On page 40 of the Manual of The Mother Church, its author, Mary Baker Eddy, says, "In Science, divine Love alone governs man." The real man, spiritual man, then, is never governed, controlled, influenced, or swayed by human passions such as anger, hatred, resentment, revenge, jealousy, envy, or fear. Man, God's perfect likeness, is never, even temporarily, ruled by any of the unloving and unlovely traits, characteristics, or beliefs of the human mind which seem frequently to dominate the thinking and consequently the actions of mortals. Knowledge of this fact helps one to prove that he can be immune from these evil influences to a very great degree even in human experience.
Let us consider fear and hate — kindred evils which often go hand in hand. Fear cannot remain in the consciousness of one who realizes that divine Love governs man, and that he is, in his real being, no other than God's perfect expression or reflection. "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear," says the Apostle John. In other words, the knowledge that there is no element of fear in Love, the only creative and governing power, casts out of human consciousness the belief that fear is real or is present. Hatred, with its evil train of resentment, revenge, and retaliation, gives way before the spiritual understanding that Love governs man fully and at all times, and that in the realm of reality hatred has no place. Mrs. Eddy says in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 454) : "Human hate has no legitimate mandate and no kingdom. Love is enthroned."
Christian Science teaches that in the absolute sense Love and Truth are the same. Therefore, since it is true that "Love alone governs man," it must also be a fact that man in God's likeness is governed by Truth. For this reason it is apparent that man is not and never was controlled by deceit, dishonesty, insincerity, or any of the similar beliefs of mortal mind which so frequently seem to influence the actions of those who do not as yet fully realize that the only governing power is absolute, invariable Truth, or divine Principle. Students of Christian Science, having perceived this to be a fact, are gradually freeing themselves from the belief that even in human experience there is any need of or excuse for dishonesty or deception. They are also seeing more clearly, as they advance in the understanding of Christian Science, that they cannot be deceived into accepting as real any lie of the material senses about themselves or their neighbors. Furthermore, they are learning that the truth about man and the universe cannot be perceived through the material senses, because, as Paul said, the things of God "are spiritually discerned."
