Mary Baker Eddy placed the spiritual education component of Christian Science under the auspices of a Board of Education, established in 1898, within the Massachusetts Metaphysical College. Her system of education includes:
Primary class: An intensive course in healing, including oral and written work under a Christian Science teacher's direction. Primary instruction, which is made up of 12 sessions, is followed by at least three years of on-the-job training before one can advertise professionally in the Journal. A correction appeared in the April 2004 Journal: " On page 19, the section entitled "An educational system for spiritual healing" included a paragraph on Primary class instruction in Christian Science. A sentence in that paragraph read as follows: "Primary instruction, which is made up of 12 sessions, is followed by at least three years of on-the-job training before one can advertise professionally in the Journal." It should have read:"Primary instruction is made up of 12 sessions, after which an individual can advertise professionally in the Journal. At least three years of on-the-job experience are necessary before a practitioner can apply for the Normal class, which prepares individuals to be teachers of Christian Science."
Associating meeting: A yearly one-day meeting of the teacher's students. These sessions serve a purpose similar to post-graduate seminars for other professionals. It's an on-going practicum or postgraduate seminar on healing. Along the path of self-development as a healer, the teacher serves as students' advocate, coach, or spiritual mentor, overseeing their period of field practice.
