Chapter II - Atonement And Eucharist
Help and hindrance
28:1
The Pharisees claimed to know and to teach the di-
The Pharisees claimed to know and to teach the di-
vine will, but they only hindered the success of Jesus'
mission. Even many of his students stood
in his way. If the Master had not taken a
student and taught the unseen verities of God, he would
not have been crucified. The determination to hold Spirit
in the grasp of matter is the persecutor of Truth and
Love.
28:9
While respecting all that is good in the Church or out
While respecting all that is good in the Church or out
of it, one's consecration to Christ is more on the ground
of demonstration than of profession. In conscience, we
cannot hold to beliefs outgrown; and by understanding
more of the divine Principle of the deathless Christ, we
are enabled to heal the sick and to triumph over sin.
Misleading conceptions
28:15
Neither the origin, the character, nor the work of
Neither the origin, the character, nor the work of
Jesus was generally understood. Not a single compo-
nent part of his nature did the material
world measure aright. Even his righteous-
ness and purity did not hinder men from saying: He
is a glutton and a friend of the impure, and Beelzebub is
his patron.
Persecution prolonged
28:22
Remember, thou Christian martyr, it is enough if
Remember, thou Christian martyr, it is enough if
thou art found worthy to unloose the sandals of thy
Master's feet! To suppose that persecution
for righteousness' sake belongs to the past,
and that Christianity to-day is at peace with the world
because it is honored by sects and societies, is to mis-
take the very nature of religion. Error repeats itself.
The trials encountered by prophet, disciple, and apostle,
"of whom the world was not worthy," await, in some
form, every pioneer of truth.
Christian warfare
28:32
There is too much animal courage in society and not
There is too much animal courage in society and not
29:1
sufficient moral courage. Christians must take up arms
sufficient moral courage. Christians must take up arms
against error at home and abroad. They must grapple
with sin in themselves and in others, and
continue this warfare until they have finished
their course. If they keep the faith, they will have the
crown of rejoicing.
29:7
Christian experience teaches faith in the right and dis-
Christian experience teaches faith in the right and dis-
belief in the wrong. It bids us work the more earnestly
in times of persecution, because then our labor is more
needed. Great is the reward of self-sacrifice, though we
may never receive it in this world.
The Fatherhood of God
29:12
There is a tradition that Publius Lentulus wrote to
There is a tradition that Publius Lentulus wrote to
the authorities at Rome: "The disciples of Jesus be-
lieve him the Son of God." Those instructed
in Christian Science have reached the glori-
ous perception that God is the only author of man.
The Virgin-mother conceived this idea of God, and
gave to her ideal the name of Jesus – that is, Joshua,
or Saviour.
Spiritual conception
29:20
The illumination of Mary's spiritual sense put to
The illumination of Mary's spiritual sense put to
silence material law and its order of generation, and
brought forth her child by the revelation of
Truth, demonstrating God as the Father of
men. The Holy Ghost, or divine Spirit, overshadowed
the pure sense of the Virgin-mother with the full recog-
nition that being is Spirit. The Christ dwelt forever
an idea in the bosom of God, the divine Principle of the
man Jesus, and woman perceived this spiritual idea,
though at first faintly developed.
29:30
Man as the offspring of God, as the idea of Spirit,
Man as the offspring of God, as the idea of Spirit,
is the immortal evidence that Spirit is harmonious and
man eternal. Jesus was the offspring of Mary's self‑
30:1
conscious communion with God. Hence he could give
conscious communion with God. Hence he could give
a more spiritual idea of life than other men, and could
demonstrate the Science of Love – his Father or divine
Principle.
Jesus the way-shower
30:5
Born of a woman, Jesus' advent in the flesh partook
Born of a woman, Jesus' advent in the flesh partook
partly of Mary's earthly condition, although he was en-
dowed with the Christ, the divine Spirit, with-
out measure. This accounts for his struggles
in Gethsemane and on Calvary, and this enabled him to
be the mediator, or way-shower, between God and men.
Had his origin and birth been wholly apart from mortal
usage, Jesus would not have been appreciable to mortal
mind as "the way."
