Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-02-28
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
SAME CHRISTIANITY
TAUGHT BY SAVIOR
MRS. EDDY CLEAVES TO PRINT
TIVE TEACHINGS
Founder of Church Proves the Ortho-
doxy of Her Faith by Per-
Torrance of Healing
Works

Primitive Christianity is, when you
come to examine it, a rather curious
expression. 1t is something very like
talking of primitive light or primitive
heat. Christianity is the religion which
Jesus the Christ gave to the world in
what has come to be known as the be-
ginning of the Christian era. Unless
therefore, that teaching differs from
the teaching of the orthodox churches
today, the Christianity of the twentieth
century must be as completely primi-
tive as the Christianity of the first
century. If there is any divergence
it must be a divergence from the orig
NAL teaching, and in just so far as this
divergence is manifested the later
teachings must be heterodox.
When, consequently, as is so fire.
ouently the case, the critics Of Chris
tan Science explain that there is moth
ing in Christian Science which was not
in primitive Christianity, they are max
ing very dangerous admission For,
If the criticism amounts to anything at
all, 1t amounts to an admission that
modern Christianity has lost something
which was inherent in the Christianity
of the first century which Christian
Science has recovered. 1t is therefore
plain that if the rediscoVery effects es-
sentials, Christian Science must be
nearer to primitive Christianity, and
consequently more orthodox than the
orthodoxy Of today. This is, of course
the truth Of the matter, and it is a
truth which the world is beginning to
have forced on its perception.
Denies Reality of Evil
Now the main thing in which Chris
tan Science differs from the orthodox
churches of today is, as every one
knows, the denial Of the reality of evil
which results in the healing of every
sort Of mental, moral and physical suf-
fering. This is the essential Of essen
tials, for it is the test by which the
founder Of Christianity elected to have
the worlds understanding Of his teach
ing judged. Those, he said, who be-
ieved on him would be able to prove
their belief, in all ages to come, by
performing the miracles which he had
performed.
Now the performance of these healing
works, his words made it spiritually
plain, must be dependent on the under
standing of his teaching. 1t necessarily
follows, therefore, that to admit that
Christian Scientists are restoring the
healing, which was in the world before
the Christian Science movement, was
insisting that their theology is unortho-
dox, in the sense of Christian, is
about as reasonable as it would be to
affirm that some famous chemist was
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raging all the laws of chemical re-
search.
The mere fact that the demonstra-
tons or object lessons performed by
Christ Jesus are being repeated today
is the strongest possible proof that the
divine law by means of which he eff
fected the miracles has been once more
made plain to men. In a word, if the
healing of Christian Science is once
granted, the theology Of Christian
Science must be admitted to be ortho-
dox, and orthodox not in the sense of
agreeing with the religious dogma Of
the twentieth century, but Of being in
agreement with the teachings of primi-
tive Christianity.
Bible Christianity Meant
What is historically intended by the
phrase primitive Christianity is a thing
it is not always particularly easy to
say. Logically, however, it can have
but one explanation, the Christianity
recorded in the canon of the Old and
the New Testament, and not the human
interpretations of this adopted by va
rfOuS fathers in the second and third
centuries. At the same time the views
Of the fathers of the early centuries
contain a recognition of healing as a
natural result Of a true perception Of
the fundamental teachings Of Christian
ity, and not a word to substantiate the
modern apology that the miracles were
intended only to launch the Christian
religion, and were never intended to be
regarded as an integral part Of the
Christian faith.
Indeed such view is absolutely out
of harmony with the writings of the
fathers. Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Ter
tullian, Origen and Lactantius all bear
witness to the healing Of sickness, the
casting out of devils and the raising
OF the dead, without ever implying that
there was period set to these things.
Lactantius, indeed, goes so far as to
assert that whatever opposition might
be provoked by the working Of miracles
in his day, that is in the third or
fourth century, was owing not to the
fact that the Christian church Of that
day was unorthodox, but to the fact
that this very proof Of it's power and
activity reused the evil dormant in
the human mind to efforts to obliterate
every vestige of goodness. How ex-
actly does this agree with Pauls often
quoted warning to the church in
Ephesus, for we wrestle not against
- ~ go. 81 I .1IasnT ais
ties, against powers, against the rulers
of the darkness of this world, against
spiritual wickedness in high places"
Richer even than the pages of Lac
Of the early church, apart from dogma,
is the famous reply of Origen to the
Roman philosopher CELSIUS. From this
we learn that the church of the third
century was still pursuing the method
Of Christ Jesus of relying for it's teach
ing on the spiritual meaning Of the
Bible text, and had not yet accepted
the theory of verbal inspiration which
necessitated every word being accepted
in it's literal sense. From it we also
learn that, when CELSIUS wrote, it was
still holding itself so aloof from ritual
that it had not returned to the old
pagan or Jewish adoption of the altar
Christian Science does not claim to
be a new truth. Such a claim would
be ridiculous because Truth is eternal, |
as Christ Jesus indicated when, speak !
ing of the Christ he declared before |
Abraham was 1 am Little by little, !
however, in the centuries succeeding
preached and demonstrated of the I'M
reality Of evil in all it's myriad mani |
festations to the human senses, and the |
corresponding allness Of God, was lost |
in the ever increasing materiality of
the Roman empire.
Men accepted the theory that the age
of miracles was passed more by reason |
of want Of evidence to the contrary
than anything else. And so when the |
textbook of Christian Science was Civ |
en- to the world, and in the light of |
Mrs. Eddy's teaching the miracles of
the first century began to be once
more performed, those who had the
spiritual perception to read the signs
of the times awoke to the fact that |
what men called primitive Christianity |