The Healing of the Nations

Divine Love alone is sufficient for “the healing of the nations” — deep enough, constant, and courageous enough, to speak with authority and command peace. But divine Love also fulfills the law and forgives sin by destroying it. Divine Love separates personal sense from person, and so saves men and nations, but does not destroy them.

Nations have individual characteristics imposed upon them by tradition, experience, or unresisted mental suggestion; therefore, they need to be awakened to realize their real selfhood as truly as individual human beings need this awakening.

To Christian Science, every nation becomes a patient to be healed, whose diseases must be unseen, whose sins must be forgiven, and whose harmony must be established in Truth. Nations need to be freed from misconception, condemnation, delusion, sense-intoxication, stagnation, and unjust tyrannies inherited from the past. The prayer that saves the sick and the sinning human being by the destruction of error, is also applicable to a nation or people momentarily hypnotized.

Paul of Tarsus, who had once been of the strictest sect of the Pharisees, who had been hardened by pride, and while under the influence of the merciless scholastic theology of his day, went about “breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord,” was also the man who, out of the ripeness of his spiritual experience, could finally declare, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.” (I Cor.) The illumination of truth which may temporarily blind the material sight of a Paul, also prepares him to be an apostle to the Gentiles, even to the nations of the whole world.

The enlightenment which comes through Christian Science is a trust to be exercised in behalf of all. No legitimate human interest is too remote for the healing power of Christian Science. Mrs. Eddy writes: “The impersonation of the spiritual idea had a brief history in the earthly life of our Master; but ‘of his kingdom there shall be no end,’ for Christ, God’s idea, will eventually rule all nations and peoples — imperatively, absolutely, and finally — with divine Science.” (S&H)