Rachel Evans
Divine Science is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement. It was formalized in San Francisco in the 1880s under Malinda Cramer and her husband Frank. The Church of Divine Science defines itself as an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation. It holds that its foundation truth is that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything. Divine Science teaches that God is pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation. It is recognized as a teaching organization, with courses offered through the Divine Science Church in Washington, DC.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Definition | "An organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation." |
| Foundation truth | "Limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything." |
| God | "Pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation." |
| Evil | Evil is not real and only exists as long as humans believe in it. |
| Healing | Very important, emulating the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament. |
| Prayer | "Petitionary" or "Affirmative". Petitionary prayer requests or begs God, while Affirmative prayer acknowledges God is everywhere and within us. |
| Meditation | Divine Scientists sit quietly in meditation, stilling all thoughts. |
| Membership | 7,000 members in 1935 and 7,107 in 1953. |
| Cyber presence | Expanded its presence through cyber-ministries and e-mail ministries. |
| Location | Formalized in San Francisco in the 1880s, then moved to Colorado, with headquarters in Denver, and later Pueblo. |
| Founder | Formalized under Malinda Cramer in the 1880s. |
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What You'll Learn
- God is all, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, and omniactive
- Evil is not permanent and has no reality within itself
- Divine Science considers healing very important
- The Church of Divine Science is a religious movement within the New Thought movement
- Christian Scientists believe that the spiritual world is the only reality
God is all, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, and omniactive
The Church of Divine Science is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement. Divine Science defines itself as "an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation." It holds that its foundation truth is "that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything."
Divine Science teaches that God is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, and omniactive. God is all, and is manifest in all of creation. God is all there is. God is Spirit, all of Life, Love, Truth, Substance, Soul, Intelligence, Knowledge, Power, and Presence.
The omni-attributes of God are inseparable. God's power is purposeful and universal, implying his omniscience. His omnipotence and omniscience are universal, and so he is omnipresent. God is present in every place and time. He does not have a body and is immaterial, but his power and knowledge are everywhere.
Scripture affirms God’s omnipotence by saying that God does whatever he is pleased to do. Nothing is too hard for him, and when he speaks, everything in creation obeys him. God is infinite and has infinite capacity. He never sleeps and is perfect in all his abilities. There is no one more powerful than him.
God's omniscience means that he is the ultimate criterion of truth and falsity, and so his ideas are always true. He knows all that happens on earth, even in the future. God is all-knowing, and there is not a single thing that he doesn't know.
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Evil is not permanent and has no reality within itself
The Church of Divine Science is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement, which was formalized in San Francisco in the 1880s by Malinda Cramer. Divine Science defines itself as "an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation." It holds that God is the foundation of all truth and is "pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation".
Divine Science teaches that God is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, and omniactive, and is the manifestation of all creation. This means that God is present in all things, including those that are considered "evil". However, Divine Science asserts that evil is not a permanent or necessary aspect of God's creation, and it only exists as long as humans support it through their belief in it. In other words, evil is not an inherent quality of any person or thing, but rather a temporary and changeable state that can be overcome through the recognition of God's omnipresence and goodness.
This belief is reflected in the concept of "Affirmative Prayer" in Divine Science, which involves acknowledging that God is everywhere, including within us, and declaring what we know to be the ultimate Truth. By doing so, individuals can align themselves with God's perfection and goodness, thereby transcending evil and experiencing healing and transformation.
The view that evil is not permanent and has no reality within itself is also supported by certain philosophical arguments. For example, some philosophers, like Friedrich Nietzsche, argue that the concept of evil should be abandoned because it does not accurately describe a moral reality. Instead, it is used to demonize enemies and promote negative emotions such as envy, hatred, and resentment.
Furthermore, Divine Science emphasizes the importance of healing and emulates the work of Jesus Christ, who, in the New Testament, cured many people. This suggests that evil, suffering, and illness are not permanent states, but can be transformed through the power of God and the recognition of one's divine nature.
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Divine Science considers healing very important
Divine Science is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement. It was formalized in San Francisco in the 1880s under Malinda Cramer and her husband Frank, who together chartered the "Home College of Spiritual Science". Two months later, Cramer renamed the school the "Home College of Divine Science".
