The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Recently, a close relative phoned from a hotel room in London, very distressed that he hadn’t been allowed to board his flight home because he’d tested positive to COVID. He was told he wouldn’t be allowed to fly until he tested negative, so he was uncertain about how long this might take.
A few months ago he’d contracted COVID in Portugal and had a difficult time, with many delays and much bureaucratic red tape before getting cleared to fly home. I think this had remained with him and he felt as if he was going through the same nightmare again.
He told me he was feeling very alone and miserable and sobbed into the phone “I just want to go home”. I immediately thought “you are already at home”, you can’t be separated from your Father Mother God, divine Love.
We talked about these ideas and that week’s Bible Lesson on Reality that said anything inharmonious or discordant is not real – it is just an illusion or dream which we can wake up from. When we hung up the thought came to me to look at Hymn 144 (from the Christian Science Hymnal) which begins –
In atmosphere of Love divine,
We live, and move, and breathe;
Though mortal eyes may see it not,
‘Tis sense that would deceive.
.
Then a couple of pages later is Hymn 148 which says:
In heavenly Love abiding,
No change my heart shall fear;
And safe is such confiding,
For nothing changes here.
The storm may roar without me,
My heart may low be laid;
But God is round about me,
And can I be dismayed?
I sent him a text message suggesting he look at these hymns for comfort. It was Sunday morning in London and he was about to go to Church.
The next day (Monday) when I phoned, he was much calmer, and in a queue, to get a COVID test. He said he had been praying with ideas from that week’s lesson and felt confident it would be negative and had booked to fly home on the Wednesday evening. On Wednesday morning he phoned to say the test had returned negative and he was cleared to fly. He has since contacted me to let me know he is safely home. He gives full credit to Christian Science for this healing.
A few hours before that first phone call from London, I’d received an email from a friend who I’d recently had lunch with telling me he’d tested positive for COVID. I became really worried because I had child minding duties the next day and catch ups organised with friends over the next few days and had been feeling a bit off colour since flying back from Brisbane a week earlier. With all these thoughts and emotions swirling around I was struggling to pray and calm my fear. So, the phone call from my relative came at exactly the right time. I was quickly lifted out of feeling sorry and fearful for myself and into the realm where all is perfect and harmonious. I knew I was okay, but did a couple of COVID tests to calm the fears of those around me. Both returned negative.
I’m very grateful to Christian Science for these, and all the other healings I’ve had.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
For quite some weeks I had been having trouble walking. I could move around but my walking ‘style’ was more akin to a ’duck waddle’. My hips were causing me pain and my style of locomotion and gait had altered to try and accommodate and ameliorate the pain. For someone who is quite comfortable undertaking various sports, going to the gym and doing manual labour this wasn’t a very good state of affairs.
As a Christian Scientist I had turned to our textbook, Science and Health With Key to the Scripturesby Mary Baker Eddy, and to the Bible for support. I continued my search for any passages within those books to assist my spiritual growth and understanding and application of Christian Science to healing my problem. After about a fortnight of such study and still having a ‘duck waddle’ walk I was no better.
One of the hymns (565) in the Christian Science Hymnal has the words:
Cleanse the lepers, heal the sick. Cast out demons. Raise the dead. Truth is revealed in every place, Throughout all time, throughout all space
In searching through the Bible, I was acutely aware of the healing works of Jesus Christ, and indeed hymn 565 glorifies such healings. Try as I might I still couldn’t shake my problem. As an adherent to Christian Science I have been able to overcome a number of physical problems by turning to our texts for comfort and support. I know this method of healing works – but this time it was proving difficult. I was still undertaking work; I still had to move around; I still had things to do – but it was becoming physically taxing. Some days seemed rather long.
I asked my wife to pray with me on this situation. Together we have had many quick healings of physical problems. After a very brief discussion with her I started to ‘waddle’ down the hallway. I had not travelled more than three metres when all pain and difficulty with my problem disappeared. Once again I was amazed at how supremely effective and immediate Christian healing can be. It is not magic; it is not mind control; it is not drugs; it is not hypnosis – it is Christian healing.
Having some understanding of Christian Science and Christian healing with previous problems, I know I shouldn’t really have been amazed but still my expectations of relief being so immediate were more than met. I still continue to be ever so grateful for the power of Christian healing and its application in my life.
