Christian Science | religious denomination | Britannica.com religious denomination Alternative Title: Church of Christ, Scientist Related Topics church Christian Science, religious denomination founded in the United States in 1879 by Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910), author of the book that contains the definitive statement of its teaching, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (1875). It is widely known for its highly controversial practice of spiritual healing . The Mother Church and reflecting pool, Christian Science Center, Boston. © Tony Arruza/Corbis History, organization, and development Christian Science emerged in late 19th-century America, when Darwinism , biblical criticism , and other secularizing influences weakened the supernaturalist structure of Protestant orthodoxy. Troubled Christians, divided between what Eddy called a “stern Protestantism” and a “doubtful liberalism,” were drawn to Christian Science because of the practice of spiritual healing and the promise of renewed faith. Reared in a strict Congregationalist home in rural New Hampshire , Mary Baker (Eddy is the last name of her third husband) broke with the hellfire determinism of her father’s stark Calvinist theology.

Yet she retained from that heritage a Bible-centred, though somewhat unorthodox, piety that prevented her from accepting the attenuated Christianity of Unitarianism and, later, of transcendentalism . Personal misfortune and ill health contributed to Eddy’s preoccupation with the question of God’s responsibility for human suffering. Eddy’s own search for health led her to experiment with various alternative healing methods, including homeopathy , hydrotherapy (water cure), and the therapeutic techniques of Phineas Parkhurst Quimby , a charismatic healer from Maine. Her association with him from 1862 to 1865 strengthened her belief, acquired by her experiments with homeopathy, in the mental nature of disease. It also spurred her own search for the meaning of New Testament healing stories. The extent of Quimby’s influence on Eddy is a question of great controversy that first emerged when Eddy published her teachings and later sued a former student for plagiarism . He defended himself by charging that Eddy had merely copied Quimby’s material. The court ruled in Eddy’s favour, but Quimby’s papers were not made available for public scrutiny. As Eddy became increasingly controversial, she was condemned by her opponents as a derivative thinker.

Moreover, as New Thought (a metaphysical healing movement) became established in the second decade of the 20th century, it looked to Quimby rather than Eddy as the fountainhead of its work. Only with the publication of Quimby’s papers in 1921 was it possible to see Eddy’s (and New Thought’s) radical departure from Quimby’s main emphases. Recent evaluations of Eddy recognize that Quimby was an important stimulus to Eddy’s development but that the religious teaching of Christian Science as it finally emerged was essentially foreign to Quimby’s thought. Similar Topics United Methodist Church The origins of the Christian Science movement can be traced to 1866, shortly after Quimby’s death. At that time, while reading about one of Jesus’ healings in the New Testament, Eddy suddenly recovered from the effects of what may have been a severe accident. Controversy has surrounded the details of this incident, but it was a turning point in her life, prompting several years of intense scriptural study and writing. Eddy also claimed to have had further healing experiences through which she tested her developing conclusions.

In 1870 she taught her first Christian Science class, based on her work The Science of Man by Which the Sick Are Healed, or, Questions and Answers on Moral Science (1870), and attracted a following in the mill town of Lynn, Massachusetts, near Boston, where she remained until 1882. In 1875 she published Science and Health, which she repeatedly revised over the next 35 years to make it more effective as the “textbook” for the study and practice of Christian Science. In 1879 Eddy and a group of 15 followers founded the Church of Christ, Scientist, with the aim of reinstating “primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing.” It was not until her years in Boston (1882–89), however, that the movement began to grow, largely through the healing work performed by Eddy’s students from the Massachusetts Metaphysical College, which she chartered in 1881. By the end of the 1880s, almost 100 Christian Science congregations had formed, mostly in the Atlantic states and the Midwest.

By 1895 there were about 250 Christian Science congregations, and by 1910 more than 1,200. Britannica Stories EU Considers Rules For Robots Eddy devoted the last two decades of her life to developing a coherent institutional structure for the movement. Leaving Boston in 1889, she suspended operation of the movement’s national organizations in preparation for a thorough restructuring of the church . This began in 1892 with the reorganization of the Church of Christ, Scientist, into its present form as The Mother Church (i.e., the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston) and the branches around the world. World Religions & Traditions The church government was outlined in Eddy’s Manual of The Mother Church . First published in 1895 and revised over the next 15 years, it was designed to be the authority in the church after Eddy’s death. She entrusted execution of the provisions of the manual to a five-member, self-perpetuating board of directors, while establishing the “distinctly democratic” character of the self-governing branch churches that were part of the federal framework outlined in the manual.

Beliefs and practices Christian Science subscribes to the Christian belief in an omnipotent , purposeful God, accepts the authority (though not the inerrancy) of the Bible , and holds the Crucifixion and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ to be indispensable to the redemption of mankind. It departs from traditional Christianity in rejecting the deity (but not the divinity) of Jesus, seeing his life as exemplifying a divine sonship that belongs to all men and women as God’s children. Unlike some forms of liberal Protestantism , however, Christian Science does not view Jesus as simply a moral exemplar. Rather, his healing works and his victory over death are regarded as proof that the limitations of the mortal state can be overcome incrementally as one gains “the mind of Christ,” that is, an understanding of man’s true spiritual status. This attainment requires looking beyond material appearances to a spiritual reality that orthodox Christianity associates with heaven but that Christian Science considers to be a demonstrable fact. Connect with Britannica Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest The ordinary materialist view of man and the universe, according to Christian Science, provides a false sense of reality that is the result of the inadequacy of human perception.

Eddy argued that the traditional Christian belief that matter is created by God is a fallacy that leads to the conclusion that God is responsible for all suffering in the universe and that salvation involves the resurrection of “the flesh.” Redemption from sin is basic to salvation, because sin in all its forms is a denial of God’s sovereignty predicated on the belief that life, will, and mind evolve from matter rather than from spirit. At the same time Eddy, unlike some of her more optimistic followers, saw redemption as a long and demanding process, calling upon the Christian virtues of patience, humility, repentance, and cross-bearing. Eddy’s view of the material world and the practices that stemmed from it distinguished Christian Science from similar movements. While she shared much with the tradition of philosophical idealism (which also stresses the role of the spirit in understanding the world), especially with transcendentalism, her emphasis on healing differentiates Christian Science from forms of idealism that interpret experience but do not attempt to affect it. In Christian Science the cure of disease through prayer is seen as a necessary element in the process of redemption. Eddy’s teachings have led to a complex relationship between church members and the medical establishment.

