Hospitals, ships, and prisons

On to the Navy and to the East Coast of the USA where ships departed, taking the servicemen and women to Europe in 1918. The Christian Science Worker was provided with a boat. Hear this report from page 147 of Christian Science War Time Activities (WWI):

           "Daily she carried me out to the ships and around them. I always had some of the Comforts articles aboard and gave away from her decks altogether over 1100 articles, including 135 bedquilts, 420 pairs of socks and 350 sweaters. During the last month I operated her, she visited 226 ships, and I gave away personally on those ships nearly 10,000 copies of the Monitor, not including subscriptions.”

And,

           "You can imagine it was strenuous work to take 100 to 150 Monitors under your arm, and, standing on the front deck, with spray and water breaking around your knees, run up to a gangway in a heavy sea, and just step aboard at the right instant, but I did it without mishap hundreds of times."

And page 152-3:

           A naval Worker arrived in Portsmouth, at the time the so-called influenza was at its height. Upon reporting to the Commandant, it was learned that the hospital was congested, and there was a shortage of nurses due to sickness and recent detachments, creating a serious situation. The services of the Worker were volunteered and accepted, and in the hospital spiritual work was combined with the material care of sick nurses and men in the influenza wards. Wards of terror-stricken men, witnessing the death of comrades, were calmed and encouraged, and many patients thought to be very ill were found up and dressed the following day. Sick nurses stopped taking medicine and in some cases requested the text- book*. The death rate at once diminished and in twenty-four hours reached the zero mark.

*The Christian Science textbook, Science & Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy

There was a prison at this camp. Here is a snippet:

           To tell in any detail the assistance rendered to the men in the prison would make a long story. Cases of rheumatism, stricture, influenza, mental unbalance, cocaine habit, and venereal diseases are among the dark images of disease which have vanished before the sunlight of Truth. p.155

I find it interesting that the Y.M.C.A. is frequently mentioned as working closely with the Christian Science workers.

There is much written about the work, in France, of setting up Christian Science Centers (sic) and of distribution of literature. There are always recorded instances of healing and appreciation of Christian Science, and of folk taking up its study.

Here is a quote about The Christian Science Monitor at La Mans:

        "Musicians and booklovers have sent in for the Monitor from a considerable distance because of special interest in the music and literary pages. A chess player came in to pick up back dates for chess problems and many other men have come up to make a study of the editorials, declaring that the Monitor had given them their first grasp on the world issues, in a big way." p. 201

And on page 202:

         "We have had some very interesting experiences with French, Belgian and Russian investigators of Christian Science. During the first four months nearly two hundred inquirers presented themselves. Some of these proved to be earnest students and had interesting demonstrations, many times entirely through the study of Science and Health. These have endured, and in one instance at least, the student is proving his faith by healing others."

From Paris:

           Much impersonal healing work was accomplished in the hospitals as the following incident related by one of the Workers will indicate:
"In one of the buildings visited, a boy who had been shot through the lungs, repeated the Lord's Prayer all day and thus overcame 'the last enemy.' The supervising nurse had asked the Monitor visitor to talk with the lad. 'He will probably live but a few hours,' said she, 'and he's from your town.' This boy, who knew nothing of Christian Science (and of course the subject was not mentioned to him), had lost his Bible at Chateau Thierry. 'I knew when I did,' he gasped, 'that it was all up with me, because I had carried that Bible with me everywhere.' 'But you did not lose the Lord's Prayer,' he was reminded, 'and you could really use that prayer all day, actually use it for breathing. Just substitute it for breathing if you're a little short of breath. Will you promise to say it all day?' And he promised.

