No, this post isn’t about buying a new car!

On the contrary, it’s actually about something quite profound.

It’s about the power of the Christ, as taught and revealed in Christian Science, to heal and permanently erase the effects of any form of inharmony in our lives.

Most readers of this blog will know that for about 20 years prior to finding Christian Science, I was deeply involved in the study and practice of eastern and western occultism, theosophy, and spiritualism. And one of the doctrines that was promoted, and which I adhered to, was the belief in reincarnation and how past lives purportedly affect our current experience.

During that time period and on numerous occasions, I underwent what is referred to as past-life regressions in which episodes from supposed previous lifetimes were “re-experienced” with all of their material sensory perceptions intact—including their often-horrific pain as well as pleasures. So “real” feeling were these experiences, that I based much of my life and motives for action on these theories.

But when I first encountered Christian Science, the teachings of Mary Baker Eddy began immediately to challenge these false systems. And make no mistake: they are entirely the product of animal magnetism—of evil—without one iota of good in any aspect of them! Not one! Indeed, they are founded on sand and not on the Rock of Christ.

Well, about two years into my study of Christian Science, I was standing in The Mother Church’s Reading Room on Massachusetts Avenue in Boston and I happened to look up across the street at a billboard advertisement for Buick automobiles.

Now, though gazing at that ad had nothing specifically to do with what was about to happen to me, God’s message nonetheless came through loud and clear!

What was it?

In an instant, I knew with total conviction that the entire concept of reincarnation was utterly and completely false. Those two decades of adherence to that belief and to those mortal mind sensory experiences were immediately wiped clean. They no longer had any affect on me and my perception of Life—of God—and who each of us is as His immutable image and likeness.

So—what’s the lesson here?

The Prophet Jeremiah recorded:

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Then shouldn’t we, as the five wise virgins in Jesus’ parable did, be keeping our mental lamps trimmed—our consciousness alert to the healing power that our Father-Mother God is always unfolding to us?

Remember, God’s goodness is everywhere—even when we’re glancing at a car ad!

Most people reading this post will no doubt recognize the title’s reference to the John Lennon anthem “All you need is love.” Yet, the question must be asked. Is it true?

Well, it depends entirely on what you mean by “love.” To most folks it denotes a human affection of varying degrees of emotion. To others it is equated with the baser instincts such as sensuality, sex, and even lust.

At a higher level, love as a human emotion may include some noble qualities such as loyalty, fidelity, a type of selflessness that is concerned with the loved one’s welfare and happiness before one’s own. Maybe there’s a great sense of mutual harmony, respect, and profound depth involved not only between couples but also among family members and friends.

And I’m sure that any of us could significantly add to this list of examples.

Mary Baker Eddy described the higher forms of human affection as Second Degree transitional qualities—“Evil beliefs disappearing”—in the translation of mortal mind (Science and Health, p. 115) in which she listed the following qualities: “Humanity, honesty, affection, compassion, hope, faith, meekness, temperance.”

These are, to be sure, all good developments in thought and action.

Yet human affection—in and of itself—does not necessarily reflect a spiritual component. I’m certain that there were many Nazi leaders during World War II who felt great human love for their wives and children, but yet had no compunction about exterminating and murdering millions of other men, women, and children.

It’s therefore essential that we distinguish human love from divine Love. That we do not let the clamor of the world’s concept of love blind us to what really matters.

Why?

Because we cannot demonstrate Christianly-scientific healing based on anything less than divine Love—on God—or what Mrs. Eddy goes on to describe as the “Third Degree: Understanding” (p. 116).

And as I’ve been learning more and more, it is our deepening understanding of the biblical declaration “God is love.” (I John 4:8) that impels us to obey the commands of our Master, Jesus, to heal the sick and reform the sinner. That causes us to align our lives—moment-by-moment—to that which Love knows to be true about us and about all of His/Her creation. An alignment that transforms our thoughts and actions to be more Christ-like in our healing work.

An alignment that heals others.

So, it doesn’t matter what your human history has or has not been—whether you’ve experienced significant affection from family and friends or not. In no way can either limit you from feeling the healing and all-encompassing power and presence of divine Love right now!

