BOSTON, U.S.A.
|
THE Rules and By-Laws in the Manual of The
First Church of Christ,
Scientist, Boston, originated not in solemn
conclave as in ancient
Sanhedrim. They were not arbitrary opinions nor
dictatorial demands,
such as one person might impose on another. They were
impelled
by a power not one's own, were written at different dates, and
as the occasion required. They sprang from necessity, the logic
of events,
- from the immediate demand for them as a help that
must be supplied to
maintain the dignity and defense of our Cause;
hence their simple,
scientific basis, and detail so requisite
to demonstrate genuine Christian
Science, and which will do for
the race what absolute doctrines destined
for future generations
might not accomplish.
Tenets
of The
Mother Church
The
First Church of Christ, Scientist |
| 1 |
To be signed by those uniting with The
First
Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass. |
| 3 |
1. As adherents of Truth, we take the
inspired
Word of the Bible as our sufficient guide to eternal
Life. |
| 6 |
2. We acknowledge and adore one supreme
and
infinite God. We acknowledge His Son, one Christ;
the Holy Ghost or
divine Comforter; and man in |
| 9 |
God's image and likeness.
3. We acknowledge God's forgiveness of sin
in
the destruction of sin and the spiritual understanding |
| 12 |
that casts out evil as unreal. But the
belief in sin is
punished so long as the belief lasts.
4. We acknowledge Jesus' atonement as the
evi- |
| 15 |
dence of divine, efficacious Love,
unfolding man's
unity with God through Christ Jesus the Way-shower;
From Science and Health with Key to the
Scriptures by Mary Baker
Eddy.
Page
16 |
| 1 |
and we acknowledge that man is saved
through Christ,
through Truth, Life, and Love as demonstrated by the |
| 3 |
Galilean Prophet in healing the sick and
overcoming
sin and death.
5. We acknowledge that the crucifixion of
Jesus |
| 6 |
and his resurrection served to uplift
faith to under-
stand eternal Life, even the allness of Soul, Spirit,
and
the nothingness of matter.
9 6. And we solemnly promise to watch, and
pray
for that Mind to be in us which was also in Christ
Jesus; to do
unto others as we would have them do |
| 12 |
unto us; and to be merciful, just, and
pure.
MARY BAKER EDDY
Page
17
Historical Sketch |
| 1 |
In the spring of 1879, a little band of
earnest
seekers after Truth went into deliberations over |
| 3 |
forming a church without creeds, to be
called the
CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST. They were mem-
bers of
evangelical churches, and students of Mrs. |
| 6 |
Mary Baker Eddy in Christian Science, and
were
known as "Christian Scientists."
At a meeting of the Christian Scientist
Association, |
| 9 |
April 19, 1879, on motion of Mrs. Eddy, it
was
voted, -- To organize a church designed to com-
memorate the word
and works of our Master, which |
| 12 |
should reinstate primitive Christianity
and its lost
element of healing.
Mrs. Eddy was appointed on the committee
to |
| 15 |
draft the Tenets of the Mother Church --
the chief
corner stone whereof is, that Christian Science, as
taught
and demonstrated by our Master, casts out |
| 18 |
error, heals the sick, and restores the
lost Israel:
Page
18 |
| 1 |
for "the stone which the builders rejected,
the same
is become the head of the corner." |
| 3 |
The charter for the Church was obtained
June,
1879,* and the same month the members, twenty-six
in number,
extended a call to Mary Baker Eddy |
| 6 |
to become their pastor. She accepted the
call,
and was ordained A. D. 1881. Although walking
through deep
waters, the little Church went steadily |
| 9 |
on, increasing in numbers, and at every
epoch
saying,
"Hitherto hath the Lord helped us."
|
| 12 |
On the twenty-third day of September, 1892,
at
the request of Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, twelve
of her students and
Church members met and re- |
| 15 |
organized, under her jurisdiction, the
Christian
Science Church and named it, THE FIRST CHURCH
OF CHRIST,
SCIENTIST. |
| 18 |
At this meeting twenty others of Mrs.
Eddy's
students and members of her former Church were
elected members
of this Church, -- those with others |
| 21 |
that have since been elected were known as
"First
Members." The Church Tenets, Rules, and By-
Laws, as prepared by
Mrs. Eddy, were adopted. A |
| 24 |
By-Law adopted March 17, 1903, changed
the
title of "First Members" to "Executive Members."
(On July 8, 1908,
the By-Laws pertaining to "Ex- |
| 27 |
ecutive Members" were repealed.)
Page
19 |
| 1 |
THE FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, IN
BOS-
TON, MASS., is designed to be built on the Rock, |
| 3 |
Christ; even the understanding and
demonstration
of divine Truth, Life, and Love, healing and saving
the
world from sin and death; thus to reflect in some |
| 6 |
degree the Church Universal and
Triumphant.
Page 20 ** No page found
**
Page
21
CHURCH OFFICERS
Rev.
MARY BAKER EDDY
Pastor Emeritus
Christian Science Board
of Directors
IRA O. KNAPP
STEPHEN A. CHASE
ARCHIBALD McCLELLAN
ALLISON V. STEWART
JOHN V. DITTEMORE
WILLIAM D. BALDWIN
President
Judge CLIFFORD P. SMITH
First Reader
Conducts services and reads
from
the Christian Science
textbook,
"SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH
KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES" by Mary Baker
Eddy
Mrs. CAROL HOYT POWERS
Second Reader
Reads from the
SCRIPTURES
JOHN V. DITTEMORE
Clerk
The First Church of Christ,
Scientist, Falmouth, Norway,
and St. Paul Streets,
Boston, Mass.
STEPHEN A. CHASE
Treasurer
Box 56, Fall River,
Mass.
Page
25
Church
By-Laws
CHURCH
OFFICERS
Article I -
NAMES, ELECTION, AND DUTIES
Names. SECTION 1. The Church
officers shall
consist of the Pastor Emeritus, a Board of Direc- |
| 6 |
tors, a President, a Clerk, a Treasurer,
and two
Readers.
President. SECT. 2. The President
shall be |
| 9 |
elected, subject to the approval of the
Pastor
Emeritus, by the Board of Directors(1) on Mon-
day preceding the
annual meeting of the |
| 12 |
Church. The President shall hold office for
one
year, and the same person is eligible for elec-
tion but once in
three years. |
| 15 |
Clerk and Treasurer. SECT. 3. The
term of
office for the Clerk and the Treasurer of this
(1) See under "Deed of Trust" for
incorporation of the "Christian
Science Board of Directors."
Page
26 |
| 1 |
Church (also for the editors and the
manager
of The Christian Science Publishing Society, |
| 3 |
and the manager of the general Committee
on
Publication in Boston) is one year each, dating
from the time of
election to office. Incumbents |
| 6 |
who have served one year or more, may be
re-
elected, or new officers elected, at the annual
meeting held for
this purpose, by a unanimous |
| 9 |
vote of the Christian Science Board of
Direc-
tors and the consent of the Pastor Emeritus
given in her own
handwriting. |
| 12 |
Readers. SECT. 4. Every third year
Read-
ers shall be elected in The Mother Church by
the Board of
Directors, which shall inform the |
| 15 |
Pastor Emeritus of the names of its
candidates
before they are elected; and if she objects, said
candidates
shall not be chosen. The Directors |
| 18 |
shall fix the salaries of the Readers.
Directors. SECT. 5. The Christian
Science
Board of Directors shall consist of five members. |
| 21 |
They shall fill a vacancy occurring on that
Board
after the candidate is approved by the Pastor
Emeritus. A
majority vote or the request of |
| 24 |
Mrs. Eddy shall dismiss a member.
Members
shall neither report the discussions of this Board,
nor those
with Mrs. Eddy.
Page
27 |
| 1 |
Church Business. SECT. 6. The
business
of The Mother Church shall be transacted by |
| 3 |
its Christian Science Board of Directors.
The
manager of the general Committee on Publi-
cation in the United
States shall order no spe- |
| 6 |
cial action to be taken by said Committee
that
is not named in the Manual of this Church
without consulting with
the full Board of Di- |
| 9 |
rectors of The Mother Church and
receiving
the written consent of said Board.
Publishing Buildings. SECT. 7. It
shall be |
| 12 |
the duty of the Christian Science Board of
Di-
rectors to provide a suitable building for the
publication of
The Christian Science Journal, |
| 15 |
Christian Science Sentinel, Der Herold
der
Christian Science, and all other Christian Sci-
ence literature
published by The Christian Science |
| 18 |
Publishing Society. It shall also be the
duty
of the Christian Science Board of Directors to
provide suitable
rooms, conveniently and pleas- |
| 21 |
antly located in the same building, for the
pub-
lication and sale of the books of which Mary
Baker Eddy is, or may
be, the author, and of |
| 24 |
other literature connected therewith.
Trusteeships and Syndicates. SECT.
8.
Boards of Trustees and Syndicates may be
Page
28 |
| 1 |
formed by The Mother Church, subject to
the
approval of the Pastor Emeritus. |
| 3 |
Duties of Church Officers. SECT. 9.
Law
constitutes government, and disobedience to the
laws of The Mother
Church must ultimate in |
| 6 |
annulling its Tenets and By-Laws. Without
a
proper system of government and form of ac-
tion, nations,
individuals, and religion are un- |
| 9 |
protected; hence the necessity of this
By-Law
and the warning of Holy Writ: "That servant,
which knew his
lord's will, and prepared not |
| 12 |
himself, neither did according to his
will, shall
be beaten with many stripes."
It is the duty of the Christian Science
Board of |
| 15 |
Directors to watch and make sure that the
offi-
cers of this Church perform the functions of
their several
offices promptly and well. If an |
| 18 |
officer fails to fulfil all the obligations
of his
office, the Board of Directors shall immediately
call a meeting
and notify this officer either to |
| 21 |
resign his place or to perform his office
faith-
fully; then failing to do either, said officer shall
be
dismissed from this Church, and his dismis- |
| 24 |
sal shall be written on the Church
records.
It is the duty of any member of this
Church,
and especially of one who has been or who is
Page
29 |
| 1 |
the First Reader of a church, to inform
the
Board of Directors of the failure of the Com- |
| 3 |
mittee on Publication or of any other
officer in
this Church to perform his of official duties. A
Director
shall not make known the name of the |
| 6 |
complainant.
If the Christian Science Board of
Directors fails
to fulfil the requirements of this By-Law, and a |
| 9 |
member of this Church or the Pastor
Emeritus
shall complain thereof to the Clerk and the com-
plaint be
found valid, the Directors shall resign |
| 12 |
their office or perform their functions
faithfully.
Failing to do thus, the Pastor Emeritus shall ap-
point
five suitable members of this Church to fill |
| 15 |
the vacancy. The salary of the members of
the
Board of Directors shall be at present two thou-
sand five hundred
dollars each annually.
Article II -
READERS OF THE MOTHER CHURCH
Election. SECTION 1. The
Readers for The |
| 21 |
Mother Church shall be a man and a
woman,
one to read the BIBLE, and one to read SCIENCE
AND HEALTH WITH
KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES.
Page
30 |
| 1 |
Eligibility. SECT. 2. The Directors
shall
select intelligible Readers who are exemplary |
| 3 |
Christians and good English scholars.
They
must be members of The Mother Church.
Removal. SECT. 3. If a Reader in
The |
| 6 |
Mother Church be found at any time
inadequate
or unworthy, he or she shall be removed from
office by a
majority vote of the Board of Di- |
| 9 |
rectors and the consent of the Pastor
Emeritus,
and the vacancy supplied.
First Reader's Residence. SECT. 4.
Unless |
| 12 |
Mrs. Eddy requests otherwise, the First
Reader
of The Mother Church shall occupy, during his
term of
Readership, the house of the Pastor |
| 15 |
Emeritus, No. 3 85 Commonwealth Avenue,
Bos-
ton. The Board of Directors shall pay from
the Church funds the
taxes and rent on this |
| 18 |
property; the Board shall attend to the
insur-
ance before it expires, suitably furnish the
house, and keep the
property in good repair, so |
| 21 |
long as Mrs. Eddy does not occupy the
house
herself and the occupants are satisfactory to
her.
Page
31
Article III -
DUTIES OF READERS OF THE MOTHER CHURCH AND OF ITS BRANCH
CHURCHES
Moral Obligations. SECTION l. The
Readers
of The Mother Church and of all its branch |
| 6 |
churches must devote a suitable portion of
their
time to preparation for the reading of the Sunday
lesson, - a
lesson on which the prosperity of |
| 9 |
Christian Science largely depends. They
must
keep themselves unspotted from the world, -
uncontaminated with
evil, - that the mental at- |
| 12 |
mosphere they exhale shall promote health
and
holiness, even that spiritual animus so universally
needed. |
| 15 |
First Readers' Duties. SECT. 2. It
shall be
the duty of the First Readers to conduct the
principal part of
the Sunday services, and the |
| 18 |
Wednesday evening meetings.
Suitable Selections. SECT. 3. The
First
Readers shall read, as a part of the Wednesday |
| 21 |
evening services, selections from the
SCRIPTURES,
and from SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO
THE SCRIPTURES.
Page
32 |
| 1 |
Order of Reading. SECT. 4. The First
Read-
ers in the Christian Science churches shall read |
| 3 |
the correlative texts in SCIENCE AND
HEALTH
WITH KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES; and the Second
Readers shall read
the BIBLE texts. The readings |
| 6 |
from the SCRIPTURES shall precede the
readings
from SCIENCE AND HEALTH. The Readers shall
not read from
copies or manuscripts, but from |
| 9 |
the books.
