Page 176 TO FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
WILMINGTON, N. C. | |
| 3 | IN APPRECIATION OF A GIFT OF FIFTY DOLLARS IN GOLD TOWARDS THE CONCORD (N. H.) STREET FUND My Beloved Brethren: - Long ago you of the dear |
| 6 | South paved the way to my forever gratitude, and now illustrate the past by your present love. God grant that such great goodness, pointing the path to heaven |
| 9 | within you, hallow your Palmetto home with palms of Page 177 CHAPTER VIII - DEDICATORY
MESSAGES TO BRANCH CHURCHES FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, of CHICAGO, ILL. |
| 3 | BELOVED BRETHREN: - Most happily would I com- ply with your cordial invitation and be with you on so interesting an occasion as the dedication of First |
| 6 | Church of Christ, Scientist, in Chicago. But daily duties attention elsewhere, and I am glad to say that there seems to be no special need of my personal pres- |
| 9 | ence at your religious jubilee. I am quite able to take the trip to your city, and if wisdom lengthens my sum of years to fourscore (already imputed to me), I shall |
| 12 | then be even younger and nearer the eternal meridian than now, for the true knowledge and proof of life is in putting off the limitations and putting on the possibilities |
| 15 | and permanence of Life. In your renowned city, the genesis of Christian Science |
| 18 | is the seed of the Church;" but succeeding years show in livid lines that the great Shepherd has nurtured and nourished this church as a fatling of the flock. To-day |
| 21 | the glory of His presence rests upon it, the joy of many generations awaits it, and this prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled among you: "I will direct their work in truth, |
| 24 | and I will make an everlasting covenant with them." Page 178 |
| 1 | Your Bible and your textbook, pastor and ethical tenets, do not mislead the seeker after Truth. These |
| 3 | unpretentious preachers cloud not the spiritual meaning of Holy Writ by material interpretations, nor lose the invincible process and purity of Christianity whereby |
| 6 | the sick are healed and sinners saved. The Science of Christianity is not generally understood, but it hastens hourly to this end. This Science is the essence of religion, |
| 9 | distilled in the laboratory of infinite Love and prepared for all peoples. And because Science is naturally divine, is this natural Science less profitable or scientific than |
| 12 | "counting the legs of insects"? The Scripture declares that God is All. Then all is Spirit and spiritual. The true sense of life is lost to those who regard being |
| 15 | as material. The Scripture pronounces all that God made "good;" therefore if evil exists, it exists without God. But this is impossible in reality, for He made |
| 18 | all "that was made." Hence the inevitable revelation of Christian Science - that evil is unreal; and this is the best of it. |
| 21 | On April 15, 1891, the Christian Science textbook lay on a table in a burning building. A Christian Scientist entered the house through a window and snatched this |
| 24 | book from the flames. Instantly the table sank a charred mass. The covers of the book were burned up, but not one word in the book was effaced. If the world were in |
| 27 | ashes, the contents of "Science and Health with Key to It is said that the nearest approach to the sayings of |
| 30 | the great Master is the Logia of Papias, written in A.D. Page 179 |
| 1 | by Papias, are undoubtedly the beginning of the gospel writings. The synoptic Scriptures, as set forth in the |
| 3 | first and second chapters of Genesis, were in two dis- tinct manuscripts. The first gave an account of the spiritual creation, and the second was an opposite story, |
| 6 | or allegory, of a material universe and man made of dust. In this allegorical document the power and pre- rogative of Spirit are submerged in matter. In other |
| 9 | words, soul enters non-intelligent dust and man becomes both good and evil, both mind and matter, mortal and immortal, - all of which divine Science shows to be an |
| 12 | impossibility. The Old and the New Testaments contain self-evident |
| 15 | Scriptures are criticized. Some dangerous skepticism ex- ists as to the verification of our Master's sayings. But Christians and Christian Scientists know that if the Old |
| 18 | Testament and gospel narratives had never been written, the nature of Christianity, as depicted in the life of our Lord, and the truth in the Scriptures, are sufficient to au- |
| 21 | thenticate Christ's Christianity as the perfect ideal. The character of the Nazarene Prophet illustrates the Prin- ciple and practice of a true divinity and humanity. The |
| 24 | different renderings or translations of Scripture in no wise affect Christian Science. Christianity and Science, being contingent on nothing written and based on the |
| 27 | divine Principle of being, must be, are, irrefutable and We are indeed privileged in having the untranslated |
| 30 | revelations of Christian Science. They afford such expo- Page 180 practical, and so furnish rules whereby man can prove |
| 3 | Whosoever understands Christian Science knows beyond a doubt that its life-giving truths were preached and practised in the first century by him who proved their |
| 6 | practicality, who uttered Christ's Sermon on the Mount, who taught his disciples the healing Christianity which applies to all ages, and who dated time. A spiritual |
| 9 | understanding of the Scriptures restores their origi- nal tongue in the language of Spirit, that primordial standard of Truth. |
| 12 | Christian Science contains no element whatever of hyp- notism or animal magnetism. It appeals alone to God, to the divine Principle, or Life, Truth, and Love, to whom |
| 15 | all things are possible; and this Principle heals sin, sick- ness, disease, and death. Christian Science meets error with Truth, death with Life, hate with Love, and thus, |
| 18 | and only thus, does it overcome evil and heal disease. The obstinate sinner, however, refuses to see this grand verity or to acknowledge it, for he knows not that in justice, |
| 21 | as well as in mercy, God is Love. In our struggles with sin and sinners, when we drop |
| 24 | right, and act accordingly, the disguised or the self- satisfied mind, not ready to be uplifted, rebels, miscon- strues our best motives, and calls them unkind. But this |
| 27 | is the cross. Take it up, - it wins the crown; and in the spirit of our great Exemplar pray: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." |
| 30 | No warfare exists between divine theology and Christian Page 181 |
| 1 | not materially. The specific quest of Christian Science is to settle all points beyond cavil, on the Biblical basis that |
| 3 | God is All-in-all; whereas philosophy and so-called natural science, dealing with human hypotheses, or material cause and effect, are aided only at long intervals with elementary |
| 6 | truths, and ultimate in unsolved problems and outgrown, Progress is spiritual. Progress is the maturing concep- |
| 9 | tion of divine Love; it demonstrates the scientific, sinless life of man and mortal's painless departure from matter to Spirit, not through death, but through the true idea of |
| 12 | Life, - and Life not in matter but in Mind. The Puritans possessed the motive of true religion, |
| 15 | solved ere this the problem of religious liberty and human rights. It is "a consummation devoutly to be wished" that all nations shall speedily learn and practise the |
| 18 | intermediate line of justice between the classes and masses of mankind, and thus exemplify in all things the universal equity of Christianity. |
| 21 | Thirty years ago (1866) Christian Science was discovered in America. Within those years it is estimated that Chicago has gained from a population of 238,000 to the |
| 24 | number of 1,650,000 inhabitants. The statistics of mortality show that thirty years
ago |
| 27 | has steadily decreased. It is authentically said that one expositor of Daniel's dates fixed the year 1866 or 1867 for the return of Christ - the return of the spiritual idea to |
| 30 | the material earth or antipode of heaven. It is a marked Page 182 Thirty years ago Chicago had few Congregational
|
| 3 | churches over any other city in the United States. Thirty years ago at my request I received from the Congrega- tional Church a letter of dismissal and recommendation |
| 6 | to evangelical churches - thenceforth to exemplify my early love for this church and a membership of thirty years by establishing a new-old church, the foundations |
| 9 | of which are the same, even Christ, Truth, as the chief In 1884, I taught a class in Christian Science and |
| 12 | formed a Christian Scientist Association in Chicago. From this small sowing of the seed of Truth, which, when sown, seemed the least among seeds, sprang immortal |