God’s love for His children, who are the reflections/manifestations of that love, is entirely pure, infinite, immortal—the very omnipotence and omnipresence of its nature destroying all sorrow, sickness, sin, and death.

Divine Love awakens us to the fact that we are entirely spiritual and have never existed anywhere else than in God. Than in Love!

Science and Health (p. 494) declares:

Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need.

And that’s all the Love we really need!

When I was a kid, my friends and I played a lot of “Cowboys and Indians”, medieval knights (the movie “Ivanhoe” had recently been released!), and World War II soldiers. And if we got cut or bruised in the process, we felt it was a “badge of honor” because it caused us to identify with our movie and TV heroes who were often wounded while sacrificing for their comrades-in-arms against the foe.

It all seemed like harmless fun.

But what if such a tendency is not seen through and grown out of?

The consequences of not overcoming this type of false identification are far too obvious. All you have to do is go to any public place and listen to the ongoing conversations among a wide variety of age groups in which individuals proudly proclaim their woes in great detail—vigorously and actively identifying with those problems.  As if it gave meaning to their lives.

As if it were their badge of honor!

Yet such “badges” are but tarnished, mortal illusions that reinforce and continue the very illnesses and problems that have enslaved them.

And make no mistake; Christian Scientists are not inherently immune to this downward-spiraling phenomenon. I hear from too many who have identified with the physical, emotional, behavioral, or financial challenges they’re facing and who, while attempting to rely on Christian Science for healing, are often simultaneously busily defending their helplessness, confusion, and victimhood in the very same manner as the general public.

How can this be?

They have not consistently kept their watch and have fallen prey to one of the ruses of the carnal mind in which the person has been mesmerized into believing that the challenges they appear to be going through give them some feeling of nobility—some sense of honor—for having to endure the error that they find themselves engulfed in.  A kind of “noble sacrifice.”  A type of martyrdom.

None of which have anything to do with Christian Science.

None of which can ever lead to healing.

In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (p. 380), Mary Baker Eddy wrote:

Contending for the evidence or indulging the demands of sin, disease, or death, we virtually contend against the control of Mind over body, and deny the power of Mind to heal. This false method is as though the defendant should argue for the plaintiff in favor of a decision which the defendant knows will be turned against himself.

So let’s remember that the real “badge of honor” is spiritual and is awarded moment-by-moment to each of us as we overcome the lies of mortal mind and scientifically demonstrate the truths of Christian Science by healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, raising the dead, casting out demons, and preaching the gospel.

By identifying ourselves and others as the image and likeness of Almighty God!

My latest JSH-Online audio podcast “Loving our pets” has just been posted at the Putting it on Record section of The Christian Science Journal. Rita Polatin interviewed me about the importance of seeing our pets in their true spiritual nature, and the benefits that doing so has on their health and wellbeing.

You can hear it at: http://journal.christianscience.com/audio/putting-it-on-record/loving-our-pets

Enjoy!

From time to time, I hear fellow Christian Scientists stating that though they’re able to heal others, they don’t seem to be able to heal themselves. Or that they can demonstrate healing of emotional or financial problems, but they’re not good at healing physical ones. And they’re perplexed by this. They’re mystified!

And “mystified” is the correct term! They’ve been mesmerized by the carnal mind and they’ve accepted the lie about themselves and about God! Yes—about God!

Do we actually believe that the same omnipotent spiritual laws—laws of God—are operative in one or two instances or categories, but are not universally true—true throughout all of God’s creation?

Are we buying into the deception of old forms of theology that would claim that God doles out blessings to some and evil to others? And that if it’s the latter, then we just have to bear our cross and suffer?

God’s laws are universal and are always—ALWAYS—in effect! Without exception!

Generally, when I’ve asked further questions of the individuals who have fallen prey to the lies of mystification, it turns out that they haven’t fully been exercising their God-given dominion and power to experience their inherent freedom.

A freedom that is universal and intact.

A freedom that can never be diminished.

A freedom that is infinitely expansive.

A freedom that is part of their very being—their true and only identity—as the manifestation, the reflection, of the presence and activity of divine Love!

