Chapter XIII - Teaching Christian Science
Mental charlatanism
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Mental quackery rests on the same platform as all
Mental quackery rests on the same platform as all
other quackery. The chief plank in this platform is the
doctrine that Science has two principles in
partnership, one good and the other evil, –
one spiritual, the other material, – and that these two
may be simultaneously at work on the sick. This
theory is supposed to favor practice from both a mental
and a material standpoint. Another plank in the plat-
form is this, that error will finally have the same effect
as truth.
Divinity ever ready
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It is anything but scientifically Christian to think of
It is anything but scientifically Christian to think of
aiding the divine Principle of healing or of trying to sus-
tain the human body until the divine Mind
is ready to take the case. Divinity is always
ready. Semper paratus is Truth's motto. Having seen
so much suffering from quackery, the author desires to
keep it out of Christian Science. The two-edged sword
of Truth must turn in every direction to guard "the tree
of life."
The panoply of wisdom
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Sin makes deadly thrusts at the Christian Scientist as
Sin makes deadly thrusts at the Christian Scientist as
ritualism and creed are summoned to give place to higher
law, but Science will ameliorate mortal malice.
The Christianly scientific man reflects the
divine law, thus becoming a law unto himself. He does
violence to no man. Neither is he a false accuser. The
Christian Scientist wisely shapes his course, and is hon-
est and consistent in following the leadings of divine
Mind. He must prove, through living as well as heal-
ing and teaching, that Christ's way is the only one
by which mortals are radically saved from sin and
sickness.
Advancement by sacrifice
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Christianity causes men to turn naturally from matter
Christianity causes men to turn naturally from matter
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to Spirit, as the flower turns from darkness to light.
to Spirit, as the flower turns from darkness to light.
Man then appropriates those things which "eye hath
not seen nor ear heard." Paul and John
had a clear apprehension that, as mortal man
achieves no worldly honors except by sacrifice,
so he must gain heavenly riches by forsaking all worldli-
ness. Then he will have nothing in common with the
worldling's affections, motives, and aims. Judge not the
future advancement of Christian Science by the steps
already taken, lest you yourself be condemned for fail-
ing to take the first step.
Dangerous knowledge
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Any attempt to heal mortals with erring mortal mind,
Any attempt to heal mortals with erring mortal mind,
instead of resting on the omnipotence of the divine
Mind, must prove abortive. Committing the
bare process of mental healing to frail mor-
tals, untaught and unrestrained by Christian Science,
is like putting a sharp knife into the hands of a blind
man or a raging maniac, and turning him loose in
the crowded streets of a city. Whether animated by
malice or ignorance, a false practitioner will work mis-
chief, and ignorance is more harmful than wilful wicked-
ness, when the latter is distrusted and thwarted in its
incipiency.
Certainty of results
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To mortal sense Christian Science seems abstract, but
To mortal sense Christian Science seems abstract, but
the process is simple and the results are sure if the Science
is understood. The tree must be good, which
produces good fruit. Guided by divine Truth
and not guesswork, the theologus (that is, the student –
the Christian and scientific expounder – of the divine
law) treats disease with more certain results than any
other healer on the globe. The Christian Scientist should
understand and adhere strictly to the rules of divine meta-
460:1
physics as laid down in this work, and rest his demonstra-
physics as laid down in this work, and rest his demonstra-
tion on this sure basis.
Ontology defined
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Ontology is defined as "the science of the necessary
Ontology is defined as "the science of the necessary
constituents and relations of all beings," and it under-
lies all metaphysical practice. Our system of
Mind-healing rests on the apprehension of the
nature and essence of all being, – on the divine Mind
and Love's essential qualities. Its pharmacy is moral,
and its medicine is intellectual and spiritual, though used
for physical healing. Yet this most fundamental part of
metaphysics is the one most difficult to understand and
demonstrate, for to the material thought all is material,
till such thought is rectified by Spirit.
Mischievous imagination
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Sickness is neither imaginary nor unreal, – that is,
Sickness is neither imaginary nor unreal, – that is,
to the frightened, false sense of the patient. Sickness
is more than fancy; it is solid conviction. It
is therefore to be dealt with through right ap-
prehension of the truth of being. If Christian healing
is abused by mere smatterers in Science, it becomes a
tedious mischief-maker. Instead of scientifically effect-
ing a cure, it starts a petty crossfire over every cripple
and invalid, buffeting them with the superficial and cold
assertion, "Nothing ails you."
