Lauren Hayden - Christian Science Sentinel, August 27, 2007
Last year at middle school, it felt as if I didn’t have a good group of friends I fit in with. The friends I’d known since kindergarten were growing apart. Some of them were only focused on schoolwork, some were ignoring me, and some were making new friends.
Jordan Krueger - Adapted from The Christian Science Journal, Feb. 2007
Growing up as a Christian Scientist, I learned that God, our true Father and Mother, created me and that I include only what He gives. Science and Health explains that we each reflect all aspects of His/Her nature. This passage illustrates what I was learning: “The masculine mind reaches a higher tone through certain elements of the feminine, while the feminine mind gains courage and strength through masculine qualities. These different elements conjoin naturally with each other, and their true harmony is in spiritual oneness” (p. 57). This oneness means to me that the spiritual qualities of masculinity and femininity constitute who I am, rather than limited definitions of identity derived from physiology and psychology.
As secure as I felt in the knowledge that I am the creation of God, who is both Father and Mother, and that my identity is a reflection of that divine wholeness, I still had a lot to learn about my true nature. Some of this learning came the hard way. I know that the discovery of who we are spiritually is ongoing, but I’m particularly grateful for some awakenings that took place over a few years. (more…)
Lena Showalter - The Christian Science Sentinel Aug. 7, 2006
As a teenager I’d been to overnight summer camp, went on a five-week school trip to Spain the summer before my senior year of high school, and even successfully made it through my freshman year away at college–all without any homesickness. So I thought a year studying abroad in Valencia, Spain, would be just as easy. And I was right–well, about the first semester at least. (more…)
The Christian Science Sentinel May 15, 2006
Like many teenagers, Mark Evans has nonstop days. He’s an Eagle Scout, captain of his school’s academic team, a trombone player in the marching band, an athlete, and a straight-A student preparing for college next year. For fun? Video games, running on the beach, and hanging with his friends.
But despite his busy schedule, Mark makes time for prayer and studying Christian Science—a discipline he’s found to be key in his life. Mark took the time to chat with the Sentinel’s Ingrid Peschke about this on a recent Sunday afternoon. (more…)
Roger Gordon - Christian Science Sentinel, July 24–31, 2006
We were freshman roommates-and we were complete opposites. Dave drank all the time. I never touched alcohol. Dave played poker as if it were a way of life. I didn’t gamble, and still don’t. Dave went to sleep at 4 a.m. I liked to turn in by midnight. He never mentioned God. I went to church twice a week.I suppose a university with 36,000 students doesn’t have the time to match every single person with the ideal roommate. The housing form I filled out asked only one question: Do you smoke?
Dave (not his real name) didn’t smoke, but he did drink. A lot. And while this bothered me on a personal level, it also had a real impact on our day-to-day living together.
One morning, I woke up to find Dave had thrown up in the middle of the night after he came home drunk. It was a mess. (more…)
By Chase Clements - The Christian Science Journal, July 2006
“Do you want a drink?” my friend asked me one night last summer in the basement of his house. Two girls were there, and I didn’t want to seem like a loser. I had known that my friend was bound to ask me that question eventually, and my thoughts began darting around at light speed.
At the prep school I attend, popularity is determined by several factors: most significantly, if and how much you drink, how many “cool” parties you attend, and if you’ve had sex. When my friend offered the drink, I felt I had a fairly firm understanding of why I didn’t need it. For one, I don’t want to have to lean on external sources like alcohol to make me popular or to feel relaxed. But the only thing I could think about was how I’d appear if I said no. The fear of doing the unpopular thing began to cloud my thoughts. (more…)
By Carol Matthews-Nicoli - Christian Science Sentinel, July 3, 2006
This was it. My moment of truth. Standing in line in the college cafeteria, I stared at the display of ziti and cheese, and waited for an answer to my prayer.
About three weeks before this moment, I’d moved into my dorm room in New York City and waited to meet my new college roommate. Leaving behind all my close relationships at home had seemed the start of a great adventure. But it hadn’t taken long for loneliness to sink in—along with the sudden understanding that it takes a lot of time to make friends as connected as my group back home. When this fear was strongest, I felt relieved knowing there was someone assigned to live with me. At least I wouldn’t be completely alone. (more…)
