An amazing account

Cracking the Camouflage Ceiling by Janet Horton.  ("Faith Persistence and Progress in the Army Chaplaincy During the Early Integration of Women in the Military" says the cover.)

      

This is an amazing account of a Janet Horton's demonstration in combating the many challenges of being a woman chaplain in the United States military; a woman and a student of Christian Science.

I would like to give you an idea of how this soldier of Christ worked when confronted with the necessary military exercise of experiencing the tear gas chamber.

Janet says she was absolutely terrified at the thought of doing this exercise, having heard stories of the effects of the gas on eyes and breathing.

She explains, “I spent some time praying about what to pray about.  I quietly listened and the direction was very clear.  I felt led to study the Bible story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being thrown into the fiery furnace and Moses experiencing a bush that burned but wasn't consumed.  I also studied a chapter on how to pray to stop animal magnetism (an old world name for hypnotism) in our denominational textbook.  I made a commitment to study these passages once a day for two months.  They were so inspiring that I found I would sometimes look at them as frequently as three times a day” (p. 108).

What an example for us all on how to prepare for a challenge!  We notice all the way through the book that Janet was always ready to hear God's voice directing and pointing out the way.  I think that this is the only time she talks about being afraid.

Janet also had a Daniel in the Lions' Den-type experience!

The book does not include an Index, so I have made my own list of healings which are related in its pages.  Perhaps I will enlarge on it. . . maybe add in the Bible stories used.  We will see.

She had additional monthly training sessions at The Mother Church while studying at Boston University School of Theology.  These provided the metaphysics of Christian Science to her education.

She encouraged soldiers who were Muslim or Jewish, or other denominations, to go to their own scriptures for inspiration.

It is of interest that Mary Baker Eddy's book is called Science & Health with key to the Scriptures – not Key to the Bible.  So the book must open up any and all scripture or sacred writings.

My assessment of the book is that it is written for the military.  There is a lot of military talk which the layman is inclined to gloss over (well, this one did).

There is a video of a talk Janet gave at Arden Wood which is a little more inclined to be for the layman, especially Christian Scientists.  There are a few additional titbits there.

I have written this way to endeavour to whet readers' appetites, and I do so encourage any reader of this blog to please find yourself a copy of this remarkable book and read it for yourself.  And write your comments on this blog!

I have a funny story about the word “chaplain.”  At school we had to write a sentence with the word.  My friend wrote, “I went into the bush and caught a chaplain and brought it home to see if it would live in a cage.”  (Our spelling list included “Chaffinch”.)

 Joyce Voysey

  

Some healings noted:

Dehydration  13

Shyness  13

Safety  13

Violence in night security job in Back Bay, Boston 16/17

Long run: wolves met and preached to  18/19

Bleach on tropical fish. Apartment raided. Car avoided ramming  20/21

“Position of attention” on being harassed by lower rank soldier.  Threat to kill her.

     Athletic avoidance of an out of control van. 22-24

Car hitting tree. Memory: a sense of a hand reaching out and tenderly lifting me and setting                       me down on a patch of grass  25

As corps chaplain she called together all the chaplains a “spiritual safety briefing” in field exercises  in Germany.  None of the expected and anticipated dangers occurred.  The corps surgeon was out of business. Little finger severed. Found and reattached with full movement of the finger.  26/27    

Self-righteousness corrected. Mosquito bite blood on legs and nylons disappeared.  31-33

3     Easily does obstacle course.  Despite the men. 34

Getting into chaplain study at Boston Uni. Entry, place to live, fees paid, a job within 12 hours.

       44-46

2 mile run > 6½ mile run: "run and not be weary"  35

Back healed  54/5

Shyness  78

Cut finger  79

Dog healed  80

Woman healed  81

Hand caught in car door  104

Voice 105

Arm and condemnation 106                                                     

  (You can't heal someone you do not love.)

Tear gas  107

Getting to a lecture  110

Eating and form 112

Morman and Methodist - heal sprain  113/4

Tennis collapse  116

Cough 117

Brain tumour  117/8

Cat scratches  144-146

Sept 11 148