Christian Science: Healing by the Power of God
Ralph Castle, C.S., of
To heal disease and sin, it is
necessary to understand the power
and love of God, Ralph Castle, C.S., of
The spiritual rules of healing
applied by Christ Jesus enabled him to meet every situation as its master, and
these rules are available today for all to understand and to practice, Mr.
Castle stated.
During the course of his lecture
entitled "Christian Science: Healing by the Power of God," he
described healings of alcoholism, pneumonia, and drug addiction.
A member of The Christian Science
Board of Lectureship, he was introduced by Arnold H. Exo, First Reader of The
Mother Church.
Orders from a Higher Source
The lecturer spoke substantially
as follows:
"I also am a man set under
authority" (Luke 7:8). This declaration, made by the Roman centurion when
appealing to Jesus the Christ to heal his servant, implied definitely his
recognition that the Master did not perform his mighty works through human will
or any power of his own, but that he was acting under orders received from a
higher source. Although unable to formulate a description of this higher power,
the centurion was conscious - maybe only dimly - of the Christ, or the power of
God, infinite Truth, as the authority under which Jesus worked and in whose
name the Saviour healed the sick and raised the dead. Jesus discerned the
spiritual quality which the centurion expressed; for, as you remember, he commented,
"I have not found so great faith, no, not in
Through the centuries spiritually-minded
men and women have glimpsed the Christ, or the divine Truth which Jesus
manifested, to the extent that they were enabled to contribute to the spiritual
growth of others. It remained for Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer, Founder, and
Leader of Christian Science, actually to set forth in language understandable
by all what she describes as the Science of Christianity or Christian
Science; in other words, the spiritual rules applied by Jesus, which resulted
in miracles and mighty works. Albeit,
Mary Baker Eddy did not present these rules to the world until she had proved
by demonstration that their correct application furnished clear evidence of
physical healing and moral regeneration.
Mrs. Eddy's discovery of Christian
Science was not the result of a sudden vision or of an instantaneous
revelation. It was vision, to be sure - spiritual vision - developed and
cultivated by her through the years, and her writings are unquestionably the
outcome of divine revelation. We need to remember that she was spiritually
prepared to receive this revelation by virtue of her own implicit faith in the
power and love of God, a faith which she had possessed since early childhood
and which was justified by an instantaneous physical healing when she was only
twelve years of age. Several years later she again proved the power of God by
another instantaneous physical healing.
Mrs. Eddy found ‘Positive Rule’
Students of Christian Science are
familiar with the details of this healing and of Mrs. Eddy's subsequent withdrawal
from society that she might search the Scriptures and devote her time and energies
to discovering what she termed "a positive rule." On page 109 of her textbook of Christian Science,
"Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mrs. Eddy writes,
''The revelation of Truth in the understanding came to me gradually and
apparently through divine power." On page 110 we read: "Jesus demonstrated the power of Christian Science
to heal mortal minds and bodies. But this power was lost sight of, and must
again be spiritually discerned, taught, and demonstrated according to Christ's
command, with 'signs following.' "
Surely this power, which was lost
sight of, the power by which Jesus healed, is the power, or authority, of God.
And this power, or authority, can only be spiritually discerned. It is a
spiritually mental operation. Nothing material enters into its premises or
conclusions. It is the prayer of realization in distinction from prayer which
is merely a petition, and the signs following are seen in the healing of bodily
ailments and the regeneration of the sinful. In a chapter entitled
"Fruitage" in the Christian Science textbook, one hundred pages are
devoted to recounting authenticated healings in Christian Science, healings
which resulted from reading the Christian Science textbook. Materiality, or
physicality, lacking spiritual comprehension, constantly is challenging the
demonstration of this power with the question, "By what authority doest thou
these things?" (Matt. 21:23).
It is significant that when he was
challenged by the Pharisees, "By what authority doest thou these
things?" Jesus declined to answer. On another occasion he stated quite
definitely, "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John
Jesus Endowed With Divine Spirit
For the benefit of the newcomer, it may be well to mention
briefly the distinction which existed originally, and which is retained in
Christian Science, between Jesus as the name of the human being and the Christ
as his divine title. "Thou art the Christ," said Peter, "the Son
of the living God" (Matt.