Naming Book and Author. SECT. 5.
The
Readers of SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO |
| 12 |
THE SCRIPTURES, before commencing to
read
from this book, shall distinctly announce the full
title of the
book and give the author's name. |
| 15 |
Such announcement shall be made but
once
during the lesson.
Readers in Branch Churches. SECT.
6. |
| 18 |
These Readers shall be members of The
Mother
Church. They shall read understandingly and
be well educated.
They shall make no remarks |
| 21 |
explanatory of the LESSON-SERMON at any
time,
but they shall read all notices and remarks that
may be printed
in the CHRISTIAN SCIENCE QUAR- |
| 24 |
TERLY. This By-Law applies to Readers in
all
the branch churches.
Enforcement of By-Laws. SECT. 7. It
shall
Page
33 |
| 1 |
be the duty of every member of The
Mother
Church, who is a First Reader in a Church of |
| 3 |
Christ, Scientist, to enforce the
discipline and
by-laws of the church in which he is Reader.
A Reader not a Leader. SECT. 8. The
Church |
| 6 |
Reader shall not be a Leader, but he shall
main-
tain the Tenets, Rules, and discipline of the
Church. A Reader
shall not be a President of |
| 9 |
a church.
Page
34
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
Article IV -
QUALIFICATIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP
Believe in
Christian Science. SECTION l.
To become a
member of The Mother Church, |
| 6 |
The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in
Bos-
ton, Mass., the applicant must be a believer in
the doctrines of
Christian Science, according to |
| 9 |
the platform and teaching contained in the
Chris-
tian Science textbook, SCIENCE AND HEALTH
WITH KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES, by Rev. Mary |
| 12 |
Baker Eddy. The BIBLE, together with
SCIENCE
AND HEALTH and other works by Mrs. Eddy,
shall be his only
textbooks for self-instruction |
| 15 |
in Christian Science, and for teaching and
prac-
tising metaphysical healing.
Free from Other Denominations.
SECT. 2. |
| 13 |
This Church will receive a member of
another
Church of Christ, Scientist, but not a church
member from a
different denomination until that |
| 21 |
membership is dissolved.
Page
35 |
| 1 |
Children when Twelve Years Old.
SECT. 3.
Children who have arrived at the age of twelve |
| 3 |
years, who are approved, and whose
applications
are countersigned by one of Mrs. Eddy's loyal stu-
dents,
by a Director, or by a student of the Board |
| 6 |
of Education, may be admitted to
membership
with The Mother Church.
Article V -
APPLICATIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP
Students of the
College. SECTION 1. Appli-
cations for membership with The Mother
Church |
| 12 |
from students of the Massachusetts
Metaphysical
College who studied with Rev. Mary Baker Eddy,
shall be
signed by the Christian Science Board |
| 15 |
of Directors as evidence of the loyalty of
the
applicants .
Other Students. SECT. 2. Applicants
for |
| 18 |
membership who have not studied Christian
Sci-
ence with Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, can unite
with this Church only by
approval from students |
| 21 |
of Mrs. Eddy, loyal to the teachings of
the text-
book, SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE
Page
36 |
| 1 |
SCRIPTURES, or from members of The
Mother
Church, as provided in Article VI, Sect. 2, of |
| 3 |
these By-Laws.
Students' Pupils. SECT. 3.
Applications for
membership with The Mother Church, coming |
| 6 |
from pupils of loyal students who have
taken
the Primary or Normal Course at the Massa-
chusetts Metaphysical
College or in the Board |
| 9 |
of Education, or from pupils of those who
have
passed an examination by the Board of Educa-
tion, shall have the
approval and signature of |
| 12 |
their teachers, except in such cases as
are pro-
vided for in Sect. 4 of this Article.
Exceptional Cases. SECT. 4. Loyal
Chris- |
| 15 |
tian Scientists whose teachers are
deceased, ab-
sent, or disloyal, - or those whose teachers, for
insufficient cause, refuse to endorse their appli- |
| 18 |
cations for membership with The Mother
Church,
- can apply to the Clerk of this Church, and
present to him a
recommendation signed by three |
| 21 |
members thereof in good standing, after
which,
the unanimous vote of the Board of Directors
may admit said
applicant to membership. |
| 21 |
Addressed to Clerk. SECT. 5. All
applica-
tions for membership must be addressed to the
Clerk of the
Church.
Page
37 |
| 1 |
Endorsing Applications. SECT. 6. A
mem-
ber of The Mother Church shall not endorse nor |
| 3 |
countersign an application for membership
there-
with until after the blank has been properly filled
out by an
applicant. A member who violates |
| 6 |
this By-Law shall be disciplined.
Notice of Rejection. SECT. 7. If an
applica-
tion for membership with The First Church of |
| 9 |
Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., is
rejected, the
Clerk of the Church shall send to the applicant a
notice
of such rejection; but neither the Clerk |
| 12 |
nor the Church shall be obliged to report
the
cause for rejection.
Article VI -
RECOMMENDATION AND ELECTION
Pupils of Normal Students. SECTION
1.
One Normal student cannot recommend the pupil |
| 18 |
of another Normal student, so long as both
are
loyal to their Leader and to the Christian Science
textbook, except
as provided for in Article V, |
| 21 |
Sect. 4.
Members of The Mother Church. SECT.
2.
Only members of The Mother Church are quali-
Page
38 |
| 1 |
fied to approve for membership individuals
who
are known to them to be Christians, and faith- |
| 3 |
ful, loyal students of the textbook,
SCIENCE AND
HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES. If the
approver is not a
loyal student of Mrs. Eddy, a |
| 6 |
Director of this Church, or a student of
the Board
of Education who holds a degree, the application
must be
countersigned by one of these.
9 Election. SECT. 3. Applicants for
member-
ship in this Church, whose applications are
correctly prepared,
may be elected by majority |
| 12 |
vote of the Christian Science Board of
Direc-
tors at the semi-annual meetings held for this
purpose.
Article VII
-PROBATIONARY MEMBERSHIP
Members who once
Withdrew. SECTION 1. |
| 18 |
Individuals who have heretofore been
members
of this Church, or were members of the Church
of Christ,
Scientist, organized in 1879 by Mary |
| 21 |
Baker Eddy, but who have voluntarily
with-
drawn, may be received into this Church on one
year's probation,
provided they are willing and
Page
39 |
| 1 |
anxious to live according to its
requirements and
make application for membership according to |
| 3 |
its By-Laws. If, at the expiration of said
one
year, they are found worthy, they shall be re-
ceived into full
membership, but if not found |
| 6 |
worthy their applications shall be
void.
Members once Dismissed. SECT. 2. A
full
member or a probationary member, who has |
| 9 |
been excommunicated once, and who
afterward,
when sufficient time has elapsed thoroughly to
test his
sincerity, gives due evidence of having |
| 12 |
genuinely repented and of being radically
re-
formed, shall be eligible to probationary mem-
bership upon a
unanimous vote of the Christian |
| 15 |
Science Board of Directors.
Ineligible for Probation. SECT. 3.
If a
member has been twice notified of his excom- |
| 18 |
munication, he shall not again be received
into
this Church.
Page
40
DISCIPLINE
Article VIII
-GUIDANCE OF MEMBERS
A Rule for Motives and Acts.
SECTION 1.
Neither animosity nor mere personal attachment |
| 6 |
should impel the motives or acts of the
members
of The Mother Church. In Science, divine Love
alone governs
man; and a Christian Scientist |
| 9 |
reflects the sweet amenities of Love, in
rebuk-
ing sin, in true brotherliness, charitableness, and
forgiveness.
The members of this Church should |
| 12 |
daily watch and pray to be delivered
from
all evil, from prophesying, judging, condemn-
ing, counseling,
influencing or being influenced |
| 15 |
erroneously.
To be Read in Church. SECT. 2.
The
above Church Rule shall be read in The Mother |
| 18 |
Church and in the branch churches by the
First
Reader on the first Sunday of each month.
On Communion day the
Church Tenets are to |
| 21 |
be read.
Page
41 |
| 1 |
Christ Jesus the Ensample. SECT. 3.
He
who dated the Christian era is the Ensample in |
| 3 |
Christian Science. Careless comparison or
irrev-
erent reference to Christ Jesus is abnormal in a
Christian
Scientist, and is prohibited. When it is |
| 6 |
necessary to show the great gulf between
Chris-
tian Science and theosophy, hypnotism, or spirit-
ualism, do it,
but without hard words. The wise |
| 9 |
man saith, "A soft answer turneth away
wrath."
However despitefully used and misrepresented
by the churches or
the press, in return employ |
| 12 |
no violent invective, and do good unto
your
enemies when the opportunity occurs. A de-
parture from this rule
disqualifies a member for |
| 15 |
office in the Church or on the Board of
Lec-
tureship, and renders this member liable to dis-
cipline and,
possibly, dismissal from The Mother |
| 18 |
Church.
Daily Prayer. SECT. 4. It shall be
the duty
of every member of this Church to pray each |
| 21 |
day: "Thy kingdom come;" let the reign
of
divine Truth, Life, and Love be established in
me, and rule out of
me all sin; and may Thy |
| 24 |
Word enrich the affections of all mankind,
and
govern them!
Page
42
Prayer in
Church. SECT. 5. The prayers in
Christian
Science churches shall be offered for |
| 3 |
the congregations collectively and
exclusively.
Alertness to Duty. SECT. 6. It
shall be the
duty of every member of this Church to defend |
| 6 |
himself daily against aggressive mental
sugges-
tion, and not be made to forget nor to neglect
his duty to God,
to his Leader, and to mankind. |
| 9 |
BY his works he shall be judged, - and
justified
or condemned.
One Christ. SECT. 7. In accordance
with |
| 12 |
the Christian Science textbooks, - the
BIBLE,
and SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES, - and in
accord with all of Mrs. |
| 15 |
Eddy's teachings, members of this Church
shall
neither entertain a belief nor signify a belief in
more than one
Christ, even that Christ whereof |
| 18 |
the Scripture beareth testimony.
No Malpractice. SECT. 8. Members
will not
intentionally or knowingly mentally malpractise, |
| 21 |
inasmuch as Christian Science can only be
prac-
tised according to the Golden Rule: "All things
whatsoever ye
would that men should do to you, |
| 24 |
do ye even so to them." (Matt. 7:12.)
A member of The Mother Church who men-
tally malpractises upon or treats our Leader or
Page
43 |
| 1 |
her staff without her or their consent
shall be dis-
ciplined, and a second offense as aforesaid shall |
| 3 |
cause the name of said member to be
dropped
forever from The Mother Church.
Formulas Forbidden. SECT. 9. No
member |
| 6 |
shall use written formulas, nor permit his
patients
or pupils to use them, as auxiliaries to teach-
ing Christian
Science or for healing the sick. |
| 9 |
Whatever is requisite for either is
contained in
the books of the Discoverer and Founder of
Christian
Science. Sometimes she may strengthen |
| 12 |
the faith by a written text as no one else
can.
No Adulterating Christian Science.
SECT. 10.
A member of this Church shall not publish |
| 15 |
profuse quotations from Mary Baker
Eddy's
copyrighted works without her permission, and
shall not
plagiarize her writings. This By-Law |
| 18 |
not only calls more serious attention to
the com-
mandment of the Decalogue, but tends to pre-
vent Christian
Science from being adulterated. |
| 21 |
No Incorrect Literature. SECT. 11. A
mem-
ber of this Church shall neither buy, sell, nor cir-
culate
Christian Science literature which is not |
| 24 |
correct in its statement of the divine
Principle
and rules and the demonstration of Christian
Science. Also
the spirit in which the writer
Page
44 |
| 1 |
has written his literature shall be
definitely con-
sidered. His writings must show strict adher- |
| 3 |
ence to the Golden Rule, or his literature
shall
not be adjudged Christian Science. A departure
from the spirit or
letter of this By-Law involves |
| 6 |
schisms in our Church and the possible
loss, for
a time, of Christian Science.
Obnoxious Books. SECT. 12. A member
of |
| 9 |
this Church shall not patronize a
publishing
house or bookstore that has for sale obnoxious
books. |
| 12 |
Per Capita Tax. SECT. 13. Every
member
of The Mother Church shall pay annually a per
capita tax of not
less than one dollar, which shall |
| 15 |
be forwarded each year to the Church
Treasurer.
Church Periodicals. SECT. 14. It
shall be the
privilege and duty of every member, who can |
| 18 |
afford it, to subscribe for the periodicals
which
are the organs of this Church; and it shall be
the duty of the
Directors to see that these period- |
| 21 |
icals are ably edited and kept abreast of
the
times.
Church Organizations Ample. SECT.
15. |
| 24 |
Members of this Church shall not unite
with
organizations which impede their progress in
Christian Science.
God requires our whole heart,
Page
45 |
| 1 |
and he supplies within the wide channels of
The
Mother Church dutiful and sufficient occupation |
| 3 |
for all its members.
Joining Another Society. SECT. 16.
It shall
be the duty of the members of The Mother |
| 6 |
Church and of its branches to promote peace
on
earth and good will toward men; but members
of The Mother Church
shall not hereafter be- |
| 9 |
come members of other societies except
those
specified in the Mother Church Manual, and
they shall strive to
promote the welfare of all |
| 12 |
mankind by demonstrating the rules of
divine
Love.
Forbidden Membership. SECT. 17. A
mem- |
| 15 |
ber of The First Church of Christ,
Scientist, in
Boston, Mass., shall not be a member of any
church whose
Readers are not Christian Scientists |
| 18 |
and members of The Mother Church.
