T--Jo Christian Scientist - IAPSOP

THECHRISTIANGenerated for John Patrick Deveney (University of Chicago) on 2015-05-19 19:49 GMT / c Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access use#pd-googlebought searchlights of truth, it is not hardto see the shapes of error and their disguises,and to array our thought with the right thatis might, wherever we have been stationed,in the mighty conflict.If we see ignorance,bigotry, or worldliness posing as ChristianScience itself, we have but to remember thatthe only Christian Scientist is "the honestunselfish, loving and meek," to whom Godgave dominion over all that is unlike Himself; when the Magna Charta and the Declaration of Independence perpetuated as humanity and justice, national life itself, ifwe see these denied and attacked by the modern Assyrian, "such boasting as the Gentiles use," in the heart of Anglo-Israel as inHezekiah's,"Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,An humble and a contrite heart,"holding fast to remembrance how hithertohath the Lord helped us, the one Lord Godof Hosts who doeth according to His will("Might and wisdom") in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth,and none can stay His hand; the only King,Ruler, President, Emperor, who has right andpower to govern man ; and our more enlightened faith, the gift of Science foresees history repeating itself."And the might of the Gentile unsmote bythe swordHath melted like snow in the glance of theLord."The loud assertion of the Adam-man —"mortal beliefs, animality and hate" — as existence, authority and power, is silenced bythe real man, the Christ-man's "sword of theSpirit," the "word of God," vindicating intelligence and Love shining through the Golden Rule as supreme over the one nation, thekingdom of Heaven.So is it our blessedprivilege to hold silently in human consciousness the light of the world.Our inspiration to "pray without ceasing"such scientific prayer, is in our vision of themighty progress it has brought to mankinduntil we cannot doubt that He will surelyfinish what He hath begun, until "they shallnot hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain : for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover thesea." To hasten the "divine event" we shouttogether with the more joy as before the wallsof Jericho, for we never forget the promiseof Christ "That if (even) two of you shallagree on earth as touching anything, it shallbe done for them of my Father which is inheaven," any two of such as really "seek firstthe kingdom of God and His righteousness."Alice Boyd."The letter fails, the systems fall,And every symbol wanes :The Spirit overbrooding all,Eternal Love remains."—Christian Science Hymnal.SCIENTIST."Life Understood.""Life Understood from a Scientific andReligious Point of View, and the PracticalSin, Disease, andMethod of DestroyingDeath," is the title of a notable book of 740pages, by F. L. Rawson, of London, England,a second edition of which was recently published.*Mr. Rawson's work is certainly a magnum opus, and adequately discusses the greattheme which has agitated the minds of thethinkers of all ages, as to what constitutesthe real meaning of existence. The effort toexplain man's fundamental relation to theuniversal whole of which he forms a part liesat the basis of all theological and philosophical systems. Every reflecting person whohas sought to keep abreast of contemporarythought must have felt the forceful meaningof the poet's lines :"Our little systems have their day,They have their day and cease to be,They are but broken lights of Thee,And Thou, O Lord, art more than they."The marvellous scientific discoveries of thelast thirty years have completely revolutionized human thought, and the materialisticdogmatism which characterizedthe earlyhistory of scientific progress has given placeto a more becoming modesty and religiousawe, which in the presence of God's GreatUniverse, humbly admits at least that "Thereare more things in heaven and earth than aredreamt of in our philosophy."The discovery of the Roentgen rays, nowmore familiarly known as the X rays, of radium with its mysterious properties, whichhave presented phenomena that have puzzledthe chemist and physicist, necessitated therevisal of many a "working hypothesis" thathad done its duty for a generation or so, untilit eventually had grown quite respectable,only to be finally discredited by obstinatefacts which would not be flexible enough tofit into it. The general public, although itmay not scientifically understand, is yet atthe same time familiar through the movingpicture machine, and the phonograph withphenomena relating to light and sound whicha few centuries ago would have doomed thoseresponsible for their production to death forwitchcraft, but which are now the commonplaces of conversation, and excite no particular attention.Scientific dogmatism, like its predecessor,theological dogmatism, has been displaced bywhat Matthew Arnold called the "Zeit-Geist,"and it would be a very obtuse person thesedays who would not think it fitting to be atleast in an expectant attitude as to futureeven if sincerelydesirous topossibilities"prove all things and hold fast that which isgood."* See "BookNotes" on p. 7, of this paper.