| 15 | fruits through God's blessing and the faithful labor of loyal students, - the healing of the sick, the reforming of the sinner, and First Church of Christ, Scientist, with |
| 18 | its large membership and majestic cathedral. Humbly, gratefully, trustingly, I dedicate this
beauti- |
| 21 | Love that reigns above the shadow, that launched the earth in its orbit, that created and governs the universe - guarding, guiding, giving grace, health, and immortality |
| 24 | to man. May the wanderer in the wilderness of mortal beliefs |
| 27 | of passage rest their weary wings amid the fair foliage of this vine of His husbanding, find shelter from the storm and a covert from the tempest. May this beloved |
| 30 | church adhere to its tenets, abound in the righteousness Page 183 |
| 1 | uses of Christ's creed, namely, - "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, |
| 3 | and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." Thus may First Church of Christ, Scientist, in this great city of Chicago, verify what |
| 6 | John Robinson wrote in 1620 to our Pilgrim Fathers: FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, LONDON, ENGLAND Beloved Brethren across the Sea: - To-day a nation is |
| 12 | born. Spiritual apprehension unfolds, transfigures, heals. With you be there no more sea, no ebbing faith, no night. Love be thy light upon the mountain of Israel. God |
| 15 | will multiply thee. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, BROOKLYN, N. Y. |
| 18 | Beloved Brethren: - I rejoice with you; the day has come when the forest becomes a fruitful field, and the deaf hear the words of the Book, and the eyes of the blind see |
| 21 | out of obscurity. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, DETROIT, MICH. |
| 24 | Beloved Students and Church: - Thanks for invitation to your dedication. Not afar off I am blending with thine my prayer and rejoicing. God is with thee. "Arise, |
| 27 | shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is Page 184 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, TORONTO, CANADA |
| 3 | Beloved Brethren: - Have just received your des- patch. Since the world was, men have not heard with the ear, neither hath the eye seen, what God hath prepared |
| 6 | for them that wait upon Him and work righteousness. WHITE MOUNTAIN CHURCH My Beloved Brethren: - To-day I am privileged to |
| 9 | congratulate the Christian Scientists of my native State upon having built First Church of Christ, Scientist, at the the Mountains. Your kind card, inviting me to |
| 12 | be present at at dedication, came when I was so occu- pied that I omitted to wire an acknowledgment thereof and to return my cordial thanks at an earlier date. The |
| 15 | beautiful birch bark on which it was written pleased me; it was so characteristic of our Granite State, and I treasure it next to your compliments. That rustic scroll |
| 18 | brought back to me the odor of my childhood, a love which stays the shadows of years. God grant that this little church shall prove a historic gem on the glowing |
| 21 | records of Christianity, and lay upon its altars a sacrifice Your rural chapel is a social success quite sacred in its |
| 24 | results. The prosperity of Zion is very precious in the sight of divine Love, holding unwearied watch over a world. Isaiah said: "How beautiful upon the mountains |
| 27 | are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, . . . that Page 185 |
| 1 | ance throughout the earth, for he that soweth shall reap. To such as have waited patiently for the appearing of |
| 3 | Truth, the day dawns and the harvest bells are ringing. "Let us, then, be up and doing, With a heart for any fate; |
| 6 | Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor and to wait." The peace of Love is published, and the sword of the |
| 9 | Spirit is drawn; nor will it be sheathed till Truth shall reign triumphant over all the earth. Truth, Life, and Love are formidable, wherever thought, felt, spoken, or |
| 12 | written, - in the pulpit, in the court-room, by the way- side, or in our homes. They are the victors never to be vanquished. Love is the generic term for God. Love |
| 15 | formed this trinity, Truth, Life, Love, the trinity no man can sunder. Life is the spontaneity of Love, inseparable from Love, and Life is the "Lamb slain from the foun- |
| 18 | dation of the world," - even that which "was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found;" for Life is Christ, and Christ, as aforetime, heals the sick, saves |
| 21 | sinners, and destroys the last enemy, death. In 1888 I visited these mountains and spoke to
an |
| 24 | House. Then and there I foresaw this hour, and spoke of the little church to be in the midst of the mountains, closing my remarks with the words of Mrs. Hemans: - |
| 27 | For the strength of the hills, we bless Thee, Our God, our fathers' God! The sons and daughters of the Granite State are rich in |
| 30 | signs and symbols, sermons in stones, refuge in mountains, Page 186 |
| 1 | and good universal. The rocks, rills, mountains, meadows, 3 prophetic of the finger divine that writes in
living char- |
| 6 | in the crannies of the rocks, and preen their thoughts for Though neither dome nor turret tells the tale of your |
| 9 | little church, its song and sermon will touch the heart, point the path above the valley, up the mountain, and on to the celestial hills, echoing the Word welling up from |
| 12 | the infinite and swelling the loud anthem of one Father- Mother God, o'er all victorious! Rest assured that He in whom dwelleth all life, health, and holiness, will supply |
| 15 | all your needs according to His riches in glory. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, DULUTH, MINN. 18 First Church of Christ, Scientist, Duluth, Minn.: - May |
| 21 | let His promise be verified: "Before they call, I will FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH Beloved Brethren: - Accept my thanks for your cordial |
| 27 | dedication. It gives me great pleasure to know that Page 187 |
| 1 | city. Surely, your fidelity, faith, and Christian zeal fairly indicate that, spiritually as well as literally, the |
| 3 | church in Salt Lake City hath not lost its saltness. I may at some near future visit your city, but am too busy to think of doing so at present. |
| 6 | May the divine light of Christian Science that lighteth every enlightened thought illumine your faith and under- standing, exclude all darkness or doubt, and signal the |
| 9 | perfect path wherein to walk, the perfect Principle whereby to demonstrate the perfect man and the perfect law of God. In the words of St. Paul: "Now the end of the |
| 12 | commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned;" and St. John says: "For this is the message that ye heard from the |
| 15 | beginning, that we should love one another." May the grace and love of God be and abide with you all. |
| 18 | PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H., November 16, 1898 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, ATLANTA, GEORGIA My Beloved Brethren: - You have met to conse- |
| 24 | true God. Since the day in which you were brought into the light and liberty of His children, it has been in the hearts of this people to build a house unto Him whose |
| 27 | name they would glorify in a new commandment - "that ye love one another." In this new recognition of the riches of His love and the majesty of His might you |
| 30 | have built this house - laid its foundations on the rock Page 188 |
| 1 | of Christ, and the stone which the builders rejected you have made the head of the corner. This house is hallowed |
| 3 | by His promise: "I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there forever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually." "Now mine |
| 6 | eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place." Your feast days will not be in commemoration, but in recognition of His presence; |
| 9 | your ark of the covenant will not be brought out of the city of David, but out of "the secret place of the most High," whereof the Psalmist sang, even the omniscience |
| 12 | of omnipotence; your tabernacle of the congregation will not be temporary, but a "house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens;" your oracle, under the wings of |
| 15 | the cherubim, is Truth's evangel, enunciating, "God is In spirit I enter your inner sanctuary, your heart's |
| 18 | heart, breathing a benediction for God's largess. He surely will not shut me out from your presence, and the ponderous walls of your grand cathedral cannot prevent |
| 21 | me from entering where the heart of a Southron has Christian Science has a place in its court, in which, like |
