The unreality of matter

March 25, 2009 | 5 comments

A reader sent in the following quote:

Max Planck, one of the greatest minds of the 20th century, considered the father of Quantum Theory, made the following statement when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics:

As a man who has devoted his whole life to the most clear headed science, to the study of matter, I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter.

It’s amazing that Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer of Christian Science, had the unreality of matter figured out decades before quantum physicists started making statements like the above.

Eddy did not have an electron microscope or complex mathematical equations at her disposal to reach her conclusions. She relied upon divine wisdom, her healing work, spiritual reasoning, Jesus’ teachings and the Bible to discover the ultimate reality of all things in Spirit.

Quantum physicists still have more to learn for they generally believe that matter is some type of entity. They are trying to figure out what it is, whereas Eddy saw further to the reality of Mind where matter disappears entirely and is replaced by idea.

She wrote in her landmark book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,

Christian Science reveals incontrovertibly that Mind is All-in-all, that the only realities are the divine Mind and idea. This great fact is not, however, seen to be supported by sensible evidence, until its divine Principle is demonstrated by healing the sick and thus proved absolute and divine. This proof once seen, no other conclusion can be reached.” Mary Baker Eddy

From this quote, one might conclude that Eddy came to her conclusion about the unreality of matter by proving the unreality of disease. Disease looks very real to the physical senses, but in spiritual sense, it disappears.

Eddy was very good at tuning into spiritual sense and seeing the unreality of discordant material conditions, for she healed hundreds of so-called incurable diseases, often instantaneously. Evidently, she saw the unreality of matter too through the same spiritual awareness, and left her inspiring teachings for us to learn from.

She also wrote,

“These two contradictory theories — that matter is something, or that all is Mind — will dispute the ground, until one is acknowledged to be the victor. Discussing his campaign, General Grant said: “I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer.” Science says: All is Mind and Mind’s idea. You must fight it out on this line. Matter can afford you no aid.” Mary Baker Eddy

 

5 thoughts on “The unreality of matter”

  1. Looking at “the signs of the times,” it is increasingly
    clear that human thought is poised to grapple with
    the concepts presented here. And they are all in
    that incredible book, Science and Health with Key
    to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, written in
    1875! What a sage and a seer…and so obviously Truth-inspired!

    We’ll get there.

    Sue

  2. And Albert Einstein wrote (upon reading Science and Health) ‘My goodness, does this woman know what she’s got?’

  3. And they keep stretching things, like the n + 1 speculation somehow makes the nth speculation seem less speculative. Like building humongous particle accelerators to find even smaller particles of matter that exist for a millionth of a second or whatever.

    And that Big Bang theory? What an entertaining but useless fairy tale.

    The scary part though is physicists can’t explain matter or rise above it, but they figured out how to make it explode with the atom bomb. That’s what gets me about the physical world, the most outrageous examples of it being ‘right’ are so destructive.

    What do you make of that Evan? The physical world being one of illusions but you can persuade a few pounds of it to wipe an entire city off the map?

  4. It’s not a few pounds of atoms that destroy, but concentrated and intense doses of malice, hatred and revenge. Jesus predicted that evil would become more aggressive as the Cause of Christ advanced around the world over the ages. That’s what is happening, as evil senses its doom it ramps up its efforts of self-preservation. But evil is not real and thus all attempts to make itself look real are doomed to self-destruction. Those who place themselves on the side of “Science and peace,” will stand apart from it and not get caught up into its sticky web of despair and despondency.

  5. I sent the Max Planck quote to my nephew who’s a physics major, and he wrote back,
    “yeah, he and einstein were basically the two most important contributors to quantum mechanics, and both rejected its conclusions on philosophical grounds.
    in any case, both of them had a deep faith in beautiful principle underlying everything, and that faith led both of them to break down old mental barriers to understanding our universe.”

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