The Soul of Medicine: Spiritual Perspectives and Clinical Practice

9. Christian Science

CHAPTER NINE Christian Science Christine J. Driessen, C.S.B., M.A., M.S.T., J.D. Genesis 1, the beginning of the Christian and Jewish Scripture, states that Spirit alone has created all and made everything good and that Spirit made each of us, man or woman, in the divine image and likeness. Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, found this to be a scientific basis for prayer, enabling anyone to prove that health is our natural state. Christian Science is the universal system of Mind-healing (Mind meaning God, the divine creative intelligence of the universe) through the understanding of the omnipotence and supremacy of Spirit as the source of all creation. It is based on the teachings and healing work of arguably the greatest physician who ever lived, the Jewish teacher Jesus, called the Christ or the Messiah. Through spiritual means alone, Jesus healed every type of physical condition (Matthew 4:23–24)—acute and chronic; contagious, congenital, hereditary ; even long-standing conditions: a woman whose bleeding continued unabated for 12 years in spite of medical treatment (Mark 5:25–34); a woman bowed over, unable to stand erect for 18 years (Luke 13:11–17); a long-standing case of epilepsy (Matthew 17:14–21; Mark 9:14–29); and a man unable to walk for 38 years (John 5:2–9). Jesus resuscitated people who had already died—a Christian Science 153 12-year-old girl (Mark 5:21–24, 35–43); a young man being carried to his tomb (Luke 7:12–16); his friend Lazarus, who had been dead for four days (John 11:1–44)—all healed instantly through prayer based on his acknowledgment that God, Spirit, is our only Life (John 11; Matthew 12:22–28). Jesus taught that anyone who followed his teaching would be able to heal as he did and do even greater works (John 14:12). His command to his followers was, “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils; freely ye have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:8). “These signs will follow those who believe; in my name they will cast out demons; . . . they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover” (Mark 16:17, 18; biblical quotations from Kohlenberger 2004). Through his healing work, Jesus defined the meaning of “Christ” as a universal saving power (Luke 7:19–22). Hebrew prophets such as Moses, Elijah, and Elisha, and the disciples of Jesus (in particular, Peter, Paul, and John) all demonstrated the power of Spirit to heal disease and overcome death. Eddy called this system of healing “Science” because a science is truth or knowledge based on universal laws that anyone can test or put into practice when the laws are understood (such as the science of mathematics). Christian Science refers to the divine laws of Life, Truth, and Love found in the Bible which govern the universe, including each of us irrespective of religious background , and which can be tested and proven by anyone who adheres to them (Eddy 1906, p. 107). These laws declare that our reason for existing is to glorify God, not through suffering, but by demonstrating our inherent wholeness as God’s creation. Eddy explains our purpose: “As an active portion of one stupendous whole, goodness identifies man with universal good. Thus may each member of this church rise above the oft-repeated inquiry, What am I? to the scientific response : I am able to impart truth, health, and happiness, and this is my rock of salvation and my reason for existing” (1913, p. 165). Eddy called this the “Science of the Christ” or “Christian Science” because “Christ” and “Christian” refer to the healing power of divine Love as demonstrated by Jesus. His life and teaching illustrate how obedience to the two great commandments found in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—“Love (trust, obey, submit to) God, Spirit, supremely,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself”—will enable anyone to heal as he did and prove that our life is entirely spiritual here and now. The Bible has many references to the “Science of God,” which it describes as perfect and accessible through the Christ. The Bible warns against false sci- 154 Major Traditions and Medicine ence, which it defines as any teaching that steers people away from faith in God, Spirit, as the only power. Eddy also called Christian Science “Mind healing...