Article October 7, 1911 Issue

Christian Science is certainly "founded upon a truth,"...

M. I. Whitcroft

Cheltenham (Gloucestershire, Eng.) Chronicle

Christian Science is certainly "founded upon a truth," for its only foundation is the Bible and the teachings of Jesus and his apostles, which were absolutely scientific in that they were demonstrable. Jesus never relied on drugs or human aid to heal the sick, nor did he teach his followers to do so; but his acts of healing were the outcome of his perfect and scientific (exact) knowledge of God as omnipotent, omnipresent Life and Love, the creator of all good, and of man as made in His image and likeness.

Christian Science does not deny that sin, sickness, and death seem real to the physical senses, but it does deny that God is their author, that they exist in the divine consciousness, or are part of the divine law; and that, therefore, they are not real to God. Knowing the unreality of all that is opposed to God, Jesus spoke of the devil (the personification of evil) as "a liar, and the father of it." He said, "I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil," and proved this by healing sickness and sin and raising the dead, thus acting in accordance with the law of God—not in direct opposition to it, as would have been the case had this "triad of errors" (Science and Health, p. 122) been the law of God. Jesus also said, "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also;" and Christian Scientists are daily proving this by healing sickness and sin, and so obeying Jesus' commands to "heal the sick" as well as to "preach the gospel." If our reverend critic does not feel he can carry out these commands, his failure to realize the full responsibilities of his calling should not lead him to malign those who are humbly and obediently endeavoring to do so.

Mrs. Eddy says: "A sinner can receive no encouragement from the fact that Science demonstrates the unreality of evil, for the sinner would make a reality of sin, ... Only those, who repent of sin and forsake the unreal, can fully understand the unreality of evil" (Ibid., p. 339). If our critic will read that passage carefully he will see that Christian Science offers no safety-valve for wrong-doing. It is certainly surprising to read that Christian Scientists call God "a principle" and not "a person." This information is not to be found in Science and Health, but God is spoken of in that book as "Principle" (not "a principle), and if our critic will then turn to the dictionary meaning of the word "principle" he will find it to mean "fundamental truth, cause, or origin;" and I suppose he does not deny that God is the truth, cause, and origin of all good.

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It is no longer well-bred to talk about ill health
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