On page 312 of Science and Health,
Mrs. Eddy has written: "Jesus' spiritual origin and his demonstration of
divine Principle richly endowed him and entitled him to sonship in Science. He
was the son of a virgin." Mary's purity of thought and spiritual perception
of man as an idea of God, instead of a materially conceived embryo, enabled her
to bring a son into the world spiritually empowered. To his fellows, Jesus
appeared as a human being; yet, as our Leader states, "he was endowed
with the Christ, the divine Spirit, without measure" (ibid., p. 30). This
duality of Jesus and the Christ enabled him at an early age to perceive
spiritually his own, or man's, true being. He apprehended true creation as
spiritual ideas of God, contrary to the generally accepted thought of mankind
that man is a product of the sensual or physical. Jesus' birth was under
authority; his ministry, his resurrection from the grave, and his final
ascension, all testified to his unqualified recognition of the government of
God and of his inseparability from Christ, or Truth, which demonstrates that
government.
A definition in Webster's
dictionary of the verb "heal" is, "to restore to original purity
or integrity." And that is the purpose of Christian Science. Let us note
particularly the word "original." We seek to restore our individual
concept of man and the universe to their original condition of purity or
integrity. This restoration is not a physical operation, but a distinctly
mental process, a spiritually mental process. Purity and integrity in their
higher meanings are spiritual qualities.
Prophets Caught Glorious Glimpses
The spiritually-minded have been
receptive to the Christ, or truth of God, in all times, and have been divinely
inspired to express and to record their revelations. On page 333 of the
textbook, Mrs. Eddy has written, "The advent of Jesus of Nazareth marked
the first century of the Christian era, but the Christ is without beginning
of years or end of days." A little later on the same page we read,
"Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and the prophets caught glorious glimpses of the
Messiah, or Christ, which baptized these seers in the divine nature, the
essence of Love." It is not
inconsistent to say that centuries before the Master taught and practiced
Christianity, Christian Science was recognized in some degree by
spiritually-minded persons as embodying the idea of true identity and
existence. It does not mean that the truth concerning God and man was known as
Christian Science. This name was given by Mrs. Eddy to her discovery of the rules
of spiritual healing and to designate the law of God, which she found underlies
all true being. A marginal note in the Christian Science textbooks reads,
"Christian Science as old as God" (ibid., p. 146). Christian Science
was not invented or originated by Mrs. Eddy. Through divine revelation and her
consecrated labors she discovered it. The law was ever in operation. The law
must have been in operation or there would have been no creator and no
creation. God and spiritual law are one and the same.
Creation cannot differ in
substance or quality from the
creator. Cause and effect is one. God, Spirit, the first and only cause,
produced and still produces spiritual effect. It is the law. For creation to express
Life, the creator must be Life. Hence, God, Spirit, and Life are one and the same.
God can be cognizant only of His own being and His own creation. As Life, God
is not cognizant of death. His creation, consisting of individual expressions
of Himself, Life, cannot be cognizant of death. Death being unknown to God,
death is unknown to His image and likeness, man. Death is a phase in the dream
of mortal existence - a phase of the belief in a power apart from God - a
belief, not the truth.
That you and I appear to be here
in the flesh, each with his own personal viewpoints on many subjects, shows
that mankind believes in a material creation and that man is a human being. In
other words, mankind believes in a power apart from God. So we need to define
whom and what we mean when we discuss man from the standpoint of Christian
Science. Christian Science admits no power apart from God. How could it, if it
is the truth concerning the law of God?
We will agree that there is a
thought generally held in the world that individuals are persons, humanly
conceived, who are here for a certain number of years but are subject at any
time to sickness and death, and who have an ability, if not a propensity, to
sin. When we talk about man in Christian Science we have reference to the
God-created man mentioned in the first chapter of Genesis. It is the purpose of
this talk to endeavor to present this real man, as we term him, in a manner
understandable to the newcomer, and to help raise our own individual concept of
selfhood away from false, material beliefs of sinfulness, sorrow, sickness, lack
- discord in any form - into a higher understanding of our individual
inheritance as a child of God, an inheritance reflecting the divine nature and
qualities.
