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FAITH -AND

.HEALTH
CHARLeS ReYNOLDS

BROWN

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Faith and Health


BY

CHARLES REYNOLDS BROWN


AUTUOB OV

"xmi TOima kait's affaibs," "the social msbsasi oy the MODKBH PULPIT," "THE MAIN POINTS," AND " THB STBANOB WATS Of OOD "

NEW YORK
THOMAS
Y.

CROWELL COMPANY

PUBLISHERS

STACK

ANNEX

Copyright, 1910

By Thomas Y. Ceowbll & Company


Published January, 1910

THIRD PRINTING

Cities of Cfiapters
I.

The Heaixng Miracles of Christ


Modern Faith Cures

Page

II.

27

III.

The Pros and Cons of Christian Science

53
103

IV. The Healino Power of Suggestion

v. The Emmanuel Movement


VI.
VII.

139 169

The Gospel of Good Health The Church and Disease

205

preface

HE

wise man, were

he alive

to-day, could slightly


his original statement

amend
and
feel

quite sure of winning general


assent

" Of

the making of
is

health books there

no end."

We

find issuing

from the press a steady stream


to

of volumes written, some in support of and

some
" The

in

opposition

New Thought,"
The Power

"Christian Science," " The Emmanuel Moveall

ment," "

of Suggestion," and

the

other forms in which

a widespread popular
pages has been to

interest is manifesting itself.

The endeavor

in

these

bring together in a single volume and in simple

language some of the main arguments which

may be
tention,
line

properly advanced in this general con-

and to indicate

in briefer

compass the

along which, in the judgment of the author,

genuine progress may be expected in seeking


increased physical efficiency through the aid of

mental and spiritual

forces,

[v]

preface
The
larger part of the material in the sixth

chapter was formerly used in a little booklet entitled The Gospel of Good Health," published

by The Pilgrim Press, Boston, in its "Envelope Series," and it is republished here by their kind permission. It has been freely
retouched.

[vi]

Cl&e J^eaWng

pHteitm

of Cl^rijSt

Ci^e J^ealtng JttfraclejS of Ci^rfet

is

highly

suggestive

that

in the

Greek

New

Testament
in
ceris

the
tain

word

translated

passages
in

"to save"

translated

other passages

"to heal" or "to

make whole."

This would

seem

to indicate that the ultimate purpose of


is

both these restorative processes


Salvation
ness of
is

the same.

wholeness, soundness, complete-

life.

And

conversely, for

man

to

be

truly "in
his

good health" means not only that


circulation
all

digestion,

and other bodily and


to

functions are

working properly, but that


useful.

he

is

also upright, aspiring

The one word


also points

applied

both processes

back to the common source of healold sang praises


all his iniquities

ing energy.
to his

The psalmist of Lord who had forgiven


all his diseases.

and healed

He was

sound in
it

his philosophy, for in the last analysis

is

[3]

!faiti^

and

l^ealti^

one and the same divine energy which operates

upon the body and upon the


thoughts
dences;
water,

soul.

It is

one

divine energy which operates,

now
air

utilizing

and

desires,
utilizing

impulses
fresh

and

confi-

now

and pure
sub-

wholesome food and chemical

stances, useful exercise

and congenial employthe

ment.
energy

In either case
at

we have

same divine
and

work

restoring,
life

up-building

completing the

according to a purpose

eternally beneficent.
It is natural, therefore,
it is

inevitable, that

the relations between

religion

and medicine

should be close.
the pastor

It is altogether fitting that

who
turn

ministers to the moral


reacts

life,

which
which

in

upon physical

health,

and the physician who ministers


in

to the body,

turn reacts upon the formation of

character, should be
dial terms,

on sympathetic and cor-

each one doing his


it

own work, and


In

each one doing

better
is

if

he attempts only

that for which he

adapted and trained.

these chapters I hope to indicate clearly

these two arms of a conmaon service to

how human

[4]

Cl^e J^ealing 0iitatlt^ of


well-being

W^t

may

best be maintained in those

forms and relations which shall be most advantageous to the people

who
is

are to profit by

such a combined ministry

The

Saviour of the soul


It
is

known

also as

the Great Physician.


therefore,
in

not inappropriate,

considering the relation of re-

ligion to health to

speak

first

of those acts in

His

life

which are known as His healing


It is inaccurate

miracles.

and unfair

to define

a miracle as " a violation of law," or as a piece


of

magic introduced, no one knows how, for

the

amazement

of the people.

miracle

is

a result wrought by divine power according


to laws

which at present
experience.

lie

outside the field of


call

ordinary

In what we

the

operation of natural law

we

find

when we

look closely " a divine purpose moving steadily


across the ages, keeping
its

appointments with
ministering
to

foreseen

human needs" and


diflferences

them with
in the

of administration, but

same abiding

spirit of intelligent help-

fulness.
lous,

And

in those events called

miracu-

we

find this

same divine energy mani[5]

iffattl^

anD

i^ealti^
to

festing
lie

itself

according

methods

which

at

present

outside the field of

ordinary

experience.

Now,
those

close-knit
life
is

with the whole narrative


the record of the fact that

of Christ's

who saw Him, knew Him, companied


beyond a perad venture
miracles of healing

with Him, believed


that

He wrought

upon the

sick folk of that day.

He called them His being what He was, these were the "works"
called

natural expressions of His incomparable energy.

He

them

'

signs "

they

pointed

to

something beyond and more significant than


themselves.

He

used them somewhat freely

at the opening of His ministry, but

more and

more sparingly as time went


them
to

on.

He

used

draw the

attention of the people to


effec-

His message, for no teacher can teach


tively

without attention.

He

used them as

symbols of the entire work of recovery which

He came
the race.

to

perform on behalf of the

life

of

We

are not surprised to find this record of

unusual occurrences in the narrative of the

[6]

Cl^e l^ealing 0iitaclt^ of


life

W^t
insight

of Christ.

Jesus himself was an unusual

occurrence.

His teachings
in

in

their

and comprehensiveness,

their

poise

and
all

balance, rank so far above the teachings of

other great religious leaders;

His

life

itself

was so unique
dance,
that

in its quality

and

in its

abun-

we

are

prepared in advance to

may have had some response to make to Him which it does not make to other individuals. And when we
believe that the natural order
find these occurrences described in the serious,

sober statements of such trustworthy


those

men

as

who

furnish us the material contained

in the four Gospels,

some

of

them

actual eye-

witnesses of the events described,


to give

we

are ready
to

most serious consideration


as
to

these

claims put forward


istry

the

healing

min-

of

Christ.
that,
it

More than
crisis

was a time

of moral

in the history of the world.

Judaism,
life

the best there was in the religious

of that

day, was

weak through
perversions

the Pharisaical

and

Rabbinical

which

had fastened

upon

it.

The pagan

cults of

Greece and

Rome

[7]

fatti^

and

l^ealti^
intelligent

were openly scorned by the more

people and were distrusted by the masses.

The morals of the world were becoming The gladiatorial games and other hideous.
forms of amusement current were such as to
indicate that the race might be almost

on the
itself

verge

of

moral

insanity.

Civilization

seemed
It

to be trembling

on the brink of

ruin.

was

of the highest importance that

when
come
and

the rude barbarians of the north should

down and conquer Rome,


helpful
vitality

they should find

there in the once mighty empire a virile

form

of

religion,

whose

inherent

would be able

to

conquer their rugged

natures.

To

gain the attention of the world,


Christianity in the popular

and

to establish

confidence, this unusual manifestation of the

divine energy seemed to be demanded.

The day has gone when


pity or with

the healing miracles

of Christ can be dismissed with a smile of

a look of scorn.

Certain people

used to say jauntily that they were "impossible,"

but

we have been
[8]

surprised so

many

times in the last few decades by the discovery

Cl^e l^ealtng putaclt^ of

W^t
very
is

of unsuspected potencies in this world of ours,

that

thoughtful

people

have

become
is

guarded now in asserting what


not "impossible."

or what
told,

We

have been

with

an

air

of finality,

that the healing miracles

of Christ were " contrary to the laws of nature."

But what are "the laws of nature"?


any one name them, and when he
voice
If
fall,
is

Let
his
all

lets

ask him

if

he has named them he


will reply,

he

man

of sense,

"No,
wise

have only named those which are known to


Well and good
!

me at this time." man to-day would


had named or
of nature.

No

undertake to say that he

that he could

name

all

the laws

Here

in the first century

was One

who knew more about


certain

certain laws

and about

mysterious forces

than we seem to
to exer-

know
cise

at this time,

and He was able

an unwonted potency.

When He

spoke.

His word was with power;

and when He
outside the field
it

worked

He

accomplished results of healing


lie

according to laws which


of ordinary experience.

In every case
until

is

a question of evidence, and

we have

faitt^
some
these
better

anh

l^ealti^
to

evidence
of

upon which
than

deny

narratives

healing

the

mere

dogmatic assertion of those who choose to


reject

them because

of the marvelous element

in

them,

we

are warranted in retaining olir

faith.

" Jesus healed

many
is

that were sick of divers


criti-

diseases,"

this

the hard fact which

cism has been unable to explain away.


did

How
in

He do
let

it ?

We may not be able to bring


we can

final

and exhaustive answer to


us go as far as

this question,

but

along that road.

You

will find in

almost every case

He added

to that impulse

toward recovery, which causes

the cut finger to heal, the broken bone to knit, the system overloaded with
useless
to

some
ofiF

foreign or

substance to cast
universal

it

He
power

added

that

impulse

toward
of

recovery,

which we recognize as one


forces in the world of
life,

the resident
of His

the

own

wise and loving personality.

He went

further than that

He
[10]

aimed

to secure the

co-operation of the expectant hope and confident trust of the patient himself.

He worked

Ci^e l^ealtng jHiraclejs of \)ti^t


His signs
in

an atmosphere of

trust

and upon

the subjects of an heroic and resolute faith.

When He
unbelief

found himself

in

an atmosphere of

and confronted with those who had

no

faith,

"He

could

do there no mighty

work."

How

prominent the Gospel narratives make


!

this element of faith

The

centurion said,
servant
will

"Speak the word and


healed "
!

my

be

Jesus replied, " I have not found

such faith in Israel";


healed in that hour.

and the servant was


blind

Two

men

followed

him
to

saying,

upon

us."

"Thou Son of David, have mercy He said, " Believe ye that I am able

do this?"

And He

They replied, "Yea, Lord." touched their eyes, saying, " According
it

to your faith be

unto you," and their eyes


said to the palsied

were opened.
"Rise,
take

He

man,

up thy bed and walk," and


summons, by
that faith he

when

the sufferer showed his faith by trying

to obey this

was

healed.

Jesus rubbed clay upon the eyes of a blind

man and

said to him,

"Go

to the pool of

[11]

fam
faith
streets

anu

l^ealtli

Siloam, and wash."

by

feeling

his

The man showed his way along the difficult


sight.

toward the pool, and when he washed

his eyes,

he received

Ten

lepers

came

to

Him

for healing,
to

and

Jesus said, "

yourselves
their faith

the

priests."

Go show They showed


officials,

by

starting immediately to secure

a clean

bill

of

health

from those

"and
of

as they went they were healed."


to

One

them returned

thank Christ for his new-

found health, and Jesus said to him,


faith has

"Thy

made

thee whole."

Jesus said to

the

man

with the withered hand,

"Stretch

forth thy

hand";
showed

and the

sufferer,

hearing

those accents
conj&dence,

of authority,
his faith

of

love,

and

of

by making the

brave attempt;

and

in that act of faith his

hand was

restored.

When

Jesus went to the


little girl

home

of Jairus,

where the

was

sick

unto death,

He

put the people,


in the sick

who were
all

weeping and wailing

room,

out.

He

said to the father, " Be not afraid, only be-

lieve;

thy daughter

is

not dead, but sleepeth."

He

took with

Him

into the sick

room

Peter,

[12]

Cl^e i^ealing jEttacleiS of \)vi0t


James and John, His three
and there and
love,

choicest disciples;

in that

atmosphere of faith and hope

He

healed the child.


well

These are
metHbd.
faith

known samples
that
in

of His general

The
is

fact

some instances
is

on the part of the


not

sufferer

not menthat

tioned
faith

conclusive

evidence

no

was aroused or
silence touching

utilized.

The argument

from
tive

some

detail in the narra-

means

little

in the face of the fact that


it is

in so

nent.

many The

cases of healing
narratives are
all

made promi-

brief

they had
it

to be brief in order to bring the story of Christ's


life

within that small compass, where

can

be read entire in a few hours.

And

the indi-

cations of His habit of securing the co-operation


of expectant faith on the part of the sufferer

with the mighty energy of His


loving personality are so

own

wise and
to give

numerous as

us reliable and most valuable insight into His


prevailing method.
It is also

important to observe that many,

perhaps the larger part, of the maladies

He

healed were plainly nervous or mental in their

[13]

fatt]^ atiD
origin

f ealti^
You
will

and

character.
to
in

find

these

sufferers

referred

the Gospels as per-

sons "possessed of devils," or as "demoniacs."


It

was not a time when the world knew much


scientific

about

diagnosis.

When

the simple

hearted people of that day saw a


sonality apparently overborne
influence,

human

per-

by some
it

hostile

they decided that

must be the
has a devil,"

work
an
the

of the Evil
It

One.
to

"He

they said.

seemed

them a case where


his

evil personality

had taken up

abode

in

mind and heart

of the sufferer.
to

When we come

examine carefully the


in

symptoms recorded we would to-day bring


quite a different diagnosis.
of these cases

There are

several

which are made

especially promi-

nent in the four Gospels.


in

There was the man

the

synagogue at Capernaum who cried

out during the service saying,


to

"What have we
Nazareth
!

do with
!

thee, thou Jesus of

Let

us alone "

We

would

call

such a

man

to-day

mentally unbalanced or insane.

There was the man

of

Gadara who believed

that a legion of devils infested his personality.

[14]

Cl^e

f ealtng
Jesus asked

0iitaclt^ of
him
his

Ci^rtist

When
in

name, he replied
"Legion."

wild,

incoherent fashion,

He

believed that a whole

Roman
abode

legion of devils
in

had taken up
mind.
governable

their

his

troubled

He showed an
strength,

unnatural and an un-

"breaking

the

fetters

and chains" with which men had bound him.

He

ran wild in the mountains and

among

the

tombs, cutting himself upon the stones.

At

times "he was exceedingly fierce so that no

man
aside

could pass that way," and would cast


all his

clothing.

When
find

Jesus found
later,

him
he

he was naked.

We

him

after

was

restored, "clothed

and

in his right

mind."

We

would

call

such a

man

to-day insane, but

the people of that early time said that he

was

possessed of devils.

There was the demoniac boy


of

at the foot

the

Mount

of

Transfiguration.

When
fell

he was suffering from his malady, he


the
earth

to

and foamed
if

at

the

mouth.

He
" take

writhed as

some

devil

was "tearing him."

His trouble was intermittent

it

would

him and then

leave him," the father of the

[15]

mt^
boy
stated.

and

J^ealti^
such an
aflfliction

We

should

call

to-day epilepsy.

There was

also in other cases the paralysis

of a single organ or function

the

woman,

who had "the


a

spirit of
lift

infirmity for eighteen

years," could not

herself up.

There was

man

with

say to-day a

"a dumb spirit," as we should man rendered mute by the paraIn other
inability to
this

lyzed condition of the vocal organs.


cases there

was the

perform some
attributed to

certain function,

and

was

a particular kind of

devil.

Now
tions of

in the face of these mysterious afflic-

a mental or nervous nature,

afflictions

which

still

puzzle the wisest physicians even

to this day,
earlier
tific

we

are not surprised that in this


to

time,

unused

anything like scien-

diagnosis, the people should hastily con-

clude that these insane persons, or epileptics,


or those
particular

who

sufiFered

the paralysis of

some

function,

had been overcome by


which they called a
Christ himself, what-

some
ever

hostile personality

demon

or a devil.

And

He may

have thought of the diagnosis


[16]

Ci^e l^ealing iHimclejs of Ci^rtet


of

that

day,

whether

He

shared

in

the

scientific limitations of that

period as

in so
life

many

of the limitations of

He shared the common


best to ap-

when He took upon

himself the form of a


it

servant, or whether

He deemed

proach these sufferers sympathetically by using


the forms of speech with which they were
familiar in dealing with those mental disorders,

Christ
held.

himself

habitually

used the same

expressions.

Whatever view Jesus may have

He

healed

many

of these nervous

and

mental sufferers by the wholesome influence


of His

own

personality as

He

brought

it

to bear

upon
It

their need.

should

also be

noted

that

He

openly

recognized the fact that some diseases have


their roots
in

the moral nature

that
A
for

they

have been induced by wrongdoing.

new

mode

of

life

would be demanded

a per-

manent

cure,

and a new
if

spirit

and purpose

would be needed

He

were to undertake the

recovery of such a sufferer with any hope of


success.

When

the

palsied

man

borne by
first

four was brought to Christ, the

word

[n]

faitt)
spoken

auD

i^ealti^
to his
it

was not addressed


"Son, thy

physical

condition or bodily interests

went much
thee."

deeper:

sins

be forgiven

Afterward the

man was

enabled by the healing

power

of Chirst to take

up

his

bed and walk.

When
at the

Jesus

had healed the impotent man


Bethesda,

pool of

He
!

said

to

him,

" Behold, thou art


lest

made whole

Sin no more

a worse thing come upon thee."

Where

the source of the trouble lay in

some moral

delinquency, and where the healing was withheld by an unwillingness on the part of the
sufferer to

"about face"

in his

fundamental
to forgive

purpose, then the

One who came

our iniquities and to heal our diseases dealt


frankly with that moral lack.
It is also to

be noted that Jesus never worked

His cures for pay.


fessional
practice.

He was

in

no sense a proin

physician

engaged

lucrative

He would

not confuse the issue by

undertaking to combine the profitable practice of

medicine with His high

office of spiritual

leadership.

He would

not use His marvelous


in

power

to

change stones into bread, which


[18]

Cl^e l^ealfng iHfmclejS of Cl^rtjSt


a stony country
like

Palestine

would have

been a most rewarding


quite unlike
healers

line of effort.

He was

some

of the

modern

professional

who undertake

in the disregard they

show

for the higher interests at stake to live

by bread alone.
uniformly a

He

brought into the

field

pure, unselfish personality as

He

went about preaching the Gospel of the King-

dom and
diseases.

healing

many

that were sick of divers

Jesus furthermore avoided

all

display.

The

One who
hurt
possibly

refused to cast Himself

down unwould
not

from the pinnacle of the temple, as

He

might

have

done,

parade His acts of healing upon the


corners or sound a trumpet before
advertise His success.
casions,

street

Him

to

He

said

on many oc-

when some
tell

sufferer

had been healed,

"See that thou


sire that

no man."

He

did not de-

His fame as a healer should be widely

heralded.

He was

unwilling to be regarded

mainly as a great wonder worker;

more

serious
it

interests

at

heart.

He had He knew

also that

would be inadvisable
[19]

for the suf-

fattl^
ferer

and

l^ealti^

who had been


Thus
seeking

healed to be continually

calling the attention of others to his wonderful

recovery.
quietly,

Jesus worked unselfishly and


ever to
for

maintain the most


the
patients

wholesome conditions
were being treated.

who

Now

it

seems to me, as we study carefully

the records of these cures,

we

will find that

Jesus has here suggested and formulated for

us the best conditions for healing the sick by


psychic methods in those functional disorders
of nervous or mental origin,

where such

treat-

ment has peculiar

value.

He
Have

took pains to
faith

awaken and encourage an expectant


the part of the patient.
"

on

faith in

God."

"All things are possible to him that believeth."

"Fear not;
words
those

only

believe."

These are the


in

He

used
to

frequently

addressing

who came

Him

for relief.

Faith

is

that attitude of mind, of heart

and

of will,
for,

which gives substance which stands


verity
tion.

to the thing to

hoped

ready

accept

as

absolute

some valuable and wholesome suggesThis was the mood on the part of the
[20]

Cl^e l^ealing
patient
in

0iitacW

of Cl^rtjSt

which His signs were commonly

wrought.

He
and

also endeavored to secure

a sympathetic

helpful

atmosphere around the patient.

He He

put out the wallers and the weepers where

found Himself unable to silence them.

He
the

encouraged the members of the family to believe that

a recovery was possible.

When

father of the epileptic

boy

said, " If thou canst

do anything," Jesus
believe;
all

replied,

"If thou canst

things are possible to

him

that

believeth."

He
in

took with

Him

the
many

fact is

mentioned

a number of instances, and the


in

same thing occurred no doubt


disciples, Peter

others

His three most trustworthy and experienced


and James and John.
heal the sick,

They

had seen

Him

and they firmly

believed that entire success could be achieved


in

any case

He

undertook.
significant

And
added

then,

most

of

all,

Jesus
to the

to the faith of the person,

and

faith of his friends,

and

to that healing im-

pulse

toward

recovery

resident

in

human

nature and constantly at work on our behalf

[21]

ifatti^ anti l^ealtl^


until

overborne by the weight of a disease


off

it

cannot throw

He

added the

reinforce-

ment

of His

own

pure, wise, unselfish and lov-

ing personality.
will

His purpose, His desire. His


whole.

was

to

make men
in

The

full

strength

of that mighty tide of redemptive love flowed

around and
ills

upon those who brought


faith.

their

to Him in expectant When you see Him and


taste

hear His words,


life

when you

the quality of His

and

witness the character there revealed, you find


it

not hard to believe that

He

thus wrought on
I

behalf of suffering humanity.


that there are those
tives of healing

am

aware

who

think these narra-

belong only in the stained glass


cathedral,

windows

of

some medieval

or in

the mystic lines of

some

lovely

poem,

that

they have no place in the sober prose of actual


history.

I cannot hold with them.

I not only

accept them as veritable history, but I regard

them as abiding symbols


divine helpfulness which
to flow
**

of that great tide of


is

flowing yet, and


relief.

is

on forever

for

human

Violations of natural

law"?

Nay, rather

[22]

Clfte

l^ealtng

piiutW
in

of Ci^n'jst

the glorious addition of another force which

changed the possibihties

the situation as
It is possi-

men

sensed

it

before His coming.

ble for
bit of

any

intelligent

man

to

approach some

sandy desert, where by the operation of

natural law nothing of value has ever grown,

and by

skillful irrigation,
life,

and by the
it

scattering

of a few seeds of
like the rose.

to cause

to blossom

The

course of nature had never


It

produced anything there but sagebrush.

might seem to a resident prairie dog that a


miracle had been wrought, but the result was
attained according to law
of a

by the introduction

new measure
if

of energy

and

intelligence.

Now,
" the

an ordinary
of

man

can thus change


that
to

course
field,

nature "

in

particular

barren

and cause nature


say in the

do what she

would not have done but

for his approach,

what

shall

we

field of

terment, physical and

moral,

human betwhen such an

one as Jesus of Nazareth makes His august


approach
In these chapters I hope to bring out,
if

may, the perennial

significance of all this as

[23]

fatti^
it

anD

l^ealtl^
needs.
I

bears upon our

modern

would

strive to help

each one to release

in his

mind
our

and experience the universal and

eternal Christ
in

from the narrower limitations which


thought belong to Jesus of Nazareth.
significance
local

The

of

His

life

then seemed merely


Spirit that

and temporary, but the same


in

was

Him, the

Spirit of the eternal Christ,

now sustains universal and cosmic relations. Would that each one might know in some more vital way that the help of the ever-present Christ who thus healed men of old is still
available
for

health,

for

guidance,

and

for

moral recovery.

Make
!

your alliance with the

Unseen and Eternal an immediate and an


available alliance
it

Strive,

if

you

will, to

make
life.

an

alliance helpful

on the physical as well

as on the moral levels of your personal


It

may be

that as a

result of this larger

and

bolder venture of faith, you, too, will say of

some high hour

of privilege, "

We

never saw

it

in this fashion."

In those days when the cable roads were in


use in certain hilly
cities,

one would often see

[24]

Cl^e l^ealtng jmiracle^ of Ci^rttt


a boy on his bicycle holding on at the rear of a
street car

and thus being towed up the


force.

steepstill

est hill

by the mightier

The boy

had and

one of his

hands on the handle bars and


to guide his wheel

his feet

upon the pedals


was
had

to maintain his poise, but

now

his

puny
fact

strength
that he

vastly

reinforced

by the

laid hold

upon the strength


in

of the

powerful engines

away yonder
all

the power
cables

house which

were moving

the

and

thus moving the cars

over the city

and
only

incidentally helping the small


ress

boy

in his prog-

up the

hill.

It is possible for

any one,

if

he

will

have
his

it

so, to realize that in the

deep places of

own

soul,

wh6re he has not been accusin

tomed
life

to go,

those sections of his inner


visited,

which he has rarely


energy
constantly
It is the

there
for

is

mighty

available

his

individual needs.
of old caused the

same energy which

morning

stars to sing together,


It is

and the sons


the

of

God

to shout for joy.

same energy which moves the planets


and has within
[25]
its

in

their courses,

holy keeping

mtti and
all
is

t^ealtl^
It

these cosmic interests even to this hour.

the

same energy which spoke and wrought,

healed and loved in Jesus Christ.

And
still

that

same

energy of the living

and loving
ever,
is

Christ,

beneficent
tive

and redemptive

opera-

and available

to the reach of expectant

faith.

[26]

jHonem

fyit^ curejs

II

f^o^nn
N

fait\)

ntt^
chapter the
of

the preceding

healing

miracles

Christ

were discussed.
to

We
an

seemed

find

there
for

adequate
unusual

occasion

some

manifestation of the divine energy in the most


significant

moral movement in history,


of
Christianity.

the
a
of

introduction

We

found

great personality

upon the

scene,

Jesus

Nazareth;

and His speech and His character.

His expanding and abiding influence, were


such that

we were make
to

led to feel that the natural

order might not inappropriately have a re-

sponse to

Him

which

it

does not

make

to other individuals.

We found that these won-

ders of healing were wrought in the spirit of

holy love, without display and with no thought


of compensation.

We found the record of them


composed
by men

contained

in

narratives

honest and trustworthy, narratives which give

[29]

fattl^
abundant evidence
rate.

anti i^ealtl^
of being sober

and accu-

We
.

found

that

these

wonders were

utilized

as symbols of the recovery and relife

newal of the moral

of the race,

and thus
good rea-

became a

significant part of this

whole mighty

movement.

And we seemed

to find

sons for attributing to Jesus Christ a power


altogether
ills.

unique in ministering to

human
to His

In the very
disciples,

last

address

He made

we

find these extraordinary words,

"

He

that believeth on me, the works that I

do

shall

he do

also,

and greater works than

these."

This statement seems to open the door for an


indefinite extension of these wonders.
It

has

been so accepted by thousands of earnest

men

and women.

We

find

down through

the cen-

turies of Christian history, in varying

measure,

the claim that this miraculous healing power


is still

operating.

It is in

regard to these more

modern

faith cures that I

wish to speak in

this chapter.

We

discover in the stories of the medieval

saints a great

mass of

this material.

