Nov. 8--Don't write its obituary.
Because the Christian Science Monitor, a venerable 100-year publication, isn't dead.
It's just reinventing itself.
In April, the daily newspaper run by the Christian Science church will transition to a 24-hour online news operation, publishing a newspaper only on Fridays.
With that move, the Monitor, with a circulation of about 52,000, becomes the first newspaper with a national audience to make a dramatic shift into the digital world. No doubt, all eyes will be on the experiment.
Church founder Mary Baker Eddy, who launched the newspaper in 1908 with the mission to "injure no man, but to bless all mankind," would probably understand. With readership habits changing and advertising revenue plummeting, the traditional newspaper is in trouble.
According to editor John Yemma, it was a matter of economics and how readers are getting their news these days.
"Online journalism is more timely and is rapidly expanding its reach, especially among younger readers," he says. "There's still a role for print, but one that is geared to weekends, when people still can find time to catch up, look behind the headlines and experience the pleasures of print."
The Monitor will maintain its 18 worldwide bureaus and its commitment to reporting comprehensively and without bias on global and national events. Although the paper has the unusual distinction of being run by the Boston-based church, its coverage isn't slanted, as one would expect. That's why it has won seven Pulitzer Prizes.
"We're proud of what this paper represents," says Phil Davis, a church spokesman.
It's also been a great public relations tool for the church, whose official name is The First Church of Christ, Scientist. Since the Monitor established itself as a player in the media world, it opened the door to discussion on the church that owns it.
A few quick facts: Christian Science (not to be confused with Scientology), is based on the teachings and practice of Jesus, including healing through prayer. The denomination claims about 1,800 churches in about 60 countries.
Eddy, of Lynn, Mass., founded the church after she was healed of a critical condition while reading biblical accounts of Jesus' healing. In 1879, a charter for the Church of Christ, Scientist was established "to commemorate the word and works of our Master, which should reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing."
Although Christian Scientists are free to seek medical treatment, many followers choose prayer as a means of health care. Davis says the church publishes testimonies from members every week that support their belief in prayer's healing powers.
Church members aren't alone in turning to a higher power when it comes to health care. According to a Gallup Poll, more than 40 percent of Americans claim that, "at one time or another," they had a physical healing through prayer.
"That's a significant number," Davis says. "So when you talk about health care reform in this country, which is a critical priority, you exclude a substantial number of people if you don't address the spiritual component."
Even medical educators are coming around to this way of thinking. Davis says in the past 15 years, more than half of the nation's medical colleges and universities have added programs about spirituality to their curriculums. It's not an attempt to replace conventional medical treatment, but to enlighten future health care professionals about the role faith can play in combating illness.
"I love the fact we share the same motive -- to alleviate suffering and disease," Davis says. "We may have a different system, a different approach, but we all want the same outcome. We can work together toward that."
Kudos to Christian Science for giving us a great newspaper and a spiritual support component to our traditional health care system. Eddy was a woman way ahead of her time.
Three programs are planned this month to introduce the public to the church's beliefs. At 2 p.m. Sunday, you can attend "The Medicine of Christian Science" at 1310 W. Linebaugh Ave., Tampa; at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Nov. 28, a presenter will talk on "How Did Jesus Heal? The Certainty of Christian Science Healing" at the Christian Science Reading Room, 431 First Ave. N., St. Petersburg. For information, call (727) 641-0656.
Michelle Bearden talks with two Christian Scientists on her "Keeping the Faith" segment at 9 a.m. Sunday on WFLA-TV.
Credit: Tampa Tribune, Fla.
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