Seven Synonyms for God Revealed
To enjoy this inheritance we need to
know as much as possible of the truth concerning God, and in addition, our
right to exercise this knowledge in overcoming inharmonious situations of
every kind. That we, individually, possess consciousness is proved by the fact
that we have the ability to think. It is this consciousness, which humanly
speaking we call our mind, that needs to be restored through spiritual
understanding. On page 254 of Science and Health our Leader says, "The
human self must be evangelized." And she adds, "This task God demands
us to accept lovingly to-day,
and to abandon so fast as practical the material, and to work out the spiritual
which determines the outward and actual." This is a healing process by the
power of God. Let us remember that the name or power of God signifies also His
attributes and qualities. Representing God, therefore, means expressing only
those attributes and qualities.
We are all familiar with Paul's
admonition, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus"
(Phil. 2:5). Jesus expressed and reflected the power of God, infinite Truth.
Divine Mind is a synonymous term for God. The individual human mind or
consciousness is not and cannot be a reflection of the divine consciousness,
or Mind, called God. By its very nature the human mind is partly good and
partly bad; but by our ability to reason from the basis of spiritual causation,
and by our willingness to discard or mentally destroy thoughts which we realize
are not Godlike, we purify our own thinking. This is a restorative process, a
process which will eliminate the false beliefs of the human mind, as such, and
awaken us to glorified being as God's own likeness, perfect and eternal - a
task which God, Mind, demands us lovingly to accept today.
In her meditations upon God which
resulted in her discovery of Christian Science it was revealed to Mrs. Eddy
that the titles for God are signified by seven all-embracing terms. Each of
these terms although synonymous conveys to human thought various aspects of
Deity. Before going further let me name these seven synonyms. They are Mind,
Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love. Meditating upon their meanings and
expanding on the qualities of each, we broaden our concept of Deity to an
extent possible in no other way. By the same token, our knowledge of true
selfhood is expanded, for we have already seen that to represent God, to heal
in His name, we must seek to express, as well as to understand, His
qualities. We have already touched briefly on God as Life and as divine Mind
and we have agreed that God is Spirit.
Spiritual Law Admits No Error
Let us now think of God as Principle.
The more we ponder this revelation, the more we perceive that God cannot be
less than or other than divine Principle. Law manifests Principle. We are speaking,
of course, of spiritual law. Principle admits no error. Spiritual law admits no
error. Principle knows no mistake. There can be no mistake in God's law. Mind,
Spirit, Life, Principle are one and the same.
The more we grasp the facts of
spiritual creation, or spiritual causation, the more clearly does real
selfhood dawn on the understanding, as opposed to the material belief that you
and I are merely flesh and blood with something called a brain which enables us
to think. Rather do we recognize our consciousness as embodying individual
eternality, indestructibility, and perpetual reflection of the power,
presence, and qualities of God. And it is this spiritual conviction which
inspires us to acknowledge our God-given authority to heal in His name - to
resist mentally all that is unlike Him - in short, restore to original purity
or integrity the individual concept of ourselves and others. And it is
essential that we start with ourselves.
We all remember the Biblical
command to love one's neighbor as oneself. An aspect of loving is
understanding. We need to understand our neighbor as we understand ourselves.
It follows that this is possible only when we know or understand ourselves.
When we arrive at definite conclusions regarding our true selfhood as an
expression of God's being, we cannot fail to have arrived at the same
conclusion regarding our neighbor. Conversely, so long as we attach ungodlike
qualities to our neighbor we have failed to reach a full understanding of our
own true being. As we saw a moment ago, Principle knows nothing of error, cannot
see or entertain error in any way. If it did, it wouldn't be Principle. Hence
an expression of Principle, which we know to be true manhood, cannot be
cognizant of qualities unlike Principle.
Let us see where this line of
reasoning takes us in everyday affairs - in other words, its practicality. We
should return to what was said about Jesus and his attitude toward his critics
as well as toward those who were earnestly seeking the Christ. Jesus differentiated
between hypocrisy and sincerity. He condemned the one in no uncertain terms
while he encouraged the other with patience and love. He admonished his
followers, "Judge not, that ye be not judged" (Matt. 7:1). Yet he
warned them, "Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as
doves" (Matt.
