis, C.S., of Chicago, Illinois
Member of the Board of Lectureship of The
Mother Church,
The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts
Member of the Board of Lectureship of The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts.
Will B. Davis, C.S., of Chicago, lectured on "Christian Science: The Divine Plan For Meeting Human Needs," Tuesday evening in the Murat Theatre under the auspices of The First Church of Christ, Scientist. The speaker was introduced by Mrs. Anna Weghorst.
The lecturer spoke substantially as follows:
As we reason from the standpoint of the good which is manifested about us, it is easy to conclude that there must be a supreme, all-governing intelligence, Mind, or God with a beneficent plan for His children. But if our thinking does not go beyond material appearances, we soon begin to ask ourselves why discord, sickness, lack, and unhappiness seem also to be prevalent in human affairs.
Our reason tells us that our loving Father-Mother God must have a divine plan of progress for His universe; but the material picture often seems to be far from a good plan.
It was the mission of Christ Jesus, our great Way-shower, to explain to mortals that the spiritual and good are real and eternal; whereas, the inharmonious and material are not what they seem to be, are not true, are not included in the divine plan. Because the age in which he appeared on earth was not spiritually minded enough to accept the revolutionary doctrine he came to teach, it was necessary for him to speak in parables and to prove his statements through demonstration. He healed all manner of sickness, including diseases that were deemed incurable, and that had in some instances, a long history.
Even before the time of Jesus, there was a search for an unerring plan which would eliminate disasters, sickness, warfare, and chronic fear. The Old Testament records many examples of healing, as well as the gaining of freedom from oppression and lack, through the power of prayer. Christ Jesus came to show us that such results are divinely natural and can be brought about with consistent regularity by those who understand that God's law of effectual right activity is always functioning everywhere.
We think of Jesus as the most inspired, capable, compassionate, thoughtful man who ever came to this earthly sphere. His disciples quite naturally developed a personal attachment for him. Even though he kept turning them to God as the fountainhead, the one all-creative intelligence, which he was commissioned to make known to them, his followers looked to him for enlightenment, inspiration, and healing. But finally he had to say to them, "It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you" (John 16:7). He virtually said to them that it was necessary for him to leave them so that they would stop looking to person for their help and turn unreservedly to divine Love.
Jesus had explained earlier to his disciples that it was not a person who was coming to comfort them, but the "Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive" (John 14:17). The worldly, materialistic state of thought is not ready to accept the "Spirit of truth," the eternal Christ. In many ways Jesus taught that the Christ, which he lived and demonstrated, was his eternal spiritual selfhood. His declaration, "Before Abraham was, I am," must have meant that the Christ, which always existed, was manifested before the advent of Abraham. The ancient prophets brought about healings through expressing the Christ, and so did Jesus. When he said to his disciples, "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you" (John 14:18), they knew that he was not prophesying the reappearance of a human man, but the coming of the Christ, the "Spirit of truth." Gaining the Christ-consciousness enables mortals to comprehend their true identity. It becomes evident, as we closely study that part of the book of John which contains these promises, that the Comforter is immediately available to those who learn how to differentiate between the human Jesus, the corporeal man and the Christ, the spirituality which Jesus exemplified.
It was because his followers had learned to express the Christ-consciousness, that consciousness which beholds a spiritual universe peopled with spiritual ideas, that they were eminently successful in practicing what Jesus had taught them. Unfortunately this Science of healing which regenerates, seemed almost completely lost for many centuries. When Mary Baker Eddy discovered, in 1866, how to distinguish between the mortal, human sense of man and the spiritual, real man, who expresses the Christ, it became apparent to her that God's heavenly gift to man, the promised Comforter, may now be received by everyone. The divine plan of redemption from sin, disease, and death, which Jesus came to elucidate, is awaiting the acceptance of each one of us through Christian Science.
A sharp distinction must be made between a material and a spiritual gift. Christian Science cannot be bequeathed to children by their parents. It cannot be presented to others as material gifts are given. Christian Science must be sought, must be desired, and its blessings can be gained only where there is receptivity. Those who are to be filled with the good which an understanding of the law of God, as taught in Christian Science, inevitably brings, must "hunger and thirst after righteousness."