| 24 | beds in hospitals, one man's head lies at another's feet. As you work, the ages win; for the majesty of Christian Science teaches the majesty of man. When it is learned |
| 27 | that spiritual sense and not the material senses convey all impressions to man, man will naturally seek the Science of his spiritual nature, and finding it, be God-endowed for |
| 30 | discipleship. When divine Love gains admittance to a humble heart, Page 189 |
| 1 | warmest wish of men and angels. Clad in invincible armor, grasping the sword of Spirit, you have started in |
| 3 | this sublime ascent, and should reach the mount of revela- tion; for if ye would run, who shall hinder you? So dear, so due, to God is obedience, that it reaches high heaven |
| 6 | in the common walks of life, and it affords even me a You worship no distant deity, nor talk of unknown |
| 9 | love. The silent prayers of our churches, resounding through the dim corridors of time, go forth in waves of sound, a diapason of heart-beats, vibrating from one |
| 12 | pulpit to another and from one heart to another, till truth and love, commingling in one righteous prayer, shall encircle and cement the human race. |
| 15 | The government of divine Love derives its omnipotence from the love it creates in the heart of man; for love is allegiant, and there is no loyalty apart from love. When |
| 18 | the human senses wake from their long slumber to see how soon earth's fables flee and faith grows wearisome, then that which defies decay and satisfies the immortal cravings |
| 21 | is sought and found. In the twilight of the world's pageantry, in the last-drawn sigh of a glory gone, we are drawn towards God. |
| 24 | Beloved brethren, I cannot forget that yours is the first church edifice of our denomination erected in the sunny South - once my home. There my husband died, and |
| 27 | the song and the dirge, surging my being, gave expression Friends, why throng in pity round me? |
| 30 | Wherefore, pray, the bell did toll? Page 190 |
| 1 | Did that midnight shadow, falling upon the bridal wreath, bring the recompense of human woe, which is the |
| 3 | merciful design of divine Love, and so help to evolve that larger sympathy for suffering humanity which is eman- cipating it with the morning beams and noonday glory of |
| 6 | Christian Science? The age is fast answering this question: Does Christian |
| 9 | of contagious and organic diseases? My experience in both practices - materia medica and the scientific meta- physical practice of medicine - shows the latter not only |
| 12 | equalling but vastly excelling the former. Christians who accept our Master as authority,
regard |
| 15 | severe case of lunacy, asked their great Teacher, "Why could not we cast him out?" He answered, "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." This declara- |
| 18 | tion of our Master, as to the relative value, skill, and certainty of the divine laws of Mind over the human mind and above matter in healing disease, remains beyond |
| 21 | questioning a divine decision in behalf of Mind. Jesus gave his disciples (students) power over
all manner |
| 24 | peoples, in all ages, should have the same opportunity to become students of the Christ, Truth, and thus become God-endued with power (knowledge of divine law) and |
| 27 | with "signs following." Jesus declared that his teaching and practice would remain, even as it did, "for them also which shall believe on me through their word." Then, |
| 30 | in the name of God, wherefore vilify His prophets to-day Page 191 |
| 1 | the world if there survived more of the wisdom of Nico- demus of old, who said, "No man can do these miracles |
| 3 | that thou doest, except God be with him." Be patient towards persecution. Injustice has not
a |
| 6 | for you. Christian Science is spreading steadily through- out the world. Persecution is the weakness of tyrants engendered by their fear, and love will cast it out. Con- |
| 9 | tinue steadfast in love and good works. Children of light, you are not children of darkness. Let your light shine. Keep in mind the foundations of Christian |
| 12 | Science - one God and one Christ. Keep personality out of sight, and Christ's "Blessed are ye" will seal your apostleship. |
| 15 | This glad Easter morning witnesseth a risen Saviour, a higher human sense of Life and Love, which wipes away all tears. With grave-clothes laid aside, Christ, Truth, has |
| 18 | come forth from the tomb of the past, clad in immortality. The sepulchres give up their dead. Spirit is saying unto matter: I am not there, am not within you. Behold the |
| 21 | place where they laid me; but human thought has risen! Mortality's thick gloom is pierced. The stone is
rolled |
| 24 | Immortal courage fills the human breast and lights the SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, CHICAGO, ILL. My Beloved Brethren: - Your card of invitation to this |
| 30 | received. Accept my thanks. Page 192 |
| 1 | Ye sit not in the idol's temple. Ye build not to an unknown God. Ye worship Him whom ye serve. Boast |
| 3 | not thyself, thou ransomed of divine Love, but press on unto the possession of unburdened bliss. Heal the sick, make spotless the blemished, raise the living dead, cast |
| 6 | out fashionable lunacy. The ideal robe of Christ is seamless. Thou hast
touched |
| 9 | thine. The haunting mystery and gloom of his glory rule not this century. Thine is the upspringing hope, the conquest over sin and mortality, that lights the living |
| 12 | way to Life, not to death. May the God of our fathers, the infinite Person
whom |
| 15 | divine Love rest with you. My heart hovers around your FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, LOS ANGELES, CAL. Beloved Students: - Your kind letter, inviting me to |
| 21 | be present at the dedication of your church, was duly received. It would indeed give me pleasure to visit you, to witness your prosperity, and "rejoice with them that |
| 24 | do rejoice," but the constant recurring demands upon my time and attention pin me to my post. Of this, however, I can sing: My love can fly on wings of joy to |
| 27 | you and leave a leaf of olive; it can whisper to you of the divine ever-presence, answering your prayers, crown- ing your endeavors, and building for you a house "eternal |
| 30 | in the heavens." Page 193 |
| 1 | You will dedicate your temple in faith unfeigned, not to the unknown God, but unto Him whom to know aright |
| 3 | is life everlasting. His presence with you will bring to your hearts so much of heaven that you will not feel my absence. The privilege remains mine to watch and work |
| 6 | for all, from East to West, from the greensward and gorgeous skies of the Orient to your dazzling glory in the Occident, and to thank God forever "for His |
| 9 | goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H., 12 November 20, 1902 SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. |
| 15 | Beloved: - The spiritual dominates the temporal. Love gives nothing to take away. Nothing dethrones His house. You are dedicating yours to Him. Protesting |
| 18 | against error, you unite with all who believe in Truth. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, NEW YORK, N. Y. Beloved Brethren: - Carlyle writes, "Give a thing time; |
| 24 | have grasped time and labor, taking the first by the fore- lock and the last by love. In this lofty temple, dedicated to God and humanity, may the prophecy of Isaiah be |
| 27 | fulfilled: "Fear not: . . . I have called thee by thy Page 194 |
| 1 | song and sermon generate only that which Christianity writes in broad facts over great continents - sermons |
| 3 | that fell forests and remove mountains, songs of joy The letter of your work dies, as do all things material, |
| 6 | but the spirit of it is immortal. Remember that a temple but foreshadows the idea of God, the "house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens," while a silent, grand |
| 9 | man or woman, healing sickness and destroying sin, builds that which reaches heaven. Only those men and women gain greatness who gain themselves in a complete |
| 12 | subordination of self. The tender memorial engraven on your grand edifice |
| 15 | radiance of His likeness. It stands for meekness and might, for Truth as attested by the Founder of your denomination and emblazoned on the fair escutcheon of |
| 18 | your church. Beloved Students:
- Your telegram, in which you pre- |
| 21 | edifice in New York City, is an unexpected token of your gratitude and love. I deeply appreciate it, profoundly thank you for it, and gratefully accept the spirit of it; |
| 24 | but I must decline to receive that for which you have sacrificed so much and labored so long. May divine Love abundantly bless you, reward you according to |
| 27 | your works, guide and guard you and your church