            "Two weeks later the Irish nurse who had him as her particular charge, almost shouted: 'Why, John, there's that lady who talked to you the day you were so bad, and haven't I often been thinking of it since. That was the day you got well, John.' Later, the boy was presented by the Committee with a Bible. He held the book a moment to his face, tenderly caressing it, and quickly slipped it under his pillow. 'There is nothing,' said one nurse, 'which the boys so thoroughly love as a Bible.' " pp, 206/207

Adaptability

From p. 118 of Christian Science Wartime Activities (WWI): The Camp Welfare Workers were sent forth with instructions to train the young Scientists to stand on their own feet where church services were concerned. This would prepare them for possibly greater isolation later across the Atlantic.

Simple organizations were formed in some of the big camps, with the Manual of The Mother Church as the guide, and with Readers chosen to be in those positions till their term of service was done. 

This plan proved admirably efficient in its workings, until departure for overseas drew near. Then, as nobody knew which troops would leave first or whether either of the regularly chosen Readers would be able to be present for the next meeting, every Christian Scientist participating in the work in the camp came to service prepared to substitute for one or the other of the readers (p. 120).

How well those servicemen (and women) must have studied the Bible Lessons to be able to stand in at the last minute if necessary.

And how about this:

There were times even in camps in this country when our boys found themselves without a room in which to assemble. In one such instance, a little group of men went down to a clump of trees near a railroad track, piled railroad ties against two saplings to make a desk, the readers hung their hats in the trees, the congregation sat on other ties and the service began. It was a wonderful day, with the blue sky overhead, the sun only an hour high, and the birds, the blossoms and the trees adding their paeans of praise to the hymns that arose from the little grove. That service, in its earnestness and spiritual fervor, made a lasting impression on all who participated.

Page 133 introduced the vest-pocket edition of Science and Health.

Page 134 brings a direct reference to Mary Baker Eddy:

"One of my shipmates was sent a vest-pocket edition of the textbook. I have been reading it with deep interest and wish to own one, hence my letter. "I enlisted from Boston but was brought up and went to school in Concord, New Hampshire, where Mrs. Eddy once lived. As a little boy I used to romp and play close by her home, Pleasant View, and I still remember her kind sweet face as she would ride by in her carriage. Sometimes she would even give us children a ride."

Joyce Voysey

Good reliable news valued in war zones

Pages 36 to about half of page 40 of Christian Science Wartime Activities (WWI) are devoted to appreciation of The Christian Science Monitor in 1918, particularly in Europe.

Why was the Monitor accepted and read? Because it was found to be a most reliable source of war news and because the men in camps found each copy to be a veritable mine of information on all the important topics of the day.

Pages 142/3 – A vest-pocket-sized hymn book was issued. A number of well-known hymns and some suited to the Christian warrior were included. A Worker got permission to hand out copies in a prison (not named, probably prisoner-of-war). All but 4 inmates accepted them. Next thing someone started to sing Nearer My God to Thee. We are told that in less than a minute there was a great male chorus singing that hymn.

Joyce Voysey

Taking a stand

A soldier wrote:

           Upon my arrival in my final training camp I made inquiries as to whether there were any Scientists or no. I was told there were none. I made up my mind to take my stand, so at my first opportunity I had published a notice of Christian Science meetings in a YMCA hut. Can you imagine my feelings to have waiting for me Sunday morning at 10:15, thirty-two men who had come through a drenching rain to attend our little service? We have held our service every Sunday since then and the average attendance has far exceeded that of the first Sunday.

                      Christian Science Wartime Activities, pp. 125-6

From France:

          We have held services right along and the last one was in a dugout six feet long and four feet high. (ibid 126)

And this from Menton, France, at a YMCA “leave area”:

           Among the secretaries were four girls who were Christian Scientists and who met together whenever possible, reading the lesson and seeking spiritual guidance for their problems. Several other secretaries, seeing the way seeming difficulties were overcome by these girls, and remarking at the ability of those who were Scientists to stand up under work that to them was taxing and difficult, asked to know something of Christian Science… (ibid 129)

Bravo to those who took their stand. It’s a reminder of the opening line of that stirring hymn (Christian Science Hymnal 1932, Hymn 12/13 – words by Violet Hay:

 

Arise ye people, take your stand.

