Articles

It was the fall of my eighth-grade year. That summer my family had moved almost a thousand miles from New Jersey to Missouri.

Jesus said he would found his church on the “rock,” Christ, and promised: “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (see Matthew 16:13–19 ). The early Christian Church certainly proved it was able to withstand relentless persecution, as it grew and demonstrated its efficacy.

Our church , a branch of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, was dwindling through attrition. We were down to just a handful of members, and our spirits were flagging.

I had been listening to the news before leaving for our Wednesday testimony meeting. As my husband was driving us to church, I was looking forward to the service as well as the testimonies we would hear.

Today there is a lot of attention given to the use of weapons. Political controversy over the use of weapons regularly hits the media; movies often include scenes with violent weaponry; the gaming industry adds interactivity with an array of imaginary weapons; and we are frequently informed of newer and more destructive armaments in development.

Of all that is near and dear to our hearts, our children are nearest and dearest. With them we often glimpse the spiritual nature of identity and good.

When a loved one passes on, overcoming grief can be an especially challenging task. Yet, many have found that through the teachings of Christian Science grief can be thoroughly and completely healed, whether that takes persistence in prayer or happens very quickly.

To know what God would or wouldn’t say to us, it is first necessary to know how God always communicates spiritual answers to a yearning heart. We may feel that we don’t see adequate answers to the challenges we face, and we may wonder how anything spiritual could do more than ease the stress of difficulties.

Recently, while thinking about divine Love, I read these words from First John: “We love him, because he first loved us” ( 4:19 ). I wondered, Is the reason I love God really that He first loved me? It seemed so binary and limited on the surface.

Perhaps you have had questions like “Why should I read the Christian Science periodicals?” “Why should I write for them?” “Why should I prayerfully support them?” or “Why should I share them?” Each of these “Why me?” questions could have many unique “because” responses. But one broad “because” is true in respect to all these “whys.