When

[30]

the

Roman

Catholic Church used to discuss

the question of canonizing the sainthood, inquiry was


to the character

some candidate

for

made

not only as
of usefulness

and the record

of the individual, but also as to whether or not

he worked wonders during his

lifetime,

and

whether or not his bones, his garments, or


other
relics,

after

he was gone,

had been

credited with miracles.


It

was a wonder-loving period


It

in the world's

history.

was a time when the habit of accu-

rate discrimination between poetry

and prose,

between sentiment and sense, was not prominent.


slightest

"The

readiness

to

assent

to

every

indication

of anything

supernatural

within the hallowed precincts of the

Roman

Catholic Church was universally reckoned a


virtue."

And

the coming into the church at

that time of great

numbers of pagans, with

their

keen

interest

in

the magical rather than in

the moral aspects of religion, created an un-

demand for wonders to be wrought in And here as everythe name of religion. where, demand had a tendency to create supusual

[31]

fait})
ply,

anD

f ealtl^
at least the stories

and so the wonders, or


one reads the he finds
to a
this

of

wonders innumerable, were forthcoming.


lives

When
saints,

of

the

medieval

element most prominent.

And
Some
at a

much

less degree,

we

find the

same
day.

phenomena
of the

in certain quarters in our

own

most notable have been witnessed


called

little

town
It is

Lourdes

in the south of

France.

an

insignificant village, but in


it

the grotto there,

is

said, the Virgin


girl

Mary

appeared to a peasant

in the year 1858.

church has been

built

above the grotto, and

thousands of people have

made

their pilgrim-

ages to the place to pray for healing and to

drink of the waters.

Hundreds
will

of

them have
an
inter-

been healed.

You

find there

esting collection of canes

and crutches thrown


so restored as

aside by those
to

who had been

have no further use for them.

On

this side of the

water also

we

find phe-

nomena akin

to those witnessed at Lourdes.


St.

In the Church of

Anne de Beaupre, not


is

far

from Quebec, there

a similar shrine and a

similar collection of canes

and crutches

left

[32]

by

cripples

who

have

been

miraculously
are the

healed by prayer and faith.


stories of various

And many

forms of disease which have

been cured by faith exercised there by certain


sufferers.

In our

own country Dr. CuUis

of Boston, a

man whose
repeatedly,

church and hospital I have visited

and whose meetings I have


to

at-

tended,

came
very

have a wide reputation as a


used to hold on Beacon
of
full

faith healer.
in

He

Hill,

the

center

Boston culture, and


strength of the ration-

within gunshot of the

alism of Harvard University, each year, a mid-

winter convention where the speaking and the

praying bore mainly upon the entire sanctification of the spiritual


life

and the healing of

dis-

ease through faith.

Dr. A. B. Simpson of

Brooklyn, formerly of the Presbyterian ministry,

now
same

at the

head of what

is

known

as the

Christian Alliance,

has been working along


call

the

lines.

His followers

themselves
Christ

" Fourfolders,"

they

believe

in

as

Saviour, Sanctifier, Healer and


for they look for the speedy

Coming King,
visible return

and

[33]

fattl^
of Christ to earth.

anb

i^ealtl^

In the same class

we

find

Dr.

Dowie, recently deceased, of the Zion


his public addresses

movement, who by
by
his
little

and
cir-

paper, "Leaves of Healing,"

culated by thousands of copies, has spoken to

a wide

circle of

people in

all

parts of Christen-

dom on

the subject of healing through faith.

I have been present in meetings led

by Dr.

CuUis, by Dr. Simpson, and by Dr. Dowie,

where each one of these men

called

up

certain

people from the audience to testify as to their

having

been

healed
in

from God.

certain

diseases

through their faith

Now

what

shall

intelligent,

discriminating
it all

people say to
aside with a

all this ?

We

cannot sweep

wave
it

of the

hand and a

curl of

the

lip,

calling

mere ignorant

superstition,

or deception and fraud.


tion, as

Take

into considera-

you must,

all

the failures

and

they

form a pathetic array when you inquire

closely.

The

crutches, brought
St.

by

suffering cripples to
to

Lourdes and to

Anne de Beaupre,

CuUis, to Simpson, and to Dowie, and carried

away again because they were


[34]

still

needed, are

naturally not in evidence, although

there are

enough

of

them

in the

world to load a ship.

No
by

public testimony meetings are ever held


tried to

where the people who have


faith

be cured

and have

failed are invited to speak.

If there were, these sufferers

would be

reluc-

tant

to

confess

their

failure,

although they
to

would outnumber the others a hundred


if

one

they should

all

appear.

But taking
still

all

these

failures into consideration, there

remains

a nucleus of success to be considered.


It is also necessary to

take into consideration


is

this fact:

any honest, rational person

com-

petent to testify as to whether he feels sick or


feels well
;

he

may

not be competent to testify


at a certain time suffering

as to whether he

was

from Bright's disease or cancer, from tuberculosis of

the lungs or the necrosis of certain joints.


is

Here the question


those

one of diagnosis, and only


trained in the science of

who have been


the patient

diagnosis are competent to speak.

And

may

not be competent to
faith, or

testify that

he has been cured by


[35]

by

Christian Science, or by medicine, or otherwise,

mt^
from such diseases
diagnosis.

anti J^ealtl^

that also

is

a question of

wealthy gentleman in the East,

himself a chronic invalid, undertook several


years ago, in the interests of suffering
ity,

human-

to follow
it

up one hundred

of these cases

where

was claimed that


faith.

serious

maladies

had been cured by

He

found that over

two-thirds of the patients died in less than two

years from the very diseases which physicians

had pronounced
by

incurable,

but from which

they professed to have been triumphantly cured


faith.

The

patients were honest, no doubt,

but they were not competent in diagnosis.

They went
influence

to the healers,

and under the stim-

ulus and excitement of the meetings, under the


of the

anointing and

the

earnest

prayers, they felt better.


spirit

Their exaltation of

was such

that they publicly testified to

the cures, and for a time their general health

seemed

to

be improved.

And

then in

less

than

two years, more than two-thirds of them were


laid

away

in

death as a result of those very

diseases

from which they had professedly been


[36]

cured.

jHoDern
But
still,

fait})

mt^
this

admitting the great preponderance

of failures

which wait upon the outskirts of


to

movement, unwilling

speak because they


is

believe that their continued suffering

an

indi-

cation of their lack of faith,

and admitting

also

the temporary character of

many

of the re-

puted cures, there


nucleus of fact.

still

remains, as I believe, a
find these stories of
in

When we

healing, therefore, in the

Middle Ages or

our

own

day,

we do
reject

not accept them in the mass.

We

do not

them

in the mass.

We

deal

with them individually, and undertake, as far


as possible, to reach the solid
truth in

and

verifiable

any given

case.
find, as

Now

suppose we

we

shall, certain

people cured, actually and permanently cured,

through their faith


this
is

in

God.

Shall that

we

say that
is

real

Christianity;

this

what

Christ

meant when He

said,

"Greater works

than these shall ye


that
if

do"?

Shall

we conclude
Christianity

the great mass of

modern

were not spurious and lacking

in real faith, all

the suffering people might be healed in the

same way?
[S7]

ifatti^
It

and

l^ealti^

seems to

me

that this also

would be an

erroneous view.
shall

"Greater works than these

ye do"; the words were addressed to the

whole Christian movement, to the entire Christian civilization

which would

result

from the
not

influence

of

Jesus.

"Greater works,"

necessarily in the sudden,


of the results
in

amazing character

wrought by men who believed


rather
in

Christ, greater

their extent,

in

their regularity, in the

permanent value of those

moral achievements which these original works


foreshadowed and symbolized.
It
self

was here that the men Christ trained Him-

placed the weight of their emphasis.


sent forth the twelve apostles,

When
said to

He

He

them,
Israel,

"Go
of

to the lost sheep of the house of

and as you go, preach, saying, 'The


heaven
is

kingdom

at hand.'

Heal the

sick,

cleanse the lepers, cast out devils.

Freely ye

have received,

freely give."

And when

they

went
fact,

out,

we

find

them

giving, as

a matter of

only a slight and subordinate attention

to the
their

work

of physical recovery, but devoting


to changing the minds, the

main strength

[38]

hearts,

and the

wills of

men

in the interest of

new

character.

other seventy,

And when Jesus sent forth the He said, "Into whatsoever city
of

or village ye enter, heal the sick that are therein

and

say,

'The kingdom

God

is

come nigh
they

unto you.'"

And when

they returned

reported that the devils were subject to them,


that those mental

and nervous diseases which


the
last

were discussed

in

chapter had been

cured by them in
said,

many

instances.

And

Jesus

"I saw the


like

forces of evil falling before

you

lightning,

but in this rejoice not!

Rejoice rather because your names are written


in

heaven";

rejoice rather in the enrollment

of

new

types of character in yourselves and in

those to

whom

you have ministered.


influ-

In the gradual extension of Christian

ence; in the permeation of our literature by


Christian truth; in the leavening of our
zation
civili-

by Christian

ideals

and

principles;

in

the establishment to the ends of the earth of

such

institutions

as

churches and
in the

schools,

hospitals

and homes,

name

of

Christ

and by the

gifts of his followers;

in the carry-

[39]

fatt]^

anD

l^ealti^
life

ing of a certain high quality of

by Christian

men and women


globe;
all these,

into all the

dark places of the

in the magnificent results achieved

by

we are

to see, according to

my un-

derstanding of the promise, the " greater works"


predicted by Christ for those
lieve

who
for

should be-

on Him, rather than


to

in

some

local

wonder,

which

some minds might seem


all
if

an hour to

outshine

these mighty works.

Now

we

take this view of

it,

then what

place ought the claims of faith cure to have in


the ordinary
life

of to-day?

In the

first
it

place,

the volume and the significance of

will

vary

according to the intelligence and the temper-

ament

of the patients,
of the people. of

and according

to the

mood
King

When

Charles II was

England, he touched one hundred

thousand people who hoped by his royal touch


to

be cured of scrofula or "King's


called.

evil," as

it

was

King James

is

said to have touched

eight

hundred people

in

one day in Chester

Cathedral for the same purpose.

Whenever

the sovereign appeared the people thronged

him, hoping to touch his foot or his hand as he


[40]

rode through

the

streets.

But when King


in

Edward appears
through the
in character
streets,

to-day

London, riding

a better king in abihty and

than either Charles II or James,

not a soul in the vast multitude gathered to see

him thinks

for a

moment

of trying to touch

him

to be healed of disease.

The whole mood and

expectation of the English people in that particular matter has changed.

And you
on the

will find that the expectation reis

garding cures by faith

to-day most alive out

frontiers of discriminating intelligence,

in the foreign missionary

work among people


upon higher modes
less

just in process of entering

of

thought,

and among the


cities

fortunate

people in the
oflBcers

where the Salvation

Army

and the rescue missions are

at work.

In these several quarters

we

find

a keener

expectation in regard to faith cure than

we

would find

in

a college town or
those

in

city

church

made up from

who had

received

more
There
is

thorough intellectual training.

There are various degrees


is

in faith.

the cautious assent of that

mind which

[41]

mt^
accurately

aiTD i^ealtl^

accustomed to weigh, to discriminate and to

measure

all

the

elements
is

which

enter into any situation.


characteristic

This

the most those

form of

faith

among
is

who

have been carefully trained on the


side.
It is

intellectual

a form of

faith

which

not apt to

move mountains
There
is

or to

work other wonders.


a quiet and some-

also the expectant interest in a cer-

tain direction coupled with

what passive confidence and hope.


and
which
its

There

is,

in the third place, a feeling of strong reliance


trust

constantly

bestows

new
then

energy upon
there
is

happy

possessor.

And

that eager assurance

and

feeling of

certainty

which leads

its

possessors to put into

the effort for recovery


of heart

all

the energies of mind,

and

of will, enabling
all

them

at times to
in the

apparently clear

obstacles at a

bound

attainment of their desires.

The

utility of this

principle of faith healing will therefore vary ac-

cording to the intelligence and the temperament


of the patient,

and according
by whom
[4]

to the prevailing

mood

of the people

he

is

surrounded.

In the second place, the measure of atten-

tion

which may profitably be given

to faith

as a therapeutic agent will vary according to

the nature of the disease.


tell

Any

physician will

you

that there are subjective mental states


of

which do produce the symptoms


or of cure.
attention,

disease

And when
where
there

there
is

is

concentrated
credulity

strong

touching

certain
is

unseen

remedial

agencies,

and where there


power believed
sufferer,

a joyous expectation spring-

ing out of personal confidence in the divine


to be at

work on behalf
of

of the

then

the

chances

recovery

are

greatly increased,

and the process

of recovery

may be

greatly hastened.

In diseases of ac-

cumulation, like dropsy, or tumors, by the

quickened
eliminate,

action

of

those

functions
are

which
some-

morbid

growths

thus

times rapidly removed.


like

In functional troubles,

headache, indigestion, mental and ner-

vous depression, any one can readily see

how
ini-

a strong, warm,

live faith in

God, as not only


all

competent but ready to forgive


quities

our

and heal

all

our diseases,

may come

to

have great value.


[43]

mt^
"Why
limit
it

anD

l^ealt]^
is

But some earnest nature

saying, perhaps,

to particular forms of disease? well as another?"

Cannot God do one thing as


Undoubtedly, but
of of
it is

not so
of

much a
If

question

what God can do as

what God does do,


a

what God has been doing.

man were
head had

lying

on the railroad track, and


off

his
it

been cut

by a passing engine,

would

lie

within the power of Omnipotence to put the

man's head back on

his

body and send him

away

alive;

all

this

were as easy for

OmBut

nipotence as the curing of a headache.


as a matter of fact, does
restore

Omnipotence ever

men's heads when once they have been

cut off?

Did Christ or the twelve Did the medieval

apostles or

the other seventy ever attempt to

work such

wonders?

saints

who

are

reported to have wrought cures, or CuUis, or

Simpson, or Dowie ever accomplish such


sults?
case.

re-

No
If I

one has ever heard of any such


should be run over by a street car

and have
to

my
leg

leg cut off,

it

would not occur

any one of

my

Christian friends to pray


in its place.

that a

new

might grow
[44]

Medical

science

and Christian sympathy

alike

would
of
life,

center their interest

upon the saving

and then upon providing me with such an


artificial leg

as might enable
of usefulness.

me

to

still

possess

some measure
tude

In

all this atti-

we

indicate that

we do know something

about the way Omnipotence works, and

we
we

vary our appeal and shape our expectations


according to the nature of the trouble
face.

Some

of our

ills

can be overcome by calling

upon the

latent forces of the


will

body

to act,

by

a new exercise of the


of religious appeal,

under the stimulus


of that rein-

by the sense

forcement
alliance

which comes from a


the

feeling

of

with
faith.

Unseen and the Eternal


other
ills,

through

And some
was

as

we

have seen, are not to be cured

in that

way.

When
will.

Christ himself
intelligent

here. His

mighty
soul,

His

sympathy. His great

His expectant faith in the capacity of those to

whom He ministered, wrought wonders. But He by no means healed all the sickness and disease in Palestine nor did He correct all the
[45]

fait]^
physical

ann
He

i^ealti^
to

deformity

brought

His

notice.

And

in certain places

found the people so

caught in the power of unbelief that


there unable to do any mighty work.

He was

In the third place, where faith has healing


value,
it it

need not and ought not to displace,


supplement,
those
other

should

agencies

which experience indicates as having value


for recovery.

"Shall
his

we

trust our camels to

Allah to-night?"

servant

said

to

hammed, when they were


at

pitching their

Mocamp
com-

an oasis

in the desert.
tie

"Yes," replied the

prophet, " but

them

first."

Do all

that

mon
any
faith

sense and experience would suggest in


situation, thus

adding to your prayer of

and your

trust in a mightier

power the

efforts of intelligence.

"Back of the

loaf is the

snowy flour.

And hack of the flour the mill; And back of the mill, the wheat and the shower. And the sun and, the Father's will."
It is all there to

meet the needs of the people.


[46]

But the shower and the sun and the Father's

will

would never have brought us our

loaf of

bread but for the co-operation of that

human
it

energy which sowed the wheat and reaped

and ground
loaf.

it

in the mill

and baked
all

it

into a

In like manner, back of

those meas-

ures, sanitary, surgical, or medical,

measures
There
is

declared by experience to have an ascertained


value,

lies

the Father's will.

healing impulse toward recovery which causes

the cut finger to heal and the broken bone


to knit, but

ing

we can best impulse when we do

utilize

that heal-

not neglect those


lie

parts of the process which

within our

own

power.

When we

arise in the

morning we pray with

one accord, " Give us

this

day our daily bread."


an empty
a sweet and confident

We

utter those words, I hope, not as


spirit of

form, but in the


trust.

But having uttered them, the farmer


field,

goes to his

and the merchant


to
his

to his store,

and the mechanic


uses the

shop.

Each man
in

means which experience suggests


his

the gaining of
nipotent

daily

bread.

The Omor for

One

could drop

down manna,

[47]

fatti^

and

J^ealti^
sufficient for
its

that matter, beefsteak


all

and bread,

our needs, but Omnipotence works out

beneficent purposes as
fully,

men

intelligently, faith-

and
those

trustfully

using

co-operate with it, by means which are placed here

within our power to be used.


I should be almost afraid to declare in this

public

way how much

I personally believe the


for our relief

Unseen One can do and does do

and

for our health

when we

learn to go to

Him
it

aright.

I should be almost afraid to speak


I

out

lest

should be regarded as fanatical.


of that faith

But the very strength


inclines

on

my

part

me

to also reverently

and

gratefully

utilize the best aids

which the

intelligence of

my

fellowmen, working each one along the

line of his

own

specialty, as I

am

working at

mine, places within

my

reach.

Four great

epoch-making

advances

have

been achieved by medical science;


troduction
of
anesthetics,

the inpossible

making

surgical operations of the question;

which were formerly out

the better means of control-

ling epidemics so that

Europe

is

not

now

at

[48]

the mercy of the black plague or cholera or

smallpox
cities

as

formerly;

and our

own Gulf

are

not scourged

annually by yellow

fever;

the adoption of antiseptic methods in

surgery,
in

reducing the percentage of fatality


lips;

a way that brings the doxology to our


of scientific

and the use


Roentgen

methods

in diagnosis

by the employment

of chemical reactions, the

rays, blood analysis

and

all

the rest.
that

We

see

beyond

peradventure

the

spirit of truth,

which John said was the Holy

Spirit,

has been here leading the minds of

into these truths vitally important for

well-being.

We
to

thank

God

for all

men human this, and we

look ahead

still

other valued discoveries to

be made by those

form of

service.

strong faith in

men who are choosing that And thus I add to my own those unseen aids which may
crisis,

be utilized in times of physical


fidence
in

my

conof

the

demonstrated

efficiency

medical science.

In the fourth place,


that while

it

is

well to

remember

God

is

omnipotent and faith can


is

work wonders, physical health


[49]

not the only

fait)^

auD

i^ealtl^

nor the supreme good to be sought.

There
faith

was a man once who had

faith in

God,

before which even that of Dr. CuUis or Dr.

Simpson or Dr. Dowie would


fered from a physical
his

pale.

He

suf-

malady which he

called

"thorn
for
its

in

the flesh."

He

besought the

Lord

removal, steadily, insistently and


it

devoutly, but

was not removed.

And by
per-

his very disappointment

he learned that there

are forms of strength which are


fect

"made

through weakness."

Thus he

learned to

bravely and patiently bear his thorn in the


flesh

and, as a matter of fact, he bore

it

to his

grave.
his

His name was Paul, and you

will find

name

written in the annals of Christian

history above every of the


It

name, save only the name

One whom he served. may be that you have looked


they were
ill.

in tender-

ness

and sympathy upon your loved ones

when
faith

You were
them

doing

all

that

and hope and love could

suggest.

But

your loving desire for


in

finally

went down

apparent defeat.
at

It

was a crushing blow;


the failure of
all

you wondered

first if

your

[60]

efforts for their recovery

was due

to

your lack
in

of faith.

But no, you found your comfort

believing that another wiser

and vaster pur-

pose than our


enfolds
hearts.
all

own

underlies, overarches

and
our

these

precious

interests

of

Then you moved up from one form


another and a finer form of

of

strength to

strength.
It

may
;

be that you have your own thorn

in

the flesh

you have besought the Lord


thrice, to
It

thrice,

and more than


it

have

it

removed but

still

remains.

may
if

be that there are un-

used sources of help which would bring you


victory.

But even

you should

fail,

know

that there are

which are

still

many fine forms of strength made perfect through weakness.


to

Make up your mind


thing
!

be

well,

if it is

a possible

Utilize, every

day

in the year, all those

physical,

mental and spiritual

forces
!

which

intelligence indicates as having value

Lay

hold upon these unseen aids which are like the

arm

of the Almighty,

and employ that help


!

steadily for the


it

same high end


out,

But however

may

all

come

know
[51]

that either in

mag-

faitl^
nificent

anD l$tam
sense of failing

health

or with the
still

physical powers, you can

be able to say,

touching those more valued and enduring interests,

"The Lord
shall I

is

the strength of

my

life,

of

whom

be afraid."

[52]

Cl^e l^rois anD

om

of

^ti^tim Science

in
Ci^e

^xo^

anti

Conji of

Cl^rtjsttan

Science
was a man

HE
of

great apostle

discrimination.
believe
in

He

did

not

swallowing

things whole merely because

they tasted good on the outside.

He

always analyzed their contents

first.

He

did not lose his head and go pellmell into


of
life

some new scheme


were apparent
in
its

or

some strange

philosophy merely because certain good points


it.

He

carefully sifted
parts,

it

out.

He
and

weighed
value,

component
their

estimated

their

studied

general

tendency

direction.

Then having analyzed them,


"Prove
good."
all

tested them, tried them out, he retained that

which was good.


fast that

things;

hold

which

is

I believe that this indicates the right course


in regard to the

movement known
[55]

as Christian

Science.

would not undertake

in this chapter

!ffafti^

anu
mass
I

J^ealti^
;

to

condemn
it

it

in the

know

too

much

about
it

for that.

And
do

am

not here to praise


great deal too

indiscriminately; I
it

know a
that.

much about
may, those

to

I wish to sift out


if

the wheat from the chaff and" indicate,


lines of

thought and
that
is

effort

whereby

we can
ment.

hold fast

all

good

in the

move-

And

I believe I
I

may

say without im-

modesty that
this.

have earned

my

right to

do

When

one objects to some of the claims


"

of

Christian Science as being irrational and

absurd the

common
It

reply

is,

Oh, but you do

not understand.

seems so to mortal mind,

but when you have studied the subject and

have read 'Science and Health' those objections will

disappear."

Now
up

have studied

the subject.

I did not get

my

knowledge

of Christian Science over night or


it

cram up on
Christian

hastily in a

week

for

some Sunday evening


of

sermon.

began the study

Science twenty-three years ago, in the

month
I

of February, 1887, in the city of Boston.

went

to the fountain

head for
[56]

my

instruction.

At that time Mrs. Eddy

herself

was

lecturing

Cl^rtjstian
in

^ctence
my
great privilege to

Boston and

it

was

attend her lectures.


as

In addition to that I had

my

personal instructors two

men who were


at Boston,

officers in the

Mother Church
and the

one

of

them the

strongest

clearest expo-

nent of Christian Science I have ever heard


speak, and the other the

man

to

whom

Mrs.

Eddy
child

intrusted the treatment of her

grand-

when

that child

was

sick unto death.

I spent something over three


for

hundred dollars

my

instruction,

for

however strong the

faith of the teacher or the healer in this strange


cult

may be

in

the value of "absent treatis

ment," when money

changing hands he

is

always present in person attending


business.

strictly to

His

illusions as to the unreality of

things in general

do not extend
operate
insists

to financial

transactions; there his

mind and the


in

ordi-

nary "mortal mind"

much

the
of

same way

in that

he

upon the coin

the realm and, quoting the words of the founder


herself, "tuition strictly in

advance."

have in

my

home, signed, sealed and de[57]

livered

by a regularly chartered school, a

fatti^

anD ^ealtl^
am

diploma, certifying that I have completed the


prescribed courses of study and
entitled
If

to practice as a Christian Science healer.


I chose to

hang out

my

sign as a healer at

my

home

in

Oakland, California, to-morrow morn-

ing no one could say

me

nay.

In addition to that I have read books and

pamphlets
I have

on

this

subject

by the armful.

had
for

my own
these
is

copy of "Science and

Health"

twenty-three years.

My

personal copy
is

one of the early ones

it

a third edition, while the book has

now
fifty

reached something over two hundred and


editions.

This early edition has become so


sell

rare that copies


also regarded

now
it

at

a premium.

It is

by

the leaders of the

movement
to call
in the

as valuable because

contains certain state-

ments which Mrs. Eddy would be glad


in

and

cancel, for they


I

do not appear
attended

later

editions.

have

Christian

Science meetings, Sundays and week nights,


in

Oakland,

in Boston, in

London, and

in other

places.

I have spent hours and hours listening

to the instruction

and the testimonies


[58]

of their

l^ti^tian Science
teachers, their healers

and

their believers.

I
so-

have followed up carefully many of their


called cures.
I

do
this

not, therefore, base

what

have to say in

chapter on hearsay or on

newspaper report; I come to you not as an


outsider, but with a
tifying

diploma

in

my hand
in

cer-

that

have been instructed

the

science

and the

art of metaphysical healing.

I wish to consider both the pros of Christian Science.

and cons

Let us see

first

what can
has un-

be said in favor of the movement.

It

doubtedly spoken in tones of authority to a


large

number

of

nervous, complaining,

self-

pitying people

who

never had anything

much

the matter with them, and has stopped their


wail by putting a
lips.

new

set of

phrases upon their


ills,"
it

"Stop talking about your

said.

"Stop thinking about them;


that

stop
ills

believing as yours

you have any due


to a

ills,

for such
state of

are

all

morbid

mind.

Rise up

out of your ailments into the health

God meant

you

to enjoy."

And by

saying this with those

accents of infallible authority which her fol-

lowers attribute to Mrs.

Eddy's statements,

[59]

!fatti^
it

auD

J^ealtl^
spirit

has changed the mood, the

and the

bodily health of several thousands of these


self-pitying

people.

To-day they are more


us thank

happy, hopeful, and acceptable members of


society.

For

all this let

God

The
all

physicians

tell

us that at least one-third of

the
ills,

ills

people complain about are imaginary


itself

and Christian Science has shown


in

powerful
troubles.

putting

an

end

to

imaginary

In the second place

it

has taken a limited

number

of people

who were actually suffering


diseases, nervous head-

from certain functional

aches, indigestion, hysteria, tendencies to epi-

lepsy perhaps,

and has cured them.

Sift the

evidence
the long
certain
of this

all
list

out and

make due

allowance for

of failures, there

still

remains a

number

of cures standing to the credit

movement.

I believe Christian Science


it

has cured more than


a good

has killed
is

I think

many

more.

This
first

not so

much

to

its

credit as

might at

appear because

it

has
peo-

not had the chance to treat a great


ple

many

who were

seriously

ill

from organic

diseases.

[60]

Cl^rtjsttan
Their own
friends,

Science
and that
of their

common

sense,

coupled with their

own

instinct

of

self-preservation,

was too great


But

to allow

them

to trust themselves to such a leaky boat as

Christian Science.

in dealing with cer-

tain functional troubles

we

find that veritable

cures have been wrought.

