Article August 18, 1928 Issue

That man is continually having new methods of treating...

George W. Martin, Committee on Publication for the State of Victoria, Australia,—Melbourne

Chemist and Druggist of Australasia

That man is continually having new methods of treating his diseases foisted upon him is a point on which Christian Scientists agree with "Old Pharmacist." But to class Christian Science, as he has done in the article, "Crazes and Quackeries," which appeared in your recent issue, with blood-washers, new-thought, gland therapy, spiritualism, theosophy, et cetera, reveals a woeful lack of understanding as to what Christian Science is, and what it has done and is doing for humanity. To clear away the false deductions arrived at by the writer it is necessary first of all to have a clear definition of Christian Science, and the natural place to look for such a definition is in the writings of its Discoverer, Mary Baker Eddy. On the first page of "Rudimental Divine Science" Mrs. Eddy defines Christian Science "as the law of God, the law of good, interpreting and demonstrating the divine Principle and rule of universal harmony." Christian Science therefore has nothing in common with material methods or medical practice, and I would emphatically deny the assertion that its method of healing was "formulated from the practice of various (more or less) medical men," as stated in the article. Under Christian Science treatment the sick are healed through the same spiritual law as was in operation when Christ Jesus walked the shores of Galilee; for if God, or good, is all-power and all-presence, then sin and sickness, the very opposite of good, cannot in reality have any power, or be present. From this mount of vision Christian Science never descends.

The following misstatements indicate how little our critic has studied Mrs. Eddy's writings. He says that Christian Science maintains that "suffering and death do not exist. All is imagination." No such statements are made by Mrs. Eddy. Here are her words from page 4 of her work "No and Yes": "Disease is more than imagination; it is a human error;" and also on page 460 of the textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, it is written: "Sickness is neither imaginary nor unreal,—that is, to the frightened, false sense of the patient. Sickness is more than fancy; it is solid conviction." To the material senses sickness is very real, just as the earth is flat to the same senses; but Christian Science has now declared the evidence in the latter case to be as false as in the former, and material sense testimony regarding health no longer sways all mankind. "Millions now living will never die" is quoted as if it appears in the textbook or in other writings by Mrs. Eddy. Nowhere in those writings is such a statement to be found. Mrs. Eddy was not an hysterical woman, as the article states, nor was she healed after her accident by ordinary psychotherapy. There are many hundreds of thousands in the world who hold the Founder of Christian Science in deep reverence because of the joy, peace, health, strength, and freedom which her teachings have brought into their lives. Such blessings do not follow hysteria. For further light on Mrs. Eddy's life, I would recommend "Old Pharmacist" to read "The Life of Mary Baker Eddy" by Sibyl Wilbur. The truth about Christian Science and about the life of its Discoverer and Founder is available to all who really desire it. Under the headings of "new-thought" and "Dowieism," reference is made to Christian Science. Neither of these teachings can be classed with Christian Science. They must stand on their own merits and be judged by results. That the growth of Christian Science is due to "the want of sound teachings on medical matters," as the writer infers, is certainly a new line of argument—a very remarkable result from a negative policy. The healing Christ, Truth, as revealed through Christian Science, is spreading from country to country because of its definite and permanent healing results.

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