Fourth Grade
Worksheets
What Is Christian Science?
Science and religion seem to be opposites, but one religion tries to blend the two together. Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, established a religion based on healing through prayer. Her writings and life inspired a worldwide movement that has branches in 80 countries today.
Mary Baker Eddy was born into a deeply religious family in New Hampshire in 1821. She was sick a lot and missed school often. However, she studied at home. She loved to read and write, so Mary became well-educated in spite of her health problems. She saw many doctors, but often they could not help her. Mary read her Bible constantly, and the stories about Jesus' healing miracles gave her hope.
Mary had many difficult circumstances in her life in addition to her poor health. Her first husband died, and Mary was left to raise their son alone. Her second husband abandoned her. Mary had to give her son up because she was not well enough to take care of him. Mary felt that her faith helped her with these situations.
Mary's health problems and the struggles in her personal life led to her desire to help others have wholeness and happiness. In order to understand health, she learned as much as she could about treatments given to sick people. Mary realized that many remedies in the 19th century were dangerous and strange. Some cures contained cocaine or caffeine. Mary wanted to discover a better path to healing based on her religious faith.
