I found out about Christian Science when I was in university. I earned an undergraduate degree in music and education, and then studied French language and culture in Quebec City. Then I studied international relations and Latin American history in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and did the first year in a master's program in political science. But participation in an internship program in the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa changed me the most. Although I spent a year in a master's degree program in business administration after the internship program, it was that year of meeting many politicians, senior civil servants, and diplomats that pivoted me toward a career in Christian Science healing.
In that program, each intern worked half the year for a government Member of Parliament and half the year for an opposition Member. (The government Member represents one a party in power, the opposition Member represents one of the parties out of power.) Simultaneous to that, the interns traveled to several other countries, so that we could compare the legislative process in various jurisdictions with the Canadian legislative process. In addition to visiting three provincial legislatures, we spent a week in Washington as guests of the United States government and a week in London and Northern Ireland as guests of the British government. We were also hosted by what was then (1986) called West Germany, and in Brussels by NATO and by the European Economic Community.
During my intern year I perceived that the changes taking place in politics and economics reflect different modes of thought. And it occurred to me that I could contribute best to the world's progress by becoming a Christian Science practitioner. Since spiritual healing involves changing people's ways of thinking, practitioners are constantly working with people's mental perception of health and other conditions. To me, this way of thinking also embraces the world.
I had already begun such work by praying for the world. Even before I became a member of the Church of Christ, Scientist, I knew that prayer was a powerful tool for world development and peace. I thought that if I was active in the environmental movement or other charitable activity, I might well stuff envelopes, knock on doors, or go to meetings five to ten hours a week. I reasoned that as a Christian I could give that much time to prayer. So I began to go through a newspaper a week, reading all of the articles and praying for the situations described in them. I read every section, from the political news to business, fashion, entertainment, sports, and investment with the idea of praying to uplift thought.
I continued doing this after I began to study Christian Science. I prayed with newspaper a week for a couple of years. Then when I worked as an intern, I reserved two nights a week just for praying for myself, others, and the world. The next year, when I was in the master's program in business administration, I began setting aside three nights a week. Finally, I began in the practice full time the following year.
In about 1985 I had decided to do my best to hold my thought at a level that healed. That way if people asked me to pray for them, I would already have the necessary mental stance. People started to call me for help after that decision. Of course, always reflecting divine Love's power to heal is an ideal that I'm still striving to bring forth.
Since going into the practice full time, my experience has confirmed for me that thought is behind everything that happens in the world, be it a public affairs question, a marital problem, or sickness. In A History of Christian Thought, Paul Tillich, a giant of 20th-century theology, wrote: "All human experience implies the element of thought .... There is no human existence without thought." Paul Tillich, A History of Christian Thought (New York:Harper & Row, Publishers, 1968). p. xi. Our mental action, from moment to moment, determines the quality of our lives and the nature of the world around us.
To me, a prayer for individual health is a prayer for world peace. To be healthy is to be happy, peaceful, at ease, and looking forward to good. A happy, healthy person contributes mentally to a happy, healthy, country and world—a country and world where there is political peace, social justice, and economic progress.
In my practice I strive to see the inherent spirituality of the person. That innate spirituality leads to wellness, health, and healing, for individuals and for our world. Beyond even the admirable desire to eliminate suffering and correct injustices, I'm motivated by the desire to bring out the wholeness and oneness of all creation.
