HOW vital is light, both spiritually and materially, for without it we stumble in darkness! According to Christian Science, light, or spiritual understanding, penetrates all space. Mrs. Eddy writes in Science and Health (p. 503), "Divine Science, the Word of God, saith to the darkness upon the face of error, 'God is All-in-all.' and the light of ever-present Love illumines the universe."
I once listened to an interesting radio talk by an aged pioneer woman of Australia, who described the hardships and difficulties of the early settlers in her land. She said that their first lighting facilities consisted of slush lamps, which were jam tins half filled with earth and melted fat, with a rough wick in the center. As stock production increased and fat became more plentiful, crude tallow candles were molded; these later gave place to gaslight and finally to the bright glow of electricity. As the woman spoke, I realized that each of these means of illumination in its turn must have given comfort; the first two especially, must have allayed to some extent the settlers' fear of the wild, unexplored country and of the often hostile natives.
In her writings Mrs. Eddy frequently stresses the importance of spiritual light. She says (ibid., p. 557), "Divine Science rolls back the clouds of error with the light of Truth, and lifts the curtain on man as never born and as never dying, but as coexistent with his creator." Spiritual light is revelation, dissolving the dark shadows of mortal fear and doubt, enabling us to see the beauty and holiness of man as God's reflection, "as never born and as never dying," unfettered and free from all discord.
