Along with Religious Science and Unity Church, Divine Science is one of the New Thought religions, although it is an offshoot of Christian Science.
Although the Church of Divine Science was founded by Malinda Cramer and Nona L. Brooks in 1888, the movement begins with Emma Curtis Hopkins, a student of Mary Baker Eddy. Hopkins once served as the editor of the Christian Science Journal, but she and Eddy parted ways over her more eclectic form of metaphysical idealism, moving on to become one of the principal founders of the New Thought movement. In 1887, Hopkins founded the Christian Science Theological Seminary in Chicago, which became a hub for New Thought ideology.
Nona Brooks was introduced to the teachings of Emma Hopkins through a third party, Mrs. Frank Bingham. Brooks attended Bingham's lectures and was testified that she was healed of a throat condition. Soon, she began to treat others and, along with her two sisters, Fanny Brooks and Aletha Brooks Small, she began to study and teach what would become Divine Science.
Simultaneously, Melinda Cramer was teaching something very similar in Denver. They joined together and founded the Home College of Spiritual Science in 1898, which they soon changed to Home College of Divine Science, and then the Divine Science College.
When Cramer died in 1907, the movement was headed by the three Brooks sisters.
Although it never grew into a major movement, Divine Science chapters were organized into the Divine Science Federation International in 1957, with its headquarters in Washington, DC. Today, there are Divine Science colleges in Denver and Washington DC, and satellite schools in Pueblo, Colorado and Roanoke, Virginia. Divine Science has churches in Denver and Pueblo, Colorado, Washington, DC, Greater Saint Louis, Roanoke, Virginia, San Antonio, Texas, San Jose, California, and perhaps some other locations.
In recent years, the Church has expanded its presence on the Internet to include some site-based churches. Northwoods Research provides promotional and informational materials online, and Symphony of Love offers weekly email study programs, free of charge, with an international reach. Other sites offer archived texts and audio recordings of prominent teachers of Divine Science.
The ideology of Divine Science is that of the mind sciences, which is that the perfect mind is God and that the presence of God in the universe is the only real and authentic presence there is. Therefore, sickness is illusory, and evil in the world or in the lives of people are the result of a lack of knowledge of the essential goodness of God. All that is required in order to rid yourself of sickness and evil is to develop the proper mindset.
In Divine Science, the key to salvation is to understand that spirit is the reality, and the key to atonement is the acceptance of unity.
Divine Science changes the meaning of atonement to at-one-ment, which signifies a unity or a state of being at one.
Physical healing may be achieved by ridding the mind of false concepts of evil.
The only true sin is that of ignorance.
The Christian concept of the Trinity is redefined in Divine Science. The Father is the source and cause of all goodness. However, in Divine Science, the source is not necessarily external to the human being. The Son is also an eternal, indwelling principle, which all people have the potential to realize. The Holy Spirit is the force that shows the way to the heavenly realm, which is that of self-realization.
Divine Science does not view the nature of the human being in the way that Christianity does. Humans are not sinful beings in the Christian sense of sin as a transgression against the will of God. In Divine Science, human beings have the capacity to achieve perfection, and that is the goal.
The goal of life is to achieve oneness with the divine. Once this is achieved, all evil will disappear and illusions will vanish.
The focus of this category is on the Divine Science movement, and any of its associations, federations, colleges, schools, or organizations. Purely informational sites, official or unofficial, are also appropriate for this category when Divine Science is the central point of its topics.
Recommended Resources
Association of Creative Thought
ACT became an accredited Divine Science extension campus, affiliated with the Divine Science Ministerial School in Washington, DC in 1997, Located in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, it offers Sunday morning services and regular classes. A history of the school and of Divine Science is projected, and a list of classes is published to the site. Board members are acknowledged, a calendar of events is posted, and announcements are published to the site.
http://www.actpe.co.za/
Church of the Holy Spirit United Divine Science Ministerial School
The educational branch of the Church of the Holy Spirit United Divine Science Church teaches the principles and ideals of the Divine Science movement, as founded by Emma Curtis Hopkins and Malinda Cramer. The founders of the movement are introduced, and its ministerial program is outlined, including its admissions policies, ministerial and practitioner curricula, and the location and schedules of the church.
http://www.uniteddivinescience.com/
Located in San Jose, California, CIS is the West Coast campus for the United Divine Science Ministerial School, offering Sunday services as well as classes in the fundamentals of Divine Science and several courses in metaphysics, including meditation. Its location, an overview of Divine Science, and a calendar of events are published to the site, along with a blog, contacts, and announcements.
https://www.communityofinfinitespirit.org/
Claiming that Divine Science is as old as humanity and that it offers the original New Thought theology, the site offers an overview of Divine Science. Its beliefs and principles are set forth, along with a history, profile, and other informational articles. Frequently asked questions are answered, and links to other Divine Science sites are included. An autobiography of Malinda Cramer and biographies of Malinda Cramer and Nona Brooks are included.
http://www.divinescience.com/
Teaching Divine Science in the United Kingdom, the Centre is affiliated with the Divine Science School in Washington DC, and the Divine Science Federation International. The Centre offers religious ceremonies, spiritual counseling, healing prayers, meditation classes, and study groups, which are outlined here. Frequently asked questions are answered, a thought for the day is offered, and contacts are posted to the site.
http://www.divinescienceuk.org/
Divine Science Church of the Healing Christ
Divine Science was founded by Nona and Aletha Brooks, and Fannie Brooks James, in 1887, and the Washington, DC church was established by Dr. Grace L. Faus in 1932. A history of the denomination and local church are featured, with interpretations of Christian doctrine, and the harmony of Divine Science with the Christian Bible. Classes, contacts, links to other Divine Science sites, and an online bookstore is included.
http://www.divinescience.org/
Divine Science Federation International
Affiliated with Divine Science Ministries, and headquartered in Rutland, Vermont, the origins, principles, and ideals of Divine Science are set forth, along with its organizational structure, educational programs, and other ministries, as well as its programs for practitioners and ministers, membership policies and opportunities, and contacts. Books and newsletters relating to Divine Science are tendered, and announcements are posted to the site.
http://www.divinesciencefederation.org/
Divine Science Ministers Association
DSMA is a non-profit corporation with members in several states throughout the United States, as well as in Australia. Its primary purpose, a vision statement, and membership policies and dues are published to the site. Other resources define its chaplaincy program, and memorials for Divine Science founders and ministers who have transitioned from this plane of expression are posted to the site.
http://www.divinescienceministersassociation.com/
The “School of Metaphysical Christianity” is based on Divine Science, as founded by Malinda Elliott Cramer and Nona Lovell Brooks, who are highlighted here, along with an overview of its teachings, course offerings, and a lesson overview. Based in Washington, DC, the school has extension campuses in Colorado, New Jersey, Vermont, Virginia, and South Africa, as well as study groups in New York and Virginia, Ontario, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
http://dsschool.org/
The online school offers structured courses in the Western mystery tradition of Divine Science. An overview of its classes is put forth, along with course structure, a variety of educational articles to be used in completing coursework, as well as public articles for the benefit of other readers of the site. Its enrollment policies and procedures, schedules, and announcements of upcoming programs are included.
http://www.thedivinescience.com/