More than mere faith in God is required for answered prayer. While the prayer of faith often heals, an understanding of the method Jesus used, is imperative if one is to be consistently successful in following his inspiring example. When Mrs. Eddy turned wholeheartedly to the Bible, after all human means to save her life had failed, she glimpsed enough of the benevolent plan Jesus had introduced, to bring her complete and instantaneous freedom. Through this experience Mrs. Eddy became convinced that within the sacred pages of the Bible she could find the rules which would make it possible to heal, not occasionally, but with scientific regularity. She began her search at once, and she tells us that during the next three years she devoted practically all her time and energy to a prayerful investigation of the Scriptures. She grasped each opportunity to heal others through the rules she was discovering, and the satisfactory results which were achieved convinced her that she had found the way to heal as Jesus did, through spiritual means alone.
Mrs. Eddy recognized the fact that our great Master's prophecy had been fulfilled, that the hoped-for Comforter had come. Through divine inspiration she then made her discovery accessible to all. In the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," our Leader wrote down the rules of healing which she had gleaned through revelation and faithful Bible study, and had practically proved in raising the dying to health. This textbook in no way takes the place of the Bible, but rather clarifies and illuminates the inspired Scriptural writings.
In speaking of the method she discovered, Mrs. Eddy has written in "Unity of Good" (pp. 9, 10): "Healing has gone on continually; yet healing, as I teach it, has not been practiced since the days of Christ. What is the cardinal point of the difference in my metaphysical system? This: that by knowing the unreality of disease, sin, and death, you demonstrate the allness of God. This difference wholly separates my system from all others."
In the fifth chapter of Mark, there is an account of the healing of a woman who had been suffering for twelve years from a chronic difficulty. She had spent all she had in seeking healing through material means, but "was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse." It relates that, "when she had heard of Jesus," she "came in the press behind, and touched his garment." Immediately she knew that she had been healed, and it is recorded that Jesus said unto her, "Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague." Jesus maintained so steadily the conviction that no evil could possibly exist in God's plan, that when inharmony came to him in the guise of this woman's plight he did not accept it as true; that is, he did not take it in and then have to put it out of his consciousness. The woman in question was healed instantaneously because Jesus refused to accept as a reality the inharmonious beliefs of mortal mind which had seemed so real to her.
As we carefully study the Scriptural record of Jesus' magnificent career we cannot help noting that he always considered the attitude of the patient. In the instance we are considering, it is evident that the woman had implicit confidence that she would be restored to health through this man of God, who was doing such extraordinary work. Something more than hope impelled her that day as she pressed through the throng toward Jesus. Probably she had experimented all she cared to, and quite evidently she was not thinking that, in case of failure, some other method might be tried. What we call her faith was a deep-rooted confidence in the Master's ability to heal. We too need to have an unshakable confidence — a conviction — that the law of God, the divine plan, is unfailing and ever in effect.
The vital point, then, is to understand God so completely that doubts and fears give place to calmness and assurance. It is not enough to say to one who is terror-stricken, "You must not be afraid." It is necessary rather to realize the ever-presence of God's power so fully that the reason for fear is removed. It may seem to the new student of Christian Science that we simply ignore sickness and inharmony, because the beginner does not understand the prayerful reasoning process through which we evaluate discords and remove them from human experience.
The Christian Scientist begins with God as the only creative cause or power, the one true Mind; and reasons from that perfect cause to perfect effect, the real spiritual man, the likeness of Spirit or Mind. Our experience has proved that this correct concept of the relationship of God and man cures serious bodily conditions of every type.
The child who is having Christian Science treatment is not being neglected, but is being helped more scientifically than is possible through any other method, because the dependence is on the all-knowing God, not on unintelligent matter. God's plan for His man is not a constant battle with matter and evil. The discovery that actually man is governed spiritually, scientifically, and correctly, and that he needs only to be amenable to God's law to be controlled by it, is the greatest blessing that has ever come to humanity.
We are witnessing through the teachings of Christian Science the same sort of spiritual healing which was performed by Jesus. Many turn to this Science after their case has been pronounced hopeless, or after years of unavailing effort to secure other relief, and still the percentage of cases healed through scientific Mind-healing is very high indeed. Even though some may hesitate to place their trust unreservedly in God, let us rejoice in the fact which Christian Science is proving daily that there is no such thing as incurability — "with God all things are possible" (Matt. 19:26).
