As a helicopter pilot in South Vietnam in 1969, I was often required to fly my ship into the middle of raging battles. I was a member of the 158th Assault Helicopter Battalion, Company B, which flew air support for the 101st Airborne Infantry Division, transporting soldiers and supplies into combat zones day and night, regardless of weather. There was no room for mistakes.

Maintaining my fearlessness, calmness, and confidence during extreme danger was absolutely necessary to my safety, and to help with this I studied the writings of Mary Baker Eddy, especially Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, whenever I could. This concentrated study throughout my tour of duty had a profound effect on the well-being of the crew members and passengers on my ship, as well as on me.

I learned how important it was for me to follow the advice Mary Baker Eddy gave to Christian Scientists: ". . . keep your minds so filled with Truth and Love, that sin, disease, and death cannot enter them. . . . Good thoughts are an impervious armor; clad therewith you are completely shielded from the attacks of error of every sort. And not only yourselves are safe, but all whom your thoughts rest upon are thereby benefited" (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 210). My reading of Science and Health was making it clear to me that the "error" spoken of was not really a person, a place, or a thing. Error is never part of God's creation. And I refused to give evils of thought—such as hate and revenge—a place in my thinking. These thoughts are what are erroneous. Keeping my "thought so filled with Truth and Love" ensured that my mind would remain uncontaminated and innocent.

I was discovering how all important it was to really feel brotherly love for each individual enemy soldier. This was an acknowledgment that everybody involved was God's beloved child. Knowing this fact neutralized any tendency I might have had to identify the enemy soldiers as "evil." For me, the 91st Psalm outlines the constant and complete protection from harm that God promises to everyone—because we are all His dear children.

In May 1969, just south of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) near Quang Tri, I was flying co-pilot on a mission to insert a team of long-range reconnaissance patrol (LRRP) into a very remote drop-off. When we arrived at a point above the drop-off area, we were forced to fly a holding pattern at an elevation of about 1,300 feet as we waited for two US Marine Chinook helicopters to take off and depart with the 18 Marines of the LRRP whom one of the helicopters had just picked up. After a few minutes, our crew chief told the aircraft commander that the location of the two helicopters was not known. Five seconds later, the Chinook carrying the LRRP Marines collided with our ship. The collision was violent and severely damaged our ship's rotor system and flight controls. My aircraft commander went into temporary shock, and I took over the flight controls. The Chinook that had collided with us began to break apart. I was able to maneuver our ship enough to miss hitting one of the rotor systems that had separated from that Chinook.

At this point I looked beyond the scenario of inevitable death and, instead, with calm resolve, put my entire trust in God. I knew that our being was in His being. My choice was already made. I turned to God—without reservation or fear. I listened for God's guidance. And I felt that guidance—in that the flight controls moved without any effort on my part. The ship did slam into the ground and the blades did dig into the earth. But everyone aboard was safe, with only one person being slightly injured. This sentence from Science and Health helps explain to me why one can go through such an experience unhurt: "Mortals claim that death is inevitable; but man's eternal Principle is ever-present Life" (p. 312).

The standard operating procedure in such serious situations would have been to order me to undergo post-traumatic treatment and return stateside for the remainder of my tour. Knowing that God's love and protection for me could never include trauma, however, I stayed calm and balanced. The post-accident evaluation declared me to be free of any symptoms of trauma, and in two weeks I was reassigned to the Mekong Delta, flying the rest of my tour with the Royal Australian Navy/US Army Aviation, known as the 135th Assault Helicopter Company (EMUs).

Many more dramatic proofs of God's power and protection lay ahead in situations involving severe food poisoning; engine failure while hovering above a munitions storage area in thick fog; high-explosive "booby trap" tripwire tangling in my landing skids; being shot down by enemy fire; and tripping on an antipersonnel mine that catapulted me into the air. Any one of these extreme situations could have proved fatal, and I felt protection from prayer. My prayers were often as simple and short as "Help me, God; I need help." I attribute my salvation in these situations to the fact that I was constantly fueled with spiritual truth by studying Science and Health at every possible opportunity and doing my best to "live love." I know, too, that my wife and parents were praying for me — not to mention the military chaplains.

In the case of food poisoning, all at once I was incapacitated—doubled over in pain and dropping to the ground. But I knew that God was there. Prayer brought the help I needed just as fast. The next minute I was fine and remained so. The mine that I tripped one morning threw me 20 feet in the air; I landed on my back, uninjured. There were so many other incidents along these lines that I know my protection was the result of prayer, not chance.

It may sound amazing, but I never felt vulnerable or helpless while in Vietnam. When I would fly into a hail of bullets, I never froze with fear. Instead, my thoughts soared beyond what was going on in battle because my mind was so full of inspiring ideas from my constant study of Science and Health.

The final hour of the last day of my combat experience illustrated the practical truth of this particular statement: "Clad in the panoply of Love, human hatred cannot reach you" p. 571). I heard a call for help over an onboard radio. The caller was an Army captain who commanded a remote jungle outpost. He and his men were under siege by an advancing Viet Cong unit. Having exhausted their ammunition supply, they were sure to be overrun by the enemy.

We flew to the nearest ordnance supply outpost and loaded our ship with munitions. As we approached the besieged outpost, the Viet Cong directed heavy automatic weapons fire at our ship. Tracer rounds (white-hot phosphorus bullets, visible to the eye) were bouncing away from the ship. It was as if an invisible shield surrounded our aircraft. We could see that approximately three feet out from our aircraft, the bullets were being deflected away at various angles. My co-pilot was awed by this. But I know what our shield was—God's "panoply of Love." We successfully delivered the supplies, with no injuries whatsoever.

My continued study of the Bible and Science and Health has brought me blessings untold. It's not possible to express my gratitude enough for the privilege of seeing awesome proofs of His absoluteness and caring presence.

Marc T. Straub
Medical Lake, Washington

I would like to verify my husband's testimony. While he was in Vietnam, I was happy to stay at my parents' home with our infant son. I prayed in earnest each and every day, and read Science and Health completely through several times. I was new to Christian Science, and I loved what I was reading and understanding. During that year, I sought to live each day all that I was starting to understand. The Bible assures us, "Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord" (II Chron. 20:17).

Judy L. Straub