Mary Baker Eddy has given to members of The Mother Church certain duties to be performed daily. These she has outlined in the Manual of The Mother Church. One of them, entitled "Alertness to Duty," reads (Art. VIII, Sect. 6): "It shall be the duty of every member of this Church to defend himself daily against aggressive mental suggestion, and not be made to forget nor to neglect his duty to God, to his Leader, and to mankind. By his works he shall be judged,— and justified or condemned."
Christian Scientists understand thoroughly that obedience to this By-Law enables the student of Christian Science to maintain true alertness. Our Leader has used strong and unforgettable language when she writes, "not be made to forget nor to neglect."
Today the most insidious mental suggestions would aggressively assert themselves. Sometimes they appear as one's own experience of fear, pain, lack, and so on. Or sometimes the suggestions claim that others are experiencing diseases, disasters, accidents, wars, and the myriad of human beliefs continuously pouring forth through the media of television, radio, magazines, newspapers, and conversations. If one is not alert, one accepts these subtle and aggressive suggestions as his own thought.
