There was a time in the early history of the Christian Science movement when a number of Mrs. Eddy's followers were clinging to her personally as the source of divine blessings. Some evidently thought that the mere sight of Mrs. Eddy could heal them; they would come to her house or tarry along her carriage route just to catch a glimpse of her. It was as if these misguided individuals were trying to catch holiness and health—sort of salvation by association!
When Mrs. Eddy saw that some were giving her a dominance in their lives that only God should have, she took action. She incorporated a By-Law in the Manual of The Mother Church forbidding such idolizing. See Man., Art. VIII, Sect. 27. And she wrote an article for the Christian Science Sentinel entitled "Personal Contagion," which admonishes: "There was never a religion or philosophy lost to the centuries except by sinking its divine Principle in personality. May all Christian Scientists ponder this fact, and give their talents and loving hearts free scope only in the right direction!" The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 117.
Strong words for Christian Scientists—then and now.
