⇉ Handshift:Calvin A. FryeI know of no greater, more valuable, legacy to give to Christian Scientists at the dawn of the Twentieth century than the following essay on Christian Science relative to man and woman;
[*]Archival Note: A horizontal line is drawn here.
Dictated to me by
Aug 26, 1915
⇉ Handshift:typewrittenMAN AND WOMAN.
[Copyrighted.]
I have from the beginning of my labors uniformly associated man and woman in all endeavors to demonstrate Christian Science, physically, morally, and spiritually. I have given the preponderance to the masculine element in my organizations for carrying out the functions of Christian Science. There is but one woman to three men on the Board of Education. The Board of Trustees are all men. The Board of Directors of the Mother Church are all men: the Board of Lectureship has eleven men and two women. The Publication Committees all are men.
God is All in all. He is masculine, feminine, neuter. He is the Father and Mother of the universe. What need, then, of procreation or sex, since God is the only Creator, and all is made that can be made quite unconsciously of sex or gender?
Herein we show no usurpationof poweron the part of woman, either in the Principle, the rules, or the organization of Christian Science. The equality of man and woman is established in the premises of this Science. God made them male and female from the beginning, and they were in His image and likeness-- not images, but imageGen 1:26 ¶And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. . In the divine Mind there is no sex, no sexuality, no procreation: the Infinite Mind includes all in Mind.
If there were minds many there would be gods manyI Cor 8:5 For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) I Cor 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. , and we should lose monotheism at the start; but Christian Science maintains one God throughout. If God has at any period bestowed a superabundance of His image and likeness on man more than on woman, or vice versa, He is not an impartial God; whereas the Scripture informs us that God is no respecter of personsActs 10:34 ¶Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: Acts 10:35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. . If at any period the reflection of the masculinity of God seems more apparent and desirable to the human senses than the reflection of His femininity, it is because the human perception, apprehension, and understanding have not kept pace with the Divine Love and order that characterize the period which manifests the dual nature of God, coupled with his trinity and the equality of man and woman.
The era of Christian Science never had a beginning; it always was. The human date, or Christian era, began practically with the advent of our Lord and Master, the Gallilean prophetEditorial Note: Jesus Christ. The masculine element has had precedence in history; but the history of time is temporal-- it is not eternal-- and the precedents of time belong to the human and material and temporal-- the antipodes of God. The divine data are forever spiritual and eternal. The masculine element must not murmur if at some period in human history the verdict should take a turn in behalf of woman, and say,-- Her time has come, and the reflection of God's feminine nature is permitted consideration, has come to the front, and will be heard and understood. Then the mandate human, will appeal to man by works more than by words, and these shall declare whether Love is usurpation, or God's law, and whether the feminine element is less beneficial to mankind than the masculine.
At such a juncture I would not dislike to be referee;– I would declare that one was not less, nor more, important in God's sight than the other, and that in the divine order they both originated in One and as one, and should continue thus without taint of sexuality. Why, you admit that God's order has been infringed, and made to represent two sides of a sphere so called, instead of the round whole. This digression came from suggestion, even the lie, and the liar that from the beginning was the father of the lieJohn 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. : hence this lie was the so called opposite of God, and confirms the present fact in Science that God has no opposite, since a lie is never true. This departure from Truth commenced with the words materiality, sex, sexuality; and these are the objective state of what is called mind separated from God, the One Mind. The plurality of mind sprang from just this falsity. And the question of woman's wrongs and woman's rights sprang from the dire effect of one lie producing another, till the offspring of error mooted these questions to relieve its own creation. Divine Metaphysics, which includes the sum total of all being, will finally solve all questions in Science.
Now, then, let us return to God, to the divine Principle of the universe including the genus man:– we shall find therein no occasion for departure, no occasion for strife, no suggestion of preëminence, or disseverance of the masculine and feminine elements of God's creating-- no question of whom shall be the greatestMatt 18:4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matt 23:11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. Mark 10:43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: Mark 10:44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. Luke 22:26 But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. . Then the kingdom of heaven will be here and everywhere, and the one Father-Mother God and His children will be understood from everlasting to everlastingPs 90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. Ps 103:17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; I Chron 29:10 ¶Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the congregation: and David said, Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. .
The so called devil (liar) has always been at war with the Divine; but, thank
God, there is no power in a lie. Truth reigns. Discord may seem to antagonise harmony,
but harmony cannot be touched by it. It is a divine Principle-- eternal, immutable.
