When I entered the term “science of being” into Google search on September 15, 2025, I received the following astonishingly correct answer:
“In philosophy, the term “science of being” refers to ontology, the study of the most general principles, categories, and relations of being. However, the term can also refer specifically to the doctrines of…” Christian Science to refer to where Mary Baker Eddy developed the “science of being” as a system that emphasizes the spiritual nature of reality and is based on a universal principle of God as Being itself.
At first glance, Google's AI seems to have generated a pleasingly successful short definition. However, it becomes less pleasing if you can't resist the temptation and click on the link "Christian Science." Then, on the German-language Wikipedia, you'll find a selection of information that (from my personal perspective, of course) reflects three things:
- The opinion of world consciousness about so-called “Christian Science.”
- An undifferentiated and partly misleading portrayal of a historical phenomenon that is still misunderstood or even ignored today.
- The cult-like veneration that the adepts of “Christian Science” have shown towards their founder Mary Baker Eddy and her works.
How can such, let's call them "misunderstandings," arise? In my opinion, the primary cause isn't the editors of the German-language Wikipedia, but rather the Janus-faced nature of a movement that, to this day, struggles immensely to distinguish between doctrine and institutional (church) organizations that act in its name. Incidentally, something similar happened to the original teachings of Christianity. If you compare the simple, clear, yet radical teachings of the Sermon on the Mount with what was then circulated as "Christianity" for millennia, you'll understand what I mean.