Long ago Christ Jesus, through his teachings and healings, brought to light the divine plan for man. In contrast to the incomplete, unsatisfactory, and experimental methods of the human mind, this plan is complete, satisfactory, and certain. And Christian Science shows that this deific plan can be used scientifically and practically, to meet today's human needs. We pray for enlightenment and understanding that we may recognize God's plan and be always willing to accept it joyously. We would not expect to change the infinite plan through prayer, and when we perceive that a God-ordained law must be like its creator, that is, wholly good, it is plain that it needs no improvement. It follows that inharmony, sickness, war, lack, and death are not included in the divine plan. We pray that the eyes of our understanding may be opened to behold the orderliness, intactness, and perfectness of the divine creation. We rejoice in the good which has been provided even though, from a human standpoint, we seem to fall far short of accepting all of it.
The Psalmist's prayer, "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law" (Ps. 119:18), is effective and inspiring for us in proportion to our humility and sincerity, our willingness to be obedient to divine law. As we genuinely desire to understand and accept the limitless bestowals of our Father-Mother God, we may well know that it is natural for spiritual man to manifest receptivity. It is not conceivable that discord of any kind could be included in the divine arrangements for God's children. Unlimited good is awaiting our acceptance, but we must open our consciousness to receive it.
The most effectual prayer, then, beholds man as he is, spiritual and perfect, the image and likeness of Life, Truth, Love, Spirit, or God. God's man is enlightened, receptive, responsive, open, and could not be obstructed or apathetic. It is God's plan that man should be His image and likeness. Our prayer, as Christian Scientists, not only acknowledges man as capable of receiving God's perfection, but understands that the goodness which has been imparted, has been received, and is now being manifested by him. Such prayer, my friends, is called treatment by Christian Scientists; and the light of spiritual comprehension which is consciously aware of the at-one-ment of God and man, Principle and idea, is healing multitudes.
As we progress in our study of Christian Science we learn how properly to appraise the ills and discords of human existence. That which seems to be a physical, inharmonious bodily condition in reality is not physical. Mrs. Eddy makes a statement along this line on page 208 of Science and Health: "A material body only expresses a material and mortal mind. A mortal man possesses this body, and he makes it harmonious or discordant according to the images of thought impressed upon it. You embrace your body in your thought, and you should delineate upon it thoughts of health, not of sickness." Then on the next page we read: "It is the mortal belief which makes the body discordant and diseased in proportion as ignorance, fear, or human will governs mortals." When Mrs. Eddy first set forth these thoughts they were considered startling, and they were ridiculed by almost everyone who heard them, but today they are readily accepted by many successful medical practitioners.
It has been helpful to me to consider the mental nature of what seem to be wholly material business activities. How apparent it is that a business must be thought out, conceived mentally, before it becomes manifest as a going concern. Business conditions seem to react to discordant thinking and become sick just as does the mortal body. Let us put the word "business" in place of "body" in that quotation from our textbook. "A material [business] only expresses a material and mortal mind. A mortal man possesses this [business], and he makes it harmonious or discordant according to the images of thought impressed upon it. You embrace your [business] in your thought, and you should delineate upon it thoughts of health, not of sickness. . . . It is the mortal belief which makes the [business] discordant and diseased in proportion as ignorance, fear, or human will governs mortals." Plain, isn't it, that Godlike enlightened, courageous thinking is needed for bodily and business health? Whether it is mass mesmerism or our own mistaken mortal thinking and fear, let us correct and dispel the illusion through recognition of the indisputable fact that no erroneous power, mind, or law can have dominion anywhere, because all-powerful divine intelligence is in control everywhere to dissipate the illusion of unjust, greedy, fatalistic, ignorant, or fear-laden human thinking.
Let me give you an example to illustrate the importance of impersonalising evil. Over a period of several years a friend of mine was inwardly resentful because a certain organization seemed to persist in treating him unjustly. He became rather callous about it, and then one day in talking with a Christian Scientist it was uncovered that instead of healing the resentment in his own thought, he had only pushed it aside, still believing in the reality of the injustice. He resolved to mend his ways, but the uncovering of the error seemed to result in a disturbing bodily condition. He recognized at once that the inharmony was mental, not physical — the smoldering resentment had burst into flames, as it were. Mrs. Eddy calls such fermentation, which sometimes occurs when truth is casting out error, chemicalization. However, the discord was not relieved, and he decided to ask a Christian Science practitioner for help.
