Those who consider the material universe, so called, with all that it contains, its systems of arrangement, the sequence of specific forms, and the natural law and order which they apparently follow, are sometimes persuaded to believe they see in it the handiwork of God, as its purposive cause, and therefore something virtually to be worshiped. When they contemplate the beauties of the earth, the succession of the seasons, the fruits and the flowers, the exquisite snowflake or ice crystal, the loveliness of day and night, of sea and mountain, they are pressed with questionings concerning the source of the grandeur, the usefulness, the marvels, which lie beyond their own powers to produce or perhaps to control. In some such moment of wondering reverence, the Psalmist inquired of God, "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?"
Christ Jesus, having more understanding than the Psalmist, though he bade his listeners "consider the lilies of the field, how they grow," that they might learn the lesson of God's care for all, yet said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." And he also said, "The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." From these and other sayings we may deduce that Jesus, who so truly appreciated the order, beauty, and utility of nature, and drew from the flowers and the fields illustrations of the truths he taught, recognized in them types of the true nature, which is wholly immaterial, substantial, and permanent, emanating from creative intelligence, and controlled by spiritual law.
Christian Science, based on Jesus' teachings, makes clear the distinction between so-called physical nature and spiritual nature, which is the expression of Mind, God. Nature, as the handiwork of Spirit, is not expressed as matter. Spirit is expressed only in spiritual forms and ideas. Therefore, to regard physical nature as the creation of God is to mistake the nature of the real universe, and to assume that creation can be both material and spiritual. Mary Baker Eddy, in an article entitled "Scientific Theism" in "Miscellaneous Writings," refers to "divine Science, which combines in logical sequence, nature, reason, and revelation" (p. 217); and in the next paragraph she goes on to say: "The fallacy of an unscientific statement is this: that matter and Spirit are one and eternal; or, that the phenomenon of Spirit is the antipode of Spirit, namely, matter. Nature declares, throughout the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, that the specific nature of all things is unchanged, and that nature is constituted of and by Spirit."
