Summary
Summary of Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures
Key ideas
Key idea 1
Prayer begins with understanding
What if prayer meant understanding rather than asking? That question stands at the heart of Mary Baker Eddy's Science and Health, the main book of Christian Science. Eddy wrote it after a fall on the ice, when she said she was healed while reading about Jesus healing in the Gospels.
The book brings together theology, philosophy, spiritual healing and Bible commentary. Its central concern is how a changed understanding of God and oneself might shape both thought and daily life.
Key idea 2
Prayer changes the person praying
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Key idea 3
God is the source of reality
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Key idea 4
The senses can misrepresent reality
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Key idea 5
Healing rests on changed thought
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Key idea 6
Jesus provides a pattern to follow
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Key idea 7
Scripture carries an inner spiritual meaning
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Key idea 8
A teaching becomes a shared practice
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Key idea 9
Spiritual conviction meets continuing debate
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Go deeper: the whole of Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures
About 14 h 10 min to read.Who it’s for
For readers who love religious history, American faith movements, and explorations of spiritual healing, prayer and the Bible. Readers within Christian Science will also find a clear review of Eddy's central teachings.
What this book is
What if prayer were not asking at all, but understanding? That is the bold idea at the heart of Science and Health, the main book of Christian Science. Mary Baker Eddy first published it in Boston in 1875 and kept revising it until her death in 1910. She wrote it after a fall on the ice in Lynn, Massachusetts, in 1866, when she said she was healed while reading about Jesus healing in the Gospels. It is part theology, part philosophy, part healing manual and part Bible commentary. You do not need to agree to follow her argument.
In this summary
- 1Prayer means understanding God, not askingFree
- 2God is Mind, and Mind is all
- 3Matter is a belief, not a reality
- 4Sickness yields to a changed thought
- 5Sin, the cross and the Saviour's example
- 6Against medicine, spiritualism and mesmerism
- 7Reading the Bible by its spiritual sense
- 8Practice, teaching and the church
- 9How the book has been challenged and has lasted
Key point 1 of 9
Prayer means understanding God, not asking
Eddy says prayer is not a way to persuade God to change His mind. God is already perfect and loving, so nothing needs to be begged from Him. Prayer is a change in the one who prays.
She separates the spoken request, which she thinks can be empty and proud, from quiet private prayer. That second kind is a steady effort to see what is true about God and oneself. Right living, such as honesty, patience and kindness, is the best proof of prayer.
She takes the Lord's Prayer as her model and restates each phrase in her own terms. Our Father which art in heaven becomes a statement about a loving Parent present everywhere. For her, prayer is a discipline of thought and conduct, not a shopping list.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Check yourself
What does prayer change in Eddy's teaching?
Right. “Prayer is a change in the one who prays.”Not quite. “Prayer is a change in the one who prays.”
How does Eddy understand matter?
Right. “What the senses report is a mistaken view of what is truly spiritual.”Not quite. “What the senses report is a mistaken view of what is truly spiritual.”
What is the aim of a practitioner's prayer in Eddy's healing method?
Right. “The aim is to remove the fear that supports the illness.”Not quite. “The aim is to remove the fear that supports the illness.”
Go deeper: the whole of Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures
About 14 h 10 min to read.About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 211,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 14 h 5 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 10 other languages
Questions about Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures
What is Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures about?
It sets out Christian Science. Eddy teaches that God is infinite Mind and wholly good, that matter and illness are false beliefs, and that prayer based on this understanding can heal. The book also gives a spiritual reading of the Bible.
Who wrote Science and Health and when was it published?
Mary Baker Eddy wrote it. It first appeared in Boston in 1875, and she revised it many times until her death in 1910. The title with Key to the Scriptures came in later editions.
What are the seven synonyms for God in Science and Health?
Eddy names God as Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth and Love. She treats them as equal names that together describe a God who is the source of all that is real.
Is Science and Health hard to read?
Each part also takes one clear subject at a time, such as God, healing or the Bible, and she explains each idea in her own simple terms.
What is the main message of Science and Health?
The main message is that God is good and is all, so evil and sickness have no true reality. Eddy says that understanding this through prayer and right living brings healing and freedom from fear.
Cite this edition
Eddy, Mary Baker. Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/science-and-health-with-key-to-the-scriptures.
Eddy, M. B. (2026). Science and health, with key to the Scriptures. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/science-and-health-with-key-to-the-scriptures (Original work published 1875)
Eddy, Mary Baker. Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/science-and-health-with-key-to-the-scriptures.
@book{eddy2026science,
author = {Eddy, Mary Baker},
title = {Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/science-and-health-with-key-to-the-scriptures},
note = {First published 1875}
}
