CHRISTIAN SCIENCE teaches radical reliance on God. It states the truth—the absolute truth—about God; and with a knowledge of that truth men are fully equipped to place unlimited faith in God under all circumstances. In the day of prosperity, they can gratefully look to Him as the Giver of all good, and in humility expect a continuance of His blessings; in the day of adversity, they can still trustingly look to Him, conscious of His omnipotence, His infinite goodness, His unbounded love, aware of the fact that it is precisely as they realize the truth about God's —good's—allness that the illusions of adversity are destroyed. To them the words of the Psalmist are ever true: "He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved." "For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield."
The word "Principle" is used very frequently by Mrs. Eddy in her writings; and the student of Christian Science receives great help by thinking of God as divine Principle, because the synonym conveys to him certain facts about the nature of Deity, possibly better than any other word could do. As Mrs. Eddy uses this synonym for God, Principle means cause (the only cause) and includes effect as well. It also denotes the absolutely perfect nature of God with respect to the government of His spiritual creation, since perfect Principle necessarily implies perfect law as the method of perfect government. Christian Science maintains that God, divine Principle, is infinite; that divine Principle is perfect, or altogether good; and that, consequently, creation, which is the effect or reflection of perfect Principle, is likewise altogether good. The material so-called senses may argue to the contrary along numerous lines, but Christian Science abides by the absolute truth of the perfection of divine Principle and of Principle's creation.
Christian Scientists are persuaded of these things; they are thoroughly convinced of them, because they have proved in their own experience that exactly in the measure of their reliance on spiritual Truth have they been enabled to overcome the false beliefs of mortal mind which had been binding them to sickness, or perhaps to sinful habits. It has been proved in numerous cases, even of what have been called serious diseases, that once faith has been firmly established in divine Principle, through the understanding of Principle's allness and perfection, the diseased conditions have simply disappeared, the so-called material body having responded to scientific right thinking. The one who is healed can then joyfully voice Isaiah's words, "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear."
