Contents
Preface
What the New Thought Stands For
The Unity of Life
Demand and Supply
The Law of Attraction
Mental Influences
Freedom – Individual and Universal
Hearing and Doing
The Mission of Jesus
The Religion of Christ
Things Worth Remembering
The Laws of Health
Spiritual Treatment
The Crusade Against Christian Science
Man: Past, Present, and Future
The Way of Salvation
The Kingdom of God
The Spirit of Praise
The Kingdom of Man
The Dawn of a New Age
Preface
The age of materialism is passing away; and the pessimism and infidelity of the past, with which it was so closely associated, no longer fill the minds of men with discord and unrest. As a transitory condition it was doubtless necessary, because the real side of life is made evident through contrast. Probably the world has never seen nor known an age that has been more densely materialistic than the one just passed; not that it was altogether physical in its nature, but the intellect of man was used to subvert and subordinate the spiritual sense to the intellectual reasoning and sense desires.
On the physical side of life the world has been ransacked for every kind of mineral poison with the expectation that through their introduction into the physical organism health and strength would be the result.
In man’s intellectual and religious world the spirit has played no part. Dogmatic utterances, binding creeds, and the degradation of himself to a “worm of the dust” and a miserable sinner,” have served to fill up the sum of his intellectual vagaries.
But this is all passing away before the coming of a newer and higher conception of life; and this New Thought lays its foundation in an Omnipotent Life and a Universal Intelligence acting through universal law—law while exacting conformity to its requirements, shows itself to be beneficent in character.
In the mind of man there is the dawning of a new and vital fact that the authority of law is resident in his own life; that health, strength, and happiness, as conditions of mind and body, must be made manifest through conscious effort on his part by the use of spiritual qualities and mind-faculties; that through the indwelling spirit his mind must be quickened and renewed and his body strengthened and made whole.
In giving the contents of this book to the world the author earnestly hopes that the reader may find something that will prompt him to make a more serious and thoughtful study of life and its requirements.
Faithfully yours,
Charles Brodie Patterson
The Schuyler
59 West 45th Street,
New York City
What the New Thought Stands For
They grow too great
For narrow creeds of right and wrong, which fade
Before the unmeasured thirst for good: while peace
Rises within them ever more and more.
Such men are even now upon the earth.
—Browning
The truth is never in danger. Whether buried by friends or foes, it always rises again with a mightier vitality, a more resistless power, and a diviner glory. But the destruction of a half-truth or an old form of truth, is always necessary to the entrance and mastery of a larger truth in the life of the race. God suffers the destruction of states, churches, religions, sciences; not that men may be left without truth and knowledge and law; but that better laws and freer states and purer churches and wider knowledge and clearer visions of truth may arise to realize the kingdom of heaven upon the earth.
—George D. Herron
Within the last twenty-five years two great movements, thoroughly idealistic in their tendencies, have taken root in our own country and are now spreading to the uttermost parts of the earth. One is known under the name of Christian Science, and was founded by Mary Baker Glover Eddy; the other, which is now popularly known as the New Thought Movement, had as its first great apostle P. P. Quimby, of Portland, Me., and later Julius A. Dresser, of Boston, and Dr. W. F. Evans. Mr. Dresser taught and practiced mental healing, and wrote but little. Dr. Evans wrote a number of books, the most important being, “Primitive Mind Cure” and “Esoteric Christianity.”
It is not within the scope of this article to trace the history of these two great movements, but rather to show certain points wherein they agree or disagree. Fundamentally, there are certain beliefs held by them in common. The New Thought devotee as well as the Christian Scientist holds to the thought of the oneness of life—that all life is one life; that all knowledge is one—and that God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent. Starting with this fundamental idea of life, it might be thought by some that the two bodies would reach virtually the same conclusions; but that there is a radical difference will be clearly shown in the following paragraphs.
Let it be understood, first of all, that the writer does not attempt to discuss this subject in an antagonistic way, or from any desire to find fault with Christian Science. He recognizes the fact that there must be great vitality in a religious system that has wrought such wonderful changes in the minds of thousands of people in so short a time, and is more than willing to give due credit to its founder for the truly marvelous work she has accomplished. There is no desire to be unjust, but merely to make a plain statement of the facts of the case. The writer has no thought of making any attack on Mrs. Eddy or her followers, and concerning the points wherein he seems to criticize will deal with certain phases of their belief rather than with the work of any individual; for he is in general accord with their affirmative religion, or philosophy, but in direct opposition to their philosophy of denial, which he believes to be unchristian. He grants without question the good they have accomplished in healing the sick and in bringing greater happiness and peace into the lives of others. He believes, however, that this has been accomplished, not through any denial of matter, or of sin, sickness, and death, but through the presentation of the affirmative side of their religion—the oneness of life and the omnipotence of God.
This article is written to make clear the distinction between the New Thought Movement and Christian Science, as the question is so often asked, In what does the real difference consist? The first great point of divergence appears when Christian Science affirms the whole material universe to be an illusion of what it terms “mortal mind,” and that through the denial of matter one realizes one’s spiritual origin. This is identical with the position held by many of the Hindu people, both of the past and the present time—that Maya (matter) is an illusion of mind. Of course, in this denial of matter the physical form of man is also denied away.
The New Thought believer, on the other hand, looks upon the visible universe as an expression of the power of God. He perceives that there must be an outer as well as an inner; that there must be effects as well as causes; that all the great material universe is the visible word of God—God’s word becoming manifest in material form; that the body of man, to some degree, represents man’s spiritual and mental life; that by the influx of man’s spiritual consciousness the mind is renewed, and the body strengthened and made whole. In this conception of the outer world, the New Thought believer claims to be in thorough accord with what the great Nazarene taught; because, while he said the flesh was of no profit in comparison with the spirit, yet he drew his greatest lessons from external nature. He said: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow.” He pointed out how God has clothed the flowers with a beauty and perfection that man’s highest art cannot equal. He affirmed that God cared even for the grass of the field; and King David said: “Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.”
Christian Science denies away sin, sickness, and death. The New Thought claims that all three have an existence, but an existence that is overcome, not through any process of denial, but through the introduction of true thought into the mind of man; that to deny them away is to attribute the qualities of an entity to the very thing that is denied; that, in order to deny anything away, it must first be pictured in the mind; and that, instead of putting it away, the mental picture is thus perpetuated. Jesus recognized both sin and disease when he said: “Go, and sin no more, lest a worse thing befall thee.” There is nothing in his teachings to show that he ever denied away either sin or disease, but much to prove that he recognized both as conditions that should be overcome by good.
Another point of difference between Christian Science and the New Thought Movement is the question of individual freedom—the God-given right to think and act for one’s self. Christian Science says, Read the Bible, and then take “Science and Health” as its interpreter. Leave all other sources of knowledge alone, it commands, because all else is the product of “mortal mind.” The New Thought stands with the Apostle Paul, when he said: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” Paul does not concede the right to anyone else to do the thinking or the proving, believing that each mind must deal individually with the problems of life and thus work out its own salvation.
Still another point of disagreement arises in the founding of church organizations. Christian Science, with its thoroughly organized following, has founded church after church. New Thought people think that we have churches enough; that we do not need religions made up of creeds and “beliefs” as urgently as we need a religion based upon the true worship of God—in spirit and in truth. The real temple of God is in the human soul; the New Thought Movement, therefore, does not stand for any ecclesiastical or theological propaganda. It would bring to the minds of the people a knowledge of the laws that regulate and control life everywhere; it would show that through perfect conformity to the inner laws of life come perfect health and happiness, and that it is possible to manifest God’s kingdom here and now.
When we come to the healing of disease, a radical difference is found in that the Christian Science practitioner denies away disease and then affirms the oneness of life and of health, declaring that we are to draw our vitality from the one great Source; while the New Thought practitioner stands fairly and squarely on the affirmative side of life. No such thing as denial enters the mind of the New Thought healer when he treats his patient. He recognizes all wrong mental conditions—malice, hatred, envy, jealousy, pride, sensuality, and kindred emotions—as indications of a lack of development, and perceives that with the introduction of affirmative thought no direct denial is needed: that the affirmation carries all necessary denial within itself.
When the feeling of love enters the life, the false feeling of hate must go out; when the thought of law and order enters the mind, unlawfulness and disorder can have no place. The New Thought healer affirms that all life is one; that in God “we live and move and have our being;” that He has given to us all things—health, strength, and happiness. Every thought given by the healer is one of strength, of health, of beauty and loving-kindness; no disagreeable or unwholesome thought goes forth to the patient, as would naturally be the case if the mind of the healer were engaged in denying away mistakes that he hopes to overcome. We believe that our thoughts make us what we are; that it is indispensably necessary to keep the mind filled with clean, wholesome thought—and in so doing there is no room for contradictory ideas.
To recapitulate: Christian Science and the New Thought agree that all life is one; that all intelligence is one; that God is the All in all.
And they disagree on the following points: Christian Science says that the visible world is “mortal mind;” the New Thought declares the visible universe to be an expression of God’s handiwork. Christian Science asserts that sin, sickness, and death have no existence; the New Thought affirms that they have an existence, but their existence is only limited and their destruction comes through right thinking and hence right living. Christian Science stands for a great religious sectarian organization; it stands for slavery of the individual to an institution—at least at present. The New Thought stands for a knowledge of spiritual truth among all people and perfect freedom of the individual, in both thought and action, to live out the life that God intended him to live. Christian Science stands for a woman and a book; the New Thought Movement stands for God manifesting through the soul of man, for the eternal laws of creation, and for the absolute freedom of the individual to work out his own salvation. Christian Science stands for a treatment of disease that includes both a negative and an affirmative philosophy; the New Thought in its treatment of disease rests on the omnipotence of God as the one and only healing power of the universe, and is therefore thoroughly and solely affirmative.
Having pointed out the distinctions that exist between the two movements as the writer sees them, let us briefly outline the New Thought and what it stands for, even though it may be necessary to repeat a few statements already made in order to give a clear, comprehensive view of the movement. We do not believe that the New Thought had its origin in the mind of any one particular person or number of persons, but that it is as old as the soul itself. It is God’s truth seeking to become manifest in the individual life. We believe, however, that Jesus Christ showed forth the great yet simple truths of life in as clear and comprehensive a manner as they have ever been given to the world. Yet we do not believe that he was the only great prophet of God, but that all peoples have had their prophets—that Buddha, Krishna, Mohammed, Zoroaster, and Confucius were prophets of God, and brought life and understanding to the people.
The New Thought teaches the universality of religion; that God’s spirit is more or less active in the minds of all people, and that each individual receives according to his desires and needs; that there is a natural evolutionary process in the life of man, and little by little he is unfolding to latent powers and possibilities; that the ideal man already exists, but the ideal is still seeking perfect expression; that man grows as naturally as does the plant or the tree, and that there is law and order from beginning to end; that law is universal, and it is through knowledge of universal law that man brings his life into oneness with the universal life—into a condition of harmony wherein he expresses both health and happiness.
There are different stages of religious development, as there are different stages of physical, mental, and spiritual growth. On one plane of religion, man lives a purely sensuous life; on another, the mind becomes enamored of creeds and rituals formulated by the human mind; on a third, man worships God in spirit and in truth. I believe there is no religion in the world devoid of truth—that the truth it contains is that which holds it together; that all mankind is working for a single end; that, although we have differences in the present, they exist rather in form than in spirit, and will gradually melt away. We would rejoice with all people when they rejoice. In whatever way any body of people, calling themselves Christian Scientists or by any other name, bring greater happiness and a higher and truer knowledge of life to others, instead of finding fault, let us gladly endorse that which they have accomplished. We know that whatever good is wrought is of the Spirit of God—in both thought and work.
In defining the principles professed by the New Thought followers, we are free to admit that they do not always adhere to their highest ideals; but exception should not be taken to the law, but rather to the failure to live up to its requirements. The New Thought teaches that we should live from the center of life outward; that we should recognize the power of God working within us to will and to do. There should be such an outflow of faith and love and hope from the soul into the mind of man that his thought would really become transfigured, his body transformed, and God’s kingdom expressed “on earth as it is in heaven.” We believe that any reform that shall ever come into the world will not be through a work that deals solely with the external life, but will have its inception in the heart—in the soul and life—of man; that there is no problem in life that cannot be solved through a knowledge of the law of God—as it is written in the heart of man—and obedience thereto. The New Thought stands for a vital Christianity that goes to the very heart of things; that pays no attention to the letter or the form, but creates both letter and form for itself in perfect accord with the inner word.
We have, therefore, no desire to build up any sectarian organization or to tear down any that now exists. We would say, with Paul, that “the unknown God whom ye ignorantly worship, Him we declare unto you.” God—who is in all, through all, and above all—worketh within you to will and to do. Having no sectarian organization, yet offering the right hand of fellowship to members of all religious denominations; having no belief in creed or dogma, yet recognizing the full rights of all who desire and feel the need of both: the New Thought Movement has not come to destroy but to fulfill. It has not come to tear down, but to build up; yet that building will not be made by the hands of man, but will abide in the hearts of the people—wherein their minds will become strengthened and their bodies made whole.
While the movement is an aggressive one, it would antagonize no body of people. It is aggressive for the fundamental position it takes, being affirmative from beginning to end. It affirms the omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence of God—with all that these words imply. It stands for a gospel of peace and good-will to all men. It is optimistic throughout. It declares that it is easier for man to be well and happy than to be the reverse. It is easier to go with the law than to put one’s self in opposition to it. Losing the idea of itself as a sectarian religion, it finds itself in reality a universal religion.
The Unity of Life
No human eyes Thy face may see;
No human thought Thy form may know;
But all creation dwells in Thee,
And Thy great life through all doth flow.
—T. W. Higginson
Oh, the little birds sang east, and the little birds sang west.
And I smiled to think God’s greatness flowed around our incompleteness, Round our restlessness, His rest.
—Mrs. Browning
In our study of the science of life, we should always bear in mind that the universe is governed by law, in each and every part. Nothing is exempt from the operation of law—from the atom to the sun.
When we make a careful study of law in relation to man we find that it is founded on love, because whenever we conform to the law of love every result is good—it benefits and helps us in every way, far beyond our anticipations; but when we act in opposition to it we get results that are not beneficial. The one who obeys the law is blessed; the one who does not obey is not blessed.
Put two healthy plants of the same species in boxes filled with earth; place them in the sun light, water one of the plants and allow the other to go without water. In a number of days you will find one plant all shriveled up by the sun and the other growing luxuriantly. The difference in their condition is due to the relation of the plants to the sun. One is benefited by the heat and light; the other through lack of care on your part has its form destroyed. The power that gives life to the plant can also destroy it, and so we may receive vitality from the omnipotent Source of all life and yet not receive the fullness that is our due because of wrong relations to that Source. Our life is like that of the withered plant—in a condition not in accord with Nature. When we are in harmony with law we grow just as unconsciously, in one sense, as does the plant.
We make a great many useless efforts to grow, but when we understand the laws of life and conform thereto our growth is natural and without struggle. Yet we need to recognize the fact that we have something to do—to get all the knowledge of true living that we can, and then to make proper use of it. We are far from wise when we seek knowledge merely for its own sake; but we show wisdom when we seek knowledge in order that we may use it. It is required of us that we relate ourselves to the world about us in the right way. How are we related to it? How are we related to God and to our fellow-man? These are some of the great questions of life.
Let us first consider our relation to God. The soul is differentiated spirit; that is, each soul contains within itself a picture (or image) of the great universal soul. All divine possibilities and all qualities are in the soul—the God love, the God life, the God power. The universal soul is the all-comprehensive Soul. Everything that is in God enters into the human soul; thus does God seek expression through the life of man. When we give expression to the Godlike qualities within us, the individual soul comes into conscious relationship with the universal soul, and we begin to realize that the soul is at one with God—one in faith, one in purpose, and one in love.
We only begin to live as we realize our soul life; then we begin to see the unity of life in the world about us. We see that everything is related to everything else and that we ourselves are related to every part—that there is no separation between our own lives and the lives of others. Our neighbor is ourself. We are members one of another. Only as each individual sees his relation to the great Whole does he become thoroughly helpful.
We can see, therefore, how much depends upon the way in which we relate ourselves to mankind. In doing for others we do for God and for ourselves. If this view of life were more widely taken, all dissensions and all “hard feelings,” all bitter and unkind words, would pass away, and we should no more think of finding fault with another than of criticizing some organ of the body.
If the body were weak or diseased, we would try to overcome that condition by giving it more care and thought. We should do the same with our fellow-men. Instead of finding fault with those who injure us, we should reflect that anger, strife, and discord are unreal things; that they appear only on the surface of life; that they never enter the soul of man. The real self does not express these conditions; they are images that we picture in our minds because we believe in the separateness of God and man. When we realize that we are not separate, but all one, we shall not think anything of the unkind word or deed, because we know it proceeds from unreality and will pass away as we express more and more of God’s own image and likeness.
If we take this view of life, we shall find that the little things that have disturbed us in the past will have no power over us in any way. We shall keep on doing good, whatever other people may do. The Christ law is that we should do good to others, and we can only do that when we recognize the oneness and unity of life. When we look at the individual life as separate or detached, we see a great many things that seem to be wrong in the outer world. In one sense they are wrong, but sometimes through wrong-doing we learn how to do right. We learn the law of God through the results that follow its infraction. We know the truth by that which contradicts it.
Much time is wasted in lamenting the evil condition of the world, but the world is not made better by such lamentation. A thought that is not productive of good is idle, and the sooner one gets rid of it the better. The true way to help the world is to let one’s light so shine that others may see and learn.
As we try to bring our lives into harmony with eternal law, we often find that we have formed bad habits; and when we try to get rid of them it seems almost impossible, and we wonder why this is. It is because we are related to the rest of mankind. There is a law of attraction. When we form certain habits and continue them until they have become thoroughly established in mind, we have through the power of thought related ourselves to all people thinking and doing the things that have occupied our attention. Those others are our real relatives.
Suppose it has been our habit to take exception to people who differ with us. Suppose it has been our custom to find fault with people who it seemed to us were not doing right. Through this critical habit all the fault-finding people of the world have become related to us, and the effect of this relationship is that if we try to give up fault-finding there is an impulse that leads us to continue to criticize others. That impulse is the power of other minds, related to us, acting upon our own. Until we break off that relationship and establish a new one the result will be the same. If we form a habit of thinking kindly and saying kind words, in a short time we become mentally related to all kindly natured people in the world, and it becomes much easier to say a kind word and do a kind deed than the reverse. This is because we have all the force of loving thoughts pouring into our lives.
To be well and strong let us take this thought: “It is right that I should be well and strong. God is the Source of my life; in Him I live and move and have my being. I have no life apart from God; He is my strength and my help, and everything is mine because it is God’s.” By letting the mind dwell on this and similar thoughts, little by little we establish a relationship with all healthy minds, and all our thoughts become filled with health (harmony). A mind is only sane as it sees and knows that” all is of God that is or is to be, and God is good.”
By viewing life in this way we become related to all this order of thought; it keeps pouring in upon us, and we become strong and vigorous and express health and poise. We see the brightness of life, the joy of living, and the joy of being in the world and doing good.
We cannot easily break away from these relationships of life if they have once been thoroughly fixed. It is only through persistent effort that this can be done, but the reader should not think that because he has tried once and failed he cannot succeed. Anyone can overcome any condition. If little by little we have been building up an environment of sickness and disease, we have the power to overcome it; the only question is as to whether we will use that power. Power is given to us to be thoroughly well and strong, to be thoroughly poised, and to do God’s will in everything—not in some things, but in everything. We are all equal to it so far as we know God’s will; and that is all that is expected, because if we do the will we shall “know of the doctrine”—we shall know the truth.
We are equal to everything that presents itself in life; otherwise it would not present itself to us. The very fact that a duty to perform comes to us shows that we have the power to do it; otherwise it would not come. Each and every one of us is confronted by something, and the problem that seems the largest one to us today is the one for us to solve—if we will only let ourselves do this. It makes no difference how hard it seems to be; the fact that we can do what we will remains true. It is not, however, according to the weak, human will, but through the recognition of the universal will acting in and through us, that we can express what we desire to express. When we will in God’s will to do things right, we can do all things; for no ideal can enter His mind to which He cannot give expression.
Demand and Supply
Life is a train of moods like a string of beads, and, as we pass through them, they prove to be many-colored lenses which paint the world in their own hue, and each shows only what lies in its focus. From the mountain you see the mountain. Human life is made up of two elements, power and form, and the proportion must be invariably kept, if we would have it sweet and sound. Onward and onward! In liberated moments we know that a new picture of life and duty is already possible.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
Believe then in your own inner spiritual nature. Believe in its divine right to rule your life in accordance with your highest ideals. Believe in your power to fix your attention where you choose and to take an interest in what you choose. Believe that every longing of your soul contains its own prophecy of fulfillment, and act as though you knew that fulfillment to be at hand.
—Harriet B. Bradbury
Life is made up of little acts rather than of great ones. The little things we do day by day constitute the real sum of life. In our haste to accomplish definite results in the world we forget about the little things in our desire to accomplish the great things, and we fail in the latter because we do not know how to achieve the former. There is nothing so trivial in life as to be unworthy of consideration. We should understand life so as to make our thoughts clear even to little children; to do away so far as practicable with the complex side of life; to be as simple-minded as possible; to keep the mind free from all things that tend to tangle or clog it. We should start with the thought of God—God in all life; God in our own individual lives. We should not go through life trying to keep ourselves separate from the world in which we live, feeling that because we have some knowledge of divine law we are above our fellow men. We should rather go through the world in the spirit of helpfulness—giving and receiving.
No matter how evil a thing may seem to be, if we examine the root of it we will find God there. No matter how bad a man may seem to be, if we can reach his soul we will find God there. And it will make us more charitable, because we will see that the evil of life is only on the surface, where change and growth are forever taking place—where we make mistakes, sometimes willfully and sometimes unconsciously, yet knowing that through such errors we profit in the end. Then let us think the God thought of life in everything—in our dealings with our fellows, with children, and with animals. Let us try to see God in mind and also in Nature, because God is in both. We should try to see God first in our own lives, for then we shall see Him in everything—everything is expressing God. Let us try to be wise, because when we have the wisdom of God in our own minds we shall find it in everything; for God’s law is in everything, and everything moves in accordance with it.
Sometimes things seem to be deflected from their natural course, yet everything moves ultimately in its natural order. We know that the earth in its circuit round the sun is deflected from its path as it passes a greater planet, but having passed it is no longer deflected. We should not get discouraged about things that seem to fail. There are no failures in the plan of God. Failure at its worst is only seeming. Everything is progressing toward a definite end. Vicissitudes are inevitable; therefore, discouragement should never enter into the mind of man. It is the inner life that is important, not that on the surface; it is the inner which is really trying to express itself outwardly, and frequently failing to do it perfectly. Perfect expression comes through effort that is not strained, but directed when the mind is in a state of peace and rest. We succeed only when we put the restless, anxious side of affairs out of mind and allow the restful side to dwell in our thoughts.
Consider the brightness and the joy of living. We do not pay enough attention to these. There is not enough brightness in the world; yet when we consider things as they really are there is every reason to be happy, to be joyful. To know this is to display both joy and happiness, which are aspects of the spirit of God. We hear them in the song of the bird; we feel them in the perfume of every flower. There is happiness, there is joyousness in Nature.
