THE FIRST LESSON
It was just 7:30 p.m. when the pastor, his wife, and Walter entered
the library to have their first Bible lesson.
"Well, Walter," said the father pleasantly, "have you decided where
we shall commence our studies?"
"Yes, father, I should like to start at the beginning, with Genesis."
The pastor looked at his son and noticed that his face was flushed
with excitement. Still he made no comment about it, but answered, "very
well Walter, if agreeable to mother, we will start with Genesis."
"Yes, James, I am satisfied to start anywhere that pleases Walter."
"As we are all in accord, I will start with chapter 1 of Genesis, and
continue reading until we come to something that you do not understand.
Then you may stop me and I will explain. I think this will be an
excellent way, don't you, Walter?"
"Yes, father, I think that will be the best way." The pastor started
to read Genesis, chapter 1, and there was no interruption until he
arrived at Genesis 1, 26.
Several times Walter was on the point of asking some question, but did
not. Now he asked, "father, what is meant by that verse? I do not
understand it clearly."
"I'll read it again for you," said the pastor. "Genesis, chapter 1,
26th verse. '_And God said, let us make man in our image after our
likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and the
fowl of the air and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over
every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth_.' Do you understand
it now?"
"Not yet. God is Spirit, is He not?"
"Certainly, why do you ask?"
"That verse says that God made man in His image and likeness, does
that mean that man is spiritual?"
"Yes," answered the pastor. "Then my body must be spiritual."
"Oh, no, our bodies are not spiritual, it is only the soul that is in
the body that is here spoken of as the image and likeness of God."
"Then God did not make our bodies, did He, father?"
"Why, certainly He did. Have you never read that God made all that was
made?"
"It doesn't say anything in that verse about God's making a body does it
father?"
"No but it says 'in His image and likeness,' that means just like Him,"
said the pastor.
"Then if I am just like Him, He in turn must be just like me, and in
that case God would have a material body, and would not be wholly
spirit."
"Why son, what queer ideas you have. As I said before this verse is
only speaking of the soul; you will see farther on where He created
the body. Now let us proceed."
"Father, what is meant by that part of this same verse, where it reads:
'_And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and the fowl
of the air_,' etc.?"
"There has been considerable differences of opinion in regard to that
passage. Personally, I think it means that we will have this dominion
after we die and enter the spirit world, for we certainly haven't
dominion over the fish and fowl here."
"James, do you think there will be fish and fowl in heaven?" meekly
asked his wife.
"That is a very absurd question. Everybody knows there will be no fish
and fowl in heaven," said her husband.
"Then how can we have dominion over them if there are none there?"
asked his wife.
"It seems to me that you are both very dense this evening. Let us
continue and these things will clear up as we proceed," said the pastor,
a little nettled at his inability to answer their questions clearly.
Walter had several more questions he wanted to ask on this subject,
but he thought best not to ask too many at one time.
There was no more interruption until the pastor reached Genesis 1,
31st verse--"_and God saw everything He had made, and behold it was
very good, and the evening and the morning were the 6th day_." Here
Walter interrupted with, "Then everything that God made was good."
"Yes, everything that God made was good," answered the pastor.
"If that be true, God could not have made me sick, for sickness is not
good," said Walter.
"Walter, I believe you are right," said his mother.
The pastor looked from one to the other, then slowly laid the Bible
down in his lap. He was surprised at the turn the conversation had
taken, and he remembered that Walter had on a previous occasion said
something similar. Just what would be the best answer to make he did
not know, so thought he would ask Walter a few questions, and in this
way find out what the boy had on his mind. So he asked, "What makes
you so positive that God did not make you sick Walter?"
"Because God is good and just, and I am His child, and the Bible says
He made everything good and He made everything that was made, so
everything must be good. Besides, I cannot conceive of a just God
making me suffer for a sin some one else committed, any more than I
could think of you, father, punishing me for something that our
neighbor's boy had done."
Like a flash the pastor saw now what the boy had meant when he spoke
of sending him to jail because some one else had stolen some chickens.
