A primal characteristic of a discoverer is faith in the unseen. He must think beyond, and often contrary to, the general thought of his time. He must possess the qualities of moral courage, fearlessness, wisdom, patience, perseverance, confidence, vision, and an unfaltering trust in the desirability of that for which he seeks. He must be able courageously to endure opposition and to overcome obstacles. He must dare to stand alone and to let his achievement, if he succeeds, be his sufficient reward.
At intervals during the history of mankind discoverers have ventured into unknown realms. They have sailed across uncharted seas, explored the distant heavens, invaded the domain of science, and even searched the paths of the human mind. But it was in the nineteenth century that there occurred the great discovery of Christian Science. A lone woman, convinced thereby of the reality and presence of a spiritual universe, unaided by any human hand, all unheralded, started on the great adventure of its discovery.
This woman, Mary Baker Eddy, had been an invalid for many years, unable to cope with daily affairs as others did. Her purpose and courage in this adventure were beyond the power of tongue or pen to describe. She was committed to find a kingdom (the kingdom of heaven) which was universally believed to exist, if at all, only beyond the confines of death. She was to seek a state of being commonly accepted as unobtainable by human consciousness. She had set herself the task of finding in this kingdom of heaven man in the likeness of God.
