"That shouldn't ever happen to anyone!" I said unhappily to myself one Sunday some time ago as I drove home from church, disturbed because I had slept through a portion of the service. I was determined to put an end to these occasional lapses by better spiritual preparation.
I tried to analyze the situation objectively. The Readers had good voices, good diction, and they read with freshness and understanding. Certainly I couldn't blame my drowsiness on their presentation. I had been studying the Lesson-SermonIn the Christian Science Quarterly; that week and had a good overall impression of the content of the selections from the Bible and from Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy. So I couldn't say that the subject was too much for me.
I identified (for the purpose of denying) impersonal elements of general world belief that would undermine the effectiveness of church services and undermine the effectiveness of the Christian Science movement. Reluctance to attend church, indifference to church work, skepticism about the healing potential of Christian Science treatment— these and other mesmeric tendencies of mortal-mindedness would intimidate and discourage those who are endeavoring to center their lives on spiritual goals and values. These delusive deflecting pressures are animal magnetism, which, if left unchallenged, would draw our thought to deleterious and even evil habits, pastimes, and activities.
