Article December 9, 1916 Issue

Giving of Testimony

COLIN RÜCKER EDDISON

Two students of Christian Science had attended a Wednesday evening testimony meeting, and both felt that there had been something unsatisfactory about the service. The testimonies had come haltingly, and each had been followed by a somewhat opporessive pause. Altogether there had been an apparent absence of that joyous sense of freedom which is not the least valuable characteristic of a Christian Science meeting. The two who were discussing this matter realized that there was some fundamental truth in connection with the giving of testimonies which they had not as yet seen, but which, once recognized, would overcome the apparent difficulty in this direction. In determining to study the question they gratefully remembered these words of our Master: "It is written in the prophets. And they shall be all taught of God."

The light which came to one of the two as a result of a prayer for more spiritual understanding, was very helpful, for it made clear many past mistakes, and also proved the value of the Manual of The Mother Church in working out such a problem. A careful study was made of the by-law entitled "Testimonials" (Art. VIII, Sect. 24), which begins with a quotation from St. Paul: "Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." This then is the first and foremost requirement in a testimony, to glorify God; that is, to show forth the unlimited power of divine Mind, to acknowledge that there is but one God, infinite good, and that because good is infinite, evil is unreal, whether it takes the form of sickness, lack, or faults of character.

The by-law goes on to elaborate this idea: "Testimony in regard to the healing of the sick is highly important. More than a mere rehearsal of blessings, it scales the pinnacle of praise and illustrates the demonstration of Christ, 'who healeth all thy diseases.' " Here let us remember that Christ, Truth, is the universal Saviour, and that it is no merit of our own if we have received some of the crumbs that fall from the Master's table. Is there not a danger, if we indulge in a mere rehearsal of blessings, that we may think of ourselves as having done something wonderful, and thus admit a sense of self-righteousness which robs God of the glory? Or again, we may be led to lay too much stress in our thought on the physical benefits received. Mrs. Eddy warns us that "if we are ungrateful for Life, Truth, and Love, and yet return thanks to God for all blessings, we are insincere and incur the sharp censure our Master pronounces on hypocrites" (Science and Health, p. 3). We must be genuinely grateful for the divine Principle at work in our lives, and not be thankful only for the loaves and fishes. True gratitude would lead us to give up gladly much to which we are prone to cling, and we should then welcome the discipline of Truth, which knows no compromise with error. True, this is not always easy, but Christian Science teaches us how it may be realized and expressed.

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