First Reader healed in church

Wendy Margolese

As First Reader in my branch Church of Christ, Scientist, I not only prepare to conduct the principal part of the service, but I also pray for the service—that it meet the needs of all congregants. I have found a poem titled “The Reader Prays” (Grace K. Sticht, Christian Science Sentinel, March 29, 1947) most inspirational, and I often pray with it before a service.

One Sunday as I was at the desk (or lectern) reading from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy in the next-to-last section of the Bible Lesson-Sermon, suddenly it felt as if my whole body were on fire, and I was instantly soaked in sweat. My reading became faint as I felt I was losing consciousness. An alert church member stepped forward to the platform to take my place. I sank gratefully into a front-row seat.

Since members had studied the wonderful lesson for that week, “God the Preserver of Man” (how appropriate!), and brought their inspiration to the service, I felt the support of the congregation. Like-minded individuals who acknowledged the nothingness of evil and the allness of perfect God—and the perfection of man in God’s image—surrounded me!

What came to my thought was a stanza from “The Reader Prays,” the poem mentioned above:

I cannot fear when I am serving Thee
That any evil power can do me wrong.
The desk—the very place I love to be—
Is not a target but a fortress strong.

I knew that the Pastor—the Bible and Science and Health—supported me; that the spiritual reality of what I had been reading sustained me. My health and strength could not be adversely affected while I was serving God.

The reading of the Lesson-Sermon finished, and then there was the collection. When the collection ended, I felt well enough to resume my position on the platform for the balance of the service. As I read the benediction, I knew the healing was complete. My clothes even felt dry and comfortable.

In the afternoon I rejoiced as I was able to fulfill a commitment to a friend to take her three golden retrievers for a long and glorious walk.

The Manual of The Mother Church states: “The Readers of The Mother Church and of all its branch churches must devote a suitable portion of their time to preparation for the reading of the Sunday lesson,—a lesson on which the prosperity of Christian Science largely depends” (p. 31). To me, that preparation not only brings a gracious understanding to the reading of the Bible Lesson, but it also serves as a protection to the service, supporting and promoting its healing purpose.

Being a Reader is a rewarding task for which I am deeply grateful.

Wendy Margolese
Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada

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