We should appear bright and happy by showing forth the inner brightness and the inner joy of living, because we are working out a great problem that will bring us into a more harmonious and beautiful condition of life; and we should work from that condition outward in a spirit of joy and satisfaction in what we are doing. We should take pride in the thought that something has been given us to do. We have found most satisfaction in having things done for us—in not having things to do ourselves. It seems so hard when everything might be accomplished in a much easier way. It is a poor quality of mind that seeks to have everything done for it; it is a lazy life that longs for any such condition. Is it not far better to meet each thing in the proper spirit as it presents itself, and thus overcome it and gain a higher and truer conception of life?
We have been given a mind and a heart with which to think and feel, and it is through thinking and feeling that we must for ourselves work out a beautiful salvation; that is, the beautiful life that has been given us to develop. When we are discouraged we are thinking in opposition to the divine law.
We have not been conscious of this, perhaps, and consequently little has been expected of us; but just so soon as the truth enters our consciousness, more is required of us. Whenever we do anything that fills our minds with a sense of bitterness, or prejudice, or worry, or anxiety, or causes us to meditate on our “physical weakness,” or see in others disagreeable qualities, we are putting ourselves in opposition to the law of God. We are not living our real lives. We are not working out our salvation in the way intended, but rather through self-imposed trials and tribulations. All these negative conditions adversely affect the mind, and consequently the body, and we wonder why God is so much better to other people than to us! God is just as good to us as we deserve.
We must make a demand for the things we wish. The plant makes its demand, and receives everything necessary to sustain and perfect its life. We should make our demands consciously. We must first know what we want, and then feel perfectly sure that it is ours, that we need it and that we have it.
Let this apply to everything in life, but keep the unselfish side always foremost. It is not selfish to demand health and strength for one’s self; but a demand for worldly possessions having no reference to others’ needs might become supremely selfish. In order to be helpful to others we must be healthy and strong.
There is nothing selfish, therefore, in demanding everything needful to make us rightly related to the world and to our fellow men. Taking this position we eliminate selfishness. We demand for ourselves and for others, insisting that it is right; that it does not deprive anyone else; that it is for our own good and for that of others. All things are ours to use, not to abuse. By indulging in such thoughts we attract to ourselves everything necessary to our well-being—happiness, health, strength, friends. We may not receive at once the things desired, but we should cultivate patience and rest assured that they will come to us in due time and in a way that will do us the greatest possible good. Thus we tend to eliminate impatience from our minds.
But with patience there should also be perseverance. Some say if you only “wait” your desire will come to you; but nothing comes to those who put forth no effort on their own behalf. Keep right on thinking and doing, and little by little true results will accrue. It is never well, in our perseverance, to introduce the element of haste. We should strive to see every side of a question. Sometimes we listen to one side and turn a deaf ear to the other. We must learn how to judge, and we can only judge rightly when we know all that is to be known on any subject; otherwise our judgment cannot be the God judgment, which always considers all the facts. It is necessary to keep the mind free, because if it is not free we are certain to err.
Whatever we think of others has its reflex action on ourselves, because what we think for others they in turn think for us. Judgment of others rests with God, but does not rest between man and man. It should not be our practice to judge any life other than our own, but it is right for us to judge whether the principle manifested is in accord with the divine law; that is, it is not a question of personal judgment with us, but rather a question of understanding God’s law. It is necessary to distinguish between person and principle. That is sometimes difficult, because we are prone to associate the two—the individual and the act—in our mental concepts. One person may perform a reprehensible act in the best possible spirit, while another, in the wrong spirit, may do something that is right in itself but lacking in good motive.
We must learn to distinguish between things and persons, therefore, and leave the judgment of individuals to God, because God judges each soul. If we violate any law of life, then our condemnation only ceases when we cease doing wrong. Just so soon as we begin to do right, forgiveness ensues.
Suppose your friend is disobeying the law, and you conclude that he is about to reverse his steps; just so soon as he alters his course his sin is forgiven. In all forms of sickness the mind is the first to get well—the body last. The sin must first be forgiven, and then the body will respond. Sometimes we feel that it is very hard to forgive; yet while one is forgiving another he is forgiving himself. And it is only when we forgive the whole world, through the mind of God, that we are really forgiven. Only in proportion as we forgive are we forgiven.
We should acquire a fuller understanding of the nature of the soul, so that we may enter into a higher order—a wider comprehension of life. We truly serve and worship God when we recognize any element of the God life in another. Man is the highest expression of God, and we must learn to love one another. We must know something of the All in all before we can enter into the lives of others and be thoroughly helpful to them, because if we do not know what they feel and think we cannot be of service to them. Let us first know ourselves—our own thoughts and our own methods—and then feel that they are identical with those of other people.
Thus we shall learn to excuse our neighbors’ failings. Sometimes, on meeting people for the first time, we seem to experience a spirit of resentment toward them, without knowing why. That condition can only be overcome by cultivating its opposite and becoming thoroughly sympathetic. Everything in life can thus be made simple. In this way we ourselves grow strong and demonstrate the real power of life—the power of God within us.
We meet two persons—one is very “good” and the other very “bad.” Which one most needs our help? The Christ thought is to administer good where it is needed the most. That is why he went among the people who were the sinners and outcasts. He spent his life among the lowliest, his object being to do good to them because they felt their need. We waste a great deal of time over persons—friends and enemies—who are not willing to receive good. We have many lessons yet to learn from the life of Jesus. If anyone is in need of what we have to give, and his appeal is made to us, we should hold ourselves in readiness to aid him. In the physical life there are those in need of material necessities, but sometimes we give to those not in need, which is to scatter seed by the wayside, or on the rocks, or among the thorns—with fruitless results. There should always be some actual need where our bounty is bestowed.
We do not trust one another enough in life. We are prone to construe things in the wrong way. Sometimes the highest and holiest things in life are regarded as the worst. It is very seldom that we try to view anything from another’s point of view. There is no lesson more important than to learn that we must put ourselves in others’ places in order to discern things in the right way.
“I have been in this New Thought a great many years, and yet I am not strong. I try to live the New Thought; I believe in it, but I get no results.” How often we hear this complaint! When it becomes to us a law we get the true results, but not until then. When we get life in its fullness we have as much as anyone else. This can be procured only through right thinking and right doing. We will never get health or strength while meditating on our own imperfections or the weaknesses of others. Only as we dwell on the beauty of life and know that God is working within us to will and to do, and that the will of God is a vital factor in each and every life, may we have health, happiness, and every other needful thing.
The Law of Attraction
Life is made up, not of great sacrifices or duties, but of little things in which smiles and kindnesses and small obligations,
given habitually, are what win and preserve the heart and secure comfort.
—Sir Humphrey Davy
The end of life is to be like unto God: and the soul following God will be like unto Him:
He being the beginning, middle, and end of all things.
—Socrates
“Like attracts like.” There is something kindred between steel and iron and the magnet that attracts and holds them; for without that relationship there would be no attraction.
The activities we observe in the outer world are but typical of that which is taking place in man’s inner world of thought and feeling, the outer being the external expression of the invisible law of God. That law is universal few will question; that it has a definite effect upon the life of man is conceded by all. It is possible, however, that in our investigations hitherto we have paid too much attention to the outer manifestation, thereby losing sight of the law that finds its highest expression in the human mind and heart. Whatever qualities of thought or feeling we may have developed in life, sympathetically they tend to relate us to the same order of development in other people and have the effect of calling forth into a more vital existence these kindred qualities. “None of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.” We are so related to one another that there is among us in continual operation an alternate outflow and influx—and the latter inevitably partakes of the qualities of the former.
“Like attracts like.” Upon the recognition of this law depend health and happiness, because neither can ensue unless in our thought we give out both. The strong, wholesome thoughts we think, the kind feelings we have, the bright, joyous hopes we entertain—these are so many qualities going out from us to unite with the same qualities in other people, thus making it easier, both for them and for us, to comply with all the true requirements of life.
No matter what we wish to be or to do, through recognition of and conformity to this principle of attraction it becomes possible. By virtue of this law we make our own environment, realizing through the inner knowledge of life that we have the power to shape its outer conditions and to establish a new and higher order of things, so that the old thought of being controlled by circumstances or fate or any external condition passes away, and we awaken to a knowledge of our inherent dominion and power. We use this knowledge, moreover, both for our own benefit and that of others, because any action on our part that tends to bring real good into our own lives must necessarily have a corresponding action on those sympathetically related to us.
If people would only pay attention to the operation of this law in their own lives they would quickly realize the importance of a thorough knowledge thereof and of its practical utility. Let us consider a few illustrations that show its effect.
A deep interest in any special subject is sufficient to bring us almost immediately in contact with persons whom we have not met nor cared for in the past. How it is brought about we hardly know; but in a short time we become surrounded by persons interested in the same subject. The interchange of thought and idea works for the good of all. The very object of our coming together is that there may be a mutual giving and receiving. The quality of our thought places us where we belong. A man that has faith in a beneficent Creator, who works through law for a perfect end, or the ultimate perfection of all things—
One far-off, divine event
To which the whole creation moves.
—Alfred Tennyson
—has acquired the first element necessary to bring about a complete action of law in his own life.
The next thing in order would be the feeling of confidence and faith in humanity in general; but this should be especially true of those with whom we are brought in intimate contact, so that the trust and faith we repose in them may be felt by them. Again, faith in one’s self, one’s aims and objects, clearness of vision to see aright, perfect faith and trust in one’s own ability to accomplish the desired end—these all tend to set in motion forces inherent in one’s own being, so that their action upon others is of that quality that serves to waken and renew the same innate power.
We now have something of the element of success to start with, but we wish to be successful in the highest and truest way. Let us, therefore, introduce still other qualities; let us fill the mind with hopefulness. Hope is just as requisite as faith in the upbuilding of character or the promotion of success. Our hope tends to make others hopeful. Doubt saps one’s vitality, and doubt is best overcome by hope. Faith and hope, however, without love, were barren qualities. Love is the greatest of all, because it includes all. “Love is the fulfilling of the law”; because whatever we do through the spirit of love will not be done through opposition to the law of life, but in perfect conformity to it. Pope says:
Self-love but serves the virtuous mind to wake,
As the small pebble stirs the peaceful lake.
Love of self is good in its proper place, but it ceases to be love when one ignores the greater call to love and serve God through loving service to humanity. We should always subordinate the lesser to the greater, but that does not call for the doing away of the lesser. It calls rather for a perfect adjustment, wherein the self shall recognize and conform to the universal self. We now have the real riches of life; but, as all inner states find outer expression sooner or later, we see these inner riches expressed in many ways and degrees. The faith, hope, and love we have for humanity become living seeds sown in the hearts and minds of others. Springing up in and beautifying their lives, they bring forth fruit abundantly, so that all that has been given out by us has returned to us a hundredfold.
Our faith and hope and love take shape in a material way—i.e., they relate themselves to form, giving beauty of color and harmony to external surroundings, so that to a degree the earth becomes transformed into a paradise. The mountains appeal to us in a way they never did before; the valley and meadow reflect a new beauty; the river and brooklet impart new qualities of brightness and joy; the ocean, in calm and storm, conveys to our minds the greatness, the strength, and the freedom of life; the sun reminds us of that Power that gives of its own life and intelligence to every living, moving thing. And the moon, as the reflector of light, brings to us the thought that only as we reflect the universal love and become one with it are we truly related to God and humanity; that the inner law is that the soul must follow God as a plant follows the sun; that when the spirit of truth illumines the life, then from such inner illumination will God’s word, as it is written without in all Nature, be revealed to man, and the things that have been long hidden shall be known—not as we have believed them to be in the past, but as they are in reality.
Thus shall we attract to us everything that heart and mind can desire; for the heaven realized within shall become manifest without. This is not an idle dream: it is what the prophets and the enlightened ones of every clime and age have taught.
Thousands of souls are looking forward to the coming of a new era, when the Christ kingdom—the reign of righteousness, justice, and truth—shall be realized on earth. Let everyone know that the hastening of this greatly-to-be-desired end is to be sought primarily through individual effort, which shall tend first to call into existence latent good on the part of the individual, so that the necessary conditions may exist for the natural action of one mind upon the minds of others. And who can foresee what the result will be? The time will come when the inner unity—the oneness of life—will be as fully manifest outwardly as it now exists interiorly.
“Like attracts like.” Man must give expression to the God within him. “If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the Scripture cannot be broken.” The desire to express more of this Godlikeness will not only bring us into a closer relationship to Deity, but will make us more truly useful to one another. And in the fullness of time, through knowledge of the law and desire to give perfect expression thereto, we shall attain to the measure of the fullness of the stature of Christ.
Mental Influences
The outer is always the shadow and form of the inner; the present is the fullness of the past, and the herald of the future.
—Protap Chunder Mozoomdar
Every right action and true thought sets the seal of its beauty on person and face.
—Ruskin
Exercise the mind with contemplation and the body with action and so preserve the health of both.
—Confucius
Very few persons have an adequate conception of the wonderful power exerted by their thoughts. All of us know something of the action of thought upon others, and also of the action of thought upon ourselves; but this knowledge is usually very limited. We do not realize the tremendous influence that we are exerting every minute of our lives—an influence that makes for good, for strength and happiness, both to ourselves and others; yet this influence can also produce ill effects.
We do not understand the thoroughness of our relationship to our fellow men. We do not realize that we are members one of another. We regard ourselves individually as being separate and detached from all other personalities; yet there is no detachment—there is no separation. Each and every one of us is a part of one life principle—a controlling and directing supreme intelligence—which is omnipotent and is imparted to every entity in the universe according to its need or demand. So we may have health, strength, and intelligence to the measure of our fullest requirements; but we must make our demand in accordance with the eternal law.
If we would successfully accomplish any undertaking we must closely follow the law that regulates such activities. In life, if we would be strong, whole, and happy, we must understand more of this law that regulates life and learn to conform thereto. We find that everything in life has its own vital center whence it develops outward. In the past we tried to reverse this eternal order by working from the circumference toward the center. This, perhaps, was right enough until, in the course of evolution, we learned that there was a better way to grow than that of working from the outer to the inner.
Let us accept the Master’s word that “the kingdom of God is within”—that the center of power is within our own souls; that man is in every way superior to anything in the external world, and that to him were given dominion and power over all things. Has he exercised that authority? No; he trembles at many things in the outer world. His mind is filled with fears of all kinds. He has not come into dominion and power, because he has not achieved this ascendancy over his own life, and because all true dominion and power begin at the very soul of things—in the life of man.
In the past we have tried to shape our lives in accord with external things; we have sought to develop peace and harmony in the outer world while neglecting inner harmony and inner peace. “Enter into thy closet, and shut thy door.” These are the words of Jesus. What does he mean? He means that there is an inner consciousness of life. We must ignore the external life for the time being in order to connect with the power that is within the soul of man. “Ye are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwelleth in you.” Where shall we seek God save in our own souls? We must know Him therein before we can recognize Him as expressed in the external world. We must go to the very Source to know the power of God, and to realize it in our own lives.
Some have deceived themselves by thinking that, if they had certain external possessions, nothing more was necessary. They consider themselves true Christians; yet the true Christian is he that follows in the Master’s steps. God is Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. God requires no external adoration from any soul. The worship that is true is an expression of God in the inner life of man; hence, we may conform perfectly to every external form—to every creed in Christendom—and still know nothing about the religion of Jesus Christ. The religion of the Master is one that produces wholeness and heals the sick. It is liberty—and this is why it brings the believer into a greater freedom than he can otherwise enjoy.
Jesus said to his disciples: “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, and as you go heal the sick, cleanse the lepers,” etc. It is not enough merely to preach the gospel. Something more is necessary—the healing of the sick. The gospel of Christ does this. When the truths of being enter the life of man, and he realizes their force—that the word of God in his inmost life is to assure freedom and peace—this inner mental passivity gives perfect physical harmony and strength. We can only obtain peace by recognizing this inner center of being and striving to work therefrom outward.
Whence do we get the force of life? Do we find it in the external world? No; neither is it contained in the things we eat or drink. There is a higher than physical food necessary in the life of man, and if we lack this we virtually starve to death, even in this world. There is no real assimilation or digestion of physical things. As our bodies are in reality the summing up of our thinking, they are strong only when we have wholesome thoughts. We make our bodies what we will to make them when we observe the laws of life. We may realize this so thoroughly that we can have our heaven here on earth. God has given us this power to use in such a way that it will bring us health and happiness.
It is essential, then, that we should start right by carefully considering the underlying principles of the science of life—the truths in which Christian people have asserted belief for many centuries. What are these principles? First, there is but one power in the universe—Omnipotence. Even those claiming to be materialists recognize this power. Herbert Spencer asserts that we are in the presence of an infinite Power, which governs all things, and material scientists everywhere are coming to believe in an omnipotent God. Every atom of force in the universe represents God’s power—everything to some degree is an expression thereof. Yet we must distinguish between power and its expression—between subject and object. In the great universe all knowledge is God’s and in its development shows that all things are manifestations of Omnipotence. This infinite power, while omnipresent, is manifested to the highest degree in the life of man.
Everything in the universe is subject to the operation of the eternal and unchanging law of God, which regulates every part of the universe from center to circumference, from the lowest form of life to the highest. The soul and life of man are equally under the operation of this law; hence, what we need to know is not more about the material world but more about ourselves and our relationship to God and to our fellow men.
The more we understand, then, of our own lives—the more clearly we can comprehend the law and bring our lives into conformity therewith—the better results we obtain. Thus may we realize the kingdom of heaven here and now. At no time has it been discovered in the external world, where no one has even found bodily health. The outer world is good and useful; but it must be a perfect expression of the inner; at best it is only the expression of power, while the inner world is power itself. Why should we seek health and happiness in the mere expression of life? Why should we go out of ourselves for happiness, or any other good thing? We must begin with the inner life, making the outer life secondary, and must work from the cause to the effect of things—not from effect to cause.
People are continually telling us how they are affected by their environment, and by the thoughts of others. In truth, no man stands alone; yet no one need be subject to the wrong thoughts of others. When we have knowledge we can no longer excuse ourselves by saying that other persons have an ill effect upon us or injure us. We have power within to make conditions what we will to make them. If we will to be strong, to be happy, to be well, then let us acquire these blessings in the right way. Let us seek for happiness and health in the only way in which they can be obtained. Let us recognize this inner part of being—the light that is to enlighten every man that cometh into the world. Let us realize the God in the being, and work from the center outward.
With knowledge of this inner consciousness of life we come in proper touch with every external thing. We know that all life is one; that we are related one to another; that the soul of man is one with the great universal soul. This realization we manifest in the outer world. Instead of viewing chaos and discord on every side, we see a great universe operating in accord with eternal law, and destined in every part ultimately to reach the fullness of perfection. We no longer look upon the world as evil, but see in everything the potentiality of good.
Little by little the ideal life is being disclosed; our minds, instead of being prone to evil and bemoaning the sorrow and misery of the world, become filled with joy because we know that all things are working from a lower to a higher condition. Thus do we turn from the pessimistic to the optimistic side of life, and become useful members of society.
Sometimes we are inclined to think that thought is the very highest function of our being. Then we lay great stress on the intellectual side of thinking, and declare that reason is the one supreme fact. But there is something more than reason in the life of man—something more than thought; there is something that produces thought and transcends it.
Every thought contains a picture. We get an idea, a picture, that corresponds to something definite in the outer world. So there is an element that brings the thinker in touch with the highest. The inner mind is passive. This inner presence makes for faith, happiness, and love—the qualities of soul that cannot be pictured by the mind and that alone can fill the life of man. These different elements give color and tone to every thought, and extend to all external things, which thus take on new coloring and new beauty. Because of the inner beauty of thought we recognize beauty in the outer world; for only what one sees interiorly is visible in the external realm. If we have gloom and distress in our minds we are related to the gloomy and distressful things in the outer world. If we have brightness and hope within us, then we see these blessings externalized.
The outer world is a picture of the inner world. If our thoughts are neither strong, happy, nor wholesome we cannot expect to express health and strength in the body. It is only by entertaining the best and strongest thoughts that the inner power of life is expressed.
If we wish to be healthy and to do good in the world we will accomplish most by recognizing the oneness of life—that our finite life is a part of the Infinite. As we do good to others we do good to ourselves. We can only be happy by making others happy. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “He that loseth his life shall find it.” Let us lose it by finding it in others, and thereby come into the fullness of life.
Every thought we think has a definite effect on the body—it pictures itself there. Life is made up of many things. As sorrowful and distressing things enter the life, if the mind is allowed to dwell on them, the body becomes weakened. Dwelling mentally on the bright and beautiful things that come into the life strengthens the body. Everything in this world exists for some good reason. Every sad experience we pass through teaches a needed lesson, which, if we would only learn it, would not require distressful repetition. One experience follows another, and if we do not heed the lesson that each contains for us, it must be repeated till we do.
There are only two paths in life, and we must choose between them. The eternal law is ever seeking to bring about perfect expression of life. If we understand the law and conform to it, then peace and rest result. Oppose the law, and purification can come only through bitter experience. There is no going back; there is no standing still.
In the evolution of life we must unfold to that which tends toward the perfect likeness of God. In some lives this comes gradually, while in others the development is more rapid. There is no escaping from the purifying process. It may come “as by fire,” or by obedience to the eternal law of God; but in either case “all things are working together for good.”
Everything is seeking adjustment. The inner adjustment of law is written on the tablet of every soul. By “law” I do not mean the law of hygiene, or that of physics, or of anything that operates upon the external; for if the mind is right within it will express itself outwardly in perfect wholesomeness. It is impossible for a man that is clean in mind to be unclean in body. It is the inner cleanliness that expresses itself in the outer. Our thoughts being right, every word and every deed will be so expressed that nothing but good will result.
I am not asking the reader to believe in any creed or any dogma. All I claim is that law and order regulate life. From their observance good results come here and now. From disobedience comes the reverse. In one case we get the good, the strength, the perfection of life; in the other we get the pain, the distress, and the disease. It is a condition of mind to be actualized. Obedience to the inner law will bring about a perfect demonstration. If we put heaven off for a future realization, it will always be postponed. “The kingdom of God is within you.” We must realize God’s kingdom here and now. By realizing that inner realm of life we will find that the outer expression is good and beautiful, and that in so doing we are working together for the good of all.
Freedom—Individual and Universal
The true secret of freedom, then, is to attune our soul sphere until it beats in rhythmic harmony with universal harmony.
—The Light of Egypt
There are two freedoms—the false, where man is free to do what he likes;
the true, where man is free to do what he ought.
—Charles Kingsley
Who is the true man? He who does the truth and never holds a principle on which he is not prepared in any hour to act,
and in any hour risk the consequences of holding it.
—Carlyle
The Nazarene said on one occasion, “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” When Jesus gave utterance to these words he was having a discussion with certain ones among the Jews, who referred to Abraham as their “father.” We find the Jewish people everywhere dating their birth from Abraham. The Jewish idea was very different from the Christ idea: “For One is your Father, which is in heaven.” And the Hebrews referred their religion to “the God of Abraham.” With Christ it was different: to him there was one great Father of all—our Father.
