Pulpit and Press
by
Mary Baker Eddy
Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science
and Author of Science and Health with
Key to the Scriptures
Published by the
Trustees under the Will of Mary Baker G. Eddy
Boston, U.S.A.
Copyright, 1895
By Mary Baker G. Eddy
Copyright renewed, 1923
_____________
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
TO
THE DEAR TWO THOUSAND AND SIX HUNDRED
CHILDREN
WHOSE CONTRIBUTIONS OF $4,460(1) WERE DEVOTED
TO THE MOTHER'S ROOM IN THE FIRST CHURCH
OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, BOSTON, THIS UNIQUE
BOOK IS TENDERLY DEDICATED BY
MARY BAKER EDDY
(1) See footnote on page nine
Preface
| 1 | THIS volume contains scintillations from press and pulpit - utterances which epitomize the story of the |
| 3 | birth of Christian Science, in 1866, and its progress during the ensuing thirty years. Three quarters of a century hence, when the children of to-day are the elders |
| 6 | of the twentieth century, it will be interesting to have not only a record of the inclination given their own thoughts in the latter half of the nineteenth century, |
| 9 | but also a registry of the rise of the mercury in the glass It will then be instructive to turn backward the tele- |
| 12 | scope of that advanced age, with its lenses of more spiritual mentality, indicating the gain of intellectual momentum, on the early footsteps of Christian Science |
| 15 | as planted in the pathway of this generation; to note the impetus thereby given to Christianity; to con the facts surrounding the cradle of this grand verity - that |
| 18 | the sick are healed and sinners saved, not by matter, but by Mind; and to scan further the features of the vast problem of eternal life, as expressed in the absolute |
| 21 | power of Truth and the actual bliss of man's existence MARY BAKER EDDY February, 1895 Pulpit and Press DEDICATORY SERMON BY REV. MARY BAKER EDDY First Pastor of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston, Mass. Delivered January 6, 1895 |
| 1 | TEXT: They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy house; and Thou shalt make them drink of the river of Thy pleasures. |
| 3 | - PSALMS xxxvi. 8. A NEW year is a nursling, a babe of time, a prophecy and promise clad in white raiment, kissed - and |
| 6 | encumbered with greetings - redolent with grief and gratitude. An old year is time's adult, and 1893 was a distinguished |
| 9 | character, notable for good and evil. Time past and time present, both, may pain us, but time improved is elo- quent in God's praise. For due refreshment garner the |
| 12 | memory of 1894; for if wiser by reason of its large lessons, Pass on, returnless year! |
| 15 | The path behind thee is with glory crowned; This spot whereon thou troddest was holy ground; Pass proudly to thy bier! |
| 18 | To-day, being with you in spirit, what need that I should Page 2 |
| 1 | I should be much like the Queen of Sheba, when she saw the house Solomon had erected. In the expressive language |
| 3 | of Holy Writ, "There was no more spirit in her;" and she said, "Behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard." Both |
| 6 | without and within, the spirit of beauty dominates The Mother Church, from its mosaic flooring to the soft shim- mer of its starlit dome. |
| 9 | Nevertheless, there is a thought higher and deeper than the edifice. Material light and shade are temporal, not eternal. Turning the attention from sublunary views, |
| 12 | however enchanting, think for a moment with me of the house wherewith "they shall be abundantly satisfied," - even the "house not made with hands, eternal in the |
| 15 | heavens." With the mind's eye glance at the direful scenes of the war between China and Japan. Imagine yourselves in a poorly barricaded fort, fiercely besieged |
| 18 | by the enemy. Would you rush forth single-handed to combat the foe? Nay, would you not rather strengthen your citadel by every means in your power, and remain |
| 21 | within the walls for its defense? Likewise should we do as metaphysicians and Christian Scientists. The real house in which "we live, and move, and have our being" |
| 24 | is Spirit, God, the eternal harmony of infinite Soul. The enemy we confront would overthrow this sublime fortress, and it behooves us to defend our heritage. |
| 27 | How can we do this Christianly scientific work? By intrenching ourselves in the knowledge that our true temple is no human fabrication, but the superstructure |
| 30 | of Truth, reared on the foundation of Love, and pinnacled Page 3 |
| 1 | in Life. Such being its nature, how can our godly temple possibly be demolished, or even disturbed? Can eternity |
| 3 | end? Can Life die? Can Truth be uncertain? Can Love be less than boundless? Referring to this temple, our Master said: "Destroy this temple, and in three days |
| 6 | I will raise it up." He also said: "The kingdom of God is within you." Know, then, that you possess sovereign power to think and act rightly, and that nothing can dis- |
| 9 | possess you of this heritage and trespass on Love. If you maintain this position, who or what can cause you to sin or suffer? Our surety is in our confidence that we are |
| 12 | indeed dwellers in Truth and Love, man's eternal mansion. Such a heavenly assurance ends all warfare, and bids tu- mult cease, for the good fight we have waged is over, and |
| 15 | divine Love gives us the true sense of victory. "They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy house; and Thou shalt make them drink of the river of Thy |
| 18 | pleasures." No longer are we of the church militant, but of the church triumphant; and with Job of old we ex- claim, "Yet in my flesh shall I see God." The river of |
| 21 | His pleasures is a tributary of divine Love, whose living waters have their source in God, and flow into everlasting Life. We drink of this river when all human desires are |
| 24 | quenched, satisfied with what is pleasing to the divine Perchance some one of you may say, "The evidence of |
| 27 | spiritual verity in me is so small that I am afraid. I feel so far from victory over the flesh that to reach out for a present realization of my hope savors of temerity. Be- |
| 30 | cause of my own unfitness for such a spiritual animus my Page 4 |
| 1 | strength is naught and my faith fails." O thou "weak and infirm of purpose." Jesus said, "Be not afraid"! |
| 3 | "What if the little rain should say,
'So small a drop as I Can ne'er refresh a drooping earth, |
| 6 | I'll tarry in the sky.' " Is not a man metaphysically and mathematically num- ber one, a unit, and therefore whole number, governed |
| 9 | and protected by his divine Principle, God? You have simply to preserve a scientific, positive sense of unity with your divine source, and daily demonstrate this. Then you |
| 12 | will find that one is as important a factor as duodecillions in being and doing right, and thus demonstrating deific Principle. A dewdrop reflects the sun. Each of Christ's |
| 15 | little ones reflects the infinite One, and therefore is the seer's declaration true, that "one on God's side is a majority." |
| 18 | A single drop of water may help to hide the stars, or Who lives in good, lives also in God, - lives in all Life, |
| 21 | through all space. His is an individual kingdom, his dia- dem a crown of crowns. His existence is deathless, for- ever unfolding its eternal Principle. Wait patiently on |
| 24 | illimitable Love, the lord and giver of Life. Reflect this Life, and with it cometh the full power of being. "They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy |
| 27 | house." In 1893 the World's Parliament of Religions, held in Page 5 |
| 1 | since 1866; and one of the very clergymen who had pub- licly proclaimed me "the prayerless Mrs. Eddy," offered |
| 3 | his audible adoration in the words I use, besides listening to an address on Christian Science from my pen, read by Judge S. J. Hanna, in that unique assembly. |
| 6 | When the light of one friendship after another passes from earth to heaven, we kindle in place thereof the glow of some deathless reality. Memory, faithful to goodness, |
| 9 | holds in her secret chambers those characters of holiest sort, bravest to endure, firmest to suffer, soonest to re- nounce. Such was the founder of the Concord School of |
| 12 | Philosophy - the late A. Bronson Alcott. After the publication of "Science and Health
with Key |
| 15 | was the first to bedew my hope with a drop of humanity. When the press and pulpit cannonaded this book, he introduced himself to its author by saying, "I have come |
| 18 | to comfort you." Then eloquently paraphrasing it, and prophesying its prosperity, his conversation with a beauty all its own reassured me. That prophecy is fulfilled. |
| 21 | This book, in 1895, is in its ninety-first edition of one thousand copies. It is in the public libraries of the prin- cipal cities, colleges, and universities of America; also |
