The Apostle Paul, in his epistle to the Colossians (3:2), thus exhorted his fellow Christians: "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." The great Apostle of the Gentiles had learned from his own wide experience that the only lasting happiness on earth is found in "the fruit of the Spirit," which he defined as "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith," and against which, he said, "there is no law" (Gal. 5:22, 23). So important was this question of feeding the spiritual affections to the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy, that she made it a duty of every member of The Mother Church to pray daily not only for himself, but for the whole human race, that the affections of all mankind may be enriched and God-governed (Manual of The Mother Church, Art. VIII, Sect. 4). Again, in her spiritual interpretation of the Lord's Prayer, on pages 16 and 17 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mrs. Eddy gives the true meaning of the line, "Give us this day our daily bread," as "Give us grace for to-day; feed the famished affections."
As commonly used, the word affection implies a strong and tender attachment to something or someone, but this definition does not of itself indicate whether the affections are set on the things of the Spirit or the things of the earth. For example, one may say: "I have a deep affection for my church, for in it I meet congenial people. I enjoy the congregational singing, the Sunday services and Wednesday testimony meetings, but I do not care to study alone, for that kind of self-discipline tires me." Another may say, "I love to read the Bible Lessons from the Christian Science Quarterly at home, where I can commune quietly with infinite Mind, but I greatly dislike being with a crowd of people, where my thoughts are distracted from the truth with which I so much desire to become better acquainted."
Each of these opposite points of view is incomplete, because in neither case have the affections been wholly detached from things on the earth. Both attitudes have been influenced by personal tastes and preferences. Our Leader has provided for both public worship and individual study, and each of these aids to spiritual growth needs to be appreciated.
