Christian Science is a religious denomination founded in late nineteenth-century New England that identifies divine healing as an essential element of primitive Christianity. Established by Mary Baker Eddy, the church teaches that God is entirely good and spiritual, and that physical disease, sin, and death are overcome through spiritual understanding and prayer.
Mary Baker Eddy and the Founding of Christian Science
The origins of Christian Science trace directly to the life experiences of Mary Baker Eddy (182–910). Born into a devout Congregationalist farming family in Bow, New Hampshire, Eddy experienced chronic illness, personal loss, and financial hardship throughout her early adulthood. In 1862, seeking relief from debilitating spinal ailments, she consulted magnetic healer Phineas Parkhurst Quimby in Portland, Maine. While Quimby's mental treatments brought temporary physical relief, Eddy concluded that his methods relied primarily on human mental suggestion rather than eternal divine law.
The turning point in Eddy's life occurred in February 1866 in Lynn, Massachusetts. After slipping on an icy sidewalk and suffering severe internal injuries, she was carried home, where attending physicians expressed grave doubts regarding her survival. On the third day of her confinement, Eddy opened her Bible to Matthew 9:2 and read the account of Jesus healing the paralytic. Experiencing an immediate realization of divine life, she stood up completely healed. Convinced that Jesus' healing works were not supernatural miracles but the demonstration of consistent, scientific spiritual laws, Eddy devoted the next decade to intensive scriptural study.
In 1875, she published the first edition of her primary textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, presenting her discoveries regarding the spiritual nature of existence. In 1879, Eddy and a small group of followers obtained a charter to establish the Church of Christ, Scientist, aiming to "reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing." Today, seekers exploring alternative spiritual paths can consult our national directory of metaphysical churches or review historical context in our survey of metaphysical church traditions.
Core Christian Science Beliefs: Spirit, Matter, and Divine Mind
Examining foundational Christian Science beliefs reveals a theology of radical spiritual idealism that diverges sharply from traditional Protestantism and modern New Thought. At the center of Eddy's teachings is the premise that God is infinite Spirit, divine Mind, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, and Lov—even synonymous terms denoting the allness of Deity.
Because God is All-in-all and exclusively good, Christian Science asserts that God's creation must be entirely spiritual, harmonious, and immortal. Consequently, physical matter, sin, sickness, and death possess no genuine spiritual substance or divine authority. Rather, disease and discord are understood as false beliefs of the "mortal mind— mistaken, material misconception of life separate from God. Salvation consists of awakening from this mortal illusion into the realization of one's true, flawless spiritual identity as the reflection of God. This philosophical stance contrasts with the positive-thinking affirmations found in the Unity Church and modern Centers for Spiritual Living, which view the physical world as a real, evolving manifestation of Spirit rather than an illusion.
The Mother Church and the Boston Headquarters
The headquarters of the denomination is centered in Boston, Massachusetts, at The First Church of Christ, Scientist, known colloquially as The Mother Church. Erected in 1894, the original Romanesque stone edifice was expanded in 1906 with the magnificent Mother Church Extension, featuring an Italian Renaissance dome that seats thousands of worshippers. The worldwide church is governed by the Christian Science Board of Directors under the precise administrative rules established in the Church Manual, authored by Eddy.
The surrounding Christian Science Plaza in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood forms an internationally recognized civic complex, encompassing a 670-foot reflecting pool and the headquarters of the Christian Science Publishing Society. In 1908, at the age of eighty-seven, Eddy founded The Christian Science Monitor, an international daily newspaper established in response to sensational yellow journalism. Dedicated to the motto "to injure no man, but to bless all mankind," the Monitor has earned numerous Pulitzer Prizes for objective, investigative reporting. The church's historic legacy across New England is chronicled in our guide to the religious history of Massachusetts.
Services and Wednesday Testimony Meetings: The Dual Pastor
Worship in Christian Science branch churches follows a unique congregational format designed to eliminate human personality and clerical hierarchy. In 1895, Eddy permanently ordained two books as the church's pastor: the Holy Bible (King James Version) and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures.
Sunday services are conducted by two democratically elected lay members, designated as the First Reader and Second Reader. Services feature no personal sermons, extemporaneous prayers, or ministerial rituals. Instead, readers read the weekly Lesson-Sermon, consisting of alternating, correlated passages from the Bible and Science and Health, which church members study individually throughout the preceding week. Services include congregational hymn singing, quiet contemplation, the Lord's Prayer with Eddy's spiritual interpretation, and a vocal solo. On Wednesday evenings, churches hold testimony meetings where the First Reader presents topical readings, followed by spontaneous testimonies from congregants sharing verified physical healings, character regeneration, and spiritual solutions experienced through prayer. This scriptural focus differs markedly from mediumship and seances practiced in Spiritualist churches.
Healing, Medicine, and Christian Science Practitioners
Healing is central to the daily life of Christian Scientists, viewed as the natural byproduct of drawing closer to God. Christian Science treatment does not utilize positive thinking, hypnotism, or psychological manipulation. Instead, it involves disciplined, scientific prayer that denies the reality of sickness based on the allness of God and affirms the present spiritual perfection of the individual.
To assist individuals in times of physical or emotional need, the church accredits Christian Science practitioners. These individuals devote their full professional lives to prayerful healing ministry, receiving compensation directly from clients. Christian Science nurses are also available to provide non-medical physical care, such as bandaging and nourishment, within a prayerful environment. Christian Science healing also emphasizes the moral dimension of recovery. Practitioners address underlying mental conditions such as fear, resentment, grief, and self-will, holding that moral regeneration and spiritual purification are inseparable from physical wholeness. Patients often report that their physical healings were accompanied by renewed inner peace, improved family relationships, and freedom from addictive or destructive habits. While the church encourages reliance on spiritual healing, it maintains no dogmatic prohibition against medical care; members make their own healthcare decisions according to conscience without fear of church discipline or ostracism.
Christian Science Reading Rooms and Public Outreach
A distinctive feature of Christian Science outreach is the Christian Science Reading Room. Maintained by local branch churches in downtown retail centers and suburban commercial districts, Reading Rooms serve as public community study centers open to people of all religious backgrounds. These spaces offer a quiet environment for prayer, research, and contemplation, providing free access to reference Bibles, concordances, Eddy's complete writings, and historic issues of the Christian Science Sentinel and Monitor.
Branch churches and Reading Rooms operate across the United States, maintaining an established presence in metropolitan centers detailed in our surveys of congregations throughout California and spiritual life in New York. Through their enduring commitment to spiritual healing, Christian Scientists continue to bear witness to the power of divine Truth to heal human suffering.