Your part in the arms talks

IT'S heartening that nations continue to see their common need to eliminate nuclear arms--and are earnestly working in this direction. The prophet Isaiah foresaw a time in which ``they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.'' 1 Recently, one official expressed the thought that the world could eventually come to a point of ``elimination of all nuclear arms, both offensive and defensive.'' 2 The fulfillment of such a goal may seem a long way off. Yet that people everywhere desire it should encourage us. What mankind can hope for and begin to envision can eventually be achieved. However, it has been said that the very nature of the political systems of the nations involved ``leads to an inherent conflict.'' This may seem to be the case; yet if we accept that peoples are trapped by political systems into ``inherent conflict,'' we deny the inner voice of good, the healing influence of Christ, Truth, that often quietly breaks through, reminding us of our common loves and aspirations. Our highest hopes for our children and homelands to live and progress in peace cannot be ruined, because our best thoughts cannot be trapped by stalemate or circumstance. There is an undeniable compelling desire among peoples to prevent war and preserve life and peace. This is a unifying desire. Even unspoken desires are powerful in the mental atmosphere and shouldn't be underestimated in their effect upon world thought. ``Thoughts unspoken are not unknown to the divine Mind,'' writes Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science. ``Desire is prayer; and no loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds.'' 3 Christian Science helps us understand that God, divine Mind, is the creator and ruler of the universe, including man, and that God is all-powerful good. This would hardly seem the fact, judging from the circumstances our eyes and ears report to us. But there is something higher, more encompassing than the standoffs between human mentalities in a material world. There is spiritual reality--creation as God has actually established it--expressing the harmony of His being. Our deepest, most honest desires express themselves in a love of goodness and peace. These desires indicate an intuition of spiritual truth. Were we to learn more clearly the origin of our love for peace, we would realize how much power and influence these thoughts have, particularly when they are freed from selfishness, pride, and personal ambition. The power of unselfish right thinking transcends what would seem the limits of ordinary thought. That is because power for good does not originate in man. It is actually the power of God, divine Mind, which man, as His offspring, expresses. Whether or not we have been in the habit of recognizing man as the reflection of divine Mind, we can naturally begin recognizing this fact now, and contribute to our own well-being and to the progress of all nations. Our strong conviction of divine power and authority, as it relates to government and relations between nations, can have an impact on thought and action that affects the universal welfare. Out of our deep spiritual commitment and vision, we can even begin to see and support possibilities for progress beyond what currently appear to be existing options. Indeed, there may be a great deal of work to do to arrive at agreements between nations. But peace and security are supported by divine law. And realizing this in deep, heartfelt prayer, we can increasingly expect small-minded, limiting misconceptions to be put aside for what is more progressive. Committing ourselves to a higher view of man and his possibilities, we can expect to see evidence of more wisdom, care, and intelligent insight--on all sides. Arms reduction and permanent peace are by no means an impossibility or a naive hope. Our thoughts for good are not limited. Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy states the case clearly: ``The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.'' 4 1 Isaiah 2:4. 2 Quoted in The Christian Science Monitor, January 28, 1985. 3 Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 1. 4 Ibid., p. 199.