Article April 26, 1924 Issue

In your paper appears the report of a sermon in which...

Miss Ellen Graham, Committee on Publication for Lanarkshire, Scotland,—Glasgow

Eastern Standard

In your paper appears the report of a sermon in which Christian Science was "denounced" as one of the "False Religions of To-day." In fairness to your readers will you allow me briefly to state the case for Christian Science?

A dictionary definition of religion is "the performance of our duties of love and obedience to God." A "false religion" would thus be one which claimed to enable one to carry out these duties, but failed to do so.

Christian Science claims to be the Science, or exact and true knowledge, of Christianity, of the religion taught and practiced by Christ Jesus. In reply to the inquiry of John the Baptist if he really were God's messenger, Jesus cited the works that he did in healing the sick, raising the dead, and cleansing the lepers, as proofs of the correctness or truth of his teaching. His students carried on these works, sometimes called "miracles," which means "signs" of their spiritual understanding; and for about three centuries the test of Christianity, as expressed in Mark 16:17, 18, was recognized and proved. Ultimately these effects ceased, as creed and dogma took the place of the simplicity of the early Christian teaching. In the middle of the nineteenth century the divine Principle of spiritual healing was rediscovered by Mary Baker Eddy, and demonstrated in her instantaneous recovery from an accident which had been declared fatal by the attending physician. After a thorough demonstration of the truth she had found, Mrs. Eddy embodied her discovery, its rules and their application, in the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures." Through the study of this book and the spiritual understanding gained therefrom, multitudes of people have been healed of sickness and disease, reclaimed from sinful habits, and practically raised from the deadness of materiality to newness of life in God. Mrs. Eddy subsequently founded The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, to "reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing" (Church Manual, p. 17); and branches of this church are now to be found in many of the important cities throughout the world. Every student of the Christian Science textbook finds that he has to study the Bible more closely, more prayerfully, and more obediently than he ever did before, and that he obtains satisfying results from his study of these two books as he puts into practice in daily life the spiritual truths he has learned from them, especially the two great commandments,—"Thou shalt have no other gods before me," and, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

In your paper appears the report of a sermon in which...

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access