If
the so called devil would fight with God over the
comparative rights of His creation, and man and woman, his satanic majesty must
succumb to the overrulings of divine Love. Christian
Scientists cannot afford to drop their weight into the scale of evil on this topic,
or
on any other that conflicts with one God, one Mind, the Sermon on the
MountEditorial Note: The Sermon on the Mount is found in Matthew chapters 5-7Matt 5:1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples
came unto him: Matt 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, ., and the recognition that woman is not least because last at the crossJohn 19:25 ¶Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the
wife of
Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. John 19:26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved,
he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! John 19:27 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple
took her unto his own home. and first at the sepulchreMatt 28:1 In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. Mark 16:1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
Mark 16:2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. Luke 24:1 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the
spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. Luke 24:2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. John 20:1 The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre,
and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. -- the last to linger in tender ministrations of
love, and the first to discern the Christ idea,-- the life that is
everlasting, that knows no pain, no death, no severance from Love,-- that burst the
tomb
victorious over the grave, sin, disease, and death.
The feminine weakness that talks when it has nothing to say, that gossips, slanders, unwittingly or unconsciously, that envies or scorns where it should only pity, is out of line with being in Science, and in line with the masculine element that robs innocence of purity, and peoples of liberty and life, in the name of the rights of might. These are indeed dark stains on the brighter disk of humanity. But God's dear love washes away these plague spots, and Divine Science makes clean the inside of the platterMatt 23:25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Matt 23:26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. , unselfs the human, and gives back the Divine. "To err is human, to forgive, divine."Editorial Note: This saying is from Alexander Pope's 1711 poem "An Essay on Criticism".
In Christian Science God is demonstrable Life, Truth, and Love, and we live in HimActs 17:28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. only as we love God and man.
Along the lines of evil is the role of lamentation over the sins of others, not, however, like the lamentation of the prophet, just and reformatory. Failing in one act, evil quickly lifts the curtain on another. But the scene shifts, and behold a woman!-- the almond blossom upon her head, busy hands and pen, never leaving the post of duty, but week after week, month after month, and year after year, toiling, watching, praying, and sending forth messages of God's dear love over all the earth. No remuneration, save the blessing it brings to mankind, compensates such a life: hence her refusal thereof, and joy in sharing the income from her books with the needy ones of earth and for life's best objects.
No person understands Christian Science who regards a corporeal man or woman as a Christ. The very nature, premise, and conclusion of God and man is sullied by such a thought. Christ is incorporeal. Jesus the prophet of GalileeAs Written:Gallilee, the man in flesh, was not his better part, or Christ apart from fleshliness; Christ was his Godlike nature, that never entered the material, temporal, or visible to human sight-- that, as the Master saith, dwelt forever in HeavenJohn 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. . Christ was the Son of God; Jesus was the son of Mary: hence the distinction he made when alluding to himself as the Son of God and the son of man. This dual nature Divine Metaphysics clearly explains, and human nature must not becloud the spiritual interpretation of God and man.
The following letter touches the simple facts that call for admission to the hearts of men. I append it, feeling sure that a head and heart so clear on certain points which demand consideration will not object to my appropriation As Written: appropriattion of his pen to speed the cause of Christian Science.
Boston, MassachusettsAs Written:Mass.,
Dec. 8, 1900
My dear Mrs. Eddy:
I read your article in the Boston paper the other day, and, regarding the matter of your book, "Science And HealthEditorial Note: Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy," being an inspired work, I wish to say that the very first time I took it up to read, without ever having heard of you or your book, I said, after reading it a short time, "Why this is a wonderful book," at the same time I turned it round to find the name of it; after reading it for a short time longer I said, "This book is written by inspiration." This seemed to be quite plain to me. It was more than plain-- it amounted to absolute conviction. I thought to myself, "Thank God I have found the Truth at last." My conviction of the inspiration of the book is so strong that even if you did not mention the inspiration, or even denied it yourself, I know it is beyond the peradventure of a doubt. So be of good cheer, and stand by your convictions; and may God bless and strengthen you, and cause His face to shine on youNum 6:24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: Num 6:25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: Num 6:26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. , as I know He will.
Yours with much love and respect,
[Mr.] D. Talbot.
P.S. I wish to say to you that "nothing shall by any means harm youLuke 10:19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. ." Please read the first 12 verses of second chapter of 2 ThessaloniansII Thess 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, II Thess 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. II Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; II Thess 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. II Thess 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? II Thess 2:6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. II Thess 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. II Thess 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: II Thess 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, II Thess 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. II Thess 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: II Thess 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. , especially the 3, 4, 8, 9 verses. To my sense "the man of perditionII Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; " is the mortal mind which your bookEditorial Note: Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy reveals. Also please read Deut. 28:47Deut 28:47 Because thou servedst not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things; , which shows, as you say, that man is "fully equippedII Tim 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: II Tim 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. " here if he so understands.