THE understanding that God, good, is All, that He created man in His own likeness, that He gave him dominion over all the earth and governs him continually, makes it possible for each one to prove that evil's claim to dominate is without divine authority. Mary Baker Eddy writes in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 569), "Every mortal at some period, here or hereafter, must grapple with and overcome the mortal belief in a power opposed to God." It is encouraging to note that one is not obliged to grapple with and overcome a power opposed to God, but only one's belief in it.
Regardless of how much importance or might one may in his belief bestow upon evil, it never becomes real or attains any power or significance. Evil remains simply an illusion of false, material sense. Only that which has its source in God, perfect Mind, and is completely beneficial to man has law, power, and reality.
We need to be watchful that we do not personalize evil, that we do not resent or fear persons or organizations which appear to us to have wicked motives. For us to do so would be to attribute identity and causation to evil and would tend to make us susceptible to its attempted aggressions.