In the third place

it

has given a number of

people in almost every community something


better to think about.
It

has awakened in

them an
and
none the

interest in religion

very curious

distorted
less.

form of
It

religion,

but a religion

has set them to reading their

Bibles, to thinking

and talking about God,

to

striving to bring to bear

upon

their personal
It

problems the unseen,

spiritual forces.

has

drawn
for

into

it

some people from the churches,

but they were not as a rule people

who counted
more than
in the

much

in Christian activity.

In that church

of which I

am

pastor, a church of

seventeen hundred members,

we have

last fourteen years lost twenty-three or

twenty-

four

members who have gone over


I

to Christian
list

Science.

was looking over the


[61]

recently

fait\)

and

J^ealtlft

and

I find that out of that

number four

or five

would have been


tians.
listlessly

called active, earnest Chris-

The

others

were nominal members,

waiting for some wind of chance to


it

blow them where


of these listless
interest as they

might.

And

into

many
in the

minds there has come a new


have become believers

extraordinary claims of Mrs. Eddy.

In the fourth place the Christian Science


people as a rule are, within the limits of their

somewhat narrow scheme

of

life,

good people.

They

are for the most part law-abiding, up-

right, friendly

and peaceable.

In their

insti-

tutional

life

they are not generous toward the


is

poor for they believe there

no such thing as

poverty, although individual Christian Scientists

do render many deeds


little

of kindness.

They

show

interest in civic reforms for they


is

believe there

no

sin or crime in the

world to

be reformed.

But as you meet them

in the nar-

rower range of personal morality they are good


people and, as a rule, pleasant people.

Now having

said these four things in favor of

Christian Science, that they have changed the

[62]

Cl^rtjsttan
tone of
life

Science

for

many

self-pitying people, that

they have cured a certain number of functional


disorders, that they have interested

some people

more

vitally in the general subject of religion,

and that taking them as a

class they are people

who
said

are upright and clean, what


?

more can be

All this can be said heartily in recogni-

tion of certain elements of

good

in their system.

But
side?

in fairness

what must be

said on the other

Taken

as a system, I believe Christian

Science to be a colossal humbug, and for certain reasons


in

which

I shall presently indicate,

many
I.

instances,

a cruel and

wicked

humbug.
It is

a humbug

in that

it

only true religion of Jesus


tian Science
is

Christ " Chris-

claims

to*

be the

the pure evangelic truth.

It

accords with the trend and tenor of Christ's


teaching and example while
the
it

demonstrates

power

of Christ as taught in the four gosthis Science all is unstable

pels.

Outside of

Mrs. Eddy's Retrospection and Introspection,

p. 80.

Science and Health, p. 202.

[63]

mt^
it

anu

l^ealt]^
to the world

was discovered and announced


flighty

by a

and conceited woman

forty-three

years ago.
II.

It is

a humbug

in that

it

takes the

name

of "Science"

and then deliberately repudiates


principles of all

and denies the fundamental


scientific

procedure.

"Treatises

on

anat-

omy, physiology and health sustained by what


is

termed material law are the promoters of

sickness

and

disease.

It is proverbial that as

long as you read medical works you will be


sick."
III.
^

It is

humbug

in that

it

refuses all

competent diagnosis and undertakes to deal


with
all
is

kinds of disease in the same way,


manifestly absurd.

which

"Physicians ex-

amine the

pulse, tongue, lungs to discover the

condition of matter;

when

in fact all is

mind

and the body


to

is

the substratum of mortal


it

mind
^

whose higher mandate


IV.
It is

must respond."
it

humbug

in that

teaches

its

people to give no attention to sanitary or hy'

Science and Health, p. 72.


Science and Health, p. 370.

"

[64]

Cl^rijsttan

Science
any value
at-

gienic measures, denying that

taches to diet, baths, exercise, fresh air or any


of those things
health.

which God has provided

for our

"Bathing and rubbing


or

to alter the

secretions

remove unhealthy exhalations


a useful rebuke from

from the

cuticle receives

Christian healing.

We

are told that the simple

food our forefathers ate assisted to


healthy but that
is

make them
With
rules

a mistake.

This diet would

not cure dyspepsia at this period.


of health in the head
tible

and the most

digesstill

food in the stomach, there would

be

dyspeptics.

The
less

less

we know

or think about

hygiene the
ness."
'

we

are predisposed to sick-

V.

It is
is

a humbug
merely an

in that

it

asserts that all

disease

illusion of

mortal mind

and has no

basis in the destruction of tissue or

in other organic changes

which

are, as

a matter

of fact, susceptible of scientific demonstration.

"Man
ing this

is

never sick, for mind

is

not sick and

matter cannot be.


is

If the lungs are disappear-

but one of the beliefs of mortal mind.

Science and Health, pp. 93, 381, 388.

[65]

mtt^ and
Mortal

l^ealti^

man

will

be

less

mortal

when he

learns

that lungs never sustained existence.


all

Discard

notions

about lungs, tubercles, inherited


cir-

consumption or disease arising from any

cumstance and you

will find that

mortal mind

when
which

instructed
steers the

by truth

yields to divine
^

power

body

into health."

I have
est,

no harsh or unkind words

for the hon-

well-meaning people

who have gone

into
re-

this

movement, believing that they might

ceive help;

some

of

them have received

help.

I believe that they are deceived

and misled, and

that the ultimate tendency of the

movement
is

with which they have connected themselves


dangerous.

But

for

those
are

more competent
engineering
the
great outlay

men and women who


of

movement from Boston, with a

money derived from

the sale of the publicaof the faith-

tions
ful,

and from the contributions

with thousands of paid assistants scattered

over the country and with a supporting loyalty

from the rank and

file

which

is

beautiful

and

worthy of a better cause,


*

for those

men, some

Science and Health, pp. 392, 428.

[66]

Ci^tfettan defence
of

whom

came

to

know

personally

when

was studying the


charity.

subject, I

have not so

much

To

foist

upon the public a system

which
fever

tells little

children suffering from scarlet


is

or

malignant diphtheria that there

nothing the matter with them, that they

may go

out and play with the other children or go to


school,
is

a cruel humbug.

To

tell

men and

women

fighting against the ravages of Bright's

disease or cancer or tuberculosis of the lungs

that their sufferings are

mere

illusions of the

mind and
able insult.

that

there

is

nothing the matter

with them except

belief,

becomes an unpardonall

To

stand up in the face of

the

pain and distress of the world and with a

mixture of delirious vigor and careless brazen

optimism say, " All

's

well, for I

'm

well,"

is

an unpardonable piece of

effrontery.

There are some good people who have

had a

feeling that

many

of the criticisms

made

upon Christian Science have been more severe


than the case warranted.
I believe this feeling

on

their part has

been due to the fact that they


the

have

never

read

book,

"Science

and

[67]

mt^
give the

anb

l^ealti^

Health, with Key to the Scriptures," by Mrs. Mary Morse Baker Patterson Glover Eddy, to

book and the lady

their full titles as

accumulated by her

many

marriages.

do not

blame these people for not having read the book.

Among
this

all

the queer, incomprehensible,

tire-

some, unrewarding books I have ever read,

one stands at the head of the


in his right

list.

Any

man
or

mind would

rather

saw wood

wash the automobile than read "Science


But
to enable each

and Health."
for himself

one to judge

from first-hand evidence as to the


of

reasonableness
contentions
let

the

Christian

Scientist's

me

quote certain passages from

the book
self to

itself.

I will invite Mrs.


this

Eddy
as
to

her-

appear in

chapter and to speak in

the

language of her

own book

the

principles

of her system, so

that there

may

not be any suspicion of misrepresentation or


exaggeration.

This book from which I now quote


of " Science

is

a copy

and Health," the two hundred and


published by Joseph Armstrong,

fifth edition,

Mrs. Eddy's own publisher, at 95 Falmouth


[68]

Cl^rtsttan ^ctence
Street, Boston.

This

is

the Christian Science

Bible.

It is

read in every Christian Science

service

Sunday morning and Sunday evening,


of scripture,
its

and aside from a few passages

utterances are the only utterances heard in the


service.

The Pope

at

Rome

permits

my

good

friend

and neighbor Father McNally

at St.

Patrick's

Church and
St.

my

friend Father

Mc-

Sweeney at
of their

Francis de Sales to speak out

own

hearts messages of hope

and help

to their congregations along with the appointed


service of the Church.

But Mrs. Eddy, by an


prohibited
all

edict issued a few years ago,

forms of public address or sermon or remark


in the services of her churches;

she abolished

the office

of

pastor,

stating

that this

book

henceforth should be the pastor of every Christian Science congregation;

and provided

that,

aside from a few passages of scripture, nothing

should be said or read in a Sunday service except selections from her


herself.

own book, chosen by


it

What a

piece of spiritual arrogance

was!

Imagine Phillips Brooks, Bishop of Massachu[69]

faiti^
setts

auD

l^ealti^

though he was, the leading

man

in the

Episcopal
eloquent

Church, one of the wisest, most

and most godly preachers

of

the

Nineteenth Century,

imagine

him

abolish-

ing the office of rector in the Episcopal

Church

and

insisting that nothing

should be said or

read in any Episcopal service except passages

from one of

his

books

Imagine Henry Ward

Beecher, the greatest Congregational minister

we have

produced, one whose interpretations


life

of the deep things of

make Mrs. Eddy's


some

utterances seem like the meanderings of

sentimental schoolgirl
ing,
if

imagine

him

decree-

he had possessed the power, that noth-

ing should be said or read in any Congregational


pulpit except selections from one of his books

And
to

imagine any congregation of American

Episcopalians or Congregationalists consenting

be browbeaten in that way!

It

almost

passes belief, but


of those
is

when you
by
sin,

enter

the ranks

who

set out

asserting that "there


sickness, disease or

no such thing as
in the

death
fall in

world " you

may be

prepared to

with

many

queer things.
[70]

Cl^ttjsttan

Science

I will now quote to you from "Science and Health " certain selections which will indicate

some

of

the principles

which underlie

this

movement.
Mrs. Eddy begins by scorning the use of
all

material remedies, insisting that drugs have no


effect aside

from the

beliefs of

mortal mind as to

their potency,

and that but

for these opinions,

erroneously held, one drug would be exactly


like

another in

its effects.

"If a dose of poison

is

swallowed through

mistake, and the patient dies, even though

physician and patient are expecting favorable


results,

does

belief,

you ask, cause


if

this death.?

Even

so,

and as

directly as

the poison had

been intentionally taken.

In such cases a few

persons believe the potion swallowed by the


patient to be harmless;
of

but the vast majority


this

mankind, though they know nothing of

particular case

and

this special person, believe

the arsenic, the strychnine or whatever the drug


used, to be poisonous, for
it

has been

set

down

as a poison by mortal mind.


is

The consequence
by the majority

that the result

is

controlled

[71]

jfattl^
of opinions

and

i^ealtl^

outside, not

by the

infinitesimal
^

minority of opinions in the sick chamber."


" When the sick recover
is

by the use

of drugs,

it

the law of a general belief culminating in indi-

vidual faith which heals


faith will the effect be.

and according

to this

Even when you take


from the general
faith.

away

the individual confidence in the drug you


it

have not yet divorced

The

chemist, the botanist, the druggist, the

doctor and the nurse equip the medicine with


their faith

and the majority

of beliefs rule.

When

the general belief endorses the inanimate


this or that, individual dissent or rests

drug as doing
faith unless
belief
it

on Science

is

but a minority
^

governed by the majority."


see that in her

You

judgment the physical on the balance

effect of

any drug

rests entirely

of opinion,

and

if

we

could only secure a

ma-

jority vote in favor of arsenic, strychnine or

corrosive sublimate, they could

all

be safely put

on the

list

of accepted articles of diet

under the

Pure Food Law.

She proceeds to
*

set aside all attention to san'

Science and Health, p. 70.

Science and Health, p. 48.

[72]

ClftrijSttan
itary

Science
value,

and hygienic measures as having no

and

to instruct her followers to give no heed to

the laws of health.

"The

so-called laws
belief.

of health are simply

laws of mortal

The

premises being

erroneous, the conclusions are wrong.

Truth

makes no laws

to

r^ulate sickness, sin and

death for these are unknown to Truth.

Obea

dience to the so-called laws of health has not

checked

disease."

"Is

civilization

only

higher form of idolatry that

man

should

bow

down

to

flesh brush, to flannels, to baths, diet,


air ? "
^

exercise

and

Let the children eat what they please and as

much

of

it

as they want.

Let them drink


it

stagnant water with typhoid germs in


they are

when

away

in

summer.

Let them give no


bathing and

heed to

diet, exercise, fresh air,

other good things which

God

has provided to

minister to our physical efficiency

and which
all

experience has found to be useful, for

these

notions as to the laws of health are the errors


of " mortal belief."

Science and Health, pp. 66, 76.

[73]

jfattl^

ann

l^ealti^
there

Mrs. Eddy then proceeds to say that


is is

no such thing as disease any way: "What


termed disease does not
exist.

It is not

mind

nor matter.

Tumors,

ulcers, tubercles, inflamall

mation, pain, deformed spines are

dream

shadows, dark images of mortal thought which


will flee
is

before the light.

The dream

of disease

like the

dreams we have
^

in sleep,

wherein

every one recognizes suflFering to be wholly in

mortal mind."
All

these

diseases
suffering

from which the poor


at
this

patients

are

hour are

like

the fanciful visions you


last night,

saw

in

your dreams

mere "dream shadows" which we

can shoo away with a wave of the hand or by

some

intellectual flourish, as

we would

so

many

unreal ghosts.

Having

laid

down

these fundamental prin-

ciples as to the uselessness of material remedies,

the folly of attention to the laws of health and the unreality of


cite certain cases
all

disease,

she proceeds to

where wonderful cures have

been wrought in demonstration of her extraor'

Science and Health, pp. 81, 416.

[74]

Cl^rtjsttan
dinary theories.
teresting
;

Science
one of the most
be
the
in-

Here

is

it

purports

to

testimony

of a

mother whose child had been healed


little

"My
ferer.

son, a year

and a

half old,

had
suf-

ulcerations of the bowels

and was a great

He was

reduced almost to a skeleton


daily.

and growing worse


ing but gruel or

He

could take noth-

some very simple nourishment.

At that time the physicians had given him up,


saying they could do no more for him, and he

was taking laudanum.

Mrs. Eddy came

in,

took him up from the cradle, held him a few


minutes, kissed him, and laid

him down

again,

and went out. In


day

less

than an hour he was taken

up, had his playthings, and was well.


after she

The

next

saw him he
^

ate

all

he wanted.

He

even ate a quantity of cabbage just before


going to bed."

Think
months

of

that

little

chap,

only

eighteen

old, suffering

yesterday from ulcera-

tions of the bowels to such a degree that physi-

cians

had given him up and were giving him


to
'

laudanum

make him comfortable


Science and Health, p.

until the

[75]

faitt^

and

J^ealtl^
result of hav-

end should come; and then as a


ing Mrs.

Eddy hold him

in her

arms a few

minutes, being entirely well to-day and able


to

eat as a sort of nightcap,

"a quantity

of

cabbage

just before going to bed."


is,

In health as well as in disease there

ac-

cording to this book, "Science and Health,"


neither law nor method, reason.

neither

rhyme nor
does not

"Because the muscles

of the blackit

smith's

arm

are strongly developed,

follow that exercise has produced this result

or that a less used


trip
cise.

arm must be weak.

The

hammer

is

not increased in size by exer-

Why

not, since muscles are as material

as

wood and
If

iron

Because mortal mind

is

not

willing that result

on the hammer,"

some mortal mind should take


to will that the trip

it

into

its

head

hammer
it

should in-

crease in size

by being used,

might come to

weigh as much as a planet by being so constantly exercised.


girls

Teach

that to the boys

and

who

are deriving great benefit from such

outdoor games as baseball and tennis and the


*

Science and Health, p. 94.

[76]

Cl^rijittan

Science

various track events which give wholesome exercise to their developing bodies.

Teach

that

to

them when they take systematic body-

building

work

in the high school, the college


di-

and other gymnasiums under competent


rection, with

such manifest good


sets

results.

And Mrs. Eddy

no

limits

either

by

reason of the age or condition of the patient,


or because of the nature of the trouble.

"I

have seen age regain two of the elements


lost,

it

had

sight

and

teeth.

lady of eighty-five

whom

lady of

knew had a return of sight. Another ninety had new teeth, incisors, cuspids,
^

bicuspids and one molar."


I

read

that

statement

in

"Science

and

Health" twenty-three years ago, and I have


been wondering ever since

why

that dear old

lady of ninety in putting in her order for a


set

new

of teeth to be

grown by purely mental

methods

restricted herself in specifying only

"one molar."

And

not merely in things human, but in the


is

world at large there


*

nothing but the vain be-

Science and Health, p. 143.

[77]

mtl) anD 1$tam


liefs of

mortal mind.

" Electricity

is

not a vital

fluid

but the least material form of

illusive

con-

sciousness

the

material mindlessness which

forms no link between matter and mind, and


destroys
itself.

Electricity

is

some

of the non-

sense of error, which ever counterfeits the true

essence of eternal truth,

the great

difiFerence

being that the former


is

is

unreal and the latter

real."

'

Tell that to the professors of physics at the

University

Hand

that choice bit of


!

wisdom

to the electrical engineers

Tell the growing

boys and

girls that

according to the teachings

of the Christian Scientists this mysterious force

which
ries

lights

your church and

theirs,

which

car-

you

swiftly through the streets


it

upon the

ears, as

carries

them, for which you pay at

the Central Office as do the Christian Scientists

themselves

tell

them

that this mighty

force which has revolutionized transportation

and communication
in

and bids

fair

to

usher

a new era in
is

manufacture as a form of
a form of "
illusive

power,

after all only

con-

Science and Health, p. 189.

[78]

Cl^rtettan Science
sciousness" and another bit of "the nonsense
of error."

The
tomed

various objects with which


to deal having

no

reality,

we are accuswe can of


or in that

course create them or destroy them merely by thinking about them in this

way

So Mrs. Eddy claims you touch and smell


the flower
is

" Close

your eyes and

you may dream that you see a flower


it.

that

Thus you

learn that

a product of mind, a formation


Close them

of thought rather than of matter.

again and you

may

see landscapes,

men and
evolves,
^

women.

Thus you

learn that these also are

images, which mortal

mind holds and


life

which simulate mind,

and

intelligence."

But Mrs. Eddy


would

realized perfectly well that


;

people would not accept such statements


say,

they

"We know
own

better.

evidence of our

senses.

We have the We see flowers

growing up out of the ground and we know that

we did not create them merely by thinking about them. We go far away in the mountains and
find the wild flowers

growing and blossoming

Science and Health, p. 237.

[79]

fattl^
in their gentle

anD

l^ealtift

beauty where no

human

eye has

rested

upon them and no human thought has


to

had aught

do with them

until

we chanced

to

discover them."

Her answer

is

that the five senses are not to

be trusted for a moment.

"Any supposed
is

in-

formation coming from the body or from inert

matter as

if

they were intelligent

an

illusion

of mortal mind

one of
^

its

dreams.
is

Realize

that the evidence of the senses

not to be acit

cepted in the case of sickness any more than


is

in the case of sin."

The words
instructive to

of

Borden P. Bowne, professor


would be
point

of philosophy in Boston University,

Mrs. Eddy on

this
if

and

would help
read them
thing
:

to clear
"

up her mind

she should
is

The order of experience which we cannot produce at


at
it

someor

will

dismiss
physics,

pleasure.
is

Whatever our metamost


most
this

practically as real for the


it

determined

idealist as If

would be
is

for the

besotted realist.

any one

in

doubt on

point

let

him make the experiment.


'

Let him

Science and Health, p. 384.

[80]

Ci^rtjsttan

Science

consider whether he could stand out of doors in

scanty clothing through a January blizzard,

whether he could swallow safely strychnine in


large doses, handle a live wire, put his

hand

in

the

fire,

chop

off his fingers,

sit

comfortably

on a cake

of ice, renounce food,


field for

and

so forth.

Here

is

a large

experiment for any


try

one who doubts and wishes to

and

see.
is

And

before long

it

will

appear that there


all

an

order of experience which for

practical
it

purposes

is real.

That

is,
it.

we do

not produce

and we cannot escape


ourselves to
it

We
like

have to adjust
it

whether we

or not,

if

we

expect to live."

"These things remain, whatever name we


give them,

and we have
our

to adjust ourselves to

them,

whatever

metaphysics

may

be.

Hunger may be an

illusion,

but the only


it is

known

way

of effectively dealing with


illusion,

by securing
as food.
facts,

a certain other kind of

known
will

So with cold and divers other unpleasant


they

may

be illusions but they

be very

grievous illusions unless

known

as shelter, clothing,

we apply other illusions warmth and the

[81]

mt\^ anD
like.

i^ealtl^
illusion

Arsenic

may be an

or

non-

we must not swallow it, neverthewire may be an illusion, but we not must take hold of it. Our bodies also may be illusions, but we must at least treat them
existent,

but

less.

live

in

certain ways,

otherwise certain other unIf

pleasant illusions will be sure to arise.

we should not be more bound by them than we are." "A Christian Scientist who admits this
they were absolutely real
differs practically

from the

rest of

us in nothif

ing but words.


there be any,

His theoretical difference,

lies in

the field of metaphysics,


If

and
he

that

is

purely a matter of speculation.

insists that his

metaphysics can exorcise a


of fire or put
is

blizzard or
to flight the

quench the violence

many

ills

that flesh

heir to, or

do away with hunger and cold and pain, then,


as just suggested,

there

is

ample room

for

decisive experiment."
If

you put your hand on a hot stove or on


live

the

wire

"the

supposed
of

information"

coming from that part


the

your body known as

hand and from the

inert matter in the hot

[82]

Cl^rfetian Science
stove or the live wire suggesting to you that
hurts, that your
it

hand

is

in

a place of peril and


it

that

you had better remove

as fast as

you

can, "is not to be accepted," Mrs.


all this, too, is

Eddy

says;

"an

illusion

of mortal mind,
is

one of
sin."
If

its

dreams."

Neither

the evidence

of the senses to

be accepted "in the case of

with your

own

eyes you see a

man

committing some

serious

wrong against the


mortal

person or the property of another you must

know
mind
to

that this, too,

is

"an

illusion of
It is

one of

its

dreams."

a nice docis

trine this, that the evidence of the senses

not

be accepted either

in the case of sickness or

of sin;
is

you can see at once

to

what

results

it

calculated to lead in the


!

minds

of the un-

thinking

In

fact, that

evidence of the senses which sugdesirability of a bath

gests to

most of us the
is

now and then


or

equally illusory.

"The

daily

ablutions of an infant are

no more natural

necessary than would be the process of

taking a fish

out of water every day


in

and
it

covering

it

with dirt

order

to

make

[83]

mt^
thrive

anD

jpealt]^
its

more vigorously
'

thereafter in

native

element."

This would be bad news for the babies who

crow with delight over the morning bath and who


by that bath are made more presentable and acceptable

members

of

society,

if

indeed their

Christian Science mothers were disposed to take

Mrs. Eddy seriously and give up that ancient and


useful practice of washing their
little

children.

The more we
that these

study the teachings of this refact

markable system the more we recognize the

minds

of ours are so misleading that

we would really be And so Mrs. Eddy


less

better

ofiF

without them.

thinks

and says: "The

mind

there

is

manifested in matter the

better.

When
it

the unthinking lobster loses his


If the science of life

claw

it

grows again.

were

understood
of

would be found that the senses


lost

mind are never

and that matter has no


limb would be re-

sensation.

Then

the

human

placed as readily as the lobster's claw

not with
'

an

artificial

limb, but with the genuine one."


*

Science and Health, p. 411. Science and Health, p. 484.

'

[84]

}^tWan
If

Science

telligence
off;

we were all only on the lobster level of inwe should therefore be much better when we chanced to lose our legs or our

arms by accident or by necessary amputation,

we

could at once grow them again and the

artificial

limb business would vanish like "a

dream shadow."
I

have quoted these twelve passages from

"Science and Health" as they stand printed


there on the pages indicated
lisher

by her own pub-

and with her own imprimatur.


is

And
!

this

book
is

the Christian Science Bible


is

This

the

book which

read in

all

the Christian

Science services of the land every Sunday


the only thing which
services aside
is

read or said in those

from a few passages of scripture


in

This

is

the

book

which the

little

children
life

who
irra-

are just forming their notions of


drilled
!

are being

And
and

because of the stupidity, the


if

tionality,
life,

put into practice in everyday

the dangerous immorality of

some

of the

principles there laid

down,

I arraign the Chris-

tian Science system as

a piece of cruel and

wicked humbug.
[85]

fatti^

anD

l^ealti^

You may have


of

laughed when you read some

those

statements
is

why
I

did you laugh

That book
there

read in every Christian Science

congregation every Sunday, and the people

do not laugh.
in their

have heard things said

and read

meetings funnier by far than

anything I have quoted here, and no one


laughed,

no
is

one even smiled.

I did not

smile myself, for

when

am

present at any
is

manner
others,

of religious service
it

which

sacred to

sacred to

me

while I

am

there.

After I got out I laughed immoderately for an

hour to catch up.


Science

The

people in the Christian


not

meetings do

laugh

because

in

taking leave of their senses as Mrs.

Eddy

urges

them

to

do

in her
all
is

book they

also take leave

once and for

of the sense of

humor.

Mrs.
of

Eddy

herself

quite devoid of the sense

when I attended her lectures. She showed this when she came to name her new movement. With the whole
humor, as
I discovered

English language open to her and with dictionaries lying

around everywhere as
[86]

is

common

in Boston, she could think of nothing else to call

Cl^rijSttan
it

Science
as

but

"Christian
it

SCIENCE," when
all

matter of fact

denies and defies


scientific

the fun-

damental principles of
is

procedure and

the last thing in the world which any

man

of

science

would name as having any standing

whatever in the domain of legitimate science.

The naming

of the

movement was one

of the

choicest bits of

humor

perpetrated upon us in
it

the nineteenth century, but


to

has never occurred

Mrs. Eddy or to
is

any

of her devoted followit.

ers that there

anything funny about

The

statements of her book are funny, but


If

they are also serious and dangerous.


into practice

put

some

of

them

imperil the health of

whole communities.

On

page sixty-nine of

"Science and Health" Mrs.


disease
is

Eddy

says,

"One
its

no more

real

than another.

All dis-

ease
ill

is

the result of education and can carry

effects

no further than mortal mind maps


Christian Science heals organic
It

out the way.

disease as well as functional.

handles the
as-

most malignant contagion with perfect


surance."
It

attempts to do just that, and therein

lies

[87]

jfatti^

and

l^ealtl^

the peril for the rest of us.

few years ago,

here in Oakland, California, a family living


next door to one of the families in

my own

church had a
theria.

little

girl

who

contracted diph-

Her mother was a

Christian Scientist,

and she

told the child that there


it

was nothing
belief of

the matter with her, that

was only a

mortal mind, and sent her out to play with


the other children of the neighborhood and to
school with them.

