OVER nineteen centuries ago there was born into the world one whose coming was heralded by "the angel of the Lord" in the sweetest language that has ever reached mankind. The "shepherds abiding in the fields" by night heard the message; and even to-day, with all those many hundreds of years between, it is still resounding among all who are longing for its fulfillment. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." What a lofty refrain! But when, it is asked by many, will the Christ, Truth, come to be known in its fullness and so insure the perpetual reign of good will and peace among men?
The desire for peace on earth has, perhaps, never been more pronounced than at the present day. Satiated with the shedding of blood, weary of disputing, groaning under the oppressive burdens of armaments, the majority of the nations are turning toward each other with kindlier eye, seeking each other's counsel in order to find a way of easing the heavy loads their peoples are bearing, and to level a path into a more harmonious world where peace shall be firmly established and assured to each and all. There can be no question of the desire for peace among those who have awakened to the utter futility of the methods of brute force as a means of bringing lasting security to any nation, and who have glimpsed the truth that only through an idealism based on divine Principle can this aim ever be attained.
Now, if the situation be analyzed, it will be found that the reason why agreement is not more general is because among those striving after concord there is lacking a knowledge of universal Principle. The Principle of peace is to be found everywhere; but men do not realize this, and are unable to put it into practice, owing to the fact that they do not possess an understanding, clear and denned, of Principle itself. On page 278 of her book "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany," Mary Baker Eddy states the nature of Principle, the result of its application, and shows how the opposite of Principle is valueless in the cause of peace. "Peace is the promise and reward of rightness," she writes. And again: "The Principle of all power is God, and God is Love. Whatever brings into human thought or action an element opposed to Love, is never requisite, never a necessity, and is not sanctioned by the law of God, the law of Love." Mrs. Eddy throughout all of her writings uses the word Principle as a synonym for God, just as she uses the word Love. She insists continually in her exposition of Christian Science that Principle is infinite, unlimited, omnipotent; and concludes that, this being so, nothing real exists outside of Principle. Thus in Christian Science God is maintained to be a complete and perfect unity, expressing Himself in spiritual creation, which like its divine Principle is also perfect and complete.
