CHRISTIAN SCIENCE PRACTICE AND THE FAN
By
Dee Mahuvawalla
In the book of Isaiah we read, “Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the Lord, and shalt glory in the holy One Israel.” [Isa 41:15,16]
Christian Science teaches us to use our spiritual discernment by vigilantly using our “fan” to blow away the chaff and preserve the wheat, in our daily Practice.
Mary Baker Eddy defines fan in our text book as follows. “FAN. Separator of fable from fact; that which gives action to thought.” [S&H 586:7]
“Although life appears to be a mixture of material and spiritual, there is in fact no such mixture.”Only impotent error would seek to unite Spirit with matter, good with evil," (S&H 558:18). In biblical times, fans were used with threshing instruments to separate the edible part of the grain from the inedible part. Threshing separates the grain or seed from the stalk of the plant. A fan blows away the lighter particles of chaff and dust and leaves the seed. (Isa 41:15,16]) Spiritually speaking, a fan separates fable from fact. (S&H 586:7) If you do not use your fan, your grain (good thoughts) will have impurities, such as fear, superstition, or false traits. The fan (Christian Science practice) blows those false beliefs fall away. A powerful way to use the fan is to ask yourself what God is seeing and know that only what God is seeing is going on. This is extremely powerful. The prophet Isaiah said that you can thresh mountainous problems out of your life. No matter what the evidence, Truth is the victor. In reality, you are always full of the buoyancy and vitality of Spirit. Spirit's ideas are sturdy, uplifted, and victorious.”[www.cedarscamps.org 8/4/2008]
Jesus parable of the tares and wheat teaches us the importance of the art of separating the tares and the chaff and garnishing the wheat. It reads, “Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.” [Matt13:24-30]
The fan is a very helpful tool in our daily Practice, and must be used with dominion, discretion, alertness, and gratitude.
“O many thy foes, but the arm that subdued them
And scattered their legions was mightier far;
They fled like the chaff from the scourge that pursued them,
For vain were their steeds and their chariots of war.” [Hymn200:2]
8/10/2008
