I grew up in the former GDR and fell seriously ill and developed severe depression and pain in my abdomen after moving from Rostock to East Berlin in the early ‘80s. Doctors had tried and failed to restore my health through an abdominal operation. Since all the conventional medicine I tried brought no relief, my ex-husband drew my attention to Christian Science, which was banned in the GDR. An aunt had told him about it. He went to great lengths to provide me with Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, and a book titled A Century of Christian Science Healing. He also sought out a group of Christian Scientists in East Berlin, which was difficult because of the ban. It was only after a “precautionary visit” to my apartment by one member of this group that I was told where the church services were held. These church services were conducted by two Christian Scientists from First Church of Christ, Scientist, West Berlin. Each time they came, they had to pay 25.00 D-Mark per day at the border crossing, just like any visitor coming into the GDR from the West. We were glad that this sacrifice did not put off our West Berlin friends from coming to visit us once a month.
There was a uniquely earnest and healing atmosphere to these church services.
The church services were held in the apartments of the East Berlin group members. They were like Wednesday evening testimony meetings, the one small difference being that all participants (generally 10 to 15 individuals) had prepared for the subject that had been agreed on before. We took turns reading passages on the specified topic from the Bible and Science and Health that each of us had selected.
