Editorial September 3, 1910 Issue

PRECEPT AND PRACTICE

Archibald McLellan

IT seems strange indeed that the part of Jesus' ministry to which public attention was chiefly directed, for we read that wherever he went the multitude thronged about him, eager to share in the blessings so freely bestowed, and that part on which the most stress was laid by the Gospel writers, namely, the healing of the sick, should have gradually passed into decadence and been put aside by later generations as impossible, impracticable, or obsolete. Yet this is precisely what was done between the third and nineteenth centuries, or until Mrs. Eddy, enlightened by her own healing, devoted herself to the study of the Bible until she discovered therein the scientific basis of our Master's teachings and practice.

That Jesus' gospel was intended to heal both sin and sickness, and that the healing of the one phase of evil was indissolubly linked to the healing of the other, are conclusions which logically follow the statement to the impotent man whom the Master had healed at the pool Bethesda: "Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee;" and it is because of such statements by the master Christian that Mrs. Eddy teaches that the whole gospel of Christ is to be preached and practised, rather than a portion only.

The Christian who is obeying the Master's command to preach the gospel, to be consistent with his profession as one who is manifesting the spirit of Christ or of his teachings, must also obey his command to heal the sick. It is for this reason that the Christian Scientist cannot be content with preaching alone, nor can he consistently postpone the healing of the sick to "a more convenient season." It is his mission to heal those who come to him for relief from bodily and mental distress, and in so doing to point out to his patients the way of salvation and direct their thought thereto, that they may be made "every whit whole." Just as a tree is known and judged by its fruits, so Jesus provided a standard by which his followers might be known and tested; and it would seem to be the duty of every Christian so to adjust himself that his life will bear judging by the standard set forth in the closing verses of the 16th chapter of Mark.

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