Officious Members. SECT. 18. A
member of
The Mother Church is not entitled to hold office |
| 21 |
or read in branch churches of this
denomination
except by invitation.
Legal Titles. SECT. 19. Students of
Chris- |
| 24 |
tian Science must drop the titles of
Reverend and
Doctor, except those who have received these
titles under
the laws of the State.
Page
46 |
| 1 |
Illegal Adoption. SECT. 20. No
person shall
be a member of this Church who claims a spirit- |
| 3 |
ually adopted child or a spiritually
adopted hus-
band or wife. There must be legal adoption and
legal
marriage, which can be verified according |
| 6 |
to the laws of our land.
Use of Initials "C.S." SECT. 21. A
member
of The Mother Church shall not place the initials |
| 9 |
"C.S." after his name on circulars, cards,
or
leaflets, which advertise his business or profes-
sion, except as a
Christian Science practitioner. |
| 12 |
Practitioners and Patients. SECT.
22. Mem-
bers of this Church shall hold in sacred confi-
dence all
private communications made to them |
| 15 |
by their patients; also such information as
may
come to them by reason of their relation of prac-
titioner to
patient. A failure to do this shall sub- |
| 18 |
ject the offender to Church
discipline.
A member of The Mother Church shall
not,
under pardonable circumstances, sue his patient |
| 21 |
for recovery of payment for said
member's
practice, on penalty of discipline and liability
to have his
name removed from membership. |
| 24 |
Also he shall reasonably reduce his price
in
chronic cases of recovery, and in cases where
he has not effected a
cure. A Christian Scientist
Page
47 |
| 1 |
is a humanitarian; he is benevolent,
forgiving,
long-suffering, and seeks to overcome evil with |
| 3 |
good.
Duty to Patients. SECT. 23. If a
member of
this Church has a patient whom he does not heal, |
| 6 |
and whose case he cannot fully diagnose,
he
may consult with an M. D. on the anatomy in-
volved. And it shall be
the privilege of a Chris- |
| 9 |
tian Scientist to confer with an M. D. on
Ontol-
ogy, or the Science of being.
Testimonials. SECT. 24. "Glorify
God in |
| 12 |
your body, and in your spirit, which are
God's"
(St. Paul). Testimony in regard to the healing
of the sick is
highly important. More than a mere |
| 15 |
rehearsal of blessings, it scales the
pinnacle of
praise and illustrates the demonstration of Christ,
"who
healeth all thy diseases" (Psalm 103:3). |
| 18 |
This testimony, however, shall not include
a de-
scription of symptoms or of suffering, though the
generic name of
the disease may be indicated. |
| 21 |
This By-Law applies to testimonials which
appear
in the periodicals and to those which are given
at the Wednesday
evening meeting. |
| 24 |
Charity to All. SECT. 25. While
members
of this Church do not believe in the doctrines
of theosophy,
hypnotism, or spiritualism, they
Page
48 |
| 1 |
cherish no enmity toward those who do
believe
in such doctrines, and will not harm them. But |
| 3 |
whenever God calls a member to bear
testimony
to Truth and to defend the Cause of Christ, he
shall do it
with love and without fear. |
| 6 |
Uncharitable Publications. SECT. 26.
A
member of this Church shall not publish, nor
cause to be published,
an article that is unchari- |
| 9 |
table or impertinent towards religion,
medicine,
the courts, or the laws of our land.
The Golden Rule. SECT. 27. A member
of |
| 12 |
The Mother Church shall not haunt Mrs.
Eddy's
drive when she goes out, continually stroll by
her house, or
make a summer resort near her |
| 15 |
for such a purpose.
Numbering the People. SECT. 28.
Christian
Scientists shall not report for publication the |
| 18 |
number of the members of The Mother
Church,
nor that of the branch churches. According to
the Scripture
they shall turn away from person- |
| 21 |
ality and numbering the people.
Our Church Edifices. SECT. 29. The
period-
icals of our denomination do not publish de- |
| 24 |
scriptions of our church edifices, but
they may
quote from other periodicals or give incidental
narratives.
Page
49
1 No Monopoly. SECT. 30. A
Scientist shall
not endeavor to monopolize the healing work in |
| 3 |
any church or locality, to the exclusion of
others,
but all who understand the teachings of Christian
Science are
privileged to enter into this holy work, |
| 6 |
and "by their fruits ye shall know
them."
Christian Science Nurse. SECT. 31.
A mem-
ber of The Mother Church who represents him- |
| 9 |
self or herself as a Christian Science
nurse shall
be one who has a demonstrable knowledge of
Christian
Science practice, who thoroughly under- |
| 12 |
stands the practical wisdom necessary in a
sick
room, and who can take proper care of the sick.
The cards of such persons may be inserted
in |
| 13 |
The Christian Science Journal under rules
estab-
lished by the publishers.
Article IX -
MARRIAGE AND DECEASE
A Legal Ceremony. SECTION 1. If a
Chris-
tian Scientist is to be married, the ceremony |
| 21 |
shall be performed by a clergyman who is
legally
authorized.
Sudden Decease. SECT. 2. If a
member of |
| 24 |
The Mother Church shall decease suddenly,
with-
out previous injury or illness, and the cause
Page
50
thereof be unknown,
an autopsy shall be made
by qualified experts. When it is possible
the |
| 3 |
body of a female shall be prepared for
burial by
one of her own sex.
Article X -
DEBATING IN PUBLIC
No Unauthorized
Debating. SECTION 1. A
member of this
Church shall not debate on Chris- |
| 9 |
tian Science in public debating
assemblies, with-
out the consent of the Board of Directors.
Article XI
-COMPLAINTS
Departure from
Tenets. SECTION 1. If a
member of this
Church shall depart from the |
| 15 |
Tenets and be found having the name without
the life of a Christian Scientist, and another
member in good standing
shall from Christian |
| 18 |
motives make this evident, a meeting of the
Board
of Directors shall be called, and the offender's
case shall be
tried and said member exonerated, |
| 21 |
put on probation, or excommunicated.
Violation of By-Laws. SECT. 2. A
member
who is found violating any of the By-Laws
Page
51 |
| 1 |
or Rules herein set forth, shall be
admonished
in consonance with the Scriptural demand in |
| 3 |
Matthew 18:15-17; and if he neglect to
accept
such admonition, he shall be placed on probation,
or if he
repeat the offense, his name shall be |
| 6 |
dropped from the roll of Church
membership.
Violation of Christian Fellowship.
SECT. 3.
Any member who shall unjustly aggrieve or |
| 9 |
vilify the Pastor Emeritus or another
member,
or who does not live in Christian fellowship with
members who
are in good and regular standing |
| 12 |
with this Church, shall either withdraw
from the
Church or be excommunicated.
Preliminary Requirement. SECT. 4.
No |
| 15 |
church discipline shall ensue until the
require-
ments according to the Scriptures, in Matthew
18:15-17, have
been strictly obeyed, unless a |
| 18 |
By-Law governing the case provides for
imme-
diate action.
Authority. SECT. 5. The Christian
Science |
| 21 |
Board of Directors has power to discipline,
place
on probation, remove from membership, or to
excommunicate members
of The Mother Church. |
| 24 |
Only the members of this Board shall be
pres-
ent at meetings for the examination of com-
plaints against
church members; and they alone
Page
52 |
| 1 |
shall vote on cases involving The Mother
Church
discipline. |
| 3 |
Members in Mother Church Only. SECT.
6.
A complaint against a member of The Mother
Church, if said member
belongs to no branch |
| 6 |
church and if this complaint is not
for mental
malpractice, shall be laid before this Board, and
within ten days thereafter, the Clerk of the |
| 9 |
Church shall address a letter of inquiry to
the
member complained of as to the validity of
the charge. If a member
is found guilty of that |
| 12 |
whereof he is accused and his previous
character
has been good, his confession of his error and
evidence of
his compliance with our Church |
| 15 |
Rules shall be deemed sufficient by the
Board
for forgiveness for once, and the Clerk of the
Church shall
immediately so inform him. But |
| 18 |
a second offense shall dismiss a member
from
the Church.
Working Against the Cause. SECT. 7
. If a |
| 21 |
member of this Church shall, mentally or
other-
wise, persist in working against the interests of
another
member, or the interests of our Pastor |
| 24 |
Emeritus and the accomplishment of what
she
understands is advantageous to this Church and
to the Cause of
Christian Science, or shall influ-
Page
53 |
| 1 |
ence others thus to act, upon her complaint
or
the complaint of a member for her or for himself, |
| 3 |
it shall be the duty of the Board of
Directors
immediately to call a meeting, and drop forever
the name of
the member guilty of this offense |
| 6 |
from the roll of Church membership.
No Unchristian Conduct. SECT. 8 .
If a
member of this Church were to treat the author |
| 9 |
of our textbook disrespectfully and
cruelly, upon
her complaint that member should be excommu-
nicated. If
a member, without her having re- |
| 12 |
quested the information, shall trouble her
on
subjects unnecessarily and without her consent,
it shall be
considered an offense. |
| 15 |
Not to Learn Hypnotism. SECT. 9.
Mem-
bers of this Church shall not learn hypnotism
on penalty of being
excommunicated from this |
| 18 |
Church. No member shall enter a complaint
of
mental malpractice for a sinister purpose. If
the author of SCIENCE
AND HEALTH shall bear |
| 21 |
witness to the offense of mental
malpractice, it
shall be considered a sufficient evidence thereof.
Publications Unjust. SECT. 10. If a
mem- |
| 24 |
ber of the Mother Church publishes, or
causes
to be published, an article that is false or unjust,
hence
injurious, to Christian Science or to its
Page
54 |
| 1 |
Leader, and if, upon complaint by another
mem-
ber, the Board of Directors finds that the offense |
| 3 |
has been committed, the offender shall be
sus-
pended for not less than three years from his
or her office in
this Church and from Church |
| 6 |
membership.
The Mother Church of Christ,
Scientist,
Tenets. SECT. 11. If a member of The Mother |
| 9 |
Church of Christ, Scientist, or a member of
a
branch of this Church break the rules of its
Tenets as to unjust and
unmerciful conduct - |
| 12 |
on complaint of Mrs. Eddy our Pastor
Emeritus
-- and this complaint being found valid, his or
her name shall
be erased from The Mother |
| 15 |
Church and the branch church's list of
mem-
bership and the offender shall not be received
into The Mother
Church or a branch church |
| 18 |
for twelve years.
Special Offense. SECT. 12. If a
member of
this Church, either by word or work, represents |
| 21 |
falsely to or of the Leader and Pastor
Emeritus,
said member shall immediately be disciplined, and
a second
similar offense shall remove his or her |
| 24 |
name from membership in The Mother
Church.
Members of Branch Churches. SECT.
13. A
member of both The Mother Church and a branch
Page
55 |
| 1 |
Church of Christ, Scientist, or a Reader,
shall not
report nor send notices to The Mother Church, |
| 3 |
or to the Pastor Emeritus, of errors of the
mem-
bers of their local church; but they shall strive
to overcome
these errors. Each church shall |
| 6 |
separately and independently discipline
its own
members, - if this sad necessity occurs.
Article XII
-TEACHERS
Probation. SECTION 1. For
sufficient rea-
sons it may be decided that a teacher has so |
| 12 |
strayed as not to be fit for the work of a
Reader
in church or a teacher of Christian Science.
Although repentant
and forgiven by the Church |
| 15 |
and retaining his membership, this weak
member
shall not be counted loyal till after three years
of exemplary
character. Then the Board of |
| 18 |
Directors may decide if his loyalty has
been
proved by uniform maintenance of the life of
a consistent,
consecrated Christian Scientist. |
| 21 |
Misteaching. SECT. 2. If a member of
this
Church is found trying to practise or to teach
Christian Science
contrary to the statement |
| 24 |
thereof in its textbook, SCIENCE AND
HEALTH
Page
56 |
| 1 |
WITH KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES, it shall be
the
duty of the Board of Directors to admonish |
| 3 |
that member according to Article XI, Sect.
4.
Then, if said member persists in this offense,
his or her name shall
be dropped from the roll |
| 6 |
of this Church.
MEETINGS
Article XIII -
REGULAR AND SPECIAL MEETINGS
Annual Meetings. SECTION 1. The
regular
meetings of The Mother Church shall be held |
| 12 |
annually, on Monday following the first
Sunday
in June. No other than its of officers are required
to be
present. These assemblies shall be for |
| 15 |
listening to the reports of Treasurer,
Clerk, and
Committees, and general reports from the Field.
Meetings of Board of Directors.
SECT. 2. |
| 18 |
The annual meeting of the Christian
Science
Board of Directors, for electing officers and
other business,
shall be held on Monday preced- |
| 21 |
ing the annual meeting of the Church.
Regular
meetings for electing candidates to membership
Page
57 |
| 1 |
with The Mother Church, and for the
transac-
tion of such other business as may properly come |
| 3 |
before these meetings, shall be held on the
Fri-
day preceding the first Sunday in June, and on
the first Friday in
November of each year. Spe- |
| 6 |
cial meetings may be held at any time upon
the
call of the Clerk.
Called only by the Clerk. SECT. 3.
Before |
| 9 |
calling a meeting of the members of this
Church
(excepting its regular sessions) it shall be the
duty of the
Clerk to inform the Board of Di- |
| 12 |
rectors and the Pastor Emeritus of his
intention,
and to state definitely the purpose for which the
members
are to convene. The Clerk must have |
| 15 |
the consent of this Board and the Pastor
Emer-
itus, before he can call said meeting.