Still the trouble persisted until, due to his physical appearance, it came to them to look up the word "jaundice" in the dictionary. They found it defined in part as follows: to "fill (the mind) with prejudice or envy. A mental condition as in jealousy or prejudice, in which the judgment is warped." At once my friend discerned that the injustice did not emanate from an organization or a group of persons, but was just a belief in mortal thought. The hurt feelings and resentment were eliminated from his thought so completely that the bodily condition became normal almost instantaneously. Further, he soon found the organization friendly and helpful to him in many ways.
The paramount necessity in these troubled days is to find a way to duplicate such a healing as this one, millions of times. As an aftermath of the most devastating war in all history, the need for binding up the brokenhearted, and of casting out bitterness and hatred is apparent. The mere effort to control resentment, or push it aside, through human will-power, as laudable as this appears to be, will not solve the problem. The necessity is to turn our thought wholly to the nature of God as Love; then let us begin to behold the real man as the image and likeness of Love, to whom unwholesome characteristics are not attached. This spiritual man is not governed by hate, thoughtlessness, selfishness, and inhumanity. Such qualities do not emanate from all-creative infinite Mind and therefore are not connected with any idea in God's kingdom.
When dishonesty, greed, selfishness, insincerity, and the like, come to us in the masquerade of people, such evils appear to be individuals. We then reason that, to obliterate such discords from our view, it may be necessary to try to overlook these faults or to move ourselves away from people or places. To believe there could be a creator for such worthless qualities as hatred, fear, and revenge, is to have another God, to break the First Commandment. Love's ideas are actuated by kindness, consideration, and justice. When we as Christian Scientists learn to separate bitterness, hate, and resentment from individuals and nations, and then to understand that in reality man has no mind which could tenaciously hold to thought as revenge, we shall be doing the most important work which can be done to perpetuate peace at home and abroad. Let us know that hate cannot be expressed in the realm of divine Love, and perceive in addition that God's children are receptive and ready to receive Love's gift of peace. It is through such constructive thinking, my friends, that we can have a part in hastening the attainment of these prophecies from Isaiah: "All the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God" (Isa. 52:10). "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa. 2:4). "And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children" (Isa. 54:13).
I still occasionally meet someone who finds it difficult to understand why Christian Scientists so often express gratitude for the discovery of Christian Science, and for its Discoverer and Founder, Mrs. Eddy. When one begins to glimpse the magnitude of the good her strength of purpose and love for humanity has brought, and is bringing to mankind, the wonder is not that we hear so much gratitude expressed, but that we do not voice even more often our deep appreciation for what she has done for us and others. It may seem that some of us are as thoughtless as the nine lepers who failed to return to Jesus to give thanks. Only one of the ten lepers who were cured on that occasion came back to acknowledge the omnipotence of God which had healed him, and to express his gratitude to Jesus for his willingness to use his understanding of God in helping him. The account of this healing in the seventeenth chapter of Luke says that this man "fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks. . . . And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?"
Perhaps the most important characteristic of our gratitude for Mrs. Eddy's distinctive services to humanity is that while at first it concerns only our own well-being, we soon learn to rejoice over the other fellow's healing. It is always helpful to read every testimony in a Christian Science Journal, Sentinel, or Herald, and to attend Wednesday testimony meetings, where other healings resulting directly from our Leader's discovery are given. Do these things again and again and you cannot fail eventually to begin to share with us the profound gratitude we feel that Mrs. Eddy persevered until she completed her God-ordained mission, to make her discovery available to all.
Because it clearly presents the impelling, high motive which inspired Mrs. Eddy, let me read a short passage beginning on page 226 of Science and Health: "I saw before me the sick, wearing out years of servitude to an unreal master in the belief that the body governed them, rather than Mind. The lame, the deaf, the dumb, the blind, the sick, the sensual, the sinner, I wished to save from the slavery of their own beliefs and from the educational systems of the Pharaohs, who to-day, as of yore, hold the children of Israel in bondage. I saw before me the awful conflict, the Red Sea and the wilderness; but I pressed on through faith in God, trusting Truth, the strong deliverer, to guide me into the land of Christian Science, where fetters fall and the rights of man are fully known and acknowledged."
