Monthly Archives: February 2011

President’s Day Message 2011

Posted on February 22, 2011 by
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“At one time Mrs. Eddy received an invitation from the promoters of the Lincoln Memorial at Washington to join as a founder.  The invitation solicited a subscription to the cost of the Memorial, and stated that contributions were being made by the most prominent citizens of our country.  It was beautifully engraved, and when I took it to Mrs. Eddy she asked me what I thought about it all.  I said, ‘Mother, I think people should be constructing a memorial to you and your work instead of your contributing to anything of this kind to somebody else.’  ‘Yes, Mr. Dickey,’ she replied, ‘but these things are needed in the world to-day and it is natural for the citizens of the United States to recognize the greatness and grandeur of Abraham Lincoln’s character.  I shall send them a check for one hundred dollars,’  And she did so.  That is the way she followed my advice.”

  • Memoirs of Mary Baker Eddy  by Adam H. Dickey, C.S.D.

     

 

"Whenever any church will inscribe over its altar, as its sole qualification for membership, – the Savior’s condensed statement of the substance of both Law and Gospel, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and thy neighbor as thyself,’ that church I will join with all my heart, and all my soul.”

 

Abraham Lincoln

“A duty devolves on me which is, perhaps, greater than that which has devolved upon any man since that of Washington. He never could have succeeded except for the aid of Divine Providence, upon which he at all times relied. I feel that I cannot succeed without the same divine aid which sustained him, and on the same Almighty Being I place my reliance for support; and I hope you, my friends, will all pray that I may receive that divine assistance without which I cannot succeed, but with which success is certain.”

–Abraham Lincoln, February 11, 1861, spoken to a crowd at a railway station as he departed his home in Springfield Illinois to assume his role of President of the United States

 

 

Categories: Articles

The Truth About Adversity – Part 2

Posted on February 17, 2011 by
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The Truth About Adversity

 

Part 2

 

(Anthology of Classic Articles, page 119)

 

previously published in the Christen Science Sentinel and the Christian Science Journal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like a continuous golden thread the  omnipotence of good runs through the entire fabric of his various experiences, linking the different parts together into a complete  whole.  The poet Browning caught some vision of this divine continuity when he wrote, “On the earth, the broken archs; in the heaven, a perfect round” (Robert Browning, “Abt Vogler,”  The Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse, eds. Nicholson and Lee, 1917).

The limited range of human vision can see only “the broken archs” of the circle, the bits, the pieces, the detached portions, so to speak, of the entire plan, the “perfect round,” but when we come to see more as God sees, we realize that each and every one was needed  in order to make manifest that which was an established fact in Mind before the morning stars first sang together in joy.

One sometimes hears it said: “But why should all this come upon me?  Why do I have all this trouble when I am trying so hard to do right?”  Joseph was trying to do right, too, yet it did not save him from the pit and the dungeon.  Daniel was trying to do right, and yet he had to go into the lions‘ den.  They were just new opportunities to prove in what direction their trust lay, whether in the omnipotence of good or in the boasted power of evil.  It is safe to say that there is hardly a person in the world today who does not, at times, feel he has something to forgive.  Perhaps even yet, strive as one may, a certain face comes back again and again upon his mental vision, or a certain set of circumstances, which he would fain forget, intrudes itself upon his harmony.  If so, let him find comfort in pondering the story  of this man of long ago who accepted adversity so well, and trusted God so completely, even under the greatest stress of circumstances, that the wonder and the inspiration of it have come down to us through the lapse of all these dusty centuries.