30:14
Rabbi and priest taught the Mosaic law, which said:
Rabbi and priest taught the Mosaic law, which said:
"An eye for an eye," and "Whoso sheddeth man's blood,
by man shall his blood be shed." Not so did Jesus, the
new executor for God, present the divine law of Love,
which blesses even those that curse it.
Rebukes helpful
30:19
As the individual ideal of Truth, Christ Jesus came to
As the individual ideal of Truth, Christ Jesus came to
rebuke rabbinical error and all sin, sickness, and death, –
to point out the way of Truth and Life. This
ideal was demonstrated throughout the whole
earthly career of Jesus, showing the difference between
the offspring of Soul and of material sense, of Truth and
of error.
30:26
If we have triumphed sufficiently over the errors of
If we have triumphed sufficiently over the errors of
material sense to allow Soul to hold the control, we
shall loathe sin and rebuke it under every mask. Only
in this way can we bless our enemies, though they
may not so construe our words. We cannot choose for
ourselves, but must work out our salvation in the way
Jesus taught. In meekness and might, he was found
31:1
preaching the gospel to the poor. Pride and fear are unfit
preaching the gospel to the poor. Pride and fear are unfit
to bear the standard of Truth, and God will never place
it in such hands.
Fleshly ties temporal
31:4
Jesus acknowledged no ties of the flesh. He said: "Call
Jesus acknowledged no ties of the flesh. He said: "Call
no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father,
which is in heaven." Again he asked: "Who
is my mother, and who are my brethren," im-
plying that it is they who do the will of his Father. We
have no record of his calling any man by the name of
father. He recognized Spirit, God, as the only creator, and
therefore as the Father of all.
Healing primary
31:12
First in the list of Christian duties, he taught his fol-
First in the list of Christian duties, he taught his fol-
lowers the healing power of Truth and Love. He attached
no importance to dead ceremonies. It is the
living Christ, the practical Truth, which makes
Jesus "the resurrection and the life" to all who follow him
in deed. Obeying his precious precepts, – following his
demonstration so far as we apprehend it, – we drink of
his cup, partake of his bread, are baptized with his pu-
rity; and at last we shall rest, sit down with him, in a full
understanding of the divine Principle which triumphs
over death. For what says Paul? "As often as ye eat
this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's
death till he come."
Painful prospect
31:25
Referring to the materiality of the age, Jesus said:
Referring to the materiality of the age, Jesus said:
"The hour cometh, and now is, when the true wor-
shippers shall worship the Father in spirit
and in truth." Again, foreseeing the perse-
cution which would attend the Science of Spirit, Jesus
said: "They shall put you out of the synagogues; yea,
the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think
that he doeth God service; and these things will they
32:1
do unto you, because they have not known the Father
do unto you, because they have not known the Father
nor me."
Sacred sacrament
32:3
In ancient Rome a soldier was required to swear
In ancient Rome a soldier was required to swear
allegiance to his general. The Latin word for this oath
was sacramentum, and our English word
sacrament is derived from it. Among the
Jews it was an ancient custom for the master of a
feast to pass each guest a cup of wine. But the
Eucharist does not commemorate a Roman soldier's
oath, nor was the wine, used on convivial occasions and
in Jewish rites, the cup of our Lord. The cup shows
forth his bitter experience, – the cup which he prayed
might pass from him, though he bowed in holy submis-
sion to the divine decree.
32:15
"As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed
"As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed
it and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said,
Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and
gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, Drink ye all
of it."
Spiritual refreshment
32:20
The true sense is spiritually lost, if the sacrament is
The true sense is spiritually lost, if the sacrament is
confined to the use of bread and wine. The disciples
had eaten, yet Jesus prayed and gave them
bread. This would have been foolish in a
literal sense; but in its spiritual signification, it was nat-
ural and beautiful. Jesus prayed; he withdrew from the
material senses to refresh his heart with brighter, with
spiritual views.