Christian Scientists are not compelled by the church to practice faith healing, and they generally employ the services of dentists and optometrists for care of teeth and eyes, respectively, and often those of physicians for setting broken bones or delivering babies. The church also encourages members to scrupulously obey public health laws, including quarantine regulations and immunization requirements, when religious exemptions are not provided. Officials of The Mother Church, on the other hand, have worked diligently for the enactment of laws in the United States to accommodate Christian Science practice. Christian Scientists needing nursing care are encouraged to go to a Christian Science sanitarium or to seek home care from a Christian Science nurse. Britannica Lists & Quizzes Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies Those engaged in the full-time healing ministry are called Christian Science practitioners and are listed in a directory published monthly in the denomination’s major religious periodical, The Christian Science Journal. Practitioners usually charge their patients a nominal fee. Systematic study and prayer are considered basic to the life of the church and its readiness to meet the challenges of Christian healing. All Christian Science churches maintain reading rooms for this purpose.

The “Bible lesson-sermon” forms the core of the Christian Scientist’s life of prayer and study. Composed of passages from the Bible and Science and Health on 26 subjects, it was designated by Eddy in 1895 as the church’s dual “pastor.” The lesson-sermon is the basis for both daily study and the Sunday service, where it is read by a first and a second reader elected by the congregation. In this simple service there are no sacraments, and Wednesday evening meetings include the sharing of stories of healings and other experiences by members of the congregation. Significance In the history of religion, Christian Science is a small movement, but it has had significance out of proportion to its size. It is one of several lasting movements from 19th-century America and reflects the interest of many religious groups in the revitalization of primitive Christianity. Yet Christian Science has aroused considerable controversy as well as misunderstanding as a result of its view of creation as wholly spiritual, a view that breaks decisively with traditional Christian cosmology and scientific materialism. Eddy’s rejection of the divine creation of matter most clearly differentiates Christian Science from traditional Christianity, in which God’s creation of the world and the incarnation of Jesus are core beliefs.

Christian leaders have noted that although Eddy used Christian language, she did so to create a different religion. This perception has generated much literature opposed to the church. Although it offers a unique theology, Christian Science’s major impact on the world has come from its ministry of spiritual healing. Many of the more than 50,000 testimonials of healing reported by the church since the beginning of the 20th century concern undiagnosed disorders, emotional problems, and psychosomatic illnesses. On the other hand, a substantial number of “healings” involve conditions diagnosed by physicians as congenital, degenerative, or terminal, though there has been little systematic evaluation of such healings. Furthermore, Eddy’s emphasis on healing had a direct influence on the revival of interest in spiritual healing in mainstream Protestantism. The healing performed in the Pentecostal and Holiness churches and in healing movements including the Order of St. Luke (Episcopal Church) were inspired by the ministry of two of Eddy’s contemporaries, Charles Cullis and the Reverend Elwood Worcester. Trending Topics Lady Flora Hastings In social terms, the Christian Science movement has increasingly been perceived as an antecedent of the development of feminism in the religious world.

While not a “feminist,” Eddy was clearly “liberated,” assigned strong females to key leadership positions, and taught that the spiritual equality of men and women must have political and social effects. She remains an extremely controversial figure, but scholars since the 1960s have successfully challenged the negative perceptions of early critics and biographers. In the 20 years following Eddy’s death in 1910, Christian Science churches increased from 1,213 to 2,400. However, Eddy felt that numbers were no measure of spiritual vitality and mandated that membership statistics not be made public. Nonetheless, a report by the U.S. Bureau of the Census in 1936 listed The Mother Church membership in the United States at about 269,000. Following this dramatic early growth, there was a period of levelling off in the 1930s and ’40s and steady decline since then, except in a few areas (notably some Third World countries) where membership increased in the 1970s. Responding to its stagnation, The Mother Church sought to revitalize the movement.

In 1972 the impressive Church Center opened in Boston and became a major tourist attraction. The Christian Science Monitor, the daily international newspaper that the church publishes in Boston, has been extremely successful, and in the 1980s the church tried to further extend its outreach through radio and television. Eventually the television effort proved too costly and was discontinued amid significant internal church controversy. In the early 21st century the church claimed more than 1,700 congregations in 80 countries. Christian Science - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) Christian Science is a religious denomination based on the teachings of the Church of Christ, Scientist. It was founded in 1879 by Mary Baker Eddy. The complete statement of its teachings can be found in her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, first issued in 1875 and repeatedly revised over the next 35 years. Christian Science is known for its practice of spiritual healing and for its highly respected newspaper, the Christian Science Monitor.

In 2009, because of a decrease in circulation and mounting financial difficulties, the Monitor ceased publication of its weekday print edition to focus on Internet publishing; it was the first national newspaper to take such action. Weekly print and daily e-mail editions were also afforded to subscribers. (See also Eddy, Mary Baker.) Article Contributors Christian Science - Christian or Cult? Christian Science Christian or Cult?* The movement known as Christian Science is a religion "emphasizing divine healing as practiced by Jesus Christ." It is officially known as The Church of Christ, Scientist (CCS) (with headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts), founded in 1879 by the much married Mary Baker Glover Patterson Eddy (1821-1910). It is one of the more sophisticated modern cults, attracting many intellectuals. Estimated membership was about 350,000 in the 1930s with approximately 2,500 branch churches, societies, and college organizations in more than 50 countries worldwide. Estimates suggest that membership has fallen to well under 100,000 at the present time.

While the branches are democratic in government, they all conform to the rules laid down in Mary Baker Eddy's Manual of The Mother Church (1895); church affairs are now overseen by a self-perpetuating board of five people. Under the leadership of Board of Directors Chairman Virginia Harris, the CCS has embarked on an aggressive, multi-faceted marketing program designed to mainstream itself and to attract new members. For example, the CCS is finding new ways to promote itself in light of our society's current interest in self-awareness, spirituality, mind/body connections, alternative medicine, and women's issues. The CCS's weekly magazine has been redesigned to include quotes from New-Age proponent Oprah Winfrey. Church representatives are also turning up at medical conferences and other places. Mrs. Eddy was chronically sick growing up, with many ailments including paralysis, hysteria, seizures and convulsions. At 22, she married her first of three husbands, George Glover, who died within 6 months from yellow fever. Following Glover's death, she began to be involved in mesmerism ( hypnosis ) and the occult practices of spiritualism and clairvoyance (Ruth Tucker, Another Gospel, p. 152).

