The Mother Church regularly receives thoughtful questions from individuals around the world wanting to learn more about Christian Science as part of their own spiritual journey. Some are simple inquiries, while others afford the opportunity for deeper thought and prayer.
On occasion, the Office of the Committee on Publication will be invited to provide a response. Consistent with the duties of the Committee on Publication outlined in the Church Manual by Mary Baker Eddy (see pp. 97–98), these are thoughtful opportunities to really lean into this Committee on Publication By-Law and humbly listen for the idea that will best lift misconceptions the inquirer might have about Christian Science—striving to ensure each answer supports a healing and corrective purpose.
One such recent inquirer wrote, in part, “I’ve been considering Christian Science and have some tough questions I’ve been struggling with. . . . For context: I was raised without religion, so for me, atheism has been the only logical path to understanding the truth of our existence that I’ve known in my life so far. I’m hoping for something more, but I’m struggling to embrace any supernatural ideas without any compelling scientific evidence.” While not intended to provide the definitive answer to any of the deep questions this inquirer had, what follows is the substance of the Committee on Publication’s reply to this individual. The reply has been organized into questions and answers and edited for length.
Dear Curious about Christian Science,
Christian Science was born out of asking big questions, so you are in good company in asking yours. I will do my best to answer them in a straightforward way. You may already know that Christian Science is founded on the Bible; we see the Bible as the “inspired Word” of God and our “sufficient guide” to life. The Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, written by our Church’s founder, Mary Baker Eddy, helps to bring out the spiritual meaning of the Bible and its practical application. These books are your richest resource and will help you go further than I can here.
You may be surprised by some of these answers. For example, the notion that Christian Scientists deny “mainstream reality” deserves explanation and correction. Mary Baker Eddy does encourage students of Christian Science to “look deep into realism instead of accepting only the outward sense of things” (Science and Health, p. 129). But this doesn’t mean we deny the world around us or hide from problems. Instead, it means one can go deeper in making Christianity, or spiritual living, practical by reasoning logically that a world created by God, divine Love, must reflect the nature of Love itself—and be spiritual, good, and harmonious, even if it doesn’t seem that way on the surface. And through this spiritual reasoning—this looking deeper into God’s creation—we not only change our point of view but witness changes in our lives for the better.
What is the formal Christian Science stance on evolution?
Christian Scientists aren’t fundamentalists, meaning we don’t accept a literal reading of the first chapters of Genesis. We don’t believe that God created a material world in six days or humanity from dust. Yet we aren’t proponents of “intelligent design” or Darwinian evolution, either. Christian Scientists take a different view, namely, that creation is based spiritually on what is described in the first chapter of Genesis—that God created us all in His own image and likeness as spiritual and as “very good.”
In terms of public policy and evolution, the Church takes no position. But as individuals, I’d guess that very few (if any) Christian Scientists would object to teaching the theory of evolution in public schools. Christian Scientists are generally supportive of rational scientific inquiry, and our members have had careers in physics, chemistry, astronomy, and other sciences.
Are Christian Scientists also considered pantheists or idealists?
Christian Scientists would reject both of those labels, though we have been mischaracterized as both. Christian Science is about learning to discern what is real, to prove spiritual truth in one’s own life. Christian Scientists have fought in wars, lived as refugees, and even faced the harsh realities of concentration camps, so this isn’t a superficial optimism or about turning a blind eye toward evil and suffering.
As we see it, Jesus’ life illustrates the power of Christ—of meekness, courage, love, and joy—that prevails even in the worst of human circumstances. The Church’s 114-year-long publishing of The Christian Science Monitor is one way it has sought to highlight the transformative power of such values at work in the world. The Monitor reports on and helps analyze the world’s problems so they can be met with intelligence, courage, and healing.
Counter to the pantheistic notion that God is found in everything that constitutes the material universe, Christian Science reasons that God can be the creator and sustainer only of that which reflects His own spiritual and eternal nature. There is an account in the Old Testament where the prophet Elijah experiences an earthquake, wind, and fire, yet realizes that God is not present in these destructive elements. Rather, God is found in the “still small voice” (see I Kings 19:11, 12). Similarly, Jesus’ teachings prove the power of divine Love to heal every kind of discordant circumstance.
How would the Christian Science religion describe an ideal practical existence during our time on earth?
Christian Scientists’ lives have varied as widely as the human family, but what unites us is a desire to live in service to God and others, and to bring God’s healing love into whatever situation or life circumstance in which we find ourselves. To a Christian Scientist, divine Love is the most real power on earth. It’s true that our spiritual convictions do often run counter to society’s predominant view. It doesn’t always look like love is the victor, but this is the ultimate lesson we find in Jesus’ life: that meekness, love, and forgiveness overcome even the grave. We feel it’s worth putting all our weight into this spiritual way of living and being, and it has proved fruitful.
What do Christian Scientists believe happens when our material bodies die? Heaven/hell, etc.?
Jesus said, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3). His thought of life did not rest on the material body, but on the life-sustaining power of spiritual understanding.
Eddy’s writings echo this sentiment. They refer to death as a “transition” through which we pass, and we continue on, learning and growing with God, as conscious individuals.
Science and Health explains heaven and hell as states of consciousness, independent of physical locations. Heaven is recognized as the present realization and experience of God’s saving grace, harmony, and love. Hell, on the other hand, is quite the opposite, where the effects of sin, fear, hatred, etc., shape one’s life. Thus as one conquers a sense of hell, they gain the revelation of heaven. We believe that this is why Jesus said that “the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17), as well as, “Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21).
Christian Scientists feel the loss of a loved one just like anybody. But we find great comfort in the Bible illustrations which teach that death does not have the final say, but is an “enemy that shall be destroyed” (I Corinthians 15:26). Ultimately, God as divine Life is real and abiding, and death is never God’s will. Fully realizing this takes time but is the result of spiritual growth—a step-by-step process of learning to put Christ at the center of our lives.
The letter closed with gracious encouragement and an offer to connect the individual with a local Church of Christ, Scientist.