Jesus' sad repast
32:28
The Passover, which Jesus ate with his disciples in
The Passover, which Jesus ate with his disciples in
the month Nisan on the night before his crucifixion,
was a mournful occasion, a sad supper taken
at the close of day, in the twilight of a
glorious career with shadows fast falling around; and
33:1
this supper closed forever Jesus' ritualism or concessions
this supper closed forever Jesus' ritualism or concessions
to matter.
Heavenly supplies
33:3
His followers, sorrowful and silent, anticipating the hour
His followers, sorrowful and silent, anticipating the hour
of their Master's betrayal, partook of the heavenly manna,
which of old had fed in the wilderness the
persecuted followers of Truth. Their bread
indeed came down from heaven. It was the great truth
of spiritual being, healing the sick and casting out error.
Their Master had explained it all before, and now this
bread was feeding and sustaining them. They had borne
this bread from house to house, breaking (explaining) it to
others, and now it comforted themselves.
33:13
For this truth of spiritual being, their Master was about
For this truth of spiritual being, their Master was about
to suffer violence and drain to the dregs his cup of sorrow.
He must leave them. With the great glory of an everlast-
ing victory overshadowing him, he gave thanks and said,
"Drink ye all of it."
The holy struggle
33:18
When the human element in him struggled with the
When the human element in him struggled with the
divine, our great Teacher said: "Not my will, but
Thine, be done!" – that is, Let not the flesh,
but the Spirit, be represented in me. This
is the new understanding of spiritual Love. It gives all
for Christ, or Truth. It blesses its enemies, heals the
sick, casts out error, raises the dead from trespasses
and sins, and preaches the gospel to the poor, the meek
in heart.
Incisive questions
33:27
Christians, are you drinking his cup? Have you
Christians, are you drinking his cup? Have you
shared the blood of the New Covenant, the persecutions
which attend a new and higher understand-
ing of God? If not, can you then say that
you have commemorated Jesus in his cup? Are all
who eat bread and drink wine in memory of Jesus willing
34:1
truly to drink his cup, take his cross, and leave all for
truly to drink his cup, take his cross, and leave all for
the Christ-principle? Then why ascribe this inspira-
tion to a dead rite, instead of showing, by casting out
error and making the body "holy, acceptable unto God,"
that Truth has come to the understanding? If Christ,
Truth, has come to us in demonstration, no other com-
memoration is requisite, for demonstration is Immanuel,
or God with us; and if a friend be with us, why need we
memorials of that friend?
Millennial glory
34:10
If all who ever partook of the sacrament had really
If all who ever partook of the sacrament had really
commemorated the sufferings of Jesus and drunk of
his cup, they would have revolutionized the
world. If all who seek his commemoration
through material symbols will take up the cross, heal
the sick, cast out evils, and preach Christ, or Truth,
to the poor, – the receptive thought, – they will bring
in the millennium.
Fellowship with Christ
34:18
Through all the disciples experienced, they became more
Through all the disciples experienced, they became more
spiritual and understood better what the Master had
taught. His resurrection was also their resur-
rection. It helped them to raise themselves and
others from spiritual dulness and blind belief in God into
the perception of infinite possibilities. They needed this
quickening, for soon their dear Master would rise again
in the spiritual realm of reality, and ascend far above
their apprehension. As the reward for his faithfulness,
he would disappear to material sense in that change which
has since been called the ascension.
The last breakfast
34:29
What a contrast between our Lord's last supper and
What a contrast between our Lord's last supper and
his last spiritual breakfast with his disciples
in the bright morning hours at the joyful
meeting on the shore of the Galilean Sea! His gloom
35:1
had passed into glory, and His disciples' grief into repent-
had passed into glory, and His disciples' grief into repent-
ance, – hearts chastened and pride rebuked. Convinced
of the fruitlessness of their toil in the dark and wakened
by their Master's voice, they changed their methods, turned
away from material things, and cast their net on the right
side. Discerning Christ, Truth, anew on the shore of
time, they were enabled to rise somewhat from mortal
sensuousness, or the burial of mind in matter, into new-
ness of life as Spirit.