The

little girl

went
sick,

until she

could go no longer

she was

and sick
physiit

unto death as the event proved.


cian called in at the last

The moment when

was

too late to do anything, pronounced the disease

"malignant diphtheria"

and the child died.


and the nurse who
Their

Two

of the children in the family next door

contracted

the

disease,

attended
lives

them

also

had diphtheria.

were saved by the prompt use of anti-toxin


scientific

and other

remedies; the only fatal

case in the neighborhood

was the one

treated
of that

by Christian Science.
illness thrust

But the expense

upon those innocent people by the


all

disregard of

law and

all

conunon sense on

[88].

t^vi^tian ^ctence
the part of the Christian Science healer and the Christian Science mother, the anxiety of
that family

and

of other families over the pos-

sible fate of their

dear ones, and the whole

burden imposed upon that neighborhood by


such insane and criminal carelessness
is

but

a single instance of the

peril involved in

having

the teachings of this system carried into practice.

Similar

occurrences
in

were taking place


in

in

Chicago and

New York and

Boston.
of the

There was such an outcry on the part


the authorities that Mrs.
to issue this edict:

people and such pressure brought to bear by

Eddy felt compelled "Mrs. Eddy advises that


do not
at

Christian

Scientists

present

heal

contagious diseases," and upon another occasion this friendly suggestion

was made: "For


healers

the

present

Christian

Science

are

counselled to obey the law in regard to contagious diseases."

For the present

They

are

looking for something better than obeying the

law by and by.

They had shown themselves

unwilling to report cases of contagious disease


or to counsel their patients to observe those

[89]

fatt]^
usage of
of the

and

l^ealti^

regulations which are a part of the Christian


all civilized

countries as well as a part

law of the land, but now they are coun-

selled to

obey the law "for the present."


is-

This edict which Mrs. Eddy reluctantly

sued of course gives away her whole case.


If as

she states in her book "one disease


real

is

no
is

more

than another," and

all

disease

simply " an illusion of mortal mind," then there


are no contagious diseases where her healers

need to obey the law.

She gave away her

whole case when she admitted the existence of


contagious diseases with their attendant perils,

and issued that manifesto; but even

so,

the

community
point?

is

not protected.

What
is

is

a case

of contagious disease? I

Who

to decide that

am

as intelligent, perhaps, as the


in

average

layman

medicine,

and

have

probably read more medical books than has the


average layman, and yet I
I

am

frank to say that

am

not competent to decide in the earlier

stagey of the disease whether a child has scarlet fever or only chicken
rash.

pox or some harmless

am

not competent to say whether the

[90]

Ci^rtjStian

Science
bad

child has malignant diphtheria or only a

case of sore throat.


nosis,

This

is

a question of diag-

and although

I have a diploma as stated,


in the science of diag-

have not been trained

nosis

any more than has the Christian Science


!

healer

And
is

because the healers

and the

Christian Science people decline in most cases


until
in
it

too late to call in any one trained

diagnosis, the course they pursue remains

a menace to the health of the community.

But there

is

another more serious charge to

be made against their system


to the mental
life

it is

dangerous

of the

whole generation of

children

who

are being brought

up under

its

dwarfing
effect

influence.

You can imagine


life

the

upon the unfolding mental

of the chil-

dren of being drilled Sundays and week days,


at the places of worship

and by the conversation

of their

homes,

in

such statements as I brought


picture the effect of havin

before you.
ing a

You can

young mind soaked

such irrational

principles as lie at the foundation of the

move-

ment.

The

children are put out of line with


intellectual

the whole

development of

their

[91]

faiti^
day
;

anD

l^ealtl^

they are taught to array themselves against

all scientific

methods

of thought

and action;

they are taught to regard themselves as in

open antagonism

to the best

knowledge

of their
in-

time in regard to great sections of


terest.

human

In what a false and hurtful position are

the children of that

movement placed

This

is

the reason

why you

cannot

name

to

me a single

professor of psychology, philosophy,

logic or ethics in

any reputable

college or uniScientist.

versity of the land

who

is

a Christian

You

cannot name a single professor of physics,

chemistry, botany, biology, geology or astron-

omy who
in

is

a Christian

Scientist.

You can

find

those chairs

Catholics, Protestants, Jews,

Presbyterians, Unitarians, agnostics, what not,

but never a Christian


professor

Scientist.

The

intelligent

knows

that the teachings of Mrs.


in

Eddy's book are


principles

open opposition to the very


rests the science

upon which

he

is

appointed to teach.
ful

And he knows, too,

the aw-

dwarfing and distorting influence which that

system exerts upon the minds of children in the


formative period.

[92]

t)vWan
You may drug
make
the

Science

the brain with whiskey or


is

with morphia, and the immediate effect

to

man

feel

strong or feel at peace

with himself and with the world.

But that

persistent drugging of the brain, causing the

man

to feel strong or

happy when he

is

neither,

works out as we know

frightful aberrations

and

abnormalities, until at last he pays the full penalty for his false

method.
it

You may

also

drug

the

mind by plying

with false statements and

the stimulus and excitement of false suggestions.

You

can
for

make

the person feel better

for
if

an hour,

a week, for months perhaps,

you keep

it

up.

But here

also the drugging

of the

mind
it

into a false sense of


until the real
is

what

is

true,

drugging
unreal

unreal and the

is real, is

attended with direful results.

The whole
mental
life

false

method

of the system

is

espe-

cially injurious in its effect

upon the unfolding


the cures?
for.

of the children.
for

But how do you account

Some
I

of

them

do not need
little later

to account

was

called in

to conduct funeral

services.

A lady in Oakland,
[93]

California,

whom

ifaiti^
I

ann ^caiti^
was
suffering

knew very

well

from tubercu-

losis of

the lungs.

everything that

Her devoted husband did money and affection could do

for her relief, but apparently without result.

Finally in her desperation she wanted to try

Christian Science,

and although he personally


he at once arranged for her

had no
to

faith in

it,

have that treatment.

She

felt better for

time.

And one

of

the

Christian

Scientists

meeting one of our Church Trustees on the


car, exclaimed,

"How

glorious
is

it is

that Mrs.

[naming the lady]


"Is
she.'*"

entirely well again."

he asked with considerable sur"

prise, for

he was a friend of the family and

knew
ence."

the gravity of her condition.

Oh,

yes,

she has been entirely healed by Christian Sci-

And
!

that cure

was celebrated with

fer-

vent hallelujahs in the Christian Science congregation


sent for

But a few months

later the

husband
to

me to conduct the funeral service and

speak such words of comfort as I might to him

and

to the motherless children.

His wife had

died from tuberculosis of the lungs as the physicians

had

told

him months before was


[94]

inevitable.

Ci^rtettan Science
The
famous
celebrated English earl
article in the

who

wrote the

Cosmopolitan a few years

ago on "

relating therein

The Truth about Christian Science," how he had been entirely cured
of the heart,"

of "fatty degeneration

which
in-

eminent London surgeons had pronounced


curable,

made

quite a sensation.

It

was a

beautiful article,
sale.

and the magazine had a big

The

utterance of the nobleman was re-

ceived with loud acclaim by Christian Scientists

in this

land and in England.


it

The

only

drawback about
days after the

was

that in less than ninety

article

appeared, the earl sud-

denly died from the very disease which the

London surgeons had pronounced


incurable,

in his case

fatty degeneration of the heart.

Mrs. Eddy professes to be able to cure cancer

and

to

have cured cancer when, according


it

to her published statements, "

had eaten
all

into

the neck until the jugular vein was

exposed."

Yet she allowed Mrs. Mary A. Baker, the

widow

of her

own

brother, a

woman

for

whom
great-

in published letters she est affection,

had professed the

to die

a lingering and painful


[96]

sfaiti^

ann

J^ealti^

death, stretching from months into years, from

cancer of the breast.

The

challenge has been

made

east

and west,

north and south, again and again, for them to

show a
disease
nosis

single serious case of organic disease

cured by their methods where the fact of the

was established by competent diagfact of cure similarly established,

and the

and the challenge has never been met. This


is

not a challenge that a miracle be worked to

confound the unbelievers


ifestly

that would be man-

unfair

it is

only calling upon them to

produce the evidence upon which they are basing these extravagant claims which are mis-

leading the people.

In an organic disease there


struction of tissue.

is

the actual de-

In the functional disease

there

is

the irregularity or abnormality of ac-

tion in

some

function,

due perhaps

to

some

nervous disorder, without the destruction of


tissue.

Or, to state the distinction in more


is

technical terms, an organic disease

one where

there
is

is

structural lesion; a functional disease

one where the function or secretion of some


[96]

Cl^ri^tian defence
organ has been vitiated, but where
ture
this
is

its
it

strucis

little

if

at all changed.

And

in

realm of functional troubles by the use of

forces

which are much better understood and


successfully used

much more
ters, that

by other schools
chap-

of healing, to

be discussed

later in these

Christian Science has

won whatever
its credit.

success

may be

honestly placed to

The
disease

limitations attaching to the healing of

by the power
all

of suggestion are recog-

nized by
of mind,

men who have

the scientific habit


for them.

and allowance must be made


of Christian Science
is

"The way
broken

strewn with

hearts

and maimed bodies, ruined

health and lives sacrificed, because under the

hypnotic spell of Mrs.

Eddy

her subjects have

refused except under compulsion of public in-

dignation or of the law to

make such

allow-

ance."
I

have not deemed

it

appropriate to enter

here into any discussion of Mrs. Eddy's personal


character.

The
is

claim

is

being
I

made

everywhere that she

avaricious.

have

my

Powell, Christian Science, p. 200.

[97]

fatti^

and l$mt\^
if

own

opinion on that point, and

you

will look

into the financial

methods of the movement


will

where she stands supreme you


It is

have yours.

being asserted loudly that for twenty

years she has been in an abnormal mental condition,

and Boston attorneys are saying openly


dies, as she

that

when she
July,

must

ere long, for

she was eighty-eight years old the 16th day of


last

there will be one of the greatest

lawsuits of history to determine

by the

testi-

mony

of alienists

and other experts the quesadequacy to make dispoI

tion as to her mental


sition of all that

immense property.
I

have

not entered into that.

have not seen Mrs.

Eddy
I

for over twenty years

and

do not know.

have not discussed the autocratic character of

her rule over her followers, which goes far be-

yond anything the Pope

at

Rome

attempts.

In

the printed by-laws you will find that she arrogates to herself the right to remove

any reader
no reason

from any church

in the land

by simply sending

him or her a
of the

letter

of

dismissal;

need be assigned.

And

in her absolute control


in its property,

whole movement

meth-

[98]

Cl^rijsttan

Science

ods of worship and instruction, the personnel


of
its

officiary

and

all,

she goes far beyond any


to us.

religious leader

known

I
its

have

tried rather to discuss the

system on

merits, as indicated

by the claims advanced

in the statements of its

own

authoritative book,

quite aside from the personal factor.

And

in

view of the

perils

it

involves to the health of

whole communities,
fect
it

in

view of the dwarfing

ef-

has upon the minds of children, in view

of the
in its

abnormal

state of

mind and heart induced


protest against

adult believers, I

make my

what the

leaders are doing in trading

upon the

undiscriminating credulity of thousands of honest people, in

imposing upon them a gigantic

system of pious

humbug and

in

encouraging in

them a

selfish disregard for the real sufferings

and privations
moral

of their fellows in

a way that

makes against the development


life.

of

wholesome

But the apostle


fast

said,
is

"Prove

all

things; hold
effort

that

which

good."

In the

to

bring to bear upon


physical
ills

the correction of certain

those mental and spiritual forces

[99]

iJfatti^

ann

l^ealti^

which have value for these particular troubles,


there
is

something exceedingly good.

The

va-

rious mistaken efforts in this direction at this

time stand as a protest against and a rebuke


to the inattention of the Christian
this

Church

to

form

of help.

It is for the

church to

sift

out the wheat from the chaff in the present

popular interest in these various movements

and

to conserve for the relief of

its

suffering

people all the elements of good.


I personally have reason to be profoundly
grateful for the help
tion.

which

lies in this direc-

was below par physically during most


boyhood and early youth.

of

my

But some
the meth-

years ago I learned

how

to use the forces seen

and unseen
od of
it

in

a more

effective

way

I shall

have occasion to discuss more

fully in

some

of the chapters

which are to

fol-

low.

I suffered this handicap at the start, but

for twenty-one years in

my

chosen profession I
I

have been working steadily and strenuously. have not been healed of cancer or Bright's
ease or bubonic plague any

dis-

more than the


all

Christian Scientists have, but during

that

[100]

t)vi^tian Science
period I have worked hard and have been ready
for

my work week

in

and week

out.

In
of

all

that time I have never missed

any kind

an

appointment, week day or Sunday, because I

was

sick.

Headaches, colds, indigestion, sore

throat, or

more

serious maladies

from which
suffer,

men
them

and

women sometimes

for
resist

twenty-one years I have been able to


all

so that I have been ready for duty


interruption.

without

And
is

in

doing

this I

have been greatly helped by those methods of

which Christian Science

only an

awkward

and confusing
I will only

caricature.
this further

add

word,

our com-

mon

Christian heritage in the Gospel of Jesus

Christ for any one

who

will

study that message

with a receptive mind, an honest heart and a


resolute will, opens the

way

into all the unseen

helps

available

for

increased

physical

effi-

ciency. You need not take leave of your senses. You need not indulge in any mental hysterics

or intellectual shuffling about the unreality of


things in general.
self

You need
[101]

not stultify yourentire


intellectual

by breaking with the

mtti ann
movement
of your
this autocratic

i^ealti^
in order to follow

own day

lady from Boston.


in

They have
their

no resources open to them


only seek by

system
If

which are not open to us right here.


will

you

study,
life,

by prayer, by an obeto enter

dient

and aspiring

more deeply
message min-

and

vitally into the

meaning

of the

which
istry,

He uttered "The Spirit

at the opening of His of the

Lord

is

upon me begood

cause

He

hath anointed

me

to preach

tidings to the poor;

He

hath sent

me

to bind

up the broken hearted,


to the captives

to preach deliverance

and
if

to set at liberty

them

that

are bruised"

you

will

only enter more

deeply and vitally into the meaning of that

message, you

may

in

your ovm personal expe-

rience go far along the road to the realization of the high claim that
iniquities

He

can forgive

all

our

and heal

all

our diseases.

[102]

Cl^e l^ealt'ng j^otoer of

^uggeistfon

IV

Cl^e i^ealfng ^^otoet: of

HERE
tures

is

a vast amount of
in the scripoffer us in-

sound psychology

where they
along

struction

moral
If

and

spiritual lines.

you would
it

form the

right sort of character


says.

go about

in

a rational way, the Bible

"Whatsoever

things are just, whatsoever things are true,

whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things


are honorable, whatsoever things are lovable,

whatsoever things are of good report, think

on these things."

Pasture

your mind and

heart on them just as you send your Jersey

cow

into the clover

when you want her


nutriment which
structure
of
is

to give

good milk.
nish the

Let these modes of thought furtaken


inner

delicate

up
life.

into

the

very

your

"Be ye

transformed by the renewing of

your mind,"

by

the introduction of higher

[105]

faiti^
and
finer

and
your

J^eaiti^

forms of material to be wrought upon


of
soul.

by the energies
of youi:

"Let the words

mouth and

the meditations of your

heart be acceptable in the sight of the Lord,"


let

your speech and your thought, which are

both under your control, be right and you will

be made right throughout.


It is in this

same vein that the author word


in his heart so

of the

now
dom.

familiar proverb offers his

of wisis

As a man thinketh

he

The
will
ally.

writer does not

mean

that a single thought

transform a

man

either physically or

mor-

He means

that states_of

mind, prevailing

habits of thought, tend constantly to register

themselves in bodily as well as in moral conditions.

Morbid conditions

of

mind mean by and


Weakness
of

by morbid conditions
will

of body.

and

irresolution, fear

and worry, prepare


mind,

a
in

soil
its

favorable for the seeds of disease and aid

development.
all

Healthy
grudge,

states of

fminds free from

bitterness

and

envy, minds free from anxiety, fret and distrust,

minds
I

filled

with faith and hope and love,


surely as

make

for health as

do sunshine,

[106]

I^ealtng |^otx)er of ^uggeistton


fresh air

and pure water. and

As a man thinketh
insistently,

in his heart steadily


,

be

it

up

or down, so he tends to become.

" The

body

isjthe.^eneral es^iression of past thinking," as

that thinking has wrought itself out in terms


of physical
life.

Thoughts then are


If

things, powerful things

any one should

tell

man

suddenly that
fatal

some one he
accident,

loves dearly

had met with a

he would instantly turn pale, the

blood leaves his face.

thought does that

not a drug nor a blow nor any physical agent

whatsoever.
liar

Tell a
is

man
it.

of

honor that he

is

and

his face

aflame with indignation as


It is

the blood flows into

a thought

regis-

tering itself in certain physical

changes.

A
way
if

thought will cause the blood to flow this


or that way;

a thought

will

work a
life.

radical

change in the various currents of

Now

you by

will utilize this force,

which we

all

know,

intelligent, persistent, systematic habits of

thinking,

you can see at once how powerful


for good.

it

may become

"A

great deal of alleged physical suffering

[107]

faiti^
is

anD A

l$taltl)
great

primarily mental.

many

people

have 'fixed ideas' of disease, pain,


fatigue,

debility,

dread, ineflSciency and

inexpressible
realize

woes.

Much
I

oftener than

we

these

can be transplanted without surgery or medication.

do not mean that they are not

real

suffering; they are as real as the grave.

But

they are not grounded in physical infirmities

and they are not

to

be cured by physic.

The
a

mind becomes possessed


certain part of the

of a conviction that
is

body

infirm
all

and imputes

pain to that part in spite of


the world.

the medicine in

Hundreds

of people refuse to get


It is

well after the physician has cured them.

not his fault and

it

is

not their fault; they

have simply had disease suggested to them


until they

cannot think at

all

except upon that

assumption.
ulus of

And
faith

for such conditions the stim-

new

and the re-education


*

of the

whole mental outlook are needed."

Suggestion, then, as I use the term in this


chapter,

means the

influence exercised

upon

the body by the subtle power of ideas.


*

The

Max

Eastman, Atlantic Monthly, May, 1900.

[108]

l^ealing J^otoer of ^uggejJtton


value of
it

in dealing

with certain functional

troubles, especially those of a nervous or


tal

menall

origin, is

coming

to

be recognized by

intelligent physicians

and by people
it.

generally.

You can
vital

see the philosophy of

The most
assimila-

functions

we know,

digestion,

tion, circulation, elimination, are all of

them

constantly
state of

and profoundly influenced by the

mind.

"A

merry heart doeth good


;

like medicine," the Bible says

a cheerful dis-

position affects all these vital processes.

The
when

old proverb, "

Laugh and grow


food

fat,"

has physitake

ology on

its

side, for the

we

we

are cheerful and

happy does us ten times

more good than the food eaten when we are


angry or worried or depressed.

The

processes
of

which have

to

do with the elimination

waste, of fatigue

and other poisons from the

system, are constantly affected by the state of

mind.

"Mind
trol

cure

is

simply the acquiring of con-

over impulses, emotions and the habits


It

that demoralize.
if

substitutes other habits

necessary.

The

person gains mental poise


[109]

faiti^

anu

J^ealti^

and leans toward optimism.


ates the nervous

The mind

liber-

mechanism and the

vital fluids

of the body, so that all the functions, both

physical

and mental, are performed normally."

Professor Anderson of Yale University un-

dertook a few years ago to demonstrate the

power

of thought in a

most

scientific

way.

He

had a young man suspended


on a perfectly balanced

in his laboratory

disk.

He

told the

man, who was a mathematician,

to think of

some

difficult
it

problem
mentally.

in

mathematics and to

try to solve

As

the

man began

to

think hard the nicely balanced disk tipped on


the side where the man's head was, the blood

flowed to the brain in increased amount and


that tipped the scale.
of running, for the
football player

He told

the

man

to think

young fellow had been a


interested in track events. to think of

and

And
field

as the

man began

making a

hundred-yard dash or of running down the


with the pigskin under his arm, the disk

tipped to the side where his feet and legs were.

The

blood was

these organs.

now flowing more freely into By asking the man to repeat


[110]

l^ealfng po^x)tx of

^ugge^tion

the multiplication table of nines the displace-

ment was greater than when he was repeating


the table of fives, which
is

an

easier table.

The

professor found that the center of gravity

in the

man's body was shifted as much as four

inches by merely changing his thought, with-

out the moving of a muscle.


things,

Thoughts are
ill

and

their

power

for

good or

can be

accurately weighed and measured.

Here then
blood can be

is

a force to be used
to flow

If the

made

more

freely here or
all

there by a change of thought,

if

the pro-

cesses of digestion, assimilation, circulation

and
ill

elimination can be influenced for good or

by mental
which are

conditions,
in constant

if

all

those functions

communication with the

nervous system can be aided or can be hin-

dered in their operation by the thoughts


think, then
in

we

you can see how much

is

suggested
in his

those words,

As a man thinketh

heart so he becomes

You
the

will find this

agency discussed under


title

somewhat elaborate

of

"The Therascien-

peutic Value of Suggestion,"

by such

[111]

mti) ann
tific

J^ealti^

men
it

as

Bernheim and Moll, Tuke and

Liebeault,
find

Schofield

and Dubois.

You

will

taken up by psychologists and by edu-

cators.

We

deal with children almost entirely

by suggestion.

The
new
is

child about to cry over

some

trifle

has his attention directed to somesuggestion and the occa-

thing else by a
sion for his wail

thus forgotten.
is

The
he
it

child
is

who has had a tumble


hurt
will

told that
kiss
is

n't

much; make it
is

"Mamma
well
!

will
it

and that
;

Now

all

well "

the

suggestion
\

accepted and becomes effective.

Suggestion

may

be utilized

in curing

bad habits

and

in

changing unpleasant dispositions in

children.

We may

carry the same principle on

up

to

the years of maturity

and

utilize

it

in dealing

with more serious matters.


the

We may
to

educate
better

mind by suggestion

move
and

in

channels and teach the heart to cherish more

wholesome

states of feeling,

in that

way

accomplish splendid results in securing health

and

in developing character.

It is needless to

say to any intelligent reader

[112]

l^ealing potuer of ^uggeistfon


that

the

power

of

mind over

matter, the

power
its

of suggestion over bodily conditions, has


All

limits.

power has

its

limits unless

it

be the omnipotent power of Almighty God,

and even He declares Himself conditioned


the accomplishment of His purposes

in

by the

giving or the withholding of our obedient cooperation.


All

power has

its

limits;

I could
it

pick up the pulpit in

my

church and carry

across the street, but I could not pick

up the
not

church and carry

it

away.

Yet the
its

fact that

my

muscular power has


it

limits does

indicate that

is

of little worth.

I can

by

right thinking, right feeling


affect

and

right resolving

profoundly certain physical conditions,

but I cannot entirely change the structure of


the body in cases of serious organic disease

by merely thinking pleasant thoughts.

The

power

of suggestion does not accomplish every-

thing; no

more does surgery or medicine or


Suggestion
is

any other agent you can name.

merely one of the therapeutic agencies which

may

be employed in the interests of health.

Let

me

put

it

more

concretely.

Here

is

[113]

faitl^

anD

i^ealtl^

woman who
pepsia.

is

suffering

from nervous dys-

Her food does not agree with her;


losing flesh

she

is

and

losing strength;
It

she

is

afraid of
is

total collapse.

may be
this

that there

no organic disease present;

question

should be determined by some one trained in


diagnosis.
If there is
is

no organic

disease, then

what she needs


ous Latin, so

not Hood's Sarsaparilla or


in

some long prescription written out

ponder-

much

as a

new

state of

mind.
she

She

talks too loud

and too much.

When
if

talks to

any one over the telephone

in that

nervous, fretting

way

it

almost seems as

she

would break the instrument.


in the

The

other people
is

room where her message

being re-

ceived can hear the squeaking, rasping noise

which

is

made when

the person at the other

end of the
It is

line is talking unnecessarily loud.

simply a nervous habit which some people

thoughtlessly acquire.

This
pepsia

woman who
is

suffers

from nervous dyslife.

intense, jerky, fidgety in all her


saints are St.

Her two patron


and
fretted

Martha, troubled

about

many

things,

and

St. Vitus,

[114]

!^ealtng po'wzv of ^uggejstton


moving with jerks and twitches rather than
serene strength.
in

She cannot

sit

down without
some
sit

drumming on

the table or fussing with


dress.

ornament on her

She

will

in the
fro.

rocking chair, nervously rocking to and

You know
less that

the Europeans,

who

are not addicted


rest-

to rockers, say that the

Americans are so
sit

even when they

down

they cannot
if

be

still,

they must rock to and fro as

they

were going somewhere.

This

woman

eats in

feverish haste or with such depression of

mind
sleeps

that her food

is

robbed of
fitfully,

its

value.
is

She

uncertainly

and

and she

losing

power

every day in the week.

Here

is

a case where suggestion

is

"indi-

cated," as the physicians say.

If there is

no

organic disease,

suggestion

will

do her ten
she will only

times more good than drugs.

say to herself slowly, thoughtfully, expectantly,

every night after she gets into bed and every

morning before she gets up, three times a day


before meals and three times a day after meals,

and

at intervals of
if

an hour or two during the


[115]

day,

she will only say to herself these eight

mt^
ful, it will

anD

i^ealtl^

words which so many people have found use-

do her a world of good.


appear in ten minutes or

The
in
will

re-

sults

may not

a day,

but in a surprisingly short time they

work
sys-

a beneficent change
tem.

in her

whole nervous
:

Here are the eight words

" Quietly,
<

Easily, Restfully, Trustfully, Patiently, Serenely, Peacefully, Joyously."

This would be good for her;

it

would be

good

for

any one who has the


is

least suspicion
If

that he

headed

in that direction.

you

find yourself talking too


jerks, losing

loud,

moving with

your

self-control, liable to petu-

lant speech, breaking out in spurts of anger;

or
all

if

you

find yourself constantly out of breath,


if
!

unstrung, feeling as
stop right there
!

you might
Sit

fly

to

pieces,

down and do

your exercises

Say

to yourself, either audibly

or mentally, "Quietly, easily, restfully, trustfully, patiently, serenely, peacefully, joyously."

You can
states
if

thus
set

control
it

your own mental


way.

you

about

in the right

We

are not responsible for the

random thoughts

which come and go; we are responsible for


[116]

I^ealmg ^aotwer of ^ugge^tton


those which

come and
us.

settle

down

to

summer
had
it,

and winter with

As

the old proverb

^You

cannot keep the birds from flying over

your head, but you can keep them from building their nests in your hair."
sible

You

are respon-

for

those

states

of

mind which you


are /
is

retain
/

and

cherish.

convinced that in your

And where you own case there

tendency to be morbid and unwholesome you


can, by systematic

and

persistent suggestion,
it

change
I

all

that

and make
a

right.