Still ill, she married Daniel Patterson in 1853, a dentist and homeopathic practitioner . It was during this time she met mental healer Phineas P. Quimby (1802-1866), whose influence would shape her belief of Christian Science. Quimby believed that illness and disease could be cured through positive thoughts and healthy attitudes, by changing one's beliefs about the illness. She claimed that Quimby cured her; she suddenly improved, but later the symptoms returned (Another Gospel, p. 155). After Quimby's death in 1866, Mrs. Eddy determined to carry on his work. She had developed a "psychic dependence" on Quimby, drawing on his spiritual presence, claiming even visitations by his apparition. Eddy "reached the scientific certainty that all causation rests with the Mind, and that every effect is a mental phenomena." Eddy took Quimby's teachings one step further, claiming that sickness, death, and even our physical bodies do not exist, but are only imagined.

Based on this absurdity, Mary Baker Eddy formulated her unique interpretations of Scripture upon which Christian Science was founded (and recorded in Eddy's 1875 book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. [HJB] (In 2001, the ten millionth copy of Science and Health was sold). In essence, Christian Science is a revival of ancient Pantheism. [Eddy later published 16 other books, including Retrospection and Introspection (1891), which tells of her own experience of discovering, practicing, and teaching the "science" of Christian healing.] [The CCS recently announced plans to build (at a cost of $25 million) the Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity. Scheduled to open in 2002 in Boston, the library will house over 500,000 unpublished documents and artifacts related to Mrs. Eddy. It will also allow the CCS to secure another 45 years of copyright protection for the writings under new U.S. copyright laws that take effect at the end of 2002.] The event that Mrs.

Eddy claimed as the inauguration of Christian Science occurred in February of 1866. She claimed to have had a near fatal fall on icy pavement, but was instantly healed when "the healing Truth dawned upon my senses," and the divine healing ministry was born (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 24; Science and Health, p. 107). Testimony from her attending physician as well as other correspondence from Mrs. Eddy at the time strongly dispute Mrs. Eddy's "official" version of those events (Anthony Hoekema, Christian Science, pp. 12-13). Healing became a major distinctive of Christian Science. According to Eddy Baker, the central fact of the Bible is the superiority of spiritual over physical power. The spiritual superiority is evident in other ways than healing. Telepathy is practiced in Christian Science treatment, and may be considered a form of psychic healing. Christian Science claims to prove through the healing of disease and other difficulties that the understanding of God and his spiritual creation is as effective now as it was in Jesus' time. Its adherents, therefore, rely on "divine law" in times of sickness instead of resorting to medical and other material means.

Christian Scientists do not use doctors, medicine, or immunizations. Christian Science Practitioners are used to " help people through the false reality of illness." Instead, proper prayer and training are employed to battle the "non-reality" of illness. (The right of Christian Science parents to withhold medical treatment from their children has many times been challenged in court.) During the formative stages, the church saw many rivalries, scandals, and dissident movements. One of the dissidents was Emma Hopkins, who as an independent Christian Science leader, taught Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, who later founded the Unity School of Christianity (another "mind-science" cult). Because Mrs. Eddy wanted to spread Christian Science, especially to the upper class, she increased her control over all aspects of the movement and would not tolerate any disloyalty (Georgine Milmine, The Life of Mary Baker G. Eddy, p. 234 ff). Publications of the Christian Science Publishing Society include the Christian Science Quarterly, containing Bible lessons for daily study; The Christian Science Journal, a daily newspaper; and The Herald of Christian Science. In the 1980s, the group expanded into other media, producing both radio and television news programming.

Their venture into cable-television operations was ended in 1992, when it was discovered "that the church had secretly transferred $46.5 million from endowments and pension funds to help cover huge losses on the 'Monitor Channel,' which had lost over $325 million" (Chicago Tribune, 1/27/93, p. 2). [Additionally, there were losses of $36 million and the resulting termination of World Monitor, a newspaper begun in 1988. The Christian Science Monitor is said to be losing $13 million annually (Martin Gardner, The Healing Revelations of Mary Baker Eddy, p. 218).] Instead of preachers (the CCS has no ordained clergy), Christian Science's Sunday services consist mainly of prescribed readings from the Bible, followed by interpretive readings from Science and Health with (which Eddy thought was divinely inspired -- "I should blush to write of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures as I have, were it of human origin and I apart from God its author; but [since] I was only a scribe echoing the harmonies of heaven in Divine Metaphysics, I cannot be super-modest of the Christian Science Textbook.").

Eddy's "Scientific Statement of Being" (read every week from every Christian Science pulpit) begins with, "There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter," and ends with, "Therefore, man is not material; he is spiritual." Wednesday meetings include testimonies of healing from the congregation. Readers, both men and women, are elected from the membership to conduct the services. Practitioners, also both men and women, devote full time to the work of "spiritual healing." Mrs. Eddy presented Christian Science as a scientific system of healing based upon spiritual laws God (allegedly) had revealed to her. She taught these laws must be followed -- without deviation -- if a believer wishes to practice Christian Science with consistent success. She taught Christian Science cannot be mixed with any other doctrine or spiritual healing system, and, thereby, it is incompatible with medicine. Eddy also believed in "Malicious Animal Magnetism" (MAM), which is negative mental energy or power, on the level of black magic. "Reading Rooms" are local Christian Science libraries where members go to read Eddy's works to aid their spiritual evolvement.

Christian Scientists call themselves Christians, but their beliefs deviate from Biblical Christianity on nearly every central Doctrine. Below are the highlights of what Christian Scientists believe concerning their source of authority, the Godhead, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Resurrection, sin and salvation, heaven and hell, man's destiny, and disease and death: 1. Source of Authority. Mary Baker Eddy claimed the Bible was her "only textbook" and "only authority." Yet she also said the Bible has thousands of errors -- 30,000 in the Old Testament and 300,000 in the New Testament. Christian Scientists believe that Mrs. Eddy's discovery of Divine Science is the "final revelation" from God. They claim Science and Health is divinely inspired (even though it has been proven to contain numerous plagiarisms and revisions). -- Science and Health is the "first book" which has been "uncontaminated by human hypothesis" (The First Church of Christ, Scientist and Miscellany, p. 115; Science and Health, pp. 99, 139, 456-457).

[HJB] One is only supposed to read the Bible if they have Eddy's "key" in hand, so as to find out what a passage means. The implication is that God couldn't make Himself plain, but has to have Mary Baker Eddy interpret what He says. With this in mind, the world was, in effect, left to grope in darkness until Mrs. Eddy came on the scene. 2. Language. Christian Scientists have given Bible terms allegorical, metaphysical definitions that are completely different from normal usage. Everything is spiritualized to the point that the physical no longer exists. New meanings have also been assigned to many traditional theological doctrines. (For example: "Adam was not an actual person who was created by God and fell into sin. 'Adam' means error; a falsity; the belief in 'original sin,' sickness, and death; evil; the opposite of good.") [HJB] 3. Trinity. Christian Science clearly repudiates the Trinitarian Godhead: "The theory of three persons in one God (that is, a personal Trinity or Tri-unity) suggests polytheism, rather than the one ever-present I Am" (Science and Health, p. 256).