 

Julie Swannell

Ready with staff in hand

When military and naval training camps were set up in the United States, workers were needed to minister to the Christian Science troops (and others who sometimes became students of Christian Science). These workers were drawn from the local churches. Many church members proved to be ready “with staff in hand” to go forth and fill what was found to be a great need.

That phrase “with staff in hand” just came to mind when I thought of those dedicated Christian Scientists. I looked up “staff” in a Bible dictionary. It refers to the stick which the shepherd used, both to lean on and to guide his sheep. I note that at the Passover, when the Children of Israel were prepared to start on their journey, they were instructed to eat the sacrificial lamb “with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in hour hand: and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lord’s passover” (Ex. 12:11). Talk about being ready! This is a great thing about Christian Science, once one has had Class Instruction one is made ready to work, to heal. No doubt the workers were all seasoned demonstrators of the Science.

In my preliminary notes I have written, at page 67: At Halifax, part of the work done and funds used was to repair the Christian Science church structure. I find it interesting that there was no claim presented to the City or their Commission for damages done by fire and explosion when two steamers collided in the harbour.

The chapter called Daily Deeds explains the daily tasks of a Camp Welfare Worker. See pages 87-90. The worker’s full day is set out – a very full day. For me it was striking how often The Christian Science Monitor comes into the story -- its being distributed and asked for and READ. For instance, at Camp Custer in Michigan, 800 copies were distributed daily.

The value of the places of refuge that the Welfare Committees provided in the camps is illustrated by this letter of thanks:

"I take this opportunity of thanking you for your kindness and also for the Welfare House (Camp Jackson, South Carolina). It certainly was an inspiration to us. The Welfare House was truly an oasis in the desert — where one found refuge and succor from the many doubts and fears of mortal existence. 'Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need' (Science and Health by Mary Baker Eddy, page 494). Many times did I go to the Welfare House depressed and with a heavy heart and came away refreshed and in a buoyant mood” p. 114, Christian Science Wartime Activities.

Joyce Voysey

Resting places of beauty and quiet

In addition to philanthropic endeavours and the Camp Welfare Workers' magnificent pursuits, it soon became apparent that there was need for a "quiet retreat" in each of the soldiers' camps. These had the purpose of providing space for church services, room for "study and spiritual refreshment", and somewhere in which to meet to discuss problems with an experienced Christian Scientist. They also served as a centre for distribution and collection of CS literature. 

Our book, Christian Science Wartime Activities, explains it so well, and it is an inspiration for those of us involved in Reading Room work today:

    Simple and homelike in structure, cozily furnished, with flower boxes at the windows and "Welcome" over the door, the Christian Science Buildings have been a refuge not only to young soldiers but to the stranger, the chaplain, the nurses and relatives of boys in need. Christian Scientists know, however, that these buildings, no matter how attractive, could never of themselves have met the heart's great need. It was the conscious realization of the presence of divine Love, its protecting Fatherhood and Motherhood, which created the loving atmosphere that attracts, uplifts and comforts. Many a heartsick boy having come to the War Relief Building and having found there a touch of humanity, came later on to find Divinity,--seeking a quiet, homey place, he found also healing and courage.  p. 101

    Many of those who had hitherto spent their week-ends in the city, whiling away the time in worthless amusements, now came in to read and study to their profit. p. 107

A visitor from the YMCA was heard to remark: "You people have a knack of always expressing beauty and art in everything you do, no matter how inexpensive it may be." p. 103

One takes away a sense of peace by just reading about these Love-filled spaces.