Page
58
CHURCH SERVICES
Article XIV - THE
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE PASTOR
Ordination. SECTION 1. I, Mary
Baker
Eddy, ordain the BIBLE, and SCIENCE AND |
| 6 |
HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES,
Pastor
over The Mother Church, - The First Church
of Christ, Scientist,
in Boston, Mass., - and |
| 9 |
they will continue to preach for this
Church
and the world.
The Lesson-Sermon. SECT. 2. The
subject |
| 12 |
of the Lesson-Sermon in the morning service
of
The Mother Church, and of the branch Churches
of Christ, Scientist,
shall be repeated at the other |
| 15 |
services on Sunday. The correlative
Biblical
texts in the Lesson-Sermon shall extend from
Genesis to
Revelation.
Article XV
-READING IN PUBLIC
Announcing
Author's Name. SECTION 1. |
| 21 |
To pour into the ears of listeners the
sacred
Page
59 |
| 1 |
revelations of Christian Science
indiscriminately,
or without characterizing their origin and thus |
| 3 |
distinguishing them from the writings of
authors
who think at random on this subject, is to
lose some weight in
the scale of right think- |
| 6 |
ing. Therefore it is the duty of every
member
of this Church, when publicly reading or quot-
ing from the
books or poems of our Pastor |
| 9 |
Emeritus, first to announce the name of
the
author. Members shall also instruct their pupils
to adopt the
aforenamed method for the benefit |
| 12 |
of our Cause.
Article XVI
-WELCOMING STRANGERS |
| 15 |
The Leader's Welcome. SECTION 1.
Mrs.
Eddy welcomes to her seats in the church,
persons of all sects and
denominations who |
| 18 |
come to listen to the Sunday sermon and
are
not otherwise provided with seats.
The Local Members' Welcome. SECT.
2. It |
| 21 |
shall be the duty and privilege of the
local mem-
bers of The Mother Church to give their seats, if
necessary,
to strangers who may come to attend |
| 24 |
the morning services.
Page
60
Article XVII
-SERVICES UNINTERRUPTED |
| 3 |
Continued Throughout the Year.
SECTION 1.
The services of The Mother Church shall be
continued twelve
months each year. One meet- |
| 6 |
ing on Sunday during the months of July
and
August is sufficient. A Christian Scientist is
not fatigued by
prayer, by reading the Scriptures |
| 9 |
or the Christian Science textbook.
Amusement
or idleness is weariness. Truth and Love rest
the weary and
heavy laden. |
| 12 |
Easter Observances. SECT. 2. In the
United
States there shall be no special observances,
festivities, nor
gifts at the Easter season by |
| 15 |
members of The Mother Church. Gratitude
and love should abide in every heart each day
of all the years. Those
sacred words of our |
| 18 |
beloved Master, "Let the dead bury their
dead,"
and "Follow thou me," appeal to daily Christian
endeavors for
the living whereby to exemplify |
| 21 |
our risen Lord.
Laying a Corner Stone. SECT. 3. No
large
gathering of people nor display shall be allowed |
| 24 |
when laying the Corner Stone of a Church
of
Christ, Scientist. Let the ceremony be devout.
Page
61 |
| 1 |
No special trowel should be used. (See
SCIENCE
AND HEALTH, page 140.) |
| 3 |
Overflow Meetings. SECT. 4. A
Church of
Christ, Scientist, shall not hold two or more
Sunday services
at the same hour.
Article XVIII
-COMMUNION
No more
Communion. SECTION 1. The |
| 9 |
Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, shall
observe
no more Communion seasons.
Communion of
Branch Churches. SECT. 2. |
| 12 |
The Communion shall be observed in the
branch
churches on the second Sunday in January and
July of each year,
and at this service the Tenets |
| 15 |
of The Mother Church are to be read.
Article XIX -
MUSIC IN THE CHURCH |
| 18 |
Soloist and Organist. SECTION 1. The
music
in The Mother Church shall not be operatic, but
of an appropriate
religious character and of a |
| 21 |
recognized standard of musical excellence;
it
shall be played in a dignified and suitable man-
ner. Music from the
organ alone should con- |
| 24 |
tinue about eight or nine minutes for
the
Page
62 |
| 1 |
voluntary and six or seven minutes for the
post-
lude, the offertory conforming to the time re- |
| 3 |
quired to take the collection. The solo
singer
shall not neglect to sing any special hymn selected
by the Board
of Directors.
Article XX -
SUNDAY SCHOOL
The Sunday
School. SECTION 1. Pupils may |
| 9 |
be received in the Sunday School classes of
any
Church of Christ, Scientist, up to the age of
twenty years, and by
transfer from another |
| 12 |
Church of Christ, Scientist, up to that
age, but
no pupil shall remain in the Sunday School of
any Church of
Christ, Scientist, after reaching |
| 15 |
the age of twenty. None except the
officers,
teachers, and pupils should attend the Sunday
School
exercises. |
| 18 |
Teaching the Children. SECT. 2.
The
Sabbath School children shall be taught the
Scriptures, and they
shall be instructed ac- |
| 21 |
cording to their understanding or ability
to grasp
the simpler meanings of the divine Principle that
they are
taught. |
| 24 |
Subject for Lessons. SECT. 3. The
first
lessons of the children should be the Ten Com-
Page
63 |
| 1 |
mandments (Exodus 20: 3-17), the Lord's
Prayer (Matt. 6: 9-13), and its Spiritual In- |
| 3 |
terpretation by Mary Baker Eddy, Sermon
on
the Mount (Matt. 5: 3-12). The next les-
sons consist of such
questions and answers as |
| 6 |
are adapted to a juvenile class, and may
be
found in the Christian Science Quarterly Lessons,
read in Church
services. The instruction given |
| 9 |
by the children's teachers must not
deviate from
the absolute Christian Science contained in their
textbook.
READING ROOMS
Article XXI
Establishment. SECTION 1. Each
church of |
| 15 |
the Christian Science denomination shall
have
a Reading Room, though two or more churches
may unite in having
Reading Rooms, provided |
| 18 |
these rooms are well located.
Librarian. SECT. 2. The individuals
who
take charge of the Reading Rooms of The |
| 21 |
Mother Church shall be elected by the
Christian
Science Board of Directors, subject to the ap-
proval of Mary
Baker Eddy. He or she shall |
| 24 |
have no bad habits, shall have had
experience in
Page
64 |
| 1 |
the Field, shall be well educated, and a
devout
Christian Scientist.(1) |
| 3 |
Literature in Reading Rooms. SECT.
3. The
literature sold or exhibited in the reading rooms
of Christian
Science Churches shall consist only |
| 6 |
of Science and Health with Key to the
Scrip-
tures, by Mary Baker Eddy, and other writings
by this
author; also the literature published or |
| 9 |
sold by The Christian Science Publishing
Society.
RELATION AND DUTIES OF MEMBERS TO PASTOR EMERITUS
Article XXII
The Title of
Mother Changed. SECTION 1.
In the year
eighteen hundred and ninety-five, |
| 15 |
loyal Christian Scientists had given to the
author
of their textbook, the Founder of Christian Sci-
ence, the
individual, endearing term of Mother. |
| 18 |
At first Mrs. Eddy objected to being called
thus,
but afterward consented on the ground that this
appellative in
the Church meant nothing more |
| 21 |
than a tender term such as sister or
brother. In
the year nineteen hundred and three and after,
owing to the
public misunderstanding of this |
| 24 |
name, it is the duty of Christian
Scientists to
(1)See also Article XXV, Sect. 7.
Page
65 |
| 1 |
drop the word mother and to
substitute Leader,
already used in our periodicals. |
| 3 |
A Member not a Leader. SECT. 2.
A
member of The First Church of Christ, Sci-
entist, in Boston, Mass.,
shall not be called |
| 6 |
Leader by members of this Church, when
this
term is used in connection with Christian
Science . |
| 9 |
Obedience Required. SECT. 3. It
shall be
the duty of the officers of this Church, of the
editors of
the Christian Science Journal, Sen- |
| 12 |
tinel, and Der Herold, of the
members of the
Committees on Publication, of the Trustees of
The
Christian Science Publishing Society, and |
| 15 |
of the Board of Education promptly to
comply
with any written order, signed by Mary Baker
Eddy, which applies
to their official functions. |
| 18 |
Disobedience to this By-Law shall be
sufficient
cause for the removal of the offending member
from
office. |
| 21 |
The vacancy shall be supplied by a
majority
vote of the Christian Science Board of Direc-
tors, and the
candidate shall be subject to the |
| 24 |
approval of Mary Baker Eddy.
Understanding Communications. SECT.
4.
If the Clerk of this Church shall receive a com-
Page
66 |
| 1 |
munication from the Pastor Emeritus which
he
does not fully understand, he shall inform her |
| 3 |
of this fact before presenting it to the
Church
and obtain a clear understanding of the matter,
- then act in
accordance therewith. |
| 6 |
Interpreting Communications. SECT.
5. If
at a meeting of this Church a doubt or dis-
agreement shall arise
among the members as to |
| 9 |
the signification of the communications of
the
Pastor Emeritus to them, before action is taken
it shall be the
duty of the Clerk to report to her |
| 12 |
the vexed question and to await her
explanation
thereof.
Reading and Attesting Letters.
SECT. 6. |
| 15 |
When a letter or a message from the
Pastor
Emeritus is brought before a meeting of this
Church, or she is
referred to as authority for |
| 18 |
business, it shall be the duty of the
Church to
inquire if all of the letter has been read, and to
require
all of it to be read; also to have any |
| 21 |
authority supposed to come from her
satisfac-
torily attested.
Unauthorized Reports. SECT. 7.
Members |
| 24 |
of this Church shall not report on
authority an
order from Mrs. Eddy that she has not sent,
either to the
Boards or to the executive bodies
Page
67 |
| 1 |
of this Church. The Pastor Emeritus is not
to
be consulted on cases of discipline, on the cases |
| 3 |
of candidates for admission to this Church,
or
on the cases of those on trial for dismissal from
the Church. |
| 6 |
Private Communications. SECT. 8. A
strictly
private communication from the Pastor Emeritus
to a member of
her Church shall not be made |
| 9 |
public without her written consent.
Unauthorized Legal Action. SECT. 9.
A
member of this Church shall not employ an
at- |
| 12 |
torney, nor take legal action on a case not
pro-
vided for in its By-Laws - if said case relates
to the person or
to the property of Mary Baker |
| 15 |
Eddy - without having personally
conferred
with her on said subject.
Duty to God. SECT. 10. Members of
this |
| 18 |
Church who turn their attention from the
divine
Principle of being to personality, sending gifts,
congratulatory
despatches or letters to the Pastor |
| 21 |
Emeritus on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New
Year,
or Easter, break a rule of this Church and are
amenable
therefor. |
| 24 |
Opportunity for Serving the Leader.
SECT.
11. At the written request of the Pastor Emeri-
tus, Mrs. Eddy,
the Board of Directors shall
Page
68 |
| 1 |
immediately notify a person who has been
a
member of this Church at least three years to |
| 3 |
go in ten days to her, and it shall be the
duty
of the member thus notified to remain with Mrs.
Eddy three years
consecutively. A member who |
| 6 |
leaves her in less time without the
Directors'
consent or who declines to obey this call to
duty, upon Mrs.
Eddy's complaint thereof shall |
| 9 |
be excommunicated from The Mother
Church.
Members thus serving the Leader shall be paid
semi-annually at
the rate of one thousand dol- |
| 12 |
lars yearly in addition to rent and board.
Those
members whom she teaches the course in Divin-
ity, and who remain
with her three consecutive |
| 15 |
years, receive the degree of the
Massachusetts
Metaphysical College.
Location. SECT. 12. Rev. Mary Baker
Eddy |
| 18 |
calls to her home or allows to visit or to
locate
therein only those individuals whom she engages
through the
Christian Science Board of Direc- |
| 21 |
tors of the Mother Church. This By-Law
takes
effect on Dec. 15, 1908.
Agreement Required. SECT. l3. When
the |
| 24 |
Christian Science Board of Directors calls
a stu-
dent in accordance with Article XXII, Sect. 11,
of our Church
Manual to the home of their
Page
69 |
| 1 |
Leader, Mrs. Eddy, said student shall come
under
a signed agreement to remain with Mrs. Eddy |
| 3 |
if she so desires, during the time
specified in the
Church Manual.
Incomplete Term of Service. SECT.
14. If a |
| 6 |
student who has been called to serve our
Leader
in accordance with Article XXII, Sect. 11, of
the Church Manual
leaves her before the expira- |
| 9 |
tion of the time therein mentioned such
student
shall pay to Mrs. Eddy whatsoever she may
charge for what she
has taught him or her dur- |
| 12 |
ing the time of such service.
Help. SECT. 15. If the author of
the Chris-
tian Science textbook call on this Board for |
| 15 |
household help or a handmaid, the Board
shall
immediately appoint a proper member of this
Church therefor, and
the appointee shall go im- |
| 18 |
mediately in obedience to the call. "He
that lov-
eth father or mother more than me is not worthy
of me.''
(Matt. 10:37.) |
| 21 |
Students with Mrs. Eddy. SECT. 16.
Stu-
dents employed by Mrs. Eddy at her home shall
not take care of
their churches or attend to other |
| 24 |
affairs outside of her house.
Mrs. Eddy's Room. SECT. l7. The
room in
The Mother Church formerly known as "Mother's |
| 27 |
Room" shall hereafter be closed to
visitors.
Page
70 |
| 1 |
Pastor Emeritus to be Consulted.
SECT. 18.
