When Rachel Troutman, a graduate student at Michigan State University, talks about sharing Christian Science, she’s inevitably transported back to her teen years when she was thinking about “the big questions.”

“Even though I was raised in Christian Science, I wanted to understand for myself, ‘What is truth?’ ” she told the Sentinel’s Jenny Sawyer in a recent conversation. “I was searching, so I understand what it feels like to search. And I want to be prepared to respond when I encounter someone else who’s searching.” Although every situation is different, Rachel says there’s a golden thread running through every encounter: glimpsing each individual’s innate and unbreakable relationship to God.

You’re really on fire with sharing Christian Science, but for some of us, reaching out to others in that way doesn’t feel so easy. Where’s a good place to begin?

We’re all going to find ourselves in different situations with people who have different levels of receptivity to what we have to offer, but the thing that’s consistent in every case is that it’s really all about you and God. That’s the relationship. That’s what’s primary. 

And the understanding of that relationship is what will open your thought to God’s guidance and give you the spontaneity, insight, and discernment to share in a way that’s tailor-made for the situation or the particular person. You can hear from Mind whatever it is you need to hear to be guided.

Likewise, affirming that the person you’re sharing with also has a relationship to God, is governed by God, and can hear God is another good starting point. When you can trust that relationship, it removes the pressure of having to say exactly the right thing, or the pressure of expecting the person to respond in a particular way. You’re letting God communicate to you both.

With so many possible points of entry, and so many big ideas to choose from, how do you know where to start with explaining what Christian Science is and what it’s all about?

The most harmonious, fruitful experiences I’ve had have begun with one idea. Just one idea. 

Showing genuine interest in the other person is key, because that’s love. And love breaks down any walls—in you or in the other person. 

And it’s not the same idea every time. I really try to listen for whatever feels right in that moment—to trust my spiritual sense. Mary Baker Eddy says, “Spiritual sense is a conscious, constant capacity to understand God” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,
p. 209). This consciousness of what Mind is revealing allows that one needed idea to come forward. I don’t try to explain the whole of Christian Science in one breath anymore.

I’ve also thought a lot about the basic tenet of conversation, which is that a conversation is a back and forth. Whatever you feel inspired to share most readily, you put that out there. And you see what the response is, or is there a follow-up question, or does it not seem to resonate? Maybe you feel guided to ask a question instead, such as, “Why are you interested?” 

Showing genuine interest in the other person is key, because that’s love. And love breaks down any walls—in you or in the other person. Then whatever you’re saying, there’s no defensiveness; there’s genuine care for the other person. People will feel that. Whatever words come to you, if there’s warmth and trust between you, then you’ve got a great foundation to build on.

How has this approach worked in your own experiences of sharing Christian Science?

I’ll tell you about one of my favorite experiences. Just by way of introduction, I should say that I try to go about my day being open for opportunities to be a blessing. And I think that’s a helpful way to pray that’s foundational for anything we do. So then if you do find yourself in a conversation, you know that you’ve already established your motives for being there—that loving the other person and being led by Love (which is God) are central. 

I’ve really taken to heart the passage from Science and Health that says: “Love inspires, illumines, designates, and leads the way. Right motives give pinions to thought, and strength and freedom to speech and action” (p. 454).

When I do meet someone, then, it feels like an opportunity, not some intimidating moment. I’m rejoicing in this opportunity to share in whatever way is right, in whatever way will leave that person feeling loved.

So on this particular day, I was walking through an art fair on my way to my branch church’s Reading Room when I saw a woman passing out literature for her own church. We smiled at each other, and she offered me one of the pamphlets. When I took it, I said something like: “Thank you. I’m actually headed to the Christian Science Reading Room, which is affiliated with the church that I attend.”

I kind of said it in passing, so my intention was not to start up a big conversation with her. But she stopped me and said she had some questions. Her first was, “What do Christian Scientists believe?” I laughed and said, “That’s a big question!” 