Author's early instructions
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When the Science of Mind was a fresh revelation to
When the Science of Mind was a fresh revelation to
the author, she had to impart, while teaching its grand
facts, the hue of spiritual ideas from her own
spiritual condition, and she had to do this orally
through the meagre channel afforded by language and by
her manuscript circulated among the students. As for-
mer beliefs were gradually expelled from her thought, the
teaching became clearer, until finally the shadow of old
errors was no longer cast upon divine Science.
Proof by induction
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I do not maintain that anyone can exist in the flesh
I do not maintain that anyone can exist in the flesh
without food and raiment; but I do believe that the
real man is immortal and that he lives in
Spirit, not matter. Christian Science must
be accepted at this period by induction. We admit the
whole, because a part is proved and that part illustrates
and proves the entire Principle. Christian Science can
be taught only by those who are morally advanced and
spiritually endowed, for it is not superficial, nor is it
discerned from the standpoint of the human senses.
Only by the illumination of the spiritual sense, can
the light of understanding be thrown upon this Science,
because Science reverses the evidence before the material
senses and furnishes the eternal interpretation of God and
man.
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If you believe that you are sick, should you say, "I am
If you believe that you are sick, should you say, "I am
sick"? No, but you should tell your belief sometimes,
if this be requisite to protect others. If you commit a
crime, should you acknowledge to yourself that you are
a criminal? Yes. Your responses should differ because
of the different effects they produce. Usually to admit
that you are sick, renders your case less curable, while
to recognize your sin, aids in destroying it. Both sin and
sickness are error, and Truth is their remedy. The truth
regarding error is, that error is not true, hence it is unreal.
To prove scientifically the error or unreality of sin, you
must first see the claim of sin, and then destroy it.
Whereas, to prove scientifically the error or unreality of
disease, you must mentally unsee the disease; then you
will not feel it, and it is destroyed.
Rapidity of assimilation
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Systematic teaching and the student's spiritual growth
Systematic teaching and the student's spiritual growth
and experience in practice are requisite for a thorough
462:1
comprehension of Christian Science. Some individu-
comprehension of Christian Science. Some individu-
als assimilate truth more readily than others, but any
student, who adheres to the divine rules
of Christian Science and imbibes the spirit
of Christ, can demonstrate Christian Science, cast out
error, heal the sick, and add continually to his store of
spiritual understanding, potency, enlightenment, and
success.
Divided loyalty
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If the student goes away to practise Truth's teach-
If the student goes away to practise Truth's teach-
ings only in part, dividing his interests between God and
mammon and substituting his own views for
Truth, he will inevitably reap the error he sows.
Whoever would demonstrate the healing of Christian
Science must abide strictly by its rules, heed every state-
ment, and advance from the rudiments laid down. There
is nothing difficult nor toilsome in this task, when the way
is pointed out; but self-denial, sincerity, Christianity, and
persistence alone win the prize, as they usually do in every
department of life.
Anatomy defined
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Anatomy, when conceived of spiritually, is mental self‑
Anatomy, when conceived of spiritually, is mental self‑
knowledge, and consists in the dissection of thoughts to
discover their quality, quantity, and origin.
Are thoughts divine or human? That is the
important question. This branch of study is indispen-
sable to the excision of error. The anatomy of Christian
Science teaches when and how to probe the self-in-
flicted wounds of selfishness, malice, envy, and hate. It
teaches the control of mad ambition. It unfolds the
hallowed influences of unselfishness, philanthropy, spir-
itual love. It urges the government of the body both
in health and in sickness. The Christian Scientist,
through understanding mental anatomy, discerns and
463:1
deals with the real cause of disease. The material physi-
deals with the real cause of disease. The material physi-
cian gropes among phenomena, which fluctuate every in-
stant under influences not embraced in his diagnosis, and
so he may stumble and fall in the darkness.
Scientific obstetrics
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Teacher and student should also be familiar with the
Teacher and student should also be familiar with the
obstetrics taught by this Science. To attend properly
the birth of the new child, or divine idea,
you should so detach mortal thought from its
material conceptions, that the birth will be natural and
safe. Though gathering new energy, this idea cannot
injure its useful surroundings in the travail of spiritual
birth. A spiritual idea has not a single element of error,
and this truth removes properly whatever is offensive.
