From the February 12, 1966 issue of the Christian Science Sentinel

While medical physicians often admit that thought plays a part in the sickness of a patient, they do not give up their belief in a material basis of his bodily disturbance. This conviction leads to physical diagnosis and to material remedies.

Contrary to this method of handling a case of sickness, the Christian Scientist diagnoses a physical disorder as altogether a mental state, and he applies Christian Science as divine law, working to bring the thought of his patient into obedience to God. When this is accomplished, the body responds accordingly and the case is successfully healed. God’s law rather than material belief claiming to be law is in control of the patient’s thought, and the body, being nonintelligent and nonthinking, cannot resist this control.

In applying divine law for the benefit of his patient, the Scientist is alert to detect the specific material beliefs involved in a case. And he opposes these troublesome beliefs as vigorously as a lawyer would oppose false evidence brought against his client.

Mary Baker Eddy says in “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures” (p. 390), “‘Agree to disagree’ with approaching symptoms of chronic or acute disease, whether it is cancer, consumption, or smallpox.” Later she continues, “Rise in the conscious strength of the spirit of Truth to overthrow the plea of mortal mind, alias matter, arrayed against the supremacy of Spirit.”

Sickness does not strike the real man, who, as Christian Science reveals, is God’s perfect likeness, never capable of disobedience to divine law, never controlled by any other force. This standpoint of perfection should not become hazy in the Scientist’s healing argument.

In order to handle a case of illness effectively, the Scientist should be skillful in detecting the wiles of mortal mind and in seeing where its strengths as well as its weaknesses seem to be. In this way he knows where to build the strengths of his own argument and how to forestall what might seem to be lawful, but is not.

It is not enough for the Scientist to know the arguments of innocence he must employ in defending his patient; he must identify the claims of error specifically in order to expose it as godless and as powerless to oppose his plea for justice that destroys evil and its effects. This procedure in no way gives reality to sickness but handles error’s belief in its own reality.

Mrs. Eddy says in Science and Health (p. 252), “A knowledge of error and of its operations must precede that understanding of Truth which destroys error, until the entire mortal, material error finally disappears, and the eternal verity, man created by and of Spirit, is understood and recognized as the true likeness of his Maker.”

Abraham Lincoln was an astute lawyer who knew how to analyze his opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, and this gave him advantage in the legal cases he handled. In “The Lincoln Reader,” edited by Paul M. Angle, we read of the training Lincoln received under his onetime partner, Judge Stephen T. Logan, of Illinois, a great lawyer of his day. Adopting Judge Logan’s methods, Lincoln “examined the law both of his side and that of his opponent. We have his own statement for the fact that he was never thereafter surprised by the strength of an opponent’s case. By analyzing it he often found it weaker than he first feared.”

The Christian Scientist will not be surprised by mortal mind’s assertions of strength if he thoroughly deals with its basic claims: that life is in matter; that man is a helpless mortal; that death can strike unexpectedly; that there are laws of matter which God cannot cope with; that the patient’s courage is likely to give way if healing does not come quickly.

If the Scientist emphasizes the healing of pain, swelling, and other superficial symptoms in his prayerful affirmations to the neglect of the seemingly stronger and more deeply entrenched beliefs of life in matter and the influence of general belief, he is working from a weak position. He is not separating the identity of his patient from the universal evils which appear to give strength to the side of sickness.

One of mortal mind’s claims to strength rests upon its belief in material laws. We attack sickness at this entrenched point when we deny error’s claim to oppose God’s will—the real, governing law of the universe. We cannot forget the emphasis the Master, Christ Jesus, placed upon divine law, from his support of the law of Moses and the new law of Love he announced (see John 13:34) to his statement of full subjection to God’s will, when he said (John 6:38), “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”

Herein lies the strength of Christian Science—to inspire us to conform to the divine will. And herein lies the vulnerability of the argument of the carnal mind— that it can reverse the divine will and produce conditions that defy that will.

Sickness is mental, and thus it must be handled. To keep this point in mind strengthens the Scientist in his healing work. It helps him to silence every suggestion that error can surprise him or that matter can either aid or hinder his proving the power of divine law to completely overturn evil’s claim to govern mankind.