It has been men’s custom throughout all time to quote authorities in defining their position. True authority is not to be found outside of one’s self. It is not what some other person, however distinguished, may say; it is not what any institution or any book may say; it is the voice of God speaking to man in his own soul that constitutes the ultimate authority of life. There is no real authority to be appealed to elsewhere. It is not the acceptance of anything from an authority that makes us free; it is the Truth that does this. We should seek, therefore, to know all that can be known about truth.
“What is truth?” asked Pilate. The question is always pertinent. While truth is eternally the same, man’s relation thereto is ever changing. Sometimes we live in a valley, wherein the objects that surround us seem very large; but when we begin to climb the mountain-side they appear to grow smaller. As we continue to ascend, our view becomes enlarged, but the things in the valley have apparently dwindled away. So it is in life, wherein one change seems to necessitate another. What seems true to us today may be untrue on the morrow.
Many people believe that, if they arrive at a certain decision, “consistency” requires them steadfastly to maintain it. We can only hold to a thing until we get something better. When something larger comes into the life, the smaller thing must go out. Yet we find many people tenaciously adhering to old things while trying to lay hold on the new. They are trying to balance themselves between two conditions. They declare that, having derived benefit from the old in the past, they have no desire to abandon it; that, while they may get no good from it now, on account of its former usefulness it should not be set aside.
Just as soon as anything becomes an impediment to one’s growth the obstacle should be removed; otherwise there can be no real development. It is only as we die to the things of the past and live to the things of the present that we enter to any degree into the fullness of life. We should not hamper our lives with traditions, but rather seek to make a new way for ourselves. It will be a living way if we put our real selves into it. Whatever we do, it will partake of our own life and power. The past may have helped us to reach a higher plane of thought and action, but if it does not assist us in the present it has outlived its usefulness. It can no longer be a part of ourselves.
We wish to adjust ourselves to life in the best possible way, and we try to do this with the least possible effort—often making serious mistakes. We think that it is our duty to satisfy, in some measure, the people of the world about us. But we cannot satisfy the world, no matter what position we take. Is it not better to live in the fullness of individual freedom—in the fullness of our own power—than in a way that is apt to minify the life? Is it not better to live a great life than a little one? Which, think you, would eventuate in the ruling of our world?
Freedom is something that we have the power to choose. A man may make his own life free if he only will. We may have the full freedom of life, but only in one way—through knowledge of the truth and conformity thereto. That way leads to peace. Coming into this freedom and peace, however, we all may sound notes of discord; but this seems necessary in the evolution of life. We should not be affected by what others say or think; yet we should heed the voice of God within our souls. If we are obedient to this, everything good and true will come into the life. If we are consciously disobedient we must accept the consequences of such disobedience. That which to a certain degree is demanded of one may be required to a much greater degree of another. We are all in different stages of development; no two have developed alike. All any one may be asked to do is to live up to his highest knowledge—his loftiest ideal of life. If he does this he is free, and if he refuses to do it he is in bondage.
Now, on the lower plane—in the valley—there are very few requirements; but these must be met. The law of that plane must be fulfilled. If we view life first from this physical plane, and consider its demands—that one must be temperate, kind, and considerate, to the extent of that plane’s possibilities—we shall bring about a state of mental poise and physical harmony. But the things required of a person living on the next higher plane, where people think and reason about life’s problems, are more varied; there are here more things to think about. Such a person has entered into a higher knowledge of life, which brings with it added responsibilities; and these he cannot evade if he would be free. Freedom is essential to perfect development. Where there is not freedom there is no real growth. Many things are required of us on this higher plane—something greater than kindness, and something greater than temperance, as that term is commonly applied. It is the temperance of right thinking; i. e., to think kindly and to form in mind true pictures of life.
When we come to the highest plane of development, the spiritual, we find the requirements are vastly greater than those of the other two combined. Knowledge of life on the animal and mental planes is very partial. But we come to a clearer and higher knowledge in the realm of the spirit. We are required to know, first of all, in order to be free, that there is but one authority in the universe; that is, God, as expressed in the life of man. If one would speak out of the fullness of his own life he must always depend on this Authority. On the physical plane authority is required.
There exists in most minds the worship of symbols, wherein formal religion got its first impetus. On the intellectual plane there is authority—that of personalities, who formulate dogmas for others to believe in. This may be legitimate on the purely mental plane, but on the spiritual plane there is only one Authority. We desire to be free spiritual beings. We wish to unfold to all that is in us; but we cannot unfold to our highest and best if we recognize any authority other than that of the divinity within. There is where the real freedom of life is to be found.
“But,” says someone, “in doing this we will have to live in a way entirely different from the ways of the world—the ways of others.” “If any man be in Christ,” said one, “he is a new creature: old things are passed away.” That is why all things have become new to the dweller on the spiritual plane, and why real authority is in man’s own life. It is not something apart from man. So the new creature does not allow any other soul to dictate as to what he shall think or do. The voice of God in his own soul is his only criterion. There is no other source of leadership; and when one determines to be led by the spirit he comes into the only true freedom of life, remaining no longer in bondage to the customs and forms of the world, or to his own desires. The desire universal comes into his mind, and he realizes for the first time that he is one with all things, with all power, with all intelligence, and with all love and faith and hope. His whole life is immersed in this oneness. He no longer leads a personal life, but lives universally.
It is only as we lay hold on the new that we come into the fullness of life. Many people look upon this as a sacrifice to the world of their personal lives; yet it is only apparent at best. If in relinquishing one thing we acquire a greater thing, there can be no sacrifice. That is something that appeals to the mind of the world, not to that of the spirit. The spiritual man is above all sacrifice. He is superior to the storm and the tumult of the world. He is not affected by its jealousy, deceit, and hatred. He takes all things at their true valuation.
Is it not reassuring to feel that we have God working within us to will and to do, and that we are equal to any emergency that may present itself in our daily lives because of this inner power? We place everything in God’s care when we acknowledge God in the life and choose to follow the dictates of our own conscience. This is the one essential thing. We can never satisfy the world, no matter how hard we try to conform to its opinions. When one sees that the task is a hopeless one, what is the use of continuing the effort?
Let us conform to the best that is in our own lives, and we will soon realize that our influence for good will be far greater than any influence we might bring to bear when we try to adjust our condition of life to the standards of others. Man makes his outer world what he chooses to make it. We may consciously and actually make this world just as bright and beautiful a world as we wish to make it; but we cannot serve God and also serve the world. “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If we desire to be Godlike, and to express outwardly all that we are inwardly, we must acknowledge the power of God in the individual life by co-operating with the divine process—by consciously working out the God-plan of life and so placing ourselves in at-one-ment therewith that we may apprehend the result as we proceed.
At this point the element of faith comes in. Faith is the ground-work of such knowledge; but we must ever work with one object in view—to know the truth, and, through knowing it, to be free. Sometimes, however, we know the truth and yet are in bondage. Only as we are the truth—become one with it—can there be any real freedom.
In all our spiritual aspirations there will be a thoroughly harmonious breath-action, whereby, starting from the center of life, we may produce true vibration in both mind and body; but this harmony does not end here.
We look at a rose; it is a beautiful thing. It occupies very little space, but on entering the room that contains it we smell its perfume everywhere. We sense the soul of the rose, just as, through knowledge of the spiritual life, we apprehend God in our lives. We may exhale a fragrance more sweet than any rose. Sometimes a weed diffuses a disagreeable odor, and so from many human lives there emanates a deleterious influence that is equally subtle. It is because in many cases the individual knows, but fails to act—fails to be; and thus produces a wrong vibration, which disturbs his own mind and body and communicates in harmony to others. It is true that some persons have the power to smell the most delicate perfume while being unable to smell the most disagreeable odors. This is because they have related themselves to their environment in the true way. To them, all agreeable things will attract, while disagreeable things will repel. It all hinges on the question of relationship.
Some think this philosophy has a selfish aspect; but is it not right to desire the beautiful things in life? Every individual is doing more than living his own life; he is living for others as well. If he can show a way to live other than the ordinary way he should do so. If he can rise superior to the discordant things of the world he is not true to himself or to his fellowman if he fails to do so. We can make our lives just what we will to make them, and by so doing we bring wider knowledge and greater freedom into the world—because “no man liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.” If we are living as we should live, we affect the lives of others by bringing new life to them. If we are living in a condition of passive contentment, and our minds are absorbed in things that bring no spiritual gain, we will neither bring good into the lives of others nor develop that quality in ourselves. If we could realize the importance of this we would never radiate any inharmonious atmosphere. We would begin at the very heart of life and work toward the circumference, and we would affect those about us in a thoroughly harmonious way.
Through accepting the guidance of the higher impulses, we think rightly through right feeling and breathe rightly through right feeling and thinking. We cannot shape our lives from any outer model. It is the creative power within that makes all changes, even in the things about us.
Persons not satisfied with the present order seek to reform it. The first step in any reformation is to conform to this inner law. We should strive to change the outer through the inner. Thus do we become thoroughly harmonious in mind and body and avoid being led into bondage of any kind. We wish to be free in the Christ—the Christ thought and order of life; for there is a Christ order, which frees us from all the sin, sickness, and slavery of the world. Obedience thereto enables us to rise above the world and its limitations and to become a law unto ourselves—a law that brings only that which is true and good and pure into the mind. If we would avail ourselves of its beneficence we must acknowledge its spiritual operation in our individual lives. Thus shall we realize that we are children of God and joint heirs with Christ, and that we have dominion and power over all things.
Hearing and Doing
Our thoughts are the text; our lives preach the sermon.
Let what is natural in you raise itself to the level of the spiritual, and let the spiritual become once more natural.
Thus will your development be harmonious, and the peace of heaven will shine upon your brow—
always on condition that your peace is made, and that you have climbed your Calvary.
—”Amiel’s Journal”
Our own spirit is the vestibule which we must enter, as threshold to the temple of the eternal,
and wherein alone we can catch any whisper from the holy of holies.
—James Martineau
Some college professors admitted to me some time ago that the world is turning more and more toward the search after health along mental or psychical lines, conceding that the more advanced students believe not only that health is obtainable through mental effort alone, but that the time is near when great numbers of people will so seek thus to regulate their lives that human life shall be greatly prolonged. It is true beyond doubt that scientific minds are investigating this subject today as never before. Medical men may strive to side-track the issue by appealing to hypnotism or some other agency, but they are not succeeding to any marked degree.
The doctors make strenuous efforts to procure legislation prohibiting the practice of Mental and Christian Science, ostensibly because these schools are inimical to the public welfare, but really because they tend to reduce medical incomes. Yet intelligent physicians everywhere are dispensing more and more with the use of drugs, and are confining themselves to the giving of advice as to diet and the making of hygienic suggestions.
My object in referring to this is to show that progress in the spiritual and psychic realms is undoubtedly being made; yet a still more encouraging fact is that very many people who formerly took regular mental treatment are now beginning to rely largely on their own efforts to keep well. This is as it should be, because we have a right to regulate our own health. We all have the power, but unfortunately we do not always use it intelligently. In order to control and direct the power of life, we must focus our attention upon it in the natural way, and not imagine that, if ill, five or ten minutes’ effort will make us well and strong. The age of miracles has not yet arrived.
Let us see how intelligence may be brought to bear on the different phases of this subject. In the first place, let us consider the morbid, or diseased, side of human life, in order to discover how we get into wrong conditions—because if we know this we may also learn how to get out of them: by retracing our steps.
The very best scientists in the world today no longer regard the brain as the generator of thought, but rather as an instrument through which thought acts. They recognize that thought is independent of the brain, though it acts upon it. The entire physical body is only one of our possessions, and is not by any means our greatest possession. We have the right to do with it as we will, so long as our authority is exercised in accord with law; that is, so long as the will is used to produce a harmonious effect upon the body, because if used otherwise the will is bound more or less to injure this house we live in.
A great many people suppose they are thinking when they are really doing nothing of the kind, but are using their brains to such a degree that an undue amount of blood is drawn to the head, where, becoming congested, it accelerates the vibrations of the upper portion of the body till the head is very hot and the feet are very cold. The physical effect produced here is the result of wrong thinking, not right thinking, which has never yet caused a congestion of any kind. Right thought cannot produce a rapidity of vibration that will result in an overheated head.
When we refer to certain persons as being “hot-headed,” we mean that they become angry easily, for anger is an emotion that drives the blood unduly to the brain. There is a very delicate part of the body called the mucous membrane, and when the rate of vibration is thus increased it becomes inflamed, the result being what is known as a “catarrhal” condition. Again, we are very sensitive as to what people say or think of us, and are frequently so affected by their words or thoughts that this membrane becomes similarly inflamed; moreover, we have a disturbance of the stomach, and we say it results from something we have eaten or drunk—but it means simply that we have allowed ourselves to be annoyed by what someone else has said or thought.
No one can produce in us a wrong method of thinking unless we allow him to do it. Let us cease trying to shift the responsibility from our own shoulders on to those of someone else by insisting that another’s failure to do this or that has caused our suffering; for it is a very poor excuse. We suffer for our own misdeeds, and when we lend ourselves to the sinful side of life we have a right to expect no other result. It rests with each individual whether he shall be related to the world about him in a strong and healthy way or in a weak and diseased way.
It is better to know the truth about these things—to face the whole truth—than to go on year after year laying the responsibility for our mental and physical conditions at the doors of other people or other things, when we ourselves are solely responsible. It is not enough to say that we are “negative” and that we “take on conditions” from others. If we are negative it is because we have allowed ourselves to become so without reason. If wrong thought reaches us from other people it is because we open wide our door and tacitly invite it to enter. We literally call out what others say or think of us. There is something within us that, coming in touch with the identical quality in other people, stirs it into activity. When this result does not follow, it means that we have risen above it. If it seems to come and has no effect upon us, we have proof that we are not one with it; that is, that we have no fondness for it. We do not like to have unkind things said of us by others; yet if we ourselves say unkind things we become one with that habit of thought and thus call forth just such remarks, which adversely affect us mentally and therefore physically.
We become one with whatever we love. We become intimately related also to those about whom we say unkind things—to the unkind thought of the world; the converse of this proposition being equally true. If we love to say and do kind things, we are one with the good deeds and the good people of the world.
And so it is with health, with wholeness; for health and wholeness, harmony and heaven, mean virtually the same thing. When a person is healthy he is harmonious. How many harmonious people are there in this world—people who can say that they are well in every part of their being—perfectly whole and perfectly harmonious in both mind and body? This is a question that I feel we all should ask ourselves. If we are not in full enjoyment of this state, it is time for us to begin to think about heaven right here and now—about health and harmony at the present time. What is the use in dragging out a miserable existence? If we are not harmonious in our own minds, and if our bodies are ill, where shall we find the happiness of life? We create our own heaven and are the authors of our own health. The power is God-given.
It is right that each and every individual should present his body whole and acceptable unto God, for this is his reasonable service. He should present a body whole to that higher part of his being which is the God part, so that this inner harmony may have its reflection in outer harmony—that the soul at peace and rest may show itself forth in peace and rest of mind and body. If we are not doing this we are not living up to our highest knowledge of life. It is done by creating the desire first in mind, every wholesome thought leading to a mental condition in which we love to talk about health and strength and harmony in preference to sickness and disease and other disagreeable things. Thus do we become one with the healthy-minded, who show forth health in their bodies; but it must be accomplished by each individual for himself.
No mental healer is able to do more than to help his patient on to the true path, whereon he must walk unaided. Very often I have met people who had taken mental treatment and who for years had made splendid progress; yet a time came when the treatment seemed to have no beneficial effect. Why was this? The reason is plain.
When a person comes to take treatment new desires and new impulses fill his mind and soul; but he does not always act upon them. Some, sooner or later, actually die to all knowledge of them. All mental and spiritual treatment has for its object the helping of people to help themselves, and if they refuse they must take the responsibility for whatever trouble may ensue. “For whosoever hath,” said Jesus, “to him shall be given; but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.” If we have desire for a better and a stronger life, but make no effort to manifest or realize it, even that which we have shall be taken away. Hence do we find some who no longer derive benefit from treatment. The regaining of their health must come through knowledge of those obligations which they themselves assumed in the past.
There are people who go about with weak and diseased bodies, finding fault with everything and everybody with whom they come in contact. There is no New Thought about this course of procedure: it is the very oldest kind of thought. No true mental scientist takes that attitude toward anything. A true mental scientist is one who understands the principles and applies them. He may go to a metaphysical meeting every night, but if he fails to act upon the theories expounded he is not a mental scientist but a common “follower” of the New Thought; and, instead of being a help, he may become a hindrance more deterrent than an open enemy of the cause.
If we desire to be one with the New Thought we must accomplish this through our love for its teachings. Instead of wasting so much time in thinking of our own welfare, let us think of the welfare of others. The mind that is centered on thoughts of the personal good to be got out of life is sure to get the least good out of it. It is the one who in the right way thinks and cares for others that is going to get the most good. It is not our duty to carry others through life or to work out their salvation for them, but to show them the right way—to make their lives a little easier, a little happier and a little better.
If we are to become true followers of the New Thought movement, it is not enough to listen to some teacher for an hour or two, and then go away and think and talk about something else. This is not an act of love. It may make us feel good for the time being, but we are storing up for ourselves judgment; for with knowledge comes responsibility. If we are learning how to live and do not act upon our knowledge, we are simply storing up future troubles.
I think perhaps one of the most discouraging things that come into the life of the New Thought teacher is not that people neglect to come, because an attendance may be secured anywhere; not that people do not listen attentively, because they do, and then often go away and omit to act upon the knowledge they have acquired; but to see certain ones come year after year and listen to lectures, all the time carrying about with them the elements of mental or physical weakness. One is inclined to ask himself whether preaching after all is not in vain.
Each soul is a thought of God, and each thought is perfect; but are we giving due expression to it—are we properly working out that which God has in wrought? Are we using God’s gifts and developing our God-given qualities? Thus only can we fulfill the perfect law. We cannot with impunity continue to listen and learn and then deliberately disobey, day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year, the law of God as it is made clear to us. The way of life is not difficult. The way of health, strength, and happiness is not hard; it is, however, one that each individual must choose and tread for himself.
Whatever we see that is beautiful in this world, and whatever the heart desires—whatever is true, pure, and upright—let us become one with it by trying to be it and to love it. There is no other way. We can be what we will to be, but we must will it with both mind and heart. When we think and also feel we become one with the object of our attention. If our thought goes out to the good, the true, and the wholesome, we manifest these qualities in our lives; and if our thought goes out in divine love, we become one with eternal Love. If our thought goes out in loving-kindness toward all people, we become one with them. When the mind dwells on what the heart feels, we become one with that on which it dwells.
Hearing and Doing
Our thoughts are the text; our lives preach the sermon.
Let what is natural in you raise itself to the level of the spiritual, and let the spiritual become once more natural.
Thus will your development be harmonious, and the peace of heaven will shine upon your brow—
always on condition that your peace is made, and that you have climbed your Calvary.
—”Amiel’s Journal”
Our own spirit is the vestibule which we must enter, as threshold to the temple of the eternal,
and wherein alone we can catch any whisper from the holy of holies.
—James Martineau
Some college professors admitted to me some time ago that the world is turning more and more toward the search after health along mental or psychical lines, conceding that the more advanced students believe not only that health is obtainable through mental effort alone, but that the time is near when great numbers of people will so seek thus to regulate their lives that human life shall be greatly prolonged. It is true beyond doubt that scientific minds are investigating this subject today as never before. Medical men may strive to side-track the issue by appealing to hypnotism or some other agency, but they are not succeeding to any marked degree.
The doctors make strenuous efforts to procure legislation prohibiting the practice of Mental and Christian Science, ostensibly because these schools are inimical to the public welfare, but really because they tend to reduce medical incomes. Yet intelligent physicians everywhere are dispensing more and more with the use of drugs, and are confining themselves to the giving of advice as to diet and the making of hygienic suggestions.
My object in referring to this is to show that progress in the spiritual and psychic realms is undoubtedly being made; yet a still more encouraging fact is that very many people who formerly took regular mental treatment are now beginning to rely largely on their own efforts to keep well. This is as it should be, because we have a right to regulate our own health. We all have the power, but unfortunately we do not always use it intelligently. In order to control and direct the power of life, we must focus our attention upon it in the natural way, and not imagine that, if ill, five or ten minutes’ effort will make us well and strong. The age of miracles has not yet arrived.
Let us see how intelligence may be brought to bear on the different phases of this subject. In the first place, let us consider the morbid, or diseased, side of human life, in order to discover how we get into wrong conditions—because if we know this we may also learn how to get out of them: by retracing our steps.
The very best scientists in the world today no longer regard the brain as the generator of thought, but rather as an instrument through which thought acts. They recognize that thought is independent of the brain, though it acts upon it. The entire physical body is only one of our possessions, and is not by any means our greatest possession. We have the right to do with it as we will, so long as our authority is exercised in accord with law; that is, so long as the will is used to produce a harmonious effect upon the body, because if used otherwise the will is bound more or less to injure this house we live in.
A great many people suppose they are thinking when they are really doing nothing of the kind, but are using their brains to such a degree that an undue amount of blood is drawn to the head, where, becoming congested, it accelerates the vibrations of the upper portion of the body till the head is very hot and the feet are very cold. The physical effect produced here is the result of wrong thinking, not right thinking, which has never yet caused a congestion of any kind. Right thought cannot produce a rapidity of vibration that will result in an overheated head.
When we refer to certain persons as being “hot-headed,” we mean that they become angry easily, for anger is an emotion that drives the blood unduly to the brain. There is a very delicate part of the body called the mucous membrane, and when the rate of vibration is thus increased it becomes inflamed, the result being what is known as a “catarrhal” condition. Again, we are very sensitive as to what people say or think of us, and are frequently so affected by their words or thoughts that this membrane becomes similarly inflamed; moreover, we have a disturbance of the stomach, and we say it results from something we have eaten or drunk—but it means simply that we have allowed ourselves to be annoyed by what someone else has said or thought.
No one can produce in us a wrong method of thinking unless we allow him to do it. Let us cease trying to shift the responsibility from our own shoulders on to those of someone else by insisting that another’s failure to do this or that has caused our suffering; for it is a very poor excuse. We suffer for our own misdeeds, and when we lend ourselves to the sinful side of life we have a right to expect no other result. It rests with each individual whether he shall be related to the world about him in a strong and healthy way or in a weak and diseased way.
It is better to know the truth about these things—to face the whole truth—than to go on year after year laying the responsibility for our mental and physical conditions at the doors of other people or other things, when we ourselves are solely responsible. It is not enough to say that we are “negative” and that we “take on conditions” from others. If we are negative it is because we have allowed ourselves to become so without reason. If wrong thought reaches us from other people it is because we open wide our door and tacitly invite it to enter. We literally call out what others say or think of us. There is something within us that, coming in touch with the identical quality in other people, stirs it into activity. When this result does not follow, it means that we have risen above it. If it seems to come and has no effect upon us, we have proof that we are not one with it; that is, that we have no fondness for it. We do not like to have unkind things said of us by others; yet if we ourselves say unkind things we become one with that habit of thought and thus call forth just such remarks, which adversely affect us mentally and therefore physically.