The new idea, conceived and born of Truth and Love, is
clad in white garments. Its beginning will be meek, its
growth sturdy, and its maturity undecaying. When
this new birth takes place, the Christian Science infant
is born of the Spirit, born of God, and can cause the
mother no more suffering. By this we know that Truth
is here and has fulfilled its perfect work.
Unhesitating decision
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To decide quickly as to the proper treatment of error –
To decide quickly as to the proper treatment of error –
whether error is manifested in forms of sickness, sin,
or death – is the first step towards destroy-
ing error. Our Master treated error through
Mind. He never enjoined obedience to the laws of nature,
if by these are meant laws of matter, nor did he use drugs.
There is a law of God applicable to healing, and it is a
spiritual law instead of material. The sick are not healed
by inanimate matter or drugs, as they believe that they
are. Such seeming medical effect or action is that of so‑
called mortal mind.
Seclusion of the author
463:32
It has been said to the author, "The world is bene-
It has been said to the author, "The world is bene-
464:1
fited by you, but it feels your influence without seeing
fited by you, but it feels your influence without seeing
you. Why do you not make yourself more widely
known?" Could her friends know how little
time the author has had, in which to make
herself outwardly known except through her laborious
publications, – and how much time and toil are still re-
quired to establish the stately operations of Christian
Science, – they would understand why she is so secluded.
Others could not take her place, even if willing so to do.
She therefore remains unseen at her post, seeking no self‑
aggrandizement but praying, watching, and working for
the redemption of mankind.
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If from an injury or from any cause, a Christian Scien-
If from an injury or from any cause, a Christian Scien-
tist were seized with pain so violent that he could not
treat himself mentally, – and the Scientists had failed
to relieve him, – the sufferer could call a surgeon, who
would give him a hypodermic injection, then, when the
belief of pain was lulled, he could handle his own case
mentally. Thus it is that we "prove all things; [and]
hold fast that which is good."
The right motive and its reward
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In founding a pathological system of Christianity, the
In founding a pathological system of Christianity, the
author has labored to expound divine Principle, and not
to exalt personality. The weapons of bigotry,
ignorance, envy, fall before an honest heart.
Adulterating Christian Science, makes it void.
Falsity has no foundation. "The hireling fleeth, because
he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep." Neither
dishonesty nor ignorance ever founded, nor can they over-
throw a scientific system of ethics.
Chapter XIV
Recapitulation
For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon
line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little. – ISAIAH.
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THIS chapter is from the first edition of the author's
THIS chapter is from the first edition of the author's
class-book, copyrighted in 1870. After much labor
and increased spiritual understanding, she revised that
treatise for this volume in 1875. Absolute Christian
Science pervades its statements, to elucidate scientific
metaphysics.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
465:8
Question. – What is God?
Question. – What is God?
Answer. – God is incorporeal, divine, supreme, infinite
Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love.
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Question. – Are these terms synonymous?
Question. – Are these terms synonymous?
Answer. – They are. They refer to one absolute God.
They are also intended to express the nature, essence, and
wholeness of Deity. The attributes of God are justice,
mercy, wisdom, goodness, and so on.
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Question. – Is there more than one God or Principle?
Question. – Is there more than one God or Principle?
Answer. – There is not. Principle and its idea is one,
and this one is God, omnipotent, omniscient, and omni-
466:1
present Being, and His reflection is man and the universe.
present Being, and His reflection is man and the universe.
Omni is adopted from the Latin adjective signifying all.
Hence God combines all-power or potency, all-science
or true knowledge, all-presence. The varied manifesta-
tions of Christian Science indicate Mind, never matter,
and have one Principle.
Real versus unreal
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Question. – What are spirits and souls?
Question. – What are spirits and souls?
Answer. – To human belief, they are personalities
constituted of mind and matter, life and death, truth and
error, good and evil; but these contrasting
pairs of terms represent contraries, as Chris-
tian Science reveals, which neither dwell together nor
assimilate. Truth is immortal; error is mortal. Truth
is limitless; error is limited. Truth is intelligent; error
is non-intelligent. Moreover, Truth is real, and error is
unreal. This last statement contains the point you will
most reluctantly admit, although first and last it is the
most important to understand.
Mankind redeemed
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The term souls or spirits is as improper as the term
The term souls or spirits is as improper as the term
gods. Soul or Spirit signifies Deity and nothing else.
