What Are Core Concepts?
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Core Concept One
Core Concept Two
Core Concept Three
Core Concept Four
Core Concept Five
Core Concept Six
Core Concept Seven
Core Concept Eight
Core Concept Nine
Core Concept Ten
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Slide Show		 When we say "the universal principles embodied in the Science of Mind," we mean that golden thread which has run, in some configuration, through many of the religions and philosophies of the world: "God is One," and "God is All," and "God and I are One." Each culture has articulated this universal Truth in ways to fit the needs of its people. It has sometimes appeared on the surface that there were multiple Gods, but, in reality,
these were only different aspects of the One.

Great thinkers challenge us not so much by what they have thought as by the "still unknown" to which their thinking points. If we are to meet their challenge, then we too must turn toward that "still unknown" and, through our new thinking and our acceptance of their thought, bring a portion of the unknown into the light of common knowledge.

Ernest Holmes was such a thinker. He articulated clearly, in the language of his time, a cosmology based on the foundation of great thinkers and mystics before him. His basic theory of how the Universe works, which we are calling in our present studies Core Concepts, has proved to be enduring, spiritually empowering, and practical. It was Holmes's deepest desire that students of this teaching practice its principles in their daily
lives. He wrote, "I would rather see a student of this Science prove its Principle than to have him repeat all the words of wisdom that have ever been uttered."

This is our vast legacy from Ernest Holmes-this wonderful structure of concepts which he researched through the religions and philosophies of human history , sometimes correlating his findings with the then-emerging "new" physics. He named the teaching a science because he believed that its principles were scientifically provable in practice. But he knew and continually reiterated that the practice must be activated and empowered by an individual consciousness of the all-pervading Loving Presence within and 'round about.

He organized these basic concepts into a clear and simple system of thought, a way of life, which can be followed by anyone who takes the trouble to understand, embody, and practice it. From this enduring base, we can adventure into infinity and never get lost in space.

It is our purpose in the outline which follows to summarize the "top ten" of these concepts in concise modern terms, documented by references to Holmes's writings. The outline is based on the premise that the "universal Principles" to which we as metaphysicians continually refer are actually One Cosmic Reality Principle and Presence, which has been called God. In Its Infinite Inclusiveness, the One encompasses
many contributory Spiritual Laws and Principles. It will be noted that some concepts integral to the Science of Mind are not mentioned here. Our purpose has been to delineate only the ten foundational ideas.

At the bottom of each page is a related excerpt from the Religious Science declaration of principles, "What We Believe." This statement, originally written by Ernest Holmes as "What I Believe," was published in the first issue of Science of Mind Magazine, October 1927.

You may download a copy of each Core Concept in Portable Document Format (PDF). Click here to open a menu of 10 Core Concept documents.

On the following pages, each concept is presented in two modes, or aspects: First in the left-hand column, it is shown in its cosmic or universal sense, as "The Thing Itself"; then, in the right-hand column, it is described in its human projection or application, which Holmes termed "The Way It Works," or how it shows up in our daily lives.

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