Although Scott Putnam grew up in a Christian Science household, the path that led him to his healing practice in Portland, Oregon, took many twists and turns along the way. Born in Illinois, Scott moved to San Jose, California, in the seventh grade, and later went on to graduate from Principia College, where he lettered in tennis and worked as a sportswriter on the school paper. Scott left college after graduation to travel the world. While in his 20s, he lived on two occasions in a Mexican village, Yautepec, explored Europe, particularly Germany, and later became a captain in the United States Marine Corps. He also did a stint at Stanford Law School.
Scott married fellow Principia graduate Gwen Bardwell, and they have two children, Tam and Bret, who both live in San Francisco. Before becoming a Christian Science practitioner, Scott worked in advertising in California and Oregon. Then, during the early '70s, the family lived in Florence, Italy, for a few years. While Scott worked as a school administrator, the Putnams hit the road during the holidays—traveling throughout Europe, including the Soviet Union, in a VW minibus.
However, Christian Science and the healing practice continued to beckon, eventually capturing all of Scott's attention—and time. By 1974, he began to advertise in the Journal as a full-time practitioner. In 1988 he took Christian Science Normal class to become a teacher of Christian Science, and the rest, as they say, is history. Today Scott continues to thrive on the daily inspiration of metaphysical healing and the joy that comes with teaching Christian Science. But he still finds time to get out there on the hiking trails, and to keep up with his other great love—history. And travel. In fact, Scott and Gwen just recently returned from a sojourn in India, where Scott says he wanted to "broaden the borders of my tent, to learn more of the richness of God's universal kingdom." Learning, healing, growing, and rejoicing in God's great goodness every day, Scott spoke with me recently to share some of his deep love for Christian Science. Here are some excerpts from our conversation.
