 "Honesty is spiritual power," writes Mary Baker Eddy in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures on p. 453. The marginal heading of the paragraph containing this idea has this poetic description "Knowledge and honesty". I wonder whether this honesty is a power in three ways: Honesty towards God (in charge of our most inner self and our all), towards others (our sisters and brothers) and towards ourselves. Lets talk about the last one: Honesty towards ourselves - it might be called self-knowledge, some call it introspection. C. G. Jung observes that "everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” This shouldn't sound like a threat, really. Honesty is not a threat. It is an instrument for progress. Divine Love is moving us forward in individual and unique ways, and those ways are safe, sure, and peaceful. The best movement is ensured when the point of departure is clear. Where do we start? It can be a secret between God and us - and most often it is. What do we need to learn? What can we learn today? We can know where we stand and let honesty do its thing. "Knowledge and honesty". As a friend once told me - a new insight is sometimes terrible, seldom uncomfortable for a few days, but then it is great. We might think we are doing something right when we are praying for our business to succeed, or for a shaky relationship to become stable, or a talent to be expressed in supply. But the prayer is honest, when it roots within this inner transparency, humility and honesty that is called self-knowledge or introspection. In the most inner self. In order to know, really know, whether the prayer is honest listening or mere human will. This honesty might lead to the insight that the venture we are undertaking is not what we should do, that the relationship is not meant to be and that the talent we think will carry us into fame and happiness is not the one that truly matters - but the talent we have overlooked and not put to use... why? well, lets find out. The next step after honesty is to put the findings into context and to agree that the ego, human self or "monkey mind" (from the Chinese xinyuan, meaning the restless and indecisive personality) is not what truly matters. The human ego can be left where it is. Because it is God, the one supreme consciousness, the one Mind, that is the only source of knowledge. Honesty in regard to this one Mind is what really matters. God is Mind and holy thought is sending;  Comments are closed.
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In my work as Christian Science practitioner and writer I draw on listening to God and listening to people. 
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September 2024
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