The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-04-10


 John c. Lathrop, C. s. B., of Brook line, Mass, under the auspices of the First Church of Christ, Scientist of Bir- mingham, delivered a. lecture on Chris tian Science. entitled, Christian Science: Its Naturalness, Simplicity and Practicality," at the church edifice in Birmingham last night. MT. Lathrop, who is a member of the board of lec- turshfp of the mother church, the First Church of Christ. Scientist, at Boston. was introduced by w. H. Anderson, and spoke as follows:
 It is the purpose of this lecture to show that Christian Science possesses distinct value that it has a distinct mission to perform, and that in it's valuable mission to mankind Christian Science is natural, simple, and practical. Christian Science Is natural, inasmuch as 1t has come to suffering W orld in the ripeness of time, in perfect order, and it has appeared as inevitably as the dawning of a new day. A brief survey of religious history and devel- cpment will show the natural order of the coming of Christian Science.
 OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES
 From time immemorial men have sought more or less intelligently sal yation from sin, sickness, and death. In Old Testament times good people
 
 free them from the bondage of sin and fleshly burdens. The more spiritually minded men or prophets of those days discerned the coming of Redeemer or savior, who would lead and set free the followers of God This belief was but craving for the truth, then nat urally taking the form of a personal savior. With this constantly increas- ing yearning in extraordinary faith on the part of many people, it was but natural that the answer to this prayer should appear in extraordinary form This expression came, not as was ex- pected, through personal power with splendor and physical force but through the birth and development of a teacher, who was more purely to reveal and demonstrate the doctrine of Truth and Love to mankind.
 JESUS PROMISE
 The advent of Jesus and the result of his teaching were significant, for though many were called, few were chosen to perpetuate these spiritual teachings, and it was but natural that the chosen were those who saw and heard through higher sight and hear ing than the material senses, for, said Jesus speaking to those chosen ones, Blessed are your eyes, for they see and your ears, for they hear" And again he said, For judgment am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind" In other words, that those who saw not that the only real life and intelligence is Spirit would be taught to see it, and they who Saw life and intelligence to be in mat ter would be made blind to this belief or would be shown that the belief was false and thus they would believe it no more.
 DISCIPLES UNREADINESS
 The Bible records that before Jesus made his complete demonstration over material law in his resurrection and disappearance from material sight ne said to his disciples, T have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth" At another time when impressed by Peters recognition of the Christ, Truth, he said, upon this rock Cor understanding of the Spirit of truth) 1 will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it'' It is of prime significance that Jesus had withheld higher teach ing from his disciples because of their mental unreadfness to "bear Gt) now, which higher teaching would be re vealed in the fullness of time, through "the Spirit of truth who will guide you into all truth"
 Even the twelve disciples did not comprehend Jesus; one doubted him. one denied him, one betrayed him, and all forsool him. This lack of under standing on the part of the disciples of the subtle workings of evil and ma terial law to which Jesus evidently re- ferred showed itself in subsequent years. After several centuries of sue eessful resistance to severe temptations through simple faith, the early Chris tians about the year S25 A. D.. suc- cumbed to the artful promises and self ish designs of the crafty Roman em peror Constantine, whose ambition to rule the world must necessarily include the separate and fast growing pody or Christians. It is again noteworthy and natural, that from this time forth the power to heal the sick and to raise the dead by spiritual means alone disap- peared from the Christian faith. And with the spiritual power disappeared also faith in the naturalness of healing bv spiritual means. Gibbon, in hls .sHistory of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" (Volume l, D. 540) states, "The miraculous cure of dis eases of the most inveterate or even rreternaturak kind can no longer oc- casion any surprise when we recollect that in the days of Irenaeus, about the end of the second century the resur- rectIon of the dead was very lar rom being esteemed an uncommon event; the miracle was frequently performed on necessary occasions by great fasting and the joint application ofsthe church of the place, and the persons thus re- stored by their prayers lived afterward among them many years. The second Itcentury was still more fertile ln mir acIes than the first" FAILURE OF EARLY CHRISTIANS
 But what of Jesus promise that the Spirit of truth would come and guide into all truth? When was this higher event to take place? When were these .nanv things which the disciples were not ready to bear to be made known to Inc world? What was their mysterious and sniritual nature, and when would 1 tbe world be ready ito bear" or under stand if? Religious history shows that after the loss of the spiritual power to baa1 inc sick. during the fourth cen +,,rv ana during the following cen turies. 50 complete was the surrender 1f inc early Christians to material laws ana means that it required many pe- riods Of reform, beginning in the six teenth century, to awaken and prepare human thought for the coming of the snirit of truth. which was to guide into al, truth. The truth had long been coming like the ocean tide gently ris- ing m a stern and rock bound coast, advancings and receding, wearing away hara a stubborn crag, and there a per- sistent cliff. until finally after centuries oe human effort this resistless oncom- ;nr tide of truth found an opening
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