In late summer of 1962, I was in Edinburgh, Scotland, nearing the end of a fifteen-month period of graduate study and travel. At the time, Edinburgh was jampacked with tourists and students. I had managed to find about the last spare bed in the city, in a walk-up apartment being used entirely by transient students whom I did not know. Then, a few weeks before I was scheduled to return home by ship, I became ill. For several days I lay on my bed praying and attempting to ward off fear, which at times loomed large. Finally, I called for help from a local Christian Science practitioner.
As a lifelong student of this Science, I wasn't inclined to seek a medical diagnosis, but the symptoms were the same as those suffered by another student in my residence earlier in the year, whose case had been diagnosed as glandular fever. Because it appeared that the problem might be considered contagious, the practitioner insisted that I notify the public health authorities. This step required considerable courage on my part. I was afraid I would be quarantined and miss the scheduled sailing I had booked passage on. But I made the call, and the official I talked with merely thanked me for reporting the condition, and did not require me to submit to a medical examination. This freed my thought considerably.
The next day the practitioner climbed the several flights of stairs to visit me. Noting the turbulent environment of the apartment building where I was staying, she suggested I enter the local nursing facility for Christian Scientists. At first, stubborn will made me resistant to this idea. Couldn't God heal me anywhere? Later, when I was at last comfortably ensconced in a clean bed at the facility, with a lovely view of a walled garden, I saw that the situation was forcing me to express more humility and a greater trust in God's disposition of events.
With the kind and skillful care of the nursing staff, regular meals, and daily visits from the practitioner, I found it much easier to turn away from the mortal evidence of a sick body and to ponder quietly the truths of my immortal being as God's reflection. My early-morning study of the Bible Lesson from the Christian Science Quarterly became more meaningful, and I became better acquainted with Mrs. Eddy's prose writings.
One day the practitioner asked me to acknowledge very firmly that I was responsive to the prayerful treatment being given. I tried conscientiously to be obedient to that request. Early the next morning, while studying and praying, I suddenly caught a vivid glimpse of a spiritual fact that was both natural and reassuring to me. I saw clearly for a fleeting moment that all the ideas of God, divine Mind, are always perfectly controlled by and obedient to Mind, God, and to nothing else. And I knew that I was one of those ideas. It was not that these words came to my thought. I had read similar statements as words for years. But the fact which the words represented suddenly became real to me, and I accepted it as something that had always been true.
That night I woke with the uncomfortable awareness of being soaked all over. Somewhat alarmed, I rang for the nurse on duty, who brought me clean, dry linens and bedclothes. The next night the same thing happened, though less severely. In retrospect, I recognize this occurrence as a natural result of mental chemicalization. In Science and Health Mrs. Eddy states (p. 401): "What I term chemicalization is the upheaval produced when immortal Truth is destroying erroneous mortal belief. Mental chemicalization brings sin and sickness to the surface, forcing impurities to pass away, as is the case with a fermenting fluid." Within a couple of days I felt ready to leave the nursing facility, sure that I was healed. Although I felt a little weak and there was still some swelling, the fever itself was entirely gone.
In short order I completed preparations for the trip home, enjoyed a restful voyage, and within a week after arriving home embarked on a strenuous semester of graduate work and teaching. A physical examination was required by the university I was to attend, and the doctor noted only a slight swelling on one side of my neck. I was awed by the evidence of the healing power of God and the efficacy of Christian Science treatment, as this type of illness had received considerable publicity on my undergraduate campus and was thought to require a lengthy convalescence. The swelling and feeling of weakness subsequently disappeared.
After completion of the graduate program, I was able to have class instruction in Science, a wonderful privilege that deepened my appreciation of God's healing power and gave me a solid base for further spiritual growth. I have been tremendously helped by the yearly Christian Science Students Association meeting also.
Looking back, I can identify a great variety of blessings that Science has brought into my life. As a single person, I found that study of it helped me progress in my academic work, resolve problems of employment and financial need, locate appropriate living quarters, and form deeply satisfying friendships. Since our marriage, my husband and I have found it essential to approach our major decisions in the spirit advocated in Proverbs (3:5, 6): "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." The challenge of disposing of our house and acquiring a more suitable one was resolved with amazing precision as we perseveringly trusted in the omnipotent God, good.
I am tremendously grateful for Christ Jesus, the master Christian, for all the inspired thinkers whose works are recorded in the Bible, and for Mrs. Eddy, whose book Science and Health shows us the way to make scriptural teachings practical.
Barrington, Illinois
