Article July 5, 1913 Issue

Christian Science claims to be the only known method...

Charles K. Skinner

The Berrien Springs (Mich.) Era

Christian Science claims to be the only known method since the time of Jesus the Christ which heals the sick and the sinner by one and the same rule. Its Principle is absolute and sure, provided its demands are complied with by the individuals concerned. It is related in the gospels that the Master in certain places "did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief," showing that the same hardness of heart, the same clinging to material means for relief, the same questioning of the power of God to heal in His own way, existed in that time as today. In connection with this it may be well to note that in all of his wonderful works which are recorded, Jesus made a special demand upon the one to be healed. To one he said, "Stretch forth thy hand;" to another, "Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house;" to the centurion, "As thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee;" to another, "Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee." Obedience, faith, and reformation were thus demanded. Christian Science teaches that everything is thought before it is acted, and if thought were controlled and purified before being expressed, nothing but good could be manifested. This concurs with the Master's words, "Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, . . . these are the things which defile the man."

The Christian Science church differs from some other churches in this, that it holds to a more spiritual understanding and application of the Scriptures and the works and teachings of the Wayshower. Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is within you," not a place or habitation, as some have taught, but a condition of mind. He said also, "It is the spirit that quickneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." The Master thus indicated that the particular forms of outward religious expression were of little value, but what is necessary is comprised in obedience to the spirit of the two commandments, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me," and "Love thy neighbor as thyself."

It has been truly said that few, if any, accept Christian Science healing until the gamut of everything in the material scale has been run and found wanting. This is not strange when it is considered that the Christian world has been steeped in materialism since the time of Constantine. The fact, however, is very noticeable, and cannot be gainsaid, that humanity is fast awakening to the demands of the spiritual. A few years ago it was preached from the pulpit and asserted in the medical conventions, that Christian Science would soon pass away. Instead of this, the growth has been unprecedented. Church after church has been erected every year, and each is filled every Sunday and Wednesday by those seeking for what they have not found elsewhere. In the city of Detroit two large organizations have been founded in the past three years, making three in all, and the fourth is not far distant.

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