Christian Science facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Christian Science |
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The First Church of Christ, Scientist at the Christian Science Center in Boston with the original Mother Church (1894) in the foreground and the Mother Church Extension (1906) behind it.
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| Scripture | Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy and the Bible |
| Theology | "Basic teachings", Church of Christ, Scientist |
| Founder | Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910) |
| Members | Estimated 106,000 in the United States in 1990 and under 50,000 in 2009; according to the church, 400,000 worldwide in 2008. |
Christian Science is a set of beliefs and practices followed by members of the Church of Christ, Scientist. People who follow this religion are often called Christian Scientists. It was started in 1879 in New England by Mary Baker Eddy. She wrote a book in 1875 called Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, which explains the main ideas of Christian Science. This book, along with the Bible, became the most important texts for the religion. By 2001, over nine million copies of Science and Health had been sold.
Mary Baker Eddy and 26 of her followers officially started the "Church of Christ (Scientist)" in 1879. The church was later reorganized in 1892 as the "Church of Christ, Scientist." The main church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, was built in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1894. Christian Science grew very quickly in the United States, reaching almost 270,000 members by 1936. However, this number later decreased to just over 100,000 by 1990 and reportedly fewer than 50,000 by 2009. The church is also known for its newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor, which has won many awards, and for its public Reading Rooms around the world.
Eddy said that Christian Science was a way to return to "early Christianity and its lost element of healing." There are some important differences between Christian Science beliefs and those of traditional Christianity. For example, Christian Scientists believe that reality is completely spiritual and that the physical world is not truly real. This means they believe that sickness is a mental error, not a physical problem. They think that sick people should be treated with a special kind of prayer, not with medicine. This prayer aims to correct the wrong beliefs that cause the illusion of sickness.
The church does not forbid Christian Scientists from using medical care for things like dental work, eye care, or broken bones, or getting vaccines when required by law. However, they believe that Christian Science prayer works best when it's not mixed with medicine. Sometimes, people have criticized Christian Science because relying on prayer instead of medical treatment has been linked to the deaths of some followers and their children.
Contents
Understanding Christian Science
What is the Metaphysical Family?
In the late 1800s, many new religious groups appeared in the United States. These groups were sometimes called the "metaphysical family." Christian Science is one of these groups, along with others like Divine Science and Unity Church. These groups believed that the mind and spiritual world were most important. They thought that physical things were a result of mental states. They often called God "Divine Mind," "Truth," or "Love."
These groups were also known as the "mind-cure movement" because they focused strongly on healing. At that time, medical treatments were not very advanced, and sometimes people got better without them. This made it easier for mind-cure groups to gain followers. They taught that sickness came from "wrong thinking" or not connecting with the "Divine Mind." One important person in this movement was Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, a healer who believed that explaining a patient's feelings could lead to healing. Mary Baker Eddy was one of his patients, which later led to discussions about how much of Christian Science came from his ideas.
Christian Science is different from other "New Thought" groups because Mary Baker Eddy believed her ideas were a unique and final message from God. She also taught about "malicious animal magnetism," which is the idea that bad thoughts from others can cause harm. Most importantly, she believed the physical world was an illusion, not just less important than the spiritual world. This led her to reject medicine, making Christian Science stand out from other groups. For Eddy, only the spiritual world was real.
What Christian Scientists Believe
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Christian Science leaders say their religion is part of mainstream Christian teaching. Mary Baker Eddy was greatly influenced by her Congregationalist background. Christian Scientists accept the Bible as their guide and believe in one God. They also believe in God's Son, Christ, and the Holy Spirit. When Eddy founded the church, she wanted to bring back "early Christianity and its lost element of healing." She later suggested that Christian Science was like a second coming of Jesus's teachings and that her book, Science and Health, was inspired by God. In 1895, she even made the Bible and Science and Health the "Pastor" of the main church.
