Christ the Redeemer Statue, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
LULA RODRIGUES
Orlando Trentini had the rare privilege of growing up when Christian Science was first sprouting in Brazil, and of witnessing much of its early history. In this interview, he tells about some of those early days while also offering thoughts on the Christ and how an understanding of this spiritual concept can support one’s ability to heal. Orlando first went into the public practice of Christian Science in 1969 and became a teacher of Christian Science in 1979.
Please describe how Christian Science came to the southern part of Brazil.
Brazil has been blessed by having both a strong influence from the German culture, with its focus on order and structure, and the gentle touch of the Portuguese. The first people to bring Christian Science to Brazil, however, were Germans, Americans, Swiss, and British.
Francis Thurber Seal, an American who was sent to Germany by a pupil of Mary Baker Eddy’s, took the healing message of the Christ to the areas of Dresden and Berlin. She was not the first to spread the good news in Germany, but her fine healing work and dedication resulted in a good number of new followers.
Among those healed in Dresden was Helene Marie von Schramm, who was healed of ear trouble that was so severe that she had been trained to read lips so she could communicate with people. At the church services she met Otto Albert Schmidt, who had been searching for a better understanding of God. They married and moved to Brazil, where they settled, after a few moves, in the town of Blumenau. A Christian Science Society was organized and officially recognized there in 1932.
What was it like for Christian Scientists during Brazil’s early, formative period?
In the beginning of 1932 Otto Albert Schmidt responded to a call for a healer from a rural village stuck away in the woods, called Neu Wirtemburg (the name was later changed to Panambi), in southern Brazil. In 55 days he covered the distance, mostly on foot. There was a revolution going on, and no transport was running. When he arrived, he was received by many people who were in need of healing. And they were all healed. Among those blessed by this activity of the healing Christ were my mother’s parents.
Orlando Trentini, C.S.B.
SILVIA MEYER
How did that come about?
They learned of the healer through another relative. This relative was so ill that he prayed: “Dear God, either heal or take me, but I do not want to continue like this. Amen.” That same week, he learned that someone had arrived from Dresden, Germany, and was healing people through prayer. He contacted the man, and in a matter of a few weeks he was completely and permanently healed. He decided to visit this healer and went on foot the 100-mile distance. And from there he went on to visit his cousin, another 12 miles away. That he could make this long journey proves to me that he was truly healed.
Seeing my grandfather very ill with a severe stomach ailment, my cousin recommended that he go and see the healer. In four weeks, Grandfather had a complete healing. He lived over 30 years after that and had a sound and active life.
Through these healings the whole family began to study Christian Science.
What are your early memories of Christian Science?
As a toddler I heard my parents read the Christian Science Bible Lesson in German, every morning, first thing of the day, near the wood-burning stove, while I was sitting on their laps.
I was only one year old when my mother made her first visit to a Christian Science practitioner. She did not know what to expect, but she was hopeful that this visit would bring light into her life, which seemed very bleak. A few weeks earlier she had walked to the river (some three miles from home), intending to jump into it from the ferry boat in midstream while carrying me in her arms.
At the moment when she thought that “now” was the time to jump into the river, an inner voice asked: “If the ferry-boat man saves your son, who is going to raise him?” She was startled and began to look for a possible answer. The logical one was that his father would raise him, but she thought he would not raise him to be a good and honest man. By then the ferry boat had landed on the other side.
She told me this story when I was in my early teens. I asked, “Have you tried it again?” She said, “No, because it became clear to me that nobody would raise you better than your mother. So I chose to live in order to look after you so that you would get a good moral and academic education.”
To me, the voice that spoke to her at the river was the Christ, God’s message to all His children. It saved her and it saved me, too.
She returned from the visit to the practitioner completely healed.
Let’s talk a little about the Christ and what it means to you.
The statue of Jesus Christ with its arms open in blessing, on a mountain above Rio de Janeiro, is well known. It is one of the seven marvels of the world and is visited by thousands of people every day.
Some years ago, after improvements were made at the site, a newspaper had this front page headline: “Now everybody can ascend to the Christ.” It explained that in the past, people who wished to ascend to the top had to climb dozens of stairs, but now an electric people mover had eased the journey.
When I read the article, I thought that is true for all people throughout the world. They can all ascend to the healing Christ. Each one is elevating himself or herself from materiality to spirituality. Of course, the living Christ is always present and is spiritual.
The Christ was—and is—a light shining in the darkness, turning receptive hearts to divine Truth.
— Orlando Trentini
The Christ is ageless and communicates itself to the receptive thought in a universal language that everyone can understand. Christ is “the divine manifestation of God, which comes to the flesh to destroy incarnate error,” as defined in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy (p. 583). Eddy has revealed the living and healing Christ to all humanity.
How does the Christ relate to Jesus?
That statue on the top of a huge rock rising from sea level is only a symbol honoring the man
Jesus who long ago walked along the Sea of Galilee. Jesus’ understanding of the true Christ enabled him to teach in simple terms and to give examples that were understandable to the fishermen and to those who worked in the fields. He was able to prove that “the divine manifestation of God” was real and present. The healing evidence of this fact transformed the way people thought, endowing them with purer sentiments. It was—and is—a light shining in the darkness, turning receptive hearts to divine Truth.
