Some years after I had had class instruction in Christian Science, I began to realize that periods of depression, which I had undergone at regular intervals through much of my life, were examples of animal magnetism. This is a term Christian Science uses to describe the nature of evil, which often appears aggressive and very real. Christian Science teaches its adherents to recognize that God is the All-power, and that for this reason animal magnetism, or any evil, is in fact erroneous and unreal.
I saw that I should be at work denying any power to depression. I made a conscious effort to realize that joy was my divine right—that there was no power to take away my joy, and that I did know all I needed to defend myself against what amounted to aggressive mental suggestion. This is what the Manual of The Mother Church by Mrs. Eddy instructs (see Art. VIII, Sect. 6). As I realized that my duty to God included rejoicing, I was able to dispel the gloom permanently.
When raising a family, my wife and I were very grateful for the support of prayer. The Christian Science Hymnal was a wonderful comfort on many occasions. One treasured memory is of our son seeking our comfort one night when he was sick and asking us to "say long finger prayer." We knew he probably was referring to the words of a hymn (I still find it worth remembering what powerful prayers the words of hymns can be). But we had to think hard, and consult a concordance, before we realized that the hymn he wanted was a poem written by Mary Baker Eddy, which contains the lines "'Twas Love whose finger traced aloud / A bow of promise on the cloud" (No. 30). The hymn was long in this case, rather than the finger! But the words which speak of divine Love did bring the assurance he needed; after we sang the hymn he slept the rest of the night and was well the next day I shall always treasure the singing of hymns to our children.