Unpleasant and unjust  and trying experiences come to everyone of us, and they are easily accounted for, because as Christian Scientists,  we are constantly going against the current of popular thought,  and when one rows his boat upstream and against the current he encounters more obstacles and goes more slowly  than the one who is idly drifting downstream. But to float along with popular opinion and established precedent, is not to grow.  Instead, let us say with the apostle, “… none of these things move me” (Acts 20:24).  Not one of these things should shake our trust in God and his perfect plan, which as yet, we may discern but faintly, but in which every one of us belongs.  We must trust him with these “broken arches,”  these seemingly unattached incidents of daily experiences, and realize that, even though we may seem to be cast into the deepest pit of loneliness, fear, and despair, all things are still working together for good.  Love will never leave us comfortless, and already  a friendly hand, yet unseen by us, may be reaching out towars us in the darkness.   Do some of us feel we are already slaves to wrong environment, held in subjection to  materiality, placed in the stifling atmosphere of surroundings not conducive to spiritual growth an development, a veritable prision – house of limitation, twarted effort, discouragement, frustration?  These are only bringing new opportunities to prove that God is All-in-all, to trust more, to forgive more, to see the perfect man where sense testimony would see an imperfect mortal, to maintain the impersonality of evil, and to ask ourselves the question, “Do we yet understand how much better it is to be wronged, than to commit wrong?” (Miscellaneous Writings, p 130).  Then let us praise God for thses lessons in patience, humility, unrequited service, unappreciated effort, hope deferred, forgiveness, charity, unselfed love.  Suffering sense can only see the present moment, finite testimony, but let it be ever remembered  that “what is termed material sense can report only a sense of things, whereas spiritual sense can bear witness only to the Truth” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p.298).

“O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted” (Isa. 54:11), dry those unavailing, useless, unworthy tears, and look up.  Lift your thought above “man’s inhumanity to man,” to realize more of the dear father’s great universal love, and His care for everything, the flowers, the stars, the birds, the little lambs asleep, the baby leaves just uncurling in the April sun.  Would His love enfold all these in tenderest care, and yet forget you, His dear child?  The hour will surely come when you look back upon this present experience, which now seems so hard, and cruel, and unjust, and realize that it was really a blessing in disguise, in that it compelled you to loose your hold upon human help and turn more unreservedly to God as the supreme power, the one great All-in-all.  You will at length realize. thta had it not come, you might not have so quickly reached the higher point of vision whereupon you stand today; and as you look back upon it, and see how much it taught you, and how far along the way you are because of it, your heart will heavenly sing for joy, and you will find yourseld wispering, as to someone very near,”father, I thank thee.”

 

 

— Louis Knight Wheatley cook, (Anthology of Classic Articles)

Categories: Articles

The Truth About Adversity – Part 1

Posted on February 17, 2011 by
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Breaking news just in  . . .

 

 


On gay rights, keep fighting or adapt?

 


"It appears increasingly obvious that social acceptance of gay men and lesbians and insistence on their equal rights are inexorable…Conservative Christian leaders ought to be very careful about their rhetoric going forward — careful not to continue giving the impression that being Christian is in large measure about opposing gay rights, and careful not to let the public expression of their faith become primarily associated with something that looks, sounds and feels like hate to growing segments of the population."

 

 

 

The Truth About Adversity

 

(Anthology of Classic Articles, page 119)

 

previously published in the Christen Science Sentinel and the Christian Science Journal

 

Part 1 

 

There was once an individual who refused to be discouraged.  One thing after another in his human affairs "went wrong", as the saying is; one disaster after another came upon him, apparently unjustly and through no fault of his own; but no matter what happened, he kept his poise.  In fact, his manner of dealing  with each seeming adversity was such that he actually succeeded in turning it into a blessing not only to himself, but to all with whom he was associated.  He evidently had unshakable faith in the ultimate triumph of right, this Hebrew lad Joseph, of long ago, whom the compelling hand of love took from feeding his father’s sheep to make of him the greatest influence for good in what was at the time the most powerful kingdom in the world.  No matter how acute the condition became,  he evidently made no complaint.  No matter how hopeless the situation might seem, his courage did not fail.  He simply trusted God, and did the best he could see (Gen. 37-38).

