In the past several years, society has shown increasing concern over the dangers inherent in personal domination. Mind control, child abuse, and other unhealthy relationships have received this awakened attention.
Sometimes these phases of thought control have been practiced in the name of religion; the tragic deaths at Jonestown, Guyana, for example, occurred in such a setting. This stratagem of evil is nothing new. Two thousand years ago Christ Jesus warned, "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves."Matt. 7:15. Nor is this method of attack surprising, for evil by its illusive nature seeks not only to deny God's authority but to counterfeit that authority by masquerading as good. Then, how is one to distinguish between the "false prophets" and the true?
Christian Science supports one in making this decision through its insistence on free moral agency, a policy that no tyrant could adopt, because freedom of choice undermines tyranny. In Christian Science all are encouraged to turn to God, not to mortal opinion, for guidance. Such a stand for freedom springs from what Christian Science reveals of the nature of reality itself.
In reality, God governs His creation completely, holding it forever in constant, fruitful, satisfying activity. All of God's children share a permanent unity with God as His loved expression. In this sense, true control can never be lost; it is a component of man's being, an aspect of his identity.
Humanly, this true control seems to be brought out by degrees. God's orderly control is felt on the human scene as individual direction—spiritual intuitions that nurture, protect, uplift, and heal. Unlike mere personal control, this direction is divinely inspired; it can never make a mistake.
Many individuals may look for little else than human guidance, and sometimes even those seeking aid from a Christian Science practitioner also may try to draw out human advice. Of course, a practitioner could rightly discuss with another the motives involved in some action; and certainly there is nothing wrong in encouraging an individual's adherence to Christian moral standards. Nevertheless, any decision must always be the inquirer's—not the practitioner's. Why?
Mrs. Eddy included in Science and Health a Glossary of spiritual interpretations for some common biblical terms. For "Levi"—the son of Jacob whose tribe came to be associated with religious duties—part of the definition reads, "denial of the fulness of God's creation; ecclesiastical despotism."Science and Health, p. 590. God's perfect creation is already in place, and through growing spiritual understanding every individual can experience more of this spiritual creation.
Christian Science treatment helps lift the mesmerism of human will and fear so that the patient can perceive spiritual reality more clearly. An effect of this clearer view is the removal of mortal discord and limitation, and the proper resolution of the problem. Now, here's the point: for a practitioner simply to tell the patient what to do would not help the patient's spiritual perception at all. Indeed, it would constitute a denial of the patient's ability to experience God's direction for himself, would be a "denial of the fulness of God's creation." But genuine Christian Science practice demonstrates that fullness to some degree in increased spiritual awareness.
An understanding of this point makes clear how important are the reasons why the practitioner seeks at all times to avoid acting or appearing to act as the self-appointed voice of God. This is the mistake of the individual who provides a specific human solution for another— take the job, go tell your wife such-and-such, and so on—and then claims that his instructions are God's revelation to the patient. But one doesn't receive revelations of what another should do and then pass them along. Instead, practitioner and patient work together to spiritualize thought. The increased spiritual perception that results enables the patient to discern God's presence and power, and thus to be healed.
One result of this perception should be to keep the patient free from any feeling of personal obligation to return to the same practitioner. God's direction of our lives certainly doesn't begin only after we've asked another to pray for us! This is not to say that God, infinite Love, sees our problems and outlines a laborious process for removing them. God knows us as we are: His perfect, perpetually harmonious reflection. Humanly, our desire to know God and our own spiritual nature more fully helps to guide us to those who can aid us at a given time. This is God's immeasurable, tender care for us appearing in an orderly way on the human scene. If we return repeatedly to the same practitioner for aid in demonstrating Truth, that's fine—so long as it is fresh direction and not false obligation that guides our choice, since no practitioner ever "owns" a patient. And certainly any individual who takes pride in "his" patients needs to develop a higher sense of "the fulness of God's creation"!
Ultimately, each individual needs to determine for himself when he feels truly ready to rely wholly on God for healing. No one can decide this for another. As the patient and the practitioner sincerely pray for spiritual discernment, the right course should become apparent. But the decision always belongs in the patient's hands, since to do otherwise would involve a violation of ethics and could be a very serious mistake.
Mrs. Eddy must have considered the issue of personal control very important. She addresses it in a number of statements (and in at least two provisions of the Manual of The Mother Church See Man., Art. XXVI, Sect. 2. and Art. XXVII, Sect. 5.). The standard for her students is stated in her book Retrospection and Introspection: "A general rule is, that my students should not allow their movements to be controlled by other students, even if they are teachers and practitioners of the same blessed faith."Ret., p. 82.
Working out our own salvation— relying on God and our own progressively clearer sense of spiritual reality— we will never surrender the individual direction requisite for Christian growth. In this way we will be best prepared to help ourselves and others into the glorious freedom of the kingdom of heaven.
