ONE'S understanding of a given subject is proved by practical demonstration of its rules. One may read a motor manual and tell others how to drive a car; but until one has actually sat in a car and driven it along the highway, one has not proved one's understanding of automobile driving. The same may be said of cooking a meal or making a dress. Until the theory is made practical, it still remains theory, and as such is virtually useless, no matter how good or correct it may be.
But the true enthusiast would not think of leaving his subject in the realm of theory. The keen motorist is eager to get into his car and drive away; the cook gladly prepares a meal for her hungry family; and the dressmaker buys the material and cuts out the dress.
Christian Science also needs to be understood and practiced, for it is no mere theory. It is an exact Science, which needs to be proved and practiced as does any science. Mrs. Eddy was insistent upon demonstration. She demonstrated Christian Science herself and called upon her students to do likewise. She writes in Science and Health (p. 323), "We must recollect that Truth is demonstrable when understood, and that good is not understood until demonstrated."