Principle Directed the Solution
This young man belonged to an
organized group of citizens and acted as their treasurer, the funds being
kept in his personal account at the bank. A member of the group, knowing this,
asked him to endorse a check which he had drawn on his home-town bank,
situated several miles away. The endorsement was made in good faith, but a few
days later the endorser's bank called to say the check had been returned marked
"No account," and informed our friend his own account would be
charged with the amount. This was quite serious, for the sum was far greater
than he could afford to lose. He knew immediately that this was an occasion
when he would have to turn to God for guidance. Humanly speaking, he didn't
know what step to take. Who was he to sit in judgment on the other one and jump
to the conclusion that his colleague was dishonest? On the other hand, was it
right to be imposed upon? Although not feeling sufficiently confident to detect
guilt or innocence, he became convinced that God, divine Mind, would direct
him. After a few preliminary moves and viewing the circumstances as closely as
possible from the point of Principle, much against his personal inclinations
he swore out a warrant for the other's arrest. The case went to court, and
restitution was arranged. As the two men walked away together, the defendant
turned to the Christian Scientist and expressed deep gratitude for what had
been done. He said that he would hate to think what might have happened had he
been allowed to get away with the fraud, and that now he wanted something of
what the other had. Asked what this was, the reply was, "Christian
Science."
It should be said this incident
occurred in the early days of World War I. Several months later the two met
again. They were in uniform. The one who had formerly been arrested was engaged
in what was considered a particularly hazardous duty. But he made light of it,
saying that he was so grateful to have obtained some understanding of Christian
Science, and he knew that God protected him in all he was called upon to do in
line of duty.
The point I am making is, had the
Christian Scientist followed his human desire to refrain from taking what
seemed to him drastic action, there is no knowing what might have resulted.
Listening to the dictates of Principle, realizing the government of the one
divine Mind, and acting without prejudice or resentment, both persons were
greatly blessed. It was a healing of sin by the power of God.
To many persons, especially those
of us who were brought up in an orthodox religion, the meaning of the word
"soul" was rather mysterious. I remember, as a boy, being told that
upon the passing of a member of the family angels came and escorted the soul of
that loved one to heaven. My parents were seriously religious and believed
what they said. A strange "something" which had existed within the
physical body was released by death,
and, unseen to human eyes, made its way skyward, there to wait judgment upon
the deeds and misdeeds of its former owner. This is not said with any
disrespectful or flippant thought. On the contrary, I am intensely serious, for
a proper understanding of soul is of great importance to the study and practice
of Christian Science. Christian Scientists are profoundly grateful to Mary
Baker Eddy, and her logical yet divinely inspired explanation of soul is one
of their reasons for gratitude.
Man Reflects Qualities of Soul
Mrs. Eddy makes a distinction
between Soul, capitalized, and soul spelled with a small "s." The
former she shows to be synonymous with God, while the latter means sense. And
in this connection we need to distinguish between the sense which is material
and the sense which is spiritual. This distinction enables us to read the
Bible intelligently, for with these differing meanings in thought we can
separate, mentally, the soul which is "cast down," as was David's on
occasions, and the soul of Mary which magnified the Lord. Material sense
cannot magnify the Lord, neither can spiritual sense, which is God-derived, be
cast down. As we need a definition of man in order properly to discuss Christian
Science, so do we need a definition of soul. Much misunderstanding, or perhaps
lack of understanding, is due to an inability to agree on the meaning of these
words.
In this discussion we have seen
that the real man expresses or reflects God's true nature, His attributes and
qualities. The real man, therefore, reflects the qualities of Soul, God. We
cannot obtain the faintest understanding of Soul through material sense, any
more than we can of God. We cannot impute sin to Soul, for sin is unknown to
Principle. Hence we find God, Soul, and Principle to be one and the same. What
does this mean to you and me?
As individual ideas of God,
conscious through spiritual sense of expressing God, you and I express Soul.
One attribute of Soul is immortality. It follows that an individual expression
of Soul is an individual expression of immortality. Your consciousness, and
mine too, are immortal. I do not mean this material identity which is
recognizable only through physical perception, but our spiritual identity - our
original purity or integrity which Christian Science enables us to restore,
here and now, to the extent that we gain clearer, correct views of God and of
His spiritual creation. On page 477 of the Christian Science textbook we read,
"Soul is the substance, Life, and intelligence of man, which is individualized,
but not in matter." Note that Soul, God, is individualized as man. Individual
man's true identity is a reflection of Soul. And this reflection is
substantial. It reflects the divine substance of Spirit. Mankind believes
matter to be substantial. It calls that substance which can be handled
physically; but that is not substance because it is not eternal.
