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
of the world's opinion.

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
in Science.

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,
and records deeply engraven, great is the value thereof.

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
be present in propria persona? Were I present, methinks

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
Mind.

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
crown the tree with blossoms.

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
Chicago, used, in all its public sessions, my form of prayer

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
to the Scriptures," his athletic mind, scholarly and serene,
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
palpably working in the sermons, Sunday Schools, and
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
Christianity. It presents to the understanding, not matter,
9

but Mind; not the deified drug, but the goodness of God -
healing and saving mankind.

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
us to return to Japan."

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
dreamt of in your philosophy."


Also that renowned apostle of anti-slavery, Wendell
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-
of this city is the capital. To-day, as of yore, her laws
6

have befriended progress.

Yet when I recall the past, - how the gospel of healing
was simultaneously praised and persecuted in Boston, -
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
perish, for false prophets in the present as in the past
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
demand. Little hands, never before devoted to menial
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,
when your tireless tasks are done - well done - no Del-
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.
Easton, the church services were maintained by excellent
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-
urer after the Dedicatory Services.

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;
who healeth all thy diseases."

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
on the rock of Christ, the true, the spiritual idea, - the
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
whose means, energies, and prayers helped erect The
Mother Church, find within it home, and heaven.

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-
ence indicated close attention.

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-
nify the Lord of Hosts. What shall we say of the mighty
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
their sin through suffering. The sin, which one has made
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
cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought
forth the man child.

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
one extreme follows another.

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
mouth.

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
wave.

When God heals the sick or the sinning, they should
27

know the great benefit which Mind has wrought. They
should also know the great delusion of mortal mind, when
it makes them sick or sinful. Many are willing to open

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
ways of accomplishing iniquity.

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
with good. Know thyself, and God will supply the wisdom
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,
It has none,
Laus Deo!

Page 17

"FEED MY SHEEP"
Shepherd, show me how to go
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 -
Shepherd, wash them clean.

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,
I love to be.

Page 19
1 My prayer, some daily good to do
To Thine, for Thee;
3

An offering pure of Love, whereto
God leadeth me.

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
prosperity of this church is unsurpassed.

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
blesses.

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


Boston, Mass., December 28. - Special Correspond-
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-
ing inscription carved in bold relief: -

"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,
with trimmings of the pink granite of New Hampshire,
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
carved. The windows of stained glass are very rich in

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
temple. In the ceiling is a sunburst with a seven-pointed
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
healing of the wife of the donor.

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,
which will be kept always burning day and night.(1) Lead-

(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
it are three large class-rooms and the pastor's study.

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
Health.

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
raising of Lazarus.
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
at some forty thousand dollars.

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
church in this city, which held its meetings in Chickering

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
speak, a little later, in this article.

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
interpretation.

THE CHURCH MEMBERS
27

Later I was told that almost the entire congregation was
composed of persons who had either been themselves, or

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
tall, slender, and as flexible in movement as that of a Del-

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
alone are significant.

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
character. One of her brothers, Albert Baker, graduated
at Dartmouth and achieved eminence as a lawyer.

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
bidden her, and after that it ceased.

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
early youth.

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
time until 1866 no special record is to be made.

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,
and that it was my apparition," she said.

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
world to meditate, to pray, to search the Scriptures.

"During this time," she said, in reply to my questions,
27

"the Bible was my only textbook. It answered my ques-
tions as to the process by which I was restored to health;

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
nothing else could. All Science is a revelation."

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
this experience repeated.

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
for some of the data of this paper. "It is a pleasure to

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
have been, it may be, one factor in her removal to Concord,
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.
In April, 1879, the church was founded with twenty-six

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
took place in 1881.

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,
Genesis, Apocalypse, and Glossary.

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
Karma and of reincarnation, which are the tenets of
24

theosophy. They hold with strict fidelity to what they
believe to be the literal teachings of Christ.

Yet each and all these movements, however they may
27

differ among themselves, are phases of idealism and mani-
festations of a higher spirituality seeking expression.

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,
and June; formal organization was accomplished and the charter obtained in
August, 1879.

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,
Round our restlessness, His rest.

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
Repeats its glory in the river's flow;
21

And sculptured angels, on the gray church tower,
Gaze on the world below.

Dimly, as in a dream,
24

I see the hurrying throng before me pass,
But 'mid them all I only see one face,
Under the meadow grass.

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
Beyond the sapphire sea?

LILIAN WHITING

6 April 15, 1888

________________

[Boston Herald, January 7, 1895]

[Extract]

A TEMPLE GIVEN TO GOD - DEDICATION OF THE
MOTHER CHURCH OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE

NOVEL METHOD OF ENABLING SIX THOUSAND BELIEVERS TO

ATTEND THE EXERCISES - THE SERVICE REPEATED FOUR
TIMES - SERMON BY REV. MARY BAKER EDDY, FOUNDER OF
THE DENOMINATION - BEAUTIFUL ROOM WHICH THE CHILDREN
BUILT

With simple ceremonies, four times repeated, in the
presence of four different congregations, aggregating
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
Science, Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, was yesterday dedicated
to the worship of God.

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-
tion gathered; New York sent its hundreds, and even
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
repletion.

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-
cises at any one of these services. At 10:30 a. m., how-
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
palms and ferns and Easter lilies. The desk was wreathed
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
organ voluntary, the hymn, "Laus Deo, it is done!"
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
the recitation of the Lord's Prayer, with its spiritual inter-
21

pretation as given in the Christian Science textbook.

The sermon prepared for the occasion by Mrs. Eddy,
which was looked forward to as the chief feature of the
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
personal worship which religious teachers so often receive.

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.
"Yours lovingly,

"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
CHURCH WORK

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
States and Canada without any special appeal, and it kept
27

coming until the custodian of funds cried "enough" and
refused to accept any further checks by mail or otherwise.

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
this world.

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
glorious consummation is this: that one month before the
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
unreliable."

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 gran