its suppositional opposite._ The difficulty is
that the human mind, through long ages of usage, has come to regard
the opposite as just as real as the thing itself. The opposite of love
is hate; of health, disease; of good, evil; of the real, the
counterfeit. God is positive--Truth. His opposite, the negative, is
supposition. Oh, stupid, blundering, dull-eared humanity, not to have
realized that this was just what Jesus said when he defined evil as
the lie about God! No wonder the prophet proclaimed salvation to be
righteousness, right thinking! But would gross humanity have
understood the Master better if he had defined it this way? No, they
would have stoned him on the spot!

Jose knew that when both he and Rosendo lay sick unto death Carmen's
thought had been positive, while theirs had been of the opposite sign.
Was her pure thought stronger than their disbelief? Evidently so. Was
this the case with Jesus? And with the prophets before him, whom the
world laughed to scorn? The inference from Scripture is plain. What,
then, is the overcoming of evil but the driving out of entrenched
human beliefs?

Again Jose came back to the thought of Principle. Confucius had said
that heaven was principle. And heaven is harmony. But had evil any
principle? Mankind are accustomed to speak lightly and knowingly of
their "principles." But in their search for the Philosopher's Stone
they have overlooked the Principle which the Master used to effect his
mighty works--"that Mind which was in Christ Jesus." The Principle of
Jesus was God. And, again, God is Love.

The word evil is a comprehensive term, including errors of every sort.
And yet, in the world's huge category of evils is there a single one
that stands upon a definite principle? Jose had to admit to himself
that there was not. Errors in mathematics result from ignorance of
principles, or from their misapplication. But are the errors real and
permanent?

"Padre, when I make a mistake, and then go back and do the problem
over and get it right, what becomes of the mistake?"

Jose burst out laughing at the tremendous question. Carmen joined in
heartily.

"But, Padre," she pursued, "there are rules for solving problems; but
there isn't any rule or principle for making mistakes, is there?"

"Surely not, child!" Jose replied.

"And if I always knew the truth about things, I couldn't make
mistakes, could I?"

"No."

Jose waited for her further comments. They came after a