Christian Science Interprets Term
Here again we find that Christian
Science metaphysically interprets the meaning of a generally accepted term.
Why? Because all these meanings are based on what is understood to be real as
against what is considered unreal. Mankind contends that what it believes to be
real or substantial is more than imaginary or confined to material perception
- in a word, that which can be recognized by the physical senses. Yet it has been
demonstrated that all material substance, so-called, can be dissipated to the
point where the physical senses cognize it no longer. That which was considered
to be real is proved to be unreal, for it ceases to exist, as mankind regards
existence. Christ Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
words shall not pass away" (Matt. 24:35).
The Christ, Truth, expressed by Jesus is real. Truth is substance
because it is indestructible. Substance, as Christian Science explains it,
cannot include any discordant element. Soul cannot experience sickness,
suffering, or lack. Therefore, as Soul is the substance of man, man cannot experience
sickness, suffering, or lack. Man lives in Soul, therefore man never lacks
substance. This is a most reassuring truth and is pertinent in refuting many
false, material suggestions.
A friend of mine tells of a
healing in Christian Science experienced by his father and which he witnessed.
Over a period of seven years the father had spent considerable time in a
hospital, had been operated upon six times, and had to submit to extremely
painful dressings. Conditions reached the point where it was thought nothing
more could be done for him, and he was given up to die. Christian Science was
introduced and accepted. During his illness the patient had acquired the drug
habit, and he relied upon morphine capsules to relieve him from pain. The
morning following his first Christian Science treatment he went downtown to the
drugstore, and, as was his custom, presented the prescription and tendered a
dollar in payment. After the druggist had placed the box of capsules in his
hand, my friend's father said suddenly, "I don't want this," laid it
down, and left the store.
Instantaneous Healing Reported
Upon returning home he told his
family what had taken place and said he had no recollection of having gone to
the drugstore in the first place, much less asking for the morphine capsules,
and it was as though he had suddenly awakened when the box was handed to him.
This healing was instantaneous and permanent. Pain soon ceased under Christian
Science treatment, and an unsightly bodily condition was restored to a normal
state in color and texture. When Christian Science treatments commenced, my
friend was requested not to look at the father's wound. At the end of ten days
he was requested to look at it again, this time to confirm that others were not
dreaming because the healing was, to them, so remarkable. What had seemed to be
lost substance of flesh was being replenished.
This healing in Christian Science
made such a profound impression upon the inhabitants of the small midwestern
city in which it took place that one who had been a periodical drunkard for
over thirty years turned to Christian Science for help. A practitioner visited
him in his room, where he had been in a drunken stupor for two weeks. When the
practitioner left, the man reached for his bottle of whisky, intending to take
"just one more drink." Instead, he placed it back on the shelf, remarking
in strong terms that if the Christian Scientist was fool enough to trust him
and leave the bottle within reach, he would live up to the trust. Long before
the practitioner reached his home, to which, incidentally, he trudged in a
blinding blizzard, the patient was mentally clear and was calling for food. This
instantaneous healing occurred on a Christmas Eve, and the following day was
the occasion for a happy family gathering. The man's legal practice began to
grow rapidly, and in a few years he was in receipt of a substantial income.
His thought of lack of substance underwent a complete change.
My friend himself had a beautiful
healing in Christian Science. When he was about seventeen years of age he was
stricken with pneumonia for the fourth time. This was soon after his father had
received his own healing; yet the father's faith in Christian Science had not
reached the point where he would rely upon it for the healing of his son. Not
until two physicians had said nothing more could be done, did the father telegraph
to a practitioner in another city for treatment. The boy had been unconscious
for many hours. Immediately after
Christian Science treatment was commenced he regained consciousness, sat up
in bed, and insisted upon getting up. In ten days he was back in school. These
healings made such an impression on my friend that he readily accepted the
truth of Christian Science as presented by Mary Baker Eddy although, he
admits, at first he did not understand much of what he read. Through the years,
however, he has been an active, working Christian Scientist, and his own
realization of substance as spiritual has been objectified.
