Moses, the great Hebrew Lawgiver, was aware that error would probably attempt to absorb the seekers after the one God in the heathen nation with which they were to dwell. Realizing the distinction which must be made between spiritual worship and material idolatry, he told the children of Israel (Deut. 14:2), "The Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people."
Except in informal usage, the word peculiar means special or distinctive, rather than queer. The derivation of the Hebrew word which has been translated "peculiar" in the above quotation signifies wealth and, consequently, good or special. Considered in the light of Christian Science, which teaches the glorious status of man in God's likeness and the unlimited abundance of the good which He is ever bestowing upon all His children, this Biblical sense of the word peculiar is particularly inspiring. Is there anyone who would wittingly ignore a heritage of wealth and freedom? Or one who would not desire to be led out of bondage to distressing conditions? Christian Science is showing men how to claim their immunity from all evil and to enjoy healthier, happier, and more useful lives.
Mortal sense falsely claims that man is a limited being, subject to the conflicts and limitations of many minds. Actually, man is idea, not physique. He possesses all good; and he is never out of his right place, where he reflects freedom of thought and action. The Old Testament prophets sensed these truths, and Christ Jesus fully demonstrated them. It remained for our Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, to give to the world the absolute Science of being and infallible rules for conquering the errors of human bondage. She tells us in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 367): "A Christian Scientist occupies the place at this period of which Jesus spoke to his disciples, when he said: 'Ye are the salt of the earth.' 'Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.' Let us watch, work, and pray that this salt, lose not its saltness, and that this light be not hid, but radiate and glow into noontide glory."