| 24 | the same in Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Greece, Japan, India, and China; in the Oxford University and the Victoria Institute, England; in the |
| 27 | Academy of Greece, and the Vatican at Rome. This book is the leaven fermenting religion; it
is |
| 30 | literature of our and other lands. This spiritual chemi- Page 6 |
| 1 | calization is the upheaval produced when Truth is neutral- izing error and impurities are passing off. And it will |
| 3 | continue till the antithesis of Christianity, engendering the limited forms of a national or tyrannical religion, yields to the church established by the Nazarene Prophet and main- |
| 6 | tained on the spiritual foundation of Christ's healing. Good, the Anglo-Saxon term for God, unites Science
to |
| 9 | but Mind; not the deified drug, but the goodness of God - The author of "Marriage of the Lamb," who made the |
| 12 | mistake of thinking she caught her notions from my book, wrote to me in 1894, "Six months ago your book, Science and Health, was put into my hands. I had not read three |
| 15 | pages before I realized I had found that for which I had hungered since girlhood, and was healed instantaneously of an ailment of seven years' standing. I cast from me the |
| 18 | false remedy I had vainly used, and turned to the 'great Physician.' I went with my husband, a missionary to China, in 1884. He went out under the auspices of the |
| 21 | Methodist Episcopal Church. I feel the truth is leading Another brilliant enunciator, seeker, and servant of |
| 24 | Truth, the Rev. William R. Alger of Boston, signalled me kindly as my lone bark rose and fell and rode the rough sea. At a conversazione in Boston, he said, "You may |
| 27 | find in Mrs. Eddy's metaphysical teachings more than is
|
| 30 | Phillips, the native course of whose mind never swerved Page 7 |
| 1 | from the chariot-paths of justice, speaking of my work, said: "Had I young blood in my veins, I would help that |
| 3 | woman." I love Boston, and especially the laws of the State
where- |
| 6 | have befriended progress. Yet when I recall the past, - how the gospel of
healing |
| 9 | and remember also that God is just, I wonder whether, were our dear Master in our New England metropolis at this hour, he would not weep over it, as he wept over |
| 12 | Jerusalem! O ye tears! Not in vain did ye flow. Those sacred drops were but enshrined for future use, and God has now unsealed their receptacle with His outstretched |
| 15 | arm. Those crystal globes made morals for mankind. They will rise with joy, and with power to wash away, in floods of forgiveness, every crime, even when mistakenly |
| 18 | committed in the name of religion. An unjust, unmerciful, and oppressive priesthood
must |
| 21 | stumble onward to their doom; while their tabernacles crumble with dry rot. "God is not mocked," and "the word of the Lord endureth forever." |
| 24 | I have ordained the Bible and the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," as pastor of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in |
| 27 | Boston, - so long as this church is satisfied with this pastor. This is my first ordination. "They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy house; and |
| 30 | Thou shalt make them drink of the river of Thy pleasures. " Page 8 |
| 1 | All praise to the press of America's Athens, - and throughout our land the press has spoken out historically, |
| 3 | impartially. Like the winds telling tales through the leaves of an ancient oak, unfallen, may our church chimes repeat my thanks to the press. |
| 6 | Notwithstanding the perplexed condition of our na- tion's finances, the want and woe with millions of dollars unemployed in our money centres, the Christian Scientists, |
| 9 | within fourteen months, responded to the call for this church with $191,012. Not a mortgage was given nor a loan solicited, and the donors all touchingly told their |
| 12 | privileged joy at helping to build The Mother Church. There was no urging, begging, or borrowing; only the need made known, and forth came the money, or dia- |
| 15 | monds, which served to erect this "miracle in stone." Even the children vied with their parents to meet
the |
| 18 | services, shoveled snow, and babes gave kisses to earn a few pence toward this consummation. Some of these lambs my prayers had christened, but Christ will rechristen |
| 21 | them with his own new name. "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise." The resident youthful workers were called "Busy Bees." |
| 24 | Sweet society, precious children, your loving hearts and deft fingers distilled the nectar and painted the finest flowers in the fabric of this history, - even its centre-piece, |
| 27 | - Mother's Room in The First Church of Christ, Sci- entist, in Boston. The children are destined to witness results which will eclipse Oriental dreams. They belong |
| 30 | to the twentieth century. By juvenile aid, into the build- Page 9 |
| 1 | ing fund have come $4,460.(1) Ah, children, you are the bulwarks of freedom, the cement of society, the hope of |
| 3 | our race! Brothers of the Christian Science Board of Directors, |
| 6 | phian Iyre could break the full chords of such a rest. May the altar you have built never be shattered in our hearts, but justice, mercy, and love kindle perpetually its fires. |
| 9 | It was well that the brother whose appliances warm this house, warmed also our perishless hope, and nerved its grand fulfilment. Woman, true to her instinct, came |
| 12 | to the rescue as sunshine from the clouds; so, when man quibbled over an architectural exigency, a woman climbed with feet and hands to the top of the tower, and helped |
| 15 | settle the subject. After the loss of our late lamented pastor, Rev.
D. A. |
| 18 | sermons from the editor of The Christian Science Journal (who, with his better half, is a very whole man), together with the Sunday School giving this flock "drink from the |
| 21 | river of His pleasures." O glorious hope and blessed as- surance, "it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Christians rejoice in secret, they have a bounty |
| 24 | hidden from the world. Self-forgetfulness, purity, and love are treasures untold - constant prayers, prophecies, and anointings. Practice, not profession, - goodness, not |
| 27 | doctrines, - spiritual understanding, not mere belief, gain the ear and right hand of omnipotence, and call down blessings infinite. "Faith without works is dead." The |
| 30 | foundation of enlightened faith is Christ's teachings and (1)This sum was increased to $5,568.51 by contributions
which reached the Treas- Page 10 |
| 1 | practice. It was our Master's self-immolation, his life- giving love, healing both mind and body, that raised the |
| 3 | deadened conscience, paralyzed by inactive faith, to a quickened sense of mortal's necessities, - and God's power and purpose to supply them. It was, in the words |
| 6 | of the Psalmist, He "who forgiveth all thine iniquities; Rome's fallen fanes and silent Aventine is glory's tomb; |
| 9 | her pomp and power lie low in dust. Our land, more favored, had its Pilgrim Fathers. On shores of solitude, at Plymouth Rock, they planted a nation's heart, - the |
| 12 | rights of conscience, imperishable glory. No dream of avarice or ambition broke their exalted purpose, theirs was the wish to reign in hope's reality - the realm of |
| 15 | Love. Christian Scientists, you have planted your standard |
| 18 | chief corner-stone in the house of our God. And our Master said: "The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner." If you are less |
| 21 | appreciated to-day than your forefathers, wait - for if you are as devout as they, and more scientific, as progress certainly demands, your plant is immortal. Let us rejoice |
| 24 | that chill vicissitudes have not withheld the timely shelter of this house, which descended like day-spring from on high. |
| 27 | Divine presence, breathe Thou Thy blessing on every heart in this house. Speak out, O soul! This is the new- born of Spirit, this is His redeemed; this, His beloved. |
| 30 | May the kingdom of God within you, - with you alway, - Page 11 |
| 1 | reascending, bear you outward, upward, heavenward. May the sweet song of silver-throated singers, making |
| 3 | melody more real, and the organ's voice, as the sound of many waters, and the Word spoken in this sacred temple dedicated to the ever-present God - mingle with the joy |
| 6 | of angels and rehearse your hearts' holy intents. May all Page 12 CHRISTIAN SCIENCE TEXTBOOK |
| 1 | The following selections from "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," pages 568-571, were read |
| 3 | from the platform. The impressive stillness of the audi- Revelation xii. 10-12. And I heard a loud voice saying in |
| 6 | heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the king- dom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our |
| 9 | God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye |
