The Irish standard., 1910-01-15
B, VAUGHAN
ON CHRISTIAN SCIENCE

The Noted English Divine
Has But Deep Sympathy
and Pity For Deluded Be-
lievers in That Religious
Cult--Theosophy is Still in
Our Midst With an Un-
mistakable Token of Some
Sort of An Ephemeral Life.
In last weeks issue Of the World.
Rev. Father Vaughan writes of
Christian Science and says:
I read somewhere lately that the
chief requisite for dealing effectively
with Christian Science is keen sense
of humor. The writer, it is true, de-
manded that the keen sense of humor
should be kept under control, but in
doing so I rather fancy there would
be no slight difficulty if the ludicrous
side OF Christian Science We're made
at all prominent. Without doubt
ridicule is a very effective instrument
when we are dealing with conscious
hypocrites, hut I would willingly be-
lieve that a large number of Christian
Scientists are not conscious hypocrites.
They do not excite my sense of humor
half so much as my deep sympathy and
pity. Setting aside the leaders Of the
movement, look upon the rank and
file as mere dupes in two departments
in which poor human nature is very
especially gullible- religion and medi-
cine.
/ 1t is very generally admitted nova
tific mind-that religion of some sort
/ is necessary for the ordinary run Of
men and women. They who do not get
the true religion, or will not have it,
are very liable indeed to become the
prey of superstition. Indeed. I have
little hesitation in saying that in the
measure in which religion decays SUI
! perstition gains strength.
There seems to be scarcely any limit
to the folly and the foulness of the SUI
perstitions to which men become VIC
Tins when once they reject true re-
ligion. The history of religions is by
no means pleasant reading for anyone
who reverences human nature. For
instances of folly. not to say idiocy, it
is by no means necessary to study the
history of the religions of primitive
! man, nor even of the sects and
heresies of the Middle Ages; the Re-
formation, as it is called, and our own
time furnishing plenty Of examples.
Theosophy and the New Theology
are still in our midst with unmistal1-
able tokens Of some sort of ephemeral
life. Surely there must be something
very weak and gullible in mans re-
ligious faculty when it can be duped
by shams such as these.
Christian Science is one more wit
ness and appeal to mans need of some
kind of religion. Mixed up with a
great deal of blasphemy, heresy, and
crudest nonsense, there are some i'm
portant truths which Christian
Science like most other superstitions,
exploits. Among them the chief, per-
haps, is it's insistence on spiritual
view of man and of the world. 1t is
a strong protest against self-centered
materialism which cannot any longer
even pretend to satisfy mans nature.
OF course, the protest goes too far in
the opposite extreme. 1t denies mat
ter altogether, but still as a protest
it's very excesses make it effective
Connected with this doctrine of the
spirituality of man is that of mans
Immortality, and Christian Science
makes much of that truth also, though
at the same time it distorts it sadly
Another truth of fundamental import.
, ance in Christian Science is the powe,
of mind over matter, of soul over body
Everyone knows that our minds have
an immense power Of influencing ouI
, bodies, though how far this power ex.
tends is not yet fully known. Hyp.
, notism is teaching US not little abou,
this matter. Skillful suggestion under
suitable conditions can indeed worl
, wonders. Christian Science build,
largely on this truth. which, although
it has always been known, has com.
more specially to the front in our owr
Gay. Christian Science makes stron,
pronouncements, too, on the value ant
efficacy of prayer. Enthusiastic pro
fessions of belief in these truths a
genuine religion, and their adroit mix