Editorials

Most bookstores and libraries have a special section called "self-improvement" or "self-help"—filled with books, tapes, and videos that profess to make you a better person. Some of these say that they can make you an expert on Oriental cooking or plumbing or a foreign language.

Overcoming sickness and sin through a growing understanding of the allness of God, good, is the natural result of practicing Christian Science. But healing oneself is really just the beginning of this practice.

For consistent effectiveness in the practice of Christian Science healing, we must understand the essential metaphysics of man's relationship to God and how God's laws apply specifically to individual human needs. We must also know the rules of Christian Science practice and adhere to them faithfully.

Early within each of the first five books of the New Testament is an account of John the Baptist's activities and of his baptism of Jesus. The record shows that as Jesus came up out of the water, the Spirit of God descended upon him and a voice was heard out of heaven, declaring, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Most people want to be able to help and comfort others. If we pray about it, there's no question that we'll find opportunities to do so.

The young visitor was quite excited to tell his parents all that he had been taught during his first visit to a Christian Science Sunday School. He started to describe to them some of the things the class had discussed during the hour, adding that they also talked about someone named "Myrtle Mind"! When a friend told me this many years ago, it reminded me of some of the early impressions I had as a young Sunday School pupil about the terms mortal mind and error, which appear in Mrs.

She arrived in a shoe box, tenderly cushioned in plain white paper. My dad, who worked for The Mother Church, brought her home one day to show me.

She was known around the city as a sinner. Simon, the highminded Pharisee who had invited Jesus to a banquet at his house, was shocked that the Master allowed her to come near him as he ate—to wash his feet with her teardrops, dry them with her long hair, kiss them, and then tenderly pour expensive perfumed ointment over them.

In recent months I've become increasingly aware of an opening of thought—a growing willingness among people to consider new ideas. The ideas I'm referring to, however, are so different from the normal course of human thinking that an outside observer who hasn't fully investigated them for himself might even wonder why a rational person should take them seriously.

The validity of Christian healing and of its reforming influence in the world has never been verified merely by the popularity of religion or by the number of people attending a church. If we look back at the advent of Christianity, it's clear that Christ Jesus didn't depend on how many people were ready to commit themselves fully to his teachings in order to validate somehow the real significance or value of his God-given mission.