And that was a great moment, because it set the tone for the whole exchange—light and friendly and open. We had a back-and-forth from there and shared ideas from our own faiths. I told her a little bit about a healing that I’d had. 

That’s another thing I like to remember when I think about talking with others about Christian Science: Telling one of your own experiences can be a way of sharing that doesn’t feel threatening. It’s a way of saying: “This is what’s worked for me. This is what’s been helpful to me.” 

I rarely feel the need to go into major detail about my healings. The main point is that I relied on prayer and God for healing, and there was this wonderful outcome that blessed me in so many different ways. And I’m so grateful. Gratitude and trust speak so powerfully to people. 

By the end of our conversation, this woman was asking me for literature. She wanted everything that I could offer her.

That was a major moment for me, because I’ve had other, less positive experiences when I’ve pushed or overshared. But this exchange was completely harmonious. I think that feeling a sense of joy is such a key marker of a “successful” conversation. 

Having listened step by step, having put down fear, having resisted the urge to push or somehow assert your own agenda—that’s where the joy comes from. And as you trust Mind more and more to lead you, I think you also look forward to these opportunities more and more, too.

What happens if you get into a conversation and you encounter resistance?

There have been moments in conversations when I realize that there’s tension or resistance on the other side, so I pull back. And if I pull back, it’s either to let the other person speak or to honestly, truly listen to God. To silently affirm that I am not in control of this conversation. God is leading and guiding. God is Mind and therefore is the source of all ideas. 

Any sense of division, any belief that you can’t understand each other, is not of God. 

To me it feels like a settling back into a position of humility—settling into the acceptance of my true relationship to God, which is my oneness with Him as His expression. Realigning thought with God. Acknowledging God as the source of all thought, all action. 

And I like to remind myself that desire itself is prayer (see Science and Health, p. 1). Knowing that that’s what you’re doing in that conversation—truly desiring to express good, to express God. When I do “pull back,” or settle back, in that way, I feel such reassurance and safety—and confidence that there is no real resistance to Truth.

Another way you can pray if you feel that you’ve gotten to a stalemate or things feel awkward, is to pray about overcoming a belief of division of any kind. Divisiveness is animal magnetism
—whatever would tempt us to believe that God is not One and All, or that which would try to pull us away from our love for God. And it is powerless.

Any sense of division, any belief that you can’t understand each other, that you can’t see eye-to-eye, is not of God. The truth is that you’re both at one with God and you’re brethren. Fundamentally, you’re both children of God, so there’s nothing that can divide you. So I always try in that moment to remember, whether it’s a conscious thought or just a feeling, that this is my brother or sister. We are united in Love itself. And this does break down any sense of barrier or resistance.

What about what seems like our own resistance to sharing Christian Science? How do we handle that?

I’ve definitely had to work through that fear, that resistance. When I was a teenager, my friends’ parents would sometimes interrogate me about Christian Science. It often made me feel like the odd one out, and of course, the pressure to fit in is huge at that age. 

Even in my late twenties, though, when I was coming back into Christian Science, being open about being a Christian Scientist was a big decision, because it made me so different from all my friends, who were pretty much all atheists or agnostics. I didn’t even really know anyone who went to church! 

Having a strong sense of purpose has really helped me to have the courage to be different. Because then there’s a “why.” Part of what does inspire me just to share the fact that I’m a Christian Scientist is knowing that I’m about my Father’s business. And again, that I have that relationship to God—that we each have.

Knowing that I have role models who did God’s work with strength and courage has also helped me overcome resistance. Christ Jesus is the role model for me, and the apostles, too. I love what their lives have taught me about going forward with purpose and conviction. 

Where did that purpose and conviction come from? It seems to me that it came from their deep love of God and for others. Deep love is such a great motivator. Mrs. Eddy says, “Love for God and man is the true incentive in both healing and teaching” (Science and Health, p. 454). In my experience, love for God and man has been the incentive for sharing Christian Science, too. It’s love that dissolves anything that would try to stand in our way.