Mary Baker Eddy in Science and Health (p.138) states:
Jesus established in the Christian era the precedent for all Christianity, theology, and healing. Christians are under as direct orders now, as they were then, to be Christlike, to possess the Christ-spirit, to follow the Christ-example, and to heal the sick as well as the sinning. It is easier for Christianity to cast out sickness than sin, for the sick are more willing to part with pain than are sinners to give up the sinful, so-called pleasure of the senses. The Christian can prove this to-day as readily as it was proved centuries ago.
I had read and reread this passage, but I had been busy with material physical work and should have been busy with God’s work. It was this realisation that came to me afterwards. I had spent time searching through the texts but had not been giving the spiritual work the due deference and application it should have been accorded.
Although coming to Christian Science later in life, I am so very grateful for having found it.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
In our back yard in Canberra we have certain sections of the garden fenced off as a chicken run. One afternoon I was down in the bottom corner of the chicken’s area checking for eggs. On this day the chickens had been particularly industrious and had dug some quite deep holes and unearthed some old timbers that I had not known were there. As I stepped back from the hutch I felt a sharp pain in my left foot. I looked down to find that I had stepped on a piece of wood that had a very long, rusty nail sticking out of it. The nail had gone right through my plastic yard shoes and was now lodged deep in my foot. It had obviously been buried for some time and now the nail was not only rusty but muddy and yucky with chicken droppings. I pulled it out and went up to the house to wash it off.
As I walked back very fearful ideas started filling my thought. Not long before I had heard someone tell of symptoms of tetanus and I found myself worrying that I had never had a tetanus injection ever.
At first I thought: Why am I thinking these thoughts? I never think like this! I am not normally a fearful person. I’ve been a student of Christian Science all my life and it has taught me that what I think is very important. The quality of my thoughts determines my experience, so thinking fearfully was strange to me. Then it dawned on me – these were not really my thoughts! These thoughts came only as suggestions. I love that word suggestion; it means that I have the option of accepting or rejecting something. This was something that I would certainly reject. In that moment I felt no ownership of these thoughts. I knew that I didn’t have to analyse them, or wonder: Why did I think this? or delve into what fears might be lurking in my thinking for me to produce these thoughts. Because I felt no ownership of them I could simply discard them.
That was the end of the matter. I washed my foot but there was no pain and it immediately stopped bleeding. Later that day after my shower when I dried my foot, I couldn’t even find the place. There were never any repercussions from the incident.
The lesson I learned that day has stayed with me. Nowadays I am more alert to the implications of this word suggestion. God never suggests; only human reasoning suggests. God doesn’t give you options; He is just good and His word is final.
I am becoming more practised now at recognising suggestions and not owning all thoughts that come to me. I know I don’t need to analyse a suggestion; I don’t need to delve into it; I don’t need to feel guilty for thinking it. I just reject it with a very firm: That’s not my thought! When I say this, I know that it isn’t my thought because it isn’t of God. I know that God doesn’t give me fearful thoughts therefore fearful thoughts are not my thoughts. Learning this has so simplified my prayers. I use this line all the time now: That’s not my thought! And then I let it go. Only good, healthy, harmonious, progressive thoughts are mine because these stem directly from God’s goodness.
Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously. When the condition is present which you say induces disease, whether it be air, exercise, heredity, contagion, or accident, then perform your office as porter and shut out these unhealthy thoughts and fears. Exclude from mortal mind the offending errors; then the body cannot suffer from them.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy p392:24-32)
An article from the Christian Science Monitor by Blythe Evans
When my children were in elementary school, they played soccer through a local sports program. Before each game, the coach would assign each child a player on the opposing team to “mark.” That meant to focus on and stay right with the player at all times, rather than meandering around the field of play. Sometimes the coach would even say, “Mark that player so closely you feel like you’re in their shirt! Stay right with them.”
The importance of this was not lost on the young athletes, and the better they each marked their player, the better the game went for them.
I think of this sometimes when I read in the Bible, “Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace” (Psalms 37:37). Practically speaking, who is “the perfect man” we are to “mark”? How do we do that? And why should we?
Well, it is clear there is no perfect human being, so the “perfect man” must be a higher, more spiritual concept of man than we experience with our material senses. In fact, the teachings of Christian Science help us see that the “perfect man” is the spiritual man (meaning all of us) of God’s creating, made in the image of divine Spirit.
