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Why did Mary Baker Eddy become interested in alternative healing methods?

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The Mother Church at the Christian Science Center in Boston stands beside a large reflecting pool, with its domed roof and ornate facade visible under a partly cloudy sky. — Christian Science The Mother Church and reflecting pool, Christian Science Center, Boston.

Mary Baker Eddy’s interest in alternative healing methods was primarily driven by her lifelong struggle with poor health and her search for a reconciliation between a loving God and the existence of human suffering.12

Throughout the 1850s and 1860s, Eddy lost faith in traditional medical systems, which she viewed as based on materialistic premises. This disillusionment led her to experiment with various alternative approaches, including homeopathy, hydrotherapy, and the suggestive therapeutics of Phineas Parkhurst Quimby. Her experiences with these methods, particularly homeopathy, helped solidify her conviction that the root cause of disease was mental rather than physical.324

Ultimately, these experiments served as a catalyst for her own spiritual quest. Following a significant recovery from an injury in 1866, which she attributed to spiritual illumination, she moved away from secular healing techniques to focus on the New Testament accounts of healing. This led her to conclude that healing was a spiritual mission, eventually resulting in the founding of Christian Science.534