Welcome

It should have been a deeply satisfying experience. Every Saturday morning, a group from my branch Church of Christ, Scientist, rolled up our sleeves with our Episcopalian friends down the street as part of a community breakfast program for people in need.

Albert Schweitzer, the humanitarian who spent so much of his life in Africa empowering others, wrote in his book The Spiritual Life: "Man can no longer live for himself alone. We realize that all life is valuable, and that we are united to all this life.

New England has a tradition of town meetings and citizen involvement that probably goes back to the first settlers on its rocky coast. So when I moved to a small town that still relies on town meetings, I was both charmed and appalled.

When I first began to work as reporter in Washington, DC, I was surprised to hear from veteran journalists that certain stories are considered "evergreens. " No matter who's in the White House or which political party controls Congress, some issues can't seem to be resolved because they're the product, not of the leadership, but of the culture.

Mel Gibson's Movie, The Passion of the Christ, was hotly debated long before it hit the theaters in late February. Based on the 12 hours preceding the crucifixion of Jesus, it rekindled old animosities and threatened to ignite new ones.

You May Have Noticed a change in the Journal's masthead this month. We're happy to announce that Senior Managing Editor Bill Dawley has been named Editor of The Christian Science Journal, the Christian Science Sentinel, and The Herald of Christian Science.

As a result of her sustained fight over many years for human rights and democracy in Iran, Shirin Ebadi was awarded the Nobel peace prize in 2003. Focusing on the legal status of women and children, Ebadi, a Muslim, was the first Iranian to receive it.

" To tackle poverty, empower women and educate girls," was the message United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan gave earlier this year. "When it comes to solving problems, I believe in girl power," 1 he said.

I WAS HAVING CHEST PAINS , so I went to the doctor's office in search of help. The young physician who examined me asked if I'd had any heart problems.

MORE THAN EVER BEFORE , spirituality is a factor in the individual quest for healing. This interest in spiritual healing is a growing force in society.