"Who stood the storm when seas were rough, |
| 30 | Ne'er in a sunny hour fall off." Page 195 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, CLEVELAND, OHIO |
| 3 | Beloved Brethren: - You will pardon my delay in acknowledging your card of invitation to the dedicatory services of your church. Adverse circumstances, loss of |
| 6 | help, new problems to be worked out for the field, etc,. have hitherto prevented my reply. However, it is never too late to repent, to love more, to work more, to watch |
| 9 | and pray; but those privileges I have not had time to express, and so have submitted to necessity, letting the deep love which I cherished for you be hidden under an |
| 12 | appearance of indifference. We must resign with good grace what we are denied, and |
| 15 | are nor understand what is not ripening in us. To do good to all because we love all, and to use in God's service the one talent that we all have, is our only means of |
| 18 | adding to that talent and the best way to silence a deep Christian Science is at length learned to be no miserable |
| 21 | piece of ideal legerdemain, by which we poor mortals ex- pect to live and die, but a deep-drawn breath fresh from God, by whom and in whom man lives, moves, and has |
| 24 | deathless being. The praiseworthy success of this church, and its united efforts to build an edifice in which to worship the infinite, sprang from the temples erected first in the |
| 27 | hearts of its members - the unselfed love that builds without hands, eternal in the heaven of Spirit. God grant that this unity remain, and that you continue to |
| 30 | build, rebuild, adorn, and fill these spiritual temples with Page 196 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, PITTSBURGH, PA. |
| 3 | My Beloved Brethren: - I congratulate you upon erect- ing the first edifice of our denomination in the Keystone State, a State whose metropolis is called the "city of |
| 6 | brotherly love." May this dear church militant accept my tender counsel in these words of the Scripture, to be engrafted in church and State: - |
| 9 | "Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath." "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh |
| 12 | a city." "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body." "By thy words thou shalt be condemned." "Love thy |
| 15 | neighbor as thyself." "Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, |
| 18 | reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to Him that judgeth right- eously." "Consider him that endured such contradiction |
| 21 | of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, ST. LOUIS, MO. My Beloved Brethren: - The good in being, even the |
| 27 | pray for it. The poor toil for our bread, and we should Page 197 |
| 1 | with the departure of sin. Enjoying good things is not evil, but becoming slaves to pleasure is. That error |
| 3 | is most forcible which is least distinct to conscience. May the beauty of holiness be upon this dear people, |
| 6 | and may this beloved church be glorious, without spot FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, SAN JOSE, CAL. Beloved Students: -Words are inadequate to express |
| 12 | pleting and dedicating your church edifice, and of the great hearts and ready hands of our far Western students, the Christian Scientists. |
| 15 | Comparing such students with those whose words are but the substitutes for works, we learn that the translucent atmosphere of the former must illumine the |
| 18 | midnight of the latter, else Christian Science will dis- I thank divine Love for the hope set before us in the |
| 21 | Word and in the doers thereof, "for of such is the kingdom FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, WILMINGTON, N. C. My Beloved Brethren: - At this dedicatory season of |
| 27 | ing congratulations, join with you in song and sermon. PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H., 30 July 27, 1907 Page 198 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, LONDON, ENGLAND |
| 3 | Beloved Students and Brethren: - Your letters of May 1 and June 19, informing me of the dedication of your magnificent church edifice, have been received with many |
| 6 | thanks to you and great gratitude to our one Father. May God grant not only the continuance of His favors, but their abundant
and ripened fruit. |
| 9 | CHESTNUT HILL, MASS., June 26, 1909 Page 199 CHAPTER IX - LETTERS TO
BRANCH CHURCHES FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, PHILADELPHIA, PA. |
| 3 | MY BELOVED STUDENTS AND BRETHREN: - I rejoice with thee. Blessed art thou. In place of dark- ness, light hath sprung up. The reward of thy hands |
| 6 | is given thee to-day. May God say this of the church FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, WASHINGTON, D. C. Beloved Brethren: - The Board of Directors and |
| 12 | acknowledgment of the receipt of their Christian canon pertaining to the hour. The joint resolutions contained therein show explicitly the attitude of this church in our |
| 15 | capital towards me and towards the Cause of Christian Science, so dear to our hearts and to all loyal lovers of God and man. |
| 18 | This year, standing on the verge of the twentieth cen- tury, has sounded the tocsin of a higher hope, of strength- ened hands, of unveiled hearts, of fourfold unity between |
| 21 | the churches of our denomination in this and in other Page 200 |
| 1 | lands. Religious liberty and individual rights under the Constitution of our nation are rapidly advancing, avow- |
| 3 | ing and consolidating the genius of Christian Science. Heaven be praised for the signs of the times. Let
"the |
| 6 | trust is in the Almighty God, who ruleth in heaven and doest thou?" FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, LONDON, ENGLAND My Beloved Brethren: - The chain of Christian unity, |
| 12 | unbroken, stretches across the sea and rises upward to the realms of incorporeal Life - even to the glorious beati- tudes of divine Love. Striving to be good, to do good, and |
| 15 | to love our neighbor as ourself, man's soul is safe; man emerges from mortality and receives his rights inalienable - the love of God and man. What holds us to the Chris- |
| 18 | tian life is the seven-fold shield of honesty, purity, and unselfed love. I need not say this to you, for you know the way in Christian Science. |
| 21 | Pale, sinful sense, at work to lift itself on crumbling thrones of justice by pulling down its benefactors, will tumble from this scheme into the bottomless |
| 24 | abyss of self-damnation, there to relinquish its league with evil. Wide yawns the gap between this course and Christian Science. |
| 27 | God spare this plunge, lessen its depths, save sin- ners and fit their being to recover its connection with its divine Principle, Love. For this I shall continue to |
| 30 | pray. Page 201 |
| 1 | God is blessing you, my beloved students and breth- ren. Press on towards the high calling whereunto |
| 3 | divine Love has called us and is fast fulfilling the Satan is unchained only for a season, as the Revelator |
| 6 | foresaw, and love and good will to man, sweeter than a FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
NEW YORK, N. Y. My Beloved Brethren:
- Your Soul-full words and song |
| 12 | ship, faith, and hope repossess us of heaven. I thank you out of a full heart. Even the crown of thorns, which mocked the bleeding brow of our blessed Lord, was over- |
| 15 | crowned with a diadem of duties done. So let us meekly meet, mercifully forgive, wisely ponder, and lovingly scan the convulsions of mortal mind, that its sudden |
| 18 | sallies may help us, not to a start, but to a tenure of unprecarious joy. Rich hope have I in him who says in his heart: - |
| 21 | I will listen for Thy voice, Lest my footsteps stray; I will follow and rejoice |
| 24 | All the rugged way. SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
NEW YORK, N. Y. |
| 27 | Beloved Brethren: - Please accept a line from me in lieu Page 202 |
| 1 | on this blest morn. May its white wings overshadow this white temple and soar above it, pointing the path from |
| 3 | earth to heaven - from human ambition, fear, or distrust to the faith, meekness, and might of him who hallowed this Easter morn. |
| 6 | Now may his salvation draw near, for the night is far spent and the day is at hand. In the words of St. Paul: "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom |
| 9 | tribute is due; custom to whom custom; . . . honor to whom honor. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the |
| 12 | law." May the benediction of "Well done, good and
faithful," |
| 15 | the glory of the resurrection morn burst upon the spiritual sense of this people with renewed vision, infinite mean- ings, endless hopes, and glad victories in the onward and |