The boy was only trying to illustrate to him the injustice of punishing
one person for the deeds of another. Then the thought came, "Shall man
be more just than God?" There was something here he did not understand,
and yet the Bible said God made everything that was made. If this be
true, He was the author of all the sorrows and woes, as well as the
joys, of the human race.
Now that he had got to thinking on this subject, he did not like to
admit even to himself that God was the creator of all the wickedness
of the world. He decided he must have more time to think about this
before he could answer the boy, so said, "We know that God is good and
just, and some of the things that to us seem evil and unjust may still
be for our good." He then picked up the Bible to proceed with his
reading.
Walter noticed that his father was ill at ease and decided not to ask
any more questions at present. The pastor then read Genesis 2, 1st
verse: _"Thus the heavens and earth were finished and all the hosts
of them."_ He now cast an anxious look over at Walter, expecting
him to ask some question that would be as hard to answer as the previous
ones, but Walter was sitting perfectly still listening attentively.
The pastor then read the next verse, Genesis 2, 2nd verse: _"And on
the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested
on the seventh day from all His work which He had made"_
"Is that all of creation, father?" asked Walter.
"Yes, God created everything in six days and on the seventh He rested;
that is why we observe the Sabbath day as a day of rest."
There was no interruption in the next three verses, although Walter
heard several things he would like to have asked about. But when it
came to Genesis 2, 6th verse, _"But there went up a mist from the
earth and watered the whole face of the ground,"_ Walter asked, "What is
meant by that _mist_, father?" The pastor tried to find some reasonable
answer, but could not, so he replied, "I suppose it was something like
the fogs we sometimes see rising from the ground." He had come to the
conclusion that these Bible lessons were not going to be quite so easy
and entertaining as he had anticipated, and had determined that on the
morrow he would go over the lesson by himself, and in this way be
prepared for any and all questions that might be asked.
Walter knew what this _mist_ meant; he had read all about it, in
"Science and Health," but still he did not think it policy to say
anything more on the subject just then. The pastor continued his
reading, Genesis 2, 7th verse. _"And the Lord God formed man of the
dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and man became a living soul."_
"Will you please explain that verse to me, father?"
"With pleasure; this is the verse I spoke of a little while back, when
I told you that in Genesis 1.26, God only made the soul or spirit of
man, while here is a record of the creation of the body.
"You see, son, we get a better understanding as we proceed. It is like
this, the soul or spirit is in the image and likeness of God, but the
body is not, it being material, having been created of dust. Do you
understand it better now?"
Walter did not answer at once, so his mother said, "That all seems
very plain to me now, although I was somewhat confused before."
The pastor turned a smiling face to her and nodded his head approvingly;
he was now quite at his ease again, and did not look for any further
trouble. Then turning to Walter, he was a little surprised to see him
looking flushed and excited, so said, "Well, Walter, what are you
thinking about?"
The boy looked up and said, "I was trying to think, when God started
His second creation, for He had finished His first one on the sixth
day and rested from His work on the seventh day, and here seems to be
a record of something He created after He had finished."
Had a bomb shell exploded in the room, it would not have surprised and
shocked the pastor and his wife so much as that which they had just
heard; and coming just at the time when the pastor thought he was
making everything clear and plain, it confused him terribly, and in
his ears kept ringing what Walter had said: "I was trying to think,
when God started His second creation, for He had finished His first
one on the sixth day and rested from His work which He had made, on
the seventh day." What could this mean; where did Walter get these
queer thoughts from; were they in reality queer? The idea of a second
creation was absurd, yet the Bible said, Genesis 2. 1, _"thus the
heavens and earth were finished and all the hosts of them."_ There
it was plain enough, it spoke both of heaven and earth, _"and on the
seventh day God ended His work which He had made, and He rested on the
seventh day from all His work which He had made."_ Did God make a
mistake in the first creation and so start in again to rectify His
mistake? Impossible. God was, is, and always will be all-knowing; this
precluded all chance of Deity making a mistake. Was the Bible wrong
in this particular instance, if so, might it not all be wrong? This
thought made the good man's heart stand still. No, no, it could not
be; it must be some slight error in the translation or something of
that kind--yes, it must be; how was it that he had never seen it before?
