I did mention the book The Story of Christian Science Wartime
Activities 1939-1946, didn’t I?
It is so good, and I can see how it has leavened my thought for
many years. My copy of the book came from the Midland (Western Australia)
Christian Science Society.
This time I am taken with a piece on page 193. The chapter
is about Wartime Workers and the fine work they did. And the quote:
“…another comment from an active Worker who, in this particular
instance, was addressing a young soldier whom he had brought through a serious
injury and a period of discouragement: “Joe,’ he remarked to the young man,
“you and I as Christian Scientists have ‘enlisted to lessen evil, disease, and
death,’ as Mrs. Eddy tells us in Science and Health (p. 450). We are
fighting the greatest battle that will ever be fought by anyone. It is
battle with self, with a false sense of man, a false sense of God, a false
sense of Life. We cannot retreat; we cannot go AWOL; we cannot
compromise. We must demand an unconditional surrender of these false
beliefs. Everybody must fight this battle sooner or later, here or
hereafter.”
Now back to I Corinthians.
Almost always when I read a chapter, some one idea stands out to
me and sends me on a chase for more information. With chapter 5 it is “a little
leaven leavens the whole lump.” (verse 6) What struck me is that
the chapter is addressing the fornication of one man with his
step-mother. And I had had the idea that the leaven of this quote was a
good thing. Here it seems to be saying that the sin of one man can
permeate the whole Christian group.
It is very noticeable that there is with any good idea, often a
bad use for it. For example: the Internet, such a useful wonder, can be
used for evil means. We have to get the absolute, spiritual sense of
things.
Anyway, I looked up leaven on the Internet and found a very
interesting piece about Jesus parable about the woman and the leaven -
Practically every
word is examined. I would love to
hear what folk think about the article on bibletools.
Joyce Voysey
1 comment:
I have read the article by Richard T. Ritenbaugh mentioned above and found it fascinating. Mr Ritenbaugh has been very thorough in his research, uses wonderful questions (e.g. "What is 'a woman' in Scripture?" and "What was 'three measures of meal?") to which he carefully responds. I was a bit cross with him when he surmised that the woman must be bad because she had hidden (concealed, kept secret) the yeast (which he says she may have seized) in the grain! Why didn't he give us a few other probabilities? It seems to me that it's often wisdom to keep secret (safe)a new and maybe significant idea when it's just hatching.
Post a Comment