Friends

Have you found it easy or difficult to remain friends with (Christian Science) people since you left the church?

Image credit: Emerging Gently.

This is a question posed to me by a reader, who suggested that I should address the topic of what happens to relationships with Christian Scientists when one leaves Christian Science. I’ll widen my focus to include some observations on familial relationships as well as friendships. Rather than just write only about my own experience, I figured the best way to offer up a good look at this topic would be to ask a group of former Christian Scientists. So, I posed this question to one of the on-line groups I’m in.

Is it all real, or is it all an ‘illusion’? Make up your mind…

Image credit: Emerging Gently.

I’m fortunate enough to live in what I think is one of the most beautiful places in Canada, if not the world. I chose to live here. I wasn’t born here, my parents didn’t bring me here (although the fact that they left me a house here in their will did have a strong influence on my decision to move here), and a job did not bring me here. I live in a semi-arid valley that is hot in the summer, and experiences moderate (by Canadian standards) winters. It offers many outdoor recreational opportunities during all seasons. Ride along any of the meandering back roads around here, and you’re treated to spectacular scenery of mountains, lakes, cliffs, hoodoos, desert sage, and blue sky.

New Thought, Divine Science, and Christian Science

Sure, Christian Science is an obscure religion with few followers now, and even at its height, it never even approached much over one million followers worldwide, if even that many, according to information I’ve been able to find. However, if you look at some other spiritual and religious movements, you might see echoes of Christian Science in them, with New Thought and the Church of Divine Science being the best known. You might even think that these are different incarnations of Christian Science, or that Christian Science has had more influence than it’s been given credit for. You’d be half right in that assumption. In this post, I’ll give a brief overview of these philosophies and how they relate to Christian Science.