Does Christian Science imply that we can purposefully transform the physical world or its history through some sort of collective mental effort? Can I convince humanity to wish the earth was made of chocolate and make it so?
It does not, and I cannot.
The mechanics of thought described in the previous chapter refer to the experience of a mortal sense of existence which, in reality, does not exist. The real discovery in Christian Science is not that we can change this mortal sense of existence, but that this sense disappears with an understanding of God, an awakening from the dream of material sense.
Nevertheless, there are some aspects of this dream we can explore deeper in answering the question above more specifically.
First, when we speak of general belief in Christian Science we are using the stronger meaning of the word belief, as in something ingrained in thought. If we think of a wish as something we hope for, or how we want something to be, a belief in this sense is how we think that same thing is in actuality, whether or not the evidence in front of us supports it.
The historical record is a projection of the general belief, not of the general wishes of mortals. Manipulations of belief, like hypnotism, only have the temporary effects of an individua's dream—an individual faith which is ultimately ruled by the majority.
Second, the material illusion of reality is not a deliberate process. Like the experiences in a dream, the experience of a physical body and physical world are simply the voluntary and involuntary mental outcomes of an incredibly complex set of worldviews. They are a stitching together of independent and relative mental stimuli, in whatever form makes the most sense to human experience—in this case the experience of consentaneous human thought, conscious and unconscious.
According to quantum theory, the generation of these so-called physical conditions follows pure statistical development rather than purpose or intent. No god is pulling the strings behind the illusion of life in matter. As described in the previous chapter, human conditions are experienced in proportion to the belief's occupancy of human consciousness.
Finally, the belief in separate human minds or a collective humanity is itself a misstatement. It has no actual mental power of its own. Some of its expected outcomes may be temporarily experienced in belief until the belief changes to reflect reality. No belief can alter reality, however. Reality is changeless.
In Christian Science, therefore, the infinite Mind, reality itself, constitutes the only mental power. As human belief improves to reflect this Mind, the illusive evidence of the physical senses simply disappears.
Until this happens, the experienced outcomes of general belief will continue to seem random, and include inconsistencies, limitations, anomalies, and enigmas.
