are as child's play. Why take them so seriously when God does not? Praise God that every delusion of the natural man, all his pride and exalted ideas of what he knows and can do, shall be swept away in the great tide of Christ light and power now becoming manifest on the earth.

EXTRACTS

From Letters Written to Students and Patients by the Society of Silent Unity

We make a distinction between healing and curing. All physical inharmonies are produced by some phase of error thought, and are only truly healed when the cause has been removed. Curing may take place by some material means, but unless the cause is dealt with the effect again appears in some form. A study of the full course of lessons would make this clear to you. When you understand the laws of mind action you will see that whatever of error is stored up in the subconscious must be overcome, and though the process may seem slow, it is sure.

* * *

Truth does not teach that there is not an appearance called evil, or "falling away." We all observe such an appearance and Jesus doubtless did; but with him we also say, "Get thee behind me, Satan; thou art an offense unto me; for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." He who studies the laws of mental action comes to know that images held in consciousness become abiding, and are looked upon as real. The race today is in this mental attitude regarding evil. Men have witnessed the wrong relations brought about by their unwise thoughts, and not knowing the cause, have assumed one, and called it evil-devil. This has been held in the race imagination until it has been externalized into the semblance of reality. We who know that the one Cause of all that is, is Perfect Harmony and Goodness, take our mental stand in this intuitive truth, and strive to show men

that evil is simply the relations that arise through their throwing out mental images without first consulting this First Cause of all that is. The mental attitude of the race on the question of the reality of evil is exactly that of the student in mathematics who would claim his errors to be the accurate expressions of the principle. The instructor, who knows the relation of the problem to the principle, shows the student what it is, and urges him to frequently consult that principle to the end that he may not again fall into such mistaken ways.

*

The principles of arithmetic were true before an arithmetic was ever written, and the principles of Truth contained in the Bible were true before any Bible was written. They are eternally true, without beginning, without end. After you learn the principles back of subtraction and division, you do not carry about an arithmetic for reference to the rule. You can write an arithmetic yourself. So we feel that your growth and understanding in Truth is beyond the need of any outside authority. The Bible should be used as corroborative evidence and not as authority. The one and only authority is the Spirit of Truth and it is within you. The Truth discerned by Isaiah and Paul is of no greater value than the Truth discerned and expressed by you when you have hold of the Principle lying back of it all. Any book, however true, becomes bondage when it takes the place of the indwelling One in whom are hid all the treasures of knowledge and wisdom. The only authority we accept is that shown by Jesus Christ-"The Spirit of Truth shall guide you into all Truth."

Ideas often come to you that uplift you greatly for a time. The way to make them permanent is to take hold of them by forming them into words and repeating the words until your subconscious receives them and begins to build with them. For instance, a friend who had very set opinions about right and wrong, allowed herself to get very much wrought up when things about her went on in

a way that to her seemed wrong. She tried to practice self-control, but never gained the victory as she desired until one day when the thought came to her that it was far more important to demonstrate self-control than it was to have everything about her go on as she thought it should. She did not want the idea to get away from her, so she wrote it down like this: "It is not so important that things go as I think they should, as it is that I should be master of them through self-control." Then she repeated this again and again and held it in the Silence until the words became substance in her and gave her mind a firm hold so that in the next temptation to give way to her feelings, she easily gained the victory. You can apply this in any kind of experience you may have.

Somewhere in the process of coming into spiritual consciousness we must deny flesh heredity and substitute heredity from God. We believe the earlier the denial of flesh inheritance is made, and the more complete it is, the speedier will be the demonstration. We therefore make a sweeping denial and place ourselves by faith firmly in Divine Sonship, recognizing that God and not man is Father.

*

There are two phases of creation described in the first of Genesis. First the ideal, then the manifest. After creation is described as complete (see first chapter), we read in the second chapter that "there was not a man to till the ground," showing that manifest man had not yet appeared. The creative process given in these two chapters is seen in every action of mind. A house could not be built except it was first in the mind of the builder. Nothing is ever manifest that is not first an idea in mind. So creation was complete in Divine Mind before it came into manifestation. God could not produce anything but perfection, so his Man Idea was perfect. He created a perfect man and pronounced him "good." But man was given free-will and in the process of bringing the Divine image into expression, he was thrown upon his own responsibility in choosing

whether he would work out the God pattern or substitute one of his own. Perhaps his losing sight of the Divine image was a gradual process, but it was done anyway, and man became lost in a maze of ignorance of himself and his creator, and used the power of mind to build up a false state of consciousness, termed by Paul "the carnal mind." As he was hopelessly lost in the darkness of his ignorant thinking, he needed a light to show him the way back to the Truth of his being. Jesus came as this light, and the Way, and through him the Divine image and likeness is to be restored in man. He reveals it to men and through the Spirit of Truth they are helped to drop their old ignorant thoughts about themselves and build anew, after the Pattern given in the beginning. This Pattern, the Divine image and likeness in man, is Christ. It is a spiritual Principle, eternal, changeless, absolute. Jesus recognized the Christ Principle in him and brought it into manifestation and so became Jesus Christ. It is his work to lift all men up to the same place he is in. This lifting up is based on the laws of mind, like producing like. The mortal concept of man is erased and the Christ concept takes its place. Christ is the Word. When this Christ-Man, the Word, is received into mind by faith it begins a transformation and man becomes a new creature through the power of his thought, making connection with the Christ within, instead of the mortal.

To fear the foe, since fear oppresseth strength,
Gives, in your weakness, strength unto your foe,
And so your follies fight against yourself.

-Shakespeare.

For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.-Mark 11:23.

DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE LAW

More things are wrought by
Than this world dreams of.

prayer

Wherefore let thy voice
Rise like a fountain for me night and day;
For what are men better than sheep or goats
That nourish a blind life within their brain;

If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer

Both for themselves and those who call them friends?
For so the whole round earth is every way

Bound by gold chains about the feet of God.-Tennyson.

"The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." The exercise of praying for others is of value, both to the one who prays and to the one for whom the prayer is offered. The Society of Silent Unity prays daily for the establishment of the kingdom of heaven upon earth. These prayers are affirmations of that which is true in Being, and by them the delusions of the sense-man are overcome. The appearances of sin, sickness and death fade before the positive Word of Truth spoken with authority in the name of Jesus Christ. The Word thus spoken is the true prayer of faith, and that it does accomplish the work of freeing, healing and restoring men to their birthright as the Sons of God, many letters like the following testify:

HEALTH

Inglewood, Cal.—It is with a heart overflowing with gratitude to our dear heavenly Father, and to you as his instruments, in the miraculous healing which came to me. For nearly two weeks I suffered excruciating agony with bladder trouble and enlarged prostate gland. A specialist came from Los Angeles and said four days was the longest I could live unless operated upon, and insisted on rushing me off to the hospital. My dear wife said "No," that when I was taken sick she put me in the Lord's hands and he would heal me. She wired you for heroic treatment at 9 p. m. Thursday, and at 1:30 a. m. Saturday I was instantly and completely healed, and the "peace that passeth understanding" enveloped me. The specialist upon hearing of it said, "It is a miracle." No human agency could have saved me; I was literally snatched from the grave. I am gaining strength daily.-J. W. P.