Then he became conscious that his wife was asking him some question.
"James," he heard her say, "are there really two creations, one
spiritual and the other material?"
What should he answer? He never was so at a loss for a reply in his
whole life; there was his son and his wife, both apparently depending
on him for an explanation, and he absolutely incapable of making a
rational one. And then he remembered that he had said it didn't make
any difference to him what part of the Bible they started with, as he
was very familiar with it all. At length he said: "I don't seem capable
of clear thought to-night; I think we had better stop for this time,
and we will begin at this same verse to-morrow night."
Walter was sorry to see his father so confused and perplexed, and tried
to think of some way to help him arrive at the truth. He was afraid
to say much for fear of awakening his father's suspicion, for if his
father had the least idea that he had secured his information from the
Christian Science text-book, "Science and Health," with key to the
scriptures, he would not have allowed him to ask any more questions,
nor even voice any of his thoughts, on the subject.
Walter decided to try to show his father a way out of his dilemma, so
he said: "Father, don't you think your explanation about that
_mist_ that is spoken of in Genesis, 2. 6, being a fog is wrong?"
"What else could it be, Walter?"
"Have you ever noticed, father, that this particular verse starts in
with a '_but_'? It reads, 'But there went up a mist,' it does not say,
'God made a mist to rise from the earth.'"
"I don't see that the word 'but' changes it any."
"I did not mean to say that it did, I only wished to point out the
fact that here was something that God did not make, for nowhere in the
preceding chapters of Genesis had God made a mist."
"I cannot understand what you mean, Walter. The Bible says that God
made everything that was made, and as I have seen a mist many times,
God must have made it as there is only one Creator," said the pastor.
"On the same line of reasoning, we would have to admit God created all
the evils of this world, for we see these evils every day, and then
I would have to admit that God made me sick, and I can never believe
that, for Genesis 1, 31st verse reads, '_And God saw everything that
He had made, and behold it was very good_.' If we believe this, we
cannot possibly believe He made any evil thing."
"Well Walter, we will not discuss that subject farther at the present
time, for I know as we progress with our lessons you will see it in
a different light; anyway I don't see what that mist has to do with
the subject."
"Father, might not that mist mean a mistake or a misapprehension? Then
that verse would read, 'But there went up a misapprehension from the
earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.'"
"Why, Walter there would be no sense to such a speech; how could a
misapprehension water the whole face of the ground?" "Is not the Bible
supposed to be an inspired book, father?"
"Yes, certainly."
"And is there not supposed to be a spiritual meaning to all there is
written there?"
"Yes, Walter, why do you ask?"
"Then might not the spiritual meaning of that verse be brought out by
using the word 'arose' instead of 'went up,' and the word 'deceived,'
instead of 'watered,' and the word 'intelligence,' in place of 'face,'
and the word 'people,' instead of 'ground'; then the verse would read
like this, 'But there arose a misapprehension from the earth and
deceived the whole intelligence of the people.' If we add to this what
is implied, that the following creation is what the people through
this misapprehension believe, we get a clearer view of the real creation
as narrated in the first chapter of Genesis."
It was several moments after Walter finished speaking before the pastor
or his wife made any reply. Many times that evening they had been
surprised at what they had heard Walter say, now they were both
surprised and bewildered. The mother was the first to speak and said:
"What you say, Walter, seems reasonable, yet I do not think we have
the right to change anything that is written in the Bible."
"That is true, wife, it is from this pernicious habit of translating
the Bible to suit the thought of each ignoramous that thinks he knows
something of the Bible, simply because he has read it once or twice,
that all the contradictory sayings about the Bible originate, and it
ought to be stopped by law," said the pastor.
"Why, father, that is not changing the Bible, it is simply bringing
to light the hidden meaning, the same as you do when you interpret
some of the sayings, or parables, of Jesus; anyway, I merely suggested
that this might be the solution of the question of a second creation."