| 18 | upward chain of being. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
OAKLAND, CAL. |
| 21 | Beloved Brethren: - I thank you for the words of cheer and love in your letter. The taper unseen in sunlight cheers the darkness. My work is reflected light, - a |
| 24 | drop from His ocean of love, from the underived glory, the divine Esse. From the dear tone of your letter, you must be bringing your sheaves into the store- |
| 27 | house. Press on. The way is narrow at first, but it expands as we walk in it. "Herein is my Father glori- fied, that ye bear much fruit." God bless this vine of |
| 30 | His planting. Page 203 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
WASHINGTON, D. C. |
| 3 | Beloved Brethren: - I have nothing new to communi- cate; all is in your textbooks. Pray aright and demon- strate your prayer; sing in faith. Know that religion |
| 6 | should be distinct in our consciousness and life, but not clamorous for worldly distinction. Church laws which are obeyed without mutiny are God's laws. Goodness |
| 9 | and philanthropy begin with work and never stop working. All that is worth reckoning is what we do, and the best of everything is not too good, but is economy and riches. |
| 12 | Be great not as a grand obelisk, nor by setting up to be great, - only as good. A spiritual hero is a mark for gamesters, but he is unutterably valiant, the summary of |
| 15 | suffering here and of heaven hereafter. Our thoughts beget our actions; they make us what we are. Dis- honesty is a mental malady which kills its possessor; it |
| 18 | is a sure precursor that its possessor is mortal. A deep sincerity is sure of success, for God takes care of it. God bless this dear church, and I am sure that He will if it is |
| 21 | ready for the blessing. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
LONDON, ENGLAND |
| 24 | Beloved Students: - You have laid the corner-stone of your church edifice impressively, and buried immortal truths in the bosom of earth safe from all chance of being |
| 27 | challenged. You whose labors are doing so much to benefit mankind Page 204 |
| 1 | desire, nor will you be long in doing more. My faith in God and in His followers rests in the fact that He is infinite |
| 3 | good, and that He gives His followers opportunity to use their hidden virtues, to put into practice the power which lies concealed in the calm and which storms awaken to |
| 6 | vigor and to victory. It is only by looking heavenward that mutual friend- |
| 9 | and over land, Christian Science unites its true followers FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
COLUMBUS, OHIO IN REPLY TO A LETTER ANNOUNCING THE PURPOSE OF THE |
| 15 | CHRISTIAN SCIENTISTS TO PRACTISE WITHOUT FEES IN COM- PLIANCE WITH THE STATE LAWS Beloved Brethren: - I congratulate you tenderly on the |
| 18 | decision you have made as to the present practice of Christian Science in your State, and thoroughly recom- mend it under the circumstances. I practised gratui- |
| 21 | tously when starting this great Cause, which was then the The too long treatment of a disease, the charging of |
| 24 | the sick whom you have not healed a full fee for treat- ment, the suing for payment, hypnotism, and the resent- ing of injuries, are not the fruits of Christian Science, |
| 27 | while returning good for evil, loving one's enemies, and overcoming evil with good, - these are its fruits; and its therapeutics, based as aforetime on this divine |
| 30 | Principle, heals all disease. Page 205 |
| 1 | We read in the Scriptures: "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk |
| 3 | not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free." "Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless |
| 6 | as doves."
|
| 9 | "God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform; He plants His footsteps in the sea |
| 12 | And rides upon the storm." THIRD CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
LONDON, ENGLAND |
| 15 | Beloved Brethren: - Love and unity are hieroglyphs of goodness, and their philosophical impetus, spiritual Aesculapius and Hygeia, saith, "As the thought is, so is the |
| 18 | deed; as the thing made is good or bad, so is its maker." This idealism connects itself with spiritual understanding, and so makes God more supreme in consciousness, man |
| 21 | more His likeness, friends more faithful, and enemies harmless. Scholastic theology at its best touches but the hem of Christian Science, shorn of all personality, wholly |
| 24 | apart from human hypotheses, matter, creed and dogma, the lust of the flesh and the pride of power. Christian Science is the full idea of its divine Principle, God; it is |
| 27 | forever based on Love, and it is demonstrated by perfect rules; it is unerring. Hence health, holiness, immortality, are its natural effects. The practitioner may fail, but the |
| 30 | Science never. Page 206 Miscellany
|
| 1 | Philosophical links, which would unite dead mat- ter with animate, Spirit with matter and material |
| 3 | means, prayer with power and pride of position, hinder the divine influx and lose Science,- lose the Principle of divine metaphysics and the tender grace of spiritual |
| 6 | understanding, that love-linked holiness which heals Schisms, imagination, and human beliefs are not |
| 9 | parts of Christian Science; they darken the discern- ment of Science; they divide Truth's garment and cast lots for it. |
| 12 | Seeing a man in the moon, or seeing a person in the picture of Jesus, or believing that you see an individual who has passed through the shadow called death, is |
| 15 | not seeing the spiritual idea of God; but it is seeing a human belief, which is far from the fact that portrays Life, Truth, Love. |
| 18 | May these words of the Scriptures comfort you: "The Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory." "The city had no need of the sun, neither |
| 21 | of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof." "Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy |
| 24 | nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light." "Giving thanks unto the Father, |
| 27 | which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inherit- ance of the saints in light: who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the |
| 30 | kingdom of His dear Son." "Ye were sometimes dark- Page 207 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
MILWAUKEE, WIS. |
| 3 | Beloved Brethren: - Your communication is gratefully A TELEGRAM AND MRS. EDDY'S REPLY
Beloved Leader:
- The representatives of churches and |
| 9 | conference assembled, unite in loving greetings to you, and pledge themselves to strive more earnestly, day by day, for the clearer understanding and more perfect |
| 12 | manifestation of the truth which you have unfolded to the world, and by which sin and sickness are destroyed and life and immortality brought to light. |
| 15 | Yours in loving obedience, CHURCHES AND SOCIETIES OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE IN MISSOURI |
| 18 | ST. JOSEPH, MISSOURI, Mrs. Eddy's Reply |
| 21 | "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: . . . enter thou into the joy of thy lord" - the satisfaction of meeting and mastering evil and defending good, thus |
| 24 | predicating man upon divine Science. (See Science CHESTNUT HILL, MASS, |
| 27 | January 6, 1909 Page 208 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA |
| 3 | Beloved Brethren: - Accept my deep thanks for your highly interesting letter. It would seem as if the whole import of Christian Science had been mirrored forth by |
| 6 | your loving hearts, to reflect its heavenly rays over all the BOX G, BROOKLINE, MASS., |
| 9 | July 15, 1909 FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND |
| 12 | Beloved Christian Scientists: - Like the gentle dews of heaven and the refreshing breeze of morn, comes your dear letter to my waiting heart, - waiting in due expec- |
| 15 | tation of just such blessedness, crowning the hope and hour of divine Science, than which nothing can exceed its ministrations of God to man. |
| 18 | I congratulate you on the prospect of erecting a church building, wherein to gather in praise and prayer for the whole human family. |
| 21 | BOX G, BROOKLINE, MASS., THE COMMITTEES IN CONFERENCE, CHICAGO,
ILL. |
| 24 | The Committees: - God bless the courageous, far-seeing committees in conference for their confidence in His ways and means of reaching the very acme of Christian |
| 27 | Science. Page 209 COMMENT ON LETTER FROM FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
OTTAWA, ONTARIO |
| 3 | God will abundantly bless this willing and obedient church with the rich reward of those that seek and serve Him. No greater hope have we than in right thinking |