Julie Swannell

Letters and responses

 The charitable work carried out by Christian Scientists during the First World War is very inspiring. I have been particularly touched to read letters and responses such as the following:

"I should like to express my gratitude towards the Committee of the War Relief Fund and to all those who are generously contributing to this cause, which came to our aid in a moment of need. My husband has been earning very little during the four years of war. We have had the great privilege of becoming acquainted with Christian Science which is teaching us that God is Love and the source of all that is good. With this knowledge we have been wonderfully preserved from all evil and our condition has changed and improved. Thanks to this teaching we understand God better and are very grateful for this." p. 41 Christian Science Wartime Activities (WWI)

"...a YMCA Worker who was passing by said, 'Haven't you got one of those little books to give me?' and added, 'You know when you and your wife first came to camp I wondered how you had ever taken up with such a thing as I thought Christian Science to be. Then I watched you and your work, and it seemed to me that you had something that others did not have, and the first thing I knew, I wished I could know something more about Christian Science from the standpoint of the Christian Scientist himself. I read some of the Monitors that I found in the hut, and then, as you will remember, I had an hour's talk with you one day. During the talk a burn on my hand was healed and now I really want to read Science and Health.' Then followed another talk of a half hour or so, and a Science and Health was given to the Secretary, who proved to an Episcopalian minister" ibid p. 89.

This seems to echo the truism that "man's extremity is God's opportunity" (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy 266: 13-15).

Julie Swannell

POWs receive The Christian Science Monitor

On page 41¹, distribution of the Monitor is mentioned. [Ed. This refers to The Christian Science Monitor, which at that time, was published as a daily print newspaper. Today, this international newspaper appears daily online and in a weekly printed magazine.]

The Swiss Committee of the War Relief Fund was sending packages to English prisoners-of-war. Handkerchiefs and washing gloves (?) were particularly needed, and each package included 100 copies of the Monitor. “The latter we are sending to them now regularly and receive letters of appreciation. In a similar way we are working with the French and German prisoners.”

The Committee at Geneva was rewarded with letters which expressed grateful thanks for “the good we have received spiritually and financially.”

This theme of folk in need financially being helped with cash is quite a revelation to me. I don’t recall this angle being mentioned in the he 2^nd Wartime Activities book.

One gratitude letter gives thanks for the spiritual food provided for the family through the Christian Science Textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.

War Relief also went to Italy, through the Christian Science church in Florence. A visitor saw:

“Old men and women, young soldier’s wives with tiny babes, whose pensions, pitifully meager at the best, had not even as yet been allotted, discharged soldier who had contacted diseases in the army, mothers of large families seeking eve trifling aid, were each in turn seen and comforted and sent away rejoicing, giving voluble expressions of gratitude” (p. 48)

Of course France, which suffered the most from all the devastating destruction caused by the deadly fighting, is given a lot of space to tell of the work of the War Relief committee. Whole towns, many of which had been flattened, were given assistance, in addition to the assistance given to individuals.

I have now come to the Chapter Helping Halifax, beginning on page 61. I would encourage readers of the blog to get on to the site and read this report. Here is the link: https://archive.org/details/christianscience00firs/page/60/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater

 

Joyce Voysey

¹ Christian Science Wartime Activities: A Report to the Board of Directors of The Mother Church by The Christian Science War Relief Committee, published by The Christian Science Publishing Society 1922

War Relief Fund established

Here is a figure which interests me greatly. “In the year 1918 more than six million copies of The Christian Science Monitor were distributed.”  This is on page 17 of Christian Science War Time Activities.

War was declared in August 1914. A War Relief Fund was established by the Board of Directors of The Mother Church on October 24! There seems to be a thought that they rather dallied in taking that step! All of two months!

Page 24. The Monitor was always in the American Embassy in Paris.

William D. McCrackan was sent by the Board of Directors to Europe to coordinate the distribution of the War Relief Fund, where it was needed, by the CS churches. Churches in England, Germany, France and Switzerland were helped.US$82,104.62 was the total of the Fund. The figure reflects the careful bookkeeping that is emphasised in the book.