| 12 | heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath |
| 15 | but a short time. For victory over a single sin, we give thanks and mag- |
| 18 | conquest over all sin? A louder song, sweeter than has ever before reached high heaven, now rises clearer and nearer to the great heart of Christ; for the accuser is not |
| 21 | there, and Love sends forth her primal and everlasting strain. Self-abnegation, by which we lay down all for Truth, or Christ, in our warfare against error, is a rule in |
| 24 | Christian Science. This rule clearly interprets God as Page 13 |
| 1 | divine Principle, - as Life, represented by the Father; as Truth, represented by the Son; as Love, represented |
| 3 | by the Mother. Every mortal at some period, here or here- after, must grapple with and overcome the mortal belief in a power opposed to God. |
| 6 | The Scripture, "Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many," is literally ful- filled, when we are conscious of the supremacy of Truth, |
| 9 | by which the nothingness of error is seen; and we know that the nothingness of error is in proportion to its wicked- ness. He that touches the hem of Christ's robe and masters |
| 12 | his mortal beliefs, animality, and hate, rejoices in the proof of healing, - in a sweet and certain sense that God is Love. Alas for those who break faith with divine Science |
| 15 | and fail to strangle the serpent of sin as well as of sickness! They are dwellers still in the deep darkness of belief. They are in the surging sea of error, not struggling to lift |
| 18 | their heads above the drowning wave. What must the end be? They must eventually expiate |
| 21 | his bosom companion, comes back to him at last with accelerated force, for the devil knoweth his time is short. Here the Scriptures declare that evil is temporal, not |
| 24 | eternal. The dragon is at last stung to death by his own malice; but how many periods of torture it may take to remove all sin, must depend upon sin's obduracy. |
| 27 | Revelation xii. 13. And when the dragon saw that he was Page 14 |
| 1 | The march of mind and of honest investigation will bring the hour when the people will chain, with fetters of |
| 3 | some sort, the growing occultism of this period. The present apathy as to the tendency of certain active yet un- seen mental agencies will finally be shocked into another |
| 6 | extreme mortal mood, - into human indignation; for Revelation xii. 15, 16. And the serpent cast out of his |
| 9 | mouth water as a flood, after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and |
| 12 | swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his Millions of unprejudiced minds - simple seekers for |
| 15 | Truth, weary wanderers, athirst in the desert - are wait- ing and watching for rest and drink. Give them a cup of cold water in Christ's name, and never fear the conse- |
| 18 | quences. What if the old dragon should send forth a new flood to drown the Christ-idea? He can neither drown your voice with its roar, nor again sink the world into the |
| 21 | deep waters of chaos and old night. In this age the earth will help the woman; the spiritual idea will be understood. Those ready for the blessing you impart will give thanks. |
| 24 | The waters will be pacified, and Christ will command the When God heals the sick or the sinning, they should |
| 27 | know the great benefit which Mind has wrought. They Page 15 |
| 1 | the eyes of the people to the power of good resident in divine Mind, but they are not so willing to point out the |
| 3 | evil in human thought, and expose evil's hidden mental Why this backwardness, since exposure is necessary to |
| 6 | ensure the avoidance of the evil? Because people like you better when you tell them their virtues than when you tell them their vices. It requires the spirit of our blessed |
| 9 | Master to tell a man his faults, and so risk human dis- pleasure for the sake of doing right and benefiting our race. Who is telling mankind of the foe in ambush? Is |
| 12 | the informer one who sees the foe? If so, listen and be wise. Escape from evil, and designate those as unfaithful stewards who have seen the danger and yet have given |
| 15 | no warning. At all times and under all circumstances, overcome
evil |
| 18 | and the occasion for a victory over evil. Clad in the panoply of Love, human hatred cannot reach you. The cement of a higher humanity will unite all interests in the |
| 21 | one divinity. Page 16 HYMNS BY REV. MARY BAKER EDDY |
| 1 | [Set to the Church Chimes and Sung on This Occasion] LAYING THE CORNER-STONE |
| 3 | Laus Deo, it is done! Rolled away from loving heart Is a stone. |
| 6 | Joyous, risen, we depart Having one. Laus Deo, - on this rock |
| 9 | (Heaven chiselled squarely good) Stands His church, - God is Love, and understood |
| 12 | By His flock. Laus Deo, night starlit Slumbers not in God's embrace; |
| 15 | Then, O man! Like this stone, be in thy place; Stand, not sit. |
| 18 | Cold, silent, stately stone, Dirge and song and shoutings low, In thy heart |
| 21 | Dwell serene, - and sorrow? No, Page 17 "FEED MY SHEEP" |
| 3 | O'er the hillside steep, How to gather, how to sow, - How to feed Thy sheep; |
| 6 | I will listen for Thy voice, Lest my footsteps stray; I will follow and rejoice |
| 9 | All the rugged way. Thou wilt bind the stubborn will, Wound the callous breast, |
| 12 | Make self-righteousness be still, Break earth's stupid rest. Strangers on a barren shore, |
| 15 | Lab'ring long and lone - We would enter by the door, And Thou know'st Thine own. |
| 18 | So, when day grows dark and cold, Tear or triumph harms, Lead Thy lambkins to the fold, |
| 21 | Take them in Thine arms; Feed the hungry, heal the heart, Till the morning's beam; |
| 24 | White as wool, ere they depart - Page 18 CHRIST MY REFUGE O'er waiting harpstrings of the mind |
| 3 | There sweeps a strain, Low, sad, and sweet, whose measures bind The power of pain. |
| 6 | And wake a white-winged angel throng Of thoughts, illumed By faith, and breathed in raptured song, |
| 9 | With love perfumed. Then His unveiled, sweet mercies show Life's burdens light. |
| 12 | I kiss the cross, and wake to know A world more bright. And o'er earth's troubled, angry sea |
| 15 | I see Christ walk, And come to me, and tenderly, Divinely talk. |
| 18 | Thus Truth engrounds me on the rock, Upon Life's shore; 'Gainst which the winds and waves can shock, |
| 21 | Oh, nevermore ! From tired joy and grief afar, And nearer Thee, - |
| 24 | Father, where Thine own children are, Page 19 |
| 1 | My prayer, some daily good to do To Thine, for Thee; |
| 3 | An offering pure of Love, whereto Page 20 NOTE BY REV. MARY BAKER EDDY |
| 1 | The land whereon stands The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, was first purchased by the church |
| 3 | and society. Owing to a heavy loss, they were unable to pay the mortgage; therefore I paid it, and through trustees gave back the land to the church. |
| 6 | In 1892 I had to recover the land from the trustees, re- organize the church, and reobtain its charter - not, how- ever, through the State Commissioner, who refused to |
| 9 | grant it, but by means of a statute of the State, and through Directors regive the land to the church. In 1895 I recon- structed my original system of ministry and church gov- |
| 12 | ernment. Thus committed to the providence of God, the From first to last The Mother Church seemed type and |
| 15 | shadow of the warfare between the flesh and Spirit, even that shadow whose substance is the divine Spirit, im- peratively propelling the greatest moral, physical, civil, |
| 18 | and religious reform ever known on earth. In the words of the prophet: "The shadow of a great rock in a weary land." |
| 21 | This church was dedicated on January 6, anciently one of the many dates selected and observed in the East as the day of the birth and baptism of our master Metaphysician, |
| 24 | Jesus of Nazareth. Page 21 |
| 1 | Christian Scientists, their children and grandchildren to the latest generations, inevitably love one another with |
| 3 | that love wherewith Christ loveth us; a love unselfish, unambitious, impartial, universal, - that loves only be- cause it is Love. Moreover, they love their enemies, even |
| 6 | those that hate them. This we all must do to be Christian Scientists in spirit and in truth. I long, and live, to see this love demonstrated. I am seeking and praying for it |
| 9 | to inhabit my own heart and to be made manifest in my life. Who will unite with me in this pure purpose, and faithfully struggle till it be accomplished? Let this be our |
| 12 | Christian endeavor society, which Christ organizes and While we entertain due respect and fellowship for what |
| 15 | is good and doing good in all denominations of religion, and shun whatever would isolate us from a true sense of goodness in others, we cannot serve mammon. |
| 18 | Christian Scientists are really united to only that which is Christlike, but they are not indifferent to the welfare of any one. To perpetuate a cold distance between our de- |
