Christian Science practice is one of the most unselfish activities there is. It acknowledges God’s universal laws of goodness, applicable to humanity. Each Christian Science treatment acknowledges God’s omnipotence and ever-presence. No one is left out of Spirit and its universe. In fact, it’s impossible to correctly practice Christian Science selfishly. Affirmations of truth in the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, describe the loving relationship between God and man, which Jesus demonstrated so fully and which applies to one and all.
Mary Baker Eddy discovered Christian Science in 1866, following a life-threatening fall that resulted in what appeared to be a miraculous healing. She describes her mental footsteps in Science and Health and writes about what happened after the healing: “For three years after my discovery, I sought the solution of this problem of Mind-healing, searched the Scriptures and read little else, kept aloof from society, and devoted time and energies to discovering a positive rule. The search was sweet, calm, and buoyant with hope, not selfish nor depressing” (p. 109).
I’ve come to see that Mrs. Eddy is telling us what to expect in our own practice of Christian Science. We have the Bible and Science and Health to guide us, and we are individually applying the laws that Christ Jesus practiced, aiming to emulate his example. Christian Science begins by acknowledging God as the foundation and source of all being. It recognizes that true identity and individuality come from God and are wholly governed by Him. It states firmly that “… nothing exists beyond the range of all-inclusive infinity, in which and of which God is the sole creator” (Science and Health, p. 514).
