Christian Science: As a Religious Belief and a Therapeutic Agent
Flower, B. O. Christian Science: As a Religious Belief and a Therapeutic Agent. Boston: Twentieth Century Company, 1909.
Flower, a “crusading editor of the progressive journal The Arena” (Peel, 1958, 141), argued that Christian Science was ignorantly and unjustly attacked by both clergy and physicians in the first decade of the 20th century. Flower identified himself as “not a member of the Christian Science fellowship; but I am a lover of fair play and of all things that make for a nobler and purer life and the true happiness of the people” (vii). He himself entertained much of the popular prejudice “that is usually manifested toward new theories, discoveries and truths which run counter to the popular and generally accepted concepts of society” (vii). However, when the daily press began to assail Christian Science with its campaign of misrepresentation, misinterpretation and slander, he felt it was his duty to present some facts on the other side. He began his own investigation with a case he knew personally. Convinced of both the religious and medical truth he discovered, he recorded his research on many subsequent cases in his book. The two most persistent arguments against Christian Science that he heard and countered with specific facts were: a) it is contrary to the Bible and b) organic diseases could not be cured by a religious belief.
ISBN-10: 0265223997
ISBN-13 (Softcover): 978-1290744317
ISBN-13 (Hardcover): 978-0265223994
See also annotation:
“Mary Baker Eddy Mentioned Them”: B. O. Flower by John Yemma