| 21 | nomination and other sects, and close the door on church or individuals - however much this is done to us - is not Christian Science. Go not into the way of the un- |
| 24 | christly, but wheresoever you recognize a clear expression of God's likeness, there abide in confidence and hope. Our unity with churches of other denominations must |
| 27 | rest on the spirit of Christ calling us together. It cannot come from any other source. Popularity, self-aggrandize- ment, aught that can darken in any degree our spirituality, |
| 30 | must be set aside. Only what feeds and fills the sentiment Page 22 |
| 1 | with unworldliness, can give peace and good will towards men. |
| 3 | All Christian churches have one bond of unity, one nucleus or point of convergence, one prayer, - the Lord's Prayer. It is matter for rejoicing that we unite in love, |
| 6 | and in this sacred petition with every praying assembly on earth, - "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." |
| 9 | If the lives of Christian Scientists attest their fidelity to Truth, I predict that in the twentieth century every Christian church in our land, and a few in far-off lands, |
| 12 | will approximate the understanding of Christian Science sufficiently to heal the sick in his name. Christ will give to Christianity his new name, and Christendom will be |
| 15 | classified as Christian Scientists. When the doctrinal barriers between the churches are broken, and the bonds of peace are cemented by spiritual |
| 18 | understanding and Love, there will be unity of spirit, and the healing power of Christ will prevail. Then shall Zion have put on her most beautiful garments, and her waste |
| 21 | places budded and blossomed as the rose. Page 23 CLIPPINGS FROM NEWSPAPERS
[Daily Inter-Ocean, Chicago,
December 31, 1894]
MARY BAKER EDDY
COMPLETION OF THE FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, BOSTON - "OUR PRAYER IN STONE" - DESCRIPTION OF THE MOST UNIQUE STRUCTURE IN ANY CITY - A BEAUTIFUL TEMPLE AND ITS FURNISHINGS - MRS. EDDY'S WORK AND HER INFLUENCE
|
| 9 | ence. - The "great awakening" of the time of Jonathan Edwards has been paralleled during the last decade by a wave of idealism that has swept over the country, manif- |
| 12 | esting itself under several different aspects and under various names, but each having the common identity of spiritual demand. This movement, under the guise of |
| 15 | Christian Science, and ingenuously calling out a closer inquiry into Oriental philosophy, prefigures itself to us as one of the most potent factors in the social evolution |
| 18 | of the last quarter of the nineteenth century. History shows the curious fact that the closing years of every cen- tury are years of more intense life, manifested in unrest |
| 21 | or in aspiration, and scholars of special research, like Prof. Max Muller, assert that the end of a cycle, as is the latter part of the present century, is marked by peculiar |
| 24 | intimations of man's immortal life. Page 24 |
| 1 | The completion of the first Christian Science church erected in Boston strikes a keynote of definite attention. |
| 3 | This church is in the fashionable Back Bay, between Commonwealth and Huntington Avenues. It is one of the most beautiful, and is certainly the most unique struc- |
| 6 | ture in any city. The First Church of Christ, Scientist, as it is officially called, is termed by its Founder, "Our prayer in stone." It is located at the intersection of Nor- |
| 9 | way and Falmouth Streets, on a triangular plot of ground, the design a Romanesque tower with a circular front and an octagonal form, accented by stone porticos and turreted |
| 12 | corners. On the front is a marble tablet, with the follow- "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, erected Anno |
| 15 | Domini 1894. A testimonial to our beloved teacher, the Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science; author of "Science and Health |
| 18 | with Key to the Scriptures;" president of the Massa- chusetts Metaphysical College, and the first pastor of this denomination." |
| 21 | THE CHURCH EDIFICE The church is built of Concord granite in light
gray, |
| 24 | Mrs. Eddy's native State. The architecture is Romanesque throughout. The tower is one hundred and twenty feet in height and twenty-one and one half feet square. The en- |
| 27 | trances are of marble, with doors of antique oak richly Page 25 |
| 1 | pictorial effect. The lighting and cooling of the church - for cooling is a recognized feature as well as heating - |
| 3 | are done by electricity, and the heat generated by two large boilers in the basement is distributed by the four systems with motor electric power. The partitions are |
| 6 | of iron; the floors of marble in mosaic work, and the edifice is therefore as literally fire-proof as is conceivable. The principal features are the auditorium, seating eleven |
| 9 | hundred people and capable of holding fifteen hundred; the "Mother's Room," designed for the exclusive use of Mrs. Eddy; the "directors' room," and the vestry. The |
| 12 | girders are all of iron, the roof is of terra cotta tiles, the galleries are in plaster relief, the window frames are of iron, coated with plaster; the staircases are of iron, with |
| 15 | marble stairs of rose pink, and marble approaches. The vestibule is a fitting entrance to this magnificent |
| 18 | star, which illuminates it. From this are the entrances leading to the auditorium, the "Mother's Room," and the directors' room. |
| 21 | The auditorium is seated with pews of curly birch, up- holstered in old rose plush. The floor is in white Italian mosaic, with frieze of the old rose, and the wainscoting |
| 24 | repeats the same tints. The base and cap are of pink Tennessee marble. On the walls are bracketed oxidized silver lamps of Roman design, and there are frequent |
| 27 | illuminated texts from the Bible and from Mrs. Eddy's "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" im- panelled. A sunburst in the centre of the ceiling takes |
| 30 | the place of chandeliers. There is a disc of cut glass in Page 26 |
| 1 | decorative designs, covering one hundred and forty-four electric lights in the form of a star, which is twenty-one |
| 3 | inches from point to point, the centre being of pure white light, and each ray under prisms which reflect the rainbow tints. The galleries are richly panelled in relief work. |
| 6 | The organ and choir gallery is spacious and rich beyond the power of words to depict. The platform - corre- sponding to the chancel of an Episcopal church - is a |
| 9 | mosaic work, with richly carved seats following the sweep of its curve, with a lamp stand of the Renaissance period on either end, bearing six richly wrought oxidized silver |
| 12 | lamps, eight feet in height. The great organ comes from Detroit. It is one of vast compass, with AEolian attach- ment, and cost eleven thousand dollars. It is the gift of |
| 15 | a single individual - a votive offering of gratitude for the The chime of bells includes fifteen, of fine range and |
| 18 | perfect tone. THE "MOTHER'S ROOM" The "Mother's Room" is approached by an entrance of |
| 21 | Italian marble, and over the door, in large golden letters on a marble tablet, is the word "Love." In this room the mosaic marble floor of white has a Romanesque border and |
| 24 | is decorated with sprays of fig leaves bearing fruit. The room is toned in pale green with relief in old rose. The mantel is of onyx and gold. Before the great bay window |
| 27 | hangs an Athenian lamp over two hundred years old, (1) At Mrs. Eddy's request the lamp was not kept burning. Page 27 |
| 1 | ing off the "Mother's Room" are toilet apartments, with full-length French mirrors and every convenience. |
| 3 | The directors' room is very beautiful in marble ap- proaches and rich carving, and off this is a vault for the safe preservation of papers. |
| 6 | The vestry seats eight hundred people, and opening from The windows are a remarkable feature of this temple. |
| 9 | There are no "memorial" windows; the entire church is a testimonial, not a memorial - a point that the members strongly insist upon. |
| 12 | In the auditorium are two rose windows - one repre- senting the heavenly city which "cometh down from God out of heaven," with six small windows beneath, emblem- |
| 15 | atic of the six water-pots referred to in John ii. 6. The other rose window represents the raising of the daughter of Jairus. Beneath are two small windows bearing palms |
| 18 | of victory, and others with lamps, typical of Science and Another great window tells its pictorial story of the four |
| 21 | Marys - the mother of Jesus, Mary anointing the head of Jesus, Mary washing the feet of Jesus, Mary at the resur- rection; and the woman spoken of in the Apocalypse, |
| 24 | chapter 12, God-crowned. One more window in the auditorium represents the |