We become one with whatever we love. We become intimately related also to those about whom we say unkind things—to the unkind thought of the world; the converse of this proposition being equally true. If we love to say and do kind things, we are one with the good deeds and the good people of the world.
And so it is with health, with wholeness; for health and wholeness, harmony and heaven, mean virtually the same thing. When a person is healthy he is harmonious. How many harmonious people are there in this world—people who can say that they are well in every part of their being—perfectly whole and perfectly harmonious in both mind and body? This is a question that I feel we all should ask ourselves. If we are not in full enjoyment of this state, it is time for us to begin to think about heaven right here and now—about health and harmony at the present time. What is the use in dragging out a miserable existence? If we are not harmonious in our own minds, and if our bodies are ill, where shall we find the happiness of life? We create our own heaven and are the authors of our own health. The power is God-given.
It is right that each and every individual should present his body whole and acceptable unto God, for this is his reasonable service. He should present a body whole to that higher part of his being which is the God part, so that this inner harmony may have its reflection in outer harmony—that the soul at peace and rest may show itself forth in peace and rest of mind and body. If we are not doing this we are not living up to our highest knowledge of life. It is done by creating the desire first in mind, every wholesome thought leading to a mental condition in which we love to talk about health and strength and harmony in preference to sickness and disease and other disagreeable things. Thus do we become one with the healthy-minded, who show forth health in their bodies; but it must be accomplished by each individual for himself.
No mental healer is able to do more than to help his patient on to the true path, whereon he must walk unaided. Very often I have met people who had taken mental treatment and who for years had made splendid progress; yet a time came when the treatment seemed to have no beneficial effect. Why was this? The reason is plain.
When a person comes to take treatment new desires and new impulses fill his mind and soul; but he does not always act upon them. Some, sooner or later, actually die to all knowledge of them. All mental and spiritual treatment has for its object the helping of people to help themselves, and if they refuse they must take the responsibility for whatever trouble may ensue. “For whosoever hath,” said Jesus, “to him shall be given; but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.” If we have desire for a better and a stronger life, but make no effort to manifest or realize it, even that which we have shall be taken away. Hence do we find some who no longer derive benefit from treatment. The regaining of their health must come through knowledge of those obligations which they themselves assumed in the past.
There are people who go about with weak and diseased bodies, finding fault with everything and everybody with whom they come in contact. There is no New Thought about this course of procedure: it is the very oldest kind of thought. No true mental scientist takes that attitude toward anything. A true mental scientist is one who understands the principles and applies them. He may go to a metaphysical meeting every night, but if he fails to act upon the theories expounded he is not a mental scientist but a common “follower” of the New Thought; and, instead of being a help, he may become a hindrance more deterrent than an open enemy of the cause.
If we desire to be one with the New Thought we must accomplish this through our love for its teachings. Instead of wasting so much time in thinking of our own welfare, let us think of the welfare of others. The mind that is centered on thoughts of the personal good to be got out of life is sure to get the least good out of it. It is the one who in the right way thinks and cares for others that is going to get the most good. It is not our duty to carry others through life or to work out their salvation for them, but to show them the right way—to make their lives a little easier, a little happier and a little better.
If we are to become true followers of the New Thought movement, it is not enough to listen to some teacher for an hour or two, and then go away and think and talk about something else. This is not an act of love. It may make us feel good for the time being, but we are storing up for ourselves judgment; for with knowledge comes responsibility. If we are learning how to live and do not act upon our knowledge, we are simply storing up future troubles.
I think perhaps one of the most discouraging things that come into the life of the New Thought teacher is not that people neglect to come, because an attendance may be secured anywhere; not that people do not listen attentively, because they do, and then often go away and omit to act upon the knowledge they have acquired; but to see certain ones come year after year and listen to lectures, all the time carrying about with them the elements of mental or physical weakness. One is inclined to ask himself whether preaching after all is not in vain.
Each soul is a thought of God, and each thought is perfect; but are we giving due expression to it—are we properly working out that which God has in wrought? Are we using God’s gifts and developing our God-given qualities? Thus only can we fulfill the perfect law. We cannot with impunity continue to listen and learn and then deliberately disobey, day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year, the law of God as it is made clear to us. The way of life is not difficult. The way of health, strength, and happiness is not hard; it is, however, one that each individual must choose and tread for himself.
Whatever we see that is beautiful in this world, and whatever the heart desires—whatever is true, pure, and upright—let us become one with it by trying to be it and to love it. There is no other way. We can be what we will to be, but we must will it with both mind and heart. When we think and also feel we become one with the object of our attention. If our thought goes out to the good, the true, and the wholesome, we manifest these qualities in our lives; and if our thought goes out in divine love, we become one with eternal Love. If our thought goes out in loving-kindness toward all people, we become one with them. When the mind dwells on what the heart feels, we become one with that on which it dwells.
The Mission of Jesus
Worship’s deeper meaning lies
In mercy, and not sacrifice.
Not proud humilities of sense
And posturing of penitence,
But love’s unforced obedience;
Christ dwells not afar,
But here, amidst the poor and blind,
The bound and suffering of our kind;
In works we do, in prayers we pray,
Life of our life, he lives today.
—John Greenlead Whittier
On a Sabbath day, nearly nineteen hundred years ago, in the city of Nazareth, a man, coarsely attired even for those days, was seen to enter the synagogue. Having inquired of an attendant, a book was handed to him, which he opened and read from the prophet Esaias: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” Having read this, he closed the book and returned it to the minister. Then addressing the people, he said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”
Now, although many centuries have elapsed since that event, every civilized person living today knows who that man was. It is not the man Jesus, but his mission, that we are interested in—a mission that has been woefully misunderstood in the past. Who is better able to tell what that mission was than Jesus, who was “anointed of God” and filled with the very spirit of truth? Surely he, if any one, should be able to tell; and in the passage quoted he does tell in a few words, and in no uncertain way. His whole work is here made clear. He does not say that he came to found a new religion, or to promulgate a new creed or a new doctrine. No doubt he thought that the people of that time had enough of that sort of thing, as we have now.
Part of the mission of Jesus was to preach the gospel to the poor. Strictly speaking this may not mean those poor in worldly goods, but all those who feel their own unworthiness and who have a desire to attain to higher things. We might say those that are poor in spirit—hungry and thirsty for spiritual nourishment: to such Jesus was going to preach the gospel of Light and Truth.
“He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted.” Truly, his mission was a blessed one—one that looms far above any whose aim is merely to give a new religion or an ethical code to the world. “To heal the broken-hearted!’ How deep these words sink into the soul! Is it any wonder we cherish his utterances and his deeds when we see what loving compassion he entertained for all the wretched and sorrowing? The brokenhearted have found and will ever find comfort in his words and example.
But this does not mean that they must worship at the throne of personality. Jesus was so permeated by the spirit of love that it completely overshadowed the mere personality; and that is why he spoke as never man spake. “I speak not of myself,” he says; “but the Father that dwelleth in me, He doeth the works.”
It is not the spiritual part of our being that tells us we are other than sons of God: it is the blind worship of personality and form. It is just as necessary and expedient for us to discard the personal way of viewing the Christ as it was for the disciples of Jesus. The theological misconceptions concerning the life and mission of the “lowly Nazarene” arise from the stress laid upon the personal man and the lack of knowledge concerning the spirit that animated and controlled him. There is no ground whatever for believing that the personality of Jesus differed from that of other men. He himself made far less of that personality than we do of ours; for, as we see, he gives all honor and glory to the spirit of God. In this worship of personality we belittle the God we seek to worship and make ineffective the teachings of Jesus. We never find him declaring that God is a personality; but we hear him proclaiming that God is Spirit, and must be worshiped in spirit.
Besides healing the broken-hearted, Jesus was to set “the captives” free. Who were those that he was to be instrumental in freeing? Coming down to our own age, we find the same kind of captives that existed in his day. Riches, worldly honors, ambition to excel, desire to obtain the plaudits of men—these carry many captives. Jesus would release the men that sought after riches by pointing to the kingdom within. This would bring more abundant riches, which could not take wings and fly away but which would last eternally. He would show those seeking after worldly honors that they were but chasing a fleeting shadow that could in no way bring them permanent gain—that honors conferred on them from “on high” were the only lasting and true ones; and that the one seeking the plaudits of men would find after all that it was but vanity, and that the approval of God was far more to be desired.
Thus we find, by both word and example, he set the captives free.
The restoring of sight to the blind was also a part of the mission of Jesus. The people sat in darkness—in the region and shadow of death. But he brought a light that dispelled the clouds; the eyes that had so long been blinded from looking into the shadows and darkness were yet to see. Spiritual sight was never given to man to peer into the shadows and darkness, but that he might look up to the very heights whence cometh salvation. Looking heavenward, men lose sight of the unreal; death is not even a shadow. They see and know nothing save the great realities—Life, Love, and Truth—which are in all and are all.
Men have ever seemed more prone to dwell in the darkness than in the light. Shadow has seemed to contain more than substance, and thus they become blinded; for while in this state, they have no need of sight. So Jesus came to show that, even though they were blind, their eyes might yet be opened—the sight that had been dimmed might yet see clearly.
And he “set at liberty” the “bruised.” Who were they? The people going to the temples and the synagogues asking for bread, while the priests and Levites were giving them stones—feeding them on that which could never satisfy the hungry soul. The soul can never be content with the things of this world. Creed, form, and ostentation may satisfy the outer man, but never the inner. These things but bruise and torment; and the man or woman that is in any way bound to them will be bruised—is captive in the fullest sense of the word. The captivity and the bruising will continue until the spirit of truth sets the weary ones free. The Truth alone can make us free; therefore, until people see spiritually they will be bruised.
Everything transpiring in the world about us is but a type of things occurring in the invisible world of thoughts and ideas. The outer form, or symbol, is nothing more than the manifestation of these thoughts and ideas. Everything expressed in the visible world has its ideal, or counterpart, in the invisible. If we can see no further than the form of things, how is it possible for us to arrive at the true solution of any of the great problems that confront us? If we view the birth, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus from an external or literal point of view, in what way is it going to profit us?
Let no false views cloud the mind. It is not what we believe concerning what we see disclosed in the letter that saves us. By submitting our finite wills to the divine will—by understanding our relation to the Source of all life—life and immortality are disclosed to our view. Let us not deceive ourselves with the vain belief that through what we term intellect we are able to fathom and understand the spiritual truths of our being. The spirit of God must first quicken the understanding before these things can be made plain. The interpretation of spiritual things must come through spiritual channels before we can truly and clearly see.
Still another thing Jesus was to do: “to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” That is, to show the people that God was not to be sought after at certain times or seasons, but that now is the day of salvation; that they need not wait seven years before the year of rest should come.
To preach the gospel to the poor; to heal the broken-hearted; to preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind; to set at liberty them that are bruised; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord: this, then, is the sum and substance of the mission of Jesus.
Some would add a great many things that Jesus never taught. They would have us fall down and worship the man; they would have us believe that it is through the shedding of his material blood that we are saved. Now, let us understand this word shedding aright. The shedding of his blood was the casting off of the old nature—of something no longer useful. This is the true meaning. It is the new life that is disclosed. It is this passage from death unto life that should bring joy and peace into our lives; because we know that, if one soul has died to a knowledge of earthly things and lived to a knowledge of heavenly things, then that which has come to pass in the development of that soul, according to the eternal and unchanging law of God, must come to pass in the development of all souls.
This is the great and glorious hope that should thrill the breast of all mankind: that through man came the resurrection from the dead. Man died when his personal will asserted its supremacy—when he was guided by his lower instincts and animal propensities; and man arose from the dead when he cast off these things and acknowledged the will of God as being the supreme and only will that he should recognize or obey.
So it is written that the first Adam was made a living soul, but the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Thus we see how vain is the belief that the shedding of the material blood of Jesus can advance us spiritually. Vain indeed are the commandments of men concerning this. The Christ within alone can save—can set us free. Jesus of Nazareth points out the way—he preaches the gospel of deliverance; but within is the deliverer that can enlighten every man that cometh into the world. The heir of God, the joint heir with Christ, the son of God, is to be found within our own souls. The I Am—the God in the soul of man—is the resurrection and the life eternal.
There are other men that would take away from this mission of Jesus. They try to show that he was a fanatic, a disturber of the peace; that his teachings are contrary to common sense—as these men view common sense. With this class it is hard to have patience.
We all know that God has a mission for every soul to perform. My brother or my sister, have you truly found out what that mission is? Are you living for self, or are you advancing heavenward by living and doing for others? Is your mission to heal the sick, to preach deliverance to the captives, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord? Whatever it is, throw your whole soul into it. Do not go about it in a half-hearted way. Make every thought, word, and deed count. What the world needs today is practical, not theoretical, Christianity. The world is weary of the theoretical that is never put into action. Theories may be grand and true; but of what avail are they when not put to practical use? Would the teachings of Jesus have made a lasting impression on the world if he had failed in any way to live as he taught?
We find people today that talk with reverence of the Sermon on the Mount and the good it has accomplished. Yet they are very far from adapting or applying the great principles contained therein. In reality the Sermon might as well never have been spoken, so far as they are concerned; for they do not receive any real or lasting good from it.
Of what use are all the philosophies and religions of the world if not put into practical use? “Be not deceived; God is not mocked.” We may deceive men with our outward professions of religion; we may observe every rite and form; we may talk like angels of light; but God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart. He judges our every thought; to Him we all render our account; and we shall find that mere pretension is a coin not current in God’s realm. How can we expect to reap where we have not sown?
It is unmistakably true that we, each and all, have a mission; and no matter whether it be high or low, in the eyes of the world, we know that with God there is neither high nor low. God requires only that each shall carry on his mission in this world according to his degree of spiritual unfoldment; and having done this faithfully, the “still, small voice,” speaking from within, says: “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
The Religion of Christ
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
—Rev 3:16
Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
—Eph 5:14
The reign of dogmatic, theological Christianity is passing away. It has had its day—probably, also, its use—and people are no longer attracted to it by the inducements held out in the shape of a future reward to those complying with its requirements. Neither do they fear its anathemas—the “future punishment” awaiting those who go contrary to its teachings. It is thus robbed of its greatest two agencies for perpetuating its influence and power.
But there are certain other things that will continue to have some effect in holding the ecclesiastical organism together. Chief among these is the force of custom. People get into the habit of doing certain things, and it soon becomes easier to do them than not to do them. Thus a large number of people find their way to church from force of habit. It is the conventional thing to do—the Church is eminently respectable.
Of themselves, however, these things cannot indefinitely hold the institution intact. A prominent clergyman once said to me: “Spirituality is dead in the Church.” Another of equal eminence said: “The longer I live the less plan can I see in creation; every year I become more pessimistic.” And a leading New York minister recently remarked that “sectarianism has utterly failed, and infidelity is rampant in the land.” I quote these sayings merely to show that there is a decided feeling of apprehension within the Church in regard to its own usefulness and future maintenance.
Costly edifices continue to be erected, but they are designed as churches for the few, not the many. Church attendance is steadily falling off, year by year; yet here and there will be found a church at which the attendance is large. Sometimes the reason for this exceptional success is the spiritual development of the minister, who, recognizing the needs of his congregation, honestly strives to do all in his power to assist them. As a rule, however, the full churches are the direct result of a certain kind of sensational preaching that has come in vogue in the last two decades. It assails individuals and parties, and is largely made up of denunciation and invective. Such preaching engenders anger and strife, but very little of the love of Christ; yet it undoubtedly proves attractive to a certain class of people.
Money continues to flow into the church coffers in great abundance; but money alone cannot accomplish everything, and thus far it has failed to keep the pews filled. It may be that the Church has devoted so much effort to Christianizing the “benighted heathen” that it has become lax in its home endeavors. It would almost appear, on the face of things, as if the “heathen” were making more converts in our own domain than the Church is making in pagan lands. Not that look upon the many teachers that come to us from foreign countries as “heathen,” but this is certainly the Church view.
Looking over, then, the past and the present of Christianity, as taught by the Church, the conclusion is inevitable that, no matter what its past record may have been, it is ineffectual in its efforts of the present. We are thus led to ask ourselves, Is Christianity a failure? If viewed from the dogmatic, theological standpoint, it is not only a failure but a colossal one, in that it has perverted the very teachings of its Founder.
If we turn to Luke 4:17-20, we will find what Jesus declared his true mission to be. It was certainly not to construct a vast ecclesiastical system. His gospel was to be one of spiritual enlightenment—for the healing of persons that were diseased in either mind or body. There was no article of belief nor complex creed. In fact, the great requirement to fit a man for this world or for any other was love and service to God through love and service to man. Christ’s idea of God was an all-loving Father, who dwelt in the hearts of His children and would direct their ways aright; that His loving presence in the life of man caused the healing of both mind and body; that He was likewise an all-merciful Father, caring for all His children and sending both rain and sunshine on good and bad alike; that He was kind to the unthankful and the evil, and that His love passed all human understanding.
Theological perversion of these great truths has taken the life out of Christianity and well nigh destroyed its usefulness. What the world needs today is an aggressive, optimistic, genuinely Christian religion: aggressive in the sense that it stands for the great fundamental truths of Being, and optimistic in that it proclaims a gospel of glad tidings, a gospel of peace and good-will to all, a gospel that not only heals the mind but gives health and strength to the body, thus showing a present, not a deferred, salvation—one that, moreover, does not exempt the body of man. Such a religion would kindle anew the spirit of true Christianity, and its influence would be felt in every part of the world. The pessimism of the age would dissolve before its progress, as the early morning mist before the rising sun.
Pessimism has no real abiding place in the minds of the people. It has been fostered by the lack of spirituality in the Church and the materialistic tendencies of the age. It is made up rather of the things men “don’t know” than of what they do know.
It may be claimed by pessimists that they have as much ground for their lack of faith as the optimist has for his sufficiency; but this is a fallacy that can be easily exposed. Pessimism gives rise to gloom and despondency of mind, and indigestion and biliousness of body; while the bright, cheerful person that sees good in all things takes the most hopeful, optimistic view of life, and the body is strengthened and nourished—the man himself gaining much more of present happiness. Leaving, then, all question of future good out of consideration, the optimist, with his faith centered in the love of good, is infinitely better off than the one lacking in such faith.
Let this optimistic Christ-religion show man that God does not afflict him, but that all the evils of human life are occasioned by his own wrong-doing; that thought, whether it be true or false, must affect the life either for good or ill; that it is only as men come to a knowledge of their own powers and possibilities, properly using the talents wherewith they are endowed, that the health and happiness of life become abiding states; that lack of knowledge is at the bottom of all their woe; that, while they themselves have wrongly conditioned their lives, they have the inherent power to create new conditions; that real Christianity is living the life; that a belief or a faith that finds no expression in works is of no avail; and that, while the works are not to be regarded as of the greatest importance, yet they are the natural outcome of a living faith.
Above all, let this renewed and quickened Christianity stand for the omnipotence, the omniscience, and the omnipresence of God. Let it teach that all life is of the One Life; that the Power is both within and without; that all visible things are the expression of the power of God; that man has no existence apart from the One Life; that in God he lives and moves and has his being; that all intelligence is One Intelligence, entering into, controlling, and directing all things; that each soul is one with the great creative Spirit, drawing its life, its love, and its wisdom from an eternal Fount; and that man is related to God as a child to his parents; therefore, that all men are brothers.
People are hungering and thirsting for a faith that, ignoring non-essentials, goes directly to the heart of things: one that, ignoring outward works, has its inception in the life. The chief obstacles in their path are the dogmatic creed and the sectarian spirit, as put forward by the alleged “spiritual” teachers of the people. Let not these leaders bewail the fact that “infidelity is rampant in the land,” or that the power of evil seems greater than that of the good; rather let them reverse their methods by putting aside the old things that have hampered their progress. Let them stand for a vital Christianity—one that will appeal to the very soul of man and show that real Christianity is practiced by leading the Christ life; that the different bodies composing the Christian Church, instead of fighting one another, should endeavor, so far as possible, to find points of agreement in their respective systems. Let the Church stand fairly and squarely on the great Christian law, as put forward by Jesus—the non-resistance of evil, or the overcoming of evil with good—instead of fighting windmills.
Truth is ever powerful. It alone overcomes evil and the darkness of the world. The Church that would abide must stand on the eternal foundation of an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God, with all that these adjectives imply, knowing that everything contradicting this position is only the vain imagination that exalts itself over and against a knowledge of good. Let the Church follow this course; let it make a new statement of the vital truths of the Christian religion; let it burn away the straw and stubble of the past and build on a new foundation, and there will be a new awakening such as the world has never seen. The churches, instead of being empty, will be filled to overflowing, because people are hungering and thirsting as never before for something to come into their lives that will bring peace and rest in its train.
The Christ-gospel is a gospel of peace: a gospel that brings rest to the soul—that brings life and immortality to light. The Church has all the physical equipment necessary for its propaganda; but in one thing it is lacking—spirituality. Will it forget the world!, and the things of the world, and seek after God? If it should, it has a future far greater than its past. Let it continue in the old ruts, preaching the dead doctrine, and the paralysis that year by year has been creeping steadily through its organism will become total, and, as with other human institutions, its day will soon be gone and its usefulness ended forever. It is now at its most crucial turning-point. It can no longer serve two masters. It must choose between the spirit of God and the spirit of the world. It must stand for something or for nothing.
In conclusion, I wish to say that this article has not been written in any spirit of fault-finding. In the writer’s mind there is no thought of antagonism nor uncharitableness, but only a sincere desire that the leaders of the Church may be quick to apprehend the danger that evidently awaits it. It is menaced, not by any evil coming upon the institution from without—from people opposed to its teachings—but by a lack of vital force and power within—the need of greater Christian charity, more unity of thought and action, and the all-essential feeling of Christian love both for those within and for those without the fold. My earnest prayer is that the religious leaders of the day may realize this urgent need, and strive in every way to supply it—that the Christ-Church may reign triumphant in the hearts and minds of the people.
Things Worth Remembering
Man is permitted much
To scan and learn
In Nature’s frame;
Till he well-nigh can tame
Brute mischiefs, and can touch
Invisible things, and turn
All warring ills to purposes of good.
He can control
And harmonize what seems amiss to flow.
—John Henry Newman (1801)
We are surrounded by mystery; yet we pay but little attention either to the mystery of form in the outer world or to the mystery of life in the inner. Our attention is directed only to those things that, because they are of uncommon occurrence, we believe to be remarkable. There is a love of the mysterious in man; yet he is prone to neglect the study of the ordinary circumstances surrounding him, regarding them as commonplace. The wonderful songs of the birds, the hues of the flowers, the geometrical formation of the crystals in the caverns of the earth, the growth of the trees—in fact, all Nature is one grand mystery, a mystery that will never be understood until man thoroughly understands himself. Then the knowledge will be disclosed to him that everything in the world without corresponds to something in the world within, and through the Spirit he will read the Word; for the whole visible universe is the word of God expressed in form and set forth in speech.
The mystery of man is the first to be disclosed; for, when man knows himself to be the image and likeness of his Creator, he will understand all else. Among his mental faculties, perhaps the most mysterious is that of memory. We are constantly receiving mental pictures from the world without and from that within; and these appear to us either as beautiful truths or as unpleasant, disagreeable evils. Some of these pictures we regard with indifference, while others absorb our most earnest attention.
