The Christian Science movement was founded by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879. Her belief system is based in the notion that reality is purely spiritual and good, while the material world — including sickness, evil, and death — is an illusion.
Eddy’s personal experiences of chronic illness played a central role in shaping her theology. Born in 1821, Eddy endured numerous bouts of severe health problems, often described as episodes of collapse, writhing, and unconsciousness, which required medical attention. The causes of these ailments remain debated, with some suggesting a psychological origin. Her ongoing suffering prompted a quest for a healing method that neither traditional medicine nor her Congregationalist background could offer.
Eddy’s education was interrupted by her health issues, though she received private tutoring and attended Sanbornton Academy in 1842. Raised in a devout Congregationalist home, she joined the church at age 17 in 1838. In the 1840s, she faced a series of personal tragedies. Her brother and mentor, Albert, died in 1841, and her first husband, George Washington Glover, succumbed to yellow fever in 1844, leaving her pregnant and grieving. This loss was followed by the death of her mother in 1849 and the sudden passing of her fiancé, John Bartlett, just weeks later. By 1850, her father remarried, and Eddy was forced to separate from her son, George Washington Glover II, due to her continued ill health.
In search of healing, Eddy explored various mid-19th-century treatments, including allopathy, hydropathy, and homeopathy, before encountering mesmerism. This led her to the mind-cure movement, which emerged alongside Christian revivalism and the limited effectiveness of contemporary medical practices.
A key figure in this movement was Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, a healer and mesmerist who promoted the idea that mental states could influence physical health. Quimby, who had healed himself of consumption through mental methods, developed a system based on the belief that “Truth is the Cure.” Eddy became acquainted with Quimby in 1862, after visiting him in Portland, Maine, where she experienced temporary healing. She later engaged with his work and manuscripts between 1862 and 1865.
Though some critics argue that Eddy borrowed ideas from Quimby — who viewed healing as independent of religious or spiritual belief — Eddy’s later teachings diverged sharply. Her discovery emphasized the role of the Divine Mind, or God, as the sole source of healing. She saw her approach as distinct from hypnotism, claiming it was based on divine law rather than human will.
The pivotal event in Eddy’s development of Christian Science occurred on February 1, 1866, after she fell on ice in Lynn, Massachusetts. The injuries were described as “very critical,” and her physician labeled her state “semi-hysterical.” After receiving morphine, Eddy rejected further medical treatment, and three days later, she turned to the Bible for guidance. Upon reading a passage about Jesus healing the sick, she reported an immediate and complete recovery. Eddy interpreted this event as a divine revelation, marking the birth of Christian Science.
Following this experience, Eddy dedicated herself to Bible study for three years and spent another nine years testing her discovery by healing others. In 1873, she separated from her second husband, Daniel Patterson, and became briefly associated with Spiritualism, a movement she later disavowed, seeing it as a distraction from the true spiritual reality she was seeking to uncover.
In 1875, Eddy self-published Science and Health, which outlined the principles of Christian Science and introduced the idea of spiritual healing. The formal organization of the church began in 1879, when Eddy and 26 followers secured a charter in Massachusetts to establish the Church of Christ (Scientist). The church’s mission was to “reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing.”
Christian Science theology is grounded in a radical form of idealism, which views reality as entirely spiritual and inherently good. According to this view, physical disease is a mental error, not a physical malfunction, and is addressed through prayer. Eddy reinterpreted core Christian concepts, emphasizing that God is the “All-in-all,” expressed through seven synonyms: Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, and Love.
Eddy’s views set her apart from the broader New Thought movement, which shared some similarities but did not entirely reject the material world. She claimed that Christian Science was a final and unique revelation and firmly rejected the physical world as a mere illusion. Her teachings included the concept of “malicious animal magnetism” (M.A.M.), which suggested that negative thoughts from others could cause harm — an idea that introduced an element of fear absent in New Thought.
Under Eddy’s leadership, the church’s institutional structure grew. In 1881, she founded the Massachusetts Metaphysical College to train practitioners, teaching around 800 students before closing it in 1889. The church was reorganized in 1892, becoming The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and the Mother Church was completed in Boston in 1894. In 1895, Eddy made the groundbreaking decision to ordain the Bible and Science and Health as the church’s collective Pastor.
Eddy’s organizational efforts also led to the founding of The Christian Science Publishing Society in 1898. In 1908, she established The Christian Science Monitor, an international daily newspaper that has since won multiple Pulitzer Prizes.
Throughout her life, Eddy faced significant opposition, particularly from conservative Protestant clergy who viewed her teachings as a threat to biblical authority. Critics frequently labeled the movement “Eddyism,” and controversies persisted, including debates over her potential borrowing of Eastern religious ideas and accusations of occasional morphine use. Despite these challenges, Eddy continued to advocate for spiritual healing and, though she occasionally made limited exceptions, rejected conventional medical treatments.
In 1907, a legal case known as the “Next Friends Suit” challenged Eddy’s mental competence. The case was dismissed after multiple psychiatrists interviewed her and confirmed her mental clarity. Eddy died December 3, 1910, at age 89, leaving the bulk of her estate to the church.
Following her death, the Christian Science movement experienced a decline in membership, falling below 50,000 by 2009, after peaking at nearly 270,000 in 1936. Despite this contraction, the church remains influential through its global network of Reading Rooms and active congregations. Its legacy also endures through The Christian Science Monitor.
The movement has faced ongoing legal challenges, especially related to its rejection of medical care, resulting in high-profile lawsuits involving child deaths. While the church now encourages members to seek medical care when necessary — especially for non-metaphysical needs like dentistry or vaccinations — it still promotes prayer as the primary method of healing. Christian Science prayer, a silent, mental process affirming the unreality of matter, remains central to the faith.
Key Sources:
Cather, W., & Milmine, G. (1993). The life of Mary Baker G. Eddy and the history of Christian science.
Gill, G. (1998). Mary Baker Eddy. Da Capo Press, Incorporated.
Gottschalk, S. (1973). The emergence of Christian science in American religious life. Univ of California Press.
Hughes, R. A. (2009). Phineas Parkhurst Quimby: His Complete Writings and Beyond.
Knee, S. (1994). Christian Science in the age of Mary Baker Eddy. Praeger.
Koestler-Grack, R. A. (2004). Mary Baker Eddy. Chelsea House.