FOR many centuries instantaneous healings, so-called miracles, and blessings of every description have on occasions resulted from the reading of the Scriptures and from prayer. The recipients, evidently satisfied with being healed or blessed, would then return to their material routine. This was not so of Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science.
Following her healing through reading Holy Writ, Mrs. Eddy continued to search the Scriptures, and divine intelligence illumined her way. She tells us in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 109), "I knew the Principle of all harmonious Mind-action to be God, and that cures were produced in primitive Christian healing by holy, uplifting faith; but I must know the Science of this healing, and I won my way to absolute conclusions through divine revelation, reason, and demonstration."
The keynote of this article is contained in our Leader's statement, "I must know the Science of this healing." For centuries, sincere students of the Bible had wanted to follow in Christ Jesus' footsteps: to heal and to be healed. They did have faith; they loved much and were unselfish, but —and this point is most important—they were not guided by spiritual sense, or divine intelligence. The evidence of material sense was too real to them.
When, through divinely inspired intelligence and courage, Mrs. Eddy discovered that material sense testimony is neither in nor of divine Principle, God, spiritual healing as practiced by Christ Jesus, the Way-shower, was reborn. She proceeded to prove the Science she discovered by realizing the allness of God, Spirit, and the nothingness of matter.
The world, entrenched in sin, disease, and death, is not receptive to any teaching that would overthrow materialistic beliefs and habits. Consider the reaction to Jesus of people trained to accept material sense testimony as law! At the bedside of Jairus' daughter, when he said (Luke 8:52), "Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth," those surrounding her "laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead."
Although scornful laughter has not been obliterated from the materialist's attitude, and ignorance of Science has not been completely eradicated, great progress has been made toward the goal of the demonstration of divine intelligence. But until men are not only willing to know but desirous of knowing the Science of spiritual healing, and until they replace ignorance with understanding, they will not be prepared to demonstrate the truth intelligently.
Ignorance condemned Christ Jesus, refused to accept Mrs. Eddy, and today opposes the blessings of the Christ, revealed by the Way-shower and defined in Science as "the divine manifestation of God, which comes to the flesh to destroy incarnate error" (Science and Health, p. 583).
Many people are grateful that Mrs. Eddy refused to be deceived or to be hindered from finding the cause or Principle that heals spiritually. Today students of her discovery know that Christly intelligence illumines and opens the way to understanding and that obedience to Truth will carry one to the mountaintop of all good: the demonstration of peace, abundance, health, and immortality.
A student of Christian Science was standing at the center exit of a moving bus waiting to alight at its next stop. To avoid hitting a person who was carelessly crossing in front of him, the driver had to turn the bus quickly and jam on the brakes. This caused the Scientist to be flung to the front, and she ended up on the floor alongside the driver.
She had a cut on her head, a smashed elbow, a wrenched back, and a badly bruised body. Mortal mind claimed that she was dazed; but intelligence caused her to reject an ambulance, and she was taken to her transfer point, where she boarded a bus to her home.
Here, intelligence impelled her to call a Christian Science practitioner. Relief was immediate. Her landlady, who is not a Scientist, though fearful of what she saw, respected the patient's stand and helped her to clean herself up.
When the cleaning up was done, the mental clearing up was well on its way, and the Christian Scientist was able to begin doing prayerful metaphysical work for herself. All attempts that were made to influence her to have a diagnosis, X ray, and so forth, were defeated. In short order the cut on her head, her elbow, and the bruises were healed, and she returned to work.
The condition of her back, however, did not yield. She could not walk straight, but constantly veered to the right, and it was very difficult for her to get about. Early on a Saturday morning three weeks later came the clear realization that she was healed, although the manifestation of freedom of action had not yet appeared. She thought: God's work is done; the practitioner's work has been done; my own work has been done. What in my thought needs to be eradicated?
Intelligence whispered that she should take the Bible and Science and Health, as well as the current copy of The Christian Science Journal, and go off by herself to study without interruption. She was obedient. She studied the Lesson-Sermon in the Christian Science Quarterly and found a very helpful article in the Journal.
After she had studied in her car in the park for some seven or eight hours, divine intelligence revealed very forcefully that nothing had happened in God, Spirit, and thus nothing had happened to her, an idea of Spirit. She felt exalted.
She returned home, bounded up the stairs, picked up a heavy roll of carpet that was waiting to be laid, and carried it across the apartment. She was completely free. Intelligence had illumined the way, and obedience had brought healing.
Spiritual intelligence is impartial. Ideas of divine Mind flood the universe, waiting for men to hear and abide by their true guidance. How does one prove himself to be intelligent and to be a worthy recipient of God's angel messages? St. Paul tells us in Ephesians (4:22-24), "Put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and . . . put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness."
As Christian Scientists, we know that Paul is saying that we should reverse the deception of the material senses through the intelligence which is inherent in each one of us. Basing our thought upon the illuminating fact of perfect God, Spirit, and the perfect spiritual man, we entertain the Christ-idea, which points the way to heaven, harmony. The individual who understands that intelligence is inherent in man overcomes all interference. He obeys God, and he finds himself ever following in the Master's footsteps.