Christian Science beliefs are different from traditional Christianity in several ways. Eddy's Science and Health explains Christian ideas like the Trinity (God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), the divinity of Jesus, and the resurrection in new ways. A main idea in Eddy's teaching is that the spiritual world is the only true reality and is completely good. The physical world, with its problems like evil, sickness, and death, is seen as an illusion. Eddy believed that humans are perfect "ideas of Mind" and reflect God. Even though she said evil doesn't truly exist, Christian Science teaches that bad thoughts, like "malicious animal magnetism," can seem to cause harm.
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Eddy saw God not as a person, but as "All-in-all." She sometimes called God "Father–Mother God" and used words like "Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love" to describe God. In Christian Science, the Holy Spirit is Christian Science itself, and heaven and hell are states of mind. Christian Science prayer is not about asking God for things. Instead, it's a silent process where a person confirms to themselves that matter is not real. Christian Science practitioners can do this for a fee, even from a distance, to help with sickness or other issues. Healing in Christian Science is seen as realizing that there's nothing truly to heal, because sickness is an illusion. If healing doesn't happen, it's believed to be because of the individual's thoughts.
Eddy accepted the creation story in the Book of Genesis up to a certain point, where God created humans in His image. But she rejected the rest of the story as being about "the false and the material." She did not believe in the Trinity, seeing it as suggesting many gods. She saw Jesus as a "Way-shower" who showed humanity how to connect with God. She separated Jesus the man from the idea of Christ, which she saw as a symbol for Truth. The crucifixion was not a sacrifice for sins, but an "at-one-ment" (being at one) with God. Her ideas about life after death were not very clear, but she believed that after death, people continue to learn and grow until they understand the truths of Christian Science. She did not believe the living and the dead could talk to each other.
Many traditional Christian leaders saw Eddy's view of Science and Health as a challenge to the Bible's authority. Some called "Eddyism" a cult. Christian Scientists were sometimes asked to leave other Christian churches. In 1907, Mark Twain wrote about the appeal of Christian Science, saying that it gave followers a religion that "banished the glooms" and offered a heaven that "begins here and now."
History of Christian Science
Mary Baker Eddy's Life and the Start of the Movement
Mary Baker Eddy was born Mary Morse Baker in New Hampshire. She was the youngest of six children in a religious family. Like most women at that time, she didn't have much formal schooling but read a lot at home. She had health problems for much of her life. Her first husband died shortly after they married, and she lost custody of her son when he was young because of her poor health and the laws at the time. She tried many different health cures, including traditional medicine and other methods like homeopathy and mesmerism (a type of mental healing) with Phineas Quimby. Critics later accused her of using some of Quimby's ideas in Christian Science.
In February 1866, Eddy fell on ice in Massachusetts. She was badly hurt, but a few days later, she said she read her Bible, focusing on one of Jesus's miracles, and felt healed through prayer alone. She saw this moment as a key step in understanding Christian Science.
After her fall, Eddy began teaching her first student and writing down her ideas, which became her most important book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. In 1879, her students voted to form the Church of Christ (Scientist), which later became The First Church of Christ, Scientist (The Mother Church) in 1892. She also started the Massachusetts Metaphysical College in 1881 to teach more students. Eddy also created several magazines and newspapers, including The Christian Science Journal (1883), the Christian Science Sentinel (1898), and The Christian Science Monitor (1908). The Monitor is a respected newspaper that has won many awards. She also wrote other books and articles, and founded the Christian Science Publishing Society in 1898 to share Christian Science writings. The first church building specifically for Christian Science was built in Wisconsin in 1886. During Eddy's lifetime, Christian Science spread across the United States and to other countries.
Eddy faced a lot of criticism as she taught and wrote about Christian Science. One famous critic was Mark Twain, who wrote several articles about her and the religion. Another criticism came from a book by Georgine Milmine and Willa Cather. In 1907, some of Eddy's relatives filed a lawsuit, claiming she was not mentally able to manage her own affairs. However, after a judge and doctors interviewed her, they found her to be mentally capable, and the lawsuit failed. These criticisms partly led Eddy to ask the church to start The Christian Science Monitor in 1908, to provide responsible journalism.
