Christian Scientists have earned the respect of their friends and neighbors by their Christian living and by their loyalty to the demands which their religion makes on them. Yet the question is often put to them, "Why is the use of tobacco and alcoholic beverages considered inconsistent with the teachings of Christian Science?'' This is a question which deserves a thoughtful answer, for the world greatly needs the moral freedom which the overcoming of the tobacco and liquor habits brings. No reply can be more convincing than to point to the experience of one who through the study and application of the teachings of our beloved Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, has been released from bondage to these habits. Many testimonies of such healings are to be found in our periodicals, and a great many more are related from time to time in the Wednesday testimony meetings of The Mother Church and its branches. Almost invariably these testimonies state that with the healing there came also marked improvement in health and usefulness, greater ability and success, as well as increased harmony at home and in business.
When a student of Christian Science who is otherwise ready for church membership appears reluctant to give up cigarettes or cocktails, he needs to be assured that this church demand is not a restriction but a liberation. Sometimes it is argued that there are other serious errors, such as envy and hate, which are more harmful. That should not deter a student from giving proof of his sincerity by meeting the simpler tests of discipleship. Our Master once asked (Luke 12:26), "If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?"
It is right and necessary that branch churches and societies should expect of their members a high standard on this question. Christian Science practitioners can find frequent opportunities to enlighten patients as to the liberating effects of this high standard. Sunday School teachers have the sacred duty of teaching their pupils how rewarding it is to resist the wicked argument that to refrain from smoking may separate them from something which they cherish.
