Article July 31, 1926 Issue

"Sacred confidence"

ALEXANDER WARENDORFF

In Article VIII, Section 22, of the Manual of The Mother Church, our divinely inspired Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, has given Christian Science practitioners and all who undertake the work of helping others a very definite rule of conduct. This By-law reads in part thus: "Members of this Church shall hold in sacred confidence all private communications made to them by their patients; also such information as may come to them by reason of their relation of practitioner to patient." All earnest workers are most particular in observing this By-law and all the By-laws of the Manual of The Mother Church, for strict obedience to them means greater growth in spirituality.

The Christian Science practitioner has learned how to "judge righteous judgment." He has learned how to separate error from man, how to impersonalize evil; he has learned scientifically how to forgive and forget. The consecrated worker never falls into the mistake of attaching sin, disease, or lack to a patient. He would never think of holding in thought any error, nor would he ever voice any of the details of a case to any one; for he knows that whatever comes to his knowledge that is unlike God, good, comes only to be destroyed—proved unreal. His constant endeavor, therefore, is to abide in such a spiritual state of thought as to be able instantaneously to destroy any and every error which presents itself to his consciousness.

It may be said that in Christian Science practice there are concerned in a treatment the patient, the practitioner, and God. It is wise, therefore, whenever possible, that no other person than the practitioner should even know that one is under treatment, and that no other mentality be permitted to intrude. The practitioner may be called upon to listen to many phases of error often of an apparently intimate nature. Knowing that these phases of error are all the false suggestions of a supposititious evil mind, he does not retain them in his thought. As the wise man has written in Proverbs, "A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter." The concealing of a matter does not mean the covering of iniquity; rather does it mean the uncovering of error and its effects, and its scientific destruction; and this would be impossible were it retained in the Scientist's thought, or if it were repeated to another. The truly conscientious practitioner, like our Master, is ever loving, ever compassionate, ever patient; and he never condemns, but ever strives to turn thought Godward, for well he knows that in God's sight man is never condemned, but is eternally His blessed child, always pure, free, upright, loving, and harmonious.

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