Blythe goes on to explain how this reasoning and spiritualisation of thought brought about a quick healing of her young grandson’s injured finger. She concludes by saying:
This doesn’t mean putting our heads in the sand when we or someone we encounter is not well or acting wrongly. Rather, we can silently affirm that everyone’s true nature is one of harmony, health, and integrity, because God, Spirit, is all good. Understanding this enables us to overcome illness or bad character traits, and to help others do the same.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Just recently I spent a day at Summernats with my dad. Summernats is an annual car event held in Canberra. COVID was raging in Canberra at this time and people were quite fearful of anyone who even coughed. Still Exhibition Park where the event was held was crowded with over 2000 people attending that day. We had a wonderful time!
However, after I arrived home I started to feel unwell. I had many of the symptoms associated with COVID and my mum told me to isolate from the family and stay in my room. I obeyed and used this alone time to pray quietly about the situation. The idea that came to me was that this situation was similar to one of those 3D drawings you see sometimes – the ones where if you look at it one way you see one image and if you change focus and look at it from a different angle you see a completely different picture. I knew I had to choose which picture I was looking at.
At this point I messaged my Sunday School teacher for some extra help. She told me that it was fear that was contagious not COVID. I related this to a story she had told me in Sunday School about a man in a canoe who was lost in the fog. I likened the fear to the fog. At that point the fear seemed to surround me – just like the fog. In the story the man had only to stand up in the canoe and see above the fog and to see his safe course. I knew that all I needed to do was to stand above the mental fog and see the truth of the situation – the truth that I was spiritual and not subject to material laws of contagion. With these thoughts I felt safe and fell asleep.
In the morning when I woke I was perfectly well. The fever and the cough had completely gone and the runny nose was also gone in about an hour. I was very grateful for this proof of God’s care.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Two years ago on a Monday afternoon Canberra was struck by a hailstorm of such ferocity that thousands of cars were destroyed and buildings severely damaged. I was working on this day and had to deliver meeting documents to Government House in Canberra.
On my way out of the grounds of Government House the security guard at the gate let me know there was a big storm brewing and asked if I would be all right driving. I assured him I would be fine.
Before I got to the turn-off, the storm broke and hail came pelting down. My first thought was perhaps I should turn around but I decided to carry on. When I reached the road which leads onto the main road, I noticed both sides were packed with parked cars, even on the nature strip and there was no place for my car. I thought I might carry on slowly to the main road.
Suddenly there was a loud bang against the car door and I thought I might have run into another car. When I looked towards my mirror there was only an object which I did not recognise for a moment but then I realised it was the mirror holder without a mirror. A strong gust of wind must have blown it against the door which caused the bang.
I was becoming a little rattled, when a thought from the textbook of Christian Science, Science and Health with Key to the Scripturesby Mary Baker Eddy came to mind, page 469: “We bury the sense of infinitude, when we admit that, although God is infinite, evil has a place in this infinity, for evil can have no place where all space is filled with God”. I am God’s protected child, and I am surrounded by God within this perfect space where evil and inharmony cannot enter.
Another thought came to me from the Christian Science Hymnal, hymn 148, “In heavenly Love abiding, no change my heart shall fear; and safe is such confiding for nothing changes here. The storm may roar about me, my heart may low be laid; but God is round about me, and can I be dismayed?”
With these thoughts I headed onto the main road; there was no other traffic but lots of hail, tree branches and twigs. I drove slowly to my place of work thinking on these wonderful God thoughts which calmed me and brought a sense of peace. I reached work unharmed and with no further damage to my car. I thanked God for His protection and guidance.
I feel privileged to be a member of First Church of Christ, Scientist, Canberra, and for duties I have been able to perform such as Second Reader, board membership, ushering and Reading Room attendant.
“To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.”
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
One of my roles in the years just before I retired was to organise the annual regional conference for the large state government department I worked for. These events were attended by over 300 participants and included one main keynote speaker and approximately 48 breakout sessions. Planning took many months. In order to secure an exceptional keynote speaker, it was necessary to book at least twelve months in advance.
This particular year I managed to secure a booking with someone I knew to be not only at the forefront of his specialist area, but an excellent and engaging speaker. He was pleased to be asked and at the initial interview we discussed a timeline for when he would give me details of his talk and materials for hand outs etc. During the year we touched base a couple of times and all seemed to be going to plan. However, when we were about a month out from the event he still hadn’t given me the material I was expecting and wasn’t answering my calls or emails.