Understanding of Truth Heals
In the Preface to the Christian
Science textbook Mrs. Eddy says (p. viii), "The question, What is Truth,
is answered by demonstration, - by healing both disease and sin." We have
already seen that to heal disease and sin it is necessary to understand the
healing power - the power of God. So we find the term Truth to be synonymous
with God.
In John 14 we read that Jesus said
to Thomas, the disciple, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man
cometh unto the Father, but by me." He continued, "If ye had known
me, ye should have known my Father also." It is generally conceded among
Bible scholars that when Jesus referred to himself as an earthly personality,
he did so as "the Son of man," and that when he used the first person
pronouns he was recognizing his Messianic mission and had reference to
himself, not as the human Jesus, but as the Son of God. Had Thomas possessed
the spiritual perception, he would have recognized the Christ, or true
spiritual nature of Jesus, which expressed the Father, God. Condensing Jesus' statement, Christ is the divine
manifestation of Truth. Also, no man cometh unto (or arrives at any
understanding of) God, but by
Christ, Truth. Hence we perceive Christ and Truth to be inseparable, just as
the Christ and God are inseparable. Truth is God. Truth and God are one and the
same. God, Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, and Truth are one and the same.
You remember that when Jesus
healed the man who was sick of the palsy, he first told the man his sins were
forgiven him. This aroused such criticism on the part of the scribes that he
declared that "the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins,"
and to prove this power he immediately healed the man of his palsied
condition. Note the words, "hath power." Jesus did not say that the
Son of man forgave sin. He invoked the power invested in him as the
representative of God. He acted under authority.
It is reasonable to assume that,
irrespective of denomination, all Christian peoples agree that "God is
love" (I John
God, good, knows no evil; Principle
cannot admit a mistake; Life does not experience death; Love is incapable of
anger or hatred. Opposites are unknown to each other. Light knows no darkness
and the darkness has no light. They cannot mingle. The darkness is dispelled by
light, and this simile serves to illustrate the effect of spiritualizing influence
in human consciousness. As darkness disappears when light shines, so do false,
material beliefs vanish when displaced in our thinking by the truths of
creation.
Recognizing Sin Aids Its Destruction
As we advance spiritually, we
will, with less conscious effort, perceive God through the terms we have
applied - Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love. At this stage of
progress it is extremely helpful to work mentally from the standpoint of the
seven synonyms, chiefly because human thought has not shown the capacity to
grasp the fullness of God in one word. Further than that, and as we have seen,
to the extent that we are in ignorance of God's completeness, so are we in ignorance
of true selfhood and of the true selfhood of others. As a simple example, let
us consider a case of sin. But in doing so, let us remember that although
Christian Science teaches that sin is unreal in the same sense that sickness is
unreal, nevertheless sin most certainly cannot be ignored as an element which
needs to be uncovered and destroyed. An admission of sickness may tend to
retard the healing, whereas a recognition of sin aids in its destruction. Sin
assumes many phases. It is not always violent or vicious; yet it is ever a
hindrance to our realization of true selfhood as a child or idea of God. In order
to heal an individual by Christian Science treatment, while it may be desirable
to handle mentally the sinful belief from certain specific aspects, the fact
that man, as understood in Christian Science, reflects God as Principle might
be one logical approach. Principle has furnished an invariable standard of
living for man, from which no deviation is possible. Should the sinful person's
action bring unhappiness or suffering to others, God as Love supplies truths
pertinent to such circumstances. Reflecting Love, man made in the image of God
not only would not wish to harm, but is incapable of harming another. Love
implies consideration, care, and protection. All these qualities, and others
of a similar nature, constitute the act of loving, which is an expression of true
being. Again, reflecting the one Mind, man manifests intelligence, wisdom, and
true knowledge. As an intelligent being, man cannot sin, for sinfulness indicates
an absence of intelligence. In short, we are mentally substituting spiritual
counterfacts concerning man as the image of God for the false, material beliefs
regarding man as a sick and sinning mortal.
