How Christian Science Perverts the Gospel
By R.
EVERY man is given the privilege by the Lord Himself to believe or disbelieve, and therefore every person in the world should grant to every other person the privilege of believing or disbelieving as may seem best to him. At the same time every minister of the Gospel is commissioned by the Lord of the Gospel to “preach the word.” By claiming to believe and teach the word, he is bound by his profession to teach the pure word, and that only. Every minister of the Gospel, and every believer in the Gospel, has the responsibility, through his acceptance of the Gospel, to keep unsullied the sacred heritage of the pure word of God. And so as a believer in the Gospel, and as a minister of the Gospel, we protest against any perversion of the holy and pure word of the living God. Mrs. Eddy has had the presumption to change the wording of the great apostle, that apostle who was commissioned by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself to teach His Gospel. The change thus made is a revolutionizing one. Instead of quoting the scripture just as it is written, “We were reconciled to God by the death of His Son,” she makes it read, “We were reconciled to God by the [seeming] death of His Son.” According to this new teaching Christ did not die, He merely seemed to die. “His disciples believed Jesus to be dead while He was hidden in the sepulcher, whereas He was alive.”—“Science and Health,” chapter on “Atonement and Eucharist.” Paul bids us hope that we were reconciled by the death of Christ. Rom. 5:10. “Christ died for the ungodly.” Rom. 5:6. But Christian Science tells us that this is a mistake; Paul did not give the correct statement of the facts; Christ seemed to die for the ungodly. There is as great difference in statements here as between the two expressions, Yes and No. Paul tells us in many places that Christ died, and so often does he reiterate the fact, we are certain that it is his view of this one great central fact of the Gospel. He asserts that the death and resurrection of Christ are the two great central facts of the Gospel about which all the rest cluster. Now, if Christ only seemed to die, then He only seemed to be resurrected, and the whole Gospel is built around a great illusion, and this makes the Gospel itself nothing more nor less than a great delusion. But Paul is so certain that his presentation of the Gospel is the right one that he makes some startling statements concerning the one who teaches anything else. This is what he says: “There be some that trouble you, and would pervert the Gospel of Christ. But tho we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any preach any other Gospel unto you than ye have received, let him be accursed.” Gal. 1:7-9. In this the servant of God speaks with no uncertain language. It shows as plainly as words can where the person stands who perverts the Gospel as taught by Paul. He assures us twice over that the curse of God rests upon the individual who perverts the teachings of the Gospel, and makes them any whit other than he has shown them to be. Where does this place Christian Science? God’s word already quoted gives the answer. We have no desire to add anything. All we can do is to pity, and long and pray that it were otherwise. We would to God that there were no attempts these days to emend God’s word. We believe it needs no emendations. But the one who will dare to tamper with one inspired statement will dare to tamper with another. The person who sets himself or herself to correct Paul in one place will not hesitate to correct him in another. We have come to the time when the Bible for many is shred of any divine authority. It is held now that Paul and his conferees taught the best they knew, and that the present generation has advanced to a place where they know better. But so understood we have no ultimate divine authority; one teacher’s word is as good as another’s, and all of them together are but the babblings and cryings of babes in the night. O, it is a hopeless, demoralizing philosophy! God’s word stands sure. It is an absolute authority. It will judge all in the final day. If any man shall take away from its words, God shall take away his part out of the Book of Life, and out of the holy city. Rev. 22:19. This example of Christian Science’ perversion of the word of God is but one out of hundreds, but judged by this one alone, it is sufficient to show what the teaching is. We need not study another line of its pretensions, for this one high-handed emendation of the Scriptures is sufficient to show its whole spirit and tenor. Being so contrary to the Scriptures that its own founder and teacher recognized it, what is done?—Instead of abandoning the false teaching, or making Christian Science agree with the Bible, it reaches out its unauthorized hand to write words into the sacred text, so as to make the word agree with its own false ideas. Nowadays it seems a very small matter to many whether their teachings agree with the9Bible or not; but there is some fairness on the part of those who recognize that they are at variance with the Bible and yet make no attempts to bring the Bible, by twisting it, over to their statements. Whatever one teaches, he ought not to pervert the word of God. Held side by side with the Bible, Christian Science is unmasked; we are not deceived by its subterfuges; the word can not be changed to suit human notions. Let no one presume to emend God’s word. “What if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That Thou mightest be justified in Thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.” Rom. 3:3, 4. R.