Reiterating the teachings of Christ Jesus, Christian Science dismisses the notion that heaven is reached through death and departure to some other sphere. Despite the fact that death is designated in the Bible as an enemy, many human beings still hug the notion that, on the contrary, it is the one friend through which all may expect to gain complete release from suffering. So they continue to harbor thoughts which are not far removed from suicidal, thoughts that may be mistaken for religious tendencies. In that passive, indefinite frame of mind which seldom faces a question, most individuals drift into believing that either sickness, accident, or old age will some day usher them into heaven in a moment.
The average mortal thinks he is pretty sure to reach heaven without regard to what he may do or leave undone here on earth. Heaven is pictured by some as a distant place, within whose precincts all the "departed" are gathered, and where they dwell in safety and idleness thereafter. The truth is that there can be no heaven for materialism, and sin is forgiven only so far as it is abandoned through a clearer perception of Principle. Realizing the vital necessity for ridding mortals of all misleading superstitions, suggested and fostered by apathy, Christian Science is rousing its students to appreciate the great import of our Master's words, "The kingdom of God is within you," and of Mrs. Eddy's statement in "No and Yes" (p. 33), "Self-sacrifice is the highway to heaven."
Among the thinking people of today, however, many realize that heaven and hell are not localities, but mental states, one of which is spiritual and real, and the other material and totally unreal. For Biblical confirmation of this statement, let anyone turn to the parable in the sixteenth chapter of Luke. Three points stand out clearly in this parable: first, that Dives was not translated into "heaven" through death, after a lifetime of self-indulgence; second, that he still appeared to be living and suffering in the same body which he had before death; third, that salvation is gained individually, and not vicariously.
