Chapter IV - Christian Science Versus Spiritualism
Phenomena explained
87:1
with all material conceptions. Mind-readers perceive
with all material conceptions. Mind-readers perceive
these pictures of thought. They copy or reproduce
them, even when they are lost to the memory of the mind
in which they are discoverable.
Mental environment
87:5
It is needless for the thought or for the person hold-
It is needless for the thought or for the person hold-
ing the transferred picture to be individually and con-
sciously present. Though individuals have
passed away, their mental environment re-
mains to be discerned, described, and transmitted. Though
bodies are leagues apart and their associations forgotten,
their associations float in the general atmosphere of human
mind.
Second sight
87:13
The Scotch call such vision "second sight", when
The Scotch call such vision "second sight", when
really it is first sight instead of second, for it presents
primal facts to mortal mind. Science enables
one to read the human mind, but not as a
clairvoyant. It enables one to heal through Mind, but
not as a mesmerist.
Buried secrets
87:19
The mine knows naught of the emeralds within its
The mine knows naught of the emeralds within its
rocks; the sea is ignorant of the gems within its caverns,
of the corals, of its sharp reefs, of the tall ships
that float on its bosom, or of the bodies which
lie buried in its sands: yet these are all there. Do not
suppose that any mental concept is gone because you do
not think of it. The true concept is never lost. The
strong impressions produced on mortal mind by friend-
ship or by any intense feeling are lasting, and mind‑
readers can perceive and reproduce these impressions.
Recollected friends
87:29
Memory may reproduce voices long ago silent. We
Memory may reproduce voices long ago silent. We
have but to close the eyes, and forms rise
before us, which are thousands of miles away
or altogether gone from physical sight and sense, and
88:1
this not in dreamy sleep. In our day-dreams we can
this not in dreamy sleep. In our day-dreams we can
recall that for which the poet Tennyson expressed the
heart's desire, –
88:4
the touch of a vanished hand,
the touch of a vanished hand,
And the sound of a voice that is still.
88:6
The mind may even be cognizant of a present flavor and
The mind may even be cognizant of a present flavor and
odor, when no viand touches the palate and no scent
salutes the nostrils.
Illusions not ideas
88:9
How are veritable ideas to be distinguished from il-
How are veritable ideas to be distinguished from il-
lusions? By learning the origin of each. Ideas are
emanations from the divine Mind. Thoughts,
proceeding from the brain or from matter, are
offshoots of mortal mind; they are mortal material be-
liefs. Ideas are spiritual, harmonious, and eternal. Beliefs
proceed from the so-called material senses, which at one
time are supposed to be substance-matter and at another
are called spirits.
88:18
To love one's neighbor as one's self, is a divine idea;
To love one's neighbor as one's self, is a divine idea;
but this idea can never be seen, felt, nor understood
through the physical senses. Excite the organ of ven-
eration or religious faith, and the individual manifests
profound adoration. Excite the opposite development,
and he blasphemes. These effects, however, do not pro-
ceed from Christianity, nor are they spiritual phenomena,
for both arise from mortal belief.
Trance speaking illusion
88:26
Eloquence re-echoes the strains of Truth and Love.
Eloquence re-echoes the strains of Truth and Love.
It is due to inspiration rather than to erudition. It shows
the possibilities derived from divine Mind,
though it is said to be a gift whose endowment
is obtained from books or received from the
impulsion of departed spirits. When eloquence proceeds
from the belief that a departed spirit is speaking, who