Day by day we are writing the record of life’s journey; day by day our minds are becoming filled with the pictures of life that are hourly occurring. Thoughts enter the mind and then seem to fade. But do they pass away? By no means. We have a great storehouse wherein all incidents, both great and small, are stored. They all go to complete the book of life. They are the accumulation of experiences through which, man eventually finds his way from earth to heaven—from the animal to the spiritual. Nothing is forgotten; everything, whether it be little or great, exerts some influence on our lives. Life is as truly made up of “little things” as of the so-called important events. The small incidents of life are treasured with greater ones. The kind word, the pleasant look—these are not forgotten. The harsh word and the angry frown likewise leave their impress.
In man’s life all that he has—all that he can truly call his own—are the experiences through which he has passed and the knowledge acquired from them. He may not regard his body as his own; the time comes when the planet claims that which it has loaned for a season. The one thing that man can claim for his own is the knowledge acquired through experience; this can never be recalled from him, for it belongs to his spiritual nature. It is the knowledge of causes—not that which passes current in the world as knowledge—that fits him for true usefulness here and prepares him for the life to come.
We are writing the book of life daily—even hourly. The enduring things we write in it, which will last when this world shall be no more, are those of the greatest importance, both in the present and in the hereafter, when all the unrealities inscribed therein shall be erased. The tares and the thistles must disappear; they must be consumed by the fire that purifies. This shall be the harvest-time—when the true shall be separated from the false; when the sheep shall be divided from the goats; when all these unreal conditions of life shall be cast into “outer darkness,” and the soul shall become purified.
Why should we so diligently sow the seed of tares and thistles instead of the good seed? Why should we seek to sow seed that in harvest time will bring us but pain and sorrow? We are the arbiters of our own destinies. God endowed us with qualities analogous to His own—qualities that if used aright will bring us nothing but eternal gain. Why should we build on a foundation of straw and stubble, and in the end see our work destroyed, while we ourselves go through the furnace that purifies? Why not take the foundation that cannot be shaken and build on it?
What is this immovable foundation? Simply, that life and intelligence are one; that we must all work for the good of life—not in part, but in all; that we must work with the forces of life, not against them; and that we must know that all God created is good, was good, and ever shall be good. We should remember also that the mind must ever dwell on the good that is in us all; that no matter what the outer seems to be, the inner good is ever there; that, no matter how perverted a course the life-force in a man may take, still it is the veritable power of God working in and through the race. It may be wrongly directed; yet all force is one—all power is a unit.
The life that reaches nearest to God and heaven is the life that sees good in all things—the life spent in doing for others. Selfish interests, hopes, and desires are the seeds that bring forth in the harvest-time the tares and the thistles. They are the things from which, in the present, we expect to derive much gain; but they always fail to bring either profit or happiness, because these conditions can only come as each part works for the good of the whole and of every other part.
All the little and all the great events that occur in life are so many pictures stored away in the subconscious mind. With the faculty of memory we have power to recall them into renewed activity. When we recall things good and true the whole action is good on both mind and body; when we recall things false and unreal they not only adversely affect the mind, filling it with gloomy forebodings, but also affect the body, weakening all its vital functions. If pictures associated with anger and hatred are recalled, they poison not only the mind but also the blood that flows through our veins—having thus a destructive effect on the body. True pictures build up the body: false pictures tear down. We cannot prevent the pictures that fill our mental gallery from entering the conscious mind; but we can see to it that these pictures shall be of so agreeable a nature that they will ever influence us for good, no matter how frequently they appear above the threshold of consciousness.
Anything that declares the power of evil to be greater than that of good should have no place in our thoughts; neither should anything that considers evil as a power, in and of itself, nor anything that shows forth discord and disease, find an abiding-place in the mind. In the book of life that we are constantly writing we should be careful not to inscribe those things that may eventually have to be cast aside. We should not, for instance, try to incorporate in our beings things false and unreal, which inevitably bring sorrow to mind and pain to body. We should build up an everlasting inheritance of things good and true.
We remember many things we would prefer to forget—our own anger toward others and their anger toward us, the unkind word, the envious and malicious thought, etc. We remember things done that should have been left undone; also, things left undone through our neglect. We would gladly forget all these unpleasant things; but memory has a way of recalling them, and they haunt us both day and night.
The Hindus believe thought to be a fine material substance, and that people in this life are making for themselves an environment that will assume the shape of their own thoughts, and before they can leave it they must outgrow all the unreal conditions they have formed. They must also be able to perceive their unreality before they can leave this environment. Whether this be true or not, there is no doubt that we are under the bondage or control of our own evil thoughts and desires; we are the servants and they have become the masters.
We have, first of all, to remember that all life is one. We must not willfully do anything that will retard the expression of life. We must work with all things tending toward perfection. We must be careful to picture in mind that which we know to be true; for we are picturing it not only for ourselves but for others; because what is in our own minds is continually affecting those of others. When we realize the effect of mind upon mind, then we see that we owe a duty not alone to ourselves but to all with whom we come in contact. Let us remember that our true thoughts are going to prove helpful to many persons and that our false thoughts will prove injurious; also, that life is more beautiful and more worth living when we act honestly, justly, mercifully, and lovingly toward all.
Through following this course we shall be storing in memory the things that, when recalled, will bring peace of mind and wholeness of body. Let us be sure that the seed we are sowing day by day is good seed, because the harvest will be after its kind. Men do not gather grapes from thorns nor figs from thistles; they gather according to the seed they have planted. Therefore, how important it is to allow no thought to dwell in the mind that will not bring forth good fruit! We must never harbor thoughts that bring with them a sense of shame, or that if expressed would work the slightest injury to any of God’s creatures. It is not to be expected that we are going to regulate our actions in perfect conformity to law; but we should so wish to live in accord with all that is good and true that our desire will ripen into perfect fruition. We should not only know the Higher Will, but live it and be it. And through doing so we should realize more of the power and goodness of God in our own lives—and should recognize more of those qualities in the lives of those around us.
One Hand alone,
One Hand has sway.
To Him in wisdom turn.
The Laws of Health
The glorious creature laughed out even in sleep.
But when full roused, each giant-limb awake,
Each sinew strung, the great heart pulsing fast,
He shall start up and stand on his own earth,—
Then shall his long triumphant march begin,—
Thence shall his being date,—thus wholly roused,
What he achieves shall be set down to him.
When all the race is perfected alike
As man, that is; all tended to mankind,
And, man produced, all has its end thus far:
But in completed man begins anew
A tendency to God.
—Browning’s “Paracelsus”
Health is essential to man’s well-being, since happiness and success in life are alike dependent upon it. Man cannot appear at his best in any line of activity if his body is diseased. Believing health to proceed from accurate knowledge of and conformity to the laws that regulate and control the life of man, I desire, as concisely as possible, to point out their nature and operation. I do not believe that there is any good reason why anyone should be ill, but good health does not come to an individual without the exercise of some effort on his part; and the compensation is far greater than that accruing from the same amount of effort put forth in any other direction.
We all wish to be well and happy. There is only one way to reach this state. In the past we have sought it in the tangible substances of the world that lies all about us—to make our bodies well through the use of so-called material remedies—and sometimes they seem to help, though usually affording no relief. Thus we have experimented year after year, trying first one thing and then another; or perhaps we have had no belief in drugs but have been very careful about our diet; or we may have studied the rules of hygiene and regulated our lives accordingly. And yet how few, with these aids alone, have been able to express perfect health and strength! We may not be censured for employing them, for most others do the same until they find through experience that none of these things bring perfect wholeness or happiness.
There is another realm, however, to which we have access—the world of the invisible, the world of cause, the world of the soul. “But,” says one, “it is so far away that I can only hope to know it when the labors of this life are finished and God’s kingdom is reached—when health and happiness shall be mine eternally.” Is this the true view to take of human life here and now? Did not Jesus say that God’s kingdom “cometh not by observation;” that we cannot say, “lo, here!” or “lo, there!” for “behold, His kingdom is within you?” Did not one of his disciples teach that “ye are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” Even now is the day of salvation. Can the salvation that lives in a diseased body be complete? Is not the fullness of God’s salvation offered for our acceptance at the present moment? This is the message that Jesus tried to convey to the minds of men—the glad tidings of which the angels sang: that the Father cares for His children and freely offers health and happiness to all who will accept these blessings.
All good things are true because they have their source in God, in whom is “neither variableness nor shadow of turning.” The “turning” has all been done by us. We have turned away from the proffered gifts. We have not realized that all things are ours to enjoy. But before we can enter into the enjoyment of our universe we must have a knowledge of good in our individual lives. We must know that God is ever present, and that He “worketh within us to will and to do.” When we have learned this truth the greater revelation awaits us: that God is the All-in-all, and that the soul, our real self, is subject to no law but the law of God, which is the law of love. When this illumination enters the life it becomes changed; the old ideas pass away and all things are made new. The “new heaven and the new earth” have come into the life eternal, which is here and now. Only as this truth is lived and consciously realized, does it become a living reality in the individual life.
Let us consider some of the things necessary to the adjustment of our lives to this divine law. A little study of self—a study that is perfectly honest and sincere—will bring to our minds many things of which we do not fully approve.
At times our minds become anxious and even fearful; perhaps we allow anger, or malice, or jealousy to find lodgment therein. This wrong way of thinking and feeling makes the mind discordant and unrestful, expelling all real happiness and mental peace. Moreover, mental discord and unrest are manifested in physical sickness and disease, because our bodies and souls are more dependent for health and strength on mental harmony and brightness than on either food or drink. We have been very solicitous as to our bodily diet, but frequently we are heedless of the more important food of our minds.
In reversing this erroneous course, let us be careful to start right. Perhaps for years we have been regarding ourselves as material beings, who might at some future time become spiritual, live in a distant heaven, and be and act altogether different from what we are and what we do on earth. Yet the fact remains that heaven is within us. The spirit is the quickening power, not the flesh; and if the spirit of Him who raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in us our mortal bodies shall also be quickened through the same agency.
What a change of mind would result if only these truths were realized—God working in our lives to will and to do; the spirit within us the quickening power; the body only the temporary house that the spirit has builded for its use! In this realization the saying of Jesus is plain: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will build it up.” The ego is more than its body, and when we get the thought clear in mind that we are spiritual beings we will lay far less stress on the physical and pay more attention to our real selves.
There is no other force or power in the world than spirit. God has given to each of us a mighty kingdom to rule. By the control and direction of our individual lives through the immortal spirit we can realize the truth of this. It is only when we grasp more power than we know the use of—more than we have rightfully developed—that there comes the misdirection of energy that causes mental and physical disturbance.
Sometimes through wrong thinking we shut off our spiritual reservoir of power—we limit ourselves. This condition comes through paying too much attention to the gratifying of worldly desires and not enough attention to cultivating the desire for higher things. The natural growth of anything should be as harmonious as that of a flower—accepting each day, each hour, as it comes, all that has been provided for its growth; yet we often ignorantly close the channel through which alone all things essential for our perfection can come.
Only to man has God given the conscious power to control his personal life; to make for himself what condition he wills; to create for himself a heaven or a hell. If the spirit dominates his life and he realizes his God-mind power and trusts absolutely to it, enlightenment and guidance will come through the indwelling spirit and he will express mental and physical health and strength. We should not seek to rule the kingdom that is beyond us, nor the one that is below us. Let us rule today, in the only kingdom that is ours, and day by day its powers will be revealed and we will reverence the God within the temple by keeping holy (whole) and sacred the sanctuary in which He dwells.
Light enough is given to rule each day in our kingdom, but not enough “for the morrow;” and peering into the future will not enable us to live stronger or better lives. We live day by day, and if we live today thoroughly poised in mind, taking no anxious thought concerning anything, we will have fitted ourselves to live the morrow when it comes.
Let us keep the mind clear and bright, fill it with wholesome thoughts of life, and be kindly in our feelings toward others. Let us have no fear of anything, but realize that we are one with universal power,—that power which can supply our every need,—that health, strength, and happiness are our legitimate birthright, that they are ever potential in our inner lives, and that our bodies may express them now. If we take this mental attitude and adhere steadfastly to it, the body will very soon manifest health and strength. There is no other way, and time is only wasted in seeking elsewhere the kingdom of God.
The control of self, the direction of the whole life, has been committed to our care. We are to be faithful and not shrink from any of the responsibilities connected with it; for through such fidelity we shall hasten the time when health demonstrated shall be made manifest on earth “even as it is in heaven.”
Spiritual Treatment
When divine faith, divine love, divine will, are united in one human being, this being becomes itself divine, becomes itself a master;
his faith enables him to heal the body, his love to minister to the needs of the soul, while will gives him power to harmonize natural conditions.
—Van Der Naillen
In order for the highest wisdom and insight we must have absolute confidence in the divine guiding us, but not through the channel of someone else.
—Trine
In considering the subject of mental treatment—more correctly, spiritual treatment, since other than mental qualities are involved in the giving of treatment—it is necessary in the first place to clear up certain misconceptions arising from the confusion of the different terms, body, soul, spirit, and mind. These words are apt to be used as though they related to separate entities, or substances—or to modes of being which are separate and distinct in their reality, but are temporarily or casually brought into relation with each other. Or sometimes it appears to be held that body is not a reality at all, or even that body, mind, and soul are alike illusory, leaving spirit the only true reality. Now such a failure to attach their true meanings to the terms us which we use in our thinking, necessarily leads to false and misleading conclusions.
The truth—simple and plain enough for all to understand it aright—is that all life is one in essence, differing only in the degree and plane of its manifestation. The body of man is not a thing separate and distinct from his mind, independent of it, obeying other laws, subject to other rules. On the contrary, it is the outgrowth of mind, the manifestation of mind, that through which expression is given to the inner man upon the physical plane. On that plane and in relation to it, body is reality, but neither independent nor self-existent. It is conditioned and ruled by the reality of the next higher plane of expression, that is to say, by mind. Nor is the mind of man separate and distinct from his soul-life, though it is often so spoken of. It is that expression of soul which relates man to the world of form and perception. It is the manifestation of life upon the plane of thought. It is that which governs and controls body, and is in turn ruled and conditioned by soul.
Soul, again, is the term which we use to describe the highest expression of individual identity. It is not different from or independent of spirit, but is one with spirit—a part of the universal soul of all things. It is spirit subjected to those conditions and limitations which give rise to identity. The oneness of life is expressed in and signified by spirit; its diversity in and through that oneness, by soul. These thoughts fairly grasped, it becomes comparatively easy to understand things aright—one life, and only one life, and yet that One Life manifesting itself in many ways and through many degrees.
Jesus said of God: “God is Spirit,” and the translators not being satisfied with that, translated, “God is a Spirit.” That little article a gives a very different interpretation to Jesus’ statement. Spirit, as Jesus said, was God. When we use the word spirit, it means the universal spirit, it means God. Again, when we come to the word soul, let us see that the soul is the differentiated spirit, the individual spirit, the microcosm which contains within itself the complete picture of the universal God, the macrocosm. Let us see, then, that there is no difference between the great universal soul and the individual soul, other than this one thought of differentiation or individualization. The existence and reality of an inner state necessarily involve the existence and reality of an outer state. Accordingly it would appear that an outward state has ever been essential in the growth and development of man.
Realizing, then, that there is a unity of life, we must not pick these different states or expressions of life apart and think or talk of them as though they were entirely distinct. We must see that they are in the last analysis all one; that man is a unit; and that the universal soul again is a unit; that the life which flows through this grand organism is all one—One Life, One Intelligence.
The importance of a correct conception on this point arises, so far as the present subject is concerned, from the fact that among the faculties that play a prominent part in the giving of treatment are some which we commonly regard as soul faculties and certain others which we are accustomed to consider mental faculties. First among the soul faculties stands the will of man, and that will, in turn, is one with the divine will of the universe. The true action of will in man is one with all will. Professor Dewey, of Ann Arbor, says that the will is man. It may be defined as the force of life in its voluntary outward expression. We see how it affects our own lives, and we see how it affects the lives of others.
Working with will, guiding, stimulating, and directing it, we find faith, hope, and love. Now these faculties belong to and are the deepest feelings in man’s nature. So far from being dependent upon or an outgrowth of mind, they cannot even be pictured in mind, but transcend any image that mind is capable of forming. They rise superior to anything known or recognizable in the mental state. Therefore, it is not possible to give any description in words—words being a development and expression of the mind—of these important and powerful states of feeling. We may possess them, we may experience them, we may know them in all the height and depth of which our natures are capable, but we cannot describe them. Yet we may cherish and cultivate them, and with the cultivation of these three mighty capacities in the life of man there will be generated certain other forces through the possession of which man may become of the greatest service to his fellow men.
Through the development of love, faith, and hope, man may come into possession of the magnetic force of his being; nor is this to be generated in any other manner whatsoever. If this appears to some to be denied by experience, if there seems to be magnetic force which, judging from the manner and purpose of its use, must have arisen from some other source, remember that for every real thing there is a temporary symbol manifested on the personal plane which practically contradicts that reality. Much in this world which masquerades as and strives to pass for real magnetism is not magnetism at all in the highest and truest sense of the word. If we desire to possess this magnetic force, we can achieve it only through the cultivation of faith, hope, and love.
How, then, shall we develop these qualities? Simply by exercising them in relation to people here in this world. Let them flow outward toward every person, every animal, everything with which we come in contact, and the more freely we give the more freely shall be added unto us. As we give of our faith freely and fully to our fellow men, as we pour out our love upon them in abundant measure, as we hope for them, and care for them, and do for them, in just that proportion will the faith and love and hope within our own souls flourish and grow strong. Thus and thus only may we confidently expect the development of the magnetic force in man.
Now the electric forces in man arise from another source, namely, from the development of the intellectual part of man’s being. Just as we recognize the magnetic forces as being in and of soul, so we must learn to realize that the electric forces are in and of mind. Hence it may be readily understood how it happens that many people possessing practically no magnetism whatever, yet, somehow, have developed, through the intellectual side of their being, a great deal of electric force. It is the perfect combination of magnetic and electric forces that is needed in this world today; and this involves the perfect development of both mental and soul faculties, not the cultivation of one at the expense of the other. Yet quite too generally “cultivation” and an “education” are taken to mean the training of the mind alone.
Now it is an unfortunate fact that a person may be so warped through the development of the intellect alone that not a ray of soul-light can ever penetrate the outer mind to illuminate the inner being. People may be so warped and distorted through the study of books, through mathematics, philosophy, through metaphysics and theology, that they actually know nothing whatever of the soul-life. After all, the old Greek command, “Know thyself,” points the way to life. Only as we come to know our inner powers, our power of love, faith, hope, and service, can we know God. True love in the mind of man was first begotten of the aid, comfort, and assistance that he rendered to other lives. And the true love, commencing first with individuals, gradually extends until it takes in every living, moving, breathing thing, proceeding from the individual outward to the circumference of all things.
We see, then, that in order to generate this magnetic force (which will be of the greatest assistance in giving treatment), it is necessary that faith, hope, and love shall abide and wax strong in the soul of man; thus existing, they must be felt in and express themselves through mind. These different states arise in the innermost parts of man’s being, and work from thence outwardly, revealing health and power in the mental and physical planes. So only can we come into true relation with our fellow-beings.
Accordingly, we have now to consider the mental faculties used in the giving of treatment, among which the power of concentration and the imaging faculty of mind are most important. It is through this latter faculty—that of imaging or picturing in mind—that the healer is enabled to see what the man or woman he is treating should be, not what he seems to the outward eye to be, but what he should be and what in reality he is.
The process which begins with the denial of everything evil is not a true one. It depends for its basis upon the assumption of the unreality of the body and so-called material things. But, as we have already seen, the body is a reality upon its own plane and in the degree in which the real unity of life is expressed through it. Hence, to deny the reality of disease and pain upon that plane is incorrect and only juggling with words. Indeed, the very attempt to deny away certain conditions can only result in emphasizing the reality of those very conditions. If you say, in good faith, that there is no sin, sickness, or disease, you have simply succeeded in hypnotizing yourself into an erroneous belief. All these conditions do in truth exist. They are but transitory conditions, to be sure, through which the soul passes, but to him who is undergoing them and suffering from their effects they are very real; nor can they be overcome and rendered non-existent by means of mere denial.
Error is to be overcome not by the denial that error exists, but by affirming the existence and power of the eternal truths. Darkness is to be overcome by letting in the light, not by saying there is no darkness. Hence, this process which begins with the denial first of the physical body of man—that through which he alone is expressed upon the physical plane—and continues with the denial of sin, sickness, and disease, has and can have nothing good flowing from it, nothing that can cause any soul to be one iota better. It is just like a little child in the dark saying, “I’m not afraid of the dark.” The very fact that the child says this proves that he really is afraid. Every time you deny away a condition as unreal, you picture that condition in your mind, and hence perpetuate and strengthen it instead of lessening its hold on you.
Now there is another form of denial which stands on a very different basis, and it is a true one: it is the denial of the superiority of body over mind, the denial that the body can, of and for itself, do anything or feel anything, the denial that life on its higher planes of expression can be affected by or suffer from that which only has validity and meaning for the physical plane. This latter form is no more denial of negation; it only arises, as we shall see later, from the assertion of the higher law. Therefore, in giving treatment, we image in mind things which are pure and good, we image the thought of the perfect man, the likeness of his Creator, without spot or blemish, and we put the whole force of our thought and will into that, instead of telling the sufferer that he is not sick or diseased.
The one thing needful in this life is the full realization of the unity of life, the clear perception that man is one with the Source of all life, and can never become in any way separated or detached from that Omnipotent Source. Once the mind of humanity realizes that truth in all its completeness, sickness and disease will exist no longer. When this becomes a living, vital force in the mind of any man, he will so regulate his life that every thought, every action, will be a benefit to others. He will no longer seek his own good but that of others, for he will know that his own life is bound up in the lives of others, of all mankind; and that whatever works good to others reacts on his own life, for peace and well-being.
Many healers find it difficult to get true concentration. Now this faculty is needed in treatment to a very marked degree. As has been said, we first image in mind the condition which we desire to see expressed in the patient. When that perfect image has once been obtained, then comes in the power of concentration to hold to that image, and to impress it upon the mind of the patient. All that is necessary for the healer to do for the time being, is to hold with his mind and thought to that one thing. The faculties of mind and soul are thus brought to a focus, just as the rays of the sun are gathered and deflected to a common center by a sunglass. And notice that while the rays of the sun are passing through the lens, there is very little heat apparent. The heat becomes manifest and effective only as the sun’s rays reach the focal point.
So it is with the powers of the soul and mind as they are affected by this faculty of concentration. They will, aided by concentration, bring the thought or image formed in your mind to a focus in the mind of the patient. This done there need be no doubt as to the effect of that thought. Remember that you have planted the seed—that is all. You do not give life. You give nothing except the thought. By means of that thought you are able to stir into activity the dormant possibilities of the patient’s mind and soul. The power of God in that soul’s life is what makes your work fruitful and productive. God giveth the increase. The healer supplies the medium through which that power passes to reach the patient; his will is the instrument by means of which that power is concentrated upon its subject. He only calls into a living existence things that are latent in mind and soul.