Divine Science defines itself as "an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation". It holds that its foundational truth is "that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything". God is defined as "pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation". Evil, therefore, is not considered permanent or necessary and only exists as long as people support it through belief.
Like other New Thought churches, Divine Science considers healing very important and emulates the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, who cures many people. The founder of the Denver Church, Nona Brooks, stated:
> The whole of Divine Science is the practice of the Presence of God. Truth comes through the Bible, Affirmative prayer, contemplation and meditation and the practice of the presence of God here and now.
Divine Science teaches that the fullness of Spirit is always pouring through the human mind, limited only by the way one thinks and feels about life in general and about certain conditions and situations. Divine Scientists believe that sickness is the result of an absence of "right thinking" or a failure to connect to the Divine Mind. They also believe that God is Spirit, all of Life, Love, Truth, Substance, Soul, Intelligence, Knowledge, Power, and Presence—the exact image and likeness of God, co-eternal and co-equal.
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The Church of Divine Science is a religious movement within the New Thought movement
Divine Science defines itself as "an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation." It holds that its foundational truth is "that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything." It defines God as "pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation." Evil, therefore, is not considered permanent or necessary and only exists as long as humans support it through belief. Like other New Thought churches, Divine Science considers healing very important and emulates the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
Divine Science is based on the belief that God constitutes the nature of all beings and that God fills the invisible and visible realms of existence. This truth is considered changeless and available to all people, regardless of their actions. Divine Science teaches that the fullness of Spirit is always pouring itself through the human mind, limited only by an individual's thoughts and feelings about life.
Divine Science makes a distinction between "Petitionary" and "Affirmative" prayer. Petitionary Prayer requests or begs God as if God is external, while Affirmative Prayer acknowledges that God is everywhere, including within us, and declares what is known as the ultimate Truth. Divine Scientists also engage in meditation, stilling all thoughts and simply experiencing the present moment.
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Christian Scientists believe that the spiritual world is the only reality
Christian Science is a non-Christian sect that was created by New Englander Mary Baker Eddy in 1879. Eddy described Christian Science as a return to "primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing".
Christian Scientists believe that matter (material existence) appears real to our physical senses, but it is ultimately illusory. They believe that the only way to discover what is real is to rely solely on "spiritual sense". This means that they believe the spiritual world is the only reality. According to Christian Science, Jesus proved that "Spirit and its spiritual creation are the reality" and that the "material senses themselves are mistaken about the nature of reality".
Eddy wrote:
> The only reality of sin, sickness, or death, is the awful fact that unrealities seem real to human, erring belief, until God strips off their disguise.
Christian Scientists believe that disease is a mental error rather than a physical disorder, and that the sick should be treated not by medicine but by prayer, which seeks to correct the beliefs responsible for the illusion of ill health.
Divine Science, on the other hand, is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement. It was formalized in San Francisco in the 1880s under Malinda Cramer. Divine Science holds that its foundation truth is "that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is the All of everything". It defines God as ""pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation". Divine Science considers healing very important and emulates the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
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Frequently asked questions
Divine Science is a religious movement within the wider New Thought movement. It is based on the belief that God constitutes the nature of all being and that God fills the invisible and visible realms of existence. Divine Science defines itself as "an organized teaching pertaining to God and the manifestation of God in Creation."
Divine Science holds that its foundation truth is "that limitless Being, God, is Good, is equally present everywhere, and is all of everything." It defines God as "pure Spirit, absolute, changeless, eternal, manifesting in and as all Creation, yet also transcending Creation." Divine Science also believes in the importance of healing and emulates the work of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
Christian Science is a set of beliefs and practices associated with members of the Church of Christ, Scientist. It was founded in 1879 by Mary Baker Eddy, who wrote the book "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," which outlined the theology of Christian Science. Divine Science is often mentioned in the writings of Mary Baker Eddy, and she considered it to be interchangeable with Christian Science. Both Divine Science and Christian Science emphasize the importance of spiritual healing and the belief in the primacy of the mental world.
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