| 6 | and right acting, and faith in the blessing of fidelity, Page 210 CHAPTER X - ADMONITION
AND COUNSEL WHAT OUR LEADER SAYS BELOVED Christian Scientists, keep your minds so |
| 3 | filled with Truth and Love, that sin, disease, and death cannot enter them. It is plain that nothing can be added to the mind already full. There is no door |
| 6 | through which evil can enter, and no space for evil to fill in a mind filled with goodness. Good thoughts are an impervious armor; clad therewith you are completely |
| 9 | 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. |
| 12 | The self-seeking pride of the evil thinker injures him when he would harm others. Goodness involuntarily resists evil. The evil thinker is the proud talker and |
| 15 | doer. The right thinker abides under the shadow of the WAYS THAT ARE VAIN Certain individuals entertain the notion that Chris- |
| 21 | denounce error in general, - saying nothing, in particu- Page 211 |
| 1 | lar, of error that is damning men. They are sticklers for a false, convenient peace, straining at gnats and |
| 3 | swallowing camels. The unseen wrong to individuals and society they are too cowardly, too ignorant, or too wicked to uncover, and excuse themselves by denying |
| 6 | that this evil exists. This mistaken way, of hiding sin in order to maintain harmony, has licensed evil, allowing it first to smoulder, and then break out in devouring |
| 9 | flames. All that error asks is to be let alone; even as in Jesus' time the unclean spirits cried out, "Let us alone; what have we to do with thee?" |
| 12 | Animal magnetism, in its ascending steps of evil, entices its victim by unseen, silent arguments. Revers- ing the modes of good, in their silent allurements to |
| 15 | health and holiness, it impels mortal mind into error of thought, and tempts into the committal of acts foreign to the natural inclinations. The victims lose their |
| 18 | individuality, and lend themselves as willing tools to carry out the designs of their worst enemies, even those who would induce their self-destruction. Animal mag- |
| 21 | netism fosters suspicious distrust where honor is due, fear where courage should be strongest, reliance where there should be avoidance, a belief in safety where there is |
| 24 | most danger; and these miserable lies, poured constantly into his mind, fret and confuse it, spoiling that indi- vidual's disposition, undermining his health, and sealing |
| 27 | his doom, unless the cause of the mischief is found out Other minds are made dormant by it, and the victim |
| 30 | is in a state of semi-individuality, with a mental hazi- Page 212 |
| 1 | is a species of intoxication, in which the victim is led to believe and do what he would never, otherwise, think |
| 3 | or do voluntarily. This intricate method of animal magnetism is the |
| 6 | In this era it is taking the place of older and more open sins, and other forms of intoxication. A harder fight will be necessary to expose the cause and effects of |
| 9 | this evil influence, than has been required to put down the evil effects of alcohol. The alcoholic habit is the use of higher forms of matter, wherewith to do evil; |
| 12 | whereas animal magnetism is the highest form of mental The question is often asked, Why is there so much |
| 15 | dissension among mental practitioners? We answer, Because they do not practise in strict accordance with the teaching of Christian Science Mind-healing. If they |
| 18 | did, there would be unity of action. Being like the disciples of old, "with one accord in one place," they would receive a spiritual influx impossible under other |
| 21 | conditions, and so would recognize and resist the animal magnetism by which they are being deceived and misled. |
| 24 | The mental malpractitioner, interfering with the rights of Mind, destroys the true sense of Science, and loses his own power to heal. He tries to compensate |
| 27 | himself for his own loss by hindering in every way con- ceivable the success of others. You will find this prac- titioner saying that animal magnetism never troubles |
| 30 | him, but that Mrs. Eddy teaches animal magnetism; Page 213 |
| 1 | The natural fruits of Christian Science Mind-healing are harmony, brotherly love, spiritual growth and |
| 3 | activity. The malicious aim of perverted mind-power, or animal magnetism, is to paralyze good and give activity to evil. It starts factions and engenders envy |
| 6 | and hatred, but as activity is by no means a right of evil and its emissaries, they ought not to be encouraged in it. Because this age is cursed with one rancorous |
| 9 | and lurking foe to human weal, those who are the truest friends of mankind, and conscientious in their desire to do right and to live pure and Christian lives, |
| 12 | should be more zealous to do good, more watchful and vigilant. Then they will be proportionately successful and bring out glorious results. |
| 15 | Unless one's eyes are opened to the modes of mental malpractice, working so subtly that we mistake its sug- gestions for the impulses of our own thought, the victim |
| 18 | will allow himself to drift in the wrong direction with- out knowing it. Be ever on guard against this enemy. Watch your thoughts, and see whether they lead you |
| 21 | to God and into harmony with His true followers. Guard and strengthen your own citadel more strongly. Thus you will grow wiser and better through every |
| 24 | attack of your foe, and the Golden Rule will not rust ONLY ONE QUOTATION The following three quotations from "Science
and |
| 30 | to the dear Churches of Christ, Scientist. From these Page 214 |
| 1 | they may select one only to place on the walls of their church. Otherwise, as our churches multiply, promiscu- |
| 3 | ous selections would write your textbook on the walls of your churches. Divine Love always has met and always will meet every |
| 6 | human need. MARY BAKER EDDY Christianity is again demonstrating the Life that is |
| 9 | Truth, and the Truth that is Life. Jesus' three days' work in the sepulchre set the seal |
| 12 | of eternity on time. He proved Life to be deathless and MARY BAKER EDDY THE LABORER AND HIS HIRE In reply to letters questioning the consistency
of |
| 18 | the hope of relieving the questioners' perplexity, I will say: Four years after my discovery of Christian Science, while taking no remuneration for my labors, and for healing all |
| 21 | manner of diseases, I was confronted with the fact that I had no monetary means left wherewith to hire a hall in which to speak, or to establish a Christian Science home |
| 24 | for indigent students, which I yearned to do, or even to meet my own current expenses. I therefore halted from necessity. |
| 27 | I had cast my all into the treasury of Truth, but where Page 215 |
| 1 | then wanted Christian Science, or gave it a halfpenny. Though sorely oppressed, I was above begging and |
| 3 | knew well the priceless worth of what had been bestowed without money or price. Just then God stretched forth His hand. He it was that bade me do what I did, |
| 6 | and it prospered at every step. I wrote "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," taught students for a tuition of three hundred dollars each, though I seldom |
| 9 | taught without having charity scholars, sometimes a dozen or upward in one class. Afterwards, with touch- ing tenderness, those very students sent me the full |
| 12 | tuition money. However, I returned this money with love; but it was again mailed to me in letters begging me to accept it, saying, "Your teachings are worth much |
| 15 | more to me than money can be." It was thus that I earned the means with which
to start |
| 18 | establish a Metaphysical College, to plant our first maga- zine, to purchase the site for a church edifice, to give my church The Christian Science Journal, and to keep "the |
| 21 | wolves in sheep's clothing," preying upon my pearls, from When the great Master first sent forth his students, he |
| 24 | bade them take no scrip for their journey, saying, "The laborer is worthy of his hire." Next, on the contrary, he bade them take scrip. Can we find a better example |
| 27 | for our lives than that of our Master? Why did he send forth his students first without, and then with, provision for their expenses? Doubtless to test the effect of both |
| 30 | methods on mankind. That he preferred the latter is Page 216 |
| 1 | affairs, is plainly set forth in the Scriptures. Till Christian Scientists give all their time to spiritual things, live without |
| 3 | eating, and obtain their money from a fish's mouth, they must earn it in order to help mankind with it. All sys- tems of religion stand on this basis. |
| 6 | The law and the gospel, - Christian, civil, and educa- tional means, - manufacture, agriculture, tariff, and revenue subsist on demand and supply, regulated by a |