The Mother Church shall not make a church By- |
| 3 |
law, nor enter into a business transaction
with a
Christian Scientist in the employ of Rev. Mary
Baker Eddy,
without first consulting her on said |
| 6 |
subject and adhering strictly to her
advice thereon.
THE MOTHER CHURCH AND BRANCH CHURCHES
Article XXI I I
Local
Self-government. SECTION 1. The
Mother
Church of Christ, Scientist, shall assume |
| 12 |
no general official control of other
churches, and
it shall be controlled by none other.
Each Church of Christ, Scientist, shall
have its |
| 15 |
own form of government. No conference
of
churches shall be held, unless it be when our
churches, located in
the same State, convene to |
| 18 |
confer on a statute of said State, or to
confer
harmoniously on individual unity and action of
the churches in
said State. |
| 21 |
Titles. SECT. 2. "The First Church
of
Christ, Scientist," is the legal title of The Mother
Page
71 |
| 1 |
Church. Branch churches of The Mother
Church
may take the title of First Church of Christ, |
| 3 |
Scientist; Second Church of Christ,
Scientist;
and so on, where more than one church is es-
tablished in
the same place; but the article |
| 6 |
"The" must not be used before titles of
branch
churches, nor written on applications for mem-
bership in naming
such churches. |
| 9 |
Mother Church Unique. SECT. 3. In
its
relation to other Christian Science churches, in
its By-Laws and
self-government, The Mother |
| 12 |
Church stands alone; it occupies a position
that
no other church can fill. Then for a branch
church to assume such
position would be disas- |
| 15 |
trous to Christian Science. Therefore, no
Church
of Christ, Scientist, shall be considered loyal
that has branch
churches or adopts The Mother |
| 18 |
Church's form of government, except in
such cases
as are specially allowed and named in this Manual.
Tenets Copyrighted. SECT. 4.
Branch |
| 21 |
churches shall not write the Tenets of
The
Mother Church in their church books, except
they give the name of
their author and her |
| 24 |
permission to publish them as Tenets of
The
Mother Church, copyrighted in SCIENCE AND
HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES.
Page
72
1 Manual. SECT. 5. Branch churches
shall
not adopt, print, nor publish the Manual of The |
| 3 |
Mother Church. See Article XXXV, Sect.
1.
Organizing Churches. SECT. 6. A
member
of this Church who obeys its By-Laws and is a |
| 6 |
loyal exemplary Christian Scientist working
in
the Field, is eligible to form a church in con-
formity with
Sect. |
| 7 |
of this Article, and to |
| 9 |
have church services conducted by reading
the
SCRIPTURES and the Christian Science textbook.
This church shall be
acknowledged publicly as a |
| 12 |
Church of Christ, Scientist. Upon proper
appli-
cation, made in accordance with the rules of The
Christian
Science Publishing Society, the serv- |
| 15 |
ices of such a church may be advertised in
The
Christian Science Journal. The branch churches
shall be
individual, and not more than two small |
| 18 |
churches shall consolidate under one church
gov-
ernment. If the Pastor Emeritus, Mrs. Eddy,
should relinquish her
place as the head or Leader |
| 21 |
of The Mother Church of Christ, Scientist,
each
branch church shall continue its present form of
government in
consonance with The Mother |
| 24 |
Church Manual.
Requirements for Organizing Branch
Churches. SECT. 7. A branch church of The |
| 27 |
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston,
Mass.,
Page
73 |
| 1 |
shall not be organized with less than
sixteen loyal
Christian Scientists, four of whom are members |
| 3 |
of The Mother Church. This membership
shall
include at least one active practitioner whose card
is published
in the list of practitioners in The |
| 6 |
Christian Science Journal.
Privilege of Members. SECT. 8.
Members
in good standing with The Mother Church, who |
| 9 |
are members of the faculty, instructors, or
stu-
dents in any university or college, can form and
conduct a
Christian Science organization at such |
| 12 |
university or college, provided its rules
so permit.
Also members in good standing with The Mother
Church, who
are graduates of said university |
| 15 |
or college, may become members of the
organ-
ization by application to, and by the unanimous
vote of, the
active members present, if the rules |
| 18 |
of the university or college so permit.
When
called for, a member of the Board of Lecture-
ship may lecture for
said university or college |
| 21 |
organization.
No Close Communion. SECT. 9.
The
Mother Church and the branch churches shall |
| 24 |
not confine their membership to the pupils
of
one teacher.
No Interference. SECT. 10. A member
of The |
| 27 |
Mother Church may be a member of one
branch
Page
74 |
| 1 |
Church of Christ, Scientist, or of one
Christian
Science society holding public services, but he |
| 3 |
shall not be a member of both a branch
church
and a society; neither shall he exercise super-
vision or
control over any other church. In |
| 6 |
Christian Science each branch church shall
be
distinctly democratic in its government, and no
individual, and no
other church shall interfere |
| 9 |
with its affairs.
Teachers' and Practitioners'
Offices. SECT. 11.
Teachers and practitioners of Christian Science
|
| 12 |
shall not have their offices or rooms in
the branch
churches, in the reading rooms, nor in rooms
connected
therewith. |
| 15 |
Recognition. SECT. 12. In order to
be eli-
gible to a card in The Christian Science Journal,
churches and societies are required to acknowl- |
| 18 |
edge as such all other Christian Science
churches
and societies advertised in said Journal, and to
maintain toward them an attitude of Christian |
| 21 |
fellowship.
Page
75
GUARDIANSHIP OF CHURCH FUNDS
Article XXIV |
| 3 |
Church Edifice a Testimonial.
SECTION 1.
Whereas, on March 20, 1895, the Christian Sci-
ence Board of
Directors, in behalf of The |
| 6 |
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston,
Mass.,
presented to Rev. Mary Baker Eddy their
church edifice as a
Testimonial of this Church's |
| 9 |
love and gratitude, and she, with grateful
ac-
knowledgments thereof, declined to receive this
munificent gift,
she now understands the finan- |
| 12 |
cial situation between the Christian
Science
Board of Directors and said Church to be as
follows: - |
| 15 |
Financial Situation. SECT. 2. The
Christian
Science Board of Directors owns the church edi-
fices, with
the land whereon they stand, legally; |
| 18 |
and the Church members own the
aforesaid
premises and buildings, beneficially. After the
first church
was built, the balance of the build- |
| 21 |
ing funds, which remained in the hands of
the
Directors, belonged to the Church, and not solely
to the
Directors. The balance of the church
Page
76 |
| 1 |
building funds, which can be spared after
the
debts are paid, should remain on safe deposit, |
| 3 |
to be hereafter used for the benefit of
this
Church, as the right occasion may call for it.
The following
indicates the proper management |
| 6 |
of the Church funds: -
Report of Directors. SECT. 3. It
shall be
the duty of the Christian Science Board of Di- |
| 9 |
rectors to have the books of the Church
Treas-
urer audited semi-annually, and to report at the
annual Church
meeting the amount of funds |
| 12 |
which the Church has on hand, the amount
of
its indebtedness and of its expenditures for the
last year. |
| 15 |
Finance Committee. SECT. 4. There
shall
be a Committee on Finance, which shall consist of
three members
of this Church in good standing. |
| 18 |
Its members shall be appointed annually by
the
Christian Science Board of Directors and with
the consent of the
Pastor Emeritus. They shall |
| 21 |
hold quarterly meetings and keep
themselves
thoroughly informed as to the real estate owned
by this
Church and the amount of funds received |
| 24 |
by the Treasurer of The Mother Church, who
is
individually responsible for said funds. They
shall have the books
of the Christian Science
Page
77 |
| 1 |
Board of Directors and the books of the
Church
Treasurer audited annually by an honest, com- |
| 3 |
petent accountant. The books are to be
audited
on May first.
Prior to paying bills against the Church,
the |
| 6 |
Treasurer of this Church shall submit them
all
to said committee for examination. This com-
mittee shall decide
thereupon by a unanimous |
| 9 |
vote, and its endorsement of the bills
shall render
them payable.
If it be found that the Church funds have
not |
| 12 |
been properly managed, it shall be the duty
of
the Board of Directors and the Treasurer to be
individually
responsible for the performance of |
| 15 |
their several offices satisfactorily, and
for the
proper distribution of the funds of which they
are the
custodians. |
| 18 |
God's Requirement. SECT. 5. God
requires
wisdom, economy, and brotherly love to char-
acterize all the
proceedings of the members of |
| 21 |
The Mother Church, The First Church of
Christ,
Scientist.
Provision for the Future. SECT. 6.
In case |
| 24 |
of any possible future deviation from
duty, the
Committee on Finance shall visit the Board of
Directors, and,
in a Christian spirit and manner,
Page
78 |
| 1 |
demand that each member thereof comply
with
the By-Laws of the Church. If any Director |
| 3 |
fails to heed this admonition, he may be
dis-
missed from office and the vacancy supplied by
the Board. |
| 6 |
Debt and Duty. SECT. 7. The Mother
Church
shall not be made legally responsible for the debts
of
individuals except such debts as are specified |
| 9 |
in its By-Laws. Donations from this
Church
shall not be made without the written consent
of the Pastor
Emeritus. Also important move- |
| 12 |
ments of the manager of the Committee on
Pub-
lication shall be sanctioned by the Board of
Directors and be
subject to the approval of Mary |
| 15 |
Baker Eddy. (See Article I, Sect. 6.)
Emergencies. SECT. 8. The
Treasurer, per-
sonally, or through the Clerk of the Church, |
| 18 |
may pay from the funds of the Church bills
of
immediate necessity not exceeding $200 for any
one transaction, and
he may keep on deposit the |
| 21 |
sum of $500 with the Clerk, as a petty
cash
fund, to be used by him for the payment of
such bills. Such
payments shall be reported, on |
| 24 |
the first of the following month, to the
Board
of Directors and the Committee on Finance, for
their
approval.
Page
79 |
| 1 |
Committee on Business. SECT. 9. The
Chris-
tian Science Board of Directors shall elect |
| 3 |
annually a Committee on Business, which
shall
consist of not less than three loyal members
of The Mother
Church, who shall transact |
| 6 |
promptly and efficiently such business as
Mrs.
Eddy, the Directors, or the Committee on Pub-
lication shall
commit to it. While the mem- |
| 9 |
bers of this Committee are engaged in
the
transaction of the business assigned to them
they shall be paid
from the Church funds. |
| 12 |
Before being eligible for office the names
of the
persons nominated for said office shall be pre-
sented to Mrs.
Eddy for her written approval.
THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE PUBLISHING SOCIETY
Article XXV |
| 18 |
Board of Trustees. SECTION 1. The
Board
of Trustees, constituted by a Deed of Trust
given by Rev. Mary
Baker Eddy, the Pastor |
| 21 |
Emeritus of this Church, on January
twenty-
fifth, 1898, shall hold and manage the property
therein
conveyed, and conduct the business of
Page
80 |
| 1 |
"The Christian Science Publishing Society"
on
a strictly Christian basis, for the promotion of |
| 3 |
the interests of Christian Science.
Disposal of Funds. SECT. 2. The net
profits
of the business shall be paid over semi-annually |
| 6 |
to the Treasurer of The Mother Church.
He
shall hold this money subject to the order of
the Christian Science
Board of Directors, which |
| 9 |
is authorized to order its disposition only
in
accordance with the By-Laws contained in this
Manual. |
| 12 |
Vacancies in Trusteeship. SECT. 3.
The
Christian Science Board of Directors shall have
the power to
declare vacancies in said trusteeship, |
| 15 |
for such reasons as to the Board may seem
ex-
pedient.
Whenever a vacancy shall occur, the
Pastor |
| 18 |
Emeritus reserves the right to fill the
same by
appointment; but if she does not elect to exer-
cise this
right, the remaining trustees shall fill |
| 21 |
the vacancy, subject to her approval.
Editors and Manager. SECT. 4. The
term
of office for the editors and the manager of The |
| 24 |
Christian Science Publishing Society is
one year
each, dating from the time of election to the
office.
Incumbents who have served one year or
Page
81 |
| 1 |
more can be re-elected, or new officers
elected,
by a unanimous vote of the Christian Science |
| 3 |
Board of Directors, and the consent of the
Pastor
Emeritus given in her own handwriting.
Suitable Employees. SECT. 5. A
person |
| 6 |
who is not accepted by the Pastor Emeritus
and
the Christian Science Board of Directors as
suitable, shall in no
manner be connected with |
| 9 |
publishing her books, nor with editing or
pub-
lishing The Christian Science Journal, Christian
Science
Sentinel, Der Herold der Christian Sci- |
| 12 |
ence, nor with The Christian
Science Publishing
Society.
Periodicals. SECT. 6. Periodicals
which |
| 15 |
shall at any time be published by The
Christian
Science Publishing Society, shall be copyrighted
and
conducted according to the provisions in the |
| 18 |
Deed of Trust relating to The Christian
Science
Journal.
Rule of Conduct. SECT. 7. No
objectionable |
| 21 |
pictures shall be exhibited in the rooms
where the
Christian Science textbook is published or sold.
No idle
gossip, no slander, no mischief-making, |
| 24 |
no evil speaking shall be allowed.
Books to be Published. SECT. 8.
Only the
Publishing Society of The Mother Church selects,
Page
82 |
| 1 |
approves, and publishes the books and
litera-
ture it sends forth. If Mary Baker Eddy disap- |
| 3 |
proves of certain books or literature, the
Society
will not publish them. The Committees on Publi-
cation are in
no manner connected with these |
| 6 |
functions. A book or an article of which
Mrs.