There is no finite soul nor spirit. Soul or
Spirit means only one Mind, and cannot be
rendered in the plural. Heathen mythology and Jewish
theology have perpetuated the fallacy that intelligence,
soul, and life can be in matter; and idolatry and ritualism
are the outcome of all man-made beliefs. The Science
of Christianity comes with fan in hand to separate the
chaff from the wheat. Science will declare God aright,
and Christianity will demonstrate this declaration and
its divine Principle, making mankind better physically,
morally, and spiritually.
Two chief commands
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Question. – What are the demands of the Science of
Question. – What are the demands of the Science of
Soul?
Answer. – The first demand of this Science is, "Thou
shalt have no other gods before me." This me is Spirit.
Therefore the command means this: Thou shalt
have no intelligence, no life, no substance, no
truth, no love, but that which is spiritual. The second
is like unto it, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."
It should be thoroughly understood that all men have one
Mind, one God and Father, one Life, Truth, and Love.
Mankind will become perfect in proportion as this fact
becomes apparent, war will cease and the true brother-
hood of man will be established. Having no other gods,
turning to no other but the one perfect Mind to guide
him, man is the likeness of God, pure and eternal, hav-
ing that Mind which was also in Christ.
Soul not confined in body
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Science reveals Spirit, Soul, as not in the body, and
Science reveals Spirit, Soul, as not in the body, and
God as not in man but as reflected by man. The greater
cannot be in the lesser. The belief that the
greater can be in the lesser is an error that
works ill. This is a leading point in the Science of Soul,
that Principle is not in its idea. Spirit, Soul, is not
confined in man, and is never in matter. We reason im-
perfectly from effect to cause, when we conclude that
matter is the effect of Spirit; but a priori reasoning
shows material existence to be enigmatical. Spirit gives
the true mental idea. We cannot interpret Spirit, Mind,
through matter. Matter neither sees, hears, nor feels.
Sinlessness of Mind, Soul
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Reasoning from cause to effect in the Science of Mind,
Reasoning from cause to effect in the Science of Mind,
we begin with Mind, which must be under-
stood through the idea which expresses it and
cannot be learned from its opposite, matter. Thus we
468:1
arrive at Truth, or intelligence, which evolves its own
arrive at Truth, or intelligence, which evolves its own
unerring idea and never can be coordinate with human
illusions. If Soul sinned, it would be mortal, for sin is
mortality's self, because it kills itself. If Truth is im-
mortal, error must be mortal, because error is unlike
Truth. Because Soul is immortal, Soul cannot sin, for
sin is not the eternal verity of being.
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Question. – What is the scientific statement of being?
Question. – What is the scientific statement of being?
Answer. – There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor sub-
stance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite
manifestation, for God is All-in-all. Spirit is immortal
Truth; matter is mortal error. Spirit is the real and
eternal; matter is the unreal and temporal. Spirit is
God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore
man is not material; he is spiritual.
Spiritual synonyms
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Question. – What is substance?
Question. – What is substance?
Answer. – Substance is that which is eternal and inca-
pable of discord and decay. Truth, Life, and Love are
substance, as the Scriptures use this word in
Hebrews: "The substance of things hoped
for, the evidence of things not seen." Spirit, the synonym
of Mind, Soul, or God, is the only real substance. The
spiritual universe, including individual man, is a com-
pound idea, reflecting the divine substance of Spirit.
Eternity of Life
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Question. – What is Life?
Question. – What is Life?
Answer. – Life is divine Principle, Mind, Soul, Spirit.
Life is without beginning and without end.
Eternity, not time, expresses the thought of
Life, and time is no part of eternity. One ceases in
proportion as the other is recognized. Time is finite;
469:1
eternity is forever infinite. Life is neither in nor of mat-
eternity is forever infinite. Life is neither in nor of mat-
ter. What is termed matter is unknown to Spirit, which
includes in itself all substance and is Life eternal. Mat-
ter is a human concept. Life is divine Mind. Life is not
limited. Death and finiteness are unknown to Life. If
Life ever had a beginning, it would also have an ending.
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Question. – What is intelligence?
Question. – What is intelligence?
Answer. – Intelligence is omniscience, omnipresence,
and omnipotence. It is the primal and eternal quality
of infinite Mind, of the triune Principle, – Life, Truth,
and Love, – named God.
True sense of infinitude
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Question. – What is Mind?
Question. – What is Mind?
