Handling Animal Magnetism

Animal magnetism is the belief in material man, that Life, substance and intelligence are material instead of spiritual.

1) There is ignorant A.M. which includes all beliefs of colds, damp climate, food, heredity, contagion, producing disease.

2) There is malicious A.M. including belief of anger, envy, jealousy, hate, etc., held against another person.

3) There is malicious mental malpractice (M.M.P.) which is educated thought that has learned the power of thought and uses it for a wrong end. This is sometimes operated through prayers that Christian Scientists may have relapses, reverses, losses, etc., that they may be discouraged, disillusioned, may have a return of their old beliefs [causing] them to doubt the efficacy of treatment being of God; or through predictions or prophecies of evil to make them consent to aggressive mental suggestions of the power of evil or the peace of dying; or through anathema that all enemies of the Holy Mother Church may suffer. This claim seems to act as a narcotic.

In healing malicious mental malpractice these are the main points to be taken up: Recognition that all mental malpractice is based on the supposition:

1) That there is a mortal mind.

2) That it manifests itself through what are termed avenues — channels or instruments.

3) That it can impart to thought what it suggests through its channels.

4) That it can enforce its beliefs or declarations, its rule, wish, or desire, by means of its law.

5) That it has any object on which to impress itself.

If we are going to forestall animal magnetism’s attempt to destroy everything that is good in human experience, we have not a moment to lose. The highest form of evil is malicious mental malpractice, which is educated evil.

Meet animal magnetism without a fight. There is no animal magnetism that can reverse the currents of Truth in consciousness. Arguments are mesmerism. Error is not a person, place, nor thing, and there are no avenues, channels, nor instruments, through which it can act or upon whom it can devolve any power or capacity to act. God is almighty and All-in-all.

Know that God sent it even if it seems the devil brought it.

M.M.P. is not power, mind, or law. It has no sphere of activity, no mind to project its beliefs, no mind to accept its beliefs. It has no dupes, no victims. It is not law — it is not a lawmaker.

Keep the joy of Christian Science and a well-grounded and boundless hope in your success. Remember as Truth progresses, error grows more subtle and aggressive but it does not become something — it always remains an illusion and is always met and destroyed with the understanding that divine Love is the only power.

Know that M.A.M. has no power to touch you with any thought of fear or resentment, envy, hate, jealousy, or malice, for you are with Christ in infinite Good, where error cannot come in in the name of a suggestion to make you believe or listen to mortal mind arguments; for you live in the Infinite Good.

We have a right to expect an immediate uncovering of the claim of cause in any disease — even the laws so-called of physiology if we need a knowledge of such to break the mesmerism of disease.

Analyze every claim of it. If envy, no pleasure in it, no substance in it, nothing to envy or be envious of.

Mental malpractitioners study the C.S. statement that there is only one Mind and argue: Are you Mind? (No.) Are you matter? (No.) Then what are you? Nothing! for you have not any mind!!

M.A.M. stands ready to argue misunderstanding and the only safe way in hours of trial is to obey the adage “Silence is golden.” If anyone has wronged you, you cannot hide it from wisdom. We must all look to Principle and let light dispel the darkness and settle down to peace and prosperity. There is no mortal mind that can influence or darken our consciousness. Love is almighty. Keep declaring for Principle; Life, Truth and Love are omnipotent. It is Love that uncovers and overcomes.

When we are perplexed as to whether we are hearing the voice of Truth or error, we may use this as a guide to the conclusion. If there is any doubt whatever, you may know it is animal magnetism. Truth is peaceful and certain, it leads us with a loving hand. The voice of Truth never pains, or causes any despair or doubt in him whose affections are fixed on God.

Christian Scientists will find the approach and attack of mesmerism to be a sort of paralysis — or inaction of mind, numbness, and fear. When such an attack seems to approach, by immediately reversing the conditions of thought, and mentally inquiring of self: “Am I radiating good or am I absorbing evil?” — and putting that thought into action by addressing the counteracting thoughts of Spirit to whatever seems to be attacking you from mortal mind, you will set yourself free from bondage and render yourself the medium of demonstrations for those blessings you so freely receive from the source of all Good, and not from any person or any belief of mind in matter. S&H 419:8.

Know that God intends you to heal the sick. The divine command to heal the sick comes with the ability to do so. M.M.P. cannot tell you that you cannot heal the sick.

God can never be something external to consciousness for He is never apart from man — “God with me.” The claim of hatred never made anyone sick; it is only a belief that did. When you take the fangs from the serpent it is harmless. A Christian Scientist has sufficient understanding to overcome any claim, if he only knows it. “For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay or resist” (Luke xxi:15).

Ingratitude, avarice, greed, dishonesty, fretfulness, worry, anxiety, fear must be handled and cast out. We must handle sensitiveness as sin. It is sin that tends to suspicion, doubt, anger, resentment, contrariness, stubbornness, jealousy, and a host of others. We must handle this lie and cast it out. We must know that we are free from sin, God made it not, “The Word begat us,” and the Word heals and delivers us.

It is the Word that heals us and saves us from all destruction. Mind has no sad memories. Mind, God, knows only the good, true, beautiful, and pure. Mortal mind never sends forth a positive sound.

