St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1902-11-05
Lecture on Christian Science.
aYnODsis of Judge EMing's Address.

Music Hall last week Tuesday evening
The lecturer was introduced by Hon.
E isha May. We give herewith
synopsis of his address:
1t seems reasonable to say that if
Christian Science is proximately what
its adherents claim for it, its merits
should command thoughtful, candid in
vestigation; that if it has prophylactic
or therapeutic force of even slight
efficiency afflicted men and women
everywhere should know that fact, and
certainly if it heraldS in any measure
the message Jesus brought to the
world, the weary children of men all
round the globe should know that fact.
[ stand before this audience this
evening with the single purpose OF en-
couraging honest, dispaSSionate investi
CATION of subject that profoundly has
impressed my own highest sense of
truth. | do not invite controversy or
UNCONVENTIONAL wranglng, but simply
an honest, patient seeking after truth
with the utmost freedom of thought and
expression, and yet with the fullest
recognition of the unchallenged right of
others to think and express their
thought. | recognize the fact that my
cause is confronted by sectarian preju-
dice and by the antagoniSm of all the
schools of material medicine; and it is to
those prejudiced ones l especially adj
dress myself, fully recognizing the fact
that where pre-. judgment is not, truth
heaven-panoplied will meet and satisfy
honest investigation.
The general impression of the people
who never have investigated Christian
Science is that its sole purpose is phys
ical cure, that it is something that per-
tains solely to bodily welfare, while the
truth is that physical healing is but an
incident of Christian Science. 1t is true
that Christian Scientists do insist and,
indeed, many of us know, indeed there
are many persons in this hall this
evening who do know as certainly as
Paul knew, that his Redeemer lived, that
Christian Science does bring surcease to
the heartache and heartbreak of men,
it does give roses for ashes, peace for
pain, love for hate, health for disease
and life for death to men, and yet neither
one of these, nor all of them combined,
is Christian Science, They are the re-
suits, the inevitable product of Christian
Science understood and lived; while
Christian Science itself is religion
pure and simple, the religion of the
Bible, our fathers Bible, without prefix
or sutfix, without apology or excuse,
the religion that Jesus came into the
world to establish, the religion that He
taught in the temple, the religion that
he preached throughout all Judea, the
religion that He so lovingly and tenderly
practiced among all His people, and it is
all of this or it is not anything that is
worthy of your thought or mine for
single moment. In my advocacy of
Christian Science, l plant myself abso-
lutely upon the proposition that
Christian Science is given to the world
by the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.
| believe, and | am persuaded, that the
religion of Jesus Christ is worth more to
men than erything else that has been
or can be crowded into this universe,
and whatever impinges upon that, what
ever lessons the sweetness and song of
love of that will meet with my oppoSi-
ton, and in all conscience should meet
with yours, and on the other hand | am
sure that if Christian Science is the
message Jesus brought to earth, it will
receive your cordial Endorsement and
active effort to give it to the world.
Now, while the healing power of
Christian Science is a mere incident,
still strangely enough it is the feature of
our belief that meets the most deriSive
opposition. | propose this evening to
discuss briefly with you the two phases
of Christian Science, namely, as a thera-
peutc agent and as religion, the high
est concept of God as Father, Preserver,
Savior.
| assert that the medical force of
Christian Science appeals as strongly to
the common understanding, common
sense of men, as does the curative quail.
ity of any drug. In asking your atten-
tion to this feature of Christian Science,
| only ask that you will try it by the
same rule, apply to it the same tests that
in all the past have been and today are
invoked to determine the merits of mate
rial medicine. 1t is clear to my mind
that if the therapeutic virtue of Chris
tian Science is measured by it's works,
| iCo IL ulCoi AIo CuLCoj IL uOUOALllhCu ny
precisely the same rules applied to the
use of the medicine of men, you will
find that it meets all the requirements
demanded by medical science in deter
mining incidentally the value of drugs,
and furnishes every reason, every posi-
BILE reason for your accepting the medic
inal force Of Christian Science as pre-
server of health and as a destroyer Of
disease, that the medical profession ha:
at any time asserted for reliance upor
material remedies. 1t is an uncontro
verified proposition that the use of mate
rial medicine from the beginning hal
been, and now is, based wholly upon ex
pertinent with dumb animals when op
portunity offers, and with men wher
seeming necessity requires; and yet it il
apparent that from such experiment
you can only learn the result of the us,
of drugs and never the primal cause o
the result. By closest observation anC
most persistent search you will not b,
able to discover why any specified drug
has specific effect, any more than b!
searching you can ascertain why you
breathe, or see or hear, a mystery tina
the genius of the world has not beer
able to solve. / certainly hazard moth
ing in saying that there is not physic
ian living who can tell you why an!
drug has its reputed effect; and will
much investigation | have not been abl'
to learn that any writer upon materia
medicine from the Egyptians to our owl
time ever has attempted to solve the
mystery of the action of medicine, tt
state the reason WHY, ETC., and doubles,