Answer. – Mind is God. The exterminator of error
is the great truth that God, good, is the only Mind, and
that the supposititious opposite of infinite Mind
– called devil or evil – is not Mind, is not
Truth, but error, without intelligence or reality. There
can be but one Mind, because there is but one God; and
if mortals claimed no other Mind and accepted no other,
sin would be unknown. We can have but one Mind, if
that one is infinite. We bury the sense of infinitude,
when we admit that, although God is infinite, evil has a
place in this infinity, for evil can have no place, where all
space is filled with God.
The sole governor
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We lose the high signification of omnipotence, when
We lose the high signification of omnipotence, when
after admitting that God, or good, is omnipresent and
has all-power, we still believe there is another
power, named evil. This belief that there
is more than one mind is as pernicious to divine theology
as are ancient mythology and pagan idolatry. With
470:1
one Father, even God, the whole family of man would
one Father, even God, the whole family of man would
be brethren; and with one Mind and that God, or good,
the brotherhood of man would consist of Love and Truth,
and have unity of Principle and spiritual power which
constitute divine Science. The supposed existence of
more than one mind was the basic error of idolatry. This
error assumed the loss of spiritual power, the loss of the
spiritual presence of Life as infinite Truth without an
unlikeness, and the loss of Love as ever present and
universal.
The divine standard of perfection
470:11
Divine Science explains the abstract statement that
Divine Science explains the abstract statement that
there is one Mind by the following self-evident propo-
sition: If God, or good, is real, then evil, the
unlikeness of God, is unreal. And evil can
only seem to be real by giving reality to the
unreal. The children of God have but one Mind. How
can good lapse into evil, when God, the Mind of man,
never sins? The standard of perfection was originally
God and man. Has God taken down His own standard,
and has man fallen?
Indestructible relationship
470:21
God is the creator of man, and, the divine Principle
God is the creator of man, and, the divine Principle
of man remaining perfect, the divine idea or reflection,
man, remains perfect. Man is the expression
of God's being. If there ever was a moment
when man did not express the divine perfec-
tion, then there was a moment when man did not express
God, and consequently a time when Deity was unex-
pressed – that is, without entity. If man has lost per-
fection, then he has lost his perfect Principle, the divine
Mind. If man ever existed without this perfect Principle
or Mind, then man's existence was a myth.
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The relations of God and man, divine Principle and
The relations of God and man, divine Principle and
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idea, are indestructible in Science; and Science knows
idea, are indestructible in Science; and Science knows
no lapse from nor return to harmony, but holds the divine
order or spiritual law, in which God and all that He cre-
ates are perfect and eternal, to have remained unchanged
in its eternal history.
Celestial evidence
471:6
The unlikeness of Truth, – named error, – the op-
The unlikeness of Truth, – named error, – the op-
posite of Science, and the evidence before the five cor-
poreal senses, afford no indication of the grand
facts of being; even as these so-called senses
receive no intimation of the earth's motions or of the
science of astronomy, but yield assent to astronomical
propositions on the authority of natural science.
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The facts of divine Science should be admitted, –
The facts of divine Science should be admitted, –
although the evidence as to these facts is not supported
by evil, by matter, or by material sense, – because the
evidence that God and man coexist is fully sustained by
spiritual sense. Man is, and forever has been, God's re-
flection. God is infinite, therefore ever present, and
there is no other power nor presence. Hence the spirit-
uality of the universe is the only fact of creation. "Let
God be true, but every [material] man a liar."
The test of experience
471:22
Question. – Are doctrines and creeds a benefit to man?
Question. – Are doctrines and creeds a benefit to man?
Answer. – The author subscribed to an orthodox
creed in early youth, and tried to adhere to it until she
caught the first gleam of that which inter-
prets God as above mortal sense. This
view rebuked human beliefs, and gave the spiritual im-
port, expressed through Science, of all that proceeds
from the divine Mind. Since then her highest creed has
been divine Science, which, reduced to human apprehen-
sion, she has named Christian Science. This Science
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teaches man that God is the only Life, and that this Life
teaches man that God is the only Life, and that this Life
is Truth and Love; that God is to be understood, adored,
and demonstrated; that divine Truth casts out supposi-
tional error and heals the sick.
God's law destroys evil
472:5
The way which leads to Christian Science is straight
The way which leads to Christian Science is straight
and narrow. God has set His signet upon Science, mak-
ing it coordinate with all that is real and only
with that which is harmonious and eternal.