35:10
This spiritual meeting with our Lord in the dawn of a
This spiritual meeting with our Lord in the dawn of a
new light is the morning meal which Christian Scientists
commemorate. They bow before Christ, Truth, to re-
ceive more of his reappearing and silently to commune
with the divine Principle, Love. They celebrate their
Lord's victory over death, his probation in the flesh
after death, its exemplification of human probation, and
his spiritual and final ascension above matter, or the flesh,
when he rose out of material sight.
Spiritual Eucharist
35:19
Our baptism is a purification from all error. Our
Our baptism is a purification from all error. Our
church is built on the divine Principle, Love. We can
unite with this church only as we are new‑
born of Spirit, as we reach the Life which
is Truth and the Truth which is Life by bringing forth
the fruits of Love, – casting out error and healing the
sick. Our Eucharist is spiritual communion with the one
God. Our bread, "which cometh down from heaven,"
is Truth. Our cup is the cross. Our wine the inspira-
tion of Love, the draught our Master drank and com-
mended to his followers.
Final purpose
35:30
The design of Love is to reform the sinner. If the
The design of Love is to reform the sinner. If the
sinner's punishment here has been insufficient to re-
form him, the good man's heaven would be a hell to
36:1
the sinner. They, who know not purity and affection by
the sinner. They, who know not purity and affection by
experience, can never find bliss in the blessed company of
Truth and Love simply through translation
into another sphere. Divine Science reveals
the necessity of sufficient suffering, either before or after
death, to quench the love of sin. To remit the penalty
due for sin, would be for Truth to pardon error. Escape
from punishment is not in accordance with God's govern-
ment, since justice is the handmaid of mercy.
36:10
Jesus endured the shame, that he might pour his
Jesus endured the shame, that he might pour his
dear-bought bounty into barren lives. What was his
earthly reward? He was forsaken by all save John,
the beloved disciple, and a few women who bowed in
silent woe beneath the shadow of his cross. The earthly
price of spirituality in a material age and the great moral
distance between Christianity and sensualism preclude
Christian Science from finding favor with the worldly-
minded.
Righteous retribution
36:19
A selfish and limited mind may be unjust, but the un-
A selfish and limited mind may be unjust, but the un-
limited and divine Mind is the immortal law of justice as
well as of mercy. It is quite as impossible for
sinners to receive their full punishment this
side of the grave as for this world to bestow on the right-
eous their full reward. It is useless to suppose that the
wicked can gloat over their offences to the last moment
and then be suddenly pardoned and pushed into heaven,
or that the hand of Love is satisfied with giving us only
toil, sacrifice, cross-bearing, multiplied trials, and mock-
ery of our motives in return for our efforts at well doing.
Vicarious suffering
36:30
Religious history repeats itself in the suf-
Religious history repeats itself in the suf-
fering of the just for the unjust. Can God
therefore overlook the law of righteousness which de-
37:1
stroys the belief called sin? Does not Science show that
stroys the belief called sin? Does not Science show that
sin brings suffering as much to-day as yesterday? They
who sin must suffer. "With what measure ye mete, it
shall be measured to you again."
Martyrs inevitable
37:5
History is full of records of suffering. "The blood of
History is full of records of suffering. "The blood of
the martyrs is the seed of the Church." Mortals try in
vain to slay Truth with the steel or the stake,
but error falls only before the sword of Spirit.
Martyrs are the human links which connect one stage with
another in the history of religion. They are earth's lumi-
naries, which serve to cleanse and rarefy the atmosphere of
material sense and to permeate humanity with purer ideals.
Consciousness of right-doing brings its own reward; but
not amid the smoke of battle is merit seen and appreciated
by lookers-on.
Complete emulation
37:16
When will Jesus' professed followers learn to emulate
When will Jesus' professed followers learn to emulate
him in all his ways and to imitate his mighty works?
Those who procured the martyrdom of that
righteous man would gladly have turned his
sacred career into a mutilated doctrinal platform. May
the Christians of to-day take up the more practical im-
port of that career! It is possible, – yea, it is the duty
and privilege of every child, man, and woman, – to follow
in some degree the example of the Master by the demon-
stration of Truth and Life, of health and holiness. Chris-
tians claim to be his followers, but do they follow him in
the way that he commanded? Hear these imperative com-
mands: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father
which is in heaven is perfect!" "Go ye into all the world,
and preach the gospel to every creature!" "Heal the
sick!"