"Walter do not speak of a second creation again; everybody knows there
is only one creation for there is only one God and He is omniscient;
that precludes the thought of a mistake and a re-creation. God made
everything that was made in six days, and if He made everything in
that time, there would not be anything more to make; for 'everything'
includes, 'all.'" "Then which of the two narratives in the Bible is
the true one, James?" asked his wife.
"My dear, this second narrative is the same creation, told in a more
simple way so that all may understand. It enters into the details and
tells _how_ God created everything."
The pastor had not intended giving such an explanation as this when
he started to speak, but this thought occurred to him and it seemed
reasonable, so he voiced it, and now that he said it, he felt satisfied
that the first creation was the real creation, and that the second
narrative was the explanation of how everything was created.
Walter was somewhat confused by his father's explanation. He had never
thought of it in this light, and now he was at a loss what to say. He
felt sure that his father's explanation was not the correct solution,
yet he could not find words to express his thoughts. Then he thought
of his precious "Science and Health"; if I could only look into that
for a few minutes, I know I could find the true explanation; then
turning to his father he said: "Don't you think we have had enough
Bible study for the first night? It is half past nine.
"Why, how fast the evening has passed. I'm sure you must be tired,"
anxiously exclaimed his mother.
"Yes, Walter," said his father, "it is time that we retire, for there
are many more evenings this winter, and we must not think we can learn
all the Bible contains in one evening. I hope I made that second
narrative plain to you."
"I am not fully convinced that we have arrived at the truth of this
second creation, father. I shall spend to-morrow thinking and studying
on that subject, and maybe by to-morrow evening I will be able to see
it as it really is."
"That's right, Walter," said the pastor, highly pleased at the thought
of his son taking such an interest in the scriptures, "it is only by
study and research that we can gain knowledge." The pastor had no idea
that Walter had any other source of information than the family Bible,
but Walter was thinking of his key to the scriptures by Mrs. Eddy,
with which he proposed to unlock the treasure vaults of the Bible.
"Come, Walter, you had better go to bed, I fear you have already
overexerted yourself, as you are not accustomed to being up so late."
Walter turned a bright and cheery face to her and said, "I do not feel
tired at all mother, for the lesson has been very interesting to me,
so do not worry. I am sure it did me good." Then turning to his father,
he said, "Good-night, father, shall we have another lesson to-morrow
night?"
"Yes, certainly; now good-night and pleasant dreams."
Walter bade his mother an affectionate good-night and went to his room.
As soon as he was gone, father and mother looked at each other and
there was hope and delight written on both their faces.
"He is surely getting better," said the mother.
"I never saw him so interested and cheerful in his whole life," remarked
the father.
"I think we have secured the right medicine at last," said the mother.
"I have prayed long and faithfully to God that He spare his life and
guide his footsteps into the ministry, and I believe both prayers have
been heard, for he is surely gaining rapidly in health, and has taken
more than an ordinary interest in the Bible; some of his questions
were very absurd, but this is simply because he does not understand.
I shall put a little study on to-morrow's lesson, so as to be more
able to explain any and all questions he may ask," said the father.
Shortly after, they ascended the stairs to retire for the night. As
they passed Walter's room the mother softly opened the door, looked
at her sleeping boy, silently closed the door, and said, "Dear boy,
he must have been tired to fall asleep so quickly."
But Walter was not sleeping, he felt he could not sleep until he had
cleared up the matter of a second creation. He also knew his mother
would look into the room before she retired, so he pretended to be
asleep. As soon as she had closed the door he arose and turned on the
light, went to his trunk, and brought forth his "Science and Health."
He then seated himself and said, "I'm sure I saw this all explained
in the book; I wonder what part I will find it in; I should think it
would be in the explanation of Genesis." Turning to Genesis, he read
until he came to page 524, line 14, then exclaimed, "Here it is, plain
as day; it wasn't God, Spirit, that created the _dust_ man, and all the
rest of this material universe. It was the Lord God, that is, man's
material conception of God, or false God. I wonder how I am going to
make this plain to father without showing him my 'Science and Health.'"
Then putting away his book he was soon in bed and asleep.