Mary Baker Eddy died on December 3, 1910, at the age of 89. The church announced her passing, stating that Christian Scientists do not expect her to return to this world. She left most of her money to the church.
Christian Science After 1910
After Mary Baker Eddy's death, some people thought the church would disappear, but it continued to grow for several decades. The church does not share its membership numbers, but a 1936 study counted about 268,915 Christian Scientists in the United States. The number of Christian Science churches kept increasing until around 1960, but since then, many churches have closed.
Over the years, the church has faced challenges. There were attempts to make Christian Science practice illegal in some places. The church also faced lawsuits about its leadership and was persecuted in countries like Nazi Germany and Japan. There were also lawsuits involving the deaths of church members, especially children, who did not receive medical care. Despite these difficulties, many Christian Science churches and Reading Rooms still exist worldwide. The Christian Science Monitor remains a well-respected newspaper known for its international news and fair reporting.
Healing Practices
How Christian Science Prayer Works
Christian Scientists generally avoid most medical treatments and rely on Christian Science prayer instead. This prayer is a silent process of reasoning with oneself. It doesn't involve asking a personal God for things or using specific words. A Christian Science practitioner might silently repeat ideas about God's perfect nature, using words like "Life, Truth, Love, Spirit, Soul, Principle and Mind." They might then affirm that "Spirit, Substance, is the only Mind, and man is its image and likeness." They might also deny the existence of evil or the symptoms of an illness, concluding that disease is an illusion.
Christian Science practitioners are certified by the church to offer Christian Science prayer for a fee. In 2015, there were 1,249 practitioners worldwide. They charge for consultations by email, phone, or in person. Their training involves a two-week course based on Science and Health. There are also Christian Science nursing homes, which do not offer medical services. Instead, the nurses are Christian Scientists trained in basic care like feeding and bathing.
The Christian Science Journal and Christian Science Sentinel publish stories of healing, which Christian Scientists call "testimonials." These stories must be supported by three people who know the person and can confirm the healing or the person's honesty. Some critics point out that these stories don't include negative outcomes and might not account for conditions that would have gotten better on their own.
A church spokesperson said in 1983 that members are free to choose medical care. However, some former Christian Scientists have said that those who seek medical care might feel left out by their community. In 2010, church leaders stated they were encouraging members to see a doctor if needed and were presenting Christian Science prayer as something that could go along with medical care, rather than a complete replacement. The church has also worked to have Christian Science practitioner services covered by insurance.
In recent years, the church has clarified its stance on vaccines. As of 2015, Christian Scientists in Australia were not advising against vaccines, and the church stated in 2021 that vaccination is an individual choice and not against church rules.
The Church of Christ, Scientist
How the Church is Organized
The main church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, is in Boston. Other churches in cities are named "First Church of Christ, Scientist," then "Second Church of Christ, Scientist," and so on, followed by the city name (for example, Third Church of Christ, Scientist, London). If a church closes, the others in that city keep their original names.
The Church of Christ, Scientist was founded in April 1879 and is led by a president and a five-person board of directors. It has a public relations department called the Committee on Publication, with representatives around the world. This department was set up by Eddy in 1898 to protect her and the church's reputation.
The church's main offices are at the Christian Science Center in Boston. This large site includes the Mother Church (1894), the Mother Church Extension (1906), the Christian Science Publishing Society building (1934) (which also houses the Mary Baker Eddy Library and church offices), a Sunday School building (1971), and other buildings. There is also a children's fountain and a large reflecting pool.
Manual of The Mother Church
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Mary Baker Eddy's Manual of The Mother Church, first published in 1895, contains the church's rules. Members are required to pray daily and study the Bible and Science and Health every day. They should also subscribe to church magazines if they can afford to, and pay a small yearly fee to the church.
