THERE probably never was a A time in the history of the world when the reign of peace and good will among men was so earnestly desired and so confidently looked for as it is today. Many are expecting to see universal peace established upon the earth in the near future,and all admit that such a state of things is preeminently desirable;and yet,what with industrial and political strife at home,wars and rumors of wars abroad,to many others the golden age of peace seems as far off as ever. What,then,is the basis of man's unity with man? How is he to live in harmony with his friends,his neighbors,his fellow workers,the people with whom he comes in contact every day? This is the problem which confronts every one,and when it is successfully and universally solved the peace of the world will be attained.
In her letter to the church in Denver,on page 152 of "Miscellaneous Writings," Mrs. Eddy says: " 'As in water face answereth to face,'and in love continents clasp hands,so the oneness of God includes also His presence with those whose hearts unite in the purposes of goodness." Man's unity with man,then,depends upon his unity with God,good. We really meet each other only when our hearts are fixed on good. In order to attain and maintain this much needed sense of unity,we must gain a practical understanding of the omnipresence of God,good,and Christian Science has come to teach us how to gain that abiding consciousness of God's presence which,when it is fully realized, will be the kingdom of heaven within.
Christian Science begins by explaining that God is Spirit; that is, infinite,eternal,universal Mind or intelligence,altogether pure and perfect,eternally manifesting itself in ideas which are as pure and perfect as the Mind from which they spring and within which they dwell. Thus the omnipresence of divine Mind includes the omnipresence of all the ideas which express and reveal Mind, that is,of all true ideas,all true knowledge. All right,true thoughts emanate from God; thus when we are thinking right thoughts we are reflecting God's thought,reflecting the divine Mind,and have the actual consciousness of God's presence which enables us to see the unreality of evil in every form. These true ideas are indeed "God with us," for God is known through ideas which are His image and likeness. In Science and Health we read: "Mind creates His own likeness in ideas" (p.257). So,whenever we feel ourselves separated from God, it is because we are thinking wrong thoughts of some kind—belief in evil is shutting out the sense of God's presence. We cannot be conscious of the presence of God if thought is filled with the sense of fear,worry,anxiety, discouragement,condemnation of self or of others,resentment,injury,disappointment,jealousy,selfishness,ingratitude, criticism, self-pity,and so forth. Such thoughts darken the whole mental horizon,and then we feel far indeed from God and Truth.
