Thanks to Ken Girard, Media Spokesperson for Christian Science in Massachusetts, for sharing his experience in this guest post, and explaining how healing through prayer occurs in everyday normal lives.
Scene from A.I. Artificial Intelligence: film directed by Steven Spielberg
A couple of weeks ago, Carolyn and I watched “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” again – a wonderful 2001 film starring Haley Joel Osment, Frances O’Connor, Jude Law, and William Hurt. It’s among a handful of science fiction films that raises the bar from a fun, technologically-packed adventure to one that asks questions of a profound nature.
And in this case the question for me was clear. Is love based solely on a human/organic concept, or is it transcendent – is it spiritual?
The main character, David (played by Haley Joel Osment), is a robot that has all the attributes of a little boy – including the ability to love and bond with a human mother. I won’t go into the details of the plot, but it’s his innocent, unconditional love that goes far beyond the fear-laden, prejudice-imbued, and animosity-tainted love of any of the humans that he encounters.
And even though he faces existence-threatening dangers, his love for his human mother never diminishes or waivers – even after 2,000 years when all humanity has long-disappeared from the planet.
Photo: 'Mother and Child', Henry Essenhigh Corke (1883-1919); Autochrome Collection of National Media Museum
It’s the purposeful love expressed by this little robot-boy which spoke to me of spiritual love. A love that knows no limitations. A love that’s ever-present. A love that’s available to all.
In my experience, that type of love – regardless of the form it takes – is the love from God. It is the love that the Bible describes as actually being God.
And it’s the love that uplifts, regenerates, inspires, and heals.
How do I know this?
Because I, like so many others, have repeatedly experienced it first-hand.
Let me tell you about a time a little over 10 years ago when I suddenly developed an ugly growth on one of my eyelids that began expanding across my eye. My paternal grandmother had a similar growth that was diagnosed as cancer and eventually led to her demise.
I’m not going to claim that I wasn’t frightened. I was! But I decided to rely again on a system of health care that I had been using and found to be effective for the previous 11 years – Christian Science.
So I dove in. My thinking had to change. Fears of heredity, genetics, and the prospect of death had to be overcome. And they were.
At one point, I suddenly felt this great sense of peace and the palpable presence of God’s love for me and for everyone. It was a transcendent moment to be sure. And it was a moment in which I knew to the core of my being that I was well.
A couple of weeks later the growth simply fell off in one lump. No scars, no after-effects.
Was this a miracle? I suppose that’s what some would call it, but from what I’ve seen it’s more normal than not.
So, should we rethink the nature and source of love? Given the healing potential, I can’t imagine why we wouldn’t.
Filed under: Christian Science Tagged: A.I., Artificial Intelligence, Christian Science, Frances O'Connor, Haley Joel Osment, Healing, Jude Law, Ken Girard, love knows no limitations, Media: Health & Spirituality, mind-body connection, movies, Prayer, robot, science fiction, scientific healing prayer, unconditional love, William Hurt
