Affirmation · “The Subconscious Says Yes”
The Statement of Being
Learn by heart and dwell in one short statement of what is always already true — that God is the one and only Presence, Power, and Substance, and that you are its expression — so that every other affirmation, prayer, and treatment rests on this fixed ground rather than on wanting or pleading.
The Statement of Being: Learn this by heart and dwell in it — “God is all there is, both invisible and visible. One Presence, Knowledge and Power is all. This One that is all is perfect Life, Intelligence and Substance. Man is the expression of God and is ever one with this perfect Life, Intelligence and Substance.” Take it clause by clause until felt, not merely said. Treat it as recognition of what already is, not a request. Re-establish it as the ground before any other affirmation or prayer, and recall its core through the day. Affirm the ground — and still take every practical step the world requires.
What it is
Fannie Brooks James, chief systematic teacher and longtime president of the Divine Science College in Denver, built her whole course on a single foundational affirmation she called the Statement of Being.
It is not a request, a denial of a specific trouble, or a treatment aimed at a need. It is a flat declaration of what Divine Science holds to be always already the case: that God is the one and only Presence, Power, Intelligence, and Substance, and that the human being is the expression of that one perfect Life.
James’s instruction for the student was blunt: “Learn this statement.” Everything else in the practice — every later affirmation, denial, or prayer — is meant to stand on this fixed ground rather than on wanting, fearing, or pleading.
Where Cady pairs a denial with an affirmation for a particular condition, and where treatment methods build toward a specific result, the Statement of Being supplies the premise the rest reason from.
The Method
From Truth and Health (faithfully described; short quotes only):
- Learn the statement by heart. James gives the affirmation and the single directive: “Learn this statement.” The text itself: > “God is all there is, both invisible and visible. One Presence, Knowledge and Power is all. This One that is all is perfect Life, Intelligence and Substance. Man is the expression of God and is ever one with this perfect Life, Intelligence and Substance.”
- Take it phrase by phrase. Do not race the words. Dwell on each clause until its meaning is felt, not merely recited — God is all → one Presence → that One is perfect Life → I am its expression → I am one with it. The point is realisation, not repetition.
- Reason it, don’t beg it. Divine Science treats this as knowing what is true, not asking for something absent. James’s stance, echoing the tradition, is that “everything has already been given” — so the work is to recognise and accept, not to acquire.
- Return to it as the ground. Whenever you sit to affirm, pray, or “treat” any matter, begin by re-establishing the Statement of Being first, so the specific work proceeds from the premise that the one perfect Presence is here now.
- Make it portable. Once learned, recall the core — God is all; I am the expression of perfect Life — at any moment in the day as a steadying return, not only in formal practice. (Sourcing note: the affirmation is quoted from Truth and Health; the numbered structure is an attributed paraphrase of James’s method.)
Source & Lineage
Fannie Brooks James (1854-1914) co-founded Divine Science with Malinda Cramer and her sisters Nona and Aletha Brooks, and codified the movement’s doctrine into a graded course of lessons published as Truth and Health (1917, after her death).
The Statement of Being is her formulation of Divine Science’s foundation truth — that limitless Being is equally present everywhere and is the all of everything — drawn from Cramer’s method and the wider New Thought stream of Emma Curtis Hopkins.
The Traditions' versions
The move — anchor the mind on one fixed statement of what is ultimately true, and let all particular work rest on it — recurs across the affirmative tradition, but James’s version is distinctive in being a single ontological ground-statement (a creed of being), not a need-directed practice: - Cady’s denials & affirmations — pairs a denial of the apparent evil with an affirmation of a desired good, condition by condition; James supplies the prior premise both rest on.
- Eddy’s silent argument — argues against the reality of a specific sickness/error toward the spiritual truth; James simply states the truth as the standing ground.
- Myrtle Fillmore’s affirmative prayer — declares the indwelling life as already whole.
- The “I AM” affirmation/decree (Ballard) — a charged declaration of divine identity.
- Self-affirmation of core values (psychology) — recalling a stable, valued truth about oneself to steady the system under threat.
Common refinements
Reciting without realising. Rattling the words off defeats the purpose. Slow down; dwell on each clause until it is felt.
- Turning it into a wish. “God is all” is meant as recognition of what already is, not a plea for what is missing. If it has become begging, you have left the ground.
- Using it to deny real problems. “Imperfection is unreal” is a metaphysical premise, not medical advice. Affirm the ground and see the doctor, pay the bill, take the step.
- Self-blame when life contradicts it. Holding “I am perfect Mind” as a standard you are failing breeds shame. Hold it as a quiet orientation, not a verdict on your day.
- Skipping it before specific work. James’s design has the specific affirmation/treatment rest on this premise; re-establish the Statement first, then proceed.