Mary Baker Eddy wrote in her book No and Yes (p. 26):

God holds man in the eternal bonds of Science, — in the immutable harmony of divine law. Man is a celestial; and in the spiritual universe he is forever individual and forever harmonious.

That says it all—PERIOD!

A Happy, Joyous, and Blessed New Year to each and every one of you!

“NDEs”? No, it’s not an acronym for some secret military class of weapon!

It stands for “Near Death Experiences.” And there appears to be an abundance of books and articles written by folks who tell of their firsthand accounts of such phenomena.

Clearly, many people are interested in it.

However, we should be careful not to look to these sources as proof of eternal life or infer that they are similar to or validate the teachings of Christian Science.

Why?

Because they are frequently imbued with spiritualism, mysticism, occultism, and even some of the arguments of humanism/atheism–arguments such as all that is required is for us to love ourselves and each other, laugh a lot, and go about our lives with a human sense of fearlessness.

And that’s a problem.

Why?

Because these positions and philosophies have nothing in common with the teachings of Mary Baker Eddy—their premises and foundations being entirely different.

Yet as jeopardous as these mistaken ideas are to spiritual growth and serving God, there is still another, more subtle danger lurking and waiting to ensnare us here.

What might that be?

A fascination with death itself!

And that, my friends, is nothing less than the snare of the carnal mind seeking to impress upon our thought a false sense of a supposed “spiritual” necessity and even desirability for death as a means to open a portal to a greater understanding of spiritual life—when in fact, nothing could be further from the truth!

The result of falling into this pitfall is that we are unwittingly working against our own demonstration of the ever-presence of Life—of God—by focusing on death, which the Bible describes as the “last enemy that shall be destroyed” (First Corinthians: 15).

So, what is the proof of the omnipresence of Life? What is the validation of the teachings of Christian Science?

Well, for me it comes down to this metric: The degree to which we are accomplishing the commands of Jesus to all of his followers to “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils” (Matt. 10:8).

Commands that Mary Baker Eddy emphasized throughout her writings.

Science and Health states (p. 426):

The relinquishment of all faith in death and also of the fear of its sting would raise the standard of health and morals far beyond its present elevation, and would enable us to hold the banner of Christianity aloft with unflinching faith in God, in Life eternal.

Isn’t that where we should be focusing our thought and healing activities?

Familiarity’s a good thing, right? Well, in many cases “yes.”

But not in all!

In terms of spiritual progress, there can be a ploy of mortal mind that uses “familiarity” as a means of keeping the individual from hearing what God is actually revealing to them—the new spiritual understanding that will destroy whatever inharmonious belief has been engulfing the person’s thought, whether it’s sickness, sin, financial problems, relationships troubles, emotional upheavals, etc.

Let me make this clearer by giving you an example of what I’m talking about.

Imagine a student in a classroom who feels that they are familiar with a process or theorem that a professor is explaining in detail to them, and the student—thinking that they already know the information—tunes out what is actually being conveyed. And in the process ends up missing the very point that will shed a new and deeper understanding on the ideas!

Now, think for a moment about the number of citations from the Bible and Science and Health, as well as Mary Baker Eddy’s other writings, that you are very familiar with—perhaps which you have perfectly memorized.

It’s probably quite a few.

And now think about how often you actually grapple with those ideas to get an ongoing deeper spiritual understanding of what those words represent—of the healing power the ideas convey.

If you’re honest, you might actually be aware of a tendency to scan or gloss over some of them while reading or studying. And that tendency, my friends, is the activity of mortal mind—of the carnal mind—seeking to keep you in the mist of Genesis II.

To keep you in the dream of life and mind in matter.

A dream that has not one iota of truth or reality to it!

What to do?

Take a few moments to first pray for alertness, teachability, receptivity, revelation, and understanding. Open your thought to what God is actually revealing to you and be willing to strive to understand it and put it into practice. Those spiritual truths will no longer be relegated to the “oh-so-familiar.” You’ll be amazed how they will deepen in your thought and bring forth the fruits of healing—fruits that are the result of gaining a new understanding of the allness of God.

Fruits that God is imparting to you!

