Camp Welfare Activities

Hospitality Committees to aid servicemen

Opportunities frequently are presented to extend friendly assistance to visiting members of the armed forces at services held by Churches of Christ, Scientist, and Christian Science Societies. A Hospitality Committee whose members are placed at specified stations within the edifice is now functioning in The Mother Church. This committee serves as an informal auxiliary of the Christian Science Camp Welfare Activities, whose main purpose is to provide Workers to minister to the needs of service personnel interested in Christian Science throughout the world and to hospitalized veterans.

Similar hospitality committees have been organized informally in branch churches and societies where military personnel in considerable numbers attend services. The functions of these committees are to make service personnel feel welcome and to acquaint them with various places of interest in the community. Furthermore, the names of individuals who wish to invite service men and women to meals at their homes can be made known to members of these committees.

[The following accounts of experiences of servicemen and servicewomen have been received by the Camp Welfare Activities Department and are now shared with the Field.]

Eastern camp Worker reports

A young man taking an officers' candidate course at a large camp was in danger of failing the course. He had been caught napping in class, was bored and also confused, not being sure that a Christian Science should be in military service. The Camp Welfare Worker found the young man, healed him of his uncertainty, and also of the smoking and drinking habits. He continued with the course in a happy state of thought and expressed to the Worker his desire to become a member of The Mother Church.

Christian Science chaplain sees healing

One morning a recruit manifesting evidences of what he feared might be measles appeared before a Christian Science chaplain. This young man was due to report that day at his work as mess cook. He feared inspection by a doctor at one o'clock that day. The chaplain explained that John the Baptist sent students to Jesus questioning his place in the fulfillment of prophecy, and that Jesus had replied, "Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: the blindreceive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them" (Matt. 11:4, 5).

This situation, they knew, was another opportunity to bear witness to the Christ-healing, so that the young man could go and show, through inspired thinking, the evidence, not of disease, but of man's perfect soundness. Soon after the inspection that day the recruit returned, acknowledging joyfully his healing, which took place as he left the chaplain's office to return to his company in the morning.

Healing at an eastern base

A Camp Welfare Worker serving a naval base on the East Coast told about a seaman who testified in a meeting held at the base that he had been encouraged to make the effort to bring about a healing for himself. The young man said that by his own endeavors he was healed of the smoking habit a few days after he began work on this problem. He expressed deep gratitude for the evening meetings held at the base.

Western state—Healing in a veterans' hospital

A patient had a large internal goiter. He was breathing through a tube placed in his throat. The Camp Welfare Worker visited this patient daily for about a month. During this period Christian Science treatment was given by the Worker. At the end of the month another X ray was taken, and there was no trace of the goiter. The wife of this veteran is now studying Christian Science with her husband, and both are grateful for this healing.

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