So that means we can accept and be blessed by it, also?
Yes, of course. Jesus taught others how to heal and even sent them to villages and cities to preach and heal. They returned, marveling at the wonderful signs that occurred through their work. To me this is clear proof that the message Jesus spread and shared with the receptive thought during his short ministry is to be shared with those around us. It is not to be kept just for ourselves.
And Jesus was even more specific right before he ascended. He told his disciples: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15).
Do you have thoughts about how this Christ-light can help us today?
Even in our times—in every time—we can each experience the eternal Christ, the divine
manifestation shining in the thoughts and hearts of men and women, transforming them. Christ opens their eyes and ears and makes them ready to follow Christ Jesus’ teachings.
Many people are familiar with this passage from Isaiah: “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.” An interpretation of the same Bible verse declares: “Get out of bed, Jerusalem! Wake up. Put your face in the sunlight. God’s bright glory has risen for you” (Isaiah 60:1, 2, Eugene Peterson, The Message).
I love that!
The Christ is ageless and communicates itself to the receptive thought in a universal language that everyone can understand.
— Orlando Trentini
Mankind is still in awe of how this son of Mary could perform these miraculous works of healing so naturally even when he was surrounded by throngs of people. It was as if a living ray of light shone and was perceived by the individual, and instantly the darkness, pain, worries, and infirmities disappeared. Why did people follow him for days? It must have been because his words were true, sincere, from the heart, and all those who had hearts could understand him, receive the message, and experience healing.
Some people were healed as he just passed by. How did Jesus do it?
Eddy explains: “Jesus was the son of a virgin. He was appointed to speak God’s word and to appear to mortals in such a form of humanity as they could understand as well as perceive. Mary’s conception of him was spiritual, for only purity could reflect Truth and Love, which were plainly incarnate in the good and pure Christ Jesus. He expressed the highest type of
divinity, which a fleshly form could express in that age. … Thus it is that Christ illustrates the coincidence, or spiritual agreement, between God and man in His image” (Science and Health, pp. 332–333).
Were these ideas helpful as you were growing up?
Yes, and I also had many healings. When I was about four years of age, I became ill with symptoms of lung disease. I had been suffering from breathing problems since babyhood. But this time I quickly lost consciousness.
My parents picked up the Bible, Science and Health, and the Christian Science Bible Lesson and began to pray for themselves and also for me. This happened on a Friday. On Saturday morning my father saddled a horse and went to his father-in-law. He asked him to send one of his sons to ride to the village where the Christian Science practitioner lived. This was an eight-hour ride—four hours each way.
My father-in-law sent his youngest son on this journey. When he returned, the family learned that the practitioner had already begun to pray for me. He couldn’t come right away, but riding his mule, he could be there by noon on Monday.
On Sunday morning the midwife who helped Mother in my birth came to see me. She went to my bed and concluded that she had better prepare my parents for my passing, as she believed I would soon be gone. She began to tell them to accept God’s will.
Although she was my father’s aunt, he told her to leave his home for she had thoughts of death, and “Orlando needs thoughts of Life.” When she sadly said, “I just wanted to help you,” Father told her, “Then go home, pick up your copy of Science and Health, and read it. That is the way you can help Orlando.”
She was obedient. She got her book and started reading at random. Then she came to a passage that made her think, “My nephew is right.” It is: “Does God send sickness, giving the mother her child for the brief space of a few years and then taking it away by death? … The Scriptures are definite on this point, declaring that His work was finished, nothing is new to God, and that it was good” (p. 206).
That afternoon, Mother and Father and her parents were praying in our home, when I awakened. I told my mother I was hungry and wanted chicken soup. She had some waiting for me. I asked for more, and then went back into a normal sleep. Later I woke up and asked for more soup. And I slept the whole night.
On Monday morning when the practitioner passed my aunt’s house, he asked her how I was doing. She said, “He must be well. Yesterday morning not even the devil could stay in that house for his father put everybody out.”
I was healed for good, and my health kept improving as I began to study for myself, and not just listen to my parents read aloud.
As you grew up, you began to learn other languages. Where did that lead?
Even in our times—in every time—we can each experience the eternal Christ, the divine manifestation shining in the thoughts and hearts of men and women, transforming them.
— Orlando Trentini
When I was a child, I grew up with German and then later learned Portuguese. Few people in Brazil were studying English in the 1950s, but in 1959 I began to study English and to have conversations in English. To some degree, this was preparation for Christian Science Primary class instruction in Washington, DC, in 1961. This improved my knowledge of English even more, and I began to read the Christian Science Sentinel for vocabulary and to practice what I knew. I took every opportunity to converse and write in English.
Another good lesson came when I was going through class. The teacher stressed that the church in Boston is your church. It is not only for those who live and work in Boston; it is your church. You pray for it, you watch out for and support its progress forward.