 

It is a beautiful story, and vibrant with interest to the Christian Scientist today, for it illustrates how every adverse circumstance, if taken rightly, can be turned into a new opportunity to prove the truth of the scriptural saying that "all things work together for good to them that love God" (Rom. 8:28).  Did his bretheren, inflamed with envy and jealously, cast him into a pit in the wilderness?  It all worked together for good, for he was presently sold to merchantmen and carried into Eqypt, which brought him just that much nearer to the great work of his life.  True, he was only a slave there, but that did not dishearten him.  All things were still working together for good, and he quietly went about his business, doing the best he could.  The sudden transition from his simple home in the land of Canaan to the house of Potiphar, the rich Egyptian, did not confuse him, nor rob him of his poise.  He performed the duties required of him in his master’s household, undisturbed by the fact that he was a captive in an alien land, and untouched by the gross materiality about him.

 

The same fidelity of purpose, this same integrity of thought and conduct which had so aroused the hatred and envy of his bretheren, once more enraged the carnal mind, and impersonal evil found a new channel through which it hoped to accomplish his downfall.  On a false accusation he was thrown into prison.  There is no record, however, that he indilged in self-pity, self-righteous, resentment, or bitter condemnation, nor did he spend precious time in bemoaning his fate, so far

as we know.  He still believed in his God, and that all things were still working together for good.  Did it seem to human sense that his usefulness was over, that his work had been taken from him?  Not so.  The work he had been doing had undoubtedly  been taken from him, but that only meant that another work was just beginning.  If he could no longer do the big things for his master, which he had been doing so faithfully and well, he could still do little things for his fellow prisoners, and do them just as faithfully and just as well.  Perhaps he had already learned that it is not the size of the thing done which counts so much, as the spirit in which they are done.

 

We know the rest of the story, how he was finally brought fourth by one whom he had befriended in the prison to interpret a dream for the great Pharoah himself,  which so pleased the king that he was set free and placed in a position whereby he was able by his wisdom and sagacity to save countless thousands from hunger or starvation, among them his own father and his traitorous bretheren, and pointed out to them that all things are in God’s hand even in the darkest hours of our lives!  There was a perfect plan to be wrought out, and he and they were just a part of it.  "Be not grieved,"  he told them tenderly, "nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to perserve life … So now it was not you that sent me brother, but God" (Gen. 45:5, 8).

 

Well for us today if, in the midst of a seeming affliction, we may echo these words that "it was not you that sent me hither, but God," thus establishing the eternal truth that the wrath of man shall praise Him!  For we sometimes feel as if Joseph were not only one who was ever sold "into Egypt", a helpless victium of envy,  revenge treachery, and cruelty.  Yet as we are told by our beloved leader, Mary Baker Eddy, that "whatever envy, hatred, revenge -  the most remorseless motives that govern mortal mind – whatever these try to do, shall work together for good for them that love God" (miscellaneous writings, p. 10).  Each stage of human experience through which Joseph passed, proved to be essential to the next step in his progress, and all were without exception along the line of spiritual advancement, although they appeared at the time to be exactly the opposite.  If he had not been thrown into the pit, he never, in all probability, would have reached the land of Eqypt.  If he had never reached the land of Egypt, he would never had dwelt in Potiphar’s house and incurred the enmity of one of its inmates.   If this enmity had not occured, he would not have been thrown into the prison in disgrace; and if he had not been placed in prison, he would not have known one of its inmates, a fellow companion in misery, who afterwords, upon being released and restored to favor, remembered Joseph, and was the direct cause of his being brought before Pharaoh.  If Pharoah’s attention had not thus been called to him, he would not have had the opportunity so to prove his wisdom beyond all the king’s astrologers and soothsayers that he was exhalted to the highest rank and power.  And if he had not posessed this rank and power, he could not have been in a  position to make make a decree whereby not only Eqypt but other nations were saved from seven years of famine, nor have brought about a reconcilation between himself and his bretheren.

 

…to be contunued

Categories: Articles

What spiritual ideas would you share with a friend contemplating suicide?”

Posted on February 7, 2011 by
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"What spiritual ideas would you share with a friend contemplating suicide?"