In reality there is no animal magnetism, ignorant, malicious or sympathetic. There is no mental malpractice directed against a Christian Scientist or the cause of Christian Science, which has power to make you a channel for error of any nature, mental, physical or financial. It cannot make you its servant, or its slave, its victim or its tool. It has no power to strike through any belief in materia medica, hypnotism, false theology, false science, or any other sense of materiality, fear, hatred, pride, envy, malice, jealousy, ambition, revenge, self-will, self-love, self-righteousness, self-justification, or through lust or sensuality, vice, or through any claim of evil in mortal mind, to pour forth hatred or torment. There is one Mind, and this one is effective and governs the entire universe.

There is no malicious, ignorant or directed malpractice, no mesmerism, no hypnotism, no M.A.M., no fear, no ignorant sympathetic self-mesmerism, no mediumship — no trance condition, no clairvoyance, no demonology, no black art, orientalism, occultism, no witchcraft, no esoteric magic, no Buddhism, no theosophy, no planetary law, no astrology, no materia medica, no scholastic theology, no mental inoculation, no mental contagion, no mental poison.

There is no ignorant latent nor developed transference of mortal thought — no erroneous influence in or out of the flesh — no moral idiocy, no electricity, no electric magnetism, no ecclesiasticism. There is no atmospheric, hygienic nor mortal law, no law of suggestion, no animal attraction, no passion, no lust, sexuality nor sensuality. No sex, no human love, no blind enthusiasm, no prejudice — spite, envy, jealousy, nor hatred, no temper nor violent anger, no revenge, no self-love, no self-justification, no self-will, no condemnation, no self of any kind existing in matter beliefs. Error of any kind is powerless and cannot produce mental laziness or haziness; neither can it blind my intelligence, nor stop my spiritual growth. All there is is God, Good and His Creation, hence I am conscious only of perfection and its manifestation. I cannot be impressed, repressed, nor oppressed for I am the expression of Life, Truth, and Love.

God is all, the only cause and creator, and I am God’s child, therefore subject only to the spiritual influence of God and His Christ. Since God, good, is all, there is no carnal or evil mind to influence my action or thoughts.

You (error) cannot produce any new beliefs in me or bring back my old ones. There are no beliefs; belief and believer are one and are mortal mind. Malice cannot produce [new or old beliefs] on myself, friends, family or patients, through malicious animal suggestions, through friend or foe, conscious or unconscious, direct or indirect, willful, malicious or ignorant — cannot reach me through any avenue for every avenue is filled with the Divine Love. I pray that nothing, no evil suggestion or argument may swerve me, frighten me, or deter me from doing the work that is mine to do.

M.A.M. cannot molest me, for there is no danger that can befall; everything is in God’s keeping. I deny selfishness by denying all that is unlike Good. I cannot begin with all the world, but I can begin with myself. As the truth of being is wrought out in my life, as God and my true relationship to Him becomes recognized, the evil mortal beliefs will be swept aside, and darkness (ignorance) will give place to light (understanding).

I cannot be enticed by silent unseen arguments. I cannot be impelled into error of thought or tempted into the commission of acts foreign to my natural inclinations. I cannot be made to lose my understanding or lend myself a willing tool to the designs of my worst enemy — even those who would induce my self-destruction. I cannot be made to foster suspicion where honors are due, or fear where courage should be strongest, or reliance where there should be avoidance or a belief of safety where there is most danger. Miserable lies forced into my mind constantly cannot fret or confuse me, undermine my health or seal my doom, for I can find out the mischief and destroy it with Truth. My mind cannot be made dormant, nor can I be put into a state of semi-individuality with a mortal haziness which admits of no intellectual growth or spiritual culture. I cannot be led by secret evil influences into species of intoxication in which to believe or do what I would not otherwise think or do voluntarily, for there is no mortal mind.

There is no malice, no envy, no will-power. All is Love and Truth. God’s voice is the only voice that can be heard or speak. M.A.M. is a false claim which Truth destroys. It cannot speak to any of my dear ones for it is a lie. It has no intelligence, no mind, hence no power. It cannot talk, it does not argue, it is no whisperer. Our Father Mother God will not leave us in temptation but will deliver us from evil. God is all, there is none beside Him.

Malpractitioners cannot make laws. The lies they whisper hurt no one but themselves. Lies, hatred, revenge have no power but to destroy themselves every time they try to hurt anybody else. This is God’s law, it cannot be broken and it cannot make anybody suffer because we tell you this. You cannot help yourself and nobody can help you till you stop trying to hurt others.

Know that God is your support. His Sword and His Staff support you. His word is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of every deadly thing. There is no talking serpent, hence no talking error.

Thinking Good externalizes itself and Christian Scientists should expect good. The reason we seem not to destroy beliefs is because we call belief oneself instead of mesmerism.

The rule to ensure victory for Science is this: Bear faithful testimony to the existence of animal magnetism as an evil belief, which must be met and mastered. A denial of the existence of this error prevents your victory over it.

One needs to protect himself for his own false beliefs alone; therefore the only wrong thinker or mental malpractitioner there is or can be is one’s self; — the beam in one’s own eye is the whole of evil. All our warfare is located within the confines of our own thought.