This being the healer’s office, he should have no doubt in his own mind as to the effect of the treatment. Doubt in the healer’s mind means and involves doubt in the patient’s mind; for a false thought will then be given out with the true one. Therefore, have perfect faith that when the seed has been planted it will spring up and bring forth fruit after its kind.
It is a great mistake to let the mind dwell too much on the results which are to be expected from the treatments. In reality the question of results is not for the healer to consider. The thing he has to do is to give the treatment—give it just as well as he knows how, put the whole force of his mind and soul into it, and the results will come.
Note, too, that there is a necessary condition in the healer’s mind in order that treatment shall be effective. If your own mind is disturbed or unrestful, how shall you be able to give restfulness to another mind? You say, “I think the true thoughts for that other mind in spite of the disturbed conditions of my own.” Not so; for the other mind is in a passive and receptive condition. You are holding in mind—hence conveying—false images as well as true ones. You have in mind images that would carry the thought of rest and peace, but you have also those that would bring disquiet and unrest. The true and false must go out together. Yet you wonder why your patients do not progress faster than they do.
In giving a treatment the mind of the healer must be restful and peaceful, absolutely denying entrance to every doubt and every fear. The mind must be acted upon from the inmost depths of being: impulses of love, faith, and hope must dominate the mind exclusively. Thus will true thoughts alone emanate, and there will be no room for any false thoughts. When the light is truly shining there is no room for darkness. When the true thought is held in mind to the exclusion of the false, that true thought, going out from your mind, will affect the lives of others for good.
No thought can fail to have its effect upon some life. One cannot meet another ever so slightly, cannot converse with another for even five minutes, without influencing that other life to some degree. Either that life is better for having come in contact with you, or there remains with it some false impression which must be overcome. You have either added to life’s burdens or lightened them, according to your thought. So intimately related is all mankind that our very thoughts, without spoken words, affect the lives of those about us.
The question is often asked: Why is it that one can receive treatment from a Mental Scientist for months, and seem, after the first slight improvement, no better? In many cases it is because he is content to let the healer do all the work; he is literally being carried by another. Now this is an impossibility for any length of time. All that any healer can do is to guide our feet into the way. It is we who must take the steps.
All mental treatment aims to help people to help themselves, and if they refuse to exercise themselves unto Godliness, on their own shoulders alone lies the responsibility for sickness and suffering. From him that hath not (sincere desire and perseverance) shall be taken even that little possession of health which he seemeth to have.
Health, harmony, heaven (for they are all the same thing), can be realized only by men and women who are so deeply in earnest that they will give all that they have to secure the pearl of great price.
Indeed salvation costs all that there is of a man. If we could understand that all this outer life of mind and body is but the symbol for reality then we would make more rapid progress in things eternal. But men persistently try to make the outside of the cup and platter clean and then wonder why no good results follow.
For instance, take the matter of dissipation. To attempt to overcome the trouble on the physical plane alone is folly, for the cause lies further back than that. If a man habitually dissipates his will, centering it first on one subject of desire, then on another, he becomes weak and diseased; and we all know the evil effects of mental dissipation. That old verse which reads, “God gave them their desires but sent leanness into their souls,” has much good doctrine in it.
Our prayers, that is our desires, are being unanswered all the time; and if we find our bodies in a lean or weak condition, if we discover a diseased or crippled state in the body, it is because we do not desire the good of all men, but love personal benefit; our desires are mean and small, our concepts are crippled and false; our souls, lean.
Whatever we earnestly desire we become one with. If we set our affections on partial benefits, that is, a good for one that is not a good for all, then we most assuredly will receive only a meager allowance of physical and mental power. But if our love includes all men, if it is the whole good that we desire, then wholeness or health will, according to the intensity of our desire, be manifested in us. It is according as our concepts of life are true or false that we express, in our various activities, power and fullness or disease and weakness.
! Now there is this thought, too, that I wish to leave with you, that new light means increased responsibility. Those who learn about this New Thought of health through soul-exercise and merely dwell in it intellectually without applying the truth in their own lives, are going to be worse off than if they had not known the truth. As Jesus put it, “If I had not come, ye had not sinned.”
“Where much is given much shall be required.” It is not enough merely to entertain those thoughts, but we must consciously relate ourselves in a vital way to the Reality which is in all and through all. We must shut our eyes to the outer darkness of the personal life with its mean concepts and ambitions and open the eyes of the heart to the light of the universal life of love.
In this world of ours many things masquerade as angels of light that are really far from being what they seem, although in every form of life, however imperfect, there is an element of truth.
Take as an example this matter of healing. There are all degrees of power, some men possessing a little, others a great deal. Two men having apparently the same intellectual understanding of mental healing may reveal very different powers in the practice of it. Why is this? It is because in one case soul qualities abound; in the other mental activity predominates.
There are two phases of power: one, the electric and the other, the magnetic. And then, too, in regard to magnetism, there is the false or the so-called animal magnetism, and there is the real or spiritual power.
Electric power is generated through thought. A keen and strong thinker can control others through electric force, but the magnetic control springs from the realm of feeling; and when I speak of feeling I do not mean the emotional impulses which arise largely on the surface of being but those deep soul-feelings of faith, hope, and love.
We need not worry in the least as to whether we are manifesting power. Our chief concern is with its realization. If we can realize love in our souls it will, without doubt, be revealed in our minds and bodies.
So then let us give up once for all our dependence on outward form, whether it be the form of a person who seems to us the incarnation of power, or whether it be an institution; and let us aim always to see the life hidden within the man or organization, and give God the glory.
So shall we be freed from a childish dependence and learn to walk in the Way of Life ourselves.
The Crusade Against Christian Science
Poise the cause in justice’ equal scales,
Whose beam stands sure, whose rightful cause prevails.
—Shakespeare
Even handed justice Returns th’ ingredients of our poison’d chalice To our own lips.
—Shakespeare
It is a singular psychological fact that the spirit of persecution in a man never learns a lesson from the past. History shows that persecution, instead of overthrowing or destroying, has tended more to the upbuilding than to the destruction of any system, especially one containing religious thought. The present crusade against Christian Science, about which we hear so much, has done more to increase knowledge of the subject in a few months than could have been accomplished in a much longer time by its adherents. Persons never before interested in the subject now desire to know something about it before passing judgment upon it. The majority of mankind, I believe, desire to act fairly when there is no personal interest to preclude such action; hence, many who have never heretofore given a thought to Christian Science are now giving it more or less consideration.
There is something in Christian Science that appeals to people very strongly—something more than the religious side, which is always a potent element in the life of man—and that is the gospel of health and healing, which, its expounders assert, come through a realization of the truth they teach.
It is not my present purpose to act as a defender of their cult; I write only in the interest of human liberty. Doubtless they have among them those who can defend their cause if such defense is needed. The abuse, however, that has been heaped upon it is not warranted by the facts when we consider the thousands of practitioners of that body engaged in the art of healing. It is not to be wondered at that occasionally a patient passes away under their treatment; neither is it strange that among them are to be found some who do not thoroughly represent the teachings. But this may be as truly said of any or all other systems.
I am not a believer in Christian Science, but I am a believer in fair play; and that, I believe, has been denied to this body in press discussions during the last few months, both in this country and in Europe. If the passing away of one or two persons under Christian Science treatment has damned it as a healing art, then the medical profession, whose losses are of daily, not to say hourly, occurrence, should come in for a greater share of condemnation.
But it is said that medicine is a science. Saying so, however, does not make it so; and no one has yet discovered that it is anything like a science. By its own professors it has been called “the science of guessing.” It is not long ago that the dominant school of medicine persecuted the practitioner of homeopathy; but, because homeopathy was a distinct step in the right direction, all its efforts came to naught, and the newer school demands and gets more recognition today than at any time in its history.
Now a new foe—Christian Science—has arisen to distress and harass the antediluvian school of medicine, and necessarily the old persecution must be brought to the front again; but it is so much easier to denounce it through the press! This may not be the most manly way, but it is looked upon by those who never learn anything from the past, and are never abreast of the present needs of the people, as the most powerful agency to carry on their crusade against Christian Science; for it is well understood that the professors of the old school of practice are the instigators of the persecution. The fact is, it is less a religious than a financial crusade; its real object is to save to the profession the many dollars that now go for Christian Science treatment. This may seem like a strong indictment; but it is nevertheless true.
A few years ago, when the medical profession sought to have laws enacted to prevent Mental and Christian Scientists from practicing in the State of Connecticut, it was proposed to exact no penalty for the mere act of healing; but, where money was received in compensation for such service, practitioners were to be fined for the first offense and imprisoned for the second. Last year in Massachusetts, when it was sought to enact a similar law, one of the prominent doctors who favored the bill said that it in no way restricted any one’s liberty to heal—that he might continue to practice, but would not be allowed to accept fees for his services.
It was not for the protection of the “dear people”—oh, no!—but for their own selfish interests, because greed and selfishness have inspired almost every medical law that has been enacted in the last fifty years. Interest in and protection of the people are only secondary considerations.
The Constitution of the United States is said to guarantee protection to everyone in the exercise of these inalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This may be true; but the laws enacted by different legislatures at the instigation of the medical profession would lead us to believe otherwise. I believe it is lawful in any State of the Union for a person to choose his spiritual adviser; but it is not lawful in many States for one to choose his physical adviser. He must take what the law provides, regardless of his own opinion in the matter; and he is thus restricted in the pursuit both of health and happiness. A man, if sane, should have the right to adopt any system of practice that he may think best. The body is no more important than the soul. Why, then, should there be liberty for one and restrictions upon the other? Consistency is a jewel seldom found in legislation that applies to the physical well-being of man.
Hundreds of thousands of people have declared their belief in Christian Science by uniting with that body or by adopting its tenets. They are not ignorant or unthinking with regard to other things; indeed, they are among the best people to be found in the country. Christian Science has shown a degree of vitality that no other religious body has been able to show in the last few years. It has built fine churches, formed hundreds of organizations, and has had no lack of money to carry on its work. There must be some power for good in such a movement, and it would be much better, it seems to me, instead of persecuting such a body, to be tolerant. If it is mistaken in some of its methods it will be found out sooner in that way than through any system of persecution that can be devised by the human mind. If the power of God is seeking a manifestation in this movement, then the mind of man cannot prevail against it; not even the great mind of that materialistic body known as the “regular” school of practice, whose glory it is to have over one hundred kinds of poison, with many hundreds of combinations—all for the upbuilding of the human system. Great is Baal!
Some may think that this article is written in the spirit of persecution; such, however, is not the case, as I recognize the fact that it is not possible to persecute a people having all sufficiency within itself, or one that is too hide-bound ever to receive a new thought or idea coming from someone outside the medical profession. I do not flatter myself that I can in any way disturb that blissful equanimity of mind that can be equaled, but not excelled, by the bliss of Nirvana.
In crusades against Christian Science no account seems to be taken of the thousands of people who declare that they have been either cured or greatly helped by this mode of treatment. All this is kept in the background, and the very few cases that have passed away while under treatment are made the basis of a malignant persecution.
Christian Science may be in error in some of its doctrines, but its adherents are at least sincere and honest in their belief; and the course taken by their opponents in their desire to overthrow the cause can have but one effect—to increase its numbers. Ridicule and abuse heaped upon them will only act as a boomerang to those who indulge in such vilification.
Calling the founder of Christian Science a foolish old woman, or an imposter, is a form of attack that will not have much weight with thinking minds. That a single individual has been able to accomplish what she has in the last twenty years is really marvelous, showing that back of the movement the individuality that has guided and directed it must be one of great force. The writer met and conversed with her many years ago, and even at that time could not help feeling that she was a most remarkable person.
People may scoff at the idea that there is a force within man that makes for health as well as for righteousness, and many look upon Christian Science as akin to Voodooism, as practiced by the colored people of the South. But the Christian Scientist claims he has an intelligent reason to give for the faith that is within him. He can say that Christ healed and taught his disciples to heal without the aid of material means. He can say that Jesus commanded his disciples to go into all the world and preach the gospel and heal the sick; that he said: “And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” The Christian Scientist, in fact, might quote quite as good authority for his position from the sayings of Jesus as any other body of Christian people.
There is one thing certain: Under Christian Science treatment the body does not become a reservoir for every vile, filthy poison obtained from the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms. No disgusting “serums” are injected into the blood to pollute and eventually destroy the vitality of the organism.
If Christian Science goes to the extreme of idealism, then certainly Medical Science goes to the extreme of materialism; and where one extreme is to be found you will surely find the other. So-called Medical Science has carried its materialistic theories to such a degree of application that there must necessarily be a reaction. As far as the pendulum swings in one direction it must swing in the other. Somewhere between the two schools the exact truth must lie; and it would seem to be far better for all concerned, instead of engaging in any crusade of extermination against one school or the other, to seek rather after the truth through a thorough investigation of both sides of the question—to the end that we may “prove all things,” and then “hold fast that which is good.”
Man: Past, Present, and Future
I have seen gleams in the face and eyes of the man that have let you look into a higher country.
—Thomas Carlyle
Everything worth knowing in this world relates itself in some way to man. Everything in the outer world of visibility corresponds to something in man’s inner world of thought; therefore, we apprehend that the relations existing without and within are in reality one and the same. One is but the external expression, or clothing, of the other.
St. Paul says there is a natural man and a spiritual man—first, that which is natural, and afterward that which is spiritual. Now, the word natural fails to convey his full meaning. The translators did not give the true English equivalent, which is animal. We are told in the first chapter of Genesis that God created man in His own image and likeness. If that is true, was Paul at fault when he said: “That was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual?” Viewed from one standpoint, this statement is seemingly contradictory; but from another we realize that it means that the spiritual man is involved while the natural (physical) man is evolved. What does this suggest? Take a sheet of paper and roll it up. It must be folded before it can be unfolded—which illustrates the principle that everything evolved must first be involved.
The power of God was in the very first germ of man—right at the starting-point. Now, what would be the first thing to appear on this physical plane of existence? Naturally, the very last thing to be involved—expression. And so we find first on the earth the physical, or animal man. Evolution continuing, next comes the intellectual development of man; and lastly the spiritual.
It is not so many years ago that men ate raw meat—that they lived almost without clothing, in caves, and watched their opportunity to pounce upon and kill animals to obtain subsistence. At first, man lived on wild vegetation and animal food. Later came the cultivation of the soil; and thenceforward we may follow man’s progress in the pages of history. Everything tends from a lower to a higher state, and modern science teaches that the highest ape and the lowest man are not nearly so far apart in development as the lowest and the highest ape. When we study the early history of man we find him to be little more than an animal; and even today we find all the varying stages from the animal up to the spiritual man. We also discover that the tendency of the whole world is ever upward and onward.
As man develops, there comes to him the idea that there must be something to worship—something greater than himself—to which he must look with a sense either of reverence or fear. In the earliest ages the gods (for there were many deities) were either good or evil; for man judged that when an effect seemed to be of an injurious nature there was an evil cause behind it; and whenever there was anything beneficial there was a power for good back of it. As time went on the gods became less numerous; and at last to some people came the thought of only two gods: the god of good and the god of evil.
Throughout the history of the world the plan of the Creator seems to have been that some great minds should give to the people, at certain stages, new light, so that they might advance in intelligence. Even before the Jews became a nation, we find Abraham advocating one God, and standing almost alone for this unitary principle; hence the children of Israel always dated events back to their “Father Abraham.” Thus also they spoke of “the God of Abraham.” With Moses came the thought of law—law as ruling both the universe and the will of man.
It was most essential that these great teachers should appear. They were as truly “sent of God” as was Jesus. They were veritable prophets: forerunners of greater events—the ideals to which men should seek attainment. Throughout the ages, when there was a need a great teacher supplied it. When people became divided into nations the thoughts of one nation were not those of another; and so their ideas were often radically different.
The religion of the Semitic people—from whom the Jewish nation sprang—was grand, yet gloomy. They were a warlike people, and their deity, in the first stage of their evolution, was likewise warlike—a god who would take revenge by commanding them to destroy men, women, and children. There is very little in the Old Testament of a spiritual character, save portions of the Psalms and some passages in Isaiah. There is scarcely anything said of immortality. Yet all these stages through which the children of Israel passed were necessary. The religion of the great Aryan race was quite different; for it was a religion of brightness and hope.
The different world-teachers came primarily to supply the needs of their respective peoples. We are too apt to conclude that this world had only one great teacher, “sent of God,” and that the others were but ordinary men. God knows best the needs of all His children, and will supply those of the Hindu and of the Japanese just as readily as those of the Hebrew or the Anglo Saxon. Different minds receive according to their special trend. Now, if we can realize that Abraham, Isaiah, Confucius, Zoroaster (Zarathustra), Socrates, and Plato were alike prophets of God, we will be more tolerant of other people’s beliefs. The early Christians referred to Socrates as “the Christian before Christ.” Whatever good we see in these leaders of men, or in the teachings of Christ, we may find in other great teachers. They have taught the same things; therefore, we know them to be good. If God gave the truth to one, he gave it to others. It may be expressed in many ways, but it is essentially the same, whether uttered by Buddha or by Jesus. All truth is from God.
All these leaders of thought stood as ideals for men. Man realizes higher conceptions through approaching these different ideals; therefore, we find Jesus saying, “If I had not come, ye had not sinned.” Does anyone suppose that Jesus brought sin into the world? No; but why did he make the above statement? Simply because he manifested a higher ideal than the world had received before; and lack of conformity thereto constituted sin. This sense of sin in man is not something outside of himself. Two persons may do the same thing, but in one case it may be a greater sin than in the other. It is difference in the underlying motive that makes a sin greater in one case than in another. One knowing the will of the Highest, and not doing it, will suffer more punishment—more unrest of mind—than another who knows and thus performs but little.
Throughout the ages great teachers have advocated certain great principles, or truths, that were given to the people just as rapidly as individual minds became capable of receiving them. Take, for instance, the doctrines that Jesus gave to the world. We say we believe them—that they are true; yet it is doubtful if we understand one-tenth of the things that Jesus taught. If we did understand them, would we not follow them more closely? Concerning those truths that he deemed most essential we are most negligent. All of us, at times, have been anxious about something—worried, or fearful. Do we realize that Jesus told us to “take no thought for the morrow?” It seems a small matter; yet he attached great importance to it—so much, in fact, that in substance he reiterated it. He meant, not that we were to shirk our duties, but that whatsoever our hands find to do we should do it with our might—that, however, we should not be doing in our minds today the things we are to do tomorrow with our hands. “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof,” said Jesus; that is, if we use our God-given forces aright today, we will have no trouble tomorrow.
On this seemingly small master hang all the great things of life. It is not possible to keep the mind clear and the body well so long as we indulge in anxious, worried thought. Our belief in the things that Jesus taught is usually halfhearted. We prefer to follow certain prescribed rules and forms than to obey the laws that he enjoined upon the race.
At present the world has no need of “great teachers.” If we would live up to even one quarter of the lessons taught by the great leaders of the past, it would be better for us; yet times have radically changed. The teachers of former ages (and there were many) were more conspicuous than they could possibly be in the present era. The people of those times were not capable of knowing half of that which is today common knowledge; and while, if we except Mahomet, no great teachers have come to the world in the past fifteen hundred years, yet there has been going on a “leveling up” process. People, as a whole, are learning more of the power of God in the individual life; hence, the world is far in advance of what it was a few years ago. But it is doubtful if the race has grasped the true thought concerning the teachings of Jesus, or of Buddha. Little by little we are advancing along those lines; yet both these teachers inculcated the non-resistance of evil—and when a person wrongs us in any way our first impulse is resentment.
Jesus, realizing that all force and all life are one, saw that the good of life could be brought about most effectually by working with the force of life. Every form on this earth manifests the power of God; but, if the different forms are continually clashing, we have the “good” and the ‘”evil.” Man never succeeded in making any one better in this world through retaliation or any form of punishment. The only power in the universe that will overcome evil conditions is the power of God, which works for good at all times and in all places. The only thing that will overcome the darkness of the world is light. If we could realize also that evil must be overcome by good, we would begin to know more of heaven on earth. When we stop fighting evil, and work with all the forces that make for good alone, evil will be no more.
Many persons assert that a time must come in the life of man when he will lay aside the form and will cease to be. They are not able to see that things have been gradually working in the outer world from the protoplasm upward to man; and that something has entered the human soul—a longing, a reaching out, a realization that man is something more than he seems to be—that points to a reality beyond. We know that, as man goes through life, no matter what subject he investigates, the more he studies the more he finds to be discovered. If he lived to be ten thousand years old he would never be able to acquire a perfect knowledge of anything. If life begins with protoplasm and ends with mortal man, it is certainly a colossal failure; there is neither sense nor reason in it.
Again, when we consider that it is not possible for one material atom to be destroyed, or for one particle of force in God’s universe to become lost, do not such facts point to the immortality of the soul? Do they not suggest that something lies beyond? Why should this great longing enter the soul of man for something that he feels must exist? Everything in Nature really points to the immortality of life and intelligence. True, the form passes away; but its elements are not lost—they soon reappear in a new guise.
The time will yet come when people will realize that the soul is of chief importance, not the physical body; when people will talk about Man, the development of their souls, not their bodies, as is the present custom. If we were to give the same attention to our spiritual nature that we give to our physical states, we would be infinitely better off; but the form seems to engross our whole attention—the body is of more importance than the spirit.
We affirm our belief that man has a soul; but we must reach the point of knowing that man is a soul. Then we shall find that the body, to which we have given so much attention in the past, really requires no thought. It will be strong and whole because it will express the wholeness of the soul-life.
This may seem visionary, or of remote fulfillment; but it need not be. We can make it a living reality in the present. Each and every soul can prove the truth of these things, for it is not a matter of time; it is a question of realizing the power of God as an indwelling force in one’s own being.
Some say: “Well, I believe that to-be true; I believe many people are realizing that fact: but I do not think it is for me.” They are quite right; it is not for them while they think that way. But just so soon as they begin to think that it is for them, and that there is something within them that may be what it wills to be—because every soul when it wills to conform to the laws of being may be well, strong, and whole through the power of God latent within it—then it is just as much for them as for others. One does not receive this power by proxy. He must realize it for himself. Another may tell about it and point out the path; but if one would know all about it he must walk therein.
A great many people would like others to assist them through life—to make the way as easy and as pleasant as possible; but it is not in that manner that a knowledge of truth may be obtained. We must work out our own salvation. We must individually develop a knowledge of this power that God has implanted in our being. Let us try to realize the importance of life—that we are not here simply to have a “good time,” to accumulate money, or to get certain honors from our fellow men. Let us learn that there is something of far greater importance to us—the development of our own God-given powers. There is nothing on earth that can mean so much to us as that. It fits us to deal with life here: it will fit us to deal with life hereafter.
The Way of Salvation
The God of grace and mercy gives to each that which he craves for. If we think that all is well with us, He will leave us to try whether all is well. If we find that there is something that is not well, something that must be set right in us, He will set it right.
—F. D. Maurice
You have not lost what God has only hidden. You lose nothing in struggle, in trial, in bitter distress. If called to shed thy joys as trees shed their leaves: if the affections be driven back into the heart, as the life of flowers to their roots, yet be patient. Thou shalt lift up thy leaf-covered boughs again. Thou shalt shoot forth from thy roots new flowers. Be patient! Wait!