Beside that, $29,154.90 was collected for those other than Christian Scientists needing help. Holland, England, France and Switzerland are mentioned. All but $4,508.51 was used up and a call was made for further contributions. The two funds would soon merge into one.

Here is an interesting point about the British Colonies.

Although Christian Scientists in the United Kingdom and the Colonies were naturally most anxious to contribute to The Mother Church Relief Fund, it was then impossible for them to do so under the Defence of the Realm Act, inasmuch as a portion of the fund would be used to aid sufferers in the countries with which the United Kingdom and her Colonies were at war.   Page 30

Now, I find mention of the Defence of the Realm Act fascinating, but I have not found out exactly what this means. At the time the book was written, no doubt it was so well known as to need no explanation.

It is enlightening to read of the type of help given to people in businesses which failed due to the war. Dressmakers, artists and musicians, boarding-house keepers at seaside resorts. Sound slightly familiar? Many who were helped rose up and were able to later contribute to the Relief Fund themselves.

By 1918 the fund was distributing money to help only those who were in actual destitution. Lack of work had been met by work provided in munition factories and kindred activities. We are told that often the relief work healed the destitution. This is where we find that wonderful quote from page ix in the Preface to Miscellaneous Writings 1883-1896 by Mary Baker Eddy:

A certain apothegm of a Talmudical philosopher suits my sense of doing good. It reads thus: The noblest charity is to prevent a man from accepting charity and the best arms are to show and to enable a man to dispense with charity.

I am up to page 34.

Joyce Voysey

Read our book online - free

 Joyce writes:

To read Christian Science Wartime Activities on the computer:

https://archive.org/details/christianscience00firs/page/28/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater

Turn pages by arrows at the lower part of the screen.

War in Europe - and a timely response

The book Christian Science Wartime Activities is a marvel. I will quote directly from the book because I know that many people do not have access to it at this point and the story is stirring.

“…the constant desire to help … crystallized itself in the establishment of the War Relief Fund by the Board of Directors of The Mother Church, and … the following announcement appeared in the Christian Science Sentinel of October 24, 1914:

A RELIEF FUND

The many Christian Scientists who have desired to contribute to the relief of those of our people who are enduring the hardships which war entails, will welcome the opportunity afforded by the following letter, a copy of which has been mailed to all branch churches and societies in the United States:

…This Board has been informed that, as a consequence of the war in Europe, Christian Scientists in the countries affected are in great distress. As a means of relieving this distress, The Mother Church will take a collection at both of its services on Sunday October 25. If your organization should desire to take similar action …

Remittances may be sent to Adam H. Dickey, Treasurer…    pp. 21-22

A delegate from the Board of Lectureship was subsequently sent to Europe to organise relief committees in Europe. The delegate sailed from New York November 16, 1914. He met with the Committee on Publication for Great Britain and Ireland in London. A relief committee was formed to administer the funds, which were to be made available to those suffering hardship.

This included

“…families where fathers had been called to the colors, leaving wives and children totally unprepared to earn a living”

“men whose business affairs had been wiped out of existence by the declaration of war”

“students, teachers, artists, who found their livelihood taken away … overnight because people felt forced to do without the so-called luxuries of life”

“Many persons found their income stopped or greatly curtailed because they held securities in some of the countries involved in the struggle”

“In short, there were many cases where Christian Scientists were faced with the problem of demonstrating that supply is invariable and unlimited. To lift the sense of fear for such as these and so enable them to perceive the ever-presence of God’s care, was the aim of the War Relief Fund. In proportion as it was seen that the love which prompted the gifts of Christian Scientists to the fund was the real substance of the help extended, fear was cast out, and individuals were able to dispense with further aid from the fund. Not only so but they were put in a position to help others, thus proving again the spiritual fact that “whatever blesses one blesses all” (SH 206).”  Pp. 22-23

Thus begins the story, which seems very relevant to our own times.

Julie Swannell