More than forty years ago, I received a call late one night that my dearest friend had been killed by gun violence. She was only twenty-one years old. The assailant also took his own life.

At the time, I felt that my understanding of Christian Science was limited to the early lessons I had had in Christian Science Sunday School. I had recently married a precious man who loved Christian Science as much as I did. We felt it was best not to travel to the funeral service but instead to hold our own “service” at home, sharing comforting citations from the Bible and from the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, that affirmed the allness of eternal life. 

It was a challenging time, and I felt ill-prepared to understand such a needless loss. Seeking to elevate my thoughts from sorrow and mourning to peace, I began consistently reading the weekly Bible Lesson from the Christian Science Quarterly. It felt as though that was all I knew how to do in my study of Christian Science at the time. But I soon found studying these Lessons, which are composed of passages from the Bible and Science and Health, to be very effective in guiding my thought to stillness and strength.