Article May 29, 1915 Issue

The kind words which a critic adds to my answer of his...

Marie Hartman—The Hague, Holland

Kerkelijk Weekblad

The kind words which a critic adds to my answer of his criticism, encourage me to draw the attention of your readers once more to the subject of Christian Science.

The "Emmanuel movement," of which little seems to be heard in America nowadays, is not a fruit of Christian Science, but originated a few years ago in one of the older American churches. The great growth of the Christian Science movement seems to have opened the eyes of these people to the possibility of healing through spiritual means, and they tried, with the help of the medical doctors, to procure it for their adherents. They, however, overlooked the fact that physical healing is not the primary object in Christian Science, but only the spontaneous result of a better understanding of Truth; for without this understanding true spiritual healing is not possible.

As Christian Science acknowledges God to be perfect, immutable, eternal Truth, it teaches that in this Mind, which includes all reality, there can be no room for a destructive element like evil. Through communion with God, which is prayer, man becomes more and more conscious of the eternal truths, and finds herein a refuge and protection from evil. As there can be no evil in God, and He alone created all that exists, Christian Science concludes that evil cannot belong to the eternal, indestructible order of things, although it does not deny that to the limited, human view, evil seems very real indeed. Christian Science considers evil as a false belief, which must vanish before a knowledge of the truth. Does not Habakkuk say, "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity"? Would supreme wisdom see less or more of reality than a mortal?

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