As the account is told by my mother, an acquaintance saw her at a time of great sadness and suffering, and recommended Christian Science to her. She had had nine children, three of whom had passed on in infancy and one that was stillborn. Afterward thanks to her acceptance of this religion, her five surviving children were raised without any medication. Most of the time Mother was our practitioner.

By the age of six I already knew how to read, and while still a child, I read a biography of Mrs. Eddy and some of her other works, in German. Since there was no church nearby, we held services in our home. Mother and one of my sisters would read the Lesson-Sermon, and friends and neighbors would attend.

Thirty years ago, after I was married, I became very ill. My throat was so sore that I could not speak for three months.

My husband was not a Christian Scientist at that time, and he required that I visit several doctors; none of them could diagnose the problem. One of the doctors told me that he would operate on my throat, but he could not guarantee that I would be well. For this reason I decided to seek help from a Christian Science practitioner.

She selected several passages from Science and Health relating to fear and asked that I study them. One of them was: "To fear sin is to misunderstand the power of Love and the divine Science of being in man's relation to God,—to doubt His government and distrust His omnipotent care. To hold yourself superior to sickness and death is equally wise, and is in accordance with divine Science. To fear them is impossible, when you fully apprehend God and know that they are no part of His creation" (p. 231). Another: "When fear disappears, the foundation of disease is gone" (p. 368).

I read Science and Health from cover to cover also. A further passage that greatly strengthened me was this: "Note how thought makes the face pallid. It either retards the circulation or quickens it, causing a pale or flushed cheek. In the same way thought increases or diminishes the secretions, the action of the lungs, of the bowels, and of the heart" (p. 415).

One night the pain was so intense that when I could not bear it, I called the practitioner once again. The next day my husband took me to a medical institute in another city because he was still concerned for me. On the way there I said to my husband, "We can go back now because I'm healed." But my husband said, "We're halfway there now, so we'll go."

The doctor examined me and prescribed some medication. My husband kept the prescription in his wallet for fourteen days. I told him, "You don't have to keep it anymore, because I'm healed." Finally he threw the prescription away.

To this day I have never had a sore throat again, and I have no trouble speaking. I work outside the home, have had very few absences from my job, and take care of some of the responsibilities involved in running a home and a family.

Because of this healing, my husband started attending church. Today we are both members of The Mother Church and of a local branch church. Furthermore, my husband has been a Reader several times, as well as president of our church.

Another healing occurred when I lost my job ten months before I was due to retire. My company alleged financial difficulties, but I thought its actions were unfair. The shock was great. Then I became bedridden for almost a month with what appeared to be very severe heart problems. I lost all strength in my left arm, which caused me great despair.

At one point this despair had grown so great that I thought, "If I have to live this way, I'd rather not live at all." But thanks to much faith and prayer in Christian Science, and with the help of a kind practitioner, my thought became more spiritualized and I was healed of this difficult physical condition. I relied only on the power of God to heal me.

I am grateful to God and for Mrs. Eddy's marvelous spiritual perception. I am very thankful to the person who first recommended Christian Science to my mother and for the practitioners who are always ready to help us in the kindest manner. I thank God continually for His care for all mankind.

Lydia Hoppe de Souza
São Paulo, SP, Brazil