The rules also include prohibitions, such as not engaging in "mental malpractice" (harmful thoughts), not visiting stores that sell "obnoxious" books, not joining other churches, and not publishing articles that are unkind to religion, medicine, or the law. The manual also forbids public debates about Christian Science without church approval and learning hypnotism. It even includes a "Golden Rule" that tells members not to bother Mrs. Eddy when she goes out or stay near her house just to see her.
Church Services
The Church of Christ, Scientist is a lay church, meaning it doesn't have ordained clergy or many traditional rituals. It doesn't perform baptisms, and clergy from other faiths often lead marriage or funeral services. Its main religious texts are the Bible and Science and Health. Each church has two "Readers" who read aloud from these texts during Sunday services. They also have shorter readings for Wednesday evening meetings, where members share stories of healing they attribute to prayer. Services also include hymns, silent prayer, and reciting the Lord's Prayer.
Famous Christian Scientists
Many notable people have been Christian Scientists. These include government officials like William H. Webster and Stansfield M. Turner, who were Directors of Central Intelligence, and Richard Nixon's chief of staff H. R. Haldeman. Nancy Astor, a viscountess, and Charles Lightoller, who survived the sinking of the Titanic, were also members.
Christian Science has been well-represented in the film industry, with actors like Carol Channing, Jean Stapleton, Joan Crawford, Doris Day, George Hamilton, Mary Pickford, Ginger Rogers, Mickey Rooney, Robert Duvall, and Val Kilmer. Some famous people who were raised by Christian Scientists include Ellen DeGeneres, Henry Fonda, Audrey Hepburn, James Hetfield, Marilyn Monroe, Robin Williams, and Elizabeth Taylor.
One well-known event was the death of actress Jean Harlow in 1937 from kidney failure. Her mother, a recent Christian Science convert, tried to prevent her daughter from getting medical treatment at least twice. However, other actors and studio executives stepped in, and Harlow did receive medical care, though sadly, nothing could be done for kidney failure at that time.
Christian Science Publishing Society
The Christian Science Publishing Society publishes several magazines and newspapers, including The Christian Science Monitor, which has won seven Pulitzer Prizes. In 1970, it had a daily circulation of 220,000, but by 2008, this had dropped to 52,000. In 2009, it mostly moved online, with a weekly print edition. In the 1980s, the church produced its own TV programs, and in 1991, it started a 24-hour news channel, which closed after 13 months due to heavy financial losses.
The church also publishes the weekly Christian Science Sentinel, the monthly Christian Science Journal, and The Herald of Christian Science, which is published in languages other than English. Since 2012, old issues of these publications have been available online to subscribers.
Books by Mary Baker Eddy
- Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (1875)
- Christian Healing (1880)
- The People's Idea of God: Its Effect on Health and Christianity (1883)
- Historical Sketch of Metaphysical Healing (1885)
- Defence of Christian Science (1885)
- No and Yes (1887)
- Rudiments and Rules of Divine Science (1887)
- Unity of Good and Unreality of Evil (1888)
- Retrospection and Introspection (1891)
- Christ and Christmas (1893)
- Rudimental Divine Science (1894)
- Manual of The Mother Church (1895)
- Pulpit and Press (1895)
- Miscellaneous Writings, 1883–1896 (1897)
- Christian Science versus Pantheism (1898)
- The Christian Science Hymnal (1898)
- Christian Healing and the People's Idea of God (1908)
- Poems (1910)
- The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany (1913)
- Prose Works Other than Science and Health (1925)
Images for kids
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Cover of Puck magazine, November 19, 1902. The caption says: "The law can not be 'removed' by Christian Science." The man with the beard is labeled "Chr. S. healer" and is holding a copy of Science and Health.
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Manuscript that Eddy used when teaching Sally Wentworth, 1868–1870
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See also
In Spanish: Ciencia cristiana para niños
- Efficacy of prayer
- Faith healing
- Principia College
- Therapeutic nihilism