Eddy is the author shall not be published nor
republished by this
Society without her knowl- |
| 9 |
edge or written consent.
Removal of Cards. SECT. 9. No cards
shall
be removed from our periodicals without the re- |
| 12 |
quest of the advertiser, except by a
majority vote
of the Christian Science Board of Directors at
a meeting
held for this purpose or for the exam- |
| 15 |
ination of complaints.
Members of this Church who practise
other
professions or pursue other vocations, shall not |
| 18 |
advertise as healers, excepting those
members
who are officially engaged in the work of Chris-
tian Science,
and they must devote ample time |
| 21 |
for faithful practice.
Page
83
TEACHING CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
Article XXVI -
TEACHERS
Motive in Teaching. SECTION 1.
Teaching
Christian Science shall not be a question of |
| 6 |
money, but of morals and religion, healing
and
uplifting the race.
Care of Pupils. SECT. 2. Christian
Scientists |
| 9 |
who are teachers shall carefully select for
pupils
such only as have good past records and promis-
ing proclivities
toward Christian Science. A |
| 12 |
teacher shall not assume personal control
of, or
attempt to dominate his pupils, but he shall hold
himself
morally obligated to promote their prog- |
| 15 |
ress in the understanding of divine
Principle, not
only during the class term but after it, and to
watch
well that they prove sound in sentiment |
| 18 |
and practical in Christian Science. He
shall per-
sistently and patiently counsel his pupils in con-
formity
with the unerring laws of God, and shall |
| 21 |
enjoin them habitually to study the
Scriptures
and SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES as a help
thereto.
Page
84 |
| 1 |
Defense against Malpractice. SECT.
3.
Teachers shall instruct their pupils how to de- |
| 3 |
fend themselves against mental
malpractice,
never to return evil for evil, but to know the
truth that
makes free, and thus to be a law, not |
| 6 |
unto others, but to themselves.
Number of Pupils. SECT. 4. The
teachers of
Christian Science shall teach but one class yearly, |
| 9 |
which class shall consist of not more than
thirty
pupils. After 1907, the Board of Education shall
have one class
triennially, a Normal class not |
| 12 |
exceeding thirty pupils.
Pupil's Tuition. SECT. 5. A
student's price
for teaching Christian Science shall not exceed |
| 15 |
$100.00 per pupil.
Associations. SECT. 6. The
associations of the
pupils of loyal teachers shall convene annually.
|
| 18 |
The pupils shall be guided by the BIBLE,
and
SCIENCE AND HEALTH, not by their teachers
personal views. Teachers
shall not call their |
| 21 |
pupils together, or assemble a selected
number of
them, for more frequent meetings.
A Single Field of Labor. SECT. 7. A
loyal |
| 24 |
teacher of Christian Science shall not
teach an-
other loyal teacher's pupil, except it be in the
Board of
Education. Outside of this Board each
Page
85 |
| 1 |
student occupies only his own field of
labor.
Pupils may visit each other's churches, and by |
| 3 |
invitation attend each other's
associations.
Caring for Pupils of Strayed
Members.
SECT. 8. A loyal teacher of Christian Science |
| 6 |
may teach and receive into his association
the
pupils of another member of this Church who
has so strayed as
justly to be deemed, under the |
| 9 |
provisions of Article XII, Sect. 1, not
ready to
lead his pupils.
Teachers must have Certificates.
SECT. 9. |
| 12 |
A member of this Church shall not teach
pupils
Christian Science unless he has a certificate to
show that he
has been taught by Mrs. Eddy or |
| 15 |
has taken a Normal Course at the
Massachu-
setts Metaphysical College or in the Board of
Education. |
| 18 |
Such members who have not been continu-
ously active and loyal Christian Scientists since
receiving instruction as
above, shall not teach |
| 21 |
Christian Science without the approval of
The
Christian Science Board of Directors.
Page
86
Article XXVII -
PUPILS |
| 3 |
Authorized to Teach. SECTION 1.
After a
student's pupil has been duly authorized to be
a teacher of
Christian Science, or has been under |
| 6 |
the personal instruction of Mrs. Eddy, he
is no
longer under the jurisdiction of his former
teacher. |
| 9 |
Without Teachers. SECT. 2. Those
be-
loved brethren whose teacher has left them,
can elect an
experienced Christian Scientist, |
| 12 |
who is not in charge of an association
of
students and who is ready for this high call-
ing, to conduct the
meetings of their asso- |
| 15 |
ciation.
Basis for Teaching. SECT. 3. The
teachers
of the Normal class shall teach from the chapter |
| 18 |
Recapitulation in SCIENCE AND HEALTH
WITH
KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES, and from the Chris-
tian Science Platform,
beginning on page 330 of |
| 21 |
the revised editions since 1902, and they
shall
teach nothing contrary thereto. The teachers
of the Primary class
shall instruct their pupils |
| 24 |
from the said chapter on "Recapitulation"
only.
Page
87
1 Church Membership. SECT. 4.
Neither the
Pastor Emeritus nor a member of this Church |
| 3 |
shall teach Roman Catholics Christian
Science,
except it be with the written consent of the
authority of
their Church. Choice of patients is |
| 6 |
left to the wisdom of the practitioner,
and Mrs.
Eddy is not to be consulted on this subject.
Class Teaching. SECT. 5. Members of
The |
| 9 |
Mother Church who are authorized by its
By-
Laws to teach Christian Science, shall not solicit,
or cause or
permit others to solicit, pupils for their |
| 12 |
classes. No member of this Church shall
advise
against class instruction.
Teachers of Christian Science must have
the |
| 15 |
necessary moral and spiritual
qualifications to
elucidate the Principle and rule of Christian Sci-
ence, through the higher meaning of the Scrip- |
| 18 |
tures. "The less the teacher personally
controls
other minds, and the more he trusts them to the
divine Truth
and Love, the better it will be for |
| 21 |
both teacher and student." (Retrospection
and
Introspection, page 84.)
Page
88
BOARD OF EDUCATION
Article XXVIII
-ORGANIZATION
Officers. SECTION 1. There
shall be a Board
of Education, under the auspices of Mary Baker
|
| 6 |
Eddy, President of the Massachusetts
Metaphysi-
cal College, consisting of three members, a presi-
dent,
vice-president, and teacher of Christian |
| 9 |
Science. Obstetrics will not be
taught.
Election. SECT. 2. The
vice-president shall
be elected annually by the Christian Science |
| 12 |
Board of Directors. Beginning with 1907,
the
teacher shall be elected every third year by said
Board, and the
candidate shall be subject to the |
| 15 |
approval of the Pastor Emeritus.
President not to be Consulted.
SECT. 3. The
President is not to be consulted by students |
| 18 |
on the question of applying for admission
to this
Board nor on their course or conduct. The stu-
dents can confer
with their teachers on subjects |
| 21 |
essential to their progress.
Page
89 |
| 1 |
Presidency of College. SECT. 4.
Should the
President resign over her own signature or va- |
| 3 |
cate her office of President of the
Massachusetts
Metaphysical College, a meeting of the Christian
Science
Board of Directors shall immediately be |
| 6 |
called, and the vice-president of the
Board of
Education being found worthy, on receiving her
approval shall
be elected to fill the vacancy.
Article XXIX
-APPLICANTS AND GRADUATES
Normal
Teachers. SECTION 1. Loyal stu-
|
| 12 |
dents who have been taught in a Primary
class
by Mrs. Eddy and have practised Christian Sci-
ence healing
acceptably three years, and who pre- |
| 15 |
sent such credentials as are required to
verify
this fact, are eligible to receive the degree of
C.S.D. |
| 18 |
Qualifications. SECT. 2. Loyal
Christian
Scientists' pupils who so desire may apply to the
Board of
Education for instruction; and if they |
| 21 |
have practised Christian Science healing
success-
fully three years and will furnish evidence of
their
eligibility therefor, they are eligible to enter
Page
90 |
| 1 |
the Normal class. All members of this class
must
be thorough English scholars. |
| 3 |
Certificates. SECT. 3. Students are
examined
and given certificates by this Board if found
qualified to
receive them.
Article XXX -
ACTION OF THE BOARD
Sessions. SECTION 1 . The term
of the |
| 9 |
Massachusetts Metaphysical College will
open
with the Board of Education on the first
Wednesday of December.
The sessions will |
| 12 |
continue not over one week. None but
the
teacher and members of the College class shall
be present at the
sessions, and no Primary |
| 15 |
classes shall be taught under the auspices
of
this Board.
Special Instruction. SECT. 2. Not
less than |
| 18 |
two thorough lessons by a well qualified
teacher
shall be given to each Normal class on the
subject of mental
practice and malpractice. One |
| 21 |
student in the class shall prepare a paper
on
said subject that shall be read to the class,
thoroughly discussed,
and understood; this paper
Page
91 |
| 1 |
shall be given to the teacher, and he shall
not
allow it or a copy of it to remain, but shall |
| 3 |
destroy this paper.
Signatures. SECT. 3. The signature
of the
teacher and of the President of the College |
| 6 |
shall be on all certificates issued.
Remuneration and Free Scholarship.
SECT. 4.
Tuition of class instruction in the Board of |
| 9 |
Education shall be $100.00. The bearer of
a
card of free scholarship from the President,
Rev. Mary Baker Eddy,
shall be entitled to |
| 12 |
a free course in this department on
presenta-
tion of the card to the teacher. Only the
President gives
free admission to classes. |
| 15 |
Surplus Funds. SECT. 5. Any surplus
funds
left in the hands of the Board of Education
shall be paid over
annually to the Treasurer of |
| 18 |
The Mother Church.
Primary Students. SECT. 6. Students
of
Christian Science, duly instructed therein and |
| 21 |
with good moral records, not having the
certifi-
cate of C.S.D. may enter the Normal class in
the Board of
Education, which will be held once |
| 24 |
in three years beginning A. D. 1907;
provided
their diplomas are for three consecutive years
under Mrs.
Eddy's daily conversation on Chris-
Page
92 |
| 1 |
tian Science, or from the Massachusetts
Meta-
physical College Board of Education. |
| 3 |
Healing Better than Teaching. SECT.
7.
Healing the sick and the sinner with Truth dem-
onstrates what we
affirm of Christian Science, |
| 6 |
and nothing can substitute this
demonstration.
I recommend that each member of this Church
shall strive
to demonstrate by his or her practice, |
| 9 |
that Christian Science heals the sick
quickly and
wholly, thus proving this Science to be all that
we claim
for it. |
| 12 |
If both husband and wife are found duly
quali-
fied to teach Christian Science, either one, not
both, should
teach yearly one class. |
| 15 |
Not Members of The Mother Church.
SECT. 8.
No person shall receive instructions in Chris-
tian Science in
any class in the Massachusetts |
| 18 |
Metaphysical College, nor receive the
degree of
C.S.B. or C.S.D., who is not a member of The
First Church of
Christ, Scientist, in Boston, |
| 21 |
Mass.
Only those persons who are members of
this
Church and possessed of the qualifications named |
| 24 |
in Sect. 9 of Article XXVI of these
By-Laws
shall be deemed loyal teachers of Christian
Science .
Page
93
BOARD OF LECTURESHIP
Article XXXI -
ORGANIZATION AND DUTIES
Election. SECTION 1. This Church
shall
maintain a Board of Lectureship, the members of |
| 6 |
which shall be elected annually on Monday
pre-
ceding the Annual Meeting, subject to the ap-
proval of the Pastor
Emeritus. The lecture year |
| 9 |
shall begin July 1 of each year.
Duty of Lecturers. SECT. 2. It is
the duty
of the Board of Lectureship to include in each |
| 12 |
lecture a true and just reply to public
topics
condemning Christian Science, and to bear testi-
mony to the
facts pertaining to the life of the |
| 15 |
Pastor Emeritus. Each member shall mail
to
the Clerk of this Church copies of his lectures
before delivering
them. |
| 18 |
No Disruption of Branch Churches.
SECT. 3.
The Board of Lectureship is not allowed in any-
wise to
meddle with nor to disrupt the organiza-
Page
94 |
| 1 |
tion of branch churches. The lecturer can
invite
churches within the city whither he is called to |
| 3 |
unite in their attendance on his lecture,
and so
make for their churches a less lecture fee; but
the churches
shall decide their action. |
| 6 |
Receptions. SECT. 4. As a rule there
should
be no receptions nor festivities after a lecture on
Christian
Science, but there may occur excep- |
| 9 |
tions. If there be an individual who goes
to hear
and deride truth, he should go away contemplat-
ing truth; and
he who goes to seek truth should |
| 12 |
have the opportunity to depart in quiet
thought
on that subject.
Circuit Lecturer. SECT. 5. Upon the
written |
| 15 |
request of Mrs. Eddy, The Mother Church
shall
appoint a Circuit Lecturer. His term of office, if
approved,
shall not be less than three years. He |
| 18 |
shall lecture in the United States, in
Canada, in
Great Britain and Ireland.
A member shall neither resign nor
transfer |
| 21 |
this sacred office.
Page
95
Article XXXII -
CALLS FOR LECTURES |
| 3 |
the Directors. SECTION 1. When the
need
is apparent, the Christian Science Board of
Directors of The Mother Church
may call on |
| 6 |
any member of this Board of Lectureship
to
lecture at such places and at such times as the
cause of Christian
Science demands. |
| 9 |
From Branch Churches. SECT. 2.
The
branch Churches of Christ, Scientist, may apply
through their
clerks to a member of this Board |
| 12 |
of Lectureship for a speaker, and one
shall be
assigned them by the Board.