Eventually I managed to make contact with his support staff. They said that he had been in hospital with a very severe case of pneumonia and even after a couple of months he was not well enough to be back at work. I said I would make contact again in a week or so to see how he was progressing. This time I managed to talk to the speaker himself. He said that although he was still very ill and weak he felt sure he would improve enough to be able to do the talk. We touched base several times over the next couple of weeks but his health was not improving. He seemed keen not to let me down and said that he would bring his wife to support him and possibly do the talk sitting down. He thought then he might possibly manage. This was still the situation, the day before the conference and it was extremely tempting to be very worried. I did not want this dear man to jeopardise his health but I also knew that the opening address was a very important part of the conference.
I have been raised in Christian Science and I’ve learnt over many years that there are spiritual laws that can be relied upon when challenges arise. So I prayed to see things from a spiritual, rather than a human perspective. I knew that this conference was a right idea. Among other things it was an opportunity for participants and presenters to share ideas that worked and to collectively rise to higher levels of performance. I knew that all right ideas are God’s because I have come to know God as infinite Mind and the source of all good. I have also come to know God as Love and that Love is not just a feeling but a divine law. This law ensured the safety of all; this law held everyone in their right place and maintained harmony. I thought on these and similar ideas until I felt a sense of calm – a strong sense that all was well. The night before the conference I slept peacefully expectant of good unfolding.
The following evening was the meet and greet and the conference opening dinner. When I arrived the hall was already abuzz with excited participants. Quickly I noticed that there was quite a gathering of people over near the bar. In the centre of this someone was holding the floor and entertaining a small crowd. As I moved closer I realised that was my keynote speaker. He greeted me with a huge grin. ‘You wouldn’t believe what happened’, he said. ‘You know how I’ve been so sick for the last few months. Well last night, it was like a switch flicked and instantly I was completely well. I haven’t felt this well in years. Look at me now!’ His excitement and enthusiasm spilled over into the group and he continued to entertain them. Needless to say his talk was a great success, as was the rest of the conference.
Every day I am grateful for what I am learning in Christian Science. It teaches me to be calm in the face of challenges; it teaches me to turn away from the human scenario and to acknowledge the spiritual truths; it teaches me that there are spiritual laws that apply to all life and if understood and trusted these laws will adjust any discordant situation.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Just before the COVID restrictions came into force my sister and I were travelling in the US. At one point we were catching a flight from one of the larger airports. The terminal was extremely busy and there were long queues everywhere. We needed to check in our luggage so we queued at one of the self-serve terminals. There was a cost for each bag and my sister said that it was her turn to pay this time. She inserted her credit card into the slot in the machine and we filled out all the on-screen questions and received our baggage tags. From there we queued again to drop our bags and then joined the long winding queue going through security.
Finally we were through with just enough time to find lunch before our flight left. At this point my sister realised that she no longer had her credit card. We had left it in the self-serve terminal! This was the card that held all her travel money. A good hour had passed since we checked our baggage and with the queues everywhere it seemed impossible that the card could be found. My sister suggested that I wait near the café with the hand luggage and she would go back through to the check-in machines. My job was to stay calm and to pray. I knew my sister would be praying too.
I sat quietly in a corner and turned to God. I have come to know God as the all-knowing divine Mind. The All-knowing I reasoned knew exactly where that card was. I have also come to know God as divine, Father-Mother Love. As a loving parent God protects and guides His offspring. I have had many proofs of God’s loving care in other circumstances and this gave me confidence that all was well. In my prayer I also acknowledged that God’s man is honest. As I thought on these things I felt a sense of peace that replaced any sense of anxiety I had felt.
Within a very short time my sister was back – and smiling! She waved the card at me. ‘ Look what I found’, she said. ‘It was exactly where we left it in the check-in machine.’ My sister explained that she had intended to go to the information counter in the hope that the card had been handed in but she had a very strong mental message not to do this but to go to the terminal we had used and check there. She obeyed this direction and found the card in the slot just where we had left it. We had no human explanation as to how this could have happened given the number of people using the machines. A later check on her card showed that no extra charges had been made beyond our last baggage charge.
For what I am learning in Christian Science and for the peace that these teachings bring I am always grateful.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
Prior to these current COVID restrictions I travelled often with my sister. In 2019 she was invited to do a series of Christian Science lectures across the US. I was her support person. It was my job to take charge of the everyday organisational issues such as getting through airports and finding meals in strange cities. More importantly it was my job to prayerfully protect and support her lecturing work.