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Our Father who is everywhere

Your name is sacred

Your kingdom is come.

Your will is throughout the earth even as it is throughout the universe

You give us our needful bread from day to day,

and forgive us our offenses even as we forgive our offenders.

And you let us not enter into materialism but you separate us from error.

Because Yours are the kingdom, the power and the song and praise.

From all ages, throughout all ages.

(Sealed) in faith, trust and truth.

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work.’ ‘Why, we have named everything,’ they said. ‘Yes, you have named everything except the most important work I could do – to serve on the Lesson Committee. You see, our text-book is complete, – a chapter on healing, one on
teaching – and so on. The book alone, will revolutionize the world’s thinking. But in active work – to prepare 52 lessons on 26 subjects – this is giving the world weekly treatments – surrounding it with the spoken word, 24 hours on
Sunday.’ They were amazed, so Mrs. Eddy added. ‘why, you girls don’t think you go to church to worship God as we used to, do you? Our God isn’t to be worshipped, but expressed.’ (…‘neither is worshipped, as though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life and breath and all things.’ Acts 17:25) ‘We study these lessons for six days,’ she continued, then we go to Church to

express God for the world – to give the world a treatment.’ (S&H 583:14 Definition of Church) ‘The first subjects of the lessons are on God – His synonyms, attributes, etc. – the fundamental teaching of Christian Science. Then come the subjects that are for the purpose of healing the world. The prayers offered in Church are for
the purpose of helping the organization do its work to express God.'”

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“All you need is love,” says a 1960s Beatles’ song. It’s still popular – you might even be singing it right now.
“All you need is love, all you need is love/ All you need is love, love, love is all you need.” It’s an easy lyric. Songwriters John Lennon and Paul McCartney included the word “love” about 40 times in the song.
In taking a closer look at the lyrics, I found a surprise. The song is not simply about romantic love, as the chorus might suggest. To me the verses carry a deeply spiritual message. I see a message about Love as the divine ever-presence that spiritual thinkers know Love to be. How else could they say about love: “It’s easy”?
Consider this verse:

There’s nothing you can know that isn’t known
Nothing you can see that isn’t shown
Nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be.
It’s easy.
All you need is love …

The thought in this verse reminds me that Love is God, and that’s why all good is already provided and will ever be available to all. This is what makes loving easy and natural. Some people with relationship wrinkles might disagree. To them, love may not seem so easy. Some may even say that love hurts.

But Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Monitor, wrote this profound statement about Love and human needs in the Christian Science textbook: “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need” (“Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” p.
494). Every need? When I first read this, I thought, How can she say that when there’s so much evidence of human need all around, especially the need for love?
But after a closer study of Science and Health, I learned that God’s law of love is ever in
operation (just as the law of mathematics is always in operation: 2+2 always equals 4), but to be experienced, it must be acknowledged and embraced. From Love’s vantage point every need is already met, but for us to enjoy this humanly, we must realize it consciously, as Jesus did.

For Jesus, loving was easy. The Master said our Father met his every need, that he did nothing of himself – that it was always the Father working through him (see John 5:19). This conscious recognition of his oneness with God, divine Love, is what made loving easy for him. Jesus wouldn’t have seen himself as lacking love.

Not one of us can lack love, either. But if we think of love as simply a variable human emotion, we may think we do lack love, and may suffer as if we are needy. But true love, which comes from God, is never limited. When we think it is limited, we limit loving, and that’s when love can seem to hurt. But we cannot suffer from lack of love when we recognize divine Love as the ever-present source of our very being and when we allow divine affection to be expressed through each of us humanly.

What if we do let love pour through, but affection is not returned? We can surely take heart. Love is never wasted. Mrs. Eddy wrote: “Human affection is not poured forth vainly, even
though it meet no return. Love enriches the nature, enlarging, purifying, and elevating it” (p. 57).
How do we recognize divine Love? Love appears as tangible evidence of the ever-present divine influence, appropriately expressed humanly. It is contentment meant to be. It is joy, welling up from within and urging heartfelt happiness. It will burst out as song. You will know it as it has always been known. You will see it as it has always been shown. You will love it as you have always been loved.

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