Bethany

     No Witnesses! No proof! There was nothing but the testimonies of the accuser and the accused, nothing but the hint of wrongdoing – and no hard evidence to corroborate the plaintiff’s complaint. How could the truth possibly come to light? The situation looked grim for King Solomon, who was approached by two women to solve a dispute over a child. Both women had given birth to a baby boy in the same house, but one of the children had died. The Bible relates the plaintiff’s accusation, and both women claimed the living baby.

    Seems that all Solomon had was one woman’s word against the other’s. Both had reason to lie. A lesser king might have thrown up his hands in defeat, but not Solomon. He knew that when human understanding proved to be inadequate, the infinite understanding of God, the Divine Mind, was an unfailing guide, impelling him to make nothing less than a just judgment.

    What did Solomon do? He called for a sword and acted as though the solution was to divide the child between the two women. The defendant – to whom the child did not belong – encouraged him to carry through. But the plaintiff, the mother of the child, responded with a mother’s love: “Oh my lord, give her the living child, and in no way slay it,” she said. The women’s disparate responses gave Solomon the insight he needed to make a fair decision and to deliver the child into the hands of his mother. The conflict was resolved without a fight, the evil exposed and destroyed by Solomon’s understanding of Truth.

    As events play out on the world stage with conflicts in various parts of the globe, with disparities between countries and with environmental concerns being raised, the story of Solomon takes on new relevance. There is much speculation about the appropriateness of policies, conflicting scientific assertions and opposing ideologies. What to believe? What action to take?

    Like Solomon, we can pray to bear witness to the Mind that can never falter or fail to discern what needs to be discerned. The human mind may be limited and easily fooled, swayed, confused or confounded but, the Divine Mind is fully reliable. God is not limited by inexperience or subject to the pressures of time or politics. Looking to Infinite Intelligence for guidance, results in clear direction and wise decision making.

    Solomon was able to partake of discernment because of his humility. He gave up ego in favor of a conception of himself as having the “understanding heart” that every one of God’s ideas has. This is the understanding that cuts through the darkness and confusion and leads to breaking down human barriers – political, social, economic or personal.

    Solomon’s response to the women didn’t spring from an attempt to reconcile or make sense of the claims of two warring minds. He took action based on what God directed him to do. Truth uncovered the powerlessness of evil.  Truth still uncovers the powerlessness of evil. Rather than give in to the speculation and skepticism about the current issues we face, rather than attempt to make sense of conflicting claims, we can rest on the knowledge that Divine Mind is the source of wisdom, expressing wisdom through each of His ideas.

    Fear that evil is devious enough to outwit good is mistaken. The Omniscient Mind that guided Solomon provides the intelligence and direction that conquers evil. And, when we humbly turn to God for guidance, we cannot help seeing Truth come to light – and conflicts resolve.

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In His Light,

Bishop Raymond Contois

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