Instead, "Life, Truth, and Love constitutes the triune Person called God ... God the Father-Mother; Christ the spiritual idea of sonship; divine Science or the Holy Comforter" (Science and Health, p. 331-332). Christian Science teaches that the Biblical concept of the Trinity suggests "heathen gods" ( Science and Health, p. 152). God is thus viewed as an impersonal "Divine Principle," a conception of one's mind ( Science and Health, pp. 361, 469). On page 465 in another of Mrs. Eddy's "authoritative" books, entitled Miscellaneous Writings, she wrote: "God is incorporeal, divine, supreme, infinite, mind, spirit, soul, principle, life, truth, love," but devoid of any personality. [HJB] [To the contrary, the Bible teaches that God is a triune, personal, transcendent Being who created "the world and all things in it" (Act 17:24). He is not a pantheistic all-in-all. He is holy and just, as well as love.

God created and governs the universe, including man (Acts 17:24-27).] 4. Jesus Christ. Christian Science denies that the incarnation of Christ was the fullness of deity dwelling in human flesh, denies the perfection of the man Jesus, and attempts to explain away the historical death and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ (Science and Health, pp. 336, 29, 332, 53, 398, 313, 593; Miscellaneous Writings, p. 201) Christian Science believes that Mary's conception of Jesus was spiritual -- on pages 332 and 347 of Science and Health, the virgin birth of Christ is described and explained: "Jesus was the offspring of Mary's self-conscious communion with God. ... Mary's conception of him was spiritual." Christian Science believes that the names "Jesus" and "Christ" do not refer to the same person -- that Jesus is the human man and Christ is the "divine idea" (i.e., "dualism"). They teach that the spiritual (good) cannot dwell in material bodies because they are evil; thus Jesus could not have been both God and man.

[To the contrary, the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is not the divine idea of God but was God uniquely manifested in the flesh, truly God and truly man, one divine Person with two indivisible natures, who is the only Savior and the only truth and Lord (John 1:1-3,14; Col. 2:9; Phil. 2:6-7; John 14:6) . ] Christian Science believes that Jesus was not God and the only way to heaven, but only the "wayshower" (cf. Jn. 20:31; I Jn. 4:2,3). Christian Science not only denies that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, it also denies that Jesus is one Person with two natures -- fully God and fully man. Christian Science presents Jesus Christ in terms of a Gnostic duality: "The spiritual Christ was infallible: Jesus as material manhood was not Christ'' (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 84). "Christ as the true spiritual ideal, is the ideal of God now and forever ..." (Science and Health, p. 361).

"The Christ is incorporeal, spiritual ..." while, "The corporeal [physical] man Jesus was human only (Science and Health, p 332). Yet "matter is mortal error � matter is the unreal and temporal" (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 21). So what Christian Science actually concludes is that the physical humanity of Jesus was an illusion, ''as it seemed to mortal view" (Science and Health, p. 315). Concerning the blood atonement of Jesus Christ: "The material blood of Jesus was no more efficacious to cleanse from sin when it was shed upon 'the accursed tree,' than when it was flowing in his veins ..." (Science and Health, p. 25). Christian Science teaches that the death of Jesus Christ for sin was a "man-made" theory, and that Jesus was alive in the tomb, demonstrating the "power of Spirit to overrule mortal, material sense" (Science and Health, p. 44). Eddy states, "Christ was not crucified ...

Jesus, being the man who possessed the Christ consciousness, was the one who went to the cross and who appeared to die." Thus, according to the theology of Christian Science, the Bible only appears to say that Jesus died on the cross and His body was laid in the tomb; it must instead be understood that Jesus actually never died, but was rather in the tomb denying death's reality! 5. Holy Spirit. Christian Science denies that the Holy Spirit is a personal being. It teaches that the Holy Spirit is Christian Science. -- "This Comforter I understand to be Divine Science" (Science and Health, p. 55). It is the unfolding of the thoughts and infinite mind of God (pp. 502-503). [cf. Jn. 16:13-14] Thus, God, the Holy Spirit, cannot indwell a person (Science and Health, p. 336). 6. The Resurrection. It is obvious that if Jesus never physically died on the cross to atone for sins that mankind cannot commit (Science and Health, pp. 45-46), then the resurrection must also have a unique meaning in Christian Science.

Eddy explains, "When Jesus reproduced his body after its burial, he revealed the myth or material falsity of evil; its powerlessness to destroy good and the omnipotence of the Mind that knows this: he also showed forth the error of nothingness of supposed life in matter, and the great somethingness of the good we possess, which is of Spirit, and immortal" ( Miscellaneous Writings, p. 201). Jesus resurrection was thus the manifestation of the error of evil. He demonstrated that sin and death are illusions and that if one wishes to rid themselves of these illusions, they only need to deny their reality. 7. Sin. Christian Science denies the existence of all matter, including man's physical body. They say that man is "incapable of sin, sickness, and death." They claim sin, sickness, and death are the "effects of error," thereby denying the reality of sin. [HJB] Bottom line, to Christian Science, there is no sin (Science and Health, p. 447).

This is a consistent deduction and fundamental principle of the Christian Science system -- namely, God is all and God is good, and since the real man has never departed from his original state of perfection, he is not in need of salvation. He is saved now and reposing in the bosom of the Father. He has always been saved -- that is, as God's idea of the expression of the mind, man is forever held in the divine consciousness. And since sin and evil have no reality, all ideas of sin and evil are illusions. They are the product of the mortal mind. Hence, it is a sense of sin which is sinful because of the illusory product of the mortal mind. They say that man's real problem is the belief of sin, and that "Christ came to destroy the belief of sin." [Eddy writes in Miscellaneous Writings in the question and answer section: "If there is no sin, why did Jesus come to save sinners?" She answers, "Jesus came to seek and to save such as believe in the reality of the unreal; to save them from this false belief; that they might lay hold of eternal Life ..." (p. 63).

