Teens January 29, 2018 Issue

Dropping the ‘party persona’

Name Withheld

I am not the perfect Christian Science teenager. Maybe there’s no such thing. But all I know is that I’ve always needed an extra push to look deeper into what Christian Science really is.

I’ve been involved in a program for young Christian Scientists that has helped motivate me to be active in my practice of Christian Science, instead of just skating along on the surface—going to Sunday School but not really doing much with what I’ve learned. One of the key things I have gained from this program is integrity. When I’m participating in activities in the program, I feel like I can put aside the “persona” I sometimes fall into at home and simply be myself—the real me, expressing what God is. And I feel strengthened by others in the program, who actively support me in seeing myself spiritually and in being true to that identity.

In 2016, I was scheduled to go on a trip to Guatemala with my group. By the time our departure rolled around, the difference between “home me” and “program me” had grown. I had begun doing things that were hugely out of character.

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