Jesus' teaching belittled
37:32
Why has this Christian demand so little inspiration
Why has this Christian demand so little inspiration
38:1
to stir mankind to Christian effort? Because men are
to stir mankind to Christian effort? Because men are
assured that this command was intended only for a par-
ticular period and for a select number of fol-
lowers. This teaching is even more pernicious
than the old doctrine of foreordination, – the election of a
few to be saved, while the rest are damned; and so it will
be considered, when the lethargy of mortals, produced
by man-made doctrines, is broken by the demands of
divine Science.
38:10
Jesus said: "These signs shall follow them that be-
Jesus said: "These signs shall follow them that be-
lieve; . . . they shall lay hands on the sick, and they
shall recover." Who believes him? He was addressing
his disciples, yet he did not say, "These signs shall follow
you," but them – "them that believe" in all time to come.
Here the word hands is used metaphorically, as in the text,
"The right hand of the Lord is exalted." It expresses
spiritual power; otherwise the healing could not have
been done spiritually. At another time Jesus prayed, not
for the twelve only, but for as many as should believe
"through their word."
Material pleasures
38:21
Jesus experienced few of the pleasures of the physical
Jesus experienced few of the pleasures of the physical
senses, but his sufferings were the fruits of other peo-
ple's sins, not of his own. The eternal Christ,
his spiritual selfhood, never suffered. Jesus
mapped out the path for others. He unveiled the Christ,
the spiritual idea of divine Love. To those buried in the
belief of sin and self, living only for pleasure or the grati-
fication of the senses, he said in substance: Having eyes
ye see not, and having ears ye hear not; lest ye should un-
derstand and be converted, and I might heal you. He
taught that the material senses shut out Truth and its
healing power.
Mockery of truth
39:1
Meekly our Master met the mockery of his unrecog-
Meekly our Master met the mockery of his unrecog-
nized grandeur. Such indignities as he received, his fol-
lowers will endure until Christianity's last
triumph. He won eternal honors. He over-
came the world, the flesh, and all error, thus proving
their nothingness. He wrought a full salvation from sin,
sickness, and death. We need "Christ, and him cruci-
fied." We must have trials and self-denials, as well as
joys and victories, until all error is destroyed.
A belief suicidal
39:10
The educated belief that Soul is in the body causes
The educated belief that Soul is in the body causes
mortals to regard death as a friend, as a stepping-stone
out of mortality into immortality and bliss.
The Bible calls death an enemy, and Jesus
overcame death and the grave instead of yielding to them.
He was "the way." To him, therefore, death was not
the threshold over which he must pass into living
glory.
Present salvation
39:18
"Now," cried the apostle, "is the accepted time; be-
"Now," cried the apostle, "is the accepted time; be-
hold, now is the day of salvation," – meaning, not that
now men must prepare for a future-world salva-
tion, or safety, but that now is the time in which
to experience that salvation in spirit and in life. Now is
the time for so-called material pains and material pleas-
ures to pass away, for both are unreal, because impossible
in Science. To break this earthly spell, mortals must get
the true idea and divine Principle of all that really exists
and governs the universe harmoniously. This thought is
apprehended slowly, and the interval before its attain-
ment is attended with doubts and defeats as well as
triumphs.
Sin and penalty
39:31
Who will stop the practice of sin so long as he believes
Who will stop the practice of sin so long as he believes
in the pleasures of sin? When mortals once admit that
40:1
evil confers no pleasure, they turn from it. Remove error
evil confers no pleasure, they turn from it. Remove error
from thought, and it will not appear in effect. The ad-
vanced thinker and devout Christian, perceiv-
ing the scope and tendency of Christian healing
and its Science, will support them. Another will say:
"Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient
season I will call for thee."
