Article February 13, 1902 Issue

Reply to Professor Terry

Archibald Mclellan

Evanston (III.) Index

To the Editor.

Professor Terry's criticism of Mr. Kimball's lecture on Christian Science is alive with honesty and sincerity of purpose; therefore it is a matter of regret that he failed to recognize the premise from which the lecturer argued; viz., God is omnipotent, the only creator,—a premise which receives the assent of every Christian. With that premise admitted, it is logical to maintain that sin, sickness, and death are not real unless they are of God's creation, and a God who creates sin, sickness, and death cannot be wholly good unless sin, sickness, and death are good. If sin, sickness, and death are real, and not God's creation, there must of necessity be another creator—a statement which denies the omnipotence of God and is abhorrent to every Christian when its full import is understood. Whoever believes that sin, sickness, and death are real, worship a base god, if he worships a god at all, or he denies the omnipotence of God. Has any one but a christian Scientist since the time of Jesus and the early Christians believed that evil, sin, sickness, and death are unreal? Then why say that Mr. Kimball's statement that the world has been worshiping a bad God is untrue?

Professor Terry is right in saying that the great fundamental truths that God is Spirit, Love, Light, Truth, Wisdom, Power; that He is holy and just and good, are not original with Mrs. Eddy. She never claimed that they were original with her, neither have her followers made such claims. It may be noted in passing that none of these "fundamental commonplaces of Christianity" are consistent with the belief that evil, sin, sickness, and death are real, unless the omnipotence of God is denied.

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