From Societies. SECT. 3. If called
for, a |
| 15 |
member of the Board may lecture for a
Society.
Annual Lectures. SECT. 4. The
Mother
Church and the branch churches shall call on |
| 18 |
the Board of Lectureship annually for one
or
more lectures.
No Lectures by Readers. SECT. 5. No
lec- |
| 21 |
ture shall be given by a Reader during his
term
of Readership. The duties alone of a Reader are
ample .
Page
96 |
| 1 |
No Wednesday Evening Lectures. SECT.
6.
The Board of Lectureship shall not appoint a |
| 3 |
lecture for Wednesday evening.
Lecture Fee. SECT. 7. The lecture
fee shall
be left to the discretion of the lecturer. |
| 6 |
Expenses. SECT. 8. The lecturer's
traveling
expenses and the cost of hall shall be paid by
the church
that employs him. |
| 9 |
Exceptional Cases. SECT. 9. If a
lecturer
receive a call to lecture in a place where he sees
there is
special need, and the local church is un- |
| 12 |
able to meet the expense, he is at liberty
to supply
that need and trust to contributions for his fee.
Page
97
COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION
Article XXXIII |
| 3 |
In The Mother Church. SECTION 1.
There
shall be appointed by The Mother Church a Com-
mittee on
Publication, which shall consist of one |
| 6 |
loyal Christian Scientist who lives in
Boston, and
he shall be manager of the Committees on Pub-
lication
throughout the United States, Canada, |
| 9 |
Great Britain and Ireland. He shall be
elected
annually by a unanimous vote of the Christian
Science Board of
Directors and the consent of |
| 12 |
the Pastor Emeritus given in her own
handwrit-
ing, and shall receive an annual salary, paid quar-
terly,
of not less than four thousand dollars. |
| 15 |
Duties. SECT. 2. It shall be the
duty of the
Committee on Publication to correct in a Chris-
tian manner
impositions on the public in regard |
| 18 |
to Christian Science, injustices done Mrs.
Eddy
or members of this Church by the daily press,
by periodicals or
circulated literature of any sort.
Page
98 |
| 1 |
This Committee on Publication shall be
respon-
sible for correcting or having corrected a false |
| 3 |
newspaper article which has not been
replied to
by other Scientists, or which has been forwarded
to this
Committee for the purpose of having him |
| 6 |
reply to it. If the correction by the
Committee
on Publication is not promptly published by the
periodical in
which it is desirable that this cor- |
| 9 |
rection shall appear, this Committee shall
im-
mediately apply for aid to the Committee on
Business. Furthermore,
the Committee on Pub- |
| 12 |
lication shall read the last proof
sheet of such
an article and see that it is published according
to
copy; he shall circulate in large quantities |
| 15 |
the papers containing such an article,
sending a
copy to the Clerk of the Church. It shall also
be the duty of
the Committee on Publication to |
| 18 |
have published each year in a leading
Boston
newspaper the letter sent to the Pastor Emeritus
by the Church
members in annual meeting as- |
| 21 |
sembled. The State Committees on
Publication
act under the direction of this Committee on
Publication. |
| 24 |
In Branch Churches. SECT. 3. The
Readers
of the three largest branch churches in each State
of the
United States and in Canada shall annually
Page
99 |
| 1 |
and alternately appoint a Committee on
Publi-
cation to serve in their localities. For the pur- |
| 3 |
poses of this By-Law, the State of
California shall
be considered as though it were two States, the
dividing line being the 36th parallel of latitude. |
| 6 |
Each county of Great Britain and Ireland,
except
as hereinafter specified, through the Readers of
its three
largest branch churches, shall annually |
| 9 |
and alternately appoint a Committee on
Publica-
tion to serve in its locality. Each church is not
necessarily
confined to its own members in select- |
| 12 |
ing this Committee, but if preferred, can
appoint
a Committee on Publication who is in good fel-
lowship with
another Church of Christ, Scientist. |
| 15 |
This By-Law applies to all States except
Mas-
sachusetts, in which the Committee on Publica-
tion is elected
only by the Christian Science Board |
| 18 |
of Directors. The Committee for the
counties
in which London, England, is situated shall be
appointed by
the Christian Science Board of |
| 21 |
Directors, and he shall, in addition to his
other
duties, act as District Manager of the Committees
on Publication
for Great Britain and Ireland. |
| 24 |
Appointment. SECT. 4. The Committees
on
Publication shall consist of men generally. Each
State Committee
shall be appointed by the First |
| 27 |
and Second Readers of the church
employing
Page
100 |
| 1 |
said Committee. If prior to the meeting of
the
church for the election of officers, Mrs. Eddy |
| 3 |
shall send to the First Reader of the
church the
name of a candidate for its Committee on Publi-
cation, the
Readers shall appoint said candidate. |
| 6 |
Or if she shall send a special request to
any
Committee on Publication, the request shall be
carried out
according to her directions. |
| 9 |
Removal from Office. SECT. 5. If the
Com-
mittee on Publication neglects to fulfil the obli-
gations of his
office according to these By-Laws, |
| 12 |
and this becomes apparent to the Christian
Sci-
ence Board of Directors, it shall be the duty of
the Directors
immediately to act upon this im- |
| 15 |
portant matter in accordance with said
By-Laws.
The Christian Science Board of Directors
may
notify any Church of Christ, Scientist, to remove |
| 18 |
its Committee on Publication and to appoint
an-
other Committee to fill the vacancy; and it shall
be the duty of
that church to comply with this |
| 21 |
request. In such cases it shall be the
privilege
of this Board to name the Committee if it so
desires, and any
Committee so named by the |
| 24 |
Board shall be elected by the branch
church.
Case of Necessity. SECT. 6. If a
suitable
man is not obtainable for Committee on Publica- |
| 27 |
tion, a suitable woman shall be elected.
If at
Page
101 |
| 1 |
any time the Christian Science Board of
Direc-
tors shall determine that the manager of the |
| 3 |
general Committee on Publication needs an
as-
sistant, the Board shall, with the approval of the
Pastor Emeritus,
appoint an assistant manager, |
| 6 |
who shall receive an adequate salary from
The
Mother Church.
Page
102
CHURCH-BUILDING
Article XXXIV |
| 3 |
Building Committee. SECTION 1.
There
shall be a Building Committee consisting of
not less than three
members, and this committee |
| 6 |
shall not be dissolved until the new
church
edifice is completed. This committee shall elect,
dismiss, or
supply a vacancy of its members by |
| 9 |
a majority vote.
Designation of Deeds. SECT. 2. All
deeds
of further purchases of land for The First |
| 12 |
Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston,
Mass.,
shall have named in them all the trusts mentioned
in the deeds
given by Albert Metcalf and E. |
| 15 |
Noyes Whitcomb in March, 1903; but this
rule
shall not apply to land purchased for any purpose
other than the
erection of a church edifice. Also |
| 18 |
there shall be incorporated in all such
deeds
the phrase, "Mary Baker Eddy's Church, The
Page
103
Mother Church or The First Church of
Christ,
Scientist, in Boston, Mass." |
| 3 |
The Mother Church Building. SECT. 3.
The
edifice erected in 1894 for The First Church of
Christ, Scientist,
in Boston, Mass., shall neither |
| 6 |
be demolished, nor removed from the site
where
it was built, without the written consent of the
Pastor Emeritus,
Mary Baker Eddy.
Page
104
CHURCH MANUAL
Article XXXV |
| 3 |
For The Mother Church Only. SECTION
1.
The Church Manual of The First Church of
Christ, Scientist, in
Boston, Mass., written by |
| 6 |
Mary Baker Eddy and copyrighted, is
adapted
to The Mother Church only. It stands alone,
uniquely adapted to
form the budding thought |
| 9 |
and hedge it about with divine Love.
This
Manual shall not be revised without the written
consent of its
author. |
| 12 |
Seventy-third Edition the Authority.
SECT. 2.
The Board of Directors, the Committee on Bible
Lessons, and
the Board of Trustees shall each |
| 15 |
keep a copy of the Seventy-third Edition
and of
subsequent editions of the Church Manual; and
if a discrepancy
appears in any revised edition, |
| 18 |
these editions shall be cited as
authority.
Page
105 |
| 1 |
Amendment of By-Laws. SECT. 3. No
new
Tenet or By-Law shall be adopted, nor any |
| 3 |
Tenet or By-Law amended or annulled,
with-
out the written consent of Mary Baker Eddy, the
author of our
textbook, SCIENCE AND HEALTH.
Page 106 -- Page left blank
Page 107 -- Page left blank
Page 108 Appendix.
Page 109
Appendix.
Special
Instructions Regarding Applications for Church Membership
|
| 3 |
1. Loyal members of The Mother Church
are
eligible to approve candidates to unite with this
Church. |
| 6 |
2. No persons are eligible to countersign
ap-
plications except loyal students of Mrs. Eddy,
Directors, and
students of the Board of Educa- |
| 9 |
tion who have been given a degree, and are
mem-
bers of The Mother Church.
3. Those who approve applicants should
have |
| 12 |
applications returned to them after being
filled
out by the applicants, as required by Article
V, Sect. 6, and
should compare them with |
| 15 |
the forms here given, and see that names
are
legibly written, before sending them to the
Clerk of the Church. If
not correct, the appli- |
| 18 |
cant will be notified, and new
applications will
Page
110 |
| 1 |
be required, as none will be returned that
are
not correctly made out. This requirement is to |
| 3 |
prevent applications being duplicated and
the
confusion that might result therefrom. It is
important that these
seemingly strict conditions |
| 6 |
be exactly complied with, as the names of
the
members of The Mother Church will be recorded
in the history of the
Church and become a part |
| 9 |
thereof.
4. All names, whether of applicants,
signers,
or countersigners, must be plainly
written, and |
| 12 |
one, at least, of the given names of each,
written
in full. Initials only of first names will not be
received.
Women must sign Miss or Mrs. be- |
| 15 |
fore their names as the case may be.
All names must be written the same in
all
places where they are required.
Page
111 |
| 1 |
TO APPLICANTS
1. In filling out the application blank,
one |
| 3 |
of the Christian names must be written in
full.
Initials alone will not be received.
2. If the applicant is a married woman
she |
| 6 |
must sign her own Christian name, not her
hus-
band's, and prefix her signature with "Mrs;"
unmarried women must
sign "Miss."
9 3. There are two regular forms of
applica-
tion. 1. For those who have studied Christian
Science with an
authorized teacher; 2. For those |
| 12 |
who have not studied Christian Science
with a
teacher.
Applicants will find the chief points of
these |
| 15 |
instructions illustrated in Form 1 and
Form 2,
on pages 114 and 118.
4. Those whose teachers are deceased,
absent, |
| 18 |
or disloyal, or those whose teachers
refuse, with-
out sufficient cause, to sign applications (see
Art. V,
Sect. 4), will be furnished special forms |
| 21 |
on application to the Clerk.
Page
112 |
| 1 |
5. When branch churches are designated
by
number, as First Church, Second Church, etc., |
| 3 |
the number must be written First, Second,
as
shown on page 118. The article "the" either
capitalized (The), or
small (the), must not be |
| 6 |
used before titles of branch churches. See
Ar-
ticle XXIII, Sect. 2.
6. If the applicant is not a member of
a |
| 9 |
branch church, he should fill out his
applica-
tion in this respect according to the form on
page 114.
Page 113
-- Page left blank
Page
114
Application I
PROPERLY SIGNED AND ENDORSED,
ACCORDINC TO ARTICLE V, SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
115
Application I - (Continued)
PROPERLY SIGNED AND ENDORSED,
ACCORDING TO ARTICLE V, SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
116
Application I
PROPERLY SIGNED AND
ENDORSED,
ACCORDING TO ARTICLE V,
SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
117
Application I -
(Continued)
PROPERLY SIGNED AND
ENDORSED,
ACCORDING TO ARTICLE V,
SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
118
Application II
SIGNED, ENDORSED, AND
COUNTERSIGNED,
ACCORDING TO ARTICLE Vl,
SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
119
Application II -
(Continued)
SIGNED, ENDORSED, AND
COUNTERSIGNED,
ACCORDING TO ARTICLE VI,
SECT. 2
[Form omitted]
Page
120
Present Order of
Services
in The Mother
Church
Republished from the Sentinel
SUNDAY SERVICES
1. Hymn.
2. Reading a Scriptural Selection.
3. Silent Prayer, followed by the
audible
repetition of the Lord's Prayer with its
spirit-
ual interpretation.
4. Hymn.
5. Announcing necessary notices.
6. Solo.
7. Reading the explanatory note on first
leaf
of Quarterly.
8. Announcing the subject of the
Lesson-
Sermon, and reading the Golden Text.
9. Reading the Scriptural selection,
entitled
"Responsive Reading," alternately by the
First
Reader and the congregation.
10. Reading the Lesson-Sermon. (After
the
Second Reader reads the BIBLE references
of
Page
121
the first Section of
the Lesson, the First Reader
makes the following
announcement: "As an-
nounced in the
explanatory note, I shall now
read correlative
passages from the Christian
Science textbook,
SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH
KEY TO THE
SCRIPTURES, by Mary Baker Eddy. )
11. Collection.
12. Hymn.
13. Reading the
scientific statement of
being, and the
correlative SCRIPTURE accord-
ing to I John
3:1-3.
14. Pronouncing
Benediction.
The services should
be preceded and followed
by organ or piano
music of an appropriate char-
acter in all cases
where this is possible.
On the first Sunday
of each month Article VIII,
SECT. 1, A Rule
for Motives and Acts, is to be
read.
