To those who have experienced "the healing of the seamless dress," after all material means had failed to bring relief, the thousands of testimonies offered in the Wednesday evening meetings, as well as those printed in our publications, are but so many confirmations of their faith; for to them it is not "a thing incredible" that the "effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man"—"an absolute faith that all things are possible to God" (Science and Health, p. i) — should avail for the healing of sickness as well as the saving from sin. They are not disturbed, therefore, when, as it frequently happens, those opposed to Christian Science, or, more correctly speaking, who are opposed to what they think Christian Science is, openly allege that these same testimonies of healing are of no value, because Christian Scientists, not being physicians, are incapable of diagnosing disease.
There might be something to this contention that Christian Science healing should be discredited, if the diagnosis of the physical ills of which these people have been cured had been made primarily by Christian Scientists; but such is not the case. In almost every instance the persons who give these testimonies had been treated unsuccessfully by one or more reputable physicians, and in many cases the physician had not only diagnosed the disease, but also, after a long period of treatment, had pronounced the patient incurable. There are also those who were afflicted with some strange malady which the attending physician frankly admitted his inability to diagnose and which he was helpless to relieve, giving his patient up to die.
One of these so-called hopeless cases, Walter Kessler of Denver, Col., gives his testimony on page 59 of this issue, and it is to be noted that although some twenty or so physicians examined this patient, none of them seemed to be able to name the disease and none were able to prescribe a remedy. The one thing upon which they did agree was that the patient's condition was such that he could live but a few hours. Nevertheless, he did live, and is now living, because of Christian Science treatment. But suppose the physicians' prophecy had been fulfilled. Could they rightfully have been held responsible therefor, because they had failed to diagnose his disease?