In other words, Jesus came to save mankind from the false belief that sin is real! Jesus saving work was to exemplify the fact that death is unreal, that sin is only an illusion or false belief, and that to deny its existence is the ultimate task of each person.] 8. Salvation. Since Christian Scientists do not believe that sin is real, they, therefore, see no need for salvation in Jesus Christ. Notwithstanding, Christian Scientists still teach a salvation based on works -- and contrary to even their own teachings, a salvation through victory over suffering temptation. [HJB] 9. Hell. Christian Science denies the existence of hell and eternal punishment, and, therefore, there is no devil (Science and Health, p. 469). Hell is defined as "mortal belief; error; lust; remorse; hatred; revenge; sin; sickness; death." They believe that hell is a self-imposed "mental anguish," emanating from the guilt of one's imagined sin. [HJB] 10. Man's Destiny. Christian Science teaches that since God is all good and nothing that is real exists outside God, then sin, sickness, and death are mortal error or an illusion.

Christ, as the Truth, therefore came to set man free from these false beliefs by His teachings and example (Science and Health, pp. 473, 475, 108). Christian Science denies the penal, substitutionary atonement of Christ, saying, ''The material blood of Jesus was no more efficacious to cleanse from sin when it was shed on 'the accursed tree,' than when it was flowing in his veins as he went daily about His Father's business" (Science and Health, p.25). "Jesus taught the way of Life by demonstration. There is but one way to heaven, harmony, and Christ in Divine Science shows us this way" (Science and Health, p. 242). ''Universal salvation rests on progression and probation � No final judgment awaits mortals �" (Science and Health, p. 291) 11. Disease and Death. Christian Scientists claim that since organic disease does not exist, "the cause of all so-called disease is mental" [i.e., 'the belief in sin is thereby the cause of it'], "a mistaken belief" (Science and Health, p. 377).

They say that since our physical bodies do not exist, disease and death are only illusions (Science and Health, pp. 348,386). [To the contrary, the Bible teaches that sin, sickness, and evil are not an illusion, but a result of man�s willful choice to rebel against a Holy God, and death (both physical and the spiritual eternal separation from God) is the result of sin (Rom. 3:10, 23; 5:12-14; 1 John 1:8-10).] They believe they have restored Christ's principles of divine healing through their practices of mental healing; i.e., the healing performed by Christian Science involves helping a person to deny the reality of his illness, and thereby, any failure to heal is due to a person's inability to overcome his belief. Mary Baker Eddy claimed to have this power of healing (called Divine Science), though she never provided any tangible proof of it. [HJB] [Whereas the Christian Science approach to healing may help psychosomatic illnesses, it has been scientifically demonstrated that it is not effective with real illness.

In fact, studies comparing the cumulative death rates of practicing Christian Scientists with control groups have shown significantly higher death rates among the Christian Scientists (Journal of American Medical Association, September 22/29, 1989, pp 1657-58; and Morbidity Weekly Report, August 23, 1991, pp. 579-582). ] 12. The "Gospel" of Christian Science. Jesus, who possessed the Christ consciousness as do all men to a lesser extent, went to the cross, not to bring about forgiveness of sin, for sin is an illusion, but rather to demonstrate that death is an illusion. On the morning of the resurrection, the supposed physical body of Jesus was reproduced in its original illusionary form, for all matter is illusion, and thereby demonstrated to mankind that all could do the same by denying the reality of sin and death. Jesus' "seeming" death on the cross was not intended to pay for our sins, but to prove the unreality of sin, disease, and death. The Bible is full of mistakes. Jesus' words were recorded by "dull disciples ...

in a decaying language," and must be spiritually interpreted through Christian Science. To put it another way: "Jesus was laid down as the result of apparent death, into a fictitious tomb, in an unreal body, to make an unnecessary atonement for sins that had never been a reality and had been committed in an imaginary body, and that He saves from non-existing evil those headed toward an imaginary hell, the false fancy of an erroneous Mortal Mind" (J.K. VanBaalen, The Chaos of Cults ). 13. Conclusion. Christian Science offers some real enticements -- a "spiritually scientific" method for healing, victory over life's circumstances, and guaranteed salvation. All one has to do to receive these blessings is to study Eddy's writings and obey them to the letter. She was God's messenger to this age and her writings are considered infallible. Just obey her teaching, and learn to think as she thought, and you will be victorious. The physical dangers of Christian Science are obvious. Since they are taught that learning about their bodies is spiritually harmful, Christian Scientists are ill equipped to understand the symptoms of illness.

They often suffer needlessly from treatable ailments and neglect life-threatening conditions that could be cured if treated in their early stages. * Unless otherwise cited, six primary sources were used for this report: (1) Grolier's 1995 Multimedia Encyclopedia ;(2) Funk & Wagnall's Encyclopedia ; (3) "Christian Science, Attempting a Comeback," MCO Journal, Spring 2001, pp. 8-11, 15; (4) " Christian Science ," Craig Branch (Watchman Fellowship Profile, 1997); (5) Examining & Exposing Cultic & Occultic Movements, Jack Sin, "Christian Science Examined," April 2000, pp. 26-31; and (6) What They Believe, THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST (CHRISTIAN SCIENCE) The Church of Christ, Scientist (a.k.a. Christian Science) Sponsored link. Quotations from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy: "If Christianity is not scientific, and Science is not God, then there is no invariable law and truth becomes an accident." "Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love.

It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it." "To those leaning on the sustaining infinite, today is big with blessings." "Truth is immortal; error is mortal." History of the Church: Mary Morse Baker Eddy (1821-1910) discovered and founded Christian Science. She was raised in a strict, deeply religious home, from which she derived her lifelong interest in Christianity and the Bible. She had been plagued with ill health through her childhood and into adult years. This motivated her to study alternative methods of healing, which deviated from the then current medical techniques which had failed her. Shortly after her first marriage, her husband died and she began to study a number of healing ministries. She remarried in 1853 in an unsuccessful attempt to gain control of her son who had been placed in another home by her family in the belief that she was physically incapable of caring for him. At the age of 41, she sought a cure from a healer, Phineas P. Quimby (1802-1866). Quimby had been a clockmaker, with relatively little education.

But he had developed a method of natural healing which involved techniques of hypnotism and animal magnetism. He emphasized the role of the human mind in achieving bodily health. Quimby felt that the key to healing lay in the confidence by the healer in the patient's recovery, and in the confidence that the patient has in the healer's ability. Mrs. Eddy (as she is referred to by church members) was a student-associate of Quimby until his death in 1866. Her health initially improved under his care, but she later suffered a relapse. Shortly afterwards, she fell on an icy sidewalk and severely injured herself. Some did not expect her to survive. On what she believed to be her deathbed, she read one of Jesus' healings. She suddenly realized that healing comes not from internal bodily processes, or from the power of a person's mind, but from the Divine Mind, God. She was instantly cured! Mrs. Eddy withdrew from society for three years in order to concentrate on a deep search through the Bible and discover precisely how her healing had taken place. She wished to share this knowledge with others, and to give them the tools to take away sin and achieve health. Mrs.

