Page:The Origin of Christian Science.djvu/85

Rh this theory for the present and notice the point that matter is here described by Plotinus as “being the nature opposite to form,” that is, opposite to idea, reality, God or good. The Christian Science shoe, in size and shape, fits exactly the Neoplatonic track.

In the following sentence Plotinus conceives of matter as shadow or as darkness. “At this point she (the soul) already has hold of matter, seeing what she does not see, just as we talk about ‘seeing the dark.’ ”

Mrs. Eddy performs nicely for us. She is stepping accurately and gracefully in the tracks of Plotinus. Her skill, though secretly acquired, evinces the best of training.

It is appropriate to consider in this connection Mrs. Eddy's application of the doctrine of the unreality of matter.

It is hardly necessary to say that Mrs. Eddy reasons that since matter is unreal, the human body is unreal and therefore sickness is unreal. Accordingly it is useless to take medicine. If there is anything new in Christian Science this is it. But notice, it is only an application of the principle and not the principle that can be said to be anything novel. And we have seen that Mrs. Eddy must have known that P. P. Quimby made this application of the principle. The principle is as old as Plato and even older. The most ardent friends of Mrs. Eddy would hardly claim that