May I recommend something to you, which has recently given me an even more comprehensive appreciation of the noteworthy achievements of this distinguished humanitarian. Even though I had read the biography of Mrs. Eddy by Sibyl Wilbur, I started at the beginning and read it through again. The healing experiences and further spiritual enlightenment which had come to me since the previous reading, illuminated the story of her full and fruitful life. Whether you are just beginning the study, or whether you have been a Christian Scientist for years, you will thoroughly enjoy reading, or rereading this interesting and inspiring biography. It may be borrowed or purchased at any Christian Science Reading Room. A true appreciation of the Discoverer makes it possible to benefit more fully from the discovery.
Once when I noticed that in some communities many more people attend our Sunday services than our Wednesday evening meetings, I allowed myself to become disturbed about it, and as I left a poorly attended Wednesday meeting, the words came to me, "Where are the nine?" Apparently even Jesus was disappointed that at times so little gratitude was displayed. In view of his conspicuous demonstrations of divine power, we all wonder why his teachings were not more readily accepted. And so I thought that if Jesus, the greatest Christian of all, perceived flagrant evidences of apathy and indifference, we had better not allow ourselves to be miserable about it, but rather rejoice in the sense of appreciation which is shown; and particularly continue to express gratitude ourselves for all the good God has given to us through Mrs. Eddy's discovery of Christian Science.
Awakening to what God has in store for us is an individual matter. Each one must wake up for himself. I like the fourth verse in the tenth chapter of Ezra: "Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it." To me this verse explains very well the relationship of practitioner to patient. It is our individual consciousness that needs to be regenerated. Paraphrasing the statement in Ezra the Christian Science practitioner may say to his patient, "I am happy indeed to help you, but you are the one who must rise above the mist. Be of good courage and do it."
However, let us not be too concerned when the new student does not immediately embrace all that we love and have learned through our Christian Science activities. The beginner may have to digest a little spiritual food before he is ready for another meal.
One Sunday morning, just as we were leaving our church, I met a sweet little two-year-old girl with her mother. I knew the youngster and picked her up and talked with her for a few minutes. As we drove along towards home I said to my wife, "We aren't surprised that she needs to have her mother help her up the stairs, feed her, put her to bed, etc.; then why should we be so surprised that children in the study of Christian Science need a helping hand as they are striving to unlearn the material, and to grasp the spiritual truths of Christian Science?" A human child grows gradually from babyhood to manhood and those who are with him continually do not notice that he does grow from day to day. And so it is with our comprehension of the infinite truths of Christian Science, we do progress each day, if we but use each occasion for spiritual growth as it presents itself.
There is no luck, no coming and going of good, no chance and change in the divine plan. The fulfillment of this plan only seems to be delayed through our dependence on matter, our belief in the stoppage of good, our lack of alertness or unwillingness to accept the healing which presents itself. To attempt to determine in advance, or outline humanly, the answer to all our problems is not the scientific way.
If one is sick, the process is not a question of arguing that, through Christian Science, health will be restored. Rather do we endeavor to behold the spiritual man of God's creating who has never had a relapse into inharmony. Mere human outlining is often limitation, because the unlimited good our Father-Mother God has in store for each of His children cannot be conceived of humanly. Therefore, in thinking about the future, or in making what we call demonstrations, we need to form the habit of listening for divine direction so that we may not miss the road, but stay on the highway leading to success, health, and happiness.
On the front wall of many of our Christian Science churches we find Mrs. Eddy's words, "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need" (Science and Health, p. 494). Consider for a moment the necessity for making human decisions which confronts most of us daily. If one sincerely desires to know and trust God's plan, divine direction will always be received. We may have been earnestly looking to the one Mind for an orderly unfoldment of the divine plan, but still may not have gained a clear answer; then let us recall once again that divine Love always meets the human need. Under these circumstances we can confidently await the fulfillment of the promise: "And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it" (Isa. 30:21) Thus may we prove that we can always know what we need to know when we need to know it.
When Jesus prayed that the cup might pass from him, he added, "Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt" (Matt. 26:39). For true success in our everyday affairs we endeavor to become willingly obedient to the divine Mind. In Christian Science we learn to trust God "with our desires," as Mrs. Eddy admonishes us, "that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds" (Science and Health, p. 1).
