Article July 31, 2000 Issue

Journey toward closeness

Counselor and teacher David Blocker talks about the role of mutual understanding in community life.

By Kim Shippey

David Blocker lives in Sharon, Massachusetts, and is a computer consultant who volunteers as chairman of the Sharon Affirming Diversity/Celebrating Community Committee. He holds a degree in psychology from Harvard, and a master's degree in education from Lesley College, which is also in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is on the board of directors and is a past president of Temple Sinai, a Reform Jewish community in Sharon.

Last December Mr. Blocker wrote an article that was published in the Sharon Advocate under the title "Learning about Christian Science." He had just attended a Wednesday evening testimony meeting in the local Christian Science church.

"The most moving part of the church service to me," he wrote, "was the 'testimony' part, in which individual members rose to speak of their experiences with healing. . . . Each of them had turned to Scripture and searched for passages that seemed connected in some way to the symptoms being experienced, and had experienced a moment when an important spiritual 'truth' came to thought about the issue at hand. I learned that healing [for Christian Scientists] is not seen as something that you take up when needed and then put aside—that daily study and prayer prepare the mind and keep it sharp and open and ready when the skills are needed. . . . My time in the church confirmed my belief that by learning about each other, we all grow."

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Article

IN NEXT WEEK'S SENTINEL