| 9 | government currency, by which each is provided for and maintained. What, then, can a man do with truth and without a cent to sustain it? Either his life must |
| 12 | be a miracle that frightens people, or his truth not THE CHILDREN CONTRIBUTORS |
| 15 | My Beloved Children: - Tenderly thanking you for your sweet industry and love on behalf of the room of the Pastor Emeritus in The First Church of Christ, |
| 18 | Scientist, Boston, I say: The purpose of God to you- ward indicates another field of work which I present to your thought, work by which you can do much good and |
| 21 | which is adapted to your present unfolding capacity. I request that from this date you disband as a society, drop the insignia of "Busy Bees," work in your own sev- |
| 24 | eral localities, and no longer contribute to The Mother As you grow older, advance in the knowledge of self- |
| 27 | support, and see the need of self-culture, it is to be expected you will feel more than at present that charity begins at home, and that you will want money for your own uses. |
| 30 | Contemplating these important wants, I see that you Page 217 |
| 1 | money that you expend for flowers. You will want it for academics, for your own school education, or, if need be, |
| 3 | to help your parents, brothers, or sisters. Further to encourage your early, generous incentive |
| 6 | have deeded in trust to The Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, the sum of four thousand dollars to be invested in safe municipal bonds for my dear chil- |
| 9 | dren contributors to the room of the Pastor Emeritus. This sum is to remain on interest till it is disbursed in equal shares to each contributor. This disbursal will |
| 12 | take place when the contributors shall have arrived at legal age, and each contributor will receive his divi- dend with interest thereon up to date, provided he has |
| 15 | complied with my request as above named. A CORRECTION In the last Sentinel [Oct. 12, 1899] was the following |
| 18 | question: "If all matter is unreal, why do we deny the existence of disease in the material body and not the body itself?" |
| 21 | We deny first the existence of disease, because we can meet this negation more readily than we can negative all that the material senses affirm. It is written in "Science |
| 24 | and Health with Key to the Scriptures": "An improved belief is one step out of error, and aids in taking the next step and in understanding the situation in Christian |
| 27 | Science" (p. 296).
|
| 30 | step to be taken first. He came to the world not to Page 218 |
| 1 | He restored the diseased body to its normal action, functions, and organization, and in explanation of his |
| 3 | deeds he said, "Suffer it to be so now: for thus it be- cometh us to fulfil all righteousness." Job said, "In my flesh shall I see God." Neither the Old nor the New |
| 6 | Testament furnishes reasons or examples for the destruc- tion of the human body, but for its restoration to life and health as the scientific proof of "God with us." |
| 9 | The power and prerogative of Truth are to destroy all disease and to raise the dead - even the self-same Lazarus. The spiritual body, the incorporeal idea, came |
| 12 | with the ascension. Jesus demonstrated the divine Principle of Christian |
| 15 | from death and the grave. The introduction of pure abstractions into Christian Science, without their correl- atives, leaves the divine Principle of Christian Science |
| 18 | unexplained, tends to confuse the mind of the reader, and QUESTION ANSWERED A fad of belief is the fool of mesmerism. The belief |
| 24 | false faith that will end bitterly. My published works are teachers and healers. My private life is given to a serv- itude the fruit of which all mankind may share. Such |
| 27 | labor is impartial, meted out to one no more than to another. Therefore an individual should not enter the Massachusetts Metaphysical College with the expecta- |
| 30 | tion of receiving instruction from me, other than that Page 219 |
| 1 | which my books afford, unless I am personally present. Nor should patients anticipate being helped by me through |
| 3 | some favored student. Such practice would be erro- neous, and such an anticipation on the part of the sick a hindrance rather than help. |
| 6 | My good students have all the honor of their success in teaching or in healing. I by no means would pluck their plumes. Human power is most properly used in |
| 9 | preventing the occasion for its use; otherwise its use CHRISTIAN SCIENCE HEALING |
| 12 | To say that it is sin to ride to church on an electric car, would not be more preposterous than to believe that man's Maker is not equal to the destruction of disease |
| 15 | germs. Christ, Truth, the ever-present spiritual idea, who raises the dead, is equal to the giving of life and health to man and to the healing, as aforetime, of all manner of |
| 18 | diseases. I would not charge Christians with doubting the Bible record of our great Master's life of healing, since Christianity must be predicated of what Christ Jesus |
| 21 | taught and did; but I do say that Christian Science cannot annul nor make void the laws of the land, since Christ, the great demonstrator of Christian Science, said, "Think |
| 24 | not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I have expressed my opinion publicly as to the pre- |
| 27 | cautions against the spread of so-called infectious and contagious diseases in the following words: - "Rather than quarrel over vaccination, I recommend, if |
| 30 | the law demand, that an individual submit to this process, Page 220 |
| 1 | save him from bad physical results. Whatever changes come to this century or to any epoch, we may safely |
| 3 | submit to the providence of God, to common justice, to the maintenance of individual rights, and to govern- mental usages. This statement should be so interpreted |
| 6 | as to apply, on the basis of Christian Science, to the reporting of a contagious case to the proper authorities when the law so requires. When Jesus was questioned |
| 9 | concerning obedience to human law, he replied: 'Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's,' even while you render 'to God the things that are God's.' " |
| 12 | I believe in obeying the laws of the land. I practise and teach this obedience, since justice is the moral signification of law. Injustice denotes the absence of law. Each day |
| 15 | I pray for the pacification of all national difficulties, for the brotherhood of man, for the end of idolatry and infidelity, and for the growth and establishment of |
| 18 | Christian religion - Christ's Christianity. I also have faith that my prayer availeth, and that He who is overturning will overturn until He whose right it is shall |
| 21 | reign. Each day I pray: "God bless my enemies; make them Thy friends; give them to know the joy and the peace of love." |
| 24 | Past, present, or future philosophy or religion, which departs from the instructions and example of the great Galilean Prophet, cannot be Christlike. Jesus obeyed |
| 27 | human laws and fell a victim to those laws. But nineteen centuries have greatly improved human nature and human statutes. That the innocent should suffer for the |
| 30 | guilty, seems less divine, and that humanity should share Page 221 |
| 1 | The earthly price of spirituality in religion and medicine in a material age is persecution, and the moral distance |
| 3 | between Christianity and materialism precludes Jesus' doctrine, now as then, from finding favor with certain purely human views. The prophets of old looked for |
| 6 | something higher than the systems and practices of their times. They foresaw the new dispensation of Truth and the demonstration of God in His more infinite |
| 9 | meanings, - the demonstration which was to destroy sin, disease, and death, establish the definition of omnipotence, and illustrate the Science of Mind. Earth has not known |
| 12 | another so great and good as Christ Jesus. Then can we find a better moral philosophy, a more complete, natural, and divine Science of medicine, or a better |
| 15 | religion than his? God is Spirit. Then modes of healing, other than
the |
| 18 | the Decalogue, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." There are no other heaven-appointed means than the spiritual with which to heal sin and disease. Our |
| 21 | Master conformed to this law, and instructed his follow- ers, saying, "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also." This is enough. |
| 24 | All issues of morality, of Christianity, of pleasure, or of pain must come through a correct or incorrect state of thought, since matter is not conscious; then, like a |
| 27 | watchman forsaking his post, shall we have no faith in God, in the divine Mind, thus throwing the door wide open to the intruding disease, forgetting that the divine |
