IT has been sagely said by Emerson that "we must be as courteous to a man as to a picture which we are willing to give the benefit of a good light." We have only to observe our thoughts and words for a short time in order to see how seldom this just consideration is shown our fellow man. We may quickly discern how frequently we give him a poorer light mentally than we do materially the commonest picture that hangs on our walls.
What is the light in which we are to view our brother, and how are we to gain it? It is well to ponder these pertinent questions and impartially to analyze the light in which we are seeing another. When thought is shadowed by prejudice, pride, fear, anger, resentment, sensitiveness, and the like, we ourselves, to a greater or less degree, are in mental darkness, and because of this we may be attributing evil motives to another. This wrong judgment of motives often leads to a mistaken interpretation of actions, whereas a right understanding of motives might give the act an entirely different aspect. It is often, therefore, neither the motive nor the act, but the light in which both are seen, that is at fault.
How essential it is, then, that our mental vision be clarified! No mist of unrighteous judgment, of careless or cruel criticism, should dim the outlook; no cloud of rivalry, jealousy, envy, or covetousness should darken the atmosphere; no tempest of malice, retaliation, revenge, or hatred should rage, or these satanic attributes may hide from us many lovable and noble qualities possessed by our brother, so that as a result of our own defective mental vision we see not the real man, but a false concept of him. If from a distorted or befogged view-point we see man sick, sinning, and mortal, we are consenting in our thought to a creature whom God did not create, for whom He is not responsible, and of whom He has no knowledge. Thus we are virtually admitting the existence of a creator or god other than the only true God. Surely we cannot know more and see more than the all-knowing, all-seeing God, who is "of purer eyes than to behold evil." To see man in a good light, which is the only true light, does not mean ignoring evil, nor does it hinder the correct discernment of the false claims of evil. Indeed, only the light of infinite intelligence and divine Love can properly reveal the subtle and plausible pretenses of evil, disclose its illegitimate operations, and destroy the belief in its presence, power, and personality.
