p. 4 | Godless Faith Healing by G. D. Ballou

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park, Washington, D. C. · Jul 11, 1912

Godless Faith Healing

By G. D. Ballou

(Concluded)

G. D. BALLOU

Absent Treatment

ABSENT treatment practised by mental scientists of whatever order, like all occultism, is made to work curatively if only the patient can be led to believe the false philosophy that one “soul” can project its power through space to affect another “soul.” Of course when the set moment arrives, the patient fixes his mind on the expected communion with an occult soul-force, and, repeating the prescribed formulas or fixing the mind on the prescribed line of thought, the old harassing moods are cast out; and as long as this state of mind can be sustained or its influence be made permanent, so long will the mind of the patient be liberated from its burdens, and the body be permitted to rally in a measure from its ills by having so much more vital energy to use for its own preservation.

A few years ago the writer became acquainted with one of the outside secretaries of a concern in Rochester, N. Y., which sold occult literature for fabulous prices, gave absent treatments, and dealt generally in mental science humbugs. They had taken nearly half a million dollars out of Germany alone. On one occasion they received a request, with cash enclosed, from a man in Mexico who wanted “absent treatments.” The assurance went forward promptly that at a certain date and hour the treatment would

begin, and continue daily at the same hour for a prescribed period. The fourth or fifth day after the set date, a telegram was received from this man by the secretary and read to all the clerks in his room. It read, “Please turn off your power; it is too strong.” A roar of laughter went up from that roomful of clerks in that fake healing concern. But laughter under such circumstances seems most unbecoming to one who realizes that weak humanity is being led to accept this poor, cheap counterfeit of the ministrations of God’s Spirit; for blind, unreasoning credulity is what this imaginary soul communion and power becomes. With what earnest zeal ought those who possess the genuine bank-notes of heaven to press their work where the advocates of these false systems are working with such untiring energy.

Application

All these systems of healing deny the existence of a personal Creator, and all of them have practically the same pantheistic idea of Deity. It is impossible for one to trust in a thing that has no personality, to come to an ethereal nothingness (no matter how much force or power may be ascribed to it), and find true rest, comfort, and fellowship.

The Scripture invitations to become acquainted with the Creator are meaningless unless that Creator be a living, personal reality. So spiritual rest, which is able to provide for all our past, present, and future troubles, because it connects us with the Creator and makes us eventually acquainted with all his laws, both natural and moral, is being set aside or eclipsed by these modern philosophies, which are teaching a healing apart from a knowledge of the Creator. Though these systems use much pious phraseology and talk “God” and “Christ” and “truth” and “love” very freely, we must pronounce them essentially godless because they have cut loose from the eternal Creator, and are trampling all knowledge of him in the mire of human philosophy and self-conceit. And not the least impeachment of their legitimacy is that they are promising divine healing to all who come to them, irrespective of character.

Are we alive as we ought to be to the importance of the doctrine of true healing which was given this people over forty years ago to be the right arm of our message? We now see the very same truths which were given us with which to bless the world and bring it to a knowledge of the coming King, being used to establish the hoary heathen philosophies on the ruins of Christian belief.

There are still many thousands who have not bowed the knee to these modern Baals. They are hungry for something sound and Christian in the doctrine of healing. Can we not still achieve some success by attacking the great citadels of error along the lines of least resistance? We have the truth on the health question. Why do we not make it effective in winning friends to this message, which is yet destined to do much for this perishing, tottering old world?

We have a strong right arm; shall we use it or keep it in a sling?

Very emphatically our message calls on men to “worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Here before our very eyes, use is being made of the principles of healing to set aside all knowledge of the Creator. If, on the other hand, the health principles can be used to reveal a Creator and his power to save, why may we not enter upon the warfare with new courage? No longer being satisfied with dwelling almost exclusively on the law of diet, let us reach out and present the neglected phases of the health work, especially the law of rest in its true light, and thereby forestall, in part at least, the perversions of truth being wrought by the enemy.

Los Angeles, Cal.