In April 2021 when restrictions had been lifted but there was much in the news about a second wave of Covid-19, my father became ill with the coronavirus. He was admitted to the hospital, and all our family members in our home, including my wife and me, were to be tested per government guidelines.
Before going for tests, my wife and I contacted a Christian Science practitioner to put down the fear we were feeling. In my office and among friends, many families were facing Covid symptoms and the newspapers were full of such news. A day later my mother and I also tested positive with Covid, but my wife never did. Per government regulations we isolated ourselves in separate rooms in our home. Prescribed medicines were brought to me, but I decided to depend on Christian Science treatment, as I’ve had countless healings through prayer since being introduced to Christian Science in 2007.
I was determined to understand the truth of perfect God and perfect man, and the consequent nothingness of disease. The practitioner prayed for me and gave me a favorite citation to read and pray with. It is from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy and says, “It is well to be calm in sickness; to be hopeful is still better; but to understand that sickness is not real and that Truth can destroy its seeming reality, is best of all, for this understanding is the universal and perfect remedy” (pp. 393–394).
I was very hopeful about my father, knowing he was also cared for by God and His angels, though I could not be physically present with him in the hospital.
The symptoms I was experiencing seemed very real to me, but I knew symptoms of disease are always illusive. My wife took care of all my needs and of my mother’s, and was regularly in touch by phone with the practitioner, who continued to pray for me.
I worked with another statement from Science and Health, which we had been praying with in the inspirational meetings our branch Church of Christ, Scientist, had been holding regularly since the pandemic broke out: “We weep because others weep, we yawn because they yawn, and we have smallpox because others have it; but mortal mind, not matter, contains and carries the infection” (p. 153).
After two days some of the aggressive symptoms vanished, but others felt severer. Moreover, staying in one room alone was making me feel dull and frustrated. I listened to many “Daily Lifts” (short audio podcasts on JSH-Online.com), read many articles from the Christian Science periodicals, and tried to awaken from beliefs of sickness by reading the Bible and Science and Health.
When I found that my sense of smell had gone, I told this to the practitioner. She said something that made me laugh, and I was healed instantaneously. Soon I was totally free from all symptoms, with no side effects at all. My father came back from the hospital healthy and my mother was also well.
This healing taught me that disease has no identity. I am grateful to God for overcoming this challenge, proving that even though there was so much fear and apparent threat to life due to Covid, this illness can be healed through prayer in Christian Science.
I am grateful to Mary Baker Eddy for discovering this wonderful path of Christian Science that shows us a ray of hope amid all the clouds. I am grateful to the Christian Science practitioner who helped me to come out on top of this challenge through her prayerful support. And I am also grateful to my Christian Science teacher for Primary class instruction, which enabled me to be steadfast during this challenging time.
Puneet Sharma
Mohali, Punjab, India
