In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy wrote, "If here we give no heed to Christian Science, which is spiritual and eternal, we shall not be ready for spiritual Life hereafter" (p. 410). That seems to give millions of people who are little familiar or even totally unaware of Christian Science dim prospects for finding harmony in the "hereafter." Does that mean that God essentially punishes people for their ignorance of Christian Science?— A READER IN NEEDHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
A1 Mary Baker Eddy's statement reminds me of Jesus' parable, where he compares the plight of a "rich man" with a poor man "named Lazarus" (see Luke 16:19—31). In the parable, the rich man evidently paid no heed to spiritual concerns or the things that would be of lasting (eternal) value to him. By contrast, the poor man was extremely uncomfortable in his life circumstances. He was starving, ill, and alone, and he clearly felt no ties to the flesh.
When they both transitioned out of their earthly existence to the "hereafter," their experiences were reversed. The rich man could carry with him none of the things he had valued, and he was suffering in the flames of agony. Lazarus, who was searching for peace, was lifted by the angels and comforted by being with Abraham (perhaps a symbol for a spiritual home). Both appeared to be living the consequences of what they had been thinking while on earth. That is, the rich man's satisfaction with earthly comforts included no interest in spiritual existence. Lazarus' discomfort with the flesh impelled him to look higher, beyond material life.