—Henry Ward Beecher
Obey God. His laws to the snow-flake are designed to make it beautiful and useful. So are His laws to you. He tells the flake to put on such a form and go to such a place, and it goes without murmuring or reluctance. Obey God, and you will put on the beauty of holiness and bless the world.
—Kirk
There are a few points that I want to emphasize strongly, because many people study into the New Thought for weeks and months without making any progress, just on account of failing to grasp vividly certain basic truths.
Let us remember then that in order to fully realize heaven here and now, it is essential that we throw ourselves entirely and unreservedly into the endeavor to attain a perfect balance between the inner and outer man, keeping in mind the fact that the external is but the symbol of the internal, that as we maintain harmony within and hold ourselves—our external selves—responsive to this inner harmony we will express perfect health in body and mind.
We must not forget that in so far as we wish for our own good, and disregard that of others, we really take away from the benefits coming to us, for humanity is so related that that which brings benefit to one and deprivation to another is not real benefit at all. We should desire only that which will bring good to those about us if we wish to have the full benefit of the good ourselves. It is a false concept of life that considers only self, and one that will certainly reflect inharmony upon the body.
We must not dissipate our forces by frequently changing our object of attainment; but we must decide exactly what we want, and then earnestly set about getting it, feeling confident that we will possess it in time. Only in this way will we realize our desires.
We express disease or health according to the nature of our thoughts—according to how we direct and control our thoughts through the exercise of our God-given will-power. And there are different degrees of power. The more light that is shed upon our understanding, the more are we responsible for the use we make of life. Then, too, we must not only grasp the New Thought intellectually, but we must feel it in our inmost being, and live it. Those of us, who have much light and yet are too lazy or indifferent to live up to our light, will be far worse off than those who, knowing but little, yet live up to what they do know with sincere endeavor and earnestness. Therefore, let us put our entire energy into the practical application in our daily lives of what stands to us for truth. Nor are we to concern ourselves as to whether we are manifesting power so long as we know we have it. For power within is bound to leave its impress, in time, externally, in renewed bodily vigor and mental growth.
Above all things let us remember that we do nothing of ourselves; that it is God working through us, using us as an instrument for the manifestation of His power. Thus must we give the glory to God.
As we are freed from dependence on things outside ourselves and look within for that light which is the essence of God Himself, so will we cease to lament for that which seems hopeless, knowing that if we conform to the law of God we may transform all evil into good.
We must at last come to see that no matter how evil a thing may seem to be it is only evil in that it is a partial expression of truth, and that “when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away.”
It makes no difference how repulsive or discouraging a man’s exterior may be, there resides within a potential god; and we may hate discord, disease, sin—they are all one—with a deadly hatred, and yet love the real man who is dwelling in darkness. Indeed, if we love the lovely, and long for its full revelation in every human being, we will not acquiesce tamely in present conditions, but will give ourselves, heart and soul, to the attainment of health in ourselves and in others.
Now just here we need to remember that while we ought to be passionately in earnest we must also be patient; we must not lose courage even if we cannot always see results so soon as we would like.
In the first place, let us reinforce ourselves with the thought that in God’s great universe there is no such thing as failure. “Love never fails.” If we do, then it is because we have not been loving enough. Yet, even so, the failure is only apparent, for there is in reality a steady progress toward the goal of life in its fullness. We must turn to Nature if we would realize this clearly, for there we see so plainly the element of periodicity. Winter succeeds summer; but it is not stagnation, death, or failure; it is merely the period in which strength is being accumulated for a new output. And so it is with man. He grows visibly only in periods, and then there follows a time when he is gathering force for the next plane of activity. Even those who seem most hopelessly sunk in gross sin are in reality nearing the time when husk-feeding shall be found unsatisfying. Remember, we do not all arrive at the consciousness of the self in the same way, but, somehow, each is coming to himself.
So, then, we might better give up trying to find persons in whom we can trust, for the personal element is always changing, and throw ourselves unreservedly on God who dwelleth in all men. Let us seek to become one with the Spirit; for then and only then can we become united with our brothers in a wholesome way. It is so natural to pick and choose our companions, to turn from the degraded and sinful and associate only with the good and true; yet that is not Love’s way, for it is the lost ones whom Love lives to save.
But right here we must be on our guard against forcing the truth (in words) on anyone. It has been well said that ” God screens us evermore from premature ideas,” and until a man has grown ready for truth he cannot receive it—that is, in the form of the spoken word, for always love incarnate is timely. One must hunger before he can be fed; and it is in this sense that Christ warned us against casting our pearls before swine. In every case there must be the demand before there can be the supply. “Give to him that asketh”; and even God does not force Himself on us, but awaits our free approach. Always the initiative must come from within.
The trouble with this whole weak, sickly body of humanity is that we do not will to be well. We make no demand; we are lazy and indifferent. Truly, God is more willing to give us good gifts than we are to ask Him.
There is nothing selfish in desiring to be well and strong, but quite the reverse—that is, if we desire health because we love wholeness. Our selfishness generally shows itself in the other way—we will not exert ourselves to be well. It costs too much. In this matter of healing there must be no slothfulness, nor must there be a haste that indicates lack of faith. Patience, perseverance, and peacefulness must all play their part.
Do you not see that this whole matter of life is most simple, yet most heroic? When we once see the bond that unites us all to each other and to the Father—that bond of love which will yet harmonize all activities—we will abandon forever our false hope of being saved by an exterior force and will set about in earnest to the great work of self-unfolding.
Society awaits the racial attainment of true individuality, and this can be achieved only through our knowing and revealing in thought, word, and deed the God within. Then let us strive, each day of our lives, to become more simple-minded and more true. Let us pour out freely all that there is of us and trust the Father to guide us every moment in the paths of peace. So shall all the sons of God come, in time, into the unity of the faith, into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, and the kingdom of heaven be realized on earth.
The Kingdom of God
Oh man, know thyself! In thee is hid the treasure of treasures.
Seek to converse in purity with your own pure mind and with God. The first and highest purity is that of the soul.
—Epictetus
The human heart is like heaven: the more angels the more room.
—Fredericka Bremer
What men have known of God is not in books, but in the soul. What Jesus knew of God is not in the gospel statement, nor did he ever intend it should be. It was in him; and we see it, feel it, know it, wherever and whenever we meet him.
—E. F. Hayward
Of all the teachings, that which presents a far-distant God is the nearest to absurdity.
Either there is none, or He is nearer to everyone than our nearest consciousness of self.
—George MacDonald
Some people, in accepting the New Thought truths, practically deny the existence of the outer world, as if being were all and doing of no consequence whatever.
Now in a very true and deep sense being is all, yet if there is a realization of love, faith, and hope,—if there is a consciousness of life,—it must and will find outward expression; the kingdom of God is continually and in increasing measure being realized on earth. When I speak of the kingdom of God I do not refer to something of which man can know nothing in this life, but of that which is ever within him. It has always been abiding quietly within, yet man for the most part has not been conscious of it. All that is beautiful, all that is true, noble, generous, heroic—all in fact that is good—is the kingdom of God; and it abounds continually and in all places even though we are blind to it.
Man, in order to understand his own kingdom, must first understand God’s, and naturally this apprehension of truth and beauty is a gradual process. Even in the case of Jesus we can trace a very decided growth in his comprehension of truth. At first he habitually speaks of himself as the son of man and it is not until near the end of his work that he calls himself the Son of God.
Now these two expressions do not imply two separate and distinct personalities, because all through his earthly activity he was one and the same man; but in his case, as in that of us all, there were two phases of growth: the personal, which has most to do with the outer world, and the impersonal, which is concerned primarily with the’ inner realm.
Jesus passed through precisely the same experience as we all must; he was tempted to yield to the allurements of the outer world, he was tried by every possible appeal to his lower nature, and grew strong only as he steadfastly looked within for the realization of his happiness and power. In a very true sense he was always the son of man, but in still deeper sense he was the Son of God. Many people followed him, up to the point where he declared himself to be one with the Father, and then they turned against him. Yet he only took that high ground when he realized his full power over the outer world; and we can note the gradual process by which he came to know his kingship. It was only as he was true and steadfast to love—the all-inclusive love—that the consciousness of a greater than outward dominion came to him. It was as Jesus more and more freely came to do the will of God that he came more and more into the consciousness of the inner power which was his. He knew beyond all possibility of a doubt that he had power to lay down and power to rebuild his outer covering, and he finally declared fearlessly that he was the Son of God with an eternal inheritance and power. Now Jesus’ way is our way. We all have to pass through the same experiences in life. We must all meet those same appeals to the sense nature, to the desire for bodily comfort or ease or power, and all of our trials are sent to prove us, to make us strong through resistance. No trial ever comes to us without strength being given us to meet it; but if we shut the door to the higher consciousness, then of course we will feel helpless in the face of temptation. The outer world, man’s kingdom, cannot be controlled unless we are first aware of the inner kingdom of love—of God.
Now the reason why I call the outer world man’s kingdom, is because it is this over which he must achieve dominion. He must attain unto power over all things below him; he must not be subject to any outward thing, must not depend upon matter, or be enslaved by personal ambitions, but must awaken unto his own inner self, his own love-nature, and reveal it fully in the outer world.
So we consider, first of all, God’s kingdom, that realm of faith, hope, and love through which alone real power and dominion can be ours. We must begin at the very heart of things, for so only can we understand the outer world which is the expression of the inner. First, then, there is the great realm of feeling. We are all conscious at times of a feeling of power, of vitality, of strength, though we find it hard to explain to another our conditions. Yet this consciousness of a hope that springs up within us, vivifying and strengthening us, is more real than any outward thing. It is really the fountain-head from which everything else proceeds. Feeling is more real than the thoughts we think. Indeed the character of our thoughts depends entirely upon our feelings. Thoughts rule the outer world, it is true, but they in turn are ruled by the inner life—the God within.
Feeling is, after all, the important thing. It is only as we become conscious of a deep and all-inclusive love that we come to know God. Jesus declared God to be love, because he had experienced the all-powerfulness and all-sufficiency of love. We all come to know in the course of time that the more faith and hope and love we can realize in our inner life the more Godlike we become. It is only as we turn our backs on God’s kingdom and become absorbed in the outer life that unkind or untrue thoughts arise. If we live entirely in man’s kingdom—the outer world—our impulses are unreliable; they may be good or they may be false. We cannot be sure that our acts are prompted by God.
It is feeling—the deep soul-feeling—which acts upon the mind and body for good. It renews the mind, and so remakes or renews the body. Only so can the body be quickened and built up. If we are going on day by day living in ruts, thinking the same old thought over and over, then the body will grow old because the mind will become aged.
Now we ought not to grow old, that is; old in the sense of a hardening or stiffening, or lack of life. We are going contrary to God’s will when we grow old through worry, sorrow, or disease; the only way in which we should grow old is in the sense of larger experience—old in knowledge, in love, in power. Let us believe that the way of life is not the way of sin, sickness, or death.
Now, until we learn the God-given way, we must of necessity go through all the outer trials and experiences; for so only can we come into a knowledge of law. There is a “straight and narrow way,” and we are all trying to find it; but because of our impure desires, our selfishness, we stumble and grope about for years.
The eternal way, the life of God, the kingdom, is here now, and has always been. We have but to enter by the gate of love to know God and have abundant life.
There is really no such thing as death, though we live in the thought of it. All is really progressing, all grows toward a grander, fuller life, though we are not always conscious of growth. Nothing can ever die; the energy of the outward form passes on into new forms; even the atoms are indestructible. When our bodily covering can no longer express the soul-life, when it becomes unfitted for its tenant, the soul passes on to build elsewhere a better body. The builder has not died, and he has had all the experience of his earthly life which will enable him to build better in the future. There is no waste in this world of love. Even that earthly life which seems to go out in darkness, because of failure to know and reveal God, has in reality grown somewhat during its sad experiences here.
Life is indestructible, and the mere fact that the departing tenant lives, guarantees his power to build a new temple; for life must be clothed upon in some form. The place where this building shall occur is not important; some say here, some say elsewhere. The essential thought is the continued existence of the builder.
Everything we do is the result of law; we may be unconscious of its operation, but that does not alter the fact. Nothing ever happens—there is no chance.
The law of attraction works ceaselessly. It is through our desires that we become related to one another, and it is through the law of attraction that our needs are supplied. What we truly need will come to us. Let us keep this thought in mind and so shape our desires that we will attract to ourselves only the best.
Now when any problem presents itself to us we can be sure that we are equal to its solution or it would not arise. We may feel unequal to the situation, but if so it is we ourselves who have introduced an element of weakness. Sooner or later we must meet every problem in a satisfactory way to ourselves; for the workman must be satisfied with his work. We gain nothing by dodging an issue; it does no good to run away. Our work is to face every situation bravely and honestly, and go through, not around it, with all energy and grace. If, on the other hand, we refuse to meet our problems, they will come back again for solution, and each time it will be with renewed force, and they will seem more difficult, they will appear like greater problems.
We might as well look at things in a strong, true way, and not waste our energy by gazing into the future. It is the present situation with which we have to deal. Meet it, then, fairly and squarely, with the determination that you will go through it lovingly. Each one of us has something to do, and something each hour of our lives. Each condition that arises is a means of growth, a testing-time; and if instead of shrinking from it we put our whole minds into it and study to see how well we can meet the issue, we will grow strong, and well, and happy.
If we are not growing we are encumbering the earth—simply drifting. Some people seem to have no trials; they seem to sail or drift through life. But the time always comes when they are obliged to meet hardship, for without that there can be no development, no entrance into life.
The promise of the kingdom of God is only to him that overcometh. There can be no kingdom for those who will not overcome, for it comes only to those who are fitted to reign.
Now, if we refuse to be masters in small things how are we ever to learn to rule in the great? If we conquer each situation in the true and loving way, then there will enter an element of joy and strength, and we will become conscious of power such as we never dreamed possible.
After all, the real satisfaction of life comes through doing, not in having things done for you. The more we become able to do, the happier we will become. It is not possible for us to be contented or happy while we are serving only our own personal interests. Our thought should be: What can I do to make the world brighter, to give health and strength to others? Now, if this is our desire, we will never be without work; things will come into our lives because of the readiness, the eagerness, to help. There will be a demand for us, and through the work that comes, if we meet it faithfully, we will realize more strength and power.
A beautiful feature of this life of love is that the more you think and do for others the more you receive yourself. In giving we always receive. This is one of the great laws of life. It is the nature of love to grow by constant exercise.
The Spirit of Praise
Shall I not call God the Beautiful
Who daily showeth
Himself to me in His gifts?
—Emerson
Love, the true love of God, is the love of His truth, of His Holiness, of His whole will.
—Stanley Vinet
Thank God every morning that you have something to do that day which must be done, whether you like it or not.
Being forced to work and to do your best will breed you a hundred virtues which the idle will never know.
—Charles Kingsley
I too may yield
To Heaven a silent offering of praise.
Earth may not know that I have ever been;
Yet pleasure to the eye of Heaven to give,
And thence, one sweet, approving smile to win,
Is, sure, no worthless mission to achieve.
—H. E. B.
Praise is a spontaneous action of heart and mind. When one is filled with a spirit of praise it becomes necessary for him to find some mode of expression. The Psalmist exclaims, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within, bless His holy name. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases. Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s,” and we know that back of the words lies a heart full of grateful praise to God.
One of the conditions of health is a spirit of praise; and many people limit themselves, in every possible direction, by neglecting to praise God for His goodness. This is not because God requires formal thanks from His children, but because a sympathetic responsiveness to His loving-kindness is an absolute necessity if we are to grow in grace.
But many people say: “Of course I know God is good, yet life seems so hard; there is so much malice, jealousy, strife, and bitterness in life, so many trials, and so much suffering, that it seems difficult to find cause for thanksgiving.”
Now, if we could only realize that we see in others the very characteristics which are in us, and that if we think the world a gloomy place it is because we ourselves are gloomy, then we would know how to go to work to cultivate the spirit of praise.
“Charity begins at home” in a deeper sense than many have imagined. To see beauty without we must first see beauty within. As Emerson has so finely expressed it: “God did not make some beautiful things, but Beauty is the creator of the universe.” To know God in the soul is to live in a realm of beauty and strength and to rejoice evermore.
Let us get the thought firmly fixed in mind that the soul is God; that there is really no imperfection within; that the real being is love itself. Then will we cease our faithless crying unto God for this or that outward benefit and will give ourselves heartily to the work of expression. The world, heretofore, has thought possession was the great blessing—the end for which we should strive. But as a matter of fact we really possess all things and need only to express them fully on the earthly plane. The imperfections of life concern only the province of expression. The whole matter of growth is merely a matter of finding one’s self and then learning how to give a complete revelation of soul on the mental and physical planes.
It is most interesting to note the gradual awakening of a little child to its own identity. The first things of which the baby becomes conscious are entirely outside of himself—a bright object or some moving body; then after a while his own hands and feet absorb his attention; and so he travels in his search of himself, always from the exterior to the interior realms; the order being, first, physical consciousness, then mental, and, lastly, spiritual knowledge.
Now, the race passes through the same gradual awakening; and for long ages the world has been dwelling in the personal stage of consciousness. Personality, to the general run of men, is the most interior self; whereas that, like the mind and body, is only a channel through which the real self speaks. Even Jesus refused honor as a person, for he knew that there is no such thing as personal power. Power, glory, beauty, strength—all are in and of God, and they all reside in the secret place of the soul. Our business is to know these real properties and to let them shine through our persons. So only can men glorify the Father.
We hear a great deal nowadays about psychic development, as if it were synonymous with spiritual life; but we should make a clear distinction between the two. There certainly is a mediumship which is profitable to all men, and if the mind is open for the reception of all true and uplifting thought there is no loss of perfect self-control. But where we give our bodies up to the control of any other mind than our own we are making a great mistake which can only result in the weakening of our will and power without its bringing any gain to the mind that controls.
Spiritual life has to do with the great soul qualities of faith, hope, and love; but earthly mediums are sometimes noticeably lacking in these respects, while their psychic powers may tend to retard the growth of other souls in the knowledge of God.
There are doubtless many latent powers in man which shall yet blossom into true usefulness for the healing of the nations; but the gifts of clairvoyance, clairaudience, telepathy, and the like, should not be used for mere personal gratification, or for the benefit of curiosity-seekers. Furthermore they should come as the result of natural development rather than as something that is forced or abnormal.
It is through our misuse of power that we bring down upon our heads the woes of life; and it is only through knowledge—the deep soul-knowledge—that we can ever expect to escape pain or trial. God’s punishments are not arbitrary; they are merely the operation of law. If we persistently go contrary to law then we must suffer. But pain is, after all, not a curse but a blessing, for it is through its stern ministry that we become conscious of wrong-doing and set about bringing ourselves into conformity to law.
When man has sought diligently throughout the external realm for power and happiness and has become conscious of his failure to find that which he needs, he at last begins to seek within i m and as he persistently travels farther and farther into the heart of things, passing clear through the physical, mental, and personal realms, he finally comes into touch with God and exclaims in joy: “Praise the Lord, O my soul, Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things!”
This subject of food is most important. We all realize the need of food for our bodies, but that is as nothing compared to the nourishment needed by the soul. It has been apprehended by seekers after truth, that physical food is not enough. It has been said that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God; and those who have fed on the Word have found that a strength and vitality is theirs, far greater than any which could be derived from physical food.
Now, as in the body there must be digestion and assimilation, so in the matter of spiritual nourishment we must thoroughly apprehend the truth that we feed upon, and then incorporate it in our daily activities. Spiritual food must be allowed to take shape in the outer world of expression just as the physical food is built into the physical form.
It is really saddening to see how materialistic the majority of people are. You hear them advocating this or that food to make people thin or stout, to quiet the nerves, or to make them strong, never dreaming wherein true strength and graceful proportion consist. They say that certain kinds of food contain certain properties, and that if the physical organism is lacking in these properties one should eat a particular kind of food. Some eat foods containing fatty substances, yet they do not get fleshy. Why is this? It is impossible to explain all these things on physical grounds alone.
When you are trying to build up the body by means of a certain diet, you are dealing with effects instead of with causes, and so there is no permanent benefit.
Then again the question is often asked: What about physical exercise—is it not beneficial? All things are good in their proper place. The mistake consists in looking to the lowest realm for our strength and sustenance.
Now we know that anything we take pleasure in doing is more apt to prove beneficial than if we do it perfunctorily. Years ago I used to have the patients in my institution go out every morning; and I always urged them to go with something of interest in view, and they were always benefited, for they went for a purpose.
But there was one patient to whom I forgot to make the suggestion, and after a few days she said that she always returned to the institution very tired. I said: “What do you do when you go out?” and she replied, “I go three blocks in one direction and three in another.” She had done that each day, and failing to derive any pleasure from her monotonous exercise she had received no benefit.
So it is with everything in life. It all depends upon the way we do a thing, the way we think about it. If we could only see it, the tonic does not come from the physical exercise alone, and even the extraction of certain properties from the food we eat depends upon the condition of mind. Many will eat the most nourishing food and fail to derive any benefit from it. You may pay all the attention you like to your food, but you will never build up your bodies till your minds are thoroughly poised.
Of course in the case of people who live entirely on the physical plane there may be the manifestation of perfect physical health, such as is the case with most savages. It all depends upon whether we are living up to our light.
If one is conscious only of his most exterior self, and is true to his physical instincts, he may be a healthy animal, but if he has awakened to a higher plane of life and yet refuses to abide by its instincts, preferring to look to the lower plane for his support, then there is going to be trouble.
The people who stand, as it were, between the two realms—the outer and the inner—those who believe to a certain extent in God and yet will not feed upon His word, certainly can never be well nourished. They may say prayers to God, but they really pin their faith to matter.
They could not possibly say with the Psalmist: “Who healeth all thy diseases—Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things,” for to them medicines heal and food satisfies. They are materialists pure and simple. It is a waste of time for such people to say prayers and go through the various forms of religious life, for by their acts they give the lie to their religion.
You may think I speak very strongly on this subject, and it may seem that I am taking a very dogmatic position, but it is the result of years of thought and experience. For a long period I had devoted myself to the subject of food and derived no good from it. Just so soon, however, as I put my faith in other things and forgot the body (in the sense of centering my care upon it), it became well and strong and has remained so ever since.
We must deal with our real selves—the word of God, in the most interior sense—and then will “health spring forth speedily.” In the last analysis the secret of life is self-reliance; that is, faith in the love-nature within. All history and experience go to teach us that we must be true to ourselves; we must respond to the deepest instincts of life, and allow the light within to illumine our thoughts, our words, and our deeds. This is what is meant by pleasing ourselves. The world we cannot please, however hard we try, and it is the walking by another’s light that has impoverished both ourselves and the world.
Fear and laziness account largely for the multitudes of spiritual parasites. Men refuse to obey the Word that speaks from within, either because they fear the criticism of their fellows or else because they are too lazy to digest and assimilate it for themselves. In these busy days it is so much easier to take our food all ready prepared as we find it set forth in some system of religion.
But salvation is apprehending the life within and revealing it faithfully in all our activities, not the acceptance of some man or creed. The physical bloodshed nineteen hundred years ago can save no one, but it is the spirit of life which animated Jesus that will give us health, grace, and strength.