When
to time
it

once you get the process started,


it

then by giving

little

attention

from time
itself.

seems to almost take care of

This

is

accomplished through what Professor


of

James
gists

Harvard and many other psycholo"the sub-conscious mind."


that the sub-conscious

call

These

men

believe

mind

is

especially susceptible to suggestion,

and that
continue

suggestions once lodged there


to accomplish great

may

good when the conscious

attention has been directed to other matters. I

am

aware that some psychologists scout the

idea of a "sub-conscious mind," but

we need

[117]

jfatt]^

and

l^ealti^

not

quarrel
in

about

terms.

There

is

surely
is

something

each one of us which

indi-

cated by that phrase.

When you
time you
lift

are walking

down
it

street,

every

your foot and put

down, every

time you turn aside to avoid running into some

one going

in the opposite direction,

it

involves

an act of perception and


scarcely conscious of
it
;

of will, but

you are

you may be thinking

of something else or talking steadily to

some

friend
scious

who walks with


mind attends

you.

The
minor

sub-condetails of

to the

your walk and to

many

of the details in every-

day

life.

The

skilled

performer on a pipe
things, as
is

organ learns to do
automatically.

many

we

say,

His mind

intent

upon the
and
themselves

sheet of music before

him while

his fingers

his feet are unconsciously placing

aright

upon the

keys.

He

opens and closes

stops, manipulating the various appliances of

the organ to secure the desired result, scarcely conscious of the details, for his entire conscious
attention
playing.
is

given to the general effect of his

[118]

i^ealtng po\x)n of ^uggejstton


I

learned

something about
in

this

sub-conI

scious

mind

my own

case in this way:

am

a stenographer; I earned

Theological Seminary with

my way through my shorthand. I


and I
also

was a court reporter


a large
tion

for a time,
in the

worked a year and a half


fire

home

office of

insurance company.

I took dicta-

from the secretary of the company and


familiar with
his
all

became very
and with

the insurance

lingo

own

phrases and methods

of correspondence.

I reached the point where

I could take his dictation with perfect accu-

racy without thinking about

it,

without even
I

hearing consciously what he was saying.

was thinking about the play

had seen the

night before at the theater or the book I

had

been reading or the young lady I was going


to call

on that evening.

The
letters.

sub-conscious
to
its

mind was meanwhile attending


the secretary dictated his

duties as

I discovered this in a peculiar way.

He was

a great joker and used to joke with his agents

"

jollying

them up," as he
I

called

it

in his

business

letters.

would take
[119]

his dictation,

mtt)
recording
the

mh

i$talt\)
of

jokes,

some
hearing

them very

good ones, for he was an exceedingly bright

man,

without
I

ever

them.

Then

when

came

to write out
I

my

shorthand notes

on the typewriter

would come to the jokes


entirely

and they would be

new
to

to

me and
first

would laugh over them

for

the
it,

time.

Whatever name we may apply


fident that there
is

am

conlies

a mental realm which

below the

level of

ordinary consciousness, and in

that realm the


to

power of suggestion may be made


in the interests of health.

work mightily

You
in

will find all this

worked out

in elabo-

rate fashion
his

by many

writers.

Henry Wood,
mental

"Ideal

Suggestion

through Mental
series of

Photography," has prepared a


pictures

which he undertakes

to

photograph
in

upon the mind by having each one printed


large capitals

on a

single page.
it

This

is

to be
itself
it

held before the eyes until


indelibly

registers

upon the mind.

He

believes

will

produce deep down that state of feeling and of


expectation which will persist after the conscious attention has been turned of necessity
[

120

I^ealtng l^otoer of ^uggejstton


to

something

else.

His suggestions are

all

wholesome and
to

his little

book has been useful


arranged myself

many
I

nervous and troubled people.


I

have a system which


I

and which
have given

have used for

to

lent results.

my own health and many other people, with excelIt is made up entirely of phrases
It is

from the

scriptures.
air.

as harmless as pure
it

water or fresh

If

it

does not help you,

cannot hurt you.


shuflfling

It is

unlike the intellectual

and the

fierce denials of reality

with

which certain Christian Science healers often


ply their patients

as
to

different as

is

spring

water from brandy.

Let

me
if if

give

you an

illustration

of

this

method,
tion or

you wish

be treated by sugges-

you wish

to learn

how

to treat yourills

self or to treat others for

those

which can

be relieved

in this

way.

Make

yourself as easy

and as comfortable as you can. Let your hands


lie

easily in

your lap or at your

side.

You
let

are

not using them


eyes,

now

you are only using your


your

your
rest.

ears

and your mind;


[121]

hands

Let your lower limbs relax

you

iffatti^

auD
either ;
will

i^ealtlft

are not using

them

you are not walking


hold you up without

and that easy chair any


state
effort of

your own.

Now
me

in that relaxed

of restfulness follow

through these
sets

suggestions.

There are eight


in the

of them,
for

one for each day

week and two


them as a

Sun-

day two

if

you choose

to use

daily ex-

ercise in right thinking.


series of four each,

They

are arranged in
series cul-

one of the

minating in healing and the other culminating


in sleep.

While you are at your

ease, repeat to

yourself these:

Aids to Suggestion
I.

To banish fear
believe.

Fear not
Fear not
to give

only your Father's good pleasure


it is

you the mastery.

Perfect love casteth out fear.


I will fear
77.

no

evil, for

Thou

art with

me.

To

bestow confidence
shall

In quietness and confidence


strength.
[

be

my

122

l^ealtng po'cott of ^uggejstton


Be
still

and know that


of Hosts
is

He

is

Lord
Jacob

is

with me.

The The God of


God.

my

refuge.

Be

strong and of a good courage.

The

my God He it is that goeth with me. He will not fail me nor forsake me. know whom I have believed and I am persuaded that He is able to keep that
Lord
which
I

have committed unto Him.

III.

To

increase faith

Have
Great

faith in

God.

All things are possible to


is

him

that believeth.

thy faith

be

it

unto thee even as

thou

wilt.

Thy

faith

has

made

thee whole.

IV.

To promote healing

The

leaves of the tree are for the healing of

the nations.

The Sun

of Righteousness

is

risen with heal-

ing in His wings.

The

prayer of faith shall heal the sick.

[123]

fatt]^

and
my

l^ealti^

He

forgiveth

all

iniquities.

He

healetb

all

my

diseases.

V.

To gain peace

Great peace have they who love


nothing shall offend them.

Thy law and


peace whose

Thou

wilt
is

keep him

in perfect

mind

stayed on Thee.

Peace I leave with you;


unto you.
neither let

My

peace I give

Let not your heart be troubled


it

be afraid.
passeth
all

The

peace of

God which

under-

standing shall keep your hearts and minds

through Jesus Christ.


VI.

To develop

strength
shall

Tbey

that wait

upon the Lord

renew

their strength.

The Lord The Lord

shall give strength to his people

of

they shall go from strength to strength.


is

the strength of

my

life,

whom

shall I
all

be afraid.
Christ

I can do

things through

who

strengtheneth me.

[124]

l^ealtng ^oioDtt of ^uggejstton


VII. To secure hapjnness

A
If

merry heart doeth good


ye

like medicine.
if

know
is

these things

happy are ye

ye

do them.

Happy

he that hath the

God

of

Jacob for

his help.

These things have


joy might be

spoken unto you that

My joy might remain in you and that your


full.

VIII.

To induce
all

sleep

Come

unto

Me

ye that labor and are


will give

heavy laden and I

you
rest

rest.

There remaineth therefore a


people of God.
I will lay

for the

me down Thou makest me

in

peace and sleep, for

to dwell in safety.

He

giveth His loved ones sleep.

Fix your mind upon each one in turn


yourself to
it

Give

until

it

fills

and possesses your


its

entire consciousness.

Seek to absorb
[125]

full
it

significance as

you dwell upon the bearing

fatt]^

anb
life.

i^ealti^

has upon your inner


lieve, for faith

Fear
dread.

not, only be-

conquers

all

"

God

hath

not given us a spirit of fear but of power and


of love
is

and

of a

sound mind."

Fear

not,

it

your Father's good pleasure to give you


mastery

the

the

entire

control

of

your

moods, your habits of thought, and the functions that

have to do with sound health.

Per-

feet love casteth out fear,

the heart possessed


its

by love
harm.

for

God and
it

love for

fellows has

nothing to fear for


I will fear

cannot suffer permanent


evil for

no

Thou

art with

me

in the presence of the


is

Great Companion

the heart

freed from

its

anxiety.

Your thoughts
will not return

sent out into every part of

your body with a holy and helpful purpose


unto you void

they

will

go

far

toward the accomplishment of that whereto


In quietness and confidence

they are sent.


shall

be your strength.

Be

still

and know that

He

is

God

some
!

forms of knowledge come

by the

active use of the intellectual faculties

and other forms come by quiet communion.

Be

still

and know

The Lord
[126]

of Hosts

is

with

J^ealtng po^x^n of
you;
the

^ugge^tion
your refuge.

God

of Jacob

is

Be

strong and of a good courage

the Lord thy

God He
fail

it is

that goeth with you,

you nor forsake you.

He will not Know whom you


at every point

have believed, even though you remain uncertain as to

what you may believe

in the creed
is

to know whom one has believed


vital faith
;

a long step toward

and know too

that

He

is

able to keep that which you have

committed unto Him.

to

Have faith in God him that believeth


a large

All things are possible


faith opens a

wide door
is

into

field of possibilities.

" Great

thy

faith," the

Master said to the

woman whose
all

affectionate

and believing entreaty on behalf


seemed to overleap
obstacles,

of her child

"be
was,

it

unto thee even as thou wilt."

And

to

one who seemed to lack so much. His word

"Thy faith hath made thee whole." not the fruit but The leaves of the tree

the

incidental by-products of the wide-branched,

far-reaching system of divine helpfulness


for the healing of the nations.

are
of

The Sun

Righteousness

is

risen, filling the

whole world

[127]

iffaiti^

anti J^ealtl^

of

human need

with Hfe-giving rays, even as


fills

the ordinary sun

the earth with light


living thing

and

warmth, quickening every

the

Sun
sick

of Righteousness

is

risen with healing in

His wings.

The
its

prayer of faith shall heal the


place

it

takes

among

the other thera-

peutic agencies

upon which wise and devout


in
this

men
are
give

rely.

And

whole attitude we
is

dealing with
all

Him who

able to forall

our iniquities and to heal

our

diseases.

Great peace have they which love


the divine law,

Thy

law

the divine way,

the divine

method

and
Thou
is

nothing shall cause them to


wilt

stumble.

keep him

in perfect

peace

whose mind

stayed on
struggle
is,

Thee

though storm
soul,

and tempest,
without, there

and temptation, rage


a place
abid-

deep within the

untroubled, unshaken, untouched in


ing peace.
I give unto

its

Peace I leave with you

My peace
Let not
be afraid.
all

you

and

it

was a transcendent

peace which the Master possessed.

your heart be troubled, neither

let it

And

the peace of

God which
[128]

passeth

under-

i^ealtng

po'wn

of ^uggejJtton

standing, which goes deeper than the ordinary

reach

of

our

intellectual

perceptions,

shall

keep
it

the word used was a military term and


if

meant "garrison" as

deep within the


citadel

life

there

was an impregnable
of

made

strong

beyond the power


of

any assault

the peace
and mind

God
The

shall

garrison your heart

through Jesus Christ.


searching inward reconstruction which

will gradually

take place under the power of

intelligent suggestion and religious faith will

work marvelous changes in the general health " They that wait upon the Lord shall renew

their strength,"

through the reinforcement of

His imparted grace.


strength to His

"The Lord
shall

shall give

people they

go from

strength to strength," from one form of strength


to another

and a higher form, from one meas-

ure of strength to another and a fuller measure.

The Lord
all

is

the strength of

my
!

life,

of

whom,
can do

or of what, shall I be afraid

"I

things"

this

sounds

like
is

boasting

"through Christ" (but here


humility, for the strength
is

modesty and
it

His and

becomes

[129]

fatti^

anu

l^ealti^

ours by the personal appropriation of faith)

"who strengtheneth me." And all this must issue


ness,

in increased happi-

which

in turn will react

upon

health, for
If

a merry heart doeth good

like medicine.

ye

know

these

things,

do them,

translate

the

vision into deed, the insight into practice, the

promise made to your higher,


performance, and happy you
is

finer self into


will be.

Happy

he that hath the

God

of

Jacob for his help

his personal relation to the Eternal


in

becomes

him a deep

well of happiness springing


life.
it

up

with everlasting

These things have

spoken unto

you

was almost the


of gladness

last

word uttered on earth by


anointed with the
fellows,
oil

Him whom God


above his

making His joy a transcendent and a

surpassing joy

these
My

things have I spoken

unto you that

joy might remain in you


filled full.

and that your joy might be

And

then to crown and close the day of

deep, rich experience, seek the rest and quiet


of profound sleep.

"Come
[130]

unto

Me

all all

ye

that

labor

and are heavy laden "

ye

l^ealtng po'cott of ^uggejstion


weary, burdened and depleted lives
will give

" and

you

rest."

"There remaineth
in

there-

fore"

not

away

some remote

hereafter
in the

beyond the clouds, but here and now


midst of these exacting duties
the people of

"a

rest for

God";

it is

a rest which comes


flee-

not by unloading ohe's obligations or by


ing from one's duties, but

by that re-enforcein

ment
in

of strength

which finds ease and joy


" I will lay
to

the performance of duty.

me down
which

peace and sleep"

and

any

life

loses all care in the sweet forgetfulness

and

the precious renewal of sleep there

is

given

an innocent, rewarding and ever recurring


source
of

profound
to dwell

comfort
in

" for

Thou
giveth

makest

me

safety."

He

His loved ones sleep


If

you are

suffering

from nervous headaches

or nervous indigestion as a result of living

under too great a

strain;

if

you have a tenis

dency to hysteria, of which there


deal

a great
if

more than many people suppose;

cer-

tain functions are not performing their duties

as they ought, I

know by
[131]

experience,

my own

mtti
and that

ant) i$tait\i
if

of others, that

you

will take these

suggestions and use


persistently,

them

quietly, trustfully,
in

you can bring about a change


interior life

your whole

which

will register its

good

results all

through your body.

Send your

thoughts aloft into this upper, purer air whenever they are freed for a few

moments from
and

the ordinary concerns which occupy them,

they will not return unto you void.


If

you are troubled with insomnia, as so


these

many burdened men and women are in days, when we are living at too sharp a
you can
find help here.
I
it

pace,

have great sympadifficult


it

thy for those


several years

who

find

to sleep; to
lie

ago I knew what

meant

awake the long night through, hearing


ing for sleep and longing in vain.

the

clock strike the hours and the half hours, long-

But

it

is

possible for us to teach ourselves better habits


of sleep. I have learned how, at the close of

some

long, hard, exacting day, to so use these

scriptural formulas that oftentimes in less than


five

minutes after

my

head touches the pillow


re-

am

sound asleep, awaking next morning


[132]

I^ealtng |^oier of ^uggejcjti'on


freshed
is

and ready

for another busy day.

It

unspeakably good to be able to lay oneself


in peace

down
infinite

and

sleep,

resting

upon the

arm
will

of

Him who maketh

us dwell in

safety.

You

understand that I do not offer these

suggestions to you as a panacea for Bright's


disease or cancer or bubonic plague; in the

presence of such diseases the power of suggestion


is

as helpless as

is

Mrs. Eddy

herself.

The

Christian Scientists are simply


in this

plungers

and speculators

market where wholeis

some suggestion has value and

quoted regu-

larly in all the reliable medical journals.

The

men who the many


tain
its

are using

it

intelligently as

one of

therapeutic agents are, on the other

hand, trying in sober, sensible fashion to ascerexact value and to employ


it it

where ex-

perience has "indicated"

as being useful.

And it is true beyond a peradventure that in many nervous, mental and functional disorders you can thus invest thought and desire
in the confident assurance of receiving

good

dividends.

[133]

{fattl^

ann l$taW^
germ

And
in

indeed in cases of organic disease and


off

warding
it

the attack of

diseases

you

will find

of great value to cultivate that state


is

of

mind and heart which

favorable to health.
is

We

know

that

pneumonia
is

developed from

a microbe and that there


culosis

a bacillus of tuber-

and a

bacillus of diphtheria

and that

there are other enemies of our peace.

Some
to

people seem to think that

if

man happens
is

meet one of these microbes


him.

it

all

up with
wards

But the doctors and nurses

in the

of the hospitals

where such patients are treated


bacilli of

probably have the


in their

those very diseases

mouths and noses and throats every

day
of

in the week,

and

it is

a rare thing for any


If

them

to contract the disease.


in

you

will

keep yourself
tally,

good health, physically, men-

may walk unhurt in The the midst of a multitude of microbes. seed of disease may come your way, but it
morally, you also

does not find in you good

soil,

or

when

it it

falls

upon you the


healthful

birds of the air devour

up,

the winged energies of your inner, positive,


life

destroy

it

before

it

has time to

[134]

l^ealing po\x)tv of ^uggeistton


take root, and you pass on unhurt.
disease does actually fasten
If organic

upon you and you same


practice

need medical treatment,


of

this

wholesome suggestion which quiets the


fortifies

mind, steadies the nerves,


serves to line
to put

the will,

up the recuperative

energies

and

them

in condition to mightily aid the

physician and the nurse in making you well.

In a serious surgical operation even, the chances


of recovery are greatly improved
if

the patient

goes to

it

with a free mind, in a happy


feeling of confidence in the

mood

and with a
Get

outcome

rather than in a state of fear


it

and

anxiety.

out of your mind,

if

you can, that you

are a helpless victim; the chances are ten to


one, that you are not.
It

probably

lies

within

your power to come


through

oflF

more than conqueror

Him who
you

loves you.

Make up
all

your

mind
seen

that

will lay

hold upon

the forces health!

and unseen which make

for

Then, not by some sudden dramatic change,


but by sowing good seed in good
soil

expect

as a result in due course of time a harvest of

good health.
[135]

jfaitl^

ann
will,

i^ealtl^

You

can,

if

you

overcome your

self-

distrust,

your fear of

failure,

your sense of

in-

adequacy to your tasks by the persistent use


of suggestion.
trust

You can overcome your

dis-

of

others,

your suspicion as to their

motives, your feeling that there must be


evil

some

lurking there in the dark, your cynical


of

unbelief

which you are often ashamed.


of the

You can overcome your morbid dread


future;

most of the things that people worry


into
their

themselves

graves

about

never

happen.

You can do

all this

by the systematic,
of suggestion in
lines

persistent use of the

power

inducing

more wholesome

of

thought

and more healthful


to

states of feeling.

Learn

depend

less

upon the without and more upon


just brushing the
lie

the within.

In

my

judgment we are

surface of the stores of helpfulness which

hidden there.
quarters.

We

are doing just that in

many

Electricity

has been here in the

world ever since the lightning flashed across


the sky the day that

Noah

entered the ark

when he saw

the storm coming, but

we

of this

[136]

l^ealtng p^otuet: of ^uggejstton


generation are the
it.

first

to really

We

are just beginning to

make use of know the power

of right thinking

and

right feeling as they bear

upon
you

health,
set

sanity

and

character.

When

yourself toward the high

and hard

task of being

the

made whole, all the way up, all way down and all the way in, you have
and within you the propelling

behind you

force of the divine


intent

mind and

the divine love

upon the same great end.

He

too

is

seeking to banish fear, to bestow confidence,


to increase faith, to promote healing.
is

He

too

desirous that you should gain peace, develop

strength, secure happiness


rest

and enter

into the

which remains for the people of God.

While you are working out your own salvation


by systematic and persistent
effort,

God

is

working with you and for you to accomplish

His good pleasure.

[137]

Cl^e

Cmmanuel ^oUmtnt

Ci^e

Emmanuel
HE
the
apostle

jttotement

of

old

believed
of

strongly

in

the
of

principle
labor.

division

He

believed that the interests of

the

physical

body are best


its

advanced when each member does

own
it

appointed work and does not undertake to do


the
is

work

of

some other member

for

which

neither adapted nor trained.


if

A man

will

be more useful
his hands, as a

he does not try to walk on


skillful

few

acrobats have been

able to do, or to write letters in curious fashion

with his

feet.

Let each member

fulfill its

own

appropriate

office.

And

the interests of society as a whole will

be best advanced when we recognize that there


are diversities of gifts but the

same
his

Spirit,

and that
the

in divers

ways divers men can serve


as each

common good

makes

own

con-

[141]

faitii
tribution

anD
line

l^ealtl^
of
his
is

along

the

particular

capacity and training.

"To

one

given the
to another

word

of

wisdom by the

Spirit

and

the gifts of healing by the

same

Spirit."

This
atti-

general principle indicates

my

personal

tude in regard to that interesting development


in

modern

religious life

known

as

"The Emmain
moveis

manuel Movement."

You
ment.
at the

are familiar no doubt with the

facts connected with the origin of this

Dr. Elwood Worcester,

who

now

head of the movement, was formerly

located in Philadelphia where he enjoyed a


close friendship with Dr. S.

Weir Mitchell, one


specialists in this

of the

most eminent nerve

country.

He

then went to Boston as rector of


the

the

Emmanuel Church on

Back Bay, and


of his asso-

Dr. Samuel
ciates.

McComb

became one
Dr.

While neither of these gentlemen had


medicine.

ever

studied

Worcester

had

studied psychology at Leipsic under

Wundt
Lehigh

and had taught


University;

it

for several years at

Dr.

McComb
[142]

had studied psy-

chology at Oxford, and both of them were in-

Ci^e

Emmanuel

jttotement

tensely interested in the principles of mental


healing.

They were men


relief

of

warm

sympathies and

they desired to do something for the physical


as well as for the moral upbuilding of

the people
started

who came

within their reach.


class

They

a tuberculosis

where the poor

people

who

could not afford to go to the Adiron-

dacks or to Arizona were instructed


sleep out of doors

how

to
fire

on porches or on the
of those

escapes, or

by the use

modern winout of doors

dow
end.

appliances, where the head


is

is

while the body

indoors, to

compass the same

In this way, even in the narrower tene-

ments of the poor, something was accomplished for their help, in combating tuberculosis

of

the

lungs.

The

people were also

taught useful ways of caring for their health

and were instructed how they might avoid


contracting

or

communicating
its

that

dread

disease which takes

terrible toll every year

from the rich as well as from the poor, but


especially in the narrow,

crowded tenements

of the less fortunate.

[143]

fatti^

and
men

f ealti^
at

Then
three

these good

Emmanuel Church
the

broadened the scope of their work, and some


years

ago

started

"Emmanuel
first
lifts

Health

Class."

From
of

the

very

they
this

showed a sanity

method which

movement
faith cures

entirely out of the class of sporadic

which are made up mainly

of

good

intentions

and excitement, and out

of the class

of those other

movements which are curious


total disregard for

mixtures of wild, irrational metaphysics and

dogmatic assertion, with a


scientific

values
is

or

methods
treated

of
at

procedure.

No

patient
until

ever
there

Emmanuel
competent

Church

has been

diagnosis of the case by a regular physician


indicating

that

there

is

no organic disease

demanding medical or
that the case
treated
is

surgical treatment,

and

one which could be properly


If

by psychic methods.
taken up by the

these facts

are established by competent diagnosis then

the case

is

men

at the

Em-

manuel Church.

The

suggestion

is

given in a

room

at the

church with helpful surroundings by either

[U4]

Ci^e

Emmanuel jHotement
In

Dr. Worcester or by one of his associates.


addition to these morning

and evening

clinics,

Emmanuel Church maintains a weekly


service
is

public

which

is

in reality

a health class.

There

the reading of scripture, prayer

and a twenty-

minute address, followed afterward by a half

hour for

social

intercourse.

In addition to

the instruction given by the rector and his


assistants, these meetings

have been addressed


Barker of Johns

by Dr. Cabot

of Boston, Dr.

Hopkins, Dr. Putnam


specialists in

the

known The medical profession.


and other well
Suggestion;

topics

discussed

have been such as these:


Habit;

Worry; Anger;
nia;

Insom-

Nervousness; Peace in the home;

What

the will can do;

What
of

prayer can do, and

other similar subjects


to

immediate

interest

those who were suffering from the


to

sort of
es-

maladies

which

this

movement has

pecially addressed

itself.

In sensible fashion these

men do

not disdain

the use of drugs or other material agencies


as

do those healers who have


less

lost their

heads
line.

and become more or

crazy along this

[145]

iJfatti^

ann i$tait^
can be attained more

If

the desired

result

easily

and more

surely

by the use

of

a drug

than by the employment of suggestion, they

do not

hesitate to advise the use of the material


If the

remedy.

headache

is

found to be due

to eye strain or to astigmatism, they believe

that an oculist

and a pair

of spectacles will

accomplish more than a train load of suggestion.


If

medicine or surgery

is

indicated,

then they promptly advise the patient to avail


himself of the help of the

men

trained in the

use of those lines of treatment.


believe that
air

They

rightly

since

God

uses sunshine, fresh


all

and nourishing food, which are

manot

terial agencies, to increase health.

He

will

disdain the use of those other material agencies

which experience has


is

found

valuable.

There

no more piety

in

undertaking to be

healed of some disease by suggestion than by


quinine;
if

the disease happens to be a bad

attack of malaria the use of quinine would be

more

directly in

harmony with what we know


In either case the patient

of the will of
is

God.

simply using some agency created and ap-

[146]

Ci^e
pointed
purpose.

Cmmanuel
on
high

jttotiement
that

from

for

beneficent

These earnest and

unselfish

men

at the

Em-

manuel Church have accompHshed a great


deal of good.

A
of

recently published

article

by Dr. Cabot
tailed

Boston contains some deefforts.

account of the results of their

He

studied the records of their cases from


to

March
of one

November

in the

year 1907, a record


cases.

hundred and seventy-eight

In

eighty-two cases of neurasthenia, twenty cases

were much improved, sixteen


seventeen not at
cases
all

slightly

improved,

improved, and in twenty

the

final

results

were unknown.

In

cases of alcoholism, eight cases out of twenty-

two were much improved.


fears,

In other cases of
obsessions,
of

fixed

ideas,

various

and

hysteria

about

one fourth
benefit

the
this

patients
line

received

marked

from

of

treatment at
also

Emmanuel Church.

There was
in

an encouraging percentage of success

the treatment of those addicted to the use of


drugs, morphia, cocaine
sad, discouraged

and the

like.

Many
lifted

men and women were


[147]

fatti^
into
life

and

l^ealti^
to take

new hope and enabled

up the old

again with a better prospect for victory. meditating suicide, through

Some who were


and were put
and useful
All this

the loss of all interest in life,


in the

were restrained

way

of living honorable

lives.
is

beautiful,

and every man with a

heart in his breast thanks

God

for

it.

It is

indeed

impossible, as

these

very

men have
its

pointed out, for the church to close


the

eyes to

example of

its

Founder who not only

preached His matchless Sermon on the Mount,


but opened the eyes of the blind and caused
the lame to walk.
It
is

impossible for the


its

church to disregard that portion of

great

commission which says "Heal the sick" as


well

as

"Preach the Gospel."


its

When
to

the

church does neglect

duty at these points


indifferent

and where physicians are

the

value of mental and spiritual forces in over-

coming disease then we may look

for a full

crop of those queer cults which have been misleading large numbers of people in recent
years.

