Recently, a Protestant minister attended a talk focusing on Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. Afterward, the minister was interested in further discussion of the subject. A graduate of seminary and then ordained by her present church, she had grown up without a specific denominational affiliation until she married. Briefly, however, when she was a young girl, a favorite schoolteacher had invited her to attend a Christian Science Sunday School. Fond memories of that experience piqued her interest years later and brought her to the talk on Science and Health. The following is the substance of a dialogue on prayer between the minister and one of our contributing editors.

Our Master, Christ Jesus, spoke to us, saying, "When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly" (Matt. 6:6). Could you share some observations with our readers on how you approach prayer, both as a Christian and a minister? I began to be very intentional about my prayer life ten or twelve years ago. What I discovered at that time was a need for quiet and silence, and the need to set aside time for it. I found that in ministry I became busy all the time giving out and working, but not allowing time for stillness. So I began to set aside "quiet time" every day. I also took one day every month and went away by myself— sometimes to a cabin that I have access to. Then, once a year, I went for five to seven days to a retreat center where I could be in silence and mental reflection.

Looking back on this discipline now, I see how important it is to prepare the inner space, the inner peace, to pray and commune with God. I continue my "quiet time" every day and, though you might find it surprising, I use the weekly Christian Science Lesson-Sermon as a part of that. I find that I take the thoughts and ideas from the Lesson-Sermon with me throughout the day and can recall them as my "island of prayer" to see how God might be speaking to me. This discipline has been very helpful in my prayer life.

All of Christendom is familiar with the Lord's Prayer, and as with all things that people become familiar with, over time it can seem to lose inspiration and no longer carry fresh meaning. Have you any thoughts about how the Lord's Prayer can be prayed in an ever-renewing way? Well, I think you are right about the possibility of losing its meaning. Sometimes when I am in church and I hear it prayed in unison (very quickly at some churches), I wonder how many are pausing really to think about the meaning of it. Pausing to think deeply about the Lord's Prayer is the answer in bringing renewed inspiration to it. Sometimes that can also be done by reflecting on a sentence or even a word in it.

Mrs. Eddy's spiritual interpretation has really been inspirational to me. Especially her words that follow "Thy kingdom come"—"Thy kingdom is come; Thou art ever-present" (Science and Health, p. 16). I will often pray that during the day to remind myself that God has already done everything that can be done for us in terms of guidance, healing, and loving. Those to whom I minister have also been able to do this. I have given it to people who have come for counseling or help. I invite them to take a line that stands out for them from the Lord's Prayer and to reflect on that during the day and to use what insight they gain as their specific prayer.

Christianity teaches us the importance of praying as our Master did, "...not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42). Many find these words difficult to pray and actually mean. What would you say to those individuals? I do think that many find these words difficult to pray, and I think that it comes from misconceptions about God's nature. I find people pray this sometimes in a final cry of desperation, when prayers seem to go unanswered and they do not know what else to do. I think at those times folks are thrown into a crisis of faith, because they don't know how to deal with what they believe is a God who is either allowing, or sending, suffering to their loved ones or to themselves.

I find that those I speak to about prayer are hungry and open for a new understanding of what God's will is. I am quick to tell them that God is Love and that it is not God's will that they suffer in any way. I know Christian Scientists believe that the omnipotence and goodness of God are the foundation of all true prayer, and so do I. I try to lay that foundation for others who were thinking of Deity as a wrathful God. God is a good God and does not send evil and suffering. When you understand that, it is not hard to pray for God's will to be done.

In James there are some remarkable statements about the power of prayer. It plainly states, "The prayer of faith shall save the sick" and "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much" (5:15, 16). James entreats us to pray one for another that we may be healed. Do you encourage spiritual healing, and if so, how? I do encourage it as part of our Christian tradition. I often inform people of this and tell them that the church included in its ministry, a healing ministry, until about the third or fourth century. It is interesting to me that healing lost its place at about the time the Church became a state church in a.d. 325 under Constantine. I believe there is a real interest in spiritual healing by many today. The medical profession, even with all its advances, has left us with searching questions. I think that the health-care crisis in the United States points to the need to examine our assumptions about healing. I encourage spiritual healing. I suggest to people that in their prayer life, they begin with truths they know about God and emphasize that God is all-powerful, as Scriptural passages point out. I often ask them, "What passage comes to your mind right now about God's power, or God's love, or God's truth?" They always have one! I encourage them to think about that, to hold that Scripture in thought, and pray with those truths.