During class the teacher urged me to hang a map of my country in my office, and look at it several times a week and select different areas to pray about, stating that the divine Mind is the source of all good that is going on. I was supposed to state the good and deny error, especially in the backward parts of the country, and to see them in the light of development and education for all. This I did, faithfully.
When were you able to read Science and Health in your own language?
The first Portuguese translation of Science and Health was printed in 1963.
Just a few years later you were working in the Translations Department in Boston.
In May 1967 I moved with my family to Boston to work for The Mother Church in the translations activities, and by 1972 I had been promoted to head of the Translations Department.
As a result of these years of spiritual growth I became a listed practitioner in 1969 and also gained experience on the international scene regarding the Christian Science Church. During this time there was a lot of doubt about whether or not Eddy’s books or the term “Christian Science” should be translated.
One day I was discussing a new translation with the man who was then manager of the publishing projects for The Christian Science Publishing Society. He said: “Orlando, I’m convinced that any language into which the mathematical sciences, physics, and chemistry can be translated and taught and through which people can obtain the same results as in the original languages, can also accommodate a translation of the spiritual laws revealed by Mrs. Eddy along with the same metaphysical meanings and healing results as in English.”
In 1978, I perceived that my job in Boston was completed, and it was time for me to move forward to Brazil. I never accepted the restricted idea that I was moving back to Brazil. When I told the realtor that I was selling my house, he asked, “Where are you going?” I answered, “I’m moving forward to Brazil!”
He said: “Brazil!!! Dictatorship, Indians, slums, inflation, poverty! You have a home on the lake a mile from the Golden Mile of Massachusetts, the dream of almost every American. You came here ten years ago and I helped you to buy some used furniture, and now this dream has come true, and you want to move back to Brazil!”
I answered him: “My friend, I’m moving forward to Brazil. I feel I have a job to do in Brazil as a Christian Science practitioner, and I have to go now.”
Was it hard to give up your house?
After deciding to sell, I went through all 11 rooms, and made a spiritual inventory (a mental list) of all the qualities I could perceive in each, from ceiling to floor, carpets, windows, walls, wallpaper, and the view over the lake.
Everything that each of us has demonstrated once he can demonstrate as many times as necessary. So I left without a feeling of losing something very precious, and I had to annihilate the arguments you never again will have another place like this in your life.
I proved this by getting a lovely apartment in São Paulo, which met our immediate needs. I later found that as a practitioner and teacher I needed a larger place. Divine Love provided a spacious home that also enabled social gatherings for people who attended the services of our churches and their relatives and friends in São Paulo. The house that Love provided was ample for our needs and included a large living room with a fireplace, where I taught my Christian Science classes in July (our winter time, when the weather can be quite cold).
Now I live on the farm I bought in 1991 with my second wife—my first wife passed away many years ago—which I named, Fonte de Luz (Spring of Light). Here we have a forest of eucalyptus trees, and nine small lakes on the property in the mountains, some 100 miles west of Rio de Janeiro.
What led you into the healing practice of Christian Science?
The practice was something natural in my life. At an early age I prayed to find a solution to a problem of getting lost in a strange city. Around age seven, when I was boarding with my uncle and his family, I healed myself of pain in my ears. Before I entered my teens I healed a little dog that had been run over by a vehicle. In my late teens I prayed to heal a hearing difficulty I’d had in one of my ears since I was a small child.
What about healings after you had a family?
My younger son became ill when he was about four years old. For three or four days he consumed only liquids. He looked very ill, and fear started creeping in, so I moved his bed into our bedroom. My wife and I studied the Bible Lesson, and I asked my mother to give him treatment. She said she felt it would be better to contact another healer as she felt too personally involved.
When the practitioner came, he first talked with us parents and my mother in the living room. We prayed together until he felt we were all at peace and of one mind to see the healing. As he rose from his chair to go to the bedroom, he showed us a beautiful pear that he had brought and was going to feed to the boy.
Instantly we spoke, “But he is not eating anything!” He came back to the table, and said: “Let’s talk and pray some more, because when I go into that room, we all must know that he is well. Can you do this? Will you pray sincerely during the whole time I’m in with the boy?”
Only after we’d agreed did he go into the bedroom. He came out a few minutes later and asked for a little spoon, for the boy could not bite the chunks of fruit he was cutting with a little pocket knife. That afternoon he ate most of the fruit. His appetite returned, and he improved. It took a while for him to fully recover, but he did, and we were so grateful.
How important do you think it is to use modern technology like the Internet?
Second Church in São Paulo, where I’m a member, has had Sunday School for teenagers over Skype, since April 2011. And the Sunday church services and Wednesday testimony meetings are on Skype. People such as my wife and I participate from the farm, and others from other states in Brazil and even from Paraguay.
“Progress is the law of God” are Eddy’s words in Science and Health (p. 233). Brazil is so different since the new capital, Brasilia, was finished in 1961. The presence of Christian Science in Brazil, in my view, is part of the cause of this progress, and I’m grateful to be an eyewitness to it and a participant in it.
