A FREE BOOK

Last February we offered a cloth bound copy of "Christian Healing," by Charles Fillmore, to every reader of UNITY who selected the best chapter in the book. There were many responses, and every chapter had its champions, but the Twelfth Lesson-Love, was selected as the best. Forty-nine people chose that chapter, and they were all sent a copy of the last edition of the book, with the author's inscription and autograph. Some of those who selected other chapters have given such good reasons for their choice that we have decided to have another contest, and give them an opportunity to get a book by pointing out the second best chapter.

The following rules must be observed in making selections:

1. Only one choice can be received from each applicant.

2. The name of applicant with address and date of writing should be written at the top of the paper. Following this the name of the chapter chosen should be given, and then the reasons for its choice.

3. Only one side of the paper should be used.

4. No other communication should appear on this sheet.

5. This sheet should be inclosed in an envelope addressed to "Christian Healing" Department, Unity Tract Society, 913 Tracy Ave., Kansas City, Mo.

Suppose a tobacco chewer or alcohol drinker, who desires to excuse either chewing or drinking, quotes this text: "To the pure all things are pure"-how would you answer him logically and convincingly? You would be interested in how this and similar questions are answered, and the quotation logically applied, in the 22-page leaflet entitled, "Eating and Drinking to the Glory of God." It is good for missionary work. Prices: single copy, bound in special paper cover, 10 cents; in neat tract form, envelope size, single copy 5 cents; a special price of six copies for 10 cents is now given where the tract is desired for free distribution. Address Unity Tract Society, 913 Tracy Avenue, Kansas City, Mo.

Kenosha, Wis.-I shall always be grateful to the friend that lent me UNITY five years ago. It was the first one I had ever read, and I could not begin to tell the comfort I have received in reading them since. I want to make sure of it for three years to come. I send you my best wishes for your success in all your undertakings.—Mrs. E. G. T.

"Study Suggestions for Beginners in Metaphysics" is a leaflet that will help you in the selection of literature along the lines of thought followed at this center. It will be supplied free by the Unity Tract Society.

UNIT

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD

VOL. XXXVII

KANSAS CITY, MO., AUGUST, 1912

No. 2

HAPPINESS THE RESULT OF TRAINED MENTAL ACTIVITY

Lecture by Sophia Van Marter before the Unity Center, 305 Madison Ave., New York City

MERSON says, "Wit is a magnet to find wit, and character, to find character." We might add, spirituality, to find spirituality; and, as our subject today is Happiness, we will add to that, and happiness, to find happiness.

Let us take for our thought in the silence, "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy," for good tidings bring happiness. Whenever we have good tidings and great joy, we are sure to have happiness.

We will read from the Bible a few verses which I have compiled as appropriate for our subject today. It is written in Proverbs, third chapter, beginning with the thirteenth verse:

"Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.

"For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold.

"She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.

"Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honor.

"Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.

"She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her."

Then we find in the sixteenth chapter, twentieth verse, "He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good: and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he."

And Prov. 29:18 reads: "Where there is no vision [where you have no ideal], the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he."

"Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established: and by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches" (Prov. 24:3, 4). Could you desire more than that?

And Jesus said, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them" (John 13:17).

Now a verse or two about joy, because, where happiness is, there is joy, and if you are joyful you are happy. "Sing aloud unto God our strength: make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob. Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery. Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed on our solemn feast day. For this is a statute for Israel, and a law of the God of Jacob" (Ps. 81:1-4).

You see they were commanded to keep their solemn feasts with joy.

Emerson says, "Many times the reading of a book has made the fortune of a man-has decided his way in life." Let our thoughts dwell so sincerely and so earnestly on the subject today that we may find something larger in life than we have ever thought of before. And, because of this thought that one book had made a difference, I thought perhaps one poem might make a difference, and so I am going to read a poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox:

"Talk happiness. The world is sad enough
Without your woes. No path is wholly rough;
Look for the places that are smooth and clear,
And speak of those to rest the weary ear
Of earth, so hurt by one continuous strain
Of human discontent and grief and pain.

"Talk faith. The world is better off without
Your uttered ignorance and morbid doubt.

If you have faith in God, or man, or self,
Say so if not, push back upon the shelf

Of silence all your thoughts till faith shall come;
No one will grieve because your lips are dumb.
"Talk health. The dreary, never-changing tale
Of mortal maladies is worn and stale.
You cannot charm, or interest, or please
By harping on that minor chord, disease.

Say you are well, or all is well with you,

And God shall hear your words and make them true."

Let these words sink deep down in our hearts. Make them true to ourselves.

As we have said, Emerson said sometimes a book had made a man's fortune by deciding his course in life; perhaps this poem may change the course of your life.

It is said of Lord Chatham that when he had an address to make in Parliament, he would take his dictionary and run his eye down a column of words until he found his inspiration. Now, usually a dictionary is thought to be rather disconnected and uninteresting reading, and we would not, as a rule, find our inspiration in a dictionary, unless, like Lord Chatham, we were looking there for it. I took my dictionary, when I thought of my subject (not Webster's, but my Cruden's Concordance of the Bible), and looked up the word "happy," and found those verses which I have read to you; and, as I was taking down some of the references, I noticed that it said, "See Bliss and Blessed" (for both are from the same root). Then I found references to feasts, and solemn feasts, and I looked them all up; also, many references to joy. I did not look up all of these, for I should have had to read the greater part of the Bible. This is just a book of joy-all full of joy.

"But," you say, "what about the solemn feasts? There were some." Yes, we will just look at those first.

If you will take up the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, written during the time of the Jewish captivity in Babylon, their darkest hour, the time of their greatest woe and misery, you will find that Ezra and Nehemiah had studied the book of the law, and we are told that they took the book of the

law, and called the people together and read to them, and explained the meaning of the law. And we read that they explained to them that they were not there because of something they could not have avoided, but that they were there by a very natural law, the law of cause and effect; that they were there in captivity because of their own thoughts; that their doings had brought them there. Then we read that the people wept. Why? Because they had been suffering all those years, and they had now discovered that it was their own fault.

If you will look up the eighth chapter of Nehemiah, you will see that when the people wept, Nehemiah rose and said to them, "Weep not." You have acknowledged your fault; you have seen the reason. Turn away from it; weep not, for this day is holy unto the Lord. You are not to have long faces and weep.

Then, in the tenth verse of that chapter, we find this wonderful sentence which is quoted so often. Write it deep down in your hearts and minds-"For the joy of the Lord is your strength."

It is joy, then, that is strength. There was a time when religion was thought to be a very serious affair, and so it is. But these people were beginning to have a different view of it when they were told that the joy of the Lord was their strength.

Most of us can remember that we found Sunday rather a dreary day when we were children. Oliver Wendell Holmes tells us that our Puritan ancestors, in their zeal for grace, lost sight of the graces. Yes, religion was rather a serious affair-rather a lugubrious affair for some. I remember once hearing Stephen Merritt, who has one of those smiling faces, tell this little incident in his early Christian experience. He said he had been to a very serious meeting, and he came away with the usual grave face; he stepped into a street car, and just after he had taken his seat, a party of young people entered the car, and presently he heard a young lady say to the young man sitting next to her, "That man would make a good trade-mark for a vin