| 27 | In the gallery are windows representing John on the Isle of Patmos, and others of pictorial significance. In the "Mother's Room" the windows are of still more unique |
| 30 | interest. A large bay window, composed of three separate Page 28 |
| 1 | panels, is designed to be wholly typical of the work of Mrs. Eddy. The central panel represents her in solitude and |
| 3 | meditation, searching the Scriptures by the light of a single candle, while the star of Bethlehem shines down from above. Above this is a panel containing the Christian Science seal, |
| 6 | and other panels are decorated with emblematic designs, with the legends, "Heal the Sick," "Raise the Dead," "Cleanse the Lepers," and "Cast out Demons." |
| 9 | The cross and the crown and the star are presented in appropriate decorative effect. The cost of this church is two hundred and twenty-one thousand dollars, exclusive |
| 12 | of the land - a gift from Mrs. Eddy - which is valued THE ORDER OF SERVICE |
| 15 | The order of service in the Christian Science Church does not differ widely from that of any other sect, save that its service includes the use of Mrs. Eddy's book, entitled |
| 18 | "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," in per- haps equal measure to its use of the Bible. The reading is from the two alternately; the singing is from a compila- |
| 21 | tion called the "Christian Science Hymnal," but its songs are for the most part those devotional hymns from Herbert, Faber, Robertson, Wesley, Bowring, and other recog- |
| 24 | nized devotional poets, with selections from Whittier and Lowell, as are found in the hymn-books of the Unitarian churches. For the past year or two Judge Hanna, for- |
| 27 | merly of Chicago, has filled the office of pastor to the Page 29 |
| 1 | Hall, and later in Copley Hall, in the new Grundmann Studio Building on Copley Square. Preceding Judge |
| 3 | Hanna were Rev. D. A. Easton and Rev. L. P. Norcross, both of whom had formerly been Congregational clergy- men. The organizer and first pastor of the church here |
| 6 | was Mrs. Eddy herself, of whose work I shall venture to Last Sunday I gave myself the pleasure of attending the |
| 9 | service held in Copley Hall. The spacious apartment was thronged with a congregation whose remarkable earnest- ness impressed the observer. There was no straggling |
| 12 | of late-comers. Before the appointed hour every seat in the hall was filled and a large number of chairs pressed into service for the overflowing throng. The music was spirited, |
| 15 | and the selections from the Bible and from Science and Health were finely read by Judge Hanna. Then came his sermon, which dealt directly with the command of Christ |
| 18 | to "heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons." In his admirable discourse Judge Hanna said that while all these injunctions could, under certain |
| 21 | conditions, be interpreted and fulfilled literally, the special lesson was to be taken spiritually - to cleanse the leprosy of sin, to cast out the demons of evil thought. |
| 24 | The discourse was able, and helpful in its suggestive THE CHURCH MEMBERS |
| 27 | Later I was told that almost the entire congregation was Page 30 |
| 1 | had seen members of their own families, healed by Chris- tian Science treatment; and I was further told that once |
| 3 | when a Boston clergyman remonstrated with Judge Hanna for enticing a separate congregation rather than offering their strength to unite with churches already established - |
| 6 | I was told he replied that the Christian Science Church did not recruit itself from other churches, but from the grave- yards! The church numbers now four thousand members; |
| 9 | but this estimate, as I understand, is not limited to the Boston adherents, but includes those all over the country. The ceremonial of uniting is to sign a brief "confession of |
| 12 | faith," written by Mrs. Eddy, and to unite in communion, which is not celebrated by outward symbols of bread and wine, but by uniting in silent prayer. |
| 15 | The "confession of faith" includes the declaration that the Scriptures are the guide to eternal Life; that there is a Supreme Being, and His Son, and the Holy Ghost, and |
| 18 | that man is made in His image. It affirms the atonement; it recognizes Jesus as the teacher and guide to salvation; the forgiveness of sin by God, and affirms the power of |
| 21 | Truth over error, and the need of living faith at the moment to realize the possibilities of the divine Life. The entire membership of Christian Scientists throughout |
| 24 | the world now exceeds two hundred thousand people. The church in Boston was organized by Mrs. Eddy, and the first meeting held on April 12, 1879. It opened with |
| 27 | twenty-six members, and within fifteen years it has grown to its present impressive proportions, and has now its own magnificent church building, costing over two hundred |
| 30 | housand dollars, and entirely paid for when its consecra- Page 31 |
| 1 | tion service on January 6 shall be celebrated. This is certainly a very remarkable retrospect. |
| 3 | Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, the Founder of this denomina- tion and Discoverer of Christian Science, as they term her work in affirming the present application of the principles |
| 6 | asserted by Jesus, is a most interesting personality. At the risk of colloquialism, I am tempted to "begin at the beginning" of my own knowledge of Mrs. Eddy, and take, |
| 9 | as the point of departure, my first meeting with her and the subsequent development of some degree of familiarity with the work of her life which that meeting inaugurated |
| 12 | for me. MRS. EDDY It was during some year in the early '80's that I became |
| 15 | aware - from that close contact with public feeling result- ing from editorial work in daily journalism - that the Boston atmosphere was largely thrilled and pervaded by a |
| 18 | new and increasing interest in the dominance of mind over matter, and that the central figure in all this agitation was Mrs. Eddy. To a note which I wrote her, begging the |
| 21 | favor of an interview for press use, she most kindly replied, naming an evening on which she would receive me. At the hour named I rang the bell at a spacious house on |
| 24 | Columbus Avenue, and I was hardly more than seated be- fore Mrs. Eddy entered the room. She impressed me as singularly graceful and winning in bearing and manner, |
| 27 | and with great claim to personal beauty. Her figure was Page 32 |
| 1 | sarte disciple; her face, framed in dark hair and lighted by luminous blue eyes, had the transparency and rose-flush |
| 3 | of tint so often seen in New England, and she was magnetic, earnest, impassioned. No photographs can do the least justice to Mrs. Eddy, as her beautiful complexion and |
| 6 | changeful expression cannot thus be reproduced. At once one would perceive that she had the temperament to domi- nate, to lead, to control, not by any crude self-assertion, but |
| 9 | a spiritual animus. Of course such a personality, with the wonderful tumult in the air that her large and enthusiastic following excited, fascinated the imagination. What had |
| 12 | she originated? I mentally questioned this modern St. Catherine, who was dominating her followers like any ab- bess of old. She told me the story of her life, so far as out- |
| 15 | ward events may translate those inner experiences which Mary Baker was the daughter of Mark and Abigail |
| 18 | (Ambrose) Baker, and was born in Concord, N. H., some- where in the early decade of 1820-'30. At the time I met her she must have been some sixty years of age, yet she had |
| 21 | the coloring and the elastic bearing of a woman of thirty, and this, she told me, was due to the principles of Chris- tian Science. On her father's side Mrs. Eddy came from |
| 24 | Scotch and English ancestry, and Hannah More was a relative of her grandmother. Deacon Ambrose, her mater- nal grandfather, was known as a "godly man," and her |
| 27 | mother was a religious enthusiast, a saintly and consecrated Page 33 |
| 1 | MRS. EDDY AS A CHILD As a child Mary Baker saw visions and dreamed dreams. |
| 3 | When eight years of age she began, like Jeanne d'Arc, to hear "voices," and for a year she heard her name called distinctly, and would often run to her mother questioning |
| 6 | if she were wanted. One night the mother related to her the story of Samuel, and bade her, if she heard the voice again to reply as he did: "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant |
| 9 | heareth." The call came, but the little maid was afraid and did not reply. This caused her tears of remorse and she prayed for forgiveness, and promised to reply if the call |
| 12 | came again. It came, and she answered as her mother had These experiences, of which Catholic biographies are |
| 15 | full, and which history not infrequently emphasizes, cer- tainly offer food for meditation. Theodore Parker related that when he was a lad, at work in a field one day on his |
