Article January 29, 1944 Issue

Handling Fear

EDWIN V. GREENLEAF

Mrs. Eddy shows throughout her writings on Christian Science the importance of handling fear if we would overcome disease. In her book "Retrospection and Introspection" (p. 61) she sets forth a perfect treatment for the handling of every phase of fear, thus enabling us to overcome the argument of disease. She says: "Science saith to fear, 'You are the cause of all sickness; but you are a self-constituted falsity,—you are darkness, nothingness. You are without "hope, and without God in the world." You do not exist, and have no right to exist, for "perfect Love casteth out fear."'"

Christian Science demonstrates that the destruction of fear in the thought of the patient results in the healing of both functional and organic disease. He, therefore, who would apply and prove the rules of Christian Science in the healing of disease must begin his work by handling thoroughly the belief of fear. As one affirms Mrs. Eddy's statement that fear does not exist, one becomes more and more convinced of its truth, because he realizes that, since God is All-in-all, that which does not exist in God has no actual existence; that because there is nothing besides God, fear cannot exist aside from or outside of Him; that fear, being without cause, is also without effect; being without a creator, it has no source or origin in which to originate or from which to emanate, and, being without mind to think it, it therefore never was thought. Recognizing fear to be nonexistent, the Christian Scientist knows that it does not abide in time, place, or space, and that it is never a part of the real man's consciousness. Thus he can resist the temptation to believe that he is afraid, and can effectively eject the false sense testimony seemingly projected into his experience by the machinations of fear.

According to the teachings of Christian Science, disease is largely the result of fear, and the physical evidence of disease, regardless of its type or form, is fear seen and felt as a so-called bodily manifestation. The only conclusion possible, therefore, is that both fear and disease are mental, and, being mental, need mental not physical methods to destroy them. Consequently, the demonstrator of Christian Science will not lose sight of the fact that Christian Science is the Science of Mind-healing, not matter healing. He will not attempt to handle disease as physical and fear as mental, but will handle both on the basis of their nothingness, their nonexistence.

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