So we come back to the basic principle of life once more, and say again—for it cannot be said too often—that if we control ourselves in love all things literally will be ours. It is the inward desire which effects all outward expression. To feed on love, to control ourselves according to its behest, is to achieve outward control in mind and body and to be nourished abundantly.
When we know for a surety the satisfying nature of love, not because someone else has told us, but because we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, then we cannot help exclaiming: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Who healeth all thy diseases. Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things.” Then it is that we rejoice alway, finding good in all things and beauty everywhere. The thought is finely expressed in the words: “All goes to show that the soul of man is not an organ, but animates and exercises all organs; is not a function like the power of memory, of calculation, of comparison, but uses these as hands and feet; is not a faculty, but a light; is not the intellect or the will, but the master of the intellect and the will.
“From within or from behind a light shines through us upon things and makes us aware that we are nothing, but the light is all.
“A man is the facade of a temple wherein all wisdom and all good reside. What we commonly call man, the eating, drinking, planting, counting man, does not, as we know him, represent himself, but misrepresents himself. Him we do not respect, but the soul, whose organ he is, would he let it appear through his action, would make our knees bend. All reform aims, in some one particular, to let the great soul have its way through us; in other words, to engage us to obey.”
The Kingdom of Man
It is not what a man gets, but what a man is, that he should think of.
—Henry Ward Beecher
Every man has in himself a continent of undiscovered character. Happy is he who acts the Columbus to his own.
—Sir J. Stephen
The kingdom that I seek
Is Thine, so let the way
That leads to it be also Thine.
—Bonar
The end of learning is to know God.
—Milton
Jesus said on one occasion that “the son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins,” and his use of the title, son of man, instead of Son of God, is of deep significance. This whole question of a kingdom and kingship is a much deeper and more vital one than has been supposed. In the claim put forth by Jesus that the son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins he did not refer to one particular individual, who, because of his having lived in bodily form on the earth, could arbitrarily cleanse the record of other earth-dwellers; but he was declaring the grand truth that the soul—the real man—could so dominate the physical and mental man, so rule the earthly part in love, that the sin of selfishness would be blotted out.
Let us endeavor to think of heaven and earth as co-existing in man. Man is a unit, the mental and physical part being an expression, even though a very partial one, of the soul which dwells within. It is this outer realm of mind and body in which the son of man is destined to reign completely, and the would-be king must have attained power over his own outer self, his own mind and body must have been renewed by the free action of the spirit within, before he can hope to extend his sway throughout the great earth-body. God’s kingdom can come only as man sets about administering in love his affairs of thought and action.
Many people make the mistake of regarding the spiritual side of life as being all there is to religion; but if God’s kingdom is ever to be realized on this earth of ours we must put the proper valuation on the material side of life, for religion must be practical or nothing. Our effort should be to see things in their true relation. The spirit must find a channel of expression; inner reality must become actualized in the outward conditions of earth; the God-man must be adequately expressed by the earth-man of mind and body.
Now the test of life is its power to create, to produce. If there are no works the spirit dwelling within is practically dead; it is choked and dormant, and the outer kingdom is in a state of anarchy, there being no ruling one to order and control. Unity, health, and harmony in the mind and body of man are conditioned on the conscious ruling of the son of man. One thing that hinders us from realizing our destiny of power is the personal will. We want to create in some particular way; we are prone to choose our path and are not willing to let the spirit, the impersonal will, guide us in the way.
Everything that comes about naturally, without effort on our part, everything that comes as a result of an inward pressure, an intuition, is the leading that we should follow. When in seeking a larger field of usefulness we turn from the natural leading, then we grieve away or choke the spirit, driving it in upon itself, thus for the time being forbidding it any natural outlet. It is this willfulness on our part that so often obstructs the coming of the kingdom; it is because we are not willing to obey the inner one that we fail to rule in the outer realms.
It is only when the spirit is finding free expression in our activities that we are satisfied with our work—not satisfied in the sense of regarding it as perfect, but as being confident that it is that which God would have us do.
When the Son of God and the son of man—the impersonal love and the personal will—are consciously one, then there comes a sense of joy and freedom in our work and we are not in bondage to fear or doubt, but rule over our kingdom in gentleness and power.
When we see something to be done, it is often very hard for us to be patient in regard to its accomplishment. In our haste we attack the problem before we are prepared for the work, and then when we fail to bring it to a successful conclusion, we lose patience and wonder what is the matter. If we could only realize it, our impatience, our self-will, has been largely responsible for the failure. We were not ready for the work; our energies were dissipated, and so we did not bring sufficient force to the task in hand. It is this gathering of force which tries the patience, and yet on it depends the success of any work we undertake. The eye must be single, the heart and mind fixed, the energy concentrated, if we are to accomplish any good work in this world.
We are so prone to measure a work by its magnitude; yet it is often the little service, the private or seemingly unimportant work, that brings the great results. Again, it often proves to be the case that a small number of people will achieve greater victory than a large army of half-hearted recruits. In the case of Gideon’s conquest of the Midianites it was a small picked army that won the victory; and so, in many other matters, it is the quality, not the quantity, of service that counts.
To have one main object in view, to bend all our energies to its accomplishment, and yet to work in a spirit of patience, is most difficult and yet most necessary if we would win the victory.
If we see clearly what we wish to do, then everything else will contribute toward that end. Even things that may seem like side issues can be made to play a part in the final accomplishment, if we only keep the eye single. Every little break that occurs because of some other work that calls for our attention, may, if our eye be single to the one great work, serve in some way to further the cause, if in no other way than by developing new power in us.
It is the height of foolishness to think that there can be spiritual development without a corresponding expression. Living faith will always result in living works. The feeling of peace, joy, faith, existing apart from works, is of no avail, for faith begins to decline, to die out, when there is no outlet for it in works. If we refuse to give outward expression to our faith, doubt will enter the mind, a deadness will creep over us, and joy depart.
If we allow doubt of our own ability to enter the mind, if we doubt the sincerity or ability of the people with whom we have to deal, if we doubt the principle with which we are working, then we become weak and powerless; and we all know that it is only a step from weakness to disease.
Let us, then, cultivate faith, let us open the eyes of our hearts to love, let us see the heavenly vision, and let it shine through us upon the earth; for so only can man come into his kingdom, so only can he realize his destiny of power and beauty. We cannot overestimate the necessity of faith. There is no evidence in history that the doubting man ever left anything behind as an evidence of his having lived, except his doubts.
Many people mistake faith for credulity or a mere blind acceptance of another’s opinion; but it is a very different matter. Faith is spiritual sight, or, better still, it is a vital touch. It is a living contact with the great Heart of love, and such a condition will always eventuate in works of love. To be in touch with the Creator is to be endued with His power, and we know He who builded the mountains can also remove them. If we have faith as a grain of mustard seed, if we are genuinely in touch with creative power, we can actually change the face of the earth; we can remove mountains, we can make man’s kingdom—chaotic, diseased, imperfect though it may now appear—to become God’s kingdom of peace, power, and beauty.
It is our false concept of the separation between man and God that has so sadly hindered us in attaining our kingdom. We limit the power of God when we say that man can only control his mind and body, that there is a limit to his dominion, for the Power that formed the world and created the elements can also reform and recreate. The life in man is God-life, and it is as infinite in power as God Himself. The same Power that creates can also control and direct. Jesus commanded, and the waves obeyed him.
When we come to see that life is one, that there really is no separation between the physical, mental, and spiritual planes of being, and that the God-life cannot be divided and measured off into separate parts, then will we begin at least to inherit the kingdom which has always been awaiting our rule. We come at last to realize that it is one Power that flows in and through all, one Intelligence that controls all things, one Life that animates.
We err when we look upon the energy which throbs through us as being separate from the universal force. It is the carnal mind that regards man as a separate and powerless being; and sin, disease, and death will not be overcome until all men attain unto the Christ mind—that of conscious oneness with the Father.
Whenever this thought of complete dominion in the outer world is touched upon, people are apt to say, “Oh, yes, that is to be ultimately, but it is a long way off!” It is because we take this attitude in regard to it that it remains in the future. The world needs more than anything else seers who realize that power, limitless power, is ours here and now. Now is the accepted time if we will only heartily accept it as such.
We hesitate to go forward because we feel our inadequacy; yet strength and wisdom, power and fullness, can only come as we use what we have here and now. Man’s province is to transform the whole outer kingdom so that order and beauty, health and wholeness, will reign everywhere, and this will be accomplished only as we use the degree of power we now possess.
The question for us is: Do we will to do the will of God? If we will to be well, to be whole, if we determine earnestly that the spirit within shall find free expression in mind, body, and outward acts, then will we surely come into our inheritance of power.
When we arrive at a true consciousness of the law of evolution then will we become creators with the Father. When we see that it is the desire to adjust one’s self to one’s environment that has called forth new forms of life, evolved new organs, and endued with new power, then will we go forward in good heart, trusting the One who has stirred us into activity to guide us in the Way of Life. So shall man come into his kingdom and so shall heaven be realized on earth.
The Dawn of a New Age
It is safe to affirm that there are no new revelations. The same Word that ordained light never ceases so to ordain; the same Spirit that moved and operated upon the waters at the genesis, is potent and active today. The world may vary in form and aspect, but that which gives it life is always the same. Whoever will ascend above the changing scenes will know and mirror in himself the unchanging. This is what is meant by being involved and included in the divine aura of light.
—Alexander Wilder
All are bigots who limit the Divine within the boundaries of their present knowledge.
—Margaret Fuller
As we recognize the divine law of human growth, and the inherent power that is lodged in the ideal man, we may wield them in proportion to our conformity to the universal order.
The law works within. The new heavens and new earth, which are promised, are to come through a change, not in them, but in ourselves. Our eyes are to be adjusted to what already is.
—Henry Wood
“That which hath been is now, and that which is to be hath already been and God requireth the things of the past.” So said the wise man of ancient times. What did he mean by this—”That which hath been is now and that which is to be hath already been?” What was the meaning? We find that Solomon knew some things that it took Science thousands of years afterward to find out. He said: “The rivers run into the sea, but the sea is not filled;” and “From whence the rivers come thither they return again.”
What is the meaning of these statements? They mean that the laws of God are eternal and unchanging; that that which occurs at one time in the history of God’s great universe, under the same laws will occur again. Creation did not begin and end at any stated time. Creation is an eternal process without beginning and without ending.
Wise men have told us that there are cycles of time; that certain things occurred on one great cycle and other things on another. In the process of time the different races, through repeated reincarnations, were ready to pass out of one plane into a higher plane. But did that end the world? No; the world might be purified and renewed, but that purification was to fit the earth again for another race of people who go through the same things, think the same things, and do the same things that we are doing today. It is said that two more races are yet to come before the present cycle of time is completed, and with the seventh and last race will come an age known as the “Golden Age.”
Plato and other wise men of his time had knowledge in all probability derived from the records in Egypt that were afterward destroyed. They had knowledge of a continent which existed ages ago, where people of a very high order lived. It is said that this continent disappeared one night with all the people; that this race corresponded to what we speak of as the seventh race, the people of which were far more highly developed than any people that live on this planet at the present time. In the Bible there is just the slightest intimation of a race superior to that inhabiting the earth in very early Bible times.
Whether this is true or not, we are in the springtime of a new age. We cannot tell yet what the harvest from this age is going to be, but we do know that wonderful changes are taking place in the minds of people. The last age was, without doubt, the most materialistic age that the world has ever passed through, and in this particular age—this last age—people have sought to find the solution of all the problems of life, not in the spiritual or mental realm, but in the material realm. It is believed by many scientists that the whole solution of life is going to be found in the material universe.
Science has gone just as far as it is able to, and what is the result of all scientific investigation? In some respects the results are very good, and in other respects the results are very disappointing. Beginning with the thought that the solution of life was to be found in matter, they have not explained at any point or at any time anything about life. They have begun with the protoplasm and gone on up showing how all the different changes have taken place—how one form met another form and how each one was completed. Science has been dealing with form all the time, but it has not told us the first thing about the life-principle which enters into the physical organism of man at birth and leaves at death. Science, as it exists at the present time, is simply a science of form. Form has its purpose; form is the outer symbol; it is the outer world and it remains for a new science to interpret that outer world, and that will be the science of spirit.
Wherever there is excessive action in any direction it is always followed by just as excessive reaction; and when a pendulum has swung just so far over the materialistic side of life, it then swings just as far back in the other direction. Therefore, many people today have certain beliefs in regard to spiritual or psychic matters which sometime they will have to change, because they are just as far from the truth as is the materialistic view. We find people taking a radical position in regard to some things which is neither reasonable nor true. It is far from reasonable for people to say that there is no material universe and that they have no physical bodies. It is not reasonable and it is not true when people deny the reality of sin and disease. All these things will have to be modified in the law of future knowledge. It is true that the spirit of man is the controlling part of man’s being. It has been taught for ages, but only within comparatively few years have many accepted it. The body has meant far more than the mind or the soul, but now in the springtime of a new age the spirit of man will mean far more than the body.
What do the farmers do in the springtime? First, they clear away everything that will obstruct the plowing and harrowing of the ground, and the planting of the seed; then it is ready for Nature to act upon it. Then comes the growth. You cannot tell at first, when the little blades come up through the ground, as to what the harvest is going to be—whether you are going to have fruit, or wheat, or tares. All these preparations are necessary before one can realize any harvest; and it is just as necessary to make the conditions of the springtime of a new age such that there will be the right harvest later as it is for the farmer to prepare the ground.
In what way are we going to prepare the ground for the new age? Some will do it by trying to carry all the preconceived ideas and thoughts of the past into the present. Some will hold on to their old prejudices, and some will hold on to their old forms, but let me tell you that in the change of these cycles of time it is not so much the question of time as the question of conditions.
In God’s field of life we all help to sow the seed and gather the harvest, but in some cases the seed falls by the wayside and the fowls eat it up; and sometimes among the stones, and there being no depth of earth, when it springs up, it withers under the light of the sun and passes away; and again it falls among the thorns and briers and its life is choked out. Only the good seed that falls on the prepared soil brings forth fruit of its kind.
Our minds might be said to be the field and our thoughts the seed. If we are careless and indifferent, and if we take no thought about preparing the mind for the influx of good thought, then it will be with us like the seed planted by the wayside; but if our minds are filled with pride or prejudice, then will it be like the seed that falls among the thorns and briers; but if we are self-righteous and selfish, then the seed will fall among the stones; but if we prepare our minds, trying to make them restful, trying to keep them free and unbiased, and if we are thoughtful concerning life, and seek to know the true way, then comes an influx from the very source of being, and the mind becomes illuminated by love, faith, and hope. These beautiful qualities in life act in turn to shape and give color to our thoughts and our thoughts then become the good seed which, planted, brings forth in time a bountiful harvest, and every seed will bring forth a fruit after its kind.
We know that the seed is growing when we see it expressed in kind word and deed. Kind word and deed are the outer expression of the inner seed, and if the ground has been prepared and the seed is good, the expression in turn will be good. True feelings and kind thoughts must always result in righteous words and noble deeds.
There is an orderly sequence from beginning to end. The right feeling begets the right thinking; the right thinking begets the right word and deed. According to the eternal law of God, we can only reap that which we have sown, and if we have not sown kind thoughts for others we cannot reap kind thoughts from others. If we have sown the seed of the tares in a spirit of anger, malice, or hatred, we reap the harvest that they produce just as unfailingly as we reap a harvest of the good seed. What we do to men in turn they do to us. Each individual makes for himself an environment. It is not made for him, but he makes it for himself; that is, he has the power to relate himself to people and his surroundings in a way that will be thoroughly beneficial both to himself and others, or he has the power, to some degree, to disregard the laws of life and make for himself an environment both with evil and unrest.
In this new springtime of life it is essential for our well-being and happiness that we start right. Let us know that every quality in us is calling to the same quality in someone else. That if it is a good quality it will awaken the same good in another. In feeling it and living it one helps to bring it into existence in other lives so that the good going out from one acts upon another and again reacts back to the one who gave it out, and in the same way does an evil quality act. “Curses like chickens come home to roost.” The curses one bestows upon another are in the end returned unto himself with interest.
How careful, then, we should be in preparing the ground for the reception of the seed, and then plant the seed that will bring to us a harvest—not of distress or of pain, but one of joy and gladness. We desire that all things good and beautiful may flow into our lives; then, if this is our desire, let its fulfillment come in our giving out the good and the beautiful to others. No matter what other people think, or other people say or do, think right, speak right, and do right, and you will reap your harvest in gladness.
Some people today are living in the old age—in the winter of the old age—and some are living in the springtime of the new. Remember, races do not appear on this earth and then vanish and a new race appear, but the old race stays on, getting weaker and weaker, and the new gets stronger and stronger. The people who are living in the springtime of a new age will drop all the old ways and means and adopt the new. We no longer travel by stage-coaches; we travel in a different way. We no longer have our mails carried on horseback, but we have our messages sent all over the world by electricity and steam.
In the New Thought we cannot carry the old ways into the new life. It is a continual dying to old conditions and a living to new ones, and it is not that the race brings about the condition, but each individual brings about the condition for himself, and all individuals working together give the best results. Each of us should know where we stand, whether we are laying hold on the new or whether we are living in the old. If we are living in the old, we are living with the old form and thoughts of the world.
Are you among the awakened? Because to the awakened come all things new; not that some things are made new, but that everything is made new, because the new is going to bring out, as has never been brought out before, the Christ thought. The Christ thought is this: the spirit is the cleansing power; the flesh is of no profit. The body is not the man, and the body can never become the man. To some degree it represents the man, and to some degree expresses man’s soul and mind. But the expression is in the mind.
The springtime of this new age shows that we are going to begin to use the inner power more than any other power. It is the age of the invisible that we are living in—an age which will deal with the invisible forces. There are no forces but what are invisible. Anything which seems to be is only the manifestation of a force; but we are going to deal with the invisible forces as man has never dealt with them before.
The world has accomplished more in the last one hundred years than it has in all this grand cycle which has gone before, and we are going to grow in the coming one hundred years more than we have in the past century. Already we have the indication of what the new age is going to be when we are told that in a very short time we are going to speak across the Atlantic just as we do through the telephone to our friends in the city. It is not going to end there, for we are going to speak with our minds. The outer, remember, follows the construction of the inner; you have to follow definite laws to get any result. Remember, it is the mind that makes the instrument through which we talk. It is the mind observing certain laws which brings about certain results. Everything that man does is the result of what he has thought, but he must think in accord with the eternal law in order to get definite results. You cannot get definite results by going contrary to the law of anything. It is only as you come in harmony with law that you do get results.
We know that Christ did wonderful things; that is, we are told he did wonderful things. People in times past have spoken of those things as miracles. A miracle is supposed to be an occurrence which transcends the law. There are no occurrences which transcend law. No matter what Jesus did, it was done in accordance with the eternal law of God. What did he say? He said this: “To those who believe they shall do greater things than I have done.” Believing is something more than what most people think it is. Are we going to believe that Jesus was right? He said he would heal the sick and that he would do many other things, but they were to be done in accord with the law.
Now in the healing of the sick, I believe that this whole movement as yet is in its infancy. I believe that so far as thought-transference is concerned, it is only a question of time when all people will understand it and that we will be able to send a thought to any one in another part of the world and receive an answer in the same manner. No one can tell us what time is or what space is, but we are living in a great universe wherein every part is related to every part. One action starts another action, and this will go on through the great law of vibration, reaching out to all people and all things.
When this law of vibration is understood, then sickness and disease will become a thing of the past. When we vibrate in a harmonious way, mentally and physically, then discord and disease will go out of the life. I believe in this next age that man will rule the elements about him. He will rule the elements through studying his own nature. If we study the life of Christ we will see that he studied control all through life. He said there was a power working within him, that belonged not to the personal man; that it was a universal power, and through this he controlled the conditions within and without him.
Now, if this power is the universal power that we believe it is, then this universal power acting through the individual can bring about wonderful results—wonderful results in every way. I believe that in this coming age life will be greatly prolonged. I do not believe, as some do, that we will retain these physical organisms forever. I do not believe that this is in the plan of life. When this lesson of life is learned we will not want this organism somewhere else; we will have an organism fitted for wherever we go. The body will correspond to the plane to which it belongs.
I believe this universe was made for man, not man for the universe. I do not believe that a time will come when we will know all that there is to be known, because then happiness, desire, and hope would cease. I do not believe that we will ever attain to a heaven where we will play on golden harps all the time, or rest eternally. I do not think we will have any such eternity. I believe that we will have an eternity in which we can always do something. This, I believe, will bring us more happiness than getting into a place where everything seems to stand still.
We talk about perfection, but what do we really know about it? It is only a relative term at best. The seed is perfect and the tree is perfect and the fruit is perfect. We cannot tell where perfection begins or where it ends. The seed, the tree, the fruit may be perfect in so far as it has progressed. But we cannot affirm an ultimate perfection, because we do not know anything about perfection.
This world is not a dead, inanimate thing, but it has a mind; and the great mind of the world is a history of what every individual has thought. By noting the things that have occurred in the past, we can see what is likely to occur in the future. Solomon was right when he said that God requireth the things of the past; yet the things that are occurring now will occur in the ages to come, but we will not be here to see them. We will have progressed, however, to a far higher plane of development than we can conceive of at the present time.
It is only as each individual responds and unfolds to his inner powers and possibilities that he can know aught, in a. sense, of that which awaits him. We must know that the light that is shining in the darkness—shining even in our mental darkness—is to enlighten every man which coineth into the world. That light is in every soul now and is only awaiting a recognition on the part of the mind of man. When that recognition comes it will become a living flame, and then instead of living in the individual life we will live in the universal life; instead of being guided by the human will we will come under the divine will. Then will our will become one with God’s, and everything will be changed. We will have passed from the old conditions of life and we will have entered into the new. There will not be a particle of the old life left—the old life that depended upon the things of the material. We will live in the life of the spirit, the spirit which quickeneth, the spirit which brings with it the knowledge of eternal life. “To know God is eternal life.” We are all to know God. When we know God in the spirit, when we know Him in our own lives, and we know Him in truth, then the old thought of life will be changed and we will be living in a new age, in reality, and we will know what that new age means.
We are coming into the beautiful springtime of a new age, and with this springtime will come the changes from sickness and disease and death. I say death, because we shall not all sleep, we shall not all go through the changes that the world has been going through in the past. The last enemy to overcame is death, and man will overcome that enemy. Paul says: “We will not all sleep; we will all be changed in the twinkling of an eye.” It will not be through old age, but through the power of the mind and the spirit that we will lay down the body, when the mind and the spirit have no further use for it, as that is what Jesus meant when he said that they might destroy the temple, but in three days he would again build it up. The I was in the temple, the I was in the body, the I was the real man, and the real man can destroy the temple if he chooses, and the real man will build it strong and whole in every respect, and will make it a fit house where souls may dwell. Many have this power now, and if they have it to some degree they will have it to the full degree. This is the demand that is made on each and every individual, and this demand will grow greater and greater as the years go by.
This is the cry of the new age—that we shall have strong and whole bodies, that we shall preach the real Christ gospel, which is a gospel of glad tidings, and hasten the time when all shall know God from the least to the greatest.
The End