The

people want to

know what

help

[148]

Cl^e
there
is

Cmmamtel jHotement
The
rapid growth of
all

along this Hne.

these strange cults, covered

over though

some

of

them are with such nonsense as would


is

tend to crush them,

a significant
life.

symptom
the imas

in our twentieth century

And

mense popularity

of

such books

Ralph

Waldo

Trine's

"In Tune with the


Call's

Infinite"

and Annie Payson

"Power through
of
Si-

Repose" and Dresser's "The Power

lence" and Charles Brodie Patterson's "The all indicate the wide inWill to be Well,"

terest

in

and the

popular

insistence

upon

knowing what can be gained


for physical efficiency

in that direction

and

for spiritual peace.

The
that
it

founders and the friends of the


therefore,

Emmany

manuel Movement,
churches and
it

have an idea

should be widely extended; that

many
of

ministers ought to take


their

up as a part
this

regular work.

branch of

movement has already been

established with the approval of the Bishop


of the diocese in connection with St. Luke's

Hospital in the city of San Francisco.

Here

and there over the country in various other


[149]

mtt^ anD
denominations there are
the

i^ealtl^
little

out-stations of

Emmanuel Movement.
I wish to ask

Now
be wise.

whether or not such an

extension of the

Emmanuel methods would


what ought
to

I wish to inquire

be

the attitude of intelligent churches, ministers,

and physicians toward

this

plan for the wider


Personally I
wise. I should

extension of this line of

effort.

do not

believe that

it

would be

be more than sorry to see

my own

church

transformed in any measure into a hospital


or a

sanitarium for nervous diseases or to

find myself

holding clinics or undertaking to

practice as
studies

an amateur

in medicine.
last

By my
twenty-

along this line for the

three years as indicated in an earlier chapter

and through
suffering

my

wide experience with people


in this large

from nervous disorders

parish, I might perhaps be as well qualified


for such
I

an

effort as is the

average pastor, but

should shrink utterly from such a responsi-

bility.

Dr. Worcester and Dr.

McComb

are

exceptional

men and

they have had exceptional

training in psychology, but even so I seriously

[150]

Cl^e

(Emmanuel jHobement
now
movement
or the present measure
its

question whether the popular interest


felt in this

of confidence given to

general methods will

endure in anything

like the

same degree

for

any

considerable length of time.


the Christian church had

Time was when


everything under

its
it

own
was

control.

If

people

went

to the theater

to see

some morality
witness

play like

"Everyman"
If

or

to

some
Play"
it

scriptural presentation like the "Passion

at

Oberammergau.
to

they traveled,

was

upon a pilgrimage
to the

some shrine or perhaps


at Jerusalem.
it

Holy Sepulchre
to school

If the

children went

was

to

monk

or

a nun
cation

the ecclesiastical origin of popular eduis

indicated in the very caps

and gowns
sanction

which our professors and students love to


wear.
Secular
authority

took

its

not from the consent of the governed or from


the suffrages of the people, but from the sacred

anointing

and

coronation of

some

official

by the
were

church the

king was

" the Lord's

anointed."
sick,

And
some

in like

manner when people


the church

official of

came

[151]

faiti^

and

J^ealtl^
prayed over them

and anointed them with


dies as were

oil,

and perhaps administered such material reme-

known

to the rude practice of

that early time.

Whatever we may think


its

of this regime in

own

day,

it

has utterly gone.

Do we want
work

to return to that or to

any considerable measto confuse the

ure of

it.^

Do we want

of the physician, for example, with the


of the minister of religion.?
I

work
for

do not believe

that

we do;
of

I believe
still

it

would be bad
community.

the physician and

worse for the minister


If

and worst

all

for the

we
is
it

should come to have any widespread practice


of medicine

by the untrained,

for

this

what

it

would mean,
in the

the
name

very fact that


of religion

was being done


tend "to break

would

down

the confidence of the

people in the value of expert knowledge, to


raise in

them

false

and unwarranted expecta-

tions, to feed superstitious sentiments

and

to

blind
life

them

to

the solid, verifiable order of


It

in

which our work must be done."


to

would have a tendency


[152]

do exactly what

Christian Science
in

is

doing in wholesale fashion


its

muddling the minds of

devotees beyond

all possibility of

normal action and expansion.

To
the

one

is

given the word of wisdom, the word

of moral instruction

and

of spiritual appeal,

word

of comfort, uplift
to another

and invigoration
is

for the inner life;

given the gift

of healing

by a difference

of operation but

by

the same Spirit.

It is altogether right that this

important distinction should be kept clear.

Suppose that the case has been diagnosed

by a competent physician and that there


bility for the minister of religion to

is

no organic disease present, what a responsitake over

into his care

some nervous
is

sufferer.

He

is

invading what

perhaps the most delicate

and the most


science,

difficult

domain
of

of

medical
disease,

the
is

treatment
it

nervous

and he
enough

doing

"without medical training


to pass the first year's

to enable

him

examinations in any reputable medical school


in the land."

Good

intentions

and ordinary

common

sense are not sufficient for

the responsibilities which confront

many of us. They

[153]

ifatti^

and

i^ealti^

are not suflBcient, for example, to determine

whether

some

individual

is

suffering

from
is

appendicitis, to decide whether

an operation

imperative, or to indicate

how

that operation
in his senses

can best be performed.

No man
his

would think
tions

moment and common sense,


for a

that his good inten-

sympathy with

the sufferer,

and

his

smattering of medical
in

knowledge would warrant him


knife

using the

upon

his

fellowman in such a case.

And

in that delicate

and

diflficult

domain

of nervous

disease
sense,

mere good
joined

intentions

and common
of

with a
in

general knowledge

psychology,
insufficient.

are

like

manner

altogether
to

Such a combination ought not


any
invalid out of the

presume
of

to take

hands
par-

a physician trained and

fitted for that

ticular line of treatment.

I believe in every

word written

in the pre-

ceding chapter on the power of suggestion.


I
believe
in
it

because I have tested these


I be-

claims by long continued experience.


lieve that
it

is

good for the minister to go to


to the hospital.

the sick

room and

He

might

[154]

Ci^e Cmntanuel jWiotement


well

make

his visitation of his people a


If

kind

of general treatment.

he

is

a wise and good


sympathy, his

man, he can oftentimes by


tact,

his

and

his religious faith render great as-

sistance to the physician, to the nurse,

and

to
in

the

members
I

of

some anxious household


to

what they are seeking


But

do

for

some

sufferer.
all this

am

confident that he can best

do

when he goes
in

as a minister of religion

and not
in

any sense as an amateur dabbler

the

practice of medicine.

I desire to help every


all

one of

my

people in

the ways that I can;


in

I have given a great

many hours

my present

parish during the last fourteen years to efforts

which

had

to

do with nervous and mental


I never wish to take

troubles.

But

any patient
hands of a

for a day, or for

an hour, out

of the

physician
for

who has been


I

trained to

do a work

which

am

not trained.

I wish to stand as

his ally, but not in

any sense as a

substitute

for him.
is

To me

the

word
and

of spiritual
to

wisdom

given by

the Spirit

him

the gift of

healing by the

same

Spirit.

We will

suppose again that the case has been


[156]

faitift

and

l^ealti^

diagnosed by a physician as one not suffering

from organic disease and then


to the minister as
erly' treated

is

turned over

a case which could be proppsychotherapy.

by
is

The

wise

physician

who

treating a case often modifies

He learns more may come the development of new symptoms. The diagnosis of a month ago may not be a proper diagnosis
his diagnosis as time goes on.

about the case and there

to-day.

Who

is

to decide all these questions

when
one

the case

is

no longer

in the

hands

of

who has been


?
it

trained in the science of

diagnosis

Suppose

is

only a case of neurasthenia


!

and not a tumor on the brain

Shall

we

in

endeavoring to utilize the aid of mental


spiritual

and

suggestion,

neglect

those

physical

factors

which enter

into the treatment even


diet,

of these disorders
sage,
not.''

such matters as
electricity,
is

mas-

baths,
If

douches,

and what

we

are not to neglect


to

them and the

minister himself
lines, as well as

prescribe along these


spirit-

administer mental and

ual treatment, then you simply have an amateur

[156]

Ci^e

cBmmanuel jHotement
man
in

instead of a trained

using those agencies

which may be used


will

such a way that they

count for good or

may be

used in such

a way as to work serious injury to the patient.


I find myself therefore in hearty

sympathy

with that clear word of Professor Freud of


Vienna, one of the most eminent psychologists
in Europe.
this

He

said in a public address in

country recently, " When I think that there

are

many

physicians

psychotherapy for decades


it

who have been who yet

studying
practice

with the greatest caution, this introduction

of a

few men without medical, or with only


medical, training, seems to

superficial

me

of

questionable good."
I also agree heartily with Professor

Miinthis

sterberg

of

Harvard who believes that


if

Emmanuel Movement,
to the

widely copied, would

cheapen religion in putting the emphasis as

meaning

of life

upon personal comfort


rather than

and the absence


character,

of pain

upon

pain or no pain.
are wise

Dr. Worcester
they

and Dr.

McComb

men and

may

be able to keep

this distinction clear,

but the

[167]

jfatt)^

anu

l^ealtl^
all

thousands of
try

little

ministers

over the coun-

who

are liable to undertake this work, just


little

as thousands of

reformers of the slums

were emboldened by the dramatic experiences


of Dr.

Parkhurst in

New York

to

attempt

work
these

similar to that of the heroic

and devoted

prophet of righteousness in Madison Square,


little

ministers entering

upon the Emto

manuel Movement might not be able


that vital distinction clear.

keep

"But it is such an opportunity for the church,"

men
when

say,

"in these days of spiritual apathy

so
!

church

many men are turning away from the What a magnificent chance to bring
fill

the people back and to

the pews !"


It

This

is

undoubtedly a correct contention.


if

would,

generally adopted,

fill

the pews, for a time at

least,

probably to overflowing.

For that mat-

ter

if

any minister were

to

announce that by the


in his congregation,

grace of some rich

man

he would give a

silver dollar to

every person

present at the service next


that, too,

Sunday evening,
It

would

fill

the pews.

would

fill

them

to overflowing as long as

he might be

[158]

Cl^e

Cmmanuel J^obement
it

able to keep

up, no matter what he preached


all.

about or whether he preached at

But
?

what would become

of

religion

meanwhile

What would become

of the church as a moral

leader, as a source of spiritual inspiration, as

a character-forming agency
a crowd and
silver

He would have

many needy

people would get the

dollars
uplift

and the church as a form of


would be gone
this

spiritual

If there is
it

one place on

green earth where


all

ought to be made plain, beyond

possi-

bility of

misunderstanding, that personal comof pain are not the first


life, it is

fort

and the absence

nor the main considerations in


Christian church.

in the

Health

is

important, but

health
terests.

is

subordinate to other
question
is

more

vital in-

The great
feels well

not as to whether

man

but what he means to do with

his healthy vigor.

The main

question

is

not as

to whether he

may

continue to live for fourscore

years or even fivescore, but what sort of

man he

intends to be during that period of prolonged

moral opportunity.

"What
[159]

shall I

eat?" and
it

"What

shall I

drink?" and

"How

will

agree

faiti^
with

auD

l$talt\)
all

me

after I

have eaten it?" are

neces-

sary inquiries, but they are secondary.


first

The
Is
it

question

is,

Am

worth feeding?

important that I should be kept alive and well

Does the world need men


life
is

of

my

type?

The

more than the meat or the medicine

administered to secure a continuance of that


particular
life.

The

old

and well known order has not been


by the lazy wish of

changed by any Act of Congress or by the


wild fancies of any fanatics
those
;

who

are too feeble to fight or by the


service

kindly

and useful

rendered

by the

two men who are mainly responsible

for the

Emin

manuel Movement

the old order has not


It
still

any wise been changed.

stands

"Seek FIRST the kingdom


righteousness,"

of

God and His

and then afterward, on that


be "added."
not for the

adequate basis, the other things by other forms


of effort are to
It is

Christian church, surely, to lead off in aban-

doning that divine order of procedure.

But suppose the minister


ever so

of the parish

were

much more competent


[160]

than he

is

com-

Cl^e

Cmmanuel jHotement
to

monly believed
cine,

be for the practice of mediit

and suppose

were deemed desirable


into

that he

should enter
in

competition with
of
disease,

the

physician

the

treatment
of

certain

particular

kinds

nervous disease,
see

we will

say, even then I

do not

how he would
in any-

have the time to attend to that work

thing but a superficial fashion which would

be morally wrong as well as sadly


It

inefiFective.

only takes a
it

moment

to write a prescription

and But

does not require any great amount of

time to perform certain surgical operations.


to possess one's self of the history of a

case of nervous disorder, neurasthenia, hysteria,

melancholy, to learn
all

all

the facts and dissignificant,

cover

the

symptoms which are

and

to so study that particular case in

what

is

regarded as the most delicate and

difficult

department of medical science, as to be able to


rightly prescribe,

this requires the

work

of

hours and of days,

it

may be
is

of

weeks and of

months.

No man who
do

striving to

make himspiritual

self useful along the line of moral

and

leadership can

that as a kind of side issue

[161]

^aitt)

and

i^ealti^
in addition

which he has taken on


ular work.

to his reg-

No man has the time,

to say nothing
special-

of the ability, to
ist

do that except some

who has been

trained for that particular


in life
is

work and whose main business

to ren-

der that special form of service to mankind.

To

one

is

given the word of spiritual


to speak
it

wisdom

and the opportunity

out helpfully;

to another the gifts of healing

and the chance

to exercise

them

usefully

by the same wise and

holy Spirit.

More than
wisdom
troubles.

that, I should greatly question the

of holding regularly a church service

for the consideration

and treatment

of nervous

Some

people in the community would

be greatly helped by the instruction and the

sympathy
sufferers

of such a service.

Other nervous

who would
it

almost certainly be at-

tracted

by

might be greatly harmed by the

same

service.

A very
and a

little little

strychnia

is

useful
will

as a nerve tonic,

more strychnia
life.

act as a deadly poison


certain

and destroy

measure of sjmapathy may save a ner[162]

vous sufferer from despair, and a certain larger

Ci^e

Emmanuel pioUmmt
lie

measure of sympathy unwisely expressed might


induce that same sufferer to
into helpless

down and

lapse

and hopeless invalidism where a

hard resolute fight would have brought victory.


It

does not seem possible to administer either

strychnia or

sympathy

in wholesale fashion to

crowd

of patients.

The

regular church ser-

vice for administering such treatment for ner-

vous diseases as might be possible would both


kill

and cure

in

any miscellaneous company of

nervously depressed people

who might be

thus

brought together.
nerve specialist
classes,
is

have never heard of any


dealt with his patients in

who

and

do not believe the Christian church

any more competent to undertake such a


would furthermore be calculated
to develop

wholesale method.
It

an epidemic of nervous and mental troubles.


It
is

a well
are

known

fact that

when medical

students

studying the various diseases a

considerable percentage of them develop temporarily

the

symptoms

of

the very diseases

which are thus engaging


[163]

their minds.

These

medical students as a rule are healthy minded,

iJfaitift

ann

J^ealti^

vigorous young

men;

picture the result where


in

a company of suggestible and

many

cases

nervously disordered people are brought together once a

week

for the consideration of

nervous
gested to

troubles.

They would have more ills than they had them

sug-

ever

known about before, and in many cases would go away to reproduce in their own nervous experience
thenia.
It
all

manner

of hysteria

and neuras-

does not seem wise for the Christian church


out a solitary therapeutic agency,

to

single

suggestion,

whether given in the

fully

con-

scious or in a semi-hypnotic state,

and upon

that one agency rear a

new department of church


what the Christian

work.

This

is

precisely

Science people have done.

They have

built

their entire system of ministering to

human

suffering

upon one

agent,

and they not only


by
their leader

neglect, they are openly taught

to think scornfully of all other agencies, drugs,

surgery,

electricity,

baths,

exercise,

which

God

has ordained for our physical help.

To

thus build a

new form

of church life

upon a

[164]

Cl^e
single

mmanuel jHotement
agency does not seem wise

remedial

even though the minister

may be

conscien-

tiously trying to act in conjunction with the

physician by having

him diagnose him

the case at
cases where

the start, or by referring to

suggestion

is

not especially indicated.


life

The

simplest sort of mental

represents a bewil-

dering complexity of elements and forces.


for the proper treatment of

And

any

sort of nervous

trouble

it

may be
be

that several other agencies

beside this useful and powerful one of suggestion should


utilized together.

The most

friendly relations

and the highest

form of co-operation between the doctor of


medicine and the minister of religion can best

be secured where both realize that each one


has an entirely distinct function to perform for
the service of humanity

and where both

realize

that each can best aid the other


strictly

by attending

to his

own

specialty.

The

spiritual

ministry,
nerves,

which quiets the mind, steadies the


fortifies

and

the will,

is

of great value

to the doctor of medicine in his fight against


disease.

And

conversely the removal of pain

[166]

fatti^

anD

J^eaitl^

and the strengthening

of the

body opens the


by

way

for a

more complete

realization in that in-

dividual

life

of those high ideals held aloft

the minister of religion.


ter to say steadily,

It is for the minisfirst

"Seek

the

kingdom

of

God

and His righteousness, for


all

this is the only

adequate basis upon which


ests of life

the great interit

can safely

rest."

And

is

for the
it

physician to say, "Seek health, not because


is

the highest or the chief good in

life,

but be-

cause a wholesome attention to those


ing spiritual ideals
is

command-

not possible where the

body

is

racked with pain, and because the per-

fect realization of

them can be

best attained

where there
for mental

is

a sound physique, as a basis


spiritual

and

advance."
fully in-

Let the young physicians be more

structed in the medical schools in the principles of psychology as well as in the facts of

physiology.

The mood and


it.

the need of our

age imperatively demand

By

that thorough
will

study the physicians themselves

be made
lines,

competent to render service along those

and

they will also be the

more

inclined to in-

[166]

Cl^e

Cmmanuel ^oumtnt
ministers
of
religion

vite the co-operation of the minister of religion.

Let

the

forsake
to
let

any
be-

secondary ambitions

they

may have

come amateur dabblers


strive to

in medicine;

them

be more
live in

fully

competent

in aiding the

people "to

the vision

and

service of the

greatest ideals of the race." to be

Let them study

workmen approved unto God, guiding and


and unseen which make
In
for the realthis diverse

inducing the people to lay hold upon those


forces seen

ization of those greatest ideals.

yet sympathetic service, the interests of the

community
great

will

be best advanced towards that


in health

consummation
all

and

in character

where the Lord of


forgiven
all

the higher values will have


will

all

our iniquities and

have healed

our diseases.

[167]

Ci^e

(Bomi

of (I50DD ^^taltt)

VI

Ci^e (Bo^vtl of (0OOD

l^ealtlft'

the vision of the seer, "the


of

leaves

the

tree

were for

the healing of the nations."

The
fruit,

leaves,

rather than
in his

the

became

mind the

graceful symbols of the divine interest in the

curing of disease.

The

leaves represent that


of

which

is

incidental,

a kind

by-product.
to
all

The main
fruit ;
it

business of the tree

was
"

produce

bore fruit every month

of fruit"

manner and undoubtedly the same kind of


named by
the apostle.

fruit as that
fruit

Now

" the

of the Spirit,"

he

says,

"is love, joy,


faith-

peace,
fulness,

patience,

gentleness,

goodness,

mildness and

self-control."

These
the
is

useful moral
Spirit;

qualities are

the fruits of

the type of character here indicated


life is

the real fruit which the tree of


to

intended

produce in the garden of


'

human

experience.

Copyrighted, 1908, by Luther H. Gary.

[171]

mt^
But
incidental to

and

l$talt\^
in

its

main purpose, thrown


is

as you might say, there

a further ministry to
of the tree are for

good health

" the leaves


make

the healing of the nations."


It is well to this distinction clear be-

cause in

all

our communities there are groups

of religiously disposed people

who make

physi-

cal healing the central object of their interest.

They

talk about
it,

it,

they think about

it,

they

write about

incessantly.

In their published

statements they deny the very existence of disease, but with a curious inconsistency they at

once proceed to spend their main strength in an


heroic effort to heal that non-existent illness

without the use of drugs.


virtually

In doing

this

they

narrow down

their religious interest

to the business of raising leaves.

When

the

day

of

judgment comes
of

it is

to

be feared that

many

them

will

have "nothing but leaves" have been

to show, for the reason that they

slighting the weightier matters of useful

and

unselfish

service

in

their

zeal

to

"demonto

strate" their ability to keep these perishable

bodies in good trim.

To do

this

is

un-

[172]

Cl^e (3o^ptl of (00011 i^ealtl^


duly exalt that which
it

is

incidental

and make

central.

We

shall part

company with

these physical

bodies of ours very soon at best.


question, therefore,
is

The

great

not whether a

man
is

has a

good
he
is

liver

and a sound stomach, but whether


upright,

sane and true, whether he

unselfish, serviceable in his personal character.

These groups

of religious people

who make
show
sort

physical healing their chief concern can

a considerable number of cures of a certain


they are in the leaf business, and
strange
if
it

would be

they did not at times produce fairly


leaves.

good crops of these

But when you make

inquiry as to the general yield of fruit in the

form

of useful service,

when you ask them about

providing homes for the orphans and the aged,

about making provision for the poor through


wisely administered
charities,

and generously sustained


of our

about bringing to bear those better

influences
cities

upon the neglected portions

through social settlements and other val-

ued forms of endeavor, about providing wellrounded Christian men and women thoroughly
[173]

faiti^
much

anD

i^ealtl^

furnished for every good work, they have not


to say for themselves.

They have un-

fortunately been occupied for the most part in


raising those leaves

which are for the healing

of certain

minor bodily ailments.


if

Their successes are to be found mainly,

not solely, in the correction of certain functional


troubles as distinct from cases of organic disease.

The

principle of suggestion which they

employ
seems

has value in maladies which have their origin


in nervous or mental disorders, but
it

thus far to have had

little

or

no

efficacy in

the face of serious organic disease such as


cancer, tuberculosis of the lungs, or Bright's
disease.
It

was Dr.

S.

Weir Mitchell, one

of

the leading specialists in America,


recently,

who

said of

"There

is

no

scientific

record

any form of organic disease having been cured

by any form
mind."

of influence exerted through the


this fact
it

In view of

would surely be
of the untaught

for the safety of children

and

generally
either

if

mental healers could be induced,


of public opinion,

by law or by the power


[174]

to confine their efforts to that class of cases

Ci^e
where

(I5oj2ipel

of

(13oot>

J^ealtl^

scientific research

and wide experience

unite in indicating that suggestive therapeutics

may
what

operate with some hope of success.


in

But bearing
is

mind

the distinction between


is

central

and what

incidental to the
it

main

purpose of the gospel,


is

is

in order to

ask what

here offered us in our Bible for our

physical health.

The Church
on the

of Jesus Christ
its its

ought to "teach health," not as


ness, but as a leaf
tree of

chief busi-

main puris

pose, which, as already indicated,

to pro-

duce the good


service.

fruit of Christian character

and

We

have been unnecessarily

fright-

ened, perhaps, by the nonsense and wildfire

which so often characterize


ligious experience.

this

phase of re-

We

have neglected what

had

better

have been patiently cultivated with

intelligence

and

love.

We
tent

would not have so


if

many

religious side-shows to-day


in the

the per-

formance

main

had been

to a greater

degree well-rounded and complete.


to be able to offer to
all

We

ought

who come

the total

helpfulness of the gospel of Christ.


It

has seemed to

many

people that in the last

[175]

iffaitl^

ann

i^ealti^

half of the nineteenth century there

was a widethe

spread tendency to depend too

much on
its

without and not enough on the within.

Westfor

ward the
velopment.

star

of

empire took

way

centuries, seeking

new
as

fields for material

de-

Now,

some

said recently, "Inits

ward the

star of

empire takes

way."

There

has come a wholesome reaction from the almost


idolatrous trust in material things

and a quick-

ening of interest in forces unseen.

Men and
this dis-

women have begun anew


to confide in, that

to cultivate, to honor,
is

which

within,

and

position

shows

itself

in

many

ways.

The

kingdoms

of this world, bodily health, mental

development, social charm, useful action, are by


this

movement from within becoming more


and
steadily

truly

kingdoms
rebellious,

of the Spirit of

Christ, rate

no longer

no longer sepa-

and independent, but submissive and harSpirit.

monious kingdoms of the divine

And

it is

the belief of

many

thoughtful people

that the

main hope

of our Christian world for

improved health, and for the consequent larger


joy and effectiveness,
lies

not so

much

in the

[176]

Cl^e (^o^ptl of

CBiooD i^ealti^

increased efficiency of medical science in dealing with disease

when

it

has actually fastened


is,

upon the

patient, important as this

as in so

strengthening

the

inner

life

that

increased

immunity from the inroads of disease may be


attained.

Here
tains,
life
!

is

a gold mine, not far away in the moun-

but deeply buried in your


It

own

inner

has never been adequately worked.


spirit

You have your mind and


members; they
depend

always with
all

you, and they are always in touch with


sustain sympathetic

your
vital

and

relations with all those functions for healthy


life.

upon which we
and a wisely
you
in pos-

These inner forces may


that will put

be utilized by

intelligent faith

directed will in a

way

session of wonderful values

which for years,


soil

perhaps, have been hidden under the


thoughtlessness
if is

of

and

indifference.

You

can,

you

will,

dig

down and develop


it

that which

within you, so that

will

earn for you and

for those

you love

priceless dividends

Let

me

indicate then certain points in this


it

gospel of good health as

stands declared in

[177]

faitt)
Holy Scripture.
It

anu
is

l^ealti^
first

imperative

of all

that one should cultivate the habit of right

thinking, for " As a

man

thinketh in his heart,

so

is

he." Mental attitudes persistently main-

tained have a tendency to register themselves


for

good or

ill

in physical conditions.

Right

thoughts

make

for

sound health, while wrong

thoughts invite and encourage the inroads of


disease.

This primary necessity of keeping the mental


life
it

wholesome imposes a
is

serious obligation, for


to cultivate

much more

diflficult

right

thoughts, right desires, right purposes so that


these shall steadily bear rule within, than
to
it is

go and take something out of a

bottle.

The
cry,

higher levels of

human

eflBciency

are never

reached without hard climbing.


"

But the
is

Good

health for a dollar a bottle,"


force.

rapidly

becoming a spent

The cry of good

health
of

at the price of the cultivation


all

and training

one's powers, physical, mental, spiritual,

by

bringing them into joyous


revealed will of God,
is

harmony with the


to the fore.

now

And

this

mode

of treatment has this further

[178]

Ci^e (^o^ptl of (^ooD


advantage, that
it

i^ealtlft

may, and to be genuinely


must, include the
entire inner

and permanently
culture
life in

eflSicacious

and development of the

a way that taking something out of a

bottle does not.

Many

of us will live to see


all sides

the day

when

there will be growing on


life

these trees of

covered with leaves for the

healing of the nations; and the


ple,

common

peowill

having heard the good news gladly,

be constantly utilizing this source of help for


their

improved health.

Strive to

reach the
say,

point where you can look

up and

"Thy
are

thoughts are

my

thoughts, and

Thy ways
be

my

ways,

Lord," and you

will

in line of

promotion toward the fulfillment of your highest hopes.

