FREQUENTLY the beginner experiences difficulty in grasping the rudiments of a science or art he may essay to study or master, and as often he may pass hasty judgment upon both the subject and its adepts. He is apt to conclude that because he does not at once acquire proficiency, therefore the subject is either for the chosen few who are especially gifted in that direction, or that he is unusually dense. He could scarcely make more serious mistakes. If he will examine his attitude he will usually discover that the cause of his primary difficulty in apprehension is his own prejudice, or his acceptance of the opinions of shirkers; that his non-advancement is because of discouragement: due to lack of application or to comparison with more rapidly advancing students, and that these and kindred obstacles are directly or indirectly the result of wrong intention. With the right intention nothing can prevent the attainment of some measure of success. It is incumbent upon each to strive, and to make minor successes incentives to further triumph.
The truth of the above statements is well but negatively illustrated by the experience of a young man whose case came under the writer's observation. In early childhood, even prior to his going to school, this young man had the thought deeply instilled into his consciousness that a striking characteristic of the family was lack of mathematical ability, and that, therefore, even at the best he must expect great difficulty and very imperfect success. On his mathematical tree this belief bore its bitter fruits untouched by the sunny smile of approval. Six years after having left school, where arithmetic, algebra, and geometry had been the triple bane of his studies, he decided to enter college. He had acquired, as a sort of legacy from his school days, a dread of trigonometry, which his schoolmates had declared to be particularly difficult, but which he then knew only by name. He was afraid, and often expressed the fear, that when its turn came in the course he would fail. He did; so that this failure necessitated his taking the subject over again with a junior class, and he thus missed a favorite study which was scheduled for the same hour. The success which crowned his second effort taught him that his former failure was not due to the difficulty of the mathematical branches, but mainly to his belief in their difficulty, a belief founded upon wrong premises. He saw that in every instance where he had mastered the fundamentals and had worked in accordance with the basic laws of the study, he had attained not only a greater measure of success than he had himself hoped, but a triumph far beyond the most sanguine predictions of his trembling relatives. Thus he learned that with a clear perception and consistent application of the rules, nothing can hinder advancement in any science or art. Consistent application, however, presupposes clear perception of the fundamentals, and this clear perception presupposes absence of prejudice, doubt, fear, and their kin. In their stead must be confidence and right intention. Success or failure is, therefore, within the student's grasp in any line of endeavor. His decision can affect no one more than himself. His failure alters or influences the truth or practicality of the subject not a particle; while his success helps not only himself but every one who learns of even his slightest victory.
As in the study of mathematics, so in that of Christian Science the inquirer or student must approach the subject honestly, fearlessly, and thought-free. He must be willing to examine first the fundamentals, just as in arithmetic he must learn the numeration table before he can do effective addition. Having gained this, application is the next step. Wrong application never has and never can produce right results, and such does not impair the verity of science so misapplied. The only just judgment that can be passed upon work so done is that it is nugatory. The basic law and rule must be adhered to in order to prove any proposition, and each individual must work the problem himself in order to understand it. Understanding and proof are indispensable.