THECHRISTIANGenerated for John Patrick Deveney (University of Chicago) on 2015-05-19 19:49 GMT / c Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access use#pd-googleThe time therefore is fully ripe for such awork as we now commend to our readers, ofwhich its author modestly says : "It is a gathering together of the latest scientific, religious, and philosophical discoveries, a technical statement of facts reviewed in the lightof the great truth that is now breaking in upona waiting and wondering world, weary of useless theories and sick of speculative hypothesis. The occasion of the book, "Life Understood," as explained by Mr. Rawson, who isa practical scientist connected with manyscientific societies and important undertakings, was that about ten years ago he wasretained by the Daily Express of London, "tomake a professional examination into mentalworking, the vital subject that is now engaging the attention of the deepest thinkersand greatest humanitariansthroughout theworld." The result of some of these investigations and the conclusions reached weresubsequently embodied in a lecture whichwas delivered at Letchworth (England) onAugust 12, 1909. This lecture considerablyamplified, and with twelve appendices, notesand concordance, forms the substance of thevolume now under review, which was originally published in 1912, prior to the war,and reached a second edition in 1914, justafter the outbreak of the colossal conflictnow in progress.After some preliminary discussion in Section I of occult phenomena, and medical,physiological and philosophic difficulties, followed by an unfoldment of the author's conof evil andclusions as to the non-realitytherefore of matter, a discussion of the evolution of our sense of God, with the reasonsfor the thesis that man is not material butspiritual, a clear exposition is given of thetrue significance of "Heaven," the "Kingdomof God that is Within" as "a perfect state ofconsciousness." As our author says : "It hasrecently been recognized that we make ourown hell and our own heaven here, and fewmen are fiends enough to want a worse hellfor anyone than many men are temporarilyin at the present moment, the hell of theirown wrong thought, due to their not knowing how to think rightly. 'The mind is itsown place, and in itself can make a Heavenof Hell, a Hell of Heaven.' (Milton). * * *In other words, heaven is a perfect state ofconsciousness, or divine state of Mind * * *God and heaven, cause and its manifestation,Mind and its ideas, that is to say, the realpeople, the real planets, the real things, ofwhich we appear to see the false conceptsround us. Consequently each of us is, andalways has been, in reality, a perfect being, ina perfect world, governed by a perfect God."Every mystic tells us that heaven isaround us all the time." (W. R. Inge, M. A.,D.D., Dean of St. Paul's).* * * In the light of present-day knowledgeof man as spiritual, we cease to blame Godfor our own shortcoming, and a man soon beSCIENTIST.gins to find that under the worst circumstances, by turning in thought to God, he canget a faint sense of heaven, and along thisscientific high road gain a clearer and increasing sense of its perfection, here andnow."In this way he gradually gets rid of histroubles and the troubles of those aroundhim, and so proves his knowledge of God,good."IIIn Sectionof "Life Understood," Mr.Rawson places before us "A Consistent Theory of Material Phenomena," showing itsillusionary character. "This exposes the fallacies that have bound us, discloses the finaland fundamental so-called basis of this material world and its hitherto inexplicable phenomena, and clears away all doubt as to itsinevitable total disappearance by the recognition of spiritual reality. * * * The wholeof this material world is simply a series ofcinematographic pictures, the men, animals,trees, in fact, all so-called life, being merelyetherial counterfeits.These forms have nomore life or intelligence in them than the pictures on a cinematographic screen. They aremerely shifting appearances. Such so-calledmaterial beings have apparently powers ofthinking, reasoning, deducting and actingupon such deductions; whereas, as a matterof fact, these so-called material personalitiesare merely individualizations of illusionary,basic false mentality, and counterfeits of thespiritual perfect beings."* * "One cannotcorrectly speak of a socalled human being as 'thinking.' 'Picturing'would be a more accurate expression. Thetrue people are perfect spiritual beings in aperfect world, governed by a perfect God,eternally manifesting divine wisdom."Mr. Rawson adduces in this connection aconsensus of scientific views drawn from thewritings of the well-known French scientist,Le Bon ("The Evolution of Forces"), SirWilliam Crookes, F. R. S., and others, toshow the non-reality of the suppositional material world, and finally reaches the conclusion that, "When enough, not in numbers,but in clearness and depth of thought, recoznise the non-reality of matter, they act as onegreat open channel for the action of God, andevery manifestation of evil disappears, thatis, all sin, sickness, worries, troubles, andlimitations, all this material sense of things,with its self-destructive laws, its illogicalsense of existence, its remorseless tyranny,and suicidal ignorance, instantly disappears,and all mankind are freed. We then find ourselves perfect and divine, expressing God,and in a perfect world, absolutely joyous,governed by Life, Truth, and Love. 'And Isaw a new heaven and a new earth : for thefirst heaven and the first earth were passedaway: and there was no more sea.' (Rev. 21,ver

Satan takes along the centuries varysome what withthemarch ofprogress. Commer cialism, Pharisaism, monopoly, cloaked as ecclesiastical and civil authority and mad with envy and terror, tried in vain in the first century to stop Heaven's message: "Peace on earth, good will to men." Being more insane to-day and being better seen bymankind as .