In the very forefront of

all

the harassing

apprehensions which destroy peace of mind and


invite the

approach of certain forms of disease,


this terrible fear of possible physical
It
it

marches

inadequacy.

cannot be lightly regarded;

we cannot shoo
or by

away by a wave

of the

hand

some

fantastic flourish of the mind.

The
no

people

who

assert that the thing feared has

[1791

faiti^
reality are

and
flighty.

J^ealti^
Sickness and pain,

simply

disease

and death, are

all stern realities to

be

met and
quered.

faced, and, as far as

may
in

be, con-

The

vital

question

is

what mood

we can best approach them when they come. I know of none better than the high mood of the singer who sang in olden time, "I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me." With all
the practical

wisdom he
;

has, let each

man shape
in

means

to ends

let

him

lay hold of every avail-

able form of assistance in averting and

counteracting sickness, sorrow, adversity and


failure.

But when add


if

all

these visible forms of

assistance are in commission, let

him know

that

it

will

to his prospect of victory im-

measurably

he makes his struggle unabashed,

unafraid, because he has caught the spirit of


that song

and has embodied

it

in those
life.

thought

habits which dominate his inner


I will not fear
!

Suppose each morning when


utilize the well

you awake to a hard day, you

known

principle of mental suggestion

by de-

liberately storing the

mind with right thoughts.


[180]

Begin your day with the repetition of certain

Ci^e (5o^ptl of dDiooD l^ealti^


assurances from Holy Writ, uttering

them over

and over with your


/every
1

lips

and your mind and your

soul, until the full strength of


cell of

them

is felt^

in

your being.

"I

will fear

no

evil,
l-

for

Thou
is

art with

me."

" In quietness and


" The

'

confidence shall be
of hosts

my

strength."

Lord
is

with me; the


forgiveth
diseases;
;

God
all

of

Jacob

my
he
life

refuge."

healeth

all

"He my

my

iniquities;

he redeemeth
youth

my

from destruction good


!

he

satisfieth

my mouth
is

with
like

things, so that

my

renewed

the eagle's "


ises ringing in

Begin the day with these promyour ears, singing through the

secret

chambers of your mind, throbbing with


in the pulsations of

added strength

your heart

When you
it

relax the tired muscles

and the
sleep,

weary brain at night as you sink to

do

with these same confident assurances fur-

nishing your final

mood and

yielding

their

wholesome,

restful

influence through all the

hours of sleep
I cannot
tell

you

all it

would mean for you


tell

to

do

just this,

but I could

you much.

My

report

would be

bom

of long experience

[181]

fait^ anD
in

J^ealtl^

a busy, strenuous

life

where

all

the aids,

seen and unseen, were needed, and where

when

once brought into commission they have vindicated the high claims I here advance on
their behalf.
trustful

The

habit of serious, resolute,

meditation upon these divine assur-

ances, once formed

and

held,

works

its

own

marvels.

Souls once timid and despairing are

led to say,

"We

never saw

it

on

this fashion."

The

verifiable results of

such a practice upon


character,

health,
delicate

upon mental adequacy, upon


are increasingly registered

and imperceptible though they seem upon the

at
life

first,

within until they utter themselves in an


all

enlarged and well-grounded eflBciency for


life's

tasks.

This

is

what the singer


life

said;

he
all

was aware n

of the fact that


still

would not be

green pastures and

waters;

he might be

compelled to walk through the valley of


a shadow, but, come what might,
not fear nor be afraid.
soul
is
still

many

he would

The man whose inmost

filled

with

and possessed by such

thoughts finds himself strongly fortified against


Itiie

encroachment of disease. [182]

Cl^e (Bo^ptl of (0ooti l^ealtl^


In the next place, cherish high expectations
as the fundamental choice of your deepest
best self

and
unto

" According

to

your faith be
scripture
is

it

you."

The language

of

almost

always the language of great expectation, the


only condition put upon
of
it

being the measure


thy

human
I will

receptivity.
fill

"

Open
is

mouth wide,
herewith,

and

it"; there

no lack of material

with the Lord.


saith the
plete,

"Prove

me now

Lord; make your consecration comsee


if

and

I will not

open the windows

of

heaven and pour you out such a blessing

that there shall not be


it."

room enough

to receive
is

"Stand up
will

straight, the ceiling

high,"

you
your

not

bump
it

your head

According to

faith,

your openness, your willingness,


unto you
!

your capacity, be

There

is

nothing

shadowy or unreal about

it;

men do become

very largely what they expect to become in


that hidden faith which does not always utter
itself

in

formal

creeds,

but shows

itself

in

shaping those persistent aspirations which control

the

life.

Include within the firm grip of


this physical nature, covet-

your anticipation

[183]

mt^
ing for
it

ann

i^eaiti^
is,
!

earnestly the best there


it

and accord-

ing to your faith be

unto you

The
catch
fail
;

people
all

who

are continually expecting to

the diseases that are going, rarely


all.

they usually catch them


live in

The

people

who
fears

perpetual fear and dread and appre-

hension almost always realize, not their worst


entire

that

would be expecting too

much
them.

but

a good working percentage of


it

According to their expectation

is

gradually wrought out for them in actual experience.

I jfidence

On

the other hand, the quiet, serene conof

the

intelligent

physician,

of

the

trained nurse, or of the well-poised individual


in ordinary
life, is

like

steel

armor against
According to
is

the attacks of disease, as each one goes cour-

ageously about his


their faith
it

business.

is

unto them, and the result


If every

vastly different.

one could form the

habit of going about with those

same

familiar

words from the Twenty-third Psalm on his


lips,

in

his

mind, deeply embedded


fear

in

his

heart,

"I

will

no

evil,

for

Thou

art

[184]

Cl^e (0Dj8pel of dD^ooD i^ealtl^


with

me

I will fear

no

evil, for

Thou

art with

I do not say it would enable him to me!" lie down with rattlesnakes or to drink water out of a malarial swamp unhurt, but it would

jadd to
cases

his prospects for


in

good health,

in

some

thirty,

some

sixty,

and

in

some a

hundred

fold.

Pitch your expectation high;

look for the best, hope for the best, strive for
,

the best, and according to your faith be

it

unto

you!
I

In the third place,

it

will

be advantageous

to maintain a firm resolution as the

uncompro-

mising attitude of
great is thy faith!
be

your
it

will;

"O

woman,

unto thee even as thou

wilt!"

Here was a mother whose daughter


with one of those nervous malcall it

was
adies

aflflicted

epilepsy we
It

now

which often
of that day,

baffle the skill of

our best physicians to this

hour.

seemed to the people

untrained in scientific diagnosis, as they saw


the daughter writhing in her distress, that she

was "grievously tormented with a


best account of the matter they

devil." The knew how to

give

was

to the effect that the nature of the

[185]

f aiti^
child

anU

i^ealti^
hostile,

had been overborne by some

malicious personality resident within.

The woman was an


Son
of David,

outsider, a Canaanite,

but she came boldly to Christ, saying,

"Thou

have mercy on me."


disciples said, "

She was

not only a heathen, she was noisy and inconsiderate.

The

Send her away,"

but she only cried the more earnestly to Christ.

Then

Jesus said to her gently, "I

am

sent to
Still

the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

she

was not repulsed


But Jesus
" It
is

she said, " Lord, help

me."

said, further testing her resolution,

not meet to take the children's bread and


it

give

to

the dogs."

And

the

woman

re-

plied, in effect,

"Yea, Lord, the dogs eat the


fall

crumbs which
give

from

their master's table;

me

a crumb of divine help."


all

Her

deter-

mination leaped
distance,
all

the barriers of race and

the obstacles which a chronic and


!

painful illness interposed


her,

And

Jesus said to
!

"

woman,
in

great

is

thy faith

be

it

unto thee even as thou wilt!"


ing
itself

Faith expressthe day; her

determination

won

daughter was healed from that hour


[186]

Ci^e
If

dD^OjSpel
will

of (13ooD l^ealt^

you

stand up, your mind and heart

made

right with
in

God

to the fullest extent

you

know, and
health,"

God's name say, "Let there be


it

and keep on saying

resolutely, trust-

fully, hopefully, that


life will

very action of your inner


I

work wonders.

do not say that no


you are not
will set in

disease can stand before you, for

omnipotent, but I do say that you

operation one of the great healing forces of the world.


All

about us there are people


ills,

who have

stopped talking about their

stopped think-

ing about them, stopped pitying themselves,

who

are saying in the

way

indicated,
is

"Let
It is
will.

there be health,"

and there
at
last

health

done unto them

even as they

When
fine,

people

fix their

eyes on something high,

useful, linking their determination with

the purpose of

God

for them,
!

and say bravely


!

and

steadily.

We

will

we

will

we

will

they

are putting themselves in a position to


oflF

come

more than conquerors through Him who

loves us.

I have tried to obey the injunction,

"Phy-

[187]

jfait]^

anb
some

i^ealtl^
matter and I
feel

sician, heal thyself," in this

that I have earned

right to speak.
in

have never been privileged to stand


class graphically described

that

by Ian Maclaren,
healthy as

"People so brutally and


to feel

oflFensively

no true sympathy for those who are

fighting for their very lives."


earlier years

Many

of

my

were years of physical

struggle.

But some twenty years ago

I learned better

how
I
this

to fight.

I gained

some new weapons;


and

began to practice a

different formation,
victories.

has meant a long series of

It is
first

twenty years ago this winter since

we

began to hear people discuss the grippe,

which had then become epidemic under that


title.

If I

could recall

all

that I have heard

about that malady related by those


temporarily suffering from
it,

who were
a
all

I could write

natural history of the grippe, giving

the

symptoms
happy

in order
it.

and rehearsing

all

the un-

results of

This endless discoursing

upon

it

was not

beneficial to those
it

who made
is

the painful recitals;

is

never wise to talk


talking

without a purpose, and unless one


[188]

Ci^e (I5o0pel of (0OOD J^ealtl^


to his physician, or his nurse, or his pastor, or

some member
a
definite

of his family about his


in view,
all.

ills

with

end

he had better not talk

about them at

But with

all

the cases I have visited in


all

my

parish work, and with

the discussions to

which I have'
grippe myself;
I

listened, I

have never had the


it,

I never expect to have

and

do not rap wood when I say


it.

so, for there is

nothing of magic in
to

Some

honest attention

God's laws of health, which are as sacred

as the

Ten Commandments; some


some power

ability to

cherish right thoughts

and maintain a serene


of resolution

confidence and

have

been

sufl&cient thus far to

safeguard

me

from
Insist

any inroad

of that particular malady.

on being well; go to bed with that idea and


get

up with

it;

carry

it

about with you as you

carry your

you,
it

own face and hands about with and somehow you are apt to find that
unto you even as you
all

is

will

With
faith in

this,

cherish a personal

and

vital

God

as the
!

Supreme Friend and Helper

of

all

our

lives

"

Have

faith in

God," Jesus

[189]

mtf^ and
sent

l^ealti^

said to His trembling disciples,

and although

He

them

forth with neither purse nor scrip,

they found in this


in

new and high

confidence

which

He had

established

them an abiding

source of personal reinforcement and an ample


furnishing for a widely beneficent service.

In a certain eastern city there

is

a hospital

with that suggestive inscription over the main


entrance.
front of

The

building

is

brick, but set in the


it

it is

a broad marble slab, and on

in

letters of

gold are these plain words,


It is

"Have
of

Faith in God."
sufferers,

a Christian hospital, as

one would naturally suppose.

Hundreds

borne thither in the ambulance or

assisted

up the walk by loving

friends,

have

looked up at those words as they passed in at


the door.

We may

be sure the words have

given an added courage to


heart.

many an

anxious

Hundreds

of sufferers have there been


intelligence

cured as

human

and human love

have co-operated with those healing forces

which are altogether


away, rejoicing

divine.

As they walk
perhaps they

in health regained,

looked back at those words of gold, and were

[190]

Ci^e (^o^ptl of d^ooD


made by
the

l^ealtl^

message they conveyed more

deeply grateful to

Him who had wrought with

faith in

His chosen servants for their recovery. "Have God " they are good words to have
;

engraved upon a building devoted to healing,


or

upon the walls

of one's

home, or deeply em!

bedded within one's heart

They

point ever

to a sure source of inexhaustible help.

We

have often been afraid to aim boldly

for that simple, original, spiritual potency of

early Christianity which in the days of the


apostles healed the sick at the
it

same time

that

was saving the and


failed,

soul
it

from

sin.

Even

if

we

tried

would do us good to aim


of cer-

high.

But under the blind leadership

tain fanatics,
feel that
if

many

people have been led to

they undertook to exercise faith in


directly, they

God's power to heal


topped

were

es-

from

using

any material

remedies.

This
is

is

the sheerest nonsense.

The Almighty
some materia!
for

not so touchy as to withhold His spiritual aid,


is

because the patient

also using

remedy which He himself expressly created


the use of His children.

Those narrow-minded

[191]

faitl^ anti

f ealti^
God
is

people ought not to think that

another

such a one as themselves


But,
is
is

we

are told with an air of finality, there

no record that Jesus ever used drugs.


true

That

there
is

is

no record that

He

ever did.

There

no record that

He ever used an elevator


its

or a telephone, or that he availed himself of


the help of electricity in any of

many forms
science.
in-

now become
sist

familiar through
foolish

modern

But he would be a

man who would


all his

to-day upon climbing the stairs to the top

of a high building or

upon doing

errands

on foot because Jesus never used the many


contrivances

which

now

serve

our

needs.

Sometimes a drug which God made and which

men have
than
it

learned to use will accomplish

certain result

more

easily

and more quickly


(if,

could be accomplished
all)

indeed,

it

could be accomplished at

by purely mental
foolish

and

spiritual forces.

He would be a
who

man

indeed

who would

lightly decline its help.

And

the very people

declaim so loudly
all

against the use of drugs in time of sickness,

use soap.

Soap

is

a drug; [192]

it

is

sold at the

Cl^e

d^ojKJpel
its

of c0ooD i^ealti^
is

drugstores;

action

chemical.

K a person

were furnished with plenty of hot water and


time enough, he might wash his hands, his
face, or his clothing clean without soap,

but

it

can be done more quickly and easily with


soap;

and

for that reason all sensible people

use this drug

we

call soap.

The

very people

who become

so agitated over the use of drugs

in healing disease constantly use


realizing, apparently,

soap without

how

very funny they are

making themselves by

their inconsistency.

Have

faith, then, in

God, with no

fear what-r

soever that you are discrediting your faith in]

Him by employing all those useful aids which He has created and appointed for our benefit
Have
faith in

God, and gather

to yourself all

the mighty aid which you can claim out of

the Unseen for your perfect restoration

The
sical

divine readiness to aid us along phy-

lines reaches farther

than

many

people

dream.

In certain quarters those wild and

extravagant guesses which always precede sober


investigation

and

verifiable

knowledge

are

being made, and they frequently repel the more

[193]

mtf^ and "^tam


discriminating minds in the community.

But
first,

astronomy was not

first

astrology was
manner
of

the awe, the wonder and the interest of


the stars
claims.

men

in

leading to

all

fanciful

This gradually gave place to an exact

science which

now maps

out the courses the

planets take,
stars

measures the distances of the


us,

from each other and from


its

weighs their

huge bulk, and by


mines even the
not
first

spectrum analysis deter-

fuel they burn.

Chemistry was
with
its

alchemy
way

was

first

wild

attempts to transmute the baser metals into


precious gold and to
It

work

all

kinds of magic.
of that exact

pointed the

for the

coming

science which to-day lays whole communities

under obligation to
results in

it,

as

it

works out valued


in agriculture, in

manufacture and

the treatment of disease, and in those sanitary

measures which safeguard the health of the

community.
In similar fashion those movements called
"Christian Science," or

"New

Thought," are

the astrology and the alchemy of

modern

life,

pointing the attention of the world in a direc-

[194]

Cl^e
tion

(iaoj3pel

of (0ODti i^ealti^
will presently

where useful investigation

discover values unsuspected as yet.

We

are

not to be deceived nor repelled by the wild


guesses or the extravagant claims made.
are not to take leave of our senses, nor to
assertions

We
make
true,

which were not true

in the beginwill

ning, are not true now,

and never

be

world without end.

We

are to separate the


it

wheat from the good


effort,
soil

chafiF

and then sow


intelligent,

in the

of patient,
it

sympathetic

where

will bring forth in


sixty,

some

cases

thirty, in

some

and

in

some a hundred

fold of increased bodily vigor.

In undertaking to use these mental and


spiritual aids for the gaining

and maintenance
no wise advance

of sound health,

we
all

shall in

the cause by any sort of pretence or


believe.

make-

We

have

heard companies of well-

fed, well-dressed people, sitting easily

on cush-

ioned seats, behind stained glass windows, their

minds considerably befogged by


tempts to believe what their
told

persistent at-

common
is

sense

them was not

true, utter

some such conno


reality

fession of faith as this:

"There

[195]

fai'tl^
is is

anD

i^ealtl^
All

in sin, sickness, disease, poverty or death.

God and
It is the

all is

good.

Everything in the world


just lovely, too." to take of the

just lovely,

and we are

most economical view

matter.

If there is

no such thing as poverty

or sickness, then, of course,

upon

to give

any

of

we are not called our money to maintain


societies or associated
;

homes, hospitals,
charities.

relief

But

it is

untrue

it is

a " false claim"

which

is

leading scores of confused and undisself-

criminating people to become complacent,


centered, self-satisfied, morally

indifferent

to

the stern needs about them.

Sin

is

a fact;

young men not out

of their teens take pieces of

gas-pipe and beat the brains out of helpless


victims in order to rob them.

Crime
feet,

is

a fact;
all

men who

stand erect upon two

but in

other respects show themselves lower than the


four-footed

animals,

perpetrate

their

crimes

against the honor

and purity of young womana fact; a hard,


bitter,

hood.

Poverty

is

un-

yielding fact,
of

showing

itself the relentless

enemy
well-

the

bodily,

intellectual

and moral
its

being of those

who

suffer

under

heel.

We

[196]

Ci^e (Bo^ptl of
cannot
-scare
it

(t^DoD
big,

l^ealtl^

away with
silly

unmeaning
it

words, or by any
exist.

pretense that

does not
in-

It

can only be relieved by generous,

telligent, persistent service.

Disease and death

are perpetually recurring facts, bringing sor-

row in their train

to the

homes

of those

the fantastic theories as well as to


still

who hold those who

trust the evidence of their five senses.

We

cannot dispose of the tribulation of the world

by vague
it.

talk about there being

no

reality to

There must be a

fearless facing

of the

facts of experience as they are, coupled with

reasonable reliance upon those forms of help

which have often been neglected because they


were unseen.

With

that open-eyed honesty, then, which

shuns nothing and hides nothing, take these


gospel ingredients, right thoughts, high expectations, firm resolution, faith in

God, and em-

ploy them in the interests of a more complete

and abiding
gether, shake

state of health.

Mix them
freely
!

to-

them

well, use

them

You

need not measure them out narrowly with a drop


tube or a teaspoon; there
is

nothing in them

[197]

mtt^ anD
which
will

l^ealti^

hurt you; take as

much

of

them

as you can contain.

They

will

do you good

and only good.

They
ills

are

not

offered,

wholesome though
all

they are, as an infallible panacea for


of

the

human

flesh.
all

We
right

cannot, even withj


disease

these aids, banish

suffering,

and

death.

One whose

thoughts, high ex-

pectations, firm resolution

and

faith in

God

utterly transcended anything

we can

expect to

attain in this present world,

suffered.

"He
in

learned obedience by the things that he suffered," the Bible says.


If

any enthusiast

His presence had claimed that there was "no


reality in sin, sickness, disease or death,"

He

would have regarded such a one as not


gether in his right mind.

alto-

When

wicked

men

drove nails through His feet and hands, and

when they
suffered

pierced His side with a spear, Hel


died.
if

and

-"^

In like manner,
cruel

any one

is

overtaken by

accident,

or

loaded

down with more


and
it

work and care and necessary anxiety than he


has strength to bear, he
will suffer

may

[198]

Ci^e (^o^ptl of
be he
will incur

(1500D J^ealtl^
illness.

some painful

And

the

time will come


die.

when we

shall all suffer

and

When we have done

our best, living under


cities,

present conditions, in crowded

with the

water and food supply often contaminated, with


the air

we

breathe becoming sometimes the

agent of disease rather than of health, a certain

amount

of sickness
it

is

inevitable.

Reduce

the volume of
ing
all

by wise sanitation and by tak-

personal precautions possible, a certain


ill

percentage of people will yet be

at

some

time during the year.

And
The

even that which

is

best in us sometimes
vitality.

becomes the occasion of a depleted

father's unselfish ambition for the well-

being of his children, for their education, or


their social standing, coupled with his desire

to start

them

in life

on a better footing than

that which he enjoyed, carries

him

into

an

amount
down.

of

overwork which means a breaka mother suffers from drag-

And many

ging ill-health because she gave so freely from

her

own

store of vitality to her children.

And

the sjrmpathetic nature of

many

another, in

[199]

^fatti^

and

l^ealtl^

the face of the struggles of those


yields
itself
its

who

are dear,

so

unreservedly to them as to

lower

own

life forces.

Do

our best,

it still

remains true that a considerable section of the

whole creation groans and


pain at some time during
its

travails in physical

career.

There are
ing
If

offsets

and compensations standsuch


unavoidable
ills.

over

against

all

you had eyes to

see, ears to hear,

and a heart

to

understand, you got

something of great
It

value out of your last

illness.

did not simply

bring you the customary feeling of resentment

coupled with a huge doctor's


let

bill,

it

did not

you go

until

it

had blessed you.

It

brought

you what the Psalmist pictured, an enlargement

and enrichment
larged

of being

" Thou

hast en-

me when I was When any one is called


many months,
in a hospital

in distress."

to lie

upon a bed

of

pain for

or to spend tiresome
lie

weeks

or to

awake through
strike the
if

lonely nights

and hear the clock


is

weary hours when sleep


he
of
will,

denied, he may,

transmute
heart.

all this into

higher qualities
to the point

mind and

He may come
[200]

Ci^e (5o^ptl of (0OOD i^ealtl^


where
his sympathies

go out as they never did


of patient sufferers;

before to the whole

army

he

may

learn to think with

an added tenderness
he

of those

who

in their time of pain lack the

comfort and alleviation he enjoys;


enter into a

may

new

appreciation of the faithful,

unselfish heroism of the poor

other in their times of

trial;

he

who aid each may so pass


ills

through that period of distress as to be enlarged


in his

whole attitude toward the

of the

world.

When we

go along prosperously and joya day and sleep

ously, able to eat three meals

eight hours every night, able to take the car


for the place of business at the usual

hour

each morning with never an interruption, and


able to do our
full

share of the world's work,

rejoicing in the chance to


to fancy that this flesh
life is

do

it,

we may begin
grow
cal-

which walls about our

brass impregnable.

We may

lous

and

careless touching those lives

which a

are struggling against heavier odds than ours,

those lives which sometimes go

down
If

for

month

or two in physical defeat.

any man's

[201]

fait)^
heart
this
it

anD

l^ealti^
tight

is

becoming small,

and hard by

round and round of pleasant experiences,


be that there
is

may

no other way for his

sympathies to be brought back to a more abun-

dant

life

than for him to travel the way of

pain and distress himself.


the only

Whether
one way;

this

is

way

or not,

it

is

many a

man comes
bit

through such an ordeal to walk a


for the rest of his days but with
for all his fellows.

more slowly new sympathy

When

he

looks down into his own heart he says with profound gratitude, " The Lord enlarged me when
I

was

in distress."

But having made room


is

for that illness

which

apparently unavoidable, and having indicated


office
it

a certain high
growth, I

may perform

in

moral
it is

would again strongly

insist that

not only the part of expediency but morally imperative for every one to

do

all

that

lies in his

power

to be well, steadily

and joyously

well.

It is part of

our Christian duty to so obey


if

God's laws of health, which are as sacred as

he had actually spoken them aloud from Sinai,


to so order our habits with reference to the

[202]

Ci^e (Bo^ptl of dDJooD i^ealti^


maintenance of a high degree of
to so utilize all means, material
effectiveness,

and

spiritual,

which make for soundness, that we


to the

shall

be up

mark in physical health. The location of that tree of life, whose


is

leaves
signifi-

were for the healing of the nations,


cant,
It

it

stood " in the midst of the street."


flourished,

grew and

offering

its

gracious

and

accessible ministry right there in the very

center of a city
high.

whose walls were great and


of healing
life,

The

tree

was not remote

from the common

only to be found in
to

some far-away garden


privileged might go.

which none but the


in

It

was not shut away


grew

some sacredly guarded enclosure where only


the chosen few were admitted.
It

in the

middle of the

street,

easily accessible to all,

a part of the common, daily environment.

Busy men and women do not need

to

make
they

long pilgrimages to some distant shrine;

need not go apart into some mystical, occult


sect;

they are not required to use prescribed

formulas of speech, which no one quite understands, in order to avail themselves of this

[203]

fatti^
help.

anD

f ealtl^
Ufe,

Right here, where we are now carrying

on the work of ordinary


using our

where we are now

common

sense in our daily duties,


its

we

find this splendid tree with healing in


leaves,
street.

very

growing in the middle of the crowded

If

any one

will take those leaves


it

and use

them habitually

will

be good for the body


Indeed, he

and good as well

for the soul.

cannot use them with the highest effectiveness


until his

moral purposes are altogether


is

right.

The fact that God


it

a Being of holy love makes

plain that His total helpfulness can only be


is

secured where there


to invoke
therefore,

spirit

of holy love
If

and
will

receive that aid.

any man,

undertake to rightly use the

leaves of the tree for the healing of his bodily


ills,

he

will in that

very effort be led to eat also

of the fruit of the tree

which

will give

him

life

everlasting.

[204]

Ci^e Ci^urc^ anD (jseaise

VII

]^e Ci^urci^ anD fiseajse

HE New
after the

Testament does not


"saving souls"
of some.
It
all

speak about

manner

recognizes the

fact

that

the souls

we know anything

about have the cheerful habit of living in


bodies.
It therefore

speaks always of saving

men.
stroy

"The Son
men's

of

Man

is

come not

to de-

lives,

but to save them"


of

in

their entirety.

"The Son

Man

is

come

to

seek and to save that which

is

lost"

health,
to

peace, purity, happiness, whatever has been


lost

out of the

life

and therefore needs

be

restored.

The
terms

leading apostle of the Christian faith


his

expressed
as

purpose

habitually

in

such

these:

"I

pray

God

that

your

whole

spirit, soul

and body, may be preserved


by the

blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus


Christ."

"I beseech you,


[207]

therefore,

mtf^ and
a living"
lies

fealti^

mercies of God, that ye present your bodies

not

a dying or a diseased,
it

if

it

within your power to avert

"a
in

living

sacrifice,
is

holy and acceptable unto God, which

your reasonable service."

And

one of

the letters accredited to the beloved disciple,

we

find the

good wishes

of the writer expressed


:

in this cordial

and

inclusive fashion

" I wish

above

all

things

that

thou mayest prosper

and be

in health,

even as thy soul prospereth."


the

He

desired

that

material

and physical

well-being of his friend might be commensurate

with his moral and spiritual advance.