| 18 | father's farm at Lexington, an old man with a snowy beard suddenly appeared at his side, and walked with him as he worked, giving him high counsel and serious thought. All |
| 21 | inquiry in the neighborhood as to whence the stranger came or whither he went was fruitless; no one else had seen him, and Mr. Parker always believed, so a friend has |
| 24 | told me, that his visitor was a spiritual form from another world. It is certainly true that many and many persons, whose life has been destined to more than ordinary achieve- |
| 27 | ment, have had experiences of voices or visions in their Page 34 |
| 1 | At an early age Miss Baker was married to Colonel Glover, of Charleston, S. C., who lived only a year. She |
| 3 | returned to her father's home - in 1844 - and from that In 1866, while living in Lynn, Mass., Mrs. Eddy |
| 6 | met with a severe accident, and her case was pro- nounced hopeless by the physicians. There came a Sunday morning when her pastor came to bid her good- |
| 9 | by before proceeding to his morning service, as there was no probability that she would be alive at its close. During this time she suddenly became aware of a divine illumina- |
| 12 | tion and ministration. She requested those with her to withdraw, and reluctantly they did so, believing her de- lirious. Soon, to their bewilderment and fright, she walked |
| 15 | into the adjoining room, "and they thought I had died, THE PRINCIPLE OF DIVINE HEALING |
| 18 | From that hour dated her conviction of the Principle of divine healing, and that it is as true to-day as it was in the days when Jesus of Nazareth walked the earth. "I felt |
| 21 | that the divine Spirit had wrought a miracle," she said, in reference to this experience. "How, I could not tell, but later I found it to be in perfect scientific accord with the |
| 24 | divine law." From 1866-'69 Mrs. Eddy withdrew from the "During this time," she said, in reply to my questions, |
| 27 | "the Bible was my only textbook. It answered my ques- Page 35 |
| 1 | it came to me with a new meaning, and suddenly I appre- hended the spiritual meaning of the teaching of Jesus and |
| 3 | the Principle and the law involved in spiritual Science and metaphysical healing - in a word - Christian Science." |
| 6 | Mrs. Eddy came to perceive that Christ's healing was not miraculous, but was simply a natural fulfilment of divine law - a law as operative in the world to-day as it was |
| 9 | nineteen hundred years ago. "Divine Science is begotten of spirituality," she says, "since only the 'pure in heart' can see God." |
| 12 | In writing of this experience, Mrs. Eddy has said: - "I had learned that thought must be spiritualized in order to apprehend Spirit. It must become honest, un- |
| 15 | selfish, and pure, in order to have the least understanding of God in divine Science. The first must become last. Our reliance upon material things must be transferred to |
| 18 | a perception of and dependence on spiritual things. For Spirit to be supreme in demonstration, it must be supreme in our affections, and we must be clad with divine power. |
| 21 | I had learned that Mind reconstructed the body, and that Through homoeopathy, too, Mrs. Eddy became con- |
| 24 | vinced of the Principle of Mind-healing, discovering that the more attenuated the drug, the more potent was its effects. |
| 27 | In 1877 Mrs. Glover married Dr. Asa Gilbert Eddy, of Londonderry, Vermont, a physician who had come into sympathy with her own views, and who was the first to |
| 30 | place "Christian Scientist" on the sign at his door. Dr. Page 36 |
| 1 | Eddy died in 1882, a year after her founding of the Meta- physical College in Boston, in which he taught. |
| 3 | The work in the Metaphysical College lasted nine years, and it was closed (in 1889) in the very zenith of its pros- perity, as Mrs. Eddy felt it essential to the deeper founda- |
| 6 | tion of her religious work to retire from active contact with the world. To this College came hundreds and hundreds of students, from Europe as well as this country. I was |
| 9 | present at the class lectures now and then, by Mrs. Eddy's kind invitation, and such earnestness of attention as was given to her morning talks by the men and women present |
| 12 | I never saw equalled. MRS. EDDY'S PERSONALITY On the evening that I first met Mrs. Eddy by her hos- |
| 15 | pitable courtesy, I went to her peculiarly fatigued. I came away in a state of exhilaration and energy that made me feel I could have walked any conceivable distance. I have |
| 18 | met Mrs. Eddy many times since then, and always with Several years ago Mrs. Eddy removed from Columbus |
| 21 | to Commonwealth Avenue, where, just beyond Massa- chusetts Avenue, at the entrance to the Back Bay Park, she bought one of the most beautiful residences in Boston. |
| 24 | The interior is one of the utmost taste and luxury, and the house is now occupied by Judge and Mrs. Hanna, who are the editors of The Christian Science Journal, a monthly |
| 27 | publication, and to whose courtesy I am much indebted Page 37 |
| 1 | give any information for The Inter-Ocean," remarked Mrs. Hanna, "for it is the great daily that is so fair and so |
| 3 | just in its attitude toward all questions." The increasing demands of the public on Mrs. Eddy |
| 6 | N. H., where she has a beautiful residence, called Pleasant View. Her health is excellent, and although her hair is white, she retains in a great degree her energy and power; |
| 9 | she takes a daily walk and drives in the afternoon. She personally attends to a vast correspondence; superin- tends the church in Boston, and is engaged on further |
| 12 | writings on Christian Science. In every sense she is the recognized head of the Christian Science Church. At the same time it is her most earnest aim to eliminate the ele- |
| 15 | ment of personality from the faith. "On this point, Mrs. Eddy feels very strongly," said a gentleman to me on Christmas eve, as I sat in the beautiful drawing-room, |
| 18 | where Judge and Mrs. Hanna, Miss Elsie Lincoln, the soprano for the choir of the new church, and one or two other friends were gathered. |
| 21 | "Mother feels very strongly," he continued, "the danger and the misfortune of a church depending on any one personality. It is difficult not to centre too closely around |
| 24 | a highly gifted personality." THE FIRST ASSOCIATION The first Christian Scientist Association was organized |
| 27 | on July 4, 1876, by seven persons, including Mrs. Eddy. Page 38 |
| 1 | members, and its charter obtained the following June.(1) Mrs. Eddy had preached in other parishes for five years |
| 3 | before being ordained in this church, which ceremony The first edition of Mrs. Eddy's book, Science and |
| 6 | Health, was issued in 1875. During these succeeding twenty years it has been greatly revised and enlarged, and it is now in its ninety-first edition. It consists of fourteen |
| 9 | chapters, whose titles are as follows: "Science, Theology, Medicine," "Physiology," "Footsteps of Truth," "Crea- tion," "Science of Being," "Christian Science and Spirit- |
| 12 | ualism," "Marriage," "Animal Magnetism," "Some Objections Answered," "Prayer," "Atonement and Eu- charist," "Christian Science Practice," "Teaching Chris- |
| 15 | tian Science," "Recapitulation." Key to the Scriptures, The Christian Scientists do not accept the belief we call |
| 18 | spiritualism. They believe those who have passed the change of death are in so entirely different a plane of con- sciousness that between the embodied and disembodied |
| 21 | there is no possibility of communication. They are diametrically opposed to the philosophy
of |
| 24 | theosophy. They hold with strict fidelity to what they Yet each and all these movements, however they may |
| 27 | differ among themselves, are phases of idealism and mani- It is good that each and all shall prosper, serving those |
| 30 | who find in one form of belief or another their best aid (1) Steps were taken to promote the Church of Christ, Scientist,
in April, May, Page 39 |
| 1 | and guidance, and that all meet on common ground in the great essentials of love to God and love to man as a signal |
| 3 | proof of the divine origin of humanity which finds no rest until it finds the peace of the Lord in spirituality. They all teach that one great truth, that |
| 6 | God's greatness flows around our incompleteness,
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING ------ |
| 9 | I add on the following page a little poem that I con- sider superbly sweet - from my friend, Miss Whiting, the talented author of "The World Beautiful." - M. B. |
| 12 | EDDY AT THE WINDOW [Written for the Traveller] |
| 15 | The sunset, burning low, Throws o'er the Charles its flood of golden light. Dimly, as in a dream, I watch the flow |
| 18 | Of waves of light. The splendor of the sky |
| 21 | And sculptured angels, on the gray church tower, Dimly, as in a dream, |
| 24 | I see the hurrying throng before me pass, Page 40 |