40:8
Divine Science adjusts the balance as Jesus adjusted
Divine Science adjusts the balance as Jesus adjusted
it. Science removes the penalty only by first removing
the sin which incurs the penalty. This is my sense of
divine pardon, which I understand to mean God's method
of destroying sin. If the saying is true, "While there's
life there's hope," its opposite is also true, While there's
sin there's doom. Another's suffering cannot lessen our
own liability. Did the martyrdom of Savonarola make
the crimes of his implacable enemies less criminal?
Suffering inevitable
40:17
Was it just for Jesus to suffer? No; but it was
Was it just for Jesus to suffer? No; but it was
inevitable, for not otherwise could he show us the way
and the power of Truth. If a career so great
and good as that of Jesus could not avert a
felon's fate, lesser apostles of Truth may endure human
brutality without murmuring, rejoicing to enter into
fellowship with him through the triumphal arch of
Truth and Love.
Service and worship
40:25
Our heavenly Father, divine Love, demands that all
Our heavenly Father, divine Love, demands that all
men should follow the example of our Master and his
apostles and not merely worship his personal-
ity. It is sad that the phrase divine service
has come so generally to mean public worship instead of
daily deeds.
Within the veil
40:31
The nature of Christianity is peaceful and blessed,
The nature of Christianity is peaceful and blessed,
but in order to enter into the kingdom, the anchor of
41:1
hope must be cast beyond the veil of matter into the
hope must be cast beyond the veil of matter into the
Shekinah into which Jesus has passed before us; and
this advance beyond matter must come
through the joys and triumphs of the right-
eous as well as through their sorrows and afflictions.
Like our Master, we must depart from material sense
into the spiritual sense of being.
The thorns and flowers
41:8
The God-inspired walk calmly on though it be with
The God-inspired walk calmly on though it be with
bleeding footprints, and in the hereafter they will reap
what they now sow. The pampered hypo-
crite may have a flowery pathway here, but
he cannot forever break the Golden Rule and escape the
penalty due.
Healing early lost
41:14
The proofs of Truth, Life, and Love, which Jesus gave
The proofs of Truth, Life, and Love, which Jesus gave
by casting out error and healing the sick, completed his
earthly mission; but in the Christian Church
this demonstration of healing was early lost,
about three centuries after the crucifixion. No ancient
school of philosophy, materia medica, or scholastic theol-
ogy ever taught or demonstrated the divine healing of
absolute Science.
Immortal achieval
41:22
Jesus foresaw the reception Christian Science would have
Jesus foresaw the reception Christian Science would have
before it was understood, but this foreknowledge hindered
him not. He fulfilled his God-mission, and
then sat down at the right hand of the Father.
Persecuted from city to city, his apostles still went about
doing good deeds, for which they were maligned and
stoned. The truth taught by Jesus, the elders scoffed at.
Why? Because it demanded more than they were willing
to practise. It was enough for them to believe in a national
Deity; but that belief, from their time to ours, has never
made a disciple who could cast out evils and heal the sick.
42:1
Jesus' life proved, divinely and scientifically, that God
Jesus' life proved, divinely and scientifically, that God
is Love, whereas priest and rabbi affirmed God to be a
mighty potentate, who loves and hates. The Jewish the-
ology gave no hint of the unchanging love of God.
A belief in death
42:5
The universal belief in death is of no advantage. It
The universal belief in death is of no advantage. It
cannot make Life or Truth apparent. Death
will be found at length to be a mortal dream,
which comes in darkness and disappears with the light.
Cruel desertion
42:9
The "man of sorrows" was in no peril from salary or
The "man of sorrows" was in no peril from salary or
popularity. Though entitled to the homage of the world
and endorsed pre-eminently by the approval
of God, his brief triumphal entry into Jerusa-
lem was followed by the desertion of all save a few friends,
who sadly followed him to the foot of the cross.
Death outdone
42:15
The resurrection of the great demonstrator of God's
The resurrection of the great demonstrator of God's
power was the proof of his final triumph over body
and matter, and gave full evidence of divine
Science, – evidence so important to mortals.
