Article May 12, 2014 Issue

What really matters?

Nathan Talbot

This article originally appeared in The Christian Science Monitor.

I was part of a group visiting some mainstream Christian ministers. One of them who had dipped into Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures commented, “I gather Mary Baker Eddy didn’t like matter.” It didn’t take long to realize that his lightly offered comment was backed by pretty heavy feelings. This led to an exchange of ideas. It also led to more thought on my part about why a Christian would be offended by the challenge Christian Science poses to the existence of matter.

While not all Christians would feel as strongly as my clergyman friend, most would see matter as central to God’s creation—a view graphically described in the second chapter of Genesis. Still, it might be worthwhile for those who aren’t Christian Scientists to think more deeply about what Christian Science is really saying in the questions it raises about matter. For example, it isn’t saying: “That tree isn’t real. Your body isn’t real.”

Think about society’s evolving perception of matter. The view held by natural science has been changing. Matter doesn’t have the kind of substance once assumed, especially a century ago. Now, that doesn’t mean modern physics is adopting the Christian Science view. But it does suggest people might want to be less rigid in how they think about matter.

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