 

AC360 – Click Here – Ellen DeGeneres Speaks Out On Bullying  

 

Christian Science Sentinel – April 27, 2007

This week’s participants offer the conviction that each of us is so loved by God that we can never be cut off from His goodness, even in the darkest moments of life. That’s a worthy, healing thought, and as you read the individual responses, you’ll find other healing themes, as well. For more on dealing with the temptation to commit suicide, listen to a recent spirituality.com live chat, "Feeling hopeless? Choose life!"

 

It would depend on the circumstances. (I might not say too much, but I’d try to listen for what God would give me to say.) However, I think I would focus on the fact that God loves my friend very much, no matter what, and I do, too, and that we don’t have to be afraid of living because God, good, can help us find our way up or out of wherever we seem to be that’s unhappy or sad or bad. If we seem to be at the bottom of problems, we can be still and wait. We can kneel down and pray. We can listen quietly for one good thought (an angel, if you will—“un angelito”) and be grateful for this one good thought or idea.

 

Sometimes we have to take baby steps in turning toward good, the light, toward life (or Life, God). But it’s worth it. And then we can take another step, and so on until we gain more on the side of good. Look for one light, one good thing, and be grateful for it. And we can thank God for sending us that one good thought. Where there is one, there are more, and each one helps to lift and guide us moment by moment. (And maybe that will help someone else someday that we turned toward the light and life and good and were grateful for it and let ourselves be led by it.)

Judith, Manchester, Connecticut, United States

 

I would tell the friend contemplating suicide that Life is God, therefore it’s eternal and good. There is no problem too great for God. God’s love and goodness can see her through any challenge. Second, I would also tell her that suicide can never be an answer to her problem, but she would wake up to realize that problems still continue. It’s best always to work out a solution with the intelligence that God gives us and that we are never alone but all-one with God.

Nergish, Andheri, Maharashtra, India

 

Despair is always temporary. The peace and joy that seem to be missing are really there. You must press on and mentally insist on revealing the all-powerful good in your life and, then, help others to do the same.

Rebecca, Maryland, United States

 

I would listen to my friend without judgment. Removing yourself from a seeming error, be it depression, glares from other people, relatives, gossip, former friends or companions, opinions, advice—no matter what it is—God is stronger than that. God doesn’t know that about you or the part you’re trying to kill off. I would prayerfully urge that loved one accept Christlikeness and never give up. Every moment we release death as an option we are closer to the Life we were promised prayerfully forever.

Maude, Michigan, United States

 

Death is not a way out of our problems. Mary Baker Eddy stated in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: “Either here or hereafter, suffering or Science must destroy all illusions regarding life and mind, and regenerate material sense and self” (p. 296). Suicide is not going to make things better—it will only add to the problem. We need to regenerate our thought, look in a different direction to find our source and a truer sense of our identity.

We can start with the Bible, Genesis, where it tells us that God made everything—and it was very good! God is our Father and Mother. God made them therefore they are good no matter what! God loves them because God created them out of Love. They are valuable, needed, and irreplaceable. They are the very image of Love. They have a great purpose and that is to love! And we certainly need more love in this world! It may seem difficult but I’ve found that if we want to feel loved and worthy we need to love. We can love because the source of our love is not human and limited; it has a divine source, God, who is infinite. Therefore, Love never stops loving and each one of us as the image of Love can’t be unloved.

Renee, Bend, Oregon, United States

 

I would very much want to persuade the person contemplating suicide that real rest, peace, and love can be found only in God and not in anything or anyone in the world; that God who is Love itself has never and can never cease to love him either here or hereafter. I would point out to him one of Paul’s most beautiful gems that affirms that absolutely nothing can separate him from Love and from Life: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:31–39).

Joseph, Nairobi, Kenya

 

I would remind the friend that there is always hope because all things are possible to God, so whatever is troubling my friend can be healed by divine Love.

Liz, Santa Cruz, California, United States

 

“… cling steadfastly to God and His idea …” (Science and Health, p. 495). You, as His perfect spiritual reflection, always express all of God’s perfect qualities. That is your identity, and your dearest purpose is to reflect His being.

Mary, Sequim, Washington, United States


Categories: Articles