Robert Peel, “The Christian Science Practitioner,” Journal of Pastoral Counseling, IV, 1, Spring 1969, 39-42.
From an article in an interfaith professional publication examining the Christian Scientists’ ministry of healing through prayer:
“In the ministry of healing, as in the worship of God, it is evident that the Father’s house has many rooms.
“Within the Christian tradition the pastoral counselor, the charismatic faith healer, the Christian Science practitioner, and the priest anointing the sick with oil have at least three things in common. They have the inspiration of a common Lord and Master, a common conviction that the ministry of healing and the worship of God are profoundly related, and a common purpose to bring to the sufferer not merely bodily well-being but genuine spiritual health.
“In considering the distinctive role of the Christian Science practitioner, a few preliminary facts may be useful.
“Christian Science, although best known for its healing work, is also a way of life, a religious discipline, a metaphysical study, a denominational structure. In one sense, every Christian Scientist is expected to be a practitioner of his religion – that is, to prove his faith and understanding by his works. Like the moral and spiritual regeneration to which it is closely allied, healing is regarded as the natural fruit of drawing closer to God.
“Yet it is obvious that those who encounter apparently insuperable obstacles in their endeavor to do this need expert help. In such cases they may turn to an experienced Christian Scientist who, on a professional basis, devotes his full time to the ministry of healing in its broadest sense. This is the Christian Science practitioner properly so called, and his is a religious vocation to which any committed and qualified Christian Scientist can aspire….”