Articles

I had been wondering why churches were closing their doors. Then I realized a more productive question to ask is: What attracted people to Christianity and Christian Science in the first place? Specifically, how did Jesus build his global, spiritually prosperous church? What does prosperous mean? According to Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, it means: “Advancing in the pursuit of any thing desirable; making gain or increase; thriving; successful.

Christian Scientists around the world receive the sermon for the Sunday church service ahead of time—a full week in advance! Why is this? To my knowledge, this arrangement is unique among churches. Why did Mary Baker Eddy, the Founder of Christian Science, provide for this? Why not listen to the sermon for the first time on Sunday? Or why not have a Bible Lesson followed by a related sermon with fresh texts?  A study of the Church Manual can help us understand this.

Have you ever stopped to think about the Christian Science Sunday School and why it is so important? In my position of Sunday School Support Lead for the Church Activities Department of The Mother Church in Boston, Massachusetts, I think about this a lot.   I regularly meet with individual branch Churches of Christ, Scientist, and in almost every meeting about Sunday School, I have asked, “What is a Christian Science Sunday School, really?” During these meetings, people have shared a wide spectrum of wonderful ideas.

In my sadness after a very dear friend passed away, I told a colleague I was dreading the upcoming Fourth of July celebration. That was because my friend—someone I thought of as family—would always invite me to watch the fireworks with her and other friends at her house.

Jesus did not change sick people into well people. He understood that in reality no one has ever been unwell in any way.

I live at the beach and swim most days in the Pacific Ocean. Some days I float and let the tide take me to my destination.

These were tough times. The Bible relates the story of a widow whose late husband left her with a debt she could not pay (see II Kings 4:1–7 ).

Why does caring for others matter, and how is it demonstrated?   Caring for others is an integral part of Christianity. It fulfills the law of Love.

It’s my daily practice to pray with the ninety-first Psalm from the Bible, as I was once told that it’s referred to as the “Soldier’s Psalm” because it is so filled with the thought of protection. One morning, I felt particularly guided to pay close attention to this line in the psalm: “Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder” ( verse 13 ).

I’ve recently been considering an idea that provides deep inspiration about how we can heal through the means Christ Jesus did. It’s from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, who said: “Stand porter at the door of thought.