I like to think of Church in many different ways. But most consistently, I find myself thinking of the definition of Church given in the Glossary of Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy. She writes of Church as "the structure of Truth and Love; whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle." Science and Health, p. 583.
Gaining a spiritual understanding of Church is a dimension of drawing closer to God. Going about our day conscious that we are actually within "the structure of Truth and Love" is very different from simply attending a church service on Sunday. And yet our daily experiences and challenges can impel us to gain a clearer understanding of Church and to appreciate the purpose and value in our lives of church work and attendance. Not too long ago, thinking about Church in this way helped me to gain a better understanding of Christian healing.
I was walking from one building to another on my college campus during a winter storm. Sleet was stinging my face; cold winds penetrated my jacket. I was holding my books close to me, struggling to get to my next class. On top of all that, I was ill and felt miserable! I needed to go to school because of a test and important assignments, and I was muddling along in self-pity. Poor me! Could I make it through the day? I should be in my warm home, maybe cuddled up in bed....
Then—right on the open oval area between my two class buildings—I stopped and thought. I consciously identified myself as a Christian Scientist, a follower of Christ Jesus. Thus I was not limiting myself to what matter claimed man to be. As a Scientist, I reasoned, I was also a "prover" not just a "talker" of truth, of Jesus' teachings.
I recalled that once Christ Jesus was unshaken by a storm that was frightening his disciples greatly. See Mark 4:37-41. In fact, they were so afraid that they cried out for help. These were seasoned fishermen, so the storm must have been a terrible one. The boat was filling with water and the wind was howling, but Jesus was asleep! When his disciples wakened him, "he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." He met every adverse situation with authority. He stilled fear and its cause.
While I didn't try to tell the wind and sleet to stop there on campus, I did stop trying to carry fear and self-pity with me through the storm. I stood still in the middle of the storm, thinking about what was spiritually true. I thought of Church. I felt as if I were standing right in the midst of "the structure of Truth and Love."
I stopped hunching over. I decided that, in the few moments between classes, I could begin to move beyond mere belief in God to try to understand Truth, God. It was as if the spiritual idea, Church, were now surrounding everyone, and the sleet and cold wind were nothing to fear.
Mrs. Eddy gives several synonyms for God, and they enlarge our understanding of Him. Three of these are Truth, Love, and Life. As I thought about the nature of God, and about man as reflecting God—created with truth, expressing love, strong in living—I felt secure.
Then I thought of these words from Science and Health: "Let us disrobe error. Then, when the winds of God blow, we shall not hug our tatters close about us." Science and Health, p. 201. That's exactly what I had been doing—not only hugging a jacket around me but also the tatters of material belief—that weather could affect my well-being, that cold could determine my health and comfort, that theories about germs might be valid.
I stopped hunching over. I decided that, for the few moments between classes, I wanted to move beyond mere belief in God to try to understand Truth, God. It was as if the spiritual idea, Church, were now surrounding everyone, and the sleet and cold wind were nothing to fear. I was welcoming "the winds of God," so I could rejoice in whatever the weather might bring.
I continued to think about Church and the power of Love that it expresses. Before I knew it, I was healed. I had let go of all the tattered beliefs I had been hugging for comfort, and by the time I reached my next class I was totally free from all symptoms of cold and discomfort. I felt as if I were standing in the very light of the Christ. And, of course, I was.
In Rudimental Divine Science Mrs. Eddy states: "All true Science represents a moral and spiritual force, which holds the earth in its orbit. This force is Spirit, that can 'bind the sweet influences of the Pleiades,' and 'loose the bands of Orion.' ...Law is not in matter, but in Mind only." Rud., p. 4. Two more synonyms Mrs. Eddy gives for God are Spirit and Mind. When we recognize force, law, and Science as included in God's being, we see that man, as God's reflection, can receive only good, not discomfort or limitation or fear. On this basis we reject laws of matter or limitation.
That's basically what I had understood that moment in the middle of the sleet. I glimpsed the fact that man isn't at the mercy of chance or of the theory of material influences within or without, of time, sin, disease, or even of death. Life is something much greater than we know; yet we will proportionately understand Life, God, as we really want to, and we will feel the great love of Life in our daily experience.
Life is not something we struggle to hold on to; we are inextricably embraced by Life. There's no place outside of Life, God, ever. Because the idea of Church is included in Life's bounty, we take it with us in our daily expression of Life.
There's so much to learn about the nature of God and of God's creation. As we learn more of God, we understand more of our identity as His offspring. As we learn more about our true selves, we want to find out more about reality. Spiritual learning becomes our major purpose in life, and we begin to see that spiritual substance is the very stuff of which we are made. Then the material sense fades and our spiritual, unblemished, perfect selfhood comes to light, and there is healing.