Remember, the Bible states (Rev. 21:5)

Behold, I make all things new.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Ephesians (6:11):

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

His admonition has not lost any of its urgency these two millennia later. Christians, and in particular Christian Scientists, need to be alert and awake to the necessity of arming ourselves for the battle with the carnal mind that we all face daily.

Just like any good soldier going forth to battle, we can’t afford to neglect or forget any of those spiritual armaments that we need to carry on a successful campaign.

And that includes the absolute necessity to be praying for ourselves throughout the day—to be doing Christianly-scientific defensive/protective metaphysical work.

Yet the enemy—in the form of the suggestions of mortal mind—claims otherwise. They whisper that we don’t have enough time, or it’s really not so important. Or perhaps they try to delude us into thinking that it’s a form of selfishness to pray for ourselves. It might also propose that our reading the Lesson-Sermon or studying the Bible or Mary Baker Eddy’s writing is all the defensive work we need to do.

But what did Mrs. Eddy have to say on this subject?

In an address published in her Miscellaneous Writings (“Address before the Alumni of the Massachusetts Metaphysical College, 1895”), she stated in reference to Christian Science teachers, but which also clearly applies to all Christian Scientists:

They must always have on armor, and resist the foe within and without. They cannot arm too thoroughly against original sin, appearing in its myriad forms: passion, appetites, hatred, revenge, and all the et cetera of evil. Christian Scientists cannot watch too sedulously, or bar their doors too closely, or pray to God too fervently, for deliverance from the claims of evil. Thus doing, Scientists will silence evil suggestions, uncover their methods, and stop their hidden influence upon the lives of mortals. (p. 114)

Having the spiritual weapons of our warfare always at the ready—weapons that are so needed for pulling down the strongholds of error, casting down the imaginations of mortal mind, and bringing every thought into the obedience of what God knows to be true about His creation (II Corinthians: 10) is something that we dare not neglect or forget.

Not if we expect to go forth triumphantly in our public healing work!

My Daily Lift “Taking off our sandals” was just posted today. You can hear it at:

http://christianscience.com/prayer-and-health/inspirational-media/your-daily-lift/11-14-taking-off-our-sandals

Enjoy!

What’s of no advantage? Well, the full statement from Science and Health (p. 42) reads:

The universal belief in death is of no advantage.

A couple months ago, a fellow Christian Scientist and I were talking about that very declaration, and they remarked how obvious it was—almost as if it were “Well—duh”!

But I had to ask my friend the question “Is it really obvious?

Think about it for a moment.

The vast majority of the world’s religions and philosophies, in some fashion, promote that death is actually beneficial.

That’s right—beneficial!

It’s viewed as a “spiritual” threshold that leads to eternal life—one that may bring the individual to heaven, or perhaps to higher states of consciousness or nirvana. Some New Age philosophies speak in romanticized mystical terms of our molecules returning to the cosmos to become one with universal star matter, thus supposedly fulfilling the cycles of existence.

And, haven’t we all heard people who, while trying to make sense of the passing of another, refer to them as “being in a far better place”? Or those that actively pray that their loved one will pass so they can be with God in heaven rather than wither away?

Let’s not forget the right to die movement either, as well as the views of many practitioners of material medicine and psychology who encourage people to embrace death and to make their peace with it, as if it were a friend.

Even individuals who hold no religious views, or are opposed to such positions, speak of death as being a blessing if the deceased was in pain.

The list goes on and on.

Then given the world’s thought, is it really that obvious that death is of no advantage?

Far from it.

In this light, Mary Baker Eddy’s statement was and is nothing short of revolutionary. It challenged and still challenges the prevailing thought of the carnal mind—the belief of mortality and of a material, finite existence. The utterly false belief that we are separated from omnipresent God—separated from the spiritual fact and reality that Life is presently eternal!

So, before we relegate any of the statements in that most remarkable and life-transforming and saving of books, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, to just being obvious—an impulse, by the way that could not be from God—shouldn’t we instead be recognizing the priceless import of those spiritual ideas?

Ideas whose power enables us—moment-by-moment—to love God and to heal others as well as ourselves.

Ideas whose purpose is to save humanity!