Article September 7, 1940 Issue

Healing, through Overcoming Fear

EDWIN V. GREENLEAF

EVERY student of Christian Science who would be successful in the healing of disease, must see the very great importance of destroying the mortal belief of fear. He would do well to analyze carefully all that our Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, has said throughout her writings on this subject, and put into practice her clear teaching concerning the nature of fear and its false claims and the way in which it is to be overcome.

Regarding fear and its overcoming in the practice of Christian Science, Mrs. Eddy says briefly in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 410), "Christian scientific practice begins with Christ's keynote of harmony, 'Be not afraid!'"

Obviously, fear is mental. Then to "be not afraid" is to maintain a state of consciousness wherein fear has no place, power, or operation, a state of consciousness wherein are confidence and assurance that the omnipotence and omnipresence of God, good, dispose of every claim of a cause for fear, and also of any effect as the result of fear. Since God, immortal Mind, is conscious only of good, He is not, could not be, cognizant of fear; nor could fear originate in or proceed from God, who knows no deviation from perfection. Fear, then, must be the product of so-called mortal mind, and must be admitted to be as unreal as that which claims to give it birth. While it is conceded that fear is mental, it is not so generally known that disease—either functional or organic, acute or chronic—is oftentimes the product of fear; and in showing the mental nature of all trouble, Mrs. Eddy unfolds the fact that the healing method is, and must be fully recognized to be, purely spiritual.

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