Eddy then wrote her main book, Science and Health, later called Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. The book has since been published in 17 languages, and is available in English Braille, on audio cassette, CD, and in software packages. Many people have speculated on the source(s) of Mrs. Eddy's new beliefs. Some skeptics have implied that she plagiarized much of Quimby's writings and teachings. His beliefs involved the dualism between mind-spirit and matter. He emphasized the supremacy of mind over matter, and was highly antagonistic towards Christianity. She had always been deeply committed to Christian beliefs and rejected his opposition to religion. It is probably accurate to say that Mrs. Eddy was further sensitized by Quimby to the healing role of mind. However, she made a major break from his basic teachings. She determined that it was the Divine Mind, God, who healed, not the human mind. Other skeptics have asserted that she copied some of the writings of a German-American philosopher, Francis Lieber. This appears to be unfounded. She asserted that her beliefs are derived from new interpretations of Biblical passages, not from human sources.

She taught that they do not represent an "add-on" to the Bible; she had discovered the science of scriptures. Through a spiritual interpretation of the Bible she had rediscovered its original truths as believed in and practiced by the early Christian church. Her book was published at a time of great social unrest. The people of the United States were buffeted by the effects of the Civil War, by the teachings of Darwin, Freud and Marx, by rapid industrialization, and by many economic upheavals. Mrs. Eddy's teachings were welcomed and adopted by many Americans, but bitterly opposed by many traditional Christian authorities. They also raised some animosity from scientists who criticized the use of the word "science" in connection with Christianity. In 1875, she published her book. In 1877 she married Asa Gilbert Eddy, her second husband having left her, and she adopted the name by which she is most commonly remembered: Mary Baker Eddy. Her book, though controversial, was well received by many Christians. She was inspired to promote the founding of the Church of Christ, Scientist in Lynn, MA, a suburb of Boston, in 1879.

She was ordained by her students, and created the Massachusetts Metaphysical College in 1881 and the National Christian Scientist Association in 1886. She later disbanded the Association, College and Church and concentrated the movement within The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, MA. Although she continued to manage church affairs until her death in 1910, she removed herself from public contact and lived in seclusion, in order to revise her book and guide the movement. The church went through a period of rapid growth during the first half of the 20th century. Membership leveled out by 1950 and has since gradually declined. "...the closing of hundreds of branch churches over the past two decades suggests that attrition is the biggest threat the Church faces." 19 Current membership data is unknown; the Church does not publish statistics. One source estimates about 400,000 people follow Christian Science teachings, although many are not affiliated with a congregation.

Another estimates: 150,000 members, and 100,000 members in the U.S., 15,000 in Germany and Great Britain, and others in over 60 countries. 19 Two Christian Scientists, H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, of the Nixon era helped sponsor a Congressional bill which extended the copyright of "Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures" by 75 years. The bill became law but has since been declared unconstitutional. 19 The Church has about 2,300 branch congregations in 60 countries. There are about 1,600 congregations in the US; about 60 in Canada. They operate Christian Science Reading Rooms where the public is invited to read the Bible and literature published by the Church. In 1908, Mrs. Eddy founded The Christian Science Monitor, an international newspaper, whose employees have won 6 Pulitzer prizes. A cable TV channel launched in 1991 was short lived and was terminated for financial reasons. In recent decades, a number of main-line Christian leaders have extracted the Christian Science concept of Divine Mind.

They have secularized it to refer to the human mind and have grafted it onto traditional Christian belief. This may be the source of some of the teachings in Norman Vincent Peale's Power of Positive Thinking, Bishop Sheen's Peace of Soul, Rev. Robert Schuller's Possibility Thinking, etc. Church Beliefs: (provided by Lyle Young, Christian Science Committee on Publication for Ontario) Christian Scientists believe: Christian Science is a Christian denomination based on the teachings and works of Christ Jesus. The Church was founded in 1879 by Mary Baker Eddy, with this purpose: ". . . to commemorate the word and works of our Master, which should reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing." (from the Manual of The Mother Church by Mary Baker Eddy) Christian Scientists do not have an organizational creed. However, the following is a brief exposition of the important points, or tenets, of the religion as given in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy (p. 496): "1. As adherents of Truth, we take the inspired Word of the Bible as our sufficient guide to eternal Life. 2. We acknowledge and adore one supreme and infinite God.

We acknowledge His Son, one Christ; the Holy Ghost or divine Comforter; and man in God's image and likeness. 3. We acknowledge God's forgiveness of sin in the destruction of sin and the spiritual understanding that casts out evil as unreal. But the belief in sin is punished so long as the belief lasts. 4. We acknowledge Jesus' atonement as the evidence of divine, efficacious Love, unfolding man's unity with God through Christ Jesus the Way-shower; and we acknowledge that man is saved through Christ, through Truth, Life, and Love as demonstrated by the Galilean Prophet in healing the sick and overcoming sin and death. 5. We acknowledge that the crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection served to uplift faith to understand eternal Life, even the allness of Soul, Spirit, and the nothingness of matter. 6. And we solemnly promise to watch, and pray for that Mind to be in us which was also in Christ Jesus; to do unto others as we would have them do unto us; and to be merciful, just, and pure." Seeking and finding God is central to the practice of Christian Science. God is understood as the all-loving, omnipotent Father-Mother, and Christ Jesus as His Son.

Jesus' human life characterized the kind of sonship that Christian Scientists believe is provable for all as the children of God. He is seen as the Exemplar, the Way-shower. The divine nature he expressed is the Christ, and the Christ-God's expression of Himself-is eternal and ever-present. Understanding man's pure, indestructible relationship with God is what results in regeneration and healing. Healing: (also provided by Lyle Young) A surface acquaintance with Christian Science may reveal that adherents don't generally use medicine or go to doctors. This is true, but it's not the result of any antagonism towards doctors. Christian Scientists respect the work of the medical profession, but choose prayer as treatment for themselves and their children rather than medicine because they have experienced prayer's effectiveness many times in their lives. The regeneration of heart and mind that brings about physical healing is a most significant element of healing. The teachings of Christ Jesus are central to Christian Science, and his healing work provides an example of how his followers can also turn to God's omnipotent love for healing. Over the years, Christian Science religious publications have provided thousands of accounts of healing through prayer.

