“Truth brings the elements of liberty.”

Mary Baker Eddy
Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (p. 224:28)

What is liberty? We have just celebrated our nation’s Independence Day – The Fourth of July. On that day, we celebrate the liberty upon which our country is founded. Truth’s elements of liberty, however, are something more than that.

What may we do to discover what Truth’s elements of liberty might be? Some members of the Board of Trustees of High Ridge House and I participated in a program “The Christian Science Nurse Within” (now called “Christian Science Nurse”: A Manual By-Law for Every Member) at Tenacre, our sister Christian Science nursing facility in Princeton, New Jersey.

Together with Tenacre’s Christian Science nurses we reviewed significant concepts: how broad is the basis for Christian Science nursing as seen through The Church Manual; how spiritually based is its practice; how far-reaching is its application in daily life; and how universal is its mission.

The Bible gives a perspective on the spiritual altitude of thought that brings freedom:

“. . . whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed” (James 1:25)

This may be seen as the attitude of thought that characterizes the dedicated Christian Science nurse. And it applies to all of those who, with selfless effort, seek to maintain a spiritual, prayerful perspective in the face of challenging appearances and distressing circumstances. Applying this practice of spiritual discipline, we are able to find ourselves not only nursing ourselves, our loved ones and friends, but our churches and our world.

As was seen in the brief two-day course at Tenacre, we may all be doing more nursing than we think we are doing. Mary Baker Eddy writes: “Jesus beheld in Science the perfect man, who appeared to him where sinning mortal man appears to mortals.” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 476:32-3)

Each time we adhere to the discipline of “. . . behold[ing] in Science the perfect man,” we are cherishing divine Truth and its healing elements. This brings freedom to each of us and to our world.

This is doing our part in cherishing the role of Christian Science nursing in the healing mission of Christian Science.

With gratitude and love from all of us,

Marivic B. Mabanag
Executive Director