| 30 | Mind, Truth and Life, can guard the entrance? We earnestly ask: Shall we not believe the Scripture, Page 222 |
| 1 | teenth chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew, we read that even the disciples of Jesus once failed mentally |
| 3 | to cure by their faith and understanding a violent case of lunacy. And because of this Jesus rebuked them, saying: "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be |
| 6 | with you ? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me." When his disciples asked him why they could not heal that case, Jesus, the master Metaphysician, answered, |
| 9 | "Because of your unbelief" (lack of faith); and then continued: "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence |
| 12 | to yonder place; and it shall remove." Also he added: "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (refraining from admitting the claims of the senses). |
| 15 | Even in those dark days Jesus was not arrested and executed (for "insanity") because of his faith and his great demands on the faith of his followers, but |
| 18 | he was arrested because, as was said, "he stirreth up the people." Be patient, O Christian Scientist! It is well that thou canst unloose the sandals of thy |
| 21 | Master's feet. The Constitution of the United States does not
provide |
| 24 | religion; rather does it imply that religion shall permeate our laws. Mankind will be God-governed in proportion as God's government becomes apparent, the Golden Rule |
| 27 | utilized, and the rights of man and the liberty of conscience held sacred. Meanwhile, they who name the name of Christian Science will assist in the holding of crime in |
| 30 | check, will aid the ejection of error, will maintain law Page 223 RULES OF CONDUCT I hereby notify the public that no comers are received |
| 3 | at Pleasant View without previous appointment by letter. Also that I neither listen to complaints, read letters, nor dictate replies to letters which pertain to church diffi- |
| 6 | culties outside of The Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, or to any class of individual discords. Letters from the sick are not read by me or by my secretaries. They |
| 9 | should be sent to the Christian Science practitioners Letters and despatches from individuals with whom I |
| 12 | have no acquaintance and of whom I have no knowl- edge, containing questions about secular affairs, I do not answer. First, because I have not sufficient time to |
| 15 | waste on them; second, because I do not consider myself capable of instructing persons in regard to that of which I know nothing. All such questions are superinduced by |
| 18 | wrong motives or by "evil suggestions," either of which All inquiries, coming directly or indirectly from a |
| 21 | member of The Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, which relate in any manner to the keeping or the breaking of one of the Church By-laws, should be addressed to |
| 24 | the Christian Science Board of Directors and not to the A WORD TO THE WISE |
| 27 | The hour is imminent. Upon it lie burdens that Page 224 |
| 1 | tian Scientists see or understand the importance of that demand at the moment, when human wisdom is inade- |
| 3 | quate to meet the exigencies of the hour and when they I respectfully call your attention to this demand, know- |
| 6 | ing a little, as I ought, the human need, the divine com- mand, the blessing which follows obedience and the bane which follows disobedience. Hurried conclusions as to |
| 9 | the public thought are not apt to be correctly drawn. The public sentiment is helpful or dangerous only in proportion to its right or its wrong concept, and the forward footsteps |
| 12 | it impels or the prejudice it instils. This prejudice the future must disclose and dispel. Avoid for the immediate present public debating clubs. Also be sure that you are |
| 15 | not caught in some author's net, or made blind to his loss of the Golden Rule, of which Christian Science is the predicate and postulate, when he borrows the thoughts, |
| 18 | words, and classification of one author without quotation- marks, at the same time giving full credit to another more fashionable but less correct. |
| 21 | My books state Christian Science correctly. They may not be as taking to those ignorant of this Science as books less correct and therefore less profound. But it is |
| 24 | not safe to accept the latter as standards. We would not deny their authors a hearing, since the Scripture declares, "He that is not against us is on our part." And we should |
| 27 | also speak in loving terms of their efforts, but we cannot afford to recommend any literature as wholly Christian Science which is not absolutely genuine. |
| 30 | Beloved students, just now let us adopt the classic Page 225 |
| 1 | thereof. This is a crucial hour, in which the coward and the hypocrite come to the surface to pass off, while the |
| 3 | loyal at heart and the worker in the spirit of Truth are CAPITALIZATION A correct use of capital letters in composition
caps the |
| 9 | understood by the writer or the reader who does not com- prehend where capital letters should be used in writing about Christian Science. |
| 12 | In divine Science all belongs to God, for God is All; hence the propriety of giving unto His holy name due deference, - the capitalization which distinguishes |
| 15 | it from all other names, thus obeying the leading of our The coming of Christ's kingdom on earth begins in the |
| 18 | minds of men by honoring God and sacredly holding His name apart from the names of that which He creates. Mankind almost universally gives to the divine Spirit |
| 21 | the name God. Christian Science names God as divine Principle, Love, the infinite Person. In this, as in all that is right, Christian Scientists are expected to stick |
| 24 | to their text, and by no illogical conclusion, either in speaking or in writing, to forget their prayer, "Hallowed be Thy name." |
| 27 | In their textbook it is clearly stated that God is divine Principle and that His synonyms are Love, Truth, Life, Spirit, Mind, Soul, which combine as one. The divine |
| 30 | Principle includes them all. The word Principle, when Page 226 |
| 1 | common noun or in the plural number. To avoid using this word incorrectly, use it only where you can substi- |
| 3 | tute the word God and make sense. This rule strictly observed will preserve an intelligent usage of the word and convey its meaning in Christian Science. |
| 6 | What are termed in common speech the principle of har- monious vibration, the principle of conservation of num- ber in geometry, the principle of the inclined plane in |
| 9 | mechanics, etc., are but an effect of one universal cause, - an emanation of the one divine intelligent Principle that holds the earth in its orbit by evolved spiritual power, |
| 12 | that commands the waves and the winds, that marks the sparrow's fall, and that governs all from the infinitesimal to the infinite, - namely, God. Withdraw God, divine |
| 15 | Principle, from man and the universe, and man and the universe would no longer exist. But annihilate matter, and man and the universe would remain the forever fact, |
| 18 | the spiritual "substance of things hoped for;" and the evidence of the immortality of man and the cosmos is sustained by the intelligent divine Principle, Love. |
| 21 | Beloved students, in this you learn to hallow His name, WHEREFORE? Our faithful laborers in the field of Science have |
| 27 | Science Sentinel and Journal that "Mrs. Eddy advises, until the public thought becomes better acquainted with Christian Science, that Christian Scientists decline to |
| 30 | doctor infectious or contagious diseases." Page 227 |
| 1 | The great Master said, "For which of those works do ye stone me?" He said this to satisfy himself regarding |
| 3 | that which he spake as God's representative - as one who never weakened in his own personal sense of righteousness because of another's wickedness or because of the minify- |
| 6 | ing of his own goodness by another. Charity is quite as rare as wisdom, but when charity does appear, it is known by its patience and endurance. |
| 9 | When, under the protection of State or United States laws, good citizens are arrested for manslaughter because one out of three of their patients, having the same disease |
| 12 | and in the same family, dies while the others recover, we naturally turn to divine justice for support and wait on God. Christian Scientists should be influenced by their |
| 15 | own judgment in taking a case of malignant disease. They should consider well their ability to cope with the claim, and they should not overlook the fact that there |
| 18 | are those lying |