Each week corroborated testimonies of healing are published in the Christian Science Sentinel and each month in The Christian Science Journal. Healing is accomplished not through blind faith but through a growing understanding of God and a recognition of one's identity as God's reflection. This can be gained through the study of Christian Science. It is the result of drawing closer to God through coming to know the loving kindness of His divine laws and the perfection of His spiritual creation. Christian Scientists often pray for themselves and find healing. If one feels the need for additional prayerful assistance, however, he or she can call a Christian Science practitioner. Practitioners are men and women who devote their full time to helping others through prayer. The practitioners claim no personal healing power, nor do they act as intercessors. God alone heals. The practitioner, just as the patient, turns to God in humility and willingness to hear His direction and follow His guidance. Church Practices: Christian Scientists daily study the Bible and Science and Health. An important part of this study is a weekly Lesson-Sermon outlined in The Christian Science Quarterly which includes excerpts on certain subjects from the Bible and Science and Health. The lesson studied daily comprises the sermon that is read at each Sunday church service worldwide.

There is no ordained clergy in the Church. Services are conducted by Readers who read from the Bible, from "Science and Health" and from lesson-sermons sent from The Mother Church. The King James Version of the Bible is used in English services. Other translations are also used in private study and in non-English speaking areas. The Bible and Science and Health are considered the dual and impersonal pastor of the Church. Lay Christian Science practitioners are trained in Church principles and present a prayer-based healing ministry to members and the public as an alternative to conventional medical services. The Manual of The Mother Church lists the bylaws governing the movement. It was originally published in 1895, was extensively revised during Mrs. Eddy's lifetime, and has remained unchanged since her death. Authority is vested in a Board of Directors who conduct The Mother Church business. It is composed of five members who hold their positions for an undefined interval and select their own successors. The Mother Church organization is highly centralized. Branches are self-governed along democratic lines. Although they engage in some of the traditional Christian sacraments, they interpret them differently. Baptism is regarded as the continual purification of thought and deed.

The Eucharist is regarded as spiritual communion with the one God, which is celebrated with silent prayer and Christian living. Sponsored link: Church Media and Publications: Newspaper: The Christian Science Monitor is a highly regarded, daily newspaper which has been published from Boston, MA since 1908. Radio: The Church has a short-wave network which broadcasts around the world. It broadcasts news, religious discussions and services from The Mother Church in Boston. They also distribute news programs to public radio stations in the US. Periodicals: The Christian Science Publishing Society publishes: The Christian Science Journal, a monthly periodical which is the Church's official organ. The Christian Science Sentinel, a weekly magazine which provides spiritual answers to life's problems. The Christian Science Quarterly which includes weekly Bible lessons. Church Controversies Compared to other recently emerging faith groups, there has been relatively little controversy within Christian Science: A crisis over leadership (referred to as the Great Litigation) occurred at the death of Mrs. Eddy, but was settled by the courts. Emma Hopkins left the church during Mrs. Eddy's lifetime and created a movement which developed into New Thought; that group in turn influenced other new religious groups.

Anne Bill led a breakaway sect, the Christian Science Parent Church, after Mrs. Eddy's death. This evolved into the Church of Integration, which expired in the 1950's. Like other successful denominations which deviate from traditional beliefs, Christian Science has attracted negative attention. Some has come from the Counter-cult Movement ;that condemns any Christian group that deviates from historical Christian teachings. Some conservative Christian religious leaders have also criticized it because of its unique interpretation of scriptures. Some refer to the movement as a cult . But the Christian Science Church maintains that this term inaccurately describes the century-old denomination. Christian Scientists practice their religious teachings out of reasoned conviction of its truth - not from blind irrational feelings about Mary Baker Eddy. Their churches and Reading Rooms are open to all; their services are dignified and simple. There are many sites on the Internet maintained by persons who have left the Church. 13,14 Healing by faith: There exists a chronic state of tension between the Church, its practitioners, and medical doctors over the substitution of Christian Science healing techniques for conventional medical treatments . However, this does not frequently escalate into conflict, as it often does between Jehovah Witness parents, their children and the courts.

In instances where there would be a difference of opinion between Christian Science parents and medical authorities, the Church's policy is to strongly encourage parents to cooperate with those authorities. It is not known how frequently this advice is taken by individual members. The Church urges the reporting of communicable diseases, conforming with vaccination laws, and the provision of certified midwives or other medical attendants at childbirth as required by law. 15 The Church believes that spiritual healing techniques are quite effective; they publish descriptions of such healings in various of their publications. Their critics feel that medical intervention is more effective and should be the technique of choice. 16,17 We have been unable to locate any studies which compare the effectiveness of Christian Science healing with conventional medical treatments. The Church itself is unaware of any. 18 The church feels that the term "faith healing" does not accurately describe its methods of healing. They state that its methods do not rely on miracles. Rather, they are believed to be the same natural methods that Jesus used to cure people. Author's comment: We are concerned about the lack of hard data available about the effectiveness of faith healing generally and of Christian Science healing methods in particular. We consider this a major ethical concern.

If either conventional medical treatments or faith healing is marginally better that the other, then thousands of lives could be saved each year in the U.S. by inducing people to switch to the more effective treatment. See further details . Books about Mary Baker Eddy: Gillian Gill, "Mary Baker Eddy," Perseus Press, (1999). Read reviews or order this book Stephen Gottschalk, "Rolling Away the Stone: Mary Baker Eddy's Challenge to Materialism," Indiana University Press, (2005). Read reviews or order this book David Keyston, "The healer: The healing work of Mary Baker Eddy," Healing Unlimited, (1998). Read reviews or order this book Richard Nenneman, "Persistent Pilgrim: The life of Mary Baker Eddy," Nebbadoon Press, (1997). Read reviews or order this book Some web sites about Christian Science: The "Official home page of The Church of Christ, Scientist" contains a question and answer section, and other information about Christian Science. See: "Concord" is a dynamic electronic tool for researching the Bible.

See: The "Writings of Mary Baker Eddy," in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. sponsors Although this appears to be a Christian Science site, that fact is only revealed in the "about the site" page. "The virtual Christian Science reading room," is maintained by the First Church of Christ, Scientist in St. Paul, MN. See: Longyear Museum collects and preserves historic documentation and artifactual material on Mary Baker Eddy's life and achievements, and those of her early followers from 1821 to 1910. See: David J. Nolan maintains the Christian Science University at: It is independent of the Church. "Ananias: Pilgrims to the Cross of Christ from Christian Science" is a websites for former Christian Scientists who have transitioned from following the teachings of Mary Baker Eddy to evangelical Christianity. See: Related essay on this web site: Christian Science History | CARM Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry by Matt Slick Christian Science was founded by a woman named Mary Baker Eddy. She was born Mary Ann Morse Baker in New Hampshire in 1821. (She died in 1910).

