Check out this passage from Science and Health, page 140, line 4:
“That God is a corporeal being, nobody can truly affirm. The Bible represents Him as saying: ‘Thou canst not see My face; for there shall no man see Me, and live.’ Not materially but spiritually we know Him as divine Mind, as Life, Truth, and Love. We shall obey and adore in proportion as we apprehend the divine nature and love Him understandingly, warring no more over the corporeality, but rejoicing in the affluence of our God. Religion will then be of the heart and not of the head. Mankind will no longer be tyrannical and proscriptive from lack of love,–straining out gnats and swallowing camels.”
It is hard to quote Mrs. Eddy without having to quote an entire paragraph! But I think this is an amazing idea, full of truth. I like to remind myself of this idea from time to time, whenever I am getting too caught up in intellectual analysis. I mean, analysis is good, but without love, without the heart, it’s just dead thoughts. I think the basis of religion nowadays is the head; over-analyzing the meaning of Scripture, adopting a literal interpretation of the Bible, preaching a stereotyped sermon–these are all born from an intellectual basis without Love at the core.
I guess I bring this up in this forum to see what you all think of that passage. I also wonder if you all have any practical ideas on how we can better make religion of the heart instead of the head. One idea a relative of mine has is to incorporate newer and livelier music into church services, especially from soloists. One idea I have (that I’m not sure would go over too well) is to hold church services inside someone’s home, or outside, or just somewhere that is an everyday hang out spot. Holding a church service in a space like this separates the service from the strictness and materiality of the building and makes it a much holier experience.
What are your ideas?
d.rounds 6 years, 9 months ago.
