Chapter 1 - The Principle of Divine Healing.

The Principle of Divine Healing.

Since the days of primitive man, two distinct problems have engaged the attention of Religion. These questions have been in more or less degree the concern of all religions, whether crude or civilized. One lies in the Moral Realm; the other in the Physical. I refer to the subjects of Sin and Sickness. Sin represents the Abnormal Ethical State. Sickness corresponds to the Abnormal Bodily Condition. Sin and Sickness are neither natural nor God-given.

Since the beginning of time, mankind has sought to solve the problem of Sin. To this special moral task, Religion has dedicated itself. In its final analysis, Religion is a finite effort to attain the Divine and Infinite Perfection. Religion therefore aims, first of all, at a purely ethical purpose. In this sense, all religious customs, ceremonies, forms and symbols are only the means for the moral betterment of humanity. Were the world perfect, the Synagogue and the Church would inevitably lose one of their chief functions. This perfect state of human goodness is the Millennium that all religious workers and leaders are striving to effect. It is the Messianic Era when only the Right will prevail, and the Wrong be utterly eradicated.
But man is not yet perfect, and the moral struggle has gone on through the ages. At times, human nature seems little improved. Each age also