The Christian Scientist treats sickness, sin, and all other undesirable conditions by offering reasons for health, sinlessness, and an abundance of good in every manifestation of life. His doing so is in accord with some dictionary definitions for the word argue, such as, "To offer reasons for or against something;... to treat by reasoning; to maintain or contend." But he finds his prime reasons in the Scriptural teaching, reiterated and explained by Mary Baker Eddy, that God is Spirit, that He is good, and that He is All-in-all; also, that He made man in His image and likeness. From such premises the fact must be deduced that man, God's image and likeness, is spiritual, perfect, sinless, well, strong, good, happy, useful, active, and undying. At the same time the Scientist offers reasons against the seeming reality of sin, disease, and death by showing that such conditions are not compatible with a good God and a perfect creation. He contends that since God is All and has all power, matter and mortality, including sin, disease, and death, are nothing and are powerless. Thus scientifically refuted, the arguments of error fade into nothingness.
Mrs. Eddy points out in many places in her published writings the need for employing healing arguments in destroying the ills of the flesh. But she also says, "Rudimental Divine Science" she writes (p. 9), "The spiritual power of a scientific, right thought, without a direct effort, an audible or even a mental argument, has oftentimes healed inveterate diseases."
Job, who was an important man in his day and keenly aware of his importance, felt sorely the hand of adversity. But in his affliction he reached out to God, contending for his own uprightness. In the course of his wrestlings Job said (23:3, 4): "Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat! I would order my cause before him, and fill my mouth with arguments." After much reasoning Job was healed, but not by arguments alone. The arguments of both Job and his counselors partook partly of truth and partly of error. Such a mixture of truth and error cannot heal. The self-righteousness which permeated Job's thought had to be replaced by a realization that righteousness belongs to God alone, and that man merely reflects this righteousness. He had to see that the self-righteous Job was not the perfect man of God's creating.