The belief that man has existence or mind separate from
God is a dying error. This error Jesus met with divine
Science and proved its nothingness. Because of the won-
drous glory which God bestowed on His anointed, temp-
tation, sin, sickness, and death had no terror for Jesus.
Let men think they had killed the body! Afterwards he
would show it to them unchanged. This demonstrates
that in Christian Science the true man is governed by
God – by good, not evil – and is therefore not a mortal
but an immortal. Jesus had taught his disciples the
Science of this proof. He was here to enable them to
test his still uncomprehended saying, "He that believ-
eth on me, the works that I do shall he do also." They
must understand more fully his Life-principle by casting
43:1
out error, healing the sick, and raising the dead, even as
out error, healing the sick, and raising the dead, even as
they did understand it after his bodily departure.
Pentecost repeated
43:3
The magnitude of Jesus' work, his material disappear-
The magnitude of Jesus' work, his material disappear-
ance before their eyes and his reappearance, all enabled
the disciples to understand what Jesus had
said. Heretofore they had only believed;
now they understood. The advent of this understanding
is what is meant by the descent of the Holy Ghost, – that
influx of divine Science which so illuminated the Pentecos-
tal Day and is now repeating its ancient history.
Convincing evidence
43:11
Jesus' last proof was the highest, the most convincing,
Jesus' last proof was the highest, the most convincing,
the most profitable to his students. The malignity of
brutal persecutors, the treason and suicide of
his betrayer, were overruled by divine Love to
the glorification of the man and of the true idea of God,
which Jesus' persecutors had mocked and tried to slay.
The final demonstration of the truth which Jesus taught,
and for which he was crucified, opened a new era for the
world. Those who slew him to stay his influence perpetu-
ated and extended it.
Divine victory
43:21
Jesus rose higher in demonstration because of the cup
Jesus rose higher in demonstration because of the cup
of bitterness he drank. Human law had condemned
him, but he was demonstrating divine Science.
Out of reach of the barbarity of his enemies,
he was acting under spiritual law in defiance of mat-
ter and mortality, and that spiritual law sustained him.
The divine must overcome the human at every point.
The Science Jesus taught and lived must triumph over
all material beliefs about life, substance, and intelli-
gence, and the multitudinous errors growing from such
beliefs.
43:32
Love must triumph over hate. Truth and Life must
Love must triumph over hate. Truth and Life must
44:1
seal the victory over error and death, before the thorns
seal the victory over error and death, before the thorns
can be laid aside for a crown, the benediction follow,
"Well done, good and faithful servant," and the suprem-
acy of Spirit be demonstrated.
Jesus in the tomb
44:5
The lonely precincts of the tomb gave Jesus a refuge
The lonely precincts of the tomb gave Jesus a refuge
from his foes, a place in which to solve the great
problem of being. His three days' work in
the sepulchre set the seal of eternity on time.
He proved Life to be deathless and Love to be the mas-
ter of hate. He met and mastered on the basis of Chris-
tian Science, the power of Mind over matter, all the claims
of medicine, surgery, and hygiene.
44:13
He took no drugs to allay inflammation. He did not
He took no drugs to allay inflammation. He did not
depend upon food or pure air to resuscitate wasted
energies. He did not require the skill of a surgeon to
heal the torn palms and bind up the wounded side and
lacerated feet, that he might use those hands to remove
the napkin and winding-sheet, and that he might employ
his feet as before.
The deific naturalism
44:20
Could it be called supernatural for the God of nature
Could it be called supernatural for the God of nature
to sustain Jesus in his proof of man's truly derived power?
It was a method of surgery beyond material
art, but it was not a supernatural act. On
the contrary, it was a divinely natural act, whereby divinity
brought to humanity the understanding of the Christ‑
healing and revealed a method infinitely above that of
human invention.
Obstacles overcome
44:28
His disciples believed Jesus to be dead while he was
His disciples believed Jesus to be dead while he was
hidden in the sepulchre, whereas he was alive, demon-
strating within the narrow tomb the power
of Spirit to overrule mortal, material sense.
There were rock-ribbed walls in the way, and a great