My prayers were prayers of affirmation, not petition. I acknowledged God as divine Love and as infinite all-knowing Mind. I acknowledged that these lectures were right ideas and as such they were God’s ideas, as all right activity is God’s. I knew that God protected and brought to fruition all His ideas harmoniously. I also knew that all those involved in bringing these lectures to the public were protected in this work and that only good could come of these activities.
On this particular day the lecture went off very harmoniously. The venue was perfect, the audience large and focussed and my sister spoke with such sincerity and inspiration that all were moved by the words. Afterwards we were taken back to our accommodation by one of the organisers. When we arrived the driver pulled up in the driveway and my sister jumped out. For a moment I sat half in and half out of the back seat while I passed bags and coats out to my sister. Without checking whether we were fully out the driver suddenly started forward. My sister immediately called for her to stop which she did. The quick movement of the car jerked me out onto the driveway. I didn’t fall but I landed awkwardly and the car came to a stop completely on my right foot. This wasn’t a small car and the pressure on my foot was immense. I was wearing only my little ‘going out’ shoes and these offered no protection. Because of the prayerful work I had been doing during the day I felt no fear. I also felt no pain. My sister called out to the driver to back up but she became confused about what had happened and asked a series of questions that didn’t quickly result in her taking the necessary action.
Eventually the driver did back up and I was able to pull my foot away. Throughout this I continued to feel calm. Despite the feeling of great pressure, at no point was there any pain or discomfort. As the driver pulled away we picked up our things and headed inside. I can honestly say I did not have a single twinge or any indication that anything untoward had happened. There were absolutely no after effects. I put this down totally to the fact that I had been keeping my thought fixed on the omnipotence of God, good, during that day and all the previous touring days. Christian Science teaches me that what I think is very important in determining the events of my life and my wellbeing. I am hugely grateful for all that I am learning as a student of Christian Science.
Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true, and you will bring these into your experience proportionably to their occupancy of your thoughts.
A number of Christian Science lectures, including the ones given by my sister on this tour are available on this site. Click on the Christian Science Lectures tab in the menu at the top.
The members of the Christian Science community in Canberra share their experiences and thoughts on Christian Science:
My family was just about to complete a posting with the Australian Government in Zimbabwe. We had spent a happy three years there and I was now looking forward to returning to Canberra. One evening my husband came home from work and told me that he had resigned from the Australian Government and that he didn’t want to leave Africa again. He had decided that we would go to South Africa where we both had Permanent Residence. It was a bombshell and to be honest, I was very worried about the move as previously I had found it difficult to live in South Africa. I realised that I needed to get my own fears out of the way and just trust in God, good, and know that whatever was right for our family would be revealed.
When we got to South Africa, we had no home, no vehicle, knew no one and it was raining non-stop! I must admit that the human picture was daunting! My husband and I decided that he would go and look for a car to buy and to keep dry, I took our two young girls to spend the afternoon at the city library. While we were there, I met a lady with a little girl the same age as my daughters. She was very friendly and welcoming and it was a very happy encounter.
The following morning, we went to the local Christian Science Church for the first time and took the girls down to the Sunday School. Who should be in the class but the little girl from the library! This just seemed such a wonderful example of God caring for all of us – it was if God was saying – don’t worry, I know exactly what you need and I am going before you!
Back in Zimbabwe, I had decided that I would trust this whole move to God. This encounter in the library was just the beginning of wonderful provision. The next day was the last day of the school year and we needed to get the girls enrolled in schools. We were aware that in South Africa, it is necessary to enrol your child for Kindergarten in good time as there are long waiting lists. However, at the first school we went to, an unexpected vacancy had occurred that very morning and my daughter was interviewed and offered the place. My younger daughter was given a place at the pre-school next door. We then found a small town house to rent in the same road.
Later in the week, my husband was interviewed and offered a place at the university to start a course which was being offered for the first time. Throughout the time that he studied, I was able to find work which paid our living expenses – many things I had never done before but which all fitted in with caring for the girls during the school holidays – I taught pre-school, recorder groups, English and study skills to groups of Eritrean students and ran science courses for teachers from rural areas. It was indeed a time of growth for us all.
Sometimes changes seem to be forced upon us. This experience really showed me that whatever comes our way, God is always with us and knows exactly what we need.
Best of all, when the time was right, we did get back to Canberra!
Where you’re going, Love will lead you. Where you’re walking, Love will guide.
Christian Science Canberra 