People are responsive and grateful for this approach, because often it is the problem that has gained prominence in their thoughts, and not God, who really should be the focus of thought. This spiritual discipline allows them to replace fearful thinking with truths they already have about God. I also urge people to listen carefully to thoughts or messages from God, because during crisis I have found that it can be a time of spiritual growth coupled with important insight.

Have you seen the effects of "the effectual fervent prayer" that we've been talking about in your own life? I have, many times. Oftentimes, in fact for most of my life, Christian colleagues have prayed, when I have asked, that I would have strength, comfort, courage, and healing. I have felt the love and support of people when family members have been going through difficult things. One of the ways prayer has helped me most is in dealing with fear, and though I still experience fear, it is no longer a way of life. What I discovered some time ago was that I had lived with "low-grade fear" that I had learned from childhood. Prayer, communion with God as divine Love, has freed me from that being a way of life. I have actually experienced the physical healing of long-term allergies and an irregular heartbeat that was troublesome to me for many years.

In the New Testament we are told to "pray without ceasing" (I Thess. 5:17). How does one pray without ceasing? Our minds are constantly filled with thoughts. All kinds of thoughts. Beautiful thoughts, guilty thoughts about past failures, thoughts about what we need to do to enhance our lives in the future. So for me to pray without ceasing is to begin the process of replacing negative kinds of thoughts with truths about God and truths about myself as God's creation. As I move toward keeping these kinds of truths in my mind, that becomes an ongoing, ceaseless prayer. I once heard of a Swiss psychotherapist who said all women carry around a "demon" on their shoulder that whispers lies, tells them they are no good and that they are never going to amount to anything. My thought was that we have to silence the demon. We must recognize the lies for what they are and begin the process of changing them and, with God's help, remove them altogether.

What do you think should be the motive for prayer? To open ourselves to God. To prepare ourselves for all that God has already done for us and already given to us. To bring ourselves into harmony with God. The Presbyterians' Westminster Catechism, as I recall (I am only paraphrasing), asks, "What is man's purpose for living?" And it answers, "Man's sole purpose for living is to love and praise God forever." I love that. To be reflections of God's divine love is another way of putting it. Prayer helps us live out our purpose.

In healing a case that the disciples had failed to heal, Jesus said they were unable to heal it because of their unbelief. He ended his statement by saying, "...this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." What is your impression of what our Master meant by "prayer and fasting"? I know they practiced fasting in Biblical times, and I have practiced it for a time in my own life. It did help me to concentrate on the one for whom I prayed, but looking back now, I see that my focus was more on person and problem, rather than on God and His truth. So I see some limitations in the way I was doing that. Now I think that fasting has more to do with stilling the senses and finding a quiet place of truth and keeping the senses at bay. Now I think of it as rising above what the senses are telling me.

Would you comment on what you think future recognition of the power of prayer will be? It is going to be very important. One of the things St. Augustine wrote that I like is, "Our hearts are restless, O God, until they rest in thee." I think the restlessness and the yearning that we see acted out everywhere in our day can't lead to anything but to prayer. The inner hunger eventually leads us to the source of what will satisfy us. That source is God. The last line in the twenty-third Psalm tells us that God's love pursues us. With God pursuing us and our yearning, God and man will meet in prayer. Then there will be a recognition of what is already here, namely the kingdom of God. It is a wonderful thing to speak with people who say they don't know what it is they are looking for, and to help them to see that the answer is an inspired prayer life. This is the deeper understanding that so many are looking for. The wake-up call has been sounded, and Christian people are recognizing the power of prayer. It's an exciting thing to be a part of.