SCIENCE AND HEALTH with KEY to the SCRIPTURES

     There are certain questions we all ask ourselves as we're thumbing through books. We're curious. We want ot know what the book contains and how its ideas relate to us. We're wondering what makes this book any different from any other book. What is so special about it? We're looking for something that catches our eye, something that talks to us and makes us say, "This book has something for me. I want to read it."

     Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures has caught the eye of millions of readers. And it has talked to them in a way that has promoted health, morals, spirituality, healing. And this is what makes it unusual. It is considered an unusual book because of its contents, its ideas. It's different because it is filled with ideas that heal. It is unique because the ideas contained in this book elucidate Christ Jesus' healing method. And it teaches how to employ his healing method by better understanding our relationship with God. This understanding then benefits ourselves, our family, our community, our world. You may ask: "What makes healing as found in this book different from other systems?"  This is a legitimate question that is being asked by many, many people. Perhaps the best way to answer this question is to begin with Christ Jesus.

      Christ Jesus obviously understood something that others didn't. His approach to healing was radically different and systematically effective! He was able to heal the sick, the lame, the deaf, and raise the dead. It's safe to say that Christ Jesus' system of healing was unique and available to anyone who wanted to follow him and learn from him. This is what the author of this book, Mary Baker Eddy, discovered: that Christ Jesus' blueprint of healing hasn't been lost forever over the centuries but is available today, right here, right now. And after years of searching and reading the Scriptures, she found this blueprint in the Bible and wrote it down in this book. She practiced it herself with glowing results. She taught it to others.

      One thing Mrs. Eddy discovered and recorded was that Jesus relied solely on God for help. One searches the Bible in vain trying to find Christ Jesus turning to other means of healing besides prayer - even though they were certainly available to him. Prayer was his sole approach to God. And that's what this book teaches - prayer as Christ Jesus practiced it. It shows that prayer doesn't just mean petitioning or hoping or wishing. But rather prayer can be based upon God and His laws and the utilization of those laws which ensure healing. It's this that totally separates Christ Jesus' approach to healing from all others. And it's this method that many people are studying and practicing successfully today.

     Mrs. Eddy went through great effort to put what she discovered through many tests. She writes, "After a lengthy examination of my discovery and its demonstrations in healing the sick, this fact became evident to me, - that Mind (God) governs the body, not partially but wholly. I submitted my metaphysical system of treating disease to the broadest practical tests. Since then this system has gradually gained ground, and has proved itself, whenever scientifically employed, to be the most effective curative agent in medical practice" (Science and Health).