Page
122
WEDNESDAY
MEETINGS
1. Hymn.
2. Reading from the BIBLE, and
correlative
passages from SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH
KEY
TO THE SCRIPTURES.
3. Silent Prayer, followed by the audible
repe-
tition of the Lord's Prayer, its spiritual
interpre-
tation being omitted.
4. Hymn.
5. Announcing necessary notices.
6. Experiences, testimonies, and remarks
on
Christian Science.
7. Closing Hymn.
The services should be preceded and
followed
by organ or piano music of an appropriate
char-
acter in all cases where this is
possible.
Page
123
Thanksgiving
Day.
Order of Service for The Mother Church
and
Branch Churches.
1. Hymn.
2. Reading the Thanksgiving
Proclamation
of the President of the United States, or
the
Governor of the state, or both.
3. Reading a Scriptural Selection.
4 . Silent Prayer, followed by the
audible
repetition of the Lord's Prayer with its
spirit-
ual interpretation.
5. Hymn.
6. Reading the Explanatory Note on the
first leaf of the Quarterly.
7. Announcing the subject of the
Lesson-
Sermon, and reading the Golden Text.
8. Responsive Reading by the First
Reader-
and the congregation.
Page
124
9. Reading the
Lesson-Sermon prepared by
the Bible Lesson
Committee.
10. Solo.
11. Testimonies by
Christian Scientists,
appropriate for the
occasion.
12. Hymn.
13. Reading the
Scientific Statement of
Being, and the
correlative SCRIPTURE according
to I John 3:1-3.
14. Pronouncing
Benediction.
No collection is to
be taken at this service.
The services should
be preceded and followed
by organ or piano
music of an appropriate char-
acter in all cases where this is
possible.
Page
125
Present Order of
Communion Services
in Branch
Churches
1. Hymn.
2. Reading a Scriptural Selection.
3. Silent Prayer, followed by the
audible
repetition of the Lord's Prayer with its
spiritual
interpretation.
4. Hymn.
5. Announcing necessary notices.
6. Reading Tenets of The Mother
Church.
7. Collection and Solo.
8. Reading the explanatory note on first
leaf
of Quarterly.
9. Announcing the subject of the
Lesson-
Sermon, and reading the Golden Text.
10. Reading the scriptural selection
entitled
"Responsive Reading" alternately by the
First
Reader and the congregation.
11. Reading the Lesson-Sermon. (After
the
Second Reader reads the BIBLE references
of the
first Section of the Lesson, the First
Reader
Page
126
makes the following
announcement: "As an-
nounced in the
explanatory note, I shall now read
correlative passages
from the Christian Science
textbook, SCIENCE
AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO
THE SCRIPTURES, by
Mary Baker Eddy.")
12. The First Reader
briefly invites the con-
gregation to kneel
in silent Communion. This is
concluded by the
audible repetition of the Lord's
Prayer (spiritual
interpretation omitted).
13. Singing the
Doxology:
"Be Thou, O God,
exalted high;
And as Thy glory
fills the sky,
So let it be on
earth displayed,
Till Thou art here
and now obeyed."
14. Reading the
scientific statement of
being and the
correlative SCRIPTURE accord-
ing to I John
3:1-3.
15. Pronouncing
Benediction.
The Church Tenets
shall be read at this service.
The services should
be preceded and followed
by organ or piano
music of an appropriate char-
acter in all cases where this is
possible.
Page
127
Order of
Exercises for the Sunday School
of the Mother
Church.
1. Call to order by
the Superintendent.
2. Hymn.
3. Subject of the
lesson announced; Golden
Text repeated by the
children; Responsive
Reading.
4. Silent prayer,
followed by the audible
repetition of the
Lord's Prayer in unison.
5. Instruction in
classes, in accordance with
Sections 2 AND 3 of
Article XX of the Manual
of The Mother
Church.
6. Entire school
reassembles.
7. Hymn.
8. Scientific
Statement of Being read by the
Superintendent.
9. School
dismissed.
Page
128
Deed of
Trust
The following is
a Copy of the Deed of Trust
Conveying Land for Church Edifice
KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS,
That I Mary Baker G. Eddy of
Concord in
the County of Merrimack and State of New
Hampshire in
consideration of one dollar to
me paid by Ira O. Knapp of Boston, Mas-
sachusetts, William B. Johnson of Boston,
Massachusetts, Joseph S.
Eastaman of Chel-
sea, Massachusetts, and Stephen A. Chase of
Fall
River, Massachusetts, the receipt whereof
is hereby acknowledged, and,
also in consider-
ation of the trusts and uses hereinafter men-
tioned and established, do hereby give, bargain,
sell, and convey to the
said Ira O. Knapp, Wil-
liam B. Johnson, Joseph S. Eastaman, and
Stephen A. Chase as trustees as hereinafter
provided and to their
legitimate successors in
Page 129
office forever, a certain parcel of land
situate
on Falmouth street in said Boston,
bounded and
described as follows: Beginning
at the junction
of Falmouth street, and a
forty-foot street now
called Caledonia
street; thence running South-
west on said
Falmouth street one hundred and
sixteen and
eighty-eight hundredths feet; thence
Northwest at a right angle to a point where a
line drawn at right angles to said forty-foot
street at a point thereon one hundred and six-
teen and fifty-five hundredths feet Northwest
from the point of beginning meets the said
boundary at right angles to Falmouth street,
sixty-six and seventy-eight hundredths feet;
thence at an obtuse angle on said line at
right
angles to said forty-foot street
sixty-seven and
thirty-five hundredths feet
to said forty-foot
street; thence
Southeasterly on said forty-foot
street one
hundred and sixteen and fifty-five
hundredths
feet to the point of beginning;
containing
seven thousand eight hundred and
twenty-eight
square feet more or less, and sub-
ject to
the agreements and restrictions men-
tioned
in a deed recorded in Suffolk Registry
of
Deeds Lib. 1719, Fol 83so far as the same
are now legally
operative.
Page 130
This deed of conveyance is made upon the
following express trusts and conditions which
the said grantees by accepting this deed
agree
and covenant for themselves and their
succes-
sors in office to fully perform and
fulfil.
1. Said grantees shall be known as the "Chris-
tian Science Board of Directors," and shall con-
stitute a perpetual body or corporation under
and
in accordance with section one, Chapter
39 of the
Public Statutes of
Massachusetts.(1) Whenever a
vacancy occurs
in said Board the remaining mem-
bers shall
within thirty days fill the same by elec-
tion; but no one shall be eligible to that office
who is not in the opinion of the remaining mem-
bers of the Board a firm and consistent
believer
in the doctrines of Christian
Science as taught in
a book entitled SCIENCE
AND HEALTH, by Mary
Baker G. Eddy beginning
with the seventy-first
edition thereof.
(1)The deacons, church wardens, or other similar officers of
Churches
or religious societies, and the
trustees of the Methodist Episcopal
churches,
appointed according to the discipline and usages thereof,
shall, if citizens of this commonwealth, be deemed bodies
corporate
for the purpose of taking and
holding in succession all grants and
donations, whether of real or personal estate, made either to
the
and their successors, or to their
respective churches, or to the poor of
their
churches.
Page 131
2. Said Board shall within five years from
the
date hereof build or cause to be built
upon said
lot of land a suitable and
convenient church edi-
fice, the cost of
which shall not be less than fifty
thousand
dollars.
3. When said church building is completed
said Board shall elect a pastor, reader or speaker
to fill the pulpit who shall be a genuine
Christian
Scientist; they shall maintain
public worship in
accordance with the
doctrines of Christian Sci-
ence in said
church, and for this purpose they
are fully
empowered to make any and all neces-
sary
rules and regulations.
4. Said Board of Directors shall not
suffer
or allow any building to be erected
upon said
lot except a church building or
edifice, nor shall
they allow said church
building or any part
thereof to be used for
any other purpose than
for the ordinary and
usual uses of a church.
5. Said Board of Directors shall not allow
or
permit in said church building any
preaching or
other religious services which
shall not be con-
sonant and in strict
harmony with the doctrines
and practice of
Christian Science as taught and
explained by Mary Baker G. Eddy in
the seventy-
Page 132
first edition of her book entitled SCIENCE
AND
HEALTH," which is soon to be issued, and
in any
subsequent edition thereof.
6. The congregation which shall worship in
said church shall be styled "The First Church
of Christ, Scientist."
7. Said Directors shall
not sell or mortgage
the land hereby
conveyed; but they shall see
that all taxes
and legal assessments on said
property are
promptly paid.
8. Said church building shall not be removed
from said lot except for the purpose of
rebuild-
ing thereon a more expensive or a
more conven-
ient structure in which said
doctrines of Christian
Science only shall be
preached and practised. If
said church
building is removed for either of
the
purposes above set forth, any and all tablets
and inscriptions which are or shall be upon said
church building at the time of removal shall be
removed therefrom and placed upon the walls
of the new edifice. If said building is
burned,
the Directors shall forthwith proceed
to rebuild
the church.
9. Said
Directors shall maintain regular
preaching, reading or speaking in
said church
Page 133
on each Sabbath, and an omission to have
and
maintain such preaching, reading or
speaking
for one year in succession shall be
deemed a
breach of this condition.
10. Whenever said Directors shall determine
that it is inexpedient to maintain preaching,
reading or speaking in said church in accord-
ance with the terms of this deed, they are
authorized and required to reconvey forthwith
said lot of land with the building thereon to
Mary Baker G. Eddy, her heirs and assigns
forever by a proper deed of conveyance.
11. The
omission or neglect on the part of
said
Directors to strictly comply with any of
the
conditions herein contained shall constitute
a breach thereof, and the title hereby conveyed
shall revert to the grantor Mary Baker G. Eddy,
her heirs and assigns forever, upon her entry
upon said land and taking possession thereof
for such breach.
To Have and to Hold the
above granted
premises with all the
privileges and appurte-
nances thereon
belonging to said grantees and
their
successors in office to the uses and trusts
above described
forever.
Page 134
And the said grantor for herself and her
heirs,
executors and administrators covenants
with the
said grantees and their successors
in office that
she is lawfully seized in fee
simple of the afore-
said premises, that they
are free from all incum-
brances not herein
mentioned or referred to, that
she has good
right to sell and convey the same
to the said
grantees and their successors in office
as
aforesaid, and that she will and her heirs,
executors, and administrators shall, warrant and
defend the same to the said grantees and their
successors in office forever against the
lawful
claims and demands of all persons.
In witness whereof I the said Mary Baker G.
Eddy have hereto set my hand and seal this 1st
day of September, 1892.
MARY BAKER G. EDDY.
Signed, sealed, and
delivered in presence of
LAURA E.
SARGENT.
R. E. WALKER.
September 1st, 1892.
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE,
MERRIMACK.
Then personally appeared the above named
Mary Baker G. Eddy and acknowledged the
Page 135
foregoing instrument to be her free act and
deed,
Before me
R. E. WALKER.
Notary Public.
September 2,
1892.
SUFFOLK REGISTRY OF DEEDS, Lib. 2081, Fol. 257.
Page 136
Deed Conveying Land for Church Purposes
METCALE to KNAPP et al.
Trs.
Libro 2886, Fol. 521.
KNOW
ALL MEN,
That I, Albert Metcalf, the grantor in a cer-
tain deed given to Ira O. Knapp and others
dated October 23, 1896, and recorded with Suf-
folk Deeds, Book 2591, page 398, do hereby
de-
clare that the land conveyed by said deed
was
conveyed to the grantees therein, as they
are the
Christian Science Board of Directors,
upon the
trusts, but not subject to the
conditions men-
tioned in the deed creating
said Board given by
Mary Baker G. Eddy to Ira
O. Knapp and
others, dated September 1st,
1892, and recorded
with Suffolk Deeds, Book
2081, page 257. In
addition to the trusts
contained in said deed of
September 1, 1892, from Mary Baker G.
Eddy,
Page 137
this property is conveyed on the further trusts
that no new Tenet or By-Law shall be adopted,
nor any Tenet or By-Law amended or annulled
by the grantees unless the written consent of said
Mary Baker G. Eddy, the author of the
textbook
SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE
SCRIP-
TURES," be given therefor, or unless
at the writ-
ten request of Mrs. Eddy the
Executive Members
of The First Church of
Christ, Scientist, (for-
merly called the
"First Members,") by a two-
thirds vote of
all their number, decide so to do.
And that
the same inscription which is on the
outside
of the present church edifice shall be
placed
on any new church erected on said lot.
And in
consideration of one dollar to me paid
by
said Ira O. Knapp, William B. Johnson,
Joseph
Armstrong and Stephen A. Chase, the
receipt
whereof is hereby acknowledged, I do
hereby
confirm the deed as above mentioned, and
do
grant and release unto them, their heirs, suc-
cessors and assigns in trust as aforesaid, the
premises therein described.
In Witness
Whereof I have hereunto set my
hand and seal
this nineteenth day of March, A. D.
nineteen
hundred and three.
ALBERT METCALF. [Seal]
Page 138
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
SUFFOLK March 20th, 1903
Then said Albert Metcalf acknowledged the
foregoing instrument to be his
free act and
deed.
Before me
MALCOLM McLOUD.
Justice of the Peace.
March 20, 1903. at
twelve o'clock and sixteen minutes P.M.
Received, Entered and Examined.
Attest: THOS. F. TEMPLE, Reg.
A true copy from the RECORDS
OF DEEDS for the COUNTY
OF SUFFOLK, Lib. 2886, Fol. 521.
Attest:
CHAS. W. KIMBALL, Asst. Reg.
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