Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) is best known for founding the religion of Christian Science - an international institution which has extended beyond her lifetime and into the twenty-first century. Often labelled as fringe theology, rather than core philosophy, Eddy's work has remained on the peripheries of academia. Her unmitigated idealism, and occasionally nebulous style, have led to a reluctance to apply a philosophical rigour to her thinking. In The Philosophical Foundations of Christian Science, Nicholas Sheldon rediscovers her as a radical philosopher, one of many female philosophers of her time who, he contends, should no longer be underestimated. Carefully analysing her non-linear style in order to understand her internal system of thought, Sheldon resolves flaws within her argument, and draws out Christian Science's remarkable philosophical assertion: that it is not only illness and suffering which are unreal, but the entire physical realm. For Eddy, it is only the spiritual which remains.
Nicholas Sheldon rediscovers Mary Baker Eddy as a radical philosopher, one of many female philosophers of her time who, he contends, should no longer be underestimated.
