Los Angeles herald., 1909-02-14
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
IS GUIDED BY BIBLE
HEALING AS PRACTICED BY
GALILEAN FOLLOWED
Mrs. Eddy's Adherents Consider
Health as Important, but for
Spiritual and Not Mate
rial Reason

Every one who has ever read the
Bible must recOllect the story Of the
day when Jesus, coming to his house
at Nazareth, went as he was wont into
the synagogue, and after having read
aloud a. passage from the book of
Isaiah, rolled the scroll together and
turned to those present with the words,
''Ye will surely say unto me this
proVerb, Physician, heal thyself."
The entire incident is worth remem-
bering in the light of criticisms so often
launched against Christian Science, of
being an entirely selfish religion which
lnscribeS immunity from illness. and
physical inharmony upon it's banners.
| To listen to the people who hold such
views speaking it would be natural
to conclude that there was positive
virtue in being ill, and that their neigh
bors. who are well, were being neglected
by God, who in emitting to chaste1
them with illness or sorrow, was for
some inscrutable purpose deliberately
permitting them to roam, without
warning, down the broad road which
leads to destruction.
When one of their friends dies they
thank God for having taken him to his
rest, ignoring the fact that they have
for weeks and months striven with the
aid of all the resources of the medical
profession to defeat the beneficent pur-
pOSS VI Tie w WuSIl CLSy al Z
i'll themselves they pray that COD S
Kingdom may come and his will be
done, forgetting that to this prayer
Christ Jesus added the words '"in earth
as it is in heaven" Now there is most
certainly neither sin, illness nor death
| in heaven. SO that when they pray for
Gods will TO be done in earth as in
heaven, it is manifest that their prayer
can only be answered in the oVercOm-
ing Of their evils Yet this is the very
thing they find selfish and material in
a Christian Scientist.
Bible Is Chart of Life
1t is the inevitable fate of all critics
of Christian Science to find themselves
O., the teaching of Christ Jesus, for the
sufficient reason that, in the words of
Mrs. Eddy, the Bible is "the chart of
life' and Christian Science is steering
by that chart. If there was one thing
made more clear than another by
Christ Jesus during his ministry it was
that it was the duty Of all those who
claimed to be his followers to repeat
his deeds of healing. But in order to
heal others it is necessary to be able to
heal yourself.
The critics of Christian Science re-
alize this today as thoroughly as the
opponents of Jesus in the first century
and when they see a Christian Scientist
whom they regard as i'll, take up the
cry, physician, heal thyself." Then,
the next minute, they turn round and
reproach him for considering his health
a matter of Importance.
The Christian Scientist does consider
his health a matter Of Importance, but
for spiritual and not for a material
reason. The flesh he knows prof1teth
nothing, but he knows also that if like
Job he is to see God in his flesh, it will
only be because he has learned, as Mrs.
Eddy says, to follow Jesus sayings
and his demonstrations, which domi-
nate the f1esh.''
A man with so little belief as Mat
thew Arnold in the historical truth of
Jesus miracles has admitted that his
therapeutics were purely spiritual.
Without going the length of entirely re-
pudiating the gospel records it would
be impossible to question this. He had
pent, for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand" The word translated repent
means literally to come to a conviction
afterwards, and so to change your
mind. Consequently when man
changes his mind from a belief that
sin, disease and death are God-sent or
God-permitted-a case of a distinction
without a difference, if ever there was
one-to some understanding of the fact
that these things are, on the contrary,
nothing but a negation of divine Love,
he touches the hem of the seamless
garment of Christ's divine Science, and,
to the extent of his knowledge, is 'in-