The experience of a friend of mine is a good illustration. He and his business associates were publishers' representatives; that is, they were employed to sell advertising in several different publications. A period came when their organization was not doing a sufficient volume of business to take care of current expenses. Word was received by my friend that an important publisher might consider utilizing the services of his organization, so my friend immediately began to outline that here was the answer to his problem. But his efforts to secure the account were not successful, and finally he sought the assistance of a Christian Science practitioner.
After the situation was explained he asked the practitioner if he would help him land that particular business. However, the practitioner pointed out that we do not work in Christian Science for certain preconceived results; in other words, we endeavor to listen for divine direction and then fearlessly take the steps that seem right. We know that God's plan for man is good for everyone concerned; as Mrs. Eddy puts it, "Whatever blesses one blesses all" (Science and Health, p. 206). The practitioner said that he would be glad to help clarify my friend's vision, to awaken him to the untold opportunities for progress right at hand, and help him see that he must look to divine Love and not to a human business for his supply.
Within ten days the publisher
decided not to make the change in his representation, and while it seemed to my
friend that he had failed and it was difficult for him not to be disappointed,
still he saw that if he was sincere in the statement he had made to himself —
that he would rather not have the account if it was not good for all concerned
— he should now be satisfied with the result. Furthermore, he had turned
earnestly to divine Love for guidance and this had brought something he did not
expect or even desire, for he was instantaneously relieved of the smoking
habit. This unexpected occurrence gave him courage, and an assurance that all
of his problems could be met. Within another month an unforeseen opportunity
came to render additional service to one of his regular clients, and this
arrangement was much more satisfactory and profitable from every standpoint
than the solution he had originally outlined.
How grateful we should be that we are not obliged to rely on human planning; nor are we dependent on fearsome, fatalistic, uncertain mortal belief for guidance. What a vast difference we find between, the divine plan of ever-unfolding good and the superstitious theories of fatalism. The fatalist argues that there is not much use in trying, since we cannot escape our destiny. Disasters are assumed to be inevitable and death foreordained. It is presumed that such things are to overtake man at some specific prearranged moment. But these notions cannot be reconciled to the fact that God's plan for His ideas includes eternal life. In fact, God is Life, infinite right activity, whose ever-presence annihilates any belief in inactivity, overactivity, or diseased activity. Man is the image of this, active, vital, correct, healthful, ever-living, all-powerful Life, and there is no blemish in this perfect image. Therefore, any evidence of evil or decay, not being the emanation of Life, has no vitality or life to keep it going. Evil has no power to give it continuity, nothing whatever to maintain it; and the Life which man reflects does support, uphold, and guarantee man's uninterrupted harmony and health.
Life is that infinite activity of good which denies all sense of the activity of evil. This Life is reflected by man; that is, the real, spiritual man is the expression of Life, of God's complete fullness and abundance. Blindness, deafness, paralysis, pain, decay, death, lack of any sort, never had a foothold in Life; and, therefore, these beliefs are not realities to be removed, even through Christian Science treatment.
It is not rational to blame the law of God, which perpetuates and sustains the divine plan, simply because we are not accepting it more readily and proving it more successfully. Our assignment is to study to know the law better so that we may take advantage of it and let it operate in our lives. When all mankind learns more and more of the never-failing nature of God's completeness, the human manifestation will be less and less poverty. Our individual understanding of Love's affluence determines our own prosperity. Depression and lack will leave the human scene in proportion as mankind accepts the good God has planned.
In the very presence of all-powerful Spirit no impossibility exists. If a physician has called a disease incurable, this is only mortal opinion, and unless Christian Science could successfully overcome mortal opinion, it never could have healed a single case. Think of the mortal opinion Jesus had to overcome when he healed "a man which was blind from his birth" (John 9:1). As we read in John, "Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind" (John 9:32). Those who witnessed the healing were astonished. Many refused to believe it; but their antagonism, their unwillingness to acknowledge God's omnipotence, could not cause that disease to return in view of what Jesus knew about the real man and his forever perfection.
So when the doctor says "no hope," or when inharmony in our home, in our business, or in the international situation seems to have reached the limit of human endurance, when mortal mind says it can't be done; then is the time to meet the challenge, to prove that Christian Science, God's law of continuous right activity, is the divine plan for meeting human needs.
[Delivered March 12, 1946, at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana, under the auspices of First Church of Christ, Scientist, Indianapolis, and published in The Marion County Mail of Indianapolis, March 15, 1946.]
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