She was the daughter of a New Hampshire Congregationalist church member. As a child, she was frequently ill and highly emotional. She is said to have been "domineering, quarrelsome, and extremely self centered." 1 At age 22, she married George Glover. He died seven months later. She then married Dr. Daniel Patterson, but that marriage failed in divorce. In 1862, while suffering from an illness, she visited a man named Phineas Quimby. He taught a system of healing dealing with the mind. He taught that the mind had the power to heal the body. He exerted a significant influence on her thinking regarding spiritual matters. In 1866, she fell and was seriously injured; and she was not expected to recover. She apparently read Matt. 9:2 ("And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee") and experienced a miraculous cure. It was this experience that convinced her of the truth of Christian Science.

She first published "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" in 1875 when she was 54. She claimed it was the final revelation of God to mankind and asserted that her work was inspired of God. The word "Key" in the title of her book is in reference to her being the woman of Revelation 12--that she is the key to unlocking the Bible which she called a dark book. She claimed the Bible had many mistakes, and that her writings provided the "Key" spoken of in Rev. 3:7. She married Asa Eddy in 1877. In 1879, four years after the first publication of Science and Health, Mary Baker Eddy and some of her students voted organized the church of Christ (Scientist) in Boston Massachusetts. Of course, like all cults, it claimed to be the restoration of the original New Testament Church. In 1881 she opened a metaphysical college and charged $300 for 12 healing lessons. The Church was reorganized in 1892, and the Church Manual was first issued in 1895 which provided the structure for church government and missions.

She died in 1910--a millionaire. This article is also available in: Español 1. Meyer, F.E., The Religious Bodies of America, Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1961, p. 532. The Christian Science Movement The Christian Science Movement Summary: Mary Baker Eddy and other Christian Science leaders have propagated New Age philosophies since the 1800s. The Christian Science Movement Help us reduce the maintenance cost of our online services. Because your computer is running an older version of internet browser, it no longer meets the features of modern websites. You can help Amazing Discoveries reduce costs by upgrading or replacing your internet browser with one of the options below. We thank you in advance for partnering with us in this small but significant way. Tweet A refined form of spiritism, one that combined Christian concepts with New Age theology, began in the mid-19th century— a critical time in history when God was giving the message of the end time to His people . The founder of the Christian Science movement, Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910), was one of the first to teach the immortality of the soul and the innate deity of humanity.

In her book Science and Health with a Key to the Scripture, Eddy mingles the age-old principles of Gnosticism, pantheism, Hinduism, and dualism with Christian concepts. The twin satanic lies spoken in Eden are reiterated in her writings. A few statements from her book should suffice to demonstrate her position: Evil has no reality. It is neither person, place nor thing but is simply a belief, an illusion of material sense… Soul is the divine principle of man, and never sins, hence the immortality of the soul… Man and woman as co-existent and eternal with God forever reflect in glorified equality the infinite Father-Mother God… Let us remember that harmonious and immortal man has existed for ever… Death. An illusion, the lie of life in matter...Any material evidence of death is false, for it contradicts the spiritual fact of being… Jesus. The highest corporeal concept of the divine idea, rebuking and destroying error and bringing to light man's immortality.i Modern New Age channels and books reiterate the same concept. Virginia Essene, a modern channel , claims that Jesus said through her, “Death is the Creation of humanity, not of God.

This is the simple truth.”ii Wiccan and feminist Diana Stein wrote in The Women's Spirituality Book that, "Man and woman as co-existent and eternal with God forever reflect in glorified equality, the infinite Father-Mother God."iii i. Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with a Key to the Scripture (The Christian Science Board of Directors, 1994): 71, 302, 480, 516, 584. Sign marks site of home of Mary Baker Eddy, founder of Christian Science | New Hampshire Sign marks site of home of Mary Baker Eddy, founder of Christian Science MARY BAKER EDDY Where it is: It may be seen in front of the former Christian Science home on the south side of Pleasant Street (Route 9) just west of downtown Concord. Date it was established: Historic marker 105 was placed in 1976. What the sign says: “While living at her 'Pleasant View' home (1892 to 1908) once on this site, Mrs.

Eddy founded the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., headquarters of the Christian Science movement. From 'Pleasant View,' some six miles from her birthplace in Bow, she guided its worldwide activities and gained fame as a religious leader and writer. The buildings erected on this site in 1927 served as a home for retired Christian Science practitioners and nurses until 1975.” (Her “Pleasant View” home was listed on the National Register in 1984.) The back story: Mary Baker Eddy was an author, teacher and religious leader, noted as the founder of the Christian Science movement, the Church of Christ, Scientist, and The Christian Science Monitor newspaper. Born in Bow, she was raised in a deeply religious home, but rebelled against the Calvinist doctrine and turned to the Bible and prayer for inspiration. In 1843, she married building contractor George Washington Glover and moved with him to the Carolinas. He died the following year, three months before the birth of their son, George. She returned to New Hampshire and in 1853 married Daniel Patterson, an itinerant dentist, who would abandon her in 1866.

Struggling with chronic illness her entire life, Eddy was preoccupied with questions of health, but like many others, avoided the dangerous and unreliable treatments of conventional medicine. She studied homeopathy and was inspired by its emphasis on diluting drugs to the point where they all but disappeared from the remedy. She also found comfort and insight in the Bible. A turning point occurred in 1866 when a fall on an icy sidewalk left her in bed in critical condition. While reading an account of healing in her Bible, she found herself suddenly well. Eventually, she referred to this as the moment she discovered Christian Science. She could not explain what had happened, but she was convinced it was the result of what she had read in the Bible. Her conviction grew and this led to years of scriptural study, healing activity and teaching, culminating in the publication of “Science and Health” in 1875. She began to teach her healing methods to others and they, in turn, established healing practices around the world. In 1877, she married one of her students, Asa Gilbert Eddy. He died in 1882.

When Christian churches would not embrace her teachings, Eddy started her own church in 1879. Two years later, she founded the Massachusetts Metaphysical College, where she taught her classes until 1889, when she closed it to focus on a major revision of “Science and Health.” In 1895, she published a church manual and established guidelines that are followed to this day. Eddy died in December 1910, and is buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Mass. — Source: Mary Baker Eddy Library FOLLOW US

Question: Who was the founder of the Christian Science movement?
Answer: Mary Baker Eddy