The Golden Text this week is from Isaiah.

The Golden text always sets the key theme for the lesson, and I think this is a really interesting choice for a lesson on Soul. Mary Baker Eddy consider the idea behind this Golden Text to be the “keynote of Christian Science” (See Miscellaneous Writings p366). What does this statement mean to you in the context of this lesson on Soul?

The Responsive Reading this week is from Jeremiah 31 & 32and sets out God’s new covenant with His people. What is a covenant? and what does this “new covenant” reveal about our relationship with God?

(Section 1) Mary Baker Eddy explains that “We run into error when we divide Soul into souls, multiply Mind into minds and suppose error to be mind, them mind to be matter and matter to be a lawgiver, unintelligence to act like intelligence, and mortality to be the matrix of immortality.” S&H 249:32 I don’t like to walk into error let alone run into it! What are the philosophical blunders that this passage is encouraging us to avoid?

(Section 2) The story of Ruth is used to illustrate much of this week’s lesson. Can you recount the story in your own words? It’s tough when relationships end,  far worse when loved ones die. What can support us through these challenges?

(Section 3) We read in Science and Health that “The rich in spirit help the poor in one grand brotherhood, all having the same Principle, or Father; and blessed is that man who seeth his brother’s need and supplieth it, seeking his own in another’s good.” S&H 518:15-21 Boaz was certainly keen to help Ruth. How have you been a blessing to others, how have others blessed you?

(Section 4) This section assures us that “All things work together for good to them that love God.” Romans 8:38 . What is demanded of us in loving God? What does it mean to be “governed by Soul”?

(Section 5) In this section Ruth and Boaz marry. All the S&H citations in this section come from the chapter on Marriage, but these ideas are also relevant to boyfriend-girlfriend relationships.  What lessons have you learnt about maintaining harmonious relationships? And how to choose a boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife.?

(Section 6) What light does an understanding of God as Soul, shed on Jesus healing?

This week’s lesson is on “Soul”, one of my favorite but perhaps one of the least understood synonyms for God. As the Bible lesson explains:

Here are some questions to prime the pump for our discussion on Sunday:

• Is soul breathed into matter? or is it an aspect of God reflected in His/Her creation?
• (In considering the entire lesson) What is Soul? What qualities and attributes do we associate with Soul?
• (Section 2) The Bible tells us that God made the heaven and the earth Jeremiah 32:17 , and that “All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” John 1:3 .  How does Soul’s creation differ from sense-experience? And how does the latter yield to the former?
• (Section 3) How do you think Jesus heal the blind man at Bethsaida?
• (Section 4) Please note how the idea of blessing appears in this section. What is the meaning of “bless” and “blessings”? How do we bless God? And how does God bless us?
• (Section 5) What is identity? What is man? Who are we?
• (Section 6) What is the Kingdom of heaven? And how can it be at hand ?(See Matt 10:7 )

Look forward to seeing you on Sunday, bring any other question you may have then, and feel free to post comments, question, or answers below!

Daniel

• What is soul?
• Does  it exist in the body?
• What is the body?
• What is our true sense of identity?
• What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord?

The ideas in this week’s lesson are very practical and bring out the metaphysics of Christian Science. What does it mean to be God’s reflection?

We read in section 3 of the lesson Jesus explanation that “The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body is also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, they body also is full of darkness.” How can we apply this teaching in every day life?

In section 4 the working practices of matter-physicians and the meta-physician are contrasted. In Section 5 we read of Jesus healing of a woman that had been ill for 18 years, and how some of the Jewish rulers were unhappy because he healed on the Sabbath, but Jesus taught it was right to loose from bonds of captivity every day of the week.

This week’s entire lesson shows how a clearer understanding of soul and body enables us all to claim our God-given freedom and be healed. I look forward to exploring some of the ideas from it in class this Sunday. See you soon!

Check out the Bible resources and the Question of the week on TMCYouth.com

There is plenty is this week’s lesson for us to discuss this week, the Commandments, God’s covenant, the journey from sense to Soul.  Recipe for happiness.

The subject this week which we’ll be considering in our Sunday Youth Discussion Group at 11am is “Soul”. Mary Baker Eddy identifies Soul as one of the seven synonyms for God (the other six are Principle, Mind, Spirit, Life, Truth and Love). Each of these synonyms helps us to understand God’s nature better. Soul is often misunderstood. I have to admit Soul was the one that it took me longest to get! But I finally realised what Soul was all about during a two week course of Class Instruction in Christian Science. And Soul really is so cool! So this week enjoy finding out more about what Soul is really all about.

As we go through the week, I’ll post ideas on the different sections of the Bible lesson and then we can talk about it all – or whatever you choose – on Sunday.

As I read the responsive reading this morning, I was struck by this verse from Psalm 66:

One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.

Before today, I think I always read verses like that (and there are other similar verses in the Bible) to mean that the older generation would pass on knowledge to the younger generation and so on down the centuries – after all that’s how the ideas of Christianity have been passed down for millennia. But today I was really struck at how today’s younger generation can teach the older generation a thing or too about God’s works!

Mary Baker Eddy begins her chapter “The Science of Being” in Science and Health with these words:

In the material world, thought has brought to light with great rapidity many useful wonders.

Today “useful wonders” seem to be coming to light very rapidly indeed, facebook, twitter, google, wikipedia. The world is changing, and the younger generation understands these tools – these “useful wonders” – in a way that much of the older generation doesn’t yet. So the Psalmist is right – here’s an oportunity for the younger generation to praise God’s works to another – and declare His might acts!

When Mary Baker Eddy was asked what she thought of the pursuite of modern material inventions she replied:

“Oh, we cannot oppose them. They all tend to newer, finer, more etherealized ways of living. They seek the finer essences. They light the way to the Church of Christ. We use them, we make them our figures of speech. They are preparing the way for us.” (First Church and Miscellany page 345)

Let’s hope this blog encourages some more young people to join our discussion group on Sundays – anyone up to the age of 20 is most welcome.

P.S. If you’ve over 20 you are of course most welcome to join our Church Services where the Weekly Bible Lesson forms the Sermon.