Now,

it

is

for the church, standing as the

leader and exponent of this unfolding Christian civilization, to face this larger responsibility, this

wider opportunity.

In these days

society

is

demanding a

fuller

and more

vital

application of the Gospel of Christ than the

one which

satisfied certain other generations.

The
fixed
it

souls of

men

caught in the grip of some

vicious

habit

it

may be

mental,

certain

ideas,

fears,

obsessions, despondencies;

may

be physical, the use of some drug or


[208]

stimulant or other indulgence which


against sound
health;
it

makes

may be

moral, a

tendency or a disposition in the presence of

which the

will

has gone lame

the
And

souls of

men

caught in the grip of some vicious habit


it

are crying out for deliverance.

is

for

organized religion in such ways as wise to

may be

make some

effective response to this

widespread appeal.

In the preceding chapters I have had occasion to speak of several phases of this popular
interest

and

this

insistent

demand.

I have

spoken

sometimes

in

hearty

approval

and

sometimes

in radical,

though I
In

trust not un-

just or unkindly, criticism.

this last

chapter
atti-

I wish to ask what should be the general

tude of the Christian church toward the whole


great problem of physical disease.

That

it

should be one of intelligent and loving sym-

pathy

goes

without

saying;

the

Christian
that

church or the
high quality
tian.
is

Christian

man

lacking

not worthy to be called Chris-

But

in its concrete efforts

what should

the church

do

for the health of the

community ?

[209]

iJfaiti^
It

anD 1$talt^

can aid mightily by helping to safeguard

the health of the


of disease.

community from the inroads


a land ruled by public

We

live in

opinion.
sion to

This public opinion finds expres-

some extent

in law, but

still

more

in

the habits

and customs of the people.

Where
and

this public opinion is intelligent, resolute

conscientious
for good.

it

becomes a tremendous power


aid in forming that

The church can


which
is

body
in

of opinion
It

the uncrowned king


its

our land.

speaks from
it

pulpits
its

on

every Sabbath in the year;

lays

message
books

through
before

its

papers,
eyes
its

magazines
thoughtful

and

the

of

people every
it

week; and in

various schools

utters its

word

to the

growing minds of the children and

the youth of the land throughout the year.

Now

if its

main utterance has

to

do not simply

with the forms and ceremonies of worship,

and not simply with the doctrines contained


sionary enterprises in which

in

the creed or with those benevolent and misit

is

directly en-

gaged, but also with the housing of the people


in sanitary tenements, with the

making

of the

[210]

conditions

of

employment

in

factories

and

mines safe and healthful, not dangerous and


deadly, with the instruction of the children in those habits of
life

which

will

be for their

physical as well as for their moral soundness


in
all

to

a word,
the

if

the church speaks habitually of


vital

more

interests

which belong
that
it

well-being,

then

you

can see

may

sustain a
health.

most helpful

relation to the public

Take

that matter of sanitary tenements

In

the city of

Glasgow a few years ago


in

it

was had

found that the death rate

a certain quarter
the fact

was altogether too high.


that the high death rate

When

been ascertained by competent investigation

was due

to unsanitary

housing, there was an outcry from the churches,

from the board of health and from some of


the daily papers.
authorities

And

at last the municipal


to

were induced

demolish those

houses at public expense and to build sanitary


tenements.

As a

result of that
district

one act the

death rate in that


fifty-five

went down from

per thousand to fourteen

[211]

fam
It
is

anti J^ealtl^

for the church to urge

upon

all

its

members
terrible

the duty of interesting themselves


It

actively in that important concern.

was a

scandal upon the cause of Christ a


it

few years ago when


Trinity
tained
certain

was brought out that


York,

Church,

New
in

owned, main-

and derived a handsome revenue from


tenements

which human
live.

beings

should not have been permitted to

That
land,

mighty church, the wealthiest

in

the
it

was
to

assailed in

words that stung, and


It is

ought

have been

assailed.

a terrible scandal

when
which

Christian

people

worshiping

God

in

the beauty of holiness are


plainly

own and

rent houses

unsanitary.

Murder

is
it

murder, whether the one responsible for


kills his

man

with an axe in

five

minutes or
five

with an unsanitary tenement in

years.
kill,"

The One who said, "Thou shalt not the One who knows the secret methods
lives,

of all
is

views any purpose or action which


life,

hostile to the

the health or the happiness


It is for the

of another, as murderous.

church

to help safeguard the health of the people

by

[212]

aiding in this
in all

movement

for sanitary tenements

our

cities.

Take

that

matter of the war

now

being

waged against

tuberculosis, the Great

White

Plague of modern times.


the Anti-Tuberculosis

Read

the reports of
if

League
it

you would

know what a
alone die from

scourge

has become.
in the

One

hundred thousand people


it

United States
If the present

every year.

death rate

is

not reduced by wise measures,

out of the eighty millions of people constituting

our present population ten millions of


will die

them

from

tuberculosis.
is

The germ
sunlight
in the

of that dread disease


lives
air,

killed

by

and

only a short time anjrwhere


it

open

but

will live for

months

in

the dark places in the house.

In a certain
fourteen

ward near the Battery


times as

in

New York

many

people per thousand died last

year from tuberculosis as in a ward adjoining


Central Park.
It takes its toll
still

from the rich


from the
ally

but

it

takes a

more

terrible toll

ill-fed,

ill-housed poor.

The church can


and

itself

strongly with the municipal

state

[213]

fattl^
boards
in of

and
in

J^ealti^
intelligence,

health

spreading

awakening

interest

and

in

stijffening

the

public will to fight this dread disease.

It is

preventable disease, and


of medical science

it lies

within the power

backed up by the wise and

persistent co-operation of the people to practically

stamp

it

out.

The church
itself

of

Christ

caring for the bodies as well as for the souls


of

the

people

should show

a valiant
individual

leader in this splendid task.

The

standing alone finds himself oftentimes helpless,

but

the

aroused

community becomes

mighty

in its

advance against that disease.

Take
Sickness

the matter of sickness


is

among

the poor.

a grievous experience anywhere,

but sickness and poverty together become a


terrible combination.

Where a woman

or a

child

is

sick in a tenement, the odors

and the
stifling

noises, the flies

and the crowds, the


cold, all

heat or the
distressing

damp

make

illness

more
It is

and recovery more

difficult.

an accurate and a most pathetic picture which


Robert Hunter paints
in his

book on

" Poverty."

He

himself has given so

much

time and so

[214]

much

love to the lower East Side of

New

York,

that he can speak as one having authority

and
a

not as a scribe.
child lies burning

"In the home up with


fever,

of the rich

but the whole


servants,

night through doctors,

nurses and

with a thousand appliances, are making every


effort to ease
lift
it

and comfort that

little

life

and
in

back

to health.

At the same hour

the big tenement a light burns the whole night

through, and some weary workingman with


his patient wife
is

watching every movement

and

listening for every breath of


little

a hot and

restless

one.

At daybreak the man


to earn bread for
it

must go
all.

to his

work

them
for

He

kisses the feverish lips,

may be
all

the last time

he does not know, but


is

day

long his heart

heavy and anxious.

And

through the day that mother with her heartstrings

wrung by anguish

carries

on her un-

equal fight against disease."


It is for the
its

church to enlarge the scope of

benevolence and aid in providing district


all

nurses in

the poorer parts of our cities to

come

in as effective allies of those forces

which

[215]

fatti^
make
for health.

and
It is

i^ealti^

a work which ought to

be done at pubHc expense.

We provide
;

police-

men

as the allies of the people in their fight

against crime

and disorder

it

would be equally

fitting to provide district nurses to aid the poorer

people in their heartbreaking struggle against


the ravages of disease.

In the meantime, until

public opinion shall


vision for the

make

this

general pro-

needy

in every city, the strong


district
it

church might well have a

nurse on

its

regular staff of workers that


fulfill its

might the better

duty to the bodies as well as the souls

of

men.

Take
schools

that matter of safeguarding the health

of the children
!

by wise inspection
city

in the public

In

my own

we have a

"

De-

partment of Health and Sanitation" under


the direction of a physician
at the

who was

formerly

head of the State Board


first

of Health.

He

found, according to his

published report,

that from two to twenty per cent of the chil-

dren

in

the

public

schools

were defective.
defective

Enlarged

tonsils,

adenoids,

nasal

breathing, decayed teeth affecting mastication

[216]

and the

assimilation

of

food,

astigmatism

making

the

vision

imperfect

these

were

samples of the handicaps under which


of the
little

many

people were trying to do their


the lessons were not learned or
to the rules,
it

work.

When
there

when

was disobedience

did not always


dullness
;

mean a

lack of interest or mental

it

did not always indicate a

wayward
girls;

disposition

on the part of the boys and

the apparent fault

may have come

entirely

from physical conditions for which the children


were not responsible.
It
is

for

public

sentiment

to

put

its

strong endorsement

upon

that form of effort

and

to

be ready with the necessary funds to


it.

support
to

It is for

our Christian civilization


strong,

stretch

forth a

long,

loving

arm

around the child


ficiencies

in that

home where

these de-

might be overlooked by uninstructed

and over-burdened fathers and mothers, and


thus
give

every

child

bom

into

the

world

the fullest possible chance to be, to do, and


to grow.

I have

named

these as samples of the lines

[217]

iJfait]^

anb
lie

i^ealtl^

of usefulness

which

open to the Christian

church in the

eflFective interest it

may show

in

the health of the people.

The church can


activities

render a splendid service in helping to inspire


those
civic

and communal

which

make

for health.

The One who

said

from the

top of Mt. Sinai, "Six days shalt thou labor

and do

all

thy work, but the seventh day thou

shalt rest, thou

and thy manservant and thy


is

maidservant as well as thou,"

not indifferent

to the physical well-being of the people.

That

august
for

command was
bearing
it

uttered quite as

much

the

would have upon sound would have

health and the longer continuance of physical


efficiency as for the value
it

in

promoting a
aspiration.

spirit of

reverence and of moral

And

the

touching sympathy,

One who said "Come


felt

with even more

unto

me

all

ye

that labor and are heavy laden and I will

give you rest,"


tired

a mighty

interest in the

muscles and the fretted nerves as well

as in the moral natures of the people.

And

the church which undertakes to worship the

[218]

One and

to follow the

Other cannot be
It

in-

different to these vital concerns.

ought to

be possible for every church, because of the


effective interest
it

has shown in the total well-

being of the people and because of the

way

it

has inspired

its

members

to enter

upon

these

useful forms of activity, to say to the


ity

commun-

with no sort of affectation, " I wish that thou


in health

mayest prosper and be


soul prospereth."

even as thy

In the second place, the church can ally


itself

with those forces which

make

directly for

physical soundness.

I referred to the fact that

the death rate from tuberculosis in a the lower East Side of

ward on

New York

was fourteen

times as great as in a

ward fronting on Central


homes
in

Park.

There was,

of course, in the

these two wards, a vast difference in the food

and the clothing


itself

of the people, but the


its

Park
its

with

its

open spaces,

trees
air,

and

grass, its clear sky

and

its

purer

was a
Every

means
city is

of health

and a means

of grace.
in

park and every playground


ordained of

the crowded

God

to aid in the fulfillment

[219]

mt^
of the

anD

J^ealti^

beneficent purpose expressed in that

inspired wish for our

good health.
unchristian

It

is

narrow,

grudging

and

attitude

which votes against appropriations or bonds


to provide these breathing places, these gra-

cious ministries to health in

all

our

cities.

All

honor to those public-spirited


leading
the

officials

who

are

way

in

the

work of extending

the park systems and of increasing the


of playgrounds for the boys

number
Future

and

girls.

generations will rise

up and

call

the results

which they accomplished blessed.

The
fact

general health of the people

is

indeed

one of the main assets of any nation.

This

was

clearly

recognized

by

President

Roosevelt

when he appointed

Professor Irving

Fisher of Yale University, the head of the De-

partment of Economics, to tabulate facts and


statistics

and

to

make a competent

report on

our national
thoughtful

vitality.

This report makes any


then causes his

man somber and


him
there

heart to leap within


possibilities

as he thinks of the

suggested.

In

the

six-

teenth century in

Europe the average length


[220]

of

life

was

between
it

sixteen

and

eighteen
fifty.

years

now

is

between forty and

The
life

rate of increase in the average length of


in the eighteenth century,

when

hygienic

and sanitary measures were was


during the
last half of

little

understood,

at the rate of four years per century

the nineteenth century,

when

so

much

intelligent attention

was given

to these matters, the rate of increase

became

nine years to the century.

In the seventeenth century in London the

annual death rate was

fifty

per thousand

now
from

it

is fifteen.

The

city of

Vienna

in

one

hundred years has reduced her death rate


sixty to twenty-three

by wise

sanitation.

In Boston the death rate in 1700 was thirtyfour per thousand

now

it

is

nineteen.

In

Sweden where they have the Ling system and


the Swedish

movements
in

for the physical train-

ing of children

the public schools

more

highly developed than in any country in the world,


is

we
for

find that the average length of life

fifty

men and

fifty-three for

women

the highest in the world.

In India, which has

[221]

faitli
the least of
is

and

l^ealti^
life

all this,

the average length of

twenty-three for

men and

twenty-four for

women.
India

In
is

the Scandinavian countries the


thirteen per thousand, while in

death rate
it

is

forty-two.

Make

all

necessary
climate
in
still

allowance

for

the

difiFerence

in

Sweden and

in India,

the splendid fact

stands that physical instruction and scientific


sanitation roll

up a magnificent

result in the

health and physical endurance of the people.

How

splendid are

all

these gains

What a

saving in earning power as well as in the avoid-

ance of the gruesome volume of personal be-

reavement where

women
natural

are being

widowed

and children
deaths
of

left

as orphans

by the untimely

their

providers.

And

as

result of his investigations as

an economist,

aided by the boards of health in this and in


other countries,
it

is

the sober judgment of

Professor Fisher that clean streets, clean food,


clean water, clean milk

and clean

air

would

so reduce the volume of preventable disease


as to result in the saving of one thousand millions of dollars annually to this land of ours.

[222]

And

Dr.

Reid of Cincinnati, basing his

estimate upon the investigations of this economist, believes that


feasible

by following the perfectly


outlined
in

suggestions

that

report,

we

could in seven years save enough of that

avoidable waste in

human
is

life

reckoned in

terms of

its

earning power and in the potential


unnecessarily
cut

earning capacity which


ofiF

"

we

could in seven years save enough to

pay

for the

Panama
double

Canal, duplicate our

army
the

and

navy,
all

our

merchant

marine,
oflf

deepen

our inland waterways, pay

entire national debt

and have enough

left to

put a surplus balance in the treasury of

five

hundred millions of
the figures not of

dollars."

And

these are

some Fourth

of July orator

or of some sentimentalist, but of a trained

economist
with
health
I

and of the physicians connected


State

the

and

municipal

boards

of

have stated the possible saving only

in

terms of financial gain through the prevention


of avoidable disease.
If

we should undertake

to state the possible gain in general well-being

12231

fatti^ anti l^ealti^

by the avoidance

of bereavement

and by the

wiping away of the tears from the

many

eyes

which are now dimmed because of the untimely


death of those they loved,
if

we should
in avoiding

esti-

mate the beneficent


stern

results

that

struggle

to

which many women and

children have been

unnecessary deaths,

doomed because we should need


the

of these
to

send

out for some professor of the higher mathe-

matics
sion

who understands
be able to read

fourth

dimen-

and the more august methods

of notation

in order to

off the final figures

as to the resultant gain in

human

well being.

The church can


through child labor.
shall

also help

to prevent the

depleting of the best resources of the nation


It

can

insist that

men

not be
or

doomed

to

work

in unsanitary
fearless

mines

factories;

competent and

Federal inspection backed up by a resolute


public opinion can prevent
see to
it

all

that.

It

can

that prospective or nursing mothers

are not sent into the mill or the factory to stand


all

day
of

at the

looms to the permanent


[224]

detriIt

ment

two generations of human

lives.

can

ally itself

openly and actively every day


all

in the

week with

those agencies and move-

ments which have to do with physical wellbeing as well as with intelligence and good
morals.

There
"a

oiight to

be
the

in

our Christian
called

civilization

gate

of

Temple
sentiment

Beautiful "
Christian

where

Christian

and

energy are taking the lame


setting

man
It

by the hand and

him on

his feet.

would greatly increase the number

of those

who
show

enter into the temple, "walking

and

leap-

ing and praising


itself

God,"

if

the church should


its

more

active in

interest in this

present, visible

and everyday
also,

life

of the people.
in

The church has

believe,

ways

appropriate a perpetual ministry to render to


the health of the individual.
It

would take
of

a very wise

man
due
of

to determine

how much

the present volume of disease, organic and


functional,
is

in the last analysis to the

rapid

increase

nen'ous

disorders.

The
life

mad
of

rush for wealth, the overdone social


restless

our day, the


is

desire

for

change,

the pace which

too sharp for any of us and

[225]

faitli
killing

anD

i^ealti^

for

thousands of us, the widespread

use of stimulants and narcotics in alarming

amounts and the lack


overwork perhaps,

of self-control, through

all

these serve to roll

up

an awful array of nervous disorders.


disorders
in

These

turn

react

upon

all

the vital

processes of digestion, assimilation, circulation

and elimination
health.

in

a way that undermines the

We
seen

have a growing amount of hysteria as


in

exaggerated emotional displays, the


for

morbid desire

sympathy, the craving for

excitement or for admiration, and the unconscious

simulation

of

certain

diseases

where

the

symptoms are such as would deceive any

one except an expert diagnostician.

We

have

a vast amount of melancholy, nervous depression,

neurasthenia,

the

tendency to suicide

and moral despondency.


of the people

Look

into the faces


street
is

you meet on the busy

when they
observing

are unconscious that any one

them

In

what

discouraging

percentage of them do you find an absence of


that good
cheer,

kindliness

and hopefulness

[226]

which ought
in its

to clothe the

human

face, except

great emergencies, as with a garment.


just there the
If
it

Now

church has a magnifinever took a


pill in its

cent opportunity.

hand or undertook
it

to hold

any

sort of clinic,

could

still

accomplish a mighty work in


life

urging upon the people better habits of

and

in

establishing deep within their hearts


spirit.

a saner and a sweeter

It

is

for the

church to so instruct the people that they

may

have poise and balance, a sense of proportion

and that

fine quality of moderation.

It is for

the church to preach and to practice serenity,


cheerfulness, hopefulness.
to insist
It is for the

church

upon the supremacy

of the spirit

and

the transcendent value of those interests which


are altogether beyond the reach of accident

or disease.

The church can


of
i?uffering,

also interpret the

meaning

so that the burdened


feel that

and the
it

disappointed people will not


the

is all

work

of the devil or

mere chance or the


in

blind result of

some mechanism

which we

are caught and held.

They

will

be brought

[227]

mtt^ and
oflBce in

l^calti^

to see that suffering has a higher

and a

finer

human

experience.
steadily
lift

The church can

the people out

of themselves into those larger interests

which

make any life more normal. Not


invalidism in the world
selfish
it is

all

the chronic

is

due

to

an intensely

nature within, but a very great deal of


just that.

due to

Those persons who

insist

upon continuing
troubles

to dwell in their griefs, their

and

their disappointments,

when

the

time has arrived for an advance, are in countless cases

made

ill

by thus

flying in the fiace of

a law as universal and as powerful as the law


of
for
gravitation.

The

necessity

which comes

meeting new obligations, adjusting our-

selves to

changed conditions, doing our duty


fields,
if

again on unwonted
charged,
health;

met and
and

dis-

becomes a means
refused,
it

of grace
ill.

of
is

works untold

It

for the Christian church to

make

all

that plain

and

to

aid

in

fortifying the will


it

which has
its

gone lame, so that

will

take up

load

and walk on, head up, eyes


victory.

front, intent

upon

[228]

Ci^e Ci^urcl^ and


There
is

M^ta^t
cut,

no royal road, no short

to

health, either
bottle or
is

by taking something out

of

by purchased manipulation;

there

no short cut by juggling with certain mystic

phrases or by trying to stand on one's head

through an insistence that one believes what


his

common

sense
All

tells

him

all

the while
cults
is

is

incredible.

those

curious
there
It

to

the

contrary

notwithstanding,

no such

short cut to sound health.

has to be worked

out according to law, and the best results can

be most surely attained where the work

is

done
it is

intelligently

and

systematically,

where

done

also in serene reliance

upon the great

fact that

God

is

working within us to accomIt is the office of the

plish

His good pleasure.

church to make

all this clear;

to teach the

people to assert, not by jumps and jerks, but

by the steady thrust

of their

own

truest as-

piration, the full potentiality of their natures


in the

name and by

the help of the

God who

loves them.

The

very worship and service of the church

can be made, and ought to be made, a means


[

229

faitl^ antJ J^ealtl^


of health.
It

can be used to develop interior


It

courage and high resolve.

can be made an

opportunity for the influx of that larger supply


of vitality

from the great reservoir of

spiritual

energy so that " as the day, so shall our strength

be"

the

presence

of

energy

from within

meeting and balancing the pressure of obligation

from without.

It

is

a well-known fact

that certain emotions have an expansive


liberating, as well as

and

a steadying and strengthentire body.

ening, effect

upon the

Every one

has had these experiences when participating


in
is

some nobly conducted


for the church

religious service.

It
its

by the whole appeal of


its

worship and instruction, by


renewal

power
to

in

moral

and

in

spiritual

uplift,

steadily
atti-

induce those states of feeling and those


tudes of soul which thus
If

make

for health.

you

will

study closely the relation of wor-

ship

and

aspiration, reflection

and meditation,
you
will

to nervous poise

and

stability,

under-

stand

how
is

fruitful this line of effort

may be

made.
that

It is

a doctrine of modern philosophy


well as transcendent,

God

immanent as

[230]

immanent

in all these

forms of

life;

and that

He

is

finding a growing

and maturing exprespower and purpose


in

sion of His beneficent


their

advance.

In the words of Professor


of

Josiah
fection

Royce

Harvard,
expressing

"God

wins perin

through

himself

the
its

finite life

and triumphing over and through

very finitude.

God means

to express himself

by winning
evil, to

us,

through the very triumph over


life;

unity with the perfect

and
is

there-

fore our fulfillment like our existence

due

to

the triumph of
is

God

himself."

And

all

this

but a far-off echo of that divine word of the


!"

Master, " In this world ye shall have tribulation,

but be of good cheer, I have overcome

And by
ally

virtue of this victory, at first vicarious,

then representative, then becoming individueffective

by personal appropriation, we
victories.

win our own

Life, therefore,

is

a
it

"continuous divine communication.'*


is

And

for our worship

and
to

aspiration, our medita-

tion

and

reflection,

keep wide open the

arteries of the soul for the divine influx to the

end that we may be

lifted into

the joy and

[231]

mt^
efficiency

anD

J^ealtl^
life

of

that

more abundant

the

Master came
It

to bestow.
it

was not the pastor of a church,


in

was not
our

a learned theologian

some seminary, but

the leading psychologist of America in


oldest

and greatest university who said not

long ago,
religious
fretful

"The
faith.

sovereign cure for worry

is

The

tossing billows

on the

surface of the ocean leave the deep

places undisturbed.

And

to

him who has a


reali-

hold on the vaster and more permanent


ties

the

hourly vicissitudes

of

his

personal

destiny seem relatively insignificant."

you
that

would gain that poise and


serenity

steadiness,

and peace, which make

for health

twenty-four hours in the day, you can best

accomplish

it,

according to Professor William


vital

James, by a personal,

religious

faith,
infinite

making these mighty


sources of help, your

truths,

these

own by

daily utilization.

I long to see the Christian church restore a


fuller

measure of that warmth and

vigor, that

gladness and spontaneity which belonged to


early Christianity in
its

combined ministry,

to

[232]

the bodies and to the souls of men.


believe
it

And
if

lies

within the power of the church

of the twentieth century to

do

just that,

it

shall only learn to "discern the signs of the

times" and to follow intelligently and


fully

trust-

"the leading of the Spirit."


a pathetic and a significant scene which
first

It is

stands recorded there in the


the top of Mt.

gospel.

At

Hermon, Jesus was

at prayer,
level

and His devotion reached that high


intensity

of

where His face shone

like the sun,

and
felt

the three disciples

who accompanied Him

that they were in the full enjoyment of heavenly

companionships.

Down

at

the foot of the

mountain the other


restore

disciples

were trying to

a nervously disordered boy, brought to


father in the

them by an agonized
curing
relief.

hope of

se-

And

the sad fact was, they were

failing in their attempt.

Then
tain

Jesus

came down the

side of the

moun-

and joined His

efforts to theirs,

and the

child

was

restored.

"Why

could not we cast

him out?"
It

the disciples said in self-reproach.


living for that

was because they had been


[233]

faftl^

anD l^taW^

hour apart from the Master and in the attitude


of

unbelief

touching those potencies

which
to the

are invisible but mighty through


pulling
It

God

down

of strongholds.

may

be that the church at the foot of the


the
too the

fallen too much into way of living apart from the Master, and much in the attitude of unbelief touching

mountain to-day has

nobler, fuller service

it

could render to

human
a more

need.

If this is in

any measure

true, then there

must be a fresh return

to Christ in
ability, in

complete consecration of
recognition
of

a fuller
of

the

gracious

content

His

message, and in a more active exercise of a


loving trust; then
shall
it

may

be that we, too,

accomplish our dream and restore in

glorious

measure that warmth and

vigor, that

gladness and spontaneity of early Christianity,

when

the lame

man

"at the gate of the

Temple
feet,

called Beautiful"

was

set

upon

his

when the ills of many were relieved, and when all the burdened people heard, each in his own tongue, the message of Eternal Life.
[234]

REVIEWS OF

oung ^an's Mairs


By

CHARLES REYNOLDS BROWN


"Must Be Most Helpful"

" There will always bo room for really good books of wise counsel to the yoani;. Such a book Is Charles R. Brown's * The Young Man's Affairs.' In seven friendly, direct talks, full of good sense and sympathy, the author discourses of the young man's purpose, intimates, books, money, recreation, wife and church, all in such a manner as must be most helpful to his readers." Chicago ICecord-IIerald.

"Cannot

Fail to

Make an Appeal"

" The really distinguishing characteristics of these talks are the clear understanding they exhibit of young-man life, and the quaint, picturesque forcefulness with which the advice they contain is presented. A strong vein of humor runs through them which cannot fail to make an appeal to young men." Jf. Y. Times /Saturday Book Review,

"A
"Here
minuter.
is

Book that
a book that
is

is Worth While" worth while; into it some serious,

resourceful, aspiring man has put his truest thought, his deepest insight, his highest resolve, his holiest yearning." The West-

"Earnest and Thoughtful"


"To the young man who is seeking advice the book can be recommended as earnest and thoughtful." Louisville CourierJournal.

" Written with


"This
is

Common Sense "

an excellent book for any young man, for it is written in a sympathetic spirit and with common sense." The Living Church.

" Intimate and Witty "


" Dr. Brown writes in an intimate, witty way, and his essays, which are full of practical suggestions bound to make an impression upon the mind of the reader, are very pleasant reading, too." The San Francisco Evening Post.

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