Sparked, kindled, and on fire for a healing Cause

By Joyce Walton

When I was 12, I applied for membership in The First Church of Christ, Scientist— also known as The Mother Church. My Sunday School teacher at that time had highly recommended this course of action. And you don't argue with your Sunday School teacher when she also happens to be your grandmother. In my family, it was just the expected thing to do. So I filled out the application. I had no idea what membership in this organization really meant, although on occasion I had heard my grandmother refer to becoming a Mother Church member as "joining the Cause."

In college I became aware that many people were devoted to causes. Sometimes they would advertise their cause with a well-placed bumper sticker or hold fundraisers or donate hundreds of dollars a year, zealously spreading the word about their cause. I often thought, "Wow, they're really on fire—that organization must be doing some amazing things in the world."

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