| 1 | Ah, love! I only know How thoughts of you forever cling to me: |
| 3 | I wonder how the seasons come and go LILIAN WHITING 6 April 15, 1888 ________________ [Boston Herald, January 7, 1895] [Extract] A TEMPLE GIVEN TO GOD - DEDICATION OF THE
NOVEL METHOD OF ENABLING SIX THOUSAND BELIEVERS TO ATTEND THE EXERCISES - THE SERVICE REPEATED FOUR With simple ceremonies, four times repeated, in the |
| 18 | nearly six thousand persons, the unique and costly edifice erected in Boston at Norway and Falmouth Streets as a home for The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and a |
| 21 | testimonial to the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Page 41 |
| 1 | The structure came forth from the hands of the artisans with every stone paid for - with an appeal, not for more |
| 3 | money, but for a cessation of the tide of contributions which continued to flow in after the full amount needed was received. From every State in the Union, and from |
| 6 | many lands, the love-offerings of the disciples of Christian Science came to help erect this beautiful structure, and more than four thousand of these contributors came to |
| 9 | Boston, from the far-off Pacific coast and the Gulf States and all the territory that lies between, to view the new- built temple and to listen to the Message sent them by |
| 12 | the teacher they revere. From all New England the members of the denomina-
|
| 15 | from the distant States came parties of forty and fifty. The large auditorium, with its capacity for holding from fourteen hundred to fifteen hundred persons, was hopelessly |
| 18 | incapable of receiving this vast throng, to say nothing of nearly a thousand local believers. Hence the service was repeated until all who wished had heard and seen; and |
| 21 | each of the four vast congregations filled the church to At 7 :30 a. m. the chimes in the great stone tower, which |
| 24 | rises one hundred and twenty-six feet above the earth, rung out their message of "On earth peace, good will toward men." |
| 27 | Old familiar hymns - "All hail the power of Jesus' name," and others such - were chimed until the hour for the dedication service had come. |
| 30 | At 9 a. m. the first congregation gathered. Before this Page 42 |
| 1 | service had closed the large vestry room and the spacious lobbies and the sidewalks around the church were all |
| 3 | filled with a waiting multitude. At l0:30 o'clock another service began, and at noon still another. Then there was an intermission, and at 3 p. m. the service was repeated |
| 6 | for the last time. There was scarcely even a minor variation in the
exer- |
| 9 | ever, the scene was rendered particularly interesting by the presence of several hundred children in the central pews. These were the little contributors to the building |
| 12 | fund, whose money was devoted to the "Mother's Room," a superb apartment intended for the sole use of Mrs. Eddy. These children are known in the church as the "Busy |
| 15 | Bees," and each of them wore a white satin badge with a golden beehive stamped upon it, and beneath the beehive the words, "Mother's Room," in gilt letters. |
| 18 | The pulpit end of the auditorium was rich with the adornment of flowers. On the wall of the choir gallery above the platform, where the organ is to be hereafter |
| 21 | placed, a huge seven-pointed star was hung - a star of lilies resting on palms, with a centre of white immortelles, upon which in letters of red were the words: "Love- |
| 24 | Children's Offering - 1894." In the choir and the steps of the platform were
potted |
| 27 | with ferns and pure white roses fastened with a broad ribbon bow. On its right was a large basket of white carnations resting on a mat of palms, and on its left a vase |
| 30 | filled with beautiful pink roses. Page 43 |
| 1 | Two combined choirs - that of First Church of Christ, Scientist, of New York, and the choir of the home church, |
| 3 | numbering thirty-five singers in all - led the singing, under the direction, respectively, of Mr. Henry Lincoln Case and Miss Elsie Lincoln. |
| 6 | Judge S. J. Hanna, editor of The Christian Science Journal, presided over the exercises. On the platform with him were Messrs. Ira O. Knapp, Joseph Armstrong, |
| 9 | Stephen A. Chase, and William B. Johnson, who compose the Board of Directors, and Mrs. Henrietta Clark Bemis, a distinguished elocutionist, and a native of Concord, New |
| 12 | Hampshire. The utmost simplicity marked the exercises. After
an |
| 15 | written by Mrs. Eddy for the corner-stone laying last spring, was sung by the congregation. Selections from the Scriptures and from "Science and Health with Key to the |
| 18 | Scriptures," were read by Judge Hanna and Dr. Eddy. A few minutes of silent prayer came next, followed
by |
| 21 | pretation as given in the Christian Science textbook. The sermon prepared for the occasion by Mrs. Eddy, |
| 24 | dedication, was then read by Mrs. Bemis. Mrs. Eddy remained at her home in Concord, N. H., during the day, because, as heretofore stated in The Herald, it is her |
| 27 | custom to discourage among her followers that sort of Before presenting the sermon, Mrs. Bemis read the fol- |
| 30 | lowing letter from a former pastor of the church: - Page 44 |
| 1 | "To Rev. Mary Baker Eddy "Dear Teacher, Leader, Guide: - 'Laus Deo, it is done!' |
| 3 | At last you begin to see the fruition of that you have worked, toiled, prayed for. The 'prayer in stone' is accomplished. Across two thousand miles of space, as mortal sense puts |
| 6 | it, I send my hearty congratulations. You are fully occu- pied, but I thought you would willingly pause for an instant to receive this brief message of congratulation. |
| 9 | Surely it marks an era in the blessed onward work of Christian Science. It is a most auspicious hour in your eventful career. While we all rejoice, yet the mother in |
| 12 | Israel, alone of us all, comprehends its full significance. "LANSON P. NORCROSS" ---------- |
| 15 | [Boston Sunday Globe, January 6, 1895] [Extract] STATELY HOME FOR BELIEVERS IN GOSPEL HEALING - |
| 18 | A WOMAN OF WEALTH WHO DEVOTES ALL TO HER Christian Science has shown its power over its students, |
| 21 | as they are called, by building a church by voluntary con- tributions, the first of its kind; a church which will be dedicated to-day with a quarter of a million dollars ex- |
| 24 | pended and free of debt. The money has flowed in from all parts of the United |
| 27 | coming until the custodian of funds cried "enough" and Page 45 |
| 1 | Men, women, and children lent a helping hand, some giving a mite and some substantial sums. Sacrifices were |
| 3 | made in many an instance which will never be known in Christian Scientists not only say that they can effect |
| 6 | cures of disease and erect churches, but add that they can get their buildings finished on time, even when the feat seems impossible to mortal senses. Read the following, |
| 9 | from a publication of the new denomination: - "One of the grandest and most helpful features
of this |
| 12 | close of the year every evidence of material sense declared that the church's completion within the year 1894 tran- scended human possibility. The predictions of workman |
| 15 | and onlooker alike were that it could not be completed before April or May of 1895. Much was the ridicule heaped upon the hopeful, trustful ones, who declared and |
| 18 | repeatedly asseverated to the contrary. This is indeed, then, a scientific demonstration. It has proved, in most striking manner, the oft-repeated declarations of our |
| 21 | textbooks, that the evidence of the mortal senses is A week ago Judge Hanna withdrew from the pastorate |
| 24 | of the church, saying he gladly laid down his responsibili- ties to be succeeded by the grandest of ministers - the Bible and "Science and Health with Key to the Scrip- |
| 27 | tures." This action, it appears, was the result of rules made by Mrs. Eddy. The sermons hereafter will consist of passages read from the two books by Readers, who will |
| 30 | be elected each year by the congregation. Page 46 |
| 1 | A story has been abroad that Judge Hanna was so elo- quent and magnetic that he was attracting listeners who |
| 3 | came to hear him preach, rather than in search of the truth as taught. Consequently the new rules were formu- lated. But at Christian Science headquarters this is denied; |
| 6 | Mrs. Eddy says the words of the judge speak to the point, In Mrs. Eddy's personal reminiscences, which are pub- |
| 9 | lished under the title of "Retrospection and Introspection," much is told of herself in detail that can only be touched upon in this brief sketch. |
| 12 | Aristocratic to the backbone, Mrs. Eddy takes delight in going back to the ancestral tree and in tracing those branches which are identified with good and great names |
| 15 | both in Scotland and England. Her family came to this country not long before
the |