Sickness, sin, and death, being inharmonious, do not
originate in God nor belong to His government. His
law, rightly understood, destroys them. Jesus furnished
proofs of these statements.
Evanescent materiality
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Question. – What is error?
Question. – What is error?
Answer. – Error is a supposition that pleasure and
pain, that intelligence, substance, life, are existent in mat-
ter. Error is neither Mind nor one of Mind's
faculties. Error is the contradiction of Truth.
Error is a belief without understanding. Error is unreal
because untrue. It is that which seemeth to be and is not.
If error were true, its truth would be error, and we should
have a self-evident absurdity – namely, erroneous truth.
Thus we should continue to lose the standard of Truth.
Unrealities that seem real
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Question. – Is there no sin?
Question. – Is there no sin?
Answer. – All reality is in God and His creation, har-
monious and eternal. That which He creates is good,
and He makes all that is made. Therefore
the only reality of sin, sickness, or death is
the awful fact that unrealities seem real to human, erring
belief, until God strips off their disguise. They are not
true, because they are not of God. We learn in Christian
473:1
Science that all inharmony of mortal mind or body is illu-
Science that all inharmony of mortal mind or body is illu-
sion, possessing neither reality nor identity though seeming
to be real and identical.
Christ the ideal Truth
473:4
The Science of Mind disposes of all evil. Truth, God,
The Science of Mind disposes of all evil. Truth, God,
is not the father of error. Sin, sickness, and death are
to be classified as effects of error. Christ
came to destroy the belief of sin. The God‑
principle is omnipresent and omnipotent. God is every-
where, and nothing apart from Him is present or has
power. Christ is the ideal Truth, that comes to heal
sickness and sin through Christian Science, and attributes
all power to God. Jesus is the name of the man who,
more than all other men, has presented Christ, the true
idea of God, healing the sick and the sinning and destroy-
ing the power of death. Jesus is the human man, and
Christ is the divine idea; hence the duality of Jesus the
Christ.
Jesus not God
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In an age of ecclesiastical despotism, Jesus introduced
In an age of ecclesiastical despotism, Jesus introduced
the teaching and practice of Christianity, affording the
proof of Christianity's truth and love; but to
reach his example and to test its unerring Sci-
ence according to his rule, healing sickness, sin, and
death, a better understanding of God as divine Prin-
ciple, Love, rather than personality or the man Jesus, is
required.
Jesus not understood
473:26
Jesus established what he said by demonstration,
Jesus established what he said by demonstration,
thus making his acts of higher importance than his
words. He proved what he taught. This
is the Science of Christianity. Jesus proved
the Principle, which heals the sick and casts out error,
to be divine. Few, however, except his students un-
derstood in the least his teachings and their glorious
474:1
proofs, – namely, that Life, Truth, and Love (the Prin-
proofs, – namely, that Life, Truth, and Love (the Prin-
ciple of this unacknowledged Science) destroy all error,
evil, disease, and death.
Miracles rejected
474:4
The reception accorded to Truth in the early Chris-
The reception accorded to Truth in the early Chris-
tian era is repeated to-day. Whoever introduces the
Science of Christianity will be scoffed at and
scourged with worse cords than those which
cut the flesh. To the ignorant age in which it first
appears, Science seems to be a mistake, – hence the
misinterpretation and consequent maltreatment which
it receives. Christian marvels (and marvel is the sim-
ple meaning of the Greek word rendered miracle in the
New Testament) will be misunderstood and misused
by many, until the glorious Principle of these marvels is
gained.
Divine fulfilment
474:16
If sin, sickness, and death are as real as Life, Truth,
If sin, sickness, and death are as real as Life, Truth,
and Love, then they must all be from the same source;
God must be their author. Now Jesus came
to destroy sin, sickness, and death yet the
Scriptures aver, "I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."
Is it possible, then, to believe that the evils which Jesus
lived to destroy are real or the offspring of the divine
will?
Truth destroys falsity
474:24
Despite the hallowing influence of Truth in the de-
Despite the hallowing influence of Truth in the de-
struction of error, must error still be immortal? Truth
spares all that is true. If evil is real, Truth
must make it so; but error, not Truth, is
the author of the unreal, and the unreal vanishes,
while all that is real is eternal. The apostle says that
the mission of Christ is to "destroy the works of the
devil." Truth destroys falsity and error, for light and
darkness cannot dwell together. Light extinguishes the