Each Prayer Is an Unfoldment
For the benefit of the newcomer
let it be said that there is no formula for Christian Science treatment. Each
prayer, or treatment, in Christian Science is an unfoldment and expansion
from basic truths. Spiritual refreshment and inspiration are ever requisite,
and the student of Christian Science prays for and is alert to the reception of
these elements. Mere repetition of memorized statements from the Bible and our
Leader's writings is not, in itself, sufficient, although study of the word is
indispensable and promotes spiritual understanding. The correct answer to any
question can be obtained only by realization of Truth, accompanied by correct
application of the rules of Christian Science. Our approach toward the
solution of any difficulty, whether it seem personal or whether we are called
upon to help another, is heartened by the knowledge that Christian Science
empowers us to meet and to master every discordant situation.
We hear, and read in testimonies
in our periodicals, that healings often have been instantaneous when erroneous
traits of character have been displaced by Christlike qualities. Physical
ailments, sometimes called malignant, have been completely healed when, shall
we say, a sense of resentment toward another or toward circumstances, has been
uncovered and destroyed. It behooves us, therefore, to keep our thoughts filled
with the qualities of God that we may become better transparencies for the
demonstration of Truth.
It is generally conceded that the
greatest instance of betrayal recorded in history is Judas' betrayal of the
Master. Details of the incident as related in each of the four Gospels vary
but little. One writer records that Jesus addressed Judas by name, and another
states that he greeted him with the term "Friend." Jesus, however,
did not ignore the evil, as witness his words recorded in Matthew, "Woe
unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed!" But he did not express
any resentment toward the one who was immediately responsible for his public humiliation,
his bodily suffering, and his crucifixion. The Master allowed nothing personal
to come between himself and Judas. He knew that the betrayal was actually
directed against the Christ, Truth, which he represented. And this great
spiritual fact was soon to be recorded, when, from the cross, he cried,
"Father, forgive them." Jesus called upon the Father to forgive those
who wished to put him to death, and in his resurrection he proved the utter
powerlessness of evil to kill the Christ-idea. His attitude toward Judas
illustrated his Christliness.
Mrs. Eddy Answered Hate with Love
Our beloved Leader did not escape
persecution. One has only to read the authorized biographies of her life to
realize how vicious were the attacks leveled at her, not alone from those who
were unacquainted with her, but from many of her professed friends. The materially-minded
turned in wrath against the spiritual truth she revealed, and reviled her when
she persisted in presenting to the world a religion founded on the true
understanding of God. Yet, in trials of her faith, when calumny was heaped upon
her, she prayed to God to direct and control her thoughts and actions, and she
expressed love and tolerance toward those who had wronged her. Like the Way-shower,
she realized that the hatred of the world is powerless, and that Love alone is
real and powerful.
In our human experience we
sometimes seem to be the object of unkindness or injustice at the hands of
those to whom nothing but friendliness and love have been extended. Then comes
a temptation to feel hurt, perhaps resentful. Even if these emotions are
conquered, there still may linger the thought that the less seen of the other
person the better. At such a time it is desirable to analyze our feelings a
little more closely in the light of the teachings of Christian Science, for
these are based on the words and works of Christ Jesus, who demonstrated the
utter powerlessness of everything unlike good. Inharmony in personal
relationships often results when pride has been hurt. On page 224 of her
"Miscellaneous Writings" Mrs. Eddy says: "It is our pride that
makes another's criticism rankle, our self-will that makes another's deed
offensive, our egotism that feels hurt by another's self-assertion. Well may we
feel wounded by our own faults; but we can hardly afford to be miserable for
the faults of others." She adds, "Nothing short of our own errors
should offend us."
What peace and comfort are
obtained from thinking on these truths! Gratefully, we realize that the
mesmerism of hurt or unhappiness can be broken instantly. Directly the error is
uncovered it is mainly destroyed. But it must be utterly cast out - not
ninety-nine percent cast out and one percent allowed to lurk in memory, but one
hundred percent removed from consciousness. And to this end we are inspired
and encouraged by the prayer contained in one of our Leader's hymns (Poems, p.
6):
"Thou to whose power our hope
we give,
Free us from human strife.
Fed by Thy love divine we live,
For Love alone is Life;
And life most sweet, as heart to
heart
Speaks kindly when we meet and
part."
The Christian Science Monitor