| 18 | remembers as belonging to her grandparents was a heavy sword, encased in a brass scabbard, upon which had been inscribed the name of the kinsman upon whom the sword |
| 21 | had been bestowed by Sir William Wallace of mighty Mrs. Eddy applied herself, like other girls, to her studies, |
| 24 | though perhaps with an unusual zest, delighting in philos- ophy, logic, and moral science, as well as looking into the ancient languages, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. |
| 27 | Her last marriage was in the spring of 1877, when, at Lynn, Mass., she became the wife of Asa Gilbert Eddy. He was the first organizer of a Christian Science Sunday |
| 30 | School, of which he was the superintendent, and later he Page 47 |
| 1 | attracted the attention of many clergymen of other de- nominations by his able lectures upon Scriptural topics. |
| 3 | He died in 1882. Mrs. Eddy is known to her circle of pupils and
admirers |
| 6 | sect. It was called the Journal of Christian Science, and has had great circulation with the members of this fast- increasing faith. |
| 9 | In recounting her experiences as the pioneer of Chris- tian Science, she states that she sought knowledge concern- ing the physical side in this research through the different |
| 12 | schools of allopathy, homoeopathy, and so forth, without receiving any real satisfaction. No ancient or modern philosophy gave her any distinct statement of the Science |
| 15 | of Mind-healing. She claims that no human reason has been equal to the question. And she also defines care- fully the difference in the theories between faith-cure and |
| 18 | Christian Science, dwelling particularly upon the terms belief and understanding, which are the key words respec- tively used in the definitions of these two healing arts. |
| 21 | Besides her Boston home, Mrs. Eddy has a delightful country home one mile from the State House of New Hampshire's quiet capital, an easy driving distance for |
| 24 | her when she wishes to catch a glimpse of the world. But for the most part she lives very much retired, driving rather into the country, which is so picturesque all about Con- |
| 27 | cord and its surrounding villages. The big house, so delightfully remodelled and modern- |
| 30 | cepting the angles and pitch of the roof, is remarkably Page 48 |
| 1 | well placed upon a terrace that slopes behind the build- ings, while they themselves are in the midst of green |
| 3 | stretches of lawns, dotted with beds of flowering shrubs, Mrs. Eddy took the writer straight to her beloved "look- |
| 6 | out" - a broad piazza on the south side of the second story of the house, where she can sit in her swinging chair, revelling in the lights and shades of spring and summer |
| 9 | greenness. Or, as just then, in the gorgeous October coloring of the whole landscape that lies below, across the farm, which stretches on through an intervale of beautiful |
| 12 | meadows and pastures to the woods that skirt the valley It pleased her to point out her own birthplace. Straight |
| 15 | as the crow flies, from her piazza, does it lie on the brow of Bow hill, and then she paused and reminded the reporter that Congressman Baker from New Hampshire, her cousin, |
| 18 | was born and bred in that same neighborhood. The photograph of Hon. Hoke Smith, another distinguished relative, adorned the mantel. |
| 21 | Then my eye caught her family coat of arms and the diploma given her by the Society of the Daughters of the Revolution. |
| 24 | The natural and lawful pride that comes with a tincture of blue and brave blood, is perhaps one of her characteris- tics, as is many another well-born woman's. She had a |
| 27 | long list of worthy ancestors in Colonial and Revolutionary days, and the McNeils and General Knox figure largely in her genealogy, as well as the hero who killed the ill-starred |
| 30 | Paugus. Page 49 |
| 1 | This big, sunny room which Mrs. Eddy calls her den - or sometimes "Mother's room," when speaking of her |
| 3 | many followers who consider her their spiritual Leader - has the air of hospitality that marks its hostess herself. Mrs. Eddy has hung its walls with reproductions of some |
| 6 | of Europe's masterpieces, a few of which had been the Looking down from the windows upon the tree-tops |
| 9 | on the lower terrace, the reporter exclaimed: "You have lived here only four years, and yet from a barren waste of most unpromising ground has come forth all this |
| 12 | beauty!" "Four years!" she ejaculated; "two
and a half, only |
| 15 | pointing, she continued: "Look at those big elms! I had them brought here in warm weather, almost as big as they are now, and not one died." |
| 18 | Mrs. Eddy talked earnestly of her friendships . . . . She told something of her domestic arrangements, of how she had long wished to get away from her busy career in |
| 21 | Boston, and return to her native granite hills, there to build a substantial home that should do honor to that precinct of Concord. |
| 24 | She chose the stubbly old farm on the road from Con- cord, within one mile of the "Eton of America," St. Paul's School. Once bought, the will of the woman set at work, |
| 27 | and to-day a strikingly well-kept estate is the first impres- She employs a number of men to keep the grounds and |
| 30 | farm in perfect order, and it was pleasing to learn that this Page 50 |
| 1 | rich woman is using her money to promote the welfare of industrious workmen, in whom she takes a vital interest. |
| 3 | Mrs. Eddy believes that "the laborer is worthy of his hire," and, moreover, that he deserves to have a home and family of his own. Indeed, one of her motives in buying |
| 6 | so large an estate was that she might do something for the toilers, and thus add her influence toward the advancement of better home life and citizenship. |
| 9 | [Boston Transcript, December 31,
1894] [Extract] The growth of Christian Science is properly marked by |
| 12 | the erection of a visible house of worship in this city, which will be dedicated to-morrow. It has cost two hundred thousand dollars, and no additional sums outside of the |
| 15 | subscriptions are asked for. This particular phase of religious belief has impressed itself upon a large and in- creasing number of Christian people, who have been |
| 18 | tempted to examine its principles, and doubtless have been comforted and strengthened by them. Any new move- ment will awaken some sort of interest. There are many |
| 21 | who have worn off the novelty and are thoroughly carried away with the requirements, simple and direct as they are, of Christian Science. The opposition against it from the |
| 24 | so-called orthodox religious bodies keeps up a while, but after a little skirmishing, finally subsides. No one religious body holds the whole of truth, and whatever is likely to |
| 27 | show even some one side of it will gain followers and live Page 51 |
| 1 | Christian Science does not strike all as a system of truth. If it did, it would be a prodigy. Neither does the Christian |
| 3 | faith produce the same impressions upon all. Freedom to believe or to dissent is a great privilege in these days. So when a number of conscientious followers apply themselves |
| 6 | to a matter like Christian Science, they are enjoying that liberty which is their inherent right as human beings, and though they cannot escape censure, yet they are to be |
| 9 | numbered among the many pioneers who are searching after religious truth. There is really nothing settled. Every truth is more or less in a state of agitation. The |
| 12 | many who have worked in the mine of knowledge are glad to welcome others who have different methods, and with them bring different ideas. |
| 15 | It is too early to predict where this movement will go, and how greatly it will affect the well-established methods. That it has produced a sensation in religious circles, and |
| 18 | called forth the implements of theological warfare, is very well known. While it has done this, it may, on the other hand, have brought a benefit. Ere this many a new project |
| 21 | in religious belief has stirred up feeling, but as time has The erection of this temple will doubtless help on the |
| 24 | growth of its principles. Pilgrims from everywhere will go there in search of truth, and some may be satisfied and some will not. Christian Science cannot absorb the world's |
| 27 | thought. It may get the share of attention it deserves, but it can only aspire to take its place alongside other great demonstrations of religious belief which have done some- |
| 30 | thing good for the sake of humanity. Page 52 |
| 1 | Wonders will never cease. Here is a church whose treasurer has to send out word that no sums except those |
| 3 | already subscribed can be received! The Christian Scientists have a faith of the mustard-seed variety. What a pity some of our practical Christian folk have not a |
| 6 | faith approximate to that of these "impractical" Christian ----------- [Jackson Patriot, Jackson, Mich., January 20, 1895]</ |