Once again, I find myself running out of gas so to speak. Back in my early days here, when I started the Lesson Sermon series, I jokingly said to a fellow blogger that the end of this blog would be when I wrote my last post in that series. I still have two more to go (three if I address the topic of Thanksgiving), and I plan to cover them, but I am going to pause on the bi-weekly posting schedule I have been maintaining.
Continue readingIf there is one thing that Christian Science theology drills into its adherents and those unfortunate enough to be raised by its adherents, it is the relentless pursuit of “spiritual perfection” as a so-called “reflection of God”. It is impossible to be fully and completely perfect, completely lacking any measurable flaws. However, Christian Science teaches that in some sort of “spiritual reality” we are all perfect, as so-called “reflections of God”; we just need to somehow “see” or “realize” this. None of what I have just said here should be new to anyone who has been a regular reader here, or who knows anything about Christian Science.
Continue readingI hear a lot of talk about boundaries these days–especially on-line. It has become one of the latest buzzwords, but it is an important subject. One of my favourite Reddit sub-reddits is called AITA (Am I The Asshole?). It is filled with stories of people having their boundaries violated, as well as some coming on to seek redemption when they violate someone else’s boundaries. A story in the summer of 2023 that floated across the flotsam of my Facebook newsfeed, involving actor Jonah Hill and his former girlfriend Sarah Brady, a professional surfer and model, caught my attention and brought to the fore for me the whole idea of how some people weaponize legitimate psychological terms, in this case, boundaries.
Continue readingThis is #24 in a series of posts looking at the 26 Christian Science Weekly Bible Lesson subjects, chosen by Mary Baker Eddy, and rotated twice per year. These lessons are the sermon at each Christian Science church worldwide, and are read by Christian Scientists daily. Today’s subject is “Mortals and Immortals”. Look for other posts in the category “Lesson Sermon Subjects“.
Continue readingThis is #23 in a series of posts looking at the 26 Christian Science Weekly Bible Lesson subjects, chosen by Mary Baker Eddy, and rotated twice per year. These lessons are the sermon at each Christian Science church worldwide, and are read by Christian Scientists daily. Today’s subject is “Probation After Death”. Look for other posts in the category “Lesson Sermon Subjects“.
Continue readingRecently, I was going through the last few bins from our recent move, deciding what to keep, what to toss, and how to store what I am keeping. One of the bins I went through is a catch-all bin where I packed unsorted stuff that my wife and I knew was important to keep, even though it was mostly stuff we would almost never look at: folders with important papers, documents from my parents’ estates, tax records, educational certificates–stuff like that. It is the kind of stuff you need to keep, but you pretty much never look at it.
Continue readingI am scheduling this post to go up on December 25th. Christmas is a holiday that I have a complicated relationship with. December 25th is the day my Dad died, in 2009. So, it is a combination of a very joyous day, and the anniversary of one of the worst days in my life. This year will mark 14 years since he died from a heart condition that was left untreated due to his faith in Christian Science. Like I said, it’s complicated.
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Image credit: Elise Gravel (http://elisegravel.com/en/)
I came across this image on-line the other day, and it speaks loudly to me as a former Christian Scientist. I think I’ve written on this subject deep in the early days of this blog, so this may be a bit of a re-visiting some ground I’ve covered, but now I want to do a bit of a deeper dive. This meme illustrates an issue that cuts deep for most of us former Christian Scientists, and it never really goes away. It is what I call the “bad” emotions and feelings.
This is #22 in a series of posts looking at the 26 Christian Science Weekly Bible Lesson subjects, chosen by Mary Baker Eddy, and rotated twice per year. These lessons are the sermon at each Christian Science church worldwide, and are read by Christian Scientists daily. Today’s subject is “Doctrine of Atonement”. Look for other posts in the category “Lesson Sermon Subjects“.
Continue readingThere’s a new video series, featuring a number